| Talia al Ghul | |
|---|---|
 Talia as depicted on the exclusives reprint variant cover ofDetective Comics #411. Art by Woo Chul Lee (April 2024). | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Detective Comics #411 (May 1971) |
| Created by | Dennis O'Neil (writer) Bob Brown (artist) Dick Giordano (concept) |
| In-story information | |
| Species | Human |
| Team affiliations | Secret Society of Super Villains League of Assassins Leviathan |
| Notable aliases | Talia Head Leviathan Daughter of the Demon's Head |
| Abilities |
|
Talia al Ghul (/ˈtɑːliəˌælˈɡuːl/;[1][2]Arabic:تالية الغول,Arabic pronunciation:[taːlijjaal.ɣuːl]) is a fictional character appearing inAmerican comic books published byDC Comics, commonly in association withBatman. The character was created by writerDennis O'Neil and artistBob Brown, and first appeared inDetective Comics #411 (May 1971).[3]
Talia is most commonly known as being the daughter of the questionableRa's al Ghul as well as a misunderstood protagonist of thesuperhero Batman’s story line while being the mother of their son,Damian Wayne (the fifthRobin). The Romantic Proposition between Talia and Batman is the hidden background of their relationship which is outlined only in theirnoncanon story.[4] Over the years, she has alternately been depicted as ananti-heroine who is constantly torn between being an ally and a distant friend of Batman due to her loyalty to both him and her environmentalist revolution. She shares the same vision with other characters when it comes to saving the planet and nature, but not the means used to achieve that goal.
Talia has been featured in various media adaptations. The character was voiced byHelen Slater andOlivia Hussey in theDC Animated Universe, which became her first appearances in media other than comic books. The character was subsequently portrayed byMarion Cotillard in the 2012 filmThe Dark Knight Rises and byLexa Doig in theArrowverse television seriesArrow.
The character was created by the writerDennis O'Neil and artistBob Brown as simplyTalia originally.[5] The character's creation and depiction was inspired by other works of fiction, such as the 1969James Bond filmOn Her Majesty's Secret Service, and theFu Manchu fiction.[6][7][8][9] The character first appeared inDetective Comics #411 (May 1971). She is most commonly depicted as aromantic interest for Batman, a villain, or a combination of the two.Her father, the leader of aworldwide criminal and terrorist empire, considered Batman the man most worthy to marry Talia and become his successor.[10] Absent a spouse, Talia was considered as anheir to her father and his organization.[11][12][13] While Batman is uninterested in the criminal empire, he has often demonstrated romantic feelings for Talia.
Talia has saved the life of Batman or helped him on numerous occasions. The majority of her criminal acts have been committed at the behest of her father and motivated by loyalty to her father rather than for personal gain. She had been depicted as morally ambiguous or anantiheroic figure.[14] In the mid to late 1990s part of her father's name was incorporated to hers as a kind of surname to help readers associate her with Ra's al Ghul. Recent depictions have shown her to be more often an enemy of Batman and a supervillain in her own right, such as leading theLeague of Assassins,[14][15] as part of theSecret Society of Super Villains,[16] and as the mastermind behindLeviathan.[17]
IGN's list of the Top 100 Comic Book Villains of All Time List ranked Talia as #42.[18] She was ranked 25th inComics Buyer's Guide's "100 Sexiest Women in Comics" list.[19]
The first Talia comic story appears in "Into the Den of the Death-Dealers!" inDetective Comics #411 (May 1971), written by Dennis O'Neil. In the story, Batman rescues her from Dr. Darrk, apparently the leader of theLeague of Assassins. It is eventually revealed that the League is just one part of Ra's al Ghul's organization, The Demon, and that Darrk apparently turned against Ra's after failing in a mission (the usual punishment for this is death). At the end of the story, she shoots and kills Darrk to save Batman's life.
Talia next appears in "Daughter of the Demon" inBatman #232 (June 1971). In the story,Dick Grayson (Robin) is kidnapped. Ra's al Ghul enters theBatcave, revealing to Batman that he knows Batman'ssecret identity and saying that Talia was also kidnapped along with Dick. Batman then goes with Ra's to search for Dick and Talia; in the end, it is revealed that Talia loves Batman and that the entire kidnapping is a setup designed by Ra's as a final test of Batman's suitability to be Talia's husband and his successor. Though Batman rejects Ra's offer, he nevertheless returns Talia's feelings. Ra's and Talia consider Batman to be married to Talia with only their consent necessary inDC Special Series #15 (1978) in the story "I Now Pronounce You Batman and Wife!".[20]
In the years since the character met Batman, Talia is repeatedly depicted as torn between her love for the Caped Crusader and her loyalty to her father. However, she has proven an important ally in her way; most prominently, she encourages Batman to return toGotham City when it is declared a "No Man's Land" (1999) following an earthquake.
