The Ra's al Ghul FAQ (2nd Draft)

[foxley]

That's interesting. I've never read that title; I've only occasionally seen Kobra pop up in other titles over the years. Should I take it that Kobra did, in fact, manage to use his home-built Lazarus Pit to bring one or more people back from the dead? Is there any indication that the Post-Crisis version of Kobra still remembers how to build a Lazarus Pit from scratch?

I see that in this FAQ (posted almost a year and a half ago now, and scheduled to be revised after the fallout from Ra's al Ghul's return has settled), I stated that Marv Wolfman wrote a single bit of dialogue in the early 1980s in which Ra's asserted the Pit only worked on himself -- and that I haven't found any other Pre-Crisis story that definitely supported or definitely contradicted that sweeping statement!

If the Kobra series provided contrary evidence regarding whom the Pits could work their magic upon, then I'd like to include that in my Third Draft when the time comes!

Kobra did not build his own Lazarus Pit; he resurrected (if you'll pardon the pun) Ra's pit in the Swiss Alps. If I remember the story correctly, he resurrected his twin brother's girlfriend and mind-controlled her to use her as a puppet to kill her brother. However, in this case, her skin was mentioned as being as cold as ice, indicating she was still a corpse, a side-effect not noted anywhere else.

I read this story in a UK reprint so I'm not sure of its original source, but given it featured Batman and had him vowing vengeance against Kobra, I'm guessing it was the DC Special Omar mentioned.

[Lorendiac]

Kobra did not build his own Lazarus Pit; he resurrected (if you'll pardon the pun) Ra's pit in the Swiss Alps. If I remember the story correctly, he resurrected his twin brother's girlfriend and mind-controlled her to use her as a puppet to kill her brother. However, in this case, her skin was mentioned as being as cold as ice, indicating she was still a corpse, a side-effect not noted anywhere else.

I read this story in a UK reprint so I'm not sure of its original source, but given it featured Batman and had him vowing vengeance against Kobra, I'm guessing it was the DC Special Omar mentioned.

Okay, with the data you provided, I went over to DarkMark's Batman index (Part 4) and found the following summary of the fifth story in something called "DC SPECIAL SERIES (5-STAR SUPER-SPECTACULAR) #1" (published, he says, in 1977):

Batman thwarts an attempted theft of a letter from a post office, but the two thieves escape via an anti-gravity ray. The letter is addressed to Bruce Wayne and comes from Jason Burr, who asks for the help of Wayne's friend, the Batman, and explains that the letter will only reach Wayne in the event of Burr's death. Burr explains the origin of his evil twin brother Kobra, who is the master of a cobra-worshipping cult which seeks to rule the world. Kobra, who feels what his brother feels (and vice versa) through "physical telepathy," has recently kidnapped Burr's beloved, Melissa McNeil. The letter also mentions Kobra's "raising the dead."

Accordingly, Batman and Alfred travel by Batjet to the Swiss Alps, to investigate Ra's Al Ghul's Lazarus Pit, which may be Kobra's tool. Once there, Batman fights his way past cobra-cultists, but is finally snared and is handcuffed with Burr to a device which is slowly lowering them into the Lazarus Pit. Kobra, who confronts them with the zombie-like Melissa McNeil, reveals to them that he has modified the Lazarus Pit so that it kills, but instantly restores its victims to life as his slaves, as he has already done with Melissa. Through the Pit, he hopes to convert the leaders of the world to his pawns. A "neural neutralizer" temporarily is cancelling the physical telepathy between him and Burr. Batman breaks himself and Burr free of the device, captures Kobra, and uses him to have himself, Burr, and Melissa freed from the cultists. But Kobra has Melissa stab Burr to death, and escapes Batman via an anti-gravity beam. Batman vows that the Justice League will smash Kobra's empire, and that he himself will bring Kobra to justice.

I'll dig into this further if I can, and find a way to reflect Kobra's Pre-Crisis activities with a Lazarus Pit in the "Lazarus Pits" section of my next version of the FAQ, one of these days.

[Omar Karindu]

Here's an image link from Wikipedia regarding the Kobra Pit:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Kobralazarus.png

[Elly51]

Does anyone know the answer to this?

[Lorendiac]

Does anyone know the answer to this?

I'm late responding to this, but when I saw your question, a few weeks ago, I took some time to find out what the name "Nyssa" means. According to Wikipedia's entry on Nyssa (name), "Nyssa" (sometimes written as "Nissa") has meanings in several languages, and the meaning in Arabic is simply "woman." So it may simply have amused Greg Rucka to assume that Ra's al Ghul is such a sexist that he thought calling his daughter a woman was all the trouble he needed to take in naming her?

