Which Batman villain is universally known and feared across all media, but criminally underutilized by creators?
Some of this could be attributed to one problem with The Riddler: hes rather hard to write.
Batmancanfigure out things the reader wouldnt, and hence, the writer doesnt need to explain much.
With The Riddler, not only does Batman have todecodethe conundrum, but the writer has tocreateit.
This was the idea most toyed with in the Adam WestBatmanseries.
The lack of real cohesion became the joke.
But dont dismiss this version of the character so quickly.
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Frank Gorshin was perhaps the first person to realize Riddlersactualpotential.
Part of the charm of the character is that he doesnt really care that hes hated.
He thinks hes just so impressive that most of the world cant keep up.
But back to the point at hand.
Why does The Riddler retain his status as one of the top Batman villains even with an inconsistent history?
Part of the overwhelming popularity of Batman is his complexity.
Unlike most of his contemporaries, he is not the avatar for a single ideal, but many.
The greatest Batman villains play off of this.
The Joker is chaos, bright colors, and evil.
Batman is order, darkness, and good.
So if Batman is the ultimate detective, that makes The Riddler the ultimate mystery.
The Riddler pushes Batman beyond even normal investigation, adding puzzles to the already dastardly crime.
Defeating Riddler isnt just a function of Batman, it is part of the proof of who he is.
Paul Dini played with a similar expansion of the character in his 2006-2009 run onDetective Comics.
This attempt to modernize the character may have been justified.
In the recent Christopher Nolan films, Batman typically uses technology to get the upper hand in his investigations.
It is the police who nearly fall for the ploy.
After the incredible success ofThe Dark Knight, sequel speculation immediately began.
Almost across the board, early theories included The Riddler.
Fans were eager to see Nolans interpretation after Heath Ledgers landmark performance as The Joker.
…obviously hes someone Ive been dying to use.
That said, with the heroes coming in pairs, shouldnt the villains as well?
There are maybe three true arch Bat-Villains that havent worked their way into a recent Bat-Film: Mr.
The man who could bring The Worlds Greatest Detective to his knees.
We know that thisnew Batman will already be fully functionalwhen audiences first meet him.
Then again, who knows what theyre cooking up?
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