In the noncanonical graphic novelSon of the Demon (1987) byMike W. Barr, Ra's al Ghul successfully enlists Batman's aid in defeating a rogue assassin who had murdered his wife and Talia's mother, Melisande. Talia witnessed the murder as a young child. During this storyline, Batman marries Talia and the prior marriage fromDC Special Series #15 (1978) is referenced. They havesex which results in her becomingpregnant. Batman is nearly killed protecting Talia from an attack by the assassin's agents. In retrospect, Talia concludes that she could never keep Batman, as he would be continuously forced to defend her, so she fakes amiscarriage, and the marriage is dissolved.
In later continuity, after Talia gives birth the child is left at an orphanage. He is adopted and given the nameIbn al Xu'ffasch which is Arabic for 'son of the bat'. The only other clue to the child's heritage is a jewel-encrusted necklace Batman had given to Talia which Talia leaves with the child.
It is referenced in threeElseworlds storylines:Kingdom Come, its sequelThe Kingdom, andBrotherhood of the Bat feature two alternate versions of the child as an adult, coming to terms with his dual heritage.
The graphic novelBatman: Birth of the Demon (1992) by Dennis O'Neil explains how her father met her mother atWoodstock,New York. Talia's mother is confirmed deceased of a drug overdose in this story. This introduction of Talia's mother in particular, (as well as Talia al Ghul's origin) is revised and further elaborated inBatman, Incorporated #2 (2012) byGrant Morrison andChris Burnham.
After Bane enters the League of Assassins, Ra's considers Bane a potential heir to his empire instead of Batman and wants his daughter to marry him. Talia later rejects the brute, regarding him as merely a cunning animal compared to the more cultured intelligence of his predecessor. After Batman defeats Bane in theLegacy comic series (1996), Ra's agrees that Bane was unworthy of his daughter (Detective Comics #701 andRobin #33), and calls off their engagement. FollowingLegacy, Bane has a nightmare inBatman: Bane (1997) of Talia (presumed to be deceased) betraying him and stabbing him and then embracing Batman. InBirds of Prey #26 (2001), written by Dixon, Bane continues to express his obsession with Talia. At the end of the story, Talia is pleased with the supposed death of Bane in one of her father's underground sanctums.
The Talia character was written to begin a new phase of her life near the turn of the century. Talia, disillusioned with her father and his plans and using the nameTalia Head for herself,[21][22] leaves him to runLexCorp as its new CEO whenLex Luthor becomesPresident of the United States. Although she seemingly supports Luthor, she secretly works to undermine him, anonymously leaking news of his underhanded dealings toSuperman. InSuperman/Batman #6 (March 2004), when the time comes for Luthor's downfall, she sells all of LexCorp's assets to theWayne Foundation, leaving Luthor penniless and his crimes exposed to all.
InBatman: Death and the Maidens (2003) written byGreg Rucka, it is revealed that Ra's al Ghul met a woman by whom he had a daughter namedNyssa during his travels in Russia in the 20th century. Ra's abandons Nyssa at a crucial time: she is tortured, her entire family is killed in a concentration camp duringthe Holocaust, and she is renderedsterile whenNazi doctors pour acid into her uterus. Seeking vengeance, Nyssa plans to use her considerable wealth and resources to kill Ra's by befriending, kidnapping, and brainwashing Talia, turning her into a weapon to kill their father. To this end, she captures Talia and kills and resurrects her in rapid succession in a Lazarus Pit, leaving Talia virtually broken from the trauma of dying again and again in so short a time as Nyssa asks Talia why her father is 'letting' this happen to her. Rendered apathetic by her time in the camp, unable to feel anything, Nyssa also plans to assassinate Superman withKryptonite bullets she stole from theBatcave, hoping that, by uniting the world in one moment of tragedy, she would manage to rouse herself once more.
