Victor Zsasz
Victor Zsasz, Zsasz or Mr. Zsasz is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe. He is a serial killer and is a nemesis of Batman. He usually kills with a knife, and carves a tally mark somewhere on his body whenever he kills someone.
| Zsasz | |
|---|---|
Zsasz and his many scars. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Shadow of the Bat #1 (1992) |
| Created by | Alan Grant |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Victor Zsasz |
| Team affiliations | None, Assorted Batman Rogues, Secret Society of Super Villains |
| Notable aliases | Mr. Zsasz |
| Abilities | Extreme intelligence Physical strength and agility Unpredictability |
History
Zsasz first appeared in Shadow of the Bat #1 (1992), and his origin story was told in Batman Chronicles #3 (1996); both stories were written by Alan Grant. His name is derived from that of psychologist Thomas Szasz.
Zsasz, an incredibly intelligent man, was the head of his own international company and had amassed a large personal fortune in addition to his family's wealth. At the age of 25 his parents died in a boating accident, he went into a deep depression and turned to gambling, losing money in competitions around the world. One night, he ended up in a Gotham City casino, where he gambled everything he owned and ended up losing it all to the Penguin; afterwards he saw that his life was empty, driven by desire, and there was no point to his existence. While attempting to commit suicide by jumping from Gotham Bridge, a homeless man tried to assault him with a knife after he refused to give him money. Instinctively grabbing the knife, Zsasz saw in the man's eyes that all life is meaningless and that nothing anyone does matters. He then proceeded to stab the man to death as a gift for saving his life. From then on, he dedicated himself to "liberating" others from their pointless existence. He usually preys on young women, but has no qualms over whom he murders. He slits his victims' throats and leaves them in lifelike poses, adding a tally mark to his body each time. He has been diagnosed as insane, and is regularly incarcerated in Arkham Asylum courtesy of Batman, breaking out on occasion to carry on killing.
During the KnightFall Saga, he took an all girl's college hostage and held the students at knife point until Batman arrived. Though weakened both physically and mentally, Batman duked it out with Zsasz and, driven to his breaking point by the mass murderer's mockery, taunting him that they were really one and the same, and his general disregard for human life, Batman lost control of his rage, giving Zsasz a vicious beating. Batman most likely would have killed Zsasz with his bare hands had the police not stopped him.
During Arkham's reconstruction, after Jeremiah Arkham inherited the asylum from his uncle, Zsasz bribed a contractor to include a secret passage leading out from his cell. Although Zsasz was restrained during the daytime when he was treated personally by Jeremiah Arkham, he was brought back to his cell at night, when he would leave the asylum through the passage. After murders fitting his modus operandi began surfacing, he was not found out until Batman faked insanity in order to get a closer view.
Zsasz was not seen again until Detective Comics 815, released in March 2006, entitled Victims. Before a quarterly psychiatric review, Zsasz managed to kill the Arkham Asylum guards with metal poles attached to his neck bracket, and escaped to kill again. Despite attempts by the police to arrest him, Batman went on a hunt for Zsasz, which proved unsuccessful until Zsasz managed to gain access to a charity event (attended by Bruce Wayne) and stabbed his beloved butler, Alfred Pennyworth. Bruce managed to save Alfred's life by driving him to Gotham City General Hospital.
To lure Zsasz to him, Bruce held a press conference in which he announced that Alfred was still alive. Having already made a scar for Alfred, Zsasz realised that his tally was off by one ("My skin... it's crawling... every inch of it feels... wrong.") During the second part of Victims (Detective Comics 816), after a fight with Batman, Zsasz proceeded to the hospital to finish off Alfred. Batman caught him off-guard and knocked him unconscious, thus saving Alfred's life and sending Zsasz back to Arkham.
Zsasz appeared somewhat older in Victims; he had lost all his hair and his face was creased with age lines. The beard aside, he looked very similar to Tim Booth's portrayal in Batman Begins (see below).
Other media
Probably due to his disturbing nature, Zsasz did not appear in any of the Batman cartoons.
He does, however, appear in the 2005 film Batman Begins, played by Tim Booth, former singer with the British band James.[1]
In the movie, Zsasz may or may not be a serial killer; he is sent to Arkham Asylum along with many assassins who works for Mob boss Carmine Falcone due to the testimony of Dr. Jonathan Crane (aka the Scarecrow.) Due to the fact that his scars are visible, some fans believe that he is a serial killer rather than an underling of Falcone.
He is also one of the first to leave his cell in the Arkham breakout, and he almost kills Rachel Dawes with his knife. Batman manages to save her by punching Zsasz in the head, but he is still at large by the end of the film. This has led some fans to believe that he may have a more prominent role in a sequel despite his low screen-time.