But that's just a guess -- I don't know why Rucka named her that. (Heck, I'm none too clear on why Rucka bothered to write that miniseries at all -- I thought it was pretty lame.) However, since the name "Nyssa" has apparently been around, in multiple cultures, for many centuries, I think we can say there are plenty of other ways Rucka might have stumbled across the name and decided to use it; he didn't necessarily swipe it from "Doctor Who."

(Although my knowledge of Doctor Who continuity is very meager. Not nonexistent, but small and out of date.)

[Darci]

The GCD states that this story, "The Dead On Arrival Conspiracy," was intended for the unpublished Kobra #8 (which I suppose would have been cover-dated May/June 1977). They make the same note in the Indexer Notes for Kobra #7.

[Kate Fatale]

I'm late responding to this, but when I saw your question, a few weeks ago, I took some time to find out what the name "Nyssa" means. According to Wikipedia's entry on Nyssa (name), "Nyssa" (sometimes written as "Nissa") has meanings in several languages, and the meaning in Arabic is simply "woman." So it may simply have amused Greg Rucka to assume that Ra's al Ghul is such a sexist that he thought calling his daughter a woman was all the trouble he needed to take in naming her?

Technically, didn't Nyssa's mother name her that? I'd thought he pretty much ditched her mother well before Nyssa was born. But it meaning "woman" is hilarious, and it's so like Ra's to think that's an appropriate name meaning (especially considering that the meaning of Talia's name basically ties her to him).

Great FAQ, by the way! Ra's is incredibly awesome.

[nepenthes]

1.11. Is Ra's currently alive or dead?

Alive and in cahoots with none other than Tim Drake

BTW did we ever find out how he escaped the drug-induced "living coma" at Arkham Asylum? All of a sudden he just popped up in Azrael

[nepenthes]

Did we ever see how R'as manged to escape the living coma he was left in at Arkam Asylum. Bruce left him there and all of a sudden in just popped in the Azrael mini

[Lorendiac]

Alive and in cahoots with none other than Tim Drake

BTW did we ever find out how he escaped the drug-induced "living coma" at Arkham Asylum? All of a sudden he just popped up in Azrael

Yes, I know I ought to update this FAQ to reflect the fact that the death of Ra's al Ghul in "Death and the Maidens" definitely didn't stick. I've been waiting for some clarity regarding Damian's pedigree. I didn't think it would take this long for us to find out exactly where the little snot came from, genetically speaking. As I understand it: Alfred told Tim, some time ago, that Bruce had finally gotten around (offstage!) to having a DNA test run to prove or disprove just how much Bruce and Damian have in common.

Alfred did not say what the results of the test were. He only said that the test had, in fact, been done! (Thank you, Alfred, that was incredibly unhelpful!)

I'd like to have something more specific to say in my FAQ, regarding the subject of Ra's al Ghul's living descendants, before I go to the trouble of posting a new draft of the entire thing. Telling my readers the following -- "Morrison has been very, very, very coy about whether or not Damian's genes prove the claim that his genetic parents are Bruce and Talia" -- just doesn't sing to me.

P.S. I know nothing about the details of whatever Ra's al Ghul has been doing in 2009 because these days I virtually always "wait for the trade." Heck, I haven't even read a single issue of anything connected with "Blackest Night" yet. So I'm afraid I don't know if anyone has told us how Ra's finally got out of Arkham. My guess would be that he needed outside help, i.e. some loyal minions went in and rescued him and waited for his head to clear as the drugs were gradually flushed out of his system.

[Kate Fatale]

P.S. I know nothing about the details of whatever Ra's al Ghul has been doing in 2009 because these days I virtually always "wait for the trade." Heck, I haven't even read a single issue of anything connected with "Blackest Night" yet. So I'm afraid I don't know if anyone has told us how Ra's finally got out of Arkham. My guess would be that he needed outside help, i.e. some loyal minions went in and rescued him and waited for his head to clear as the drugs were gradually flushed out of his system.

He got out in an issue of Nightwing, entirely on his own efforts. You're right about the drugs being flushed from his system, but he pulled a Hannibal Lecter and manipulated the staff into doing the flushing for him. He basically provided a violent reminder of why Bruce can never imprison him -- anyone who tries to hold him will die. And as always, he had to be shirtless for that..

As for his living descendants, right now Damian's working with Dick, of course, and Talia is MIA until March, unless she pops up in Azrael, in which case I will curse DC for making me buy yet another title when I'm going so long between paychecks thanks to winter break. In one issue of Red Robin