While Batman is successful in preventing the assassination of Superman, he is unable to stop Nyssa from killing Ra's. This, in turn, is actually part of a greater plan concocted by Ra's, who wants to ensure that his daughters would accept theirdestinies as his heirs and take up his genocidal campaign. Realizing and accepting this, Nyssa and Talia become the heads of The Demon, with Talia disavowing her love for Bruce Wayne as another result of her torture at Nyssa's hands (both sisters then consider Batman to be their enemy). Talia from then on became more often Batman's enemy than an ally.[20]
InCountdown to Infinite Crisis, it is revealed that Talia is one of the core members of theSecret Society of Super Villains (the others were Lex Luthor (secretlyAlexander Luthor Jr. in disguise),Black Adam,Doctor Psycho,Deathstroke, andCalculator). This is revealed to be part of one of half-sisterNyssa's plans to take over the planet and bring about world peace and equality. After Nyssa is killed by BatgirlCassandra Cain, Talia assumes leadership of the League.[14][20]
During the "Death in the Family" (1988) storyline,Jason Todd, the second Robin, is murdered by theJoker inEthiopia. He was later revived as a character, and inUnder the Hood (2005), he is discovered by the League of Assassins. In "Lost Days", out of her love for Batman, Talia takes Jason to her father and Jason spends months in the care of the League of Assassins. Although his body recuperates, Jason's mind is shattered.
Seeing no other way to help him, Talia takes Jason down to the Lazarus Pit and throws his body in while her father regenerates himself. Jason is fully revived in the body and mind. Immediately afterward, to spare Jason her father's wrath, she aids the boy's escape.
Livid at the fact that Batman failed to avenge his (Jason's) death by killing the Joker and that Batman had done nothing more than imprison him again, Jason pursues his own brand of justice. To stall him from killing Batman, Talia agrees to finance Jason and aid him in his training, so that he can then become the secondRed Hood. She later accomplishes this by seducing Jason in an attempt to turn him against Batman.[23][24]
In September 2011,The New 52 rebooted DC's continuity. In this new timeline, this story was changed, wherebyRed Hood and the Outlaws #2 (2011) shows that, shortly after Jason Todd's return from the dead, Talia al Ghul, out of her love for Batman, takes him to a secret cult of warrior monks called the All Caste to train in becoming a skilled assassin.
The concept of Talia and Batman having a child fromSon of the Demon is reinterpreted into continuity in the storyBatman and Son (2006), written byGrant Morrison. Damian is a product of sexual assault of Batman by Talia. Their son is grown in an artificial womb and namedDamian. He is raised and trained in the League of Assassins. Talia introduces him to Batman as part of a grand scheme involving ninjaMan-Bats and the kidnapping of the British Prime Minister's wife.[25]
During theBatman R.I.P. storyline, Talia and Damian become aware of theBlack Glove's plot against Batman and begin devising a plan to help save him. They arrive atWayne Manor just in time to save CommissionerJames Gordon from being killed by assorted booby traps created by the Black Glove. This is referenced in issue 39 of the old 52. She offers to join forces with Gordon to save Batman. She and Gordon arrive too late, however, and are informed by Robin that Batman went missing and maybe dead following a battle withDoctor Hurt.
Furious that her love may be dead, she sends out her ninja Man-Bats to murderJezebel Jet, who plays a major role in trying to kill Batman. Soon after it is revealed Batman did not die, but survives only to be captured byDarkseid during the "Final Crisis" and then apparently murdered by the New God.
Following Batman's apparent death, Talia apparently decides to leave Damian in the hands of his adoptive brotherDick Grayson, who later takes on the role of Batman, and selects Damian to succeed Tim Drake as Robin.
InFinal Crisis, she is placed on the new Society's inner circle byLibra. Despite Talia's interaction with the new Society she still behaves lovingly and almost devoted to Batman.
It is revealed inGotham City Sirens #2 that Talia has trainedSelina Kyle to resist even the most intense psychological coercion to revealBruce Wayne's secret identity.
