| Rupert Thorne | |
|---|---|
.png) Rupert Thorne as depicted inDetective Comics #469 (May 1977). Art byWalt Simonson (penciller),Al Milgrom (inker), and Jerry Serpe (colorist). | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Detective Comics #469 (May 1977) |
| Created by | Steve Englehart (writer) Walt Simonson (artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Species | Human |
Rupert Thorne is afictionalcharacter appearing incomic books published byDC Comics. The character is a crooked politician, a crime boss, and an enemy ofBatman.
Thorne has made several appearances in animated DC media, such asBatman: The Animated Series, in which he is voiced byJohn Vernon, and theDC Universe animated seriesCreature Commandos, voiced byBenjamin Byron Davis.
Created bySteve Englehart andWalter Simonson, the character first appeared inDetective Comics #469.[1]
Rupert Thorne is introduced as a corruptpolitician with extensive ties to organized crime and ambitions of becoming acrime boss in his own right.Doctor Phosphorus blackmails him with evidence of his crimes into turningGotham City against Batman. After Phosphorus is defeated, Thorne decides not to waste the opportunity and persuades his fellow city councilors to declare Batman an outlaw. He attempts to gain complete control of Gotham by running for mayor, but fails. Rupert Thorne,Penguin, andJoker later make a bid atHugo Strange's secret auction to be told Batman'ssecret identity. Thorne kidnaps and tortures Strange to force him to divulge Batman's identity rather than risk losing the auction. Strange resists, however, and apparently dies in the process. After disposing of his body, Thorne is haunted by eerie sounds and visions of Strange.[2]
After failing in his campaign against Batman and spending some time in hiding, Thorne secretly returns to Gotham City.[3] He gets the corruptHamilton Hill elected as the mayor of Gotham and orders him to fire Police CommissionerJames Gordon in favor of Peter Pauling, who is on Thorne's payroll. Thorne finally identifies Bruce Wayne as Batman after acquiring photos of him changing into his costume from reporterVicki Vale. Thorne then hiresDeadshot to kill Wayne.[4] Deadshot is unsuccessful, but before Thorne can deal with the problem, he begins to succumb to Strange's manipulations; Strange is revealed to have faked his death while using elaborate special-effects devices to simulate ghostly encounters. Thorne becomes paranoid, convinced that Hill and Pauling are plotting against him and trying to drive him insane. He shoots Pauling dead, but is eventually apprehended by Batman and brought to justice.[5]
Decades later, Thorne returns inDetective Comics #825. He is serving a lengthy prison sentence inBlackgate Penitentiary when a vengeful Doctor Phosphorus unsuccessfully attempts to kill him.[6]
In 2016, DC Comics implemented a relaunch of its books calledDC Rebirth, which restored its continuity to a form much as it was prior toThe New 52 reboot. While Rupert Thorne's role as a corrupt politician remains intact, he and the city councilors in his payroll established the Oceangate Nuclear Power Plant on the outskirts of Gotham City following the destruction of the plant that Alex Sartorius worked at. Thorne is investigated by the police following the murder of councilwoman Ann Vinton, who was killed with a radioactive bullet. Batman reasons that Thorne and Sartorius were involved in the murder, as the bullet was coated with Sartorius' blood.[7]
InBatman: Three Jokers, Thorne is shown to be incarcerated at Blackgate when Batman visitsJoe Chill.[8]
An alternate universe variant of Rupert Thorne appears inGotham by Gaslight. This version is a respected member of Gotham's city council who later becomes interim mayor in the aftermath ofJack the Ripper's killing spree.