Following an operation in which Damian's spine is replaced, it is revealed that Talia inserts an implant into his spine that allows her or anyone she chooses, includingDeathstroke, to control Damian's body remotely. She intends to use this device to force Damian to kill Dick Grayson, whom she perceives as holding her son back from his potential.[26] After Grayson frees Damian, Talia reveals to her son that she has begun cloning him after realizing that the Boy Wonder has completely sided with his father's circle during their confrontation. She is too much of a perfectionist to love her son after he has defied her in such a manner, and is no longer welcome in the House of al Ghul.[27]
In 2011, "The New 52" rebooted the DC universe. InBatman Incorporated, written by Grant Morrison, Talia is revealed to be the mastermind behind theLeviathan, a shadowy organization formed to oppose Bruce's "Batman Incorporated" project. She places a bounty of US$500 million on Damian's head, and declares war on Batman.[28][29] InBatman Incorporated Vol. 2, #2 (2012), a Talia origin issue, she puts her father, Ra's al Ghul, under house arrest for opposing her plan and takes his men away with her.[30] She claims to Batman that her agents have infiltrated all of Gotham's infrastructure and that she is providing the poor with purpose by arming them and giving them slogans to chant, as well as an enemy to fight. Talia says Batman must choose between saving Gotham from suicide or saving their son Damian from a death sentence.[31] Her clone of Damian, known as the Heretic, stabs Damian through the chest and delivers the killing stroke to her son, leaving Batman devastated.[32]
After the Heretic loses his final confrontation with Batman, Talia kills him, destroys Wayne Tower, and challenges Batman to a duel to the death in the Batcave.[33] There, Talia poisons Batman. He embraces and kisses her mid-battle, not knowing that her lips were covered with poison, and he apologizes for not being able to love her the way she wants and admits defeat. Talia asks Batman to beg for the antidote but he does not respond. Jason Todd arrives at the Batcave and offers Talia the Oroboro trigger, a device that would trigger the destruction of seven cities and that she claims would provide a new source of energy for the world. When she attempts to activate the device, Jason reveals that he has double-crossed her and that the weapons the device would trigger had already been disarmed. Talia is then shot and killed by Spyral agentKathy Kane, buried, and her body later disappears from the gravesite along with that of Damian.[34]
Morrison's writing of the Batman, Talia, and Damian saga drew from their own personal experience as a child of divorce.[35] The end ofBatman Incorporated marked the end of his seven-year run on the characters.[36]
While Batman was preoccupied with a series of cases, Talia's body is taken from the grave by her father, Ra's, so that he may resurrect his daughter and his grandson, Damian, whose body was also taken. Batman continues his pursuit for Ra's and to reclaim his son's body.[37] Ra's attempted to resurrect Talia alongside Damian in what he thought was a Lazarus Pit in the island ofThemyscira, but instead Ra's discovered that it was a portal to a Netherworld in the Pit's former location, which both Wonder Woman and Batman already knew. Ra's flees with the bodies afterwards.[38] Batman arrives too late, after Ra's has successfully had the bodies placed in a Lazarus Pit.[39] The resurrections fail, leaving Ra's to realize his arrogance in allowing the Heretic to kill his grandson, and regret for allowing Talia to clone Damian.
After defeating Ra's in combat, as Batman intends to reclaim his son's body, their battle is disrupted byDarkseid's elite memberGlorious Godfrey, as well as a number ofParademons.[40] Batman is forced to team up with Ra's to battle Godfrey (who came to retrieve the Chaos Shard, a powerful crystal that once belonged to Darkseid, which Ra's had hidden in Damian's body) and the Parademons who had taken the bodies of Talia and Damian. Ra's manages to get his daughter's body from the Parademons in the sky, but falls into the gorge ofNanda Parbat along with Talia's body, while Batman tries to retrieve his son's body from Godfrey.[41]
Following Damian's resurrection, Talia had emerged on Nanda Parbat with no memory of who she was. She kills a nearby Tibetan to eat their food.[42]
Later, Talia was approached by a shadowy figure; she is able to recognize the robed figure and feared that a faction known as the Lu'un Darga is upon release, she is then knocked unconscious.[43] The robed figure restores Talia's memory and attempts to influence her as a servant, but Talia resists his control and knocks him unconscious with stalagmites. She tries to escape the Lu'un Darga's unknown lair of the inner core with the heart of the Lazarus Pit.[44] When Talia was reunited with her son in the Lu'un Darga's lair on al Ghul Island, Damian is aware of his quest about the Lu'un Darga. He does not wish to see Talia and attacks her.
During their battle, Talia tries, unsuccessfully, to convince Damian that Ra's and his al Ghul family wage war against the ancient immortals of the Lu'un Darga, claiming to be guardians of the Lazarus Pit. While Ra's sought to bring power and balance of life to Earth, the Lu'un Darga then tried to take back all life and cleanse Earth entirely, because they would bring their own destruction to Earth and the heart of the Lazarus Pit. Talia also tells him he is being used as a pawn by Ra's to steal the Lu'un Darga's power. The mysterious robed figure was revealed to be Den Darga, who thanked Damian for inadvertently bringing the relic and attempts to bring about the end of life on Earth.
While Den Darga destroys al Ghul Island by sinking it, he attempts to cleanse Talia and Damian's souls. However, his clones protect Damian and sacrifice themselves to save his life. Den Darga flees, leaving Talia and Damian to the abyss; where they were rescued by Damian's friends. Afterward, Talia is hopeful that she and Damian can move to a safe place and tells her unconscious son to rest.[45] When Damian wakes, Talia convinces her son to calm down. She explains that she had been finding redemption for herself, for her retribution against him and inaction after Den Darga's attack. She informs him that if he chooses vigilantism, it will corrupt him. Talia goes on to say that he, too, can choose between staying or leaving, after accepting who he is, except that his mother has been reforming herself and regrets her choices. As he chooses to leave and says goodbye to his mother, Talia rejoins the League of Assassins to prepare for war against Den Darga and the Lu'un Darga.[46]
Talia, along with Batman, show up again later in the title to aid their son in saving all life on Earth from the threat of Den and the Lu'un Darga.[47] They are portrayed as a bickering couple but also put things aside to help.[48] Their mission is a success though Damian ends up giving his life to save humanity. He is later brought back to life by Suren Darga. With the world saved, and satisfied her son is safe, she goes to rejoin the League of Assassins.[49]
DuringDC Rebirth, Talia al Ghul shows up for her son, Damian Wayne's birthday and warns him of Ra's al Ghul plot to send the Demon's Fist against Damian and the Teen Titans in a plan to assassinate them to prove their worth to the Demon's Head. These targets will later become Damian's Teen Titans teammates after he saves them and makes them aware of the Fist and their plans.[50]
After observing how happy both of his daughter and grandson are while living a peaceful life without killing, the now reformed Ra's al Ghul decides that he wants to turn himself in to the authority to atone for all the crimes he committed as well as publicly share all the secrets he kept hidden over the centuries, this decision has sparked a huge interest in both the superhero community and the villain community due the amount of knowledge the immortal Demon's Head has about the world, so all eyes were on him during a press conference he held before his incarceration. However, as soon as the conference started, Ra's was immediately shot by a sniper wearing a Deathstroke-looking costume, who also threw a bomb that turned his body to ashes to insure that there would be nothing left of him that can be resurrected through the Lazarus Pit.[51]
This incident has deeply hurt both Damian and his mother, Talia, who had to watch her father get murdered even though he finally made the right choice for the first time in his life and was willing to turn a new leaf for his family's sake. In her grief, she gathered all the members of the League of Assassins and put a hit on Deathstroke as well as all of his associates in revenge for killing her father. On the other hand, Damian has teamed-up with his father, who wasn't fully convinced that it was the real Deathstroke that killed Ra's al Ghul, to investigate the murder and find out who was really behind it.[52]
This event concludes with a war between The League of Assassins and Deathstroke Inc, which ends with Talia killing Slade in a one-on-one battle, but shortly afterward the Deathstroke imposter reveals himself to beGeo-Force, who plotted the war in hope of having both Slade and Talia killing each other. Damian and Bruce arrive shortly soon and help Talia defeat Geo-Force, with Damian managing to convince his mother to not kill Geo-Force afterward because his grandfather believed that their family could be better than this.[53]
Talia has been written to be an athlete at the peak of physical conditioning and has been trained in many forms of martial arts.[14][20] Often underestimated, Talia is an excellent hand-to-hand fighter and is also quite proficient with most hand weapons.
She was educated in the arts and sciences, and she holds advanced degrees in biology, engineering, and business as anMBA.[14][54]
| Title | Material collected | Publication date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| Batman Arkham: Talia al Ghul | Detective Comics #411,Batman #232,Batman: Son of the Demon, President Luthor Secret Files and Origins #1,Batman: Death and the Maidens #9,Red Hood: The Lost Days #1,Batman #656,Batman and Robin #12,Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #2, and #13,Batman Vol 3 #34-35 | March 2021 | 978-1779512949 |
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Batman:I'm sorry about Talia.
Before Batman first encountered one of his greatest adversaries, Ra's al Ghul, he met his daughter, the lovely but lethal Talia [in a story by] writer Denny O'Neil and artist Bob Brown.
The mysterious Ra's al Ghul was introduced at this time as well, his daughter and Batman-love interest Talia and his Himalayan headquarters both directly inspired by the James Bond filmOn Her Majesty's Secret Service.
Mike W. Barr: I have made the point elsewhere that the relationship between Batman, Ra's and Talia is basically that of James Bond, Draco, and his daughter, Tracy, fromOn Her Majesty's Secret Service.
Together Adams and O'Neil created two classic and abiding Batman antagonists, in the forms of international crime lord Ra's al Ghul and his sexy daughter Talia, who updated the Fu Manchu exotic villain archetype into the fashionably seventies world of ecoterror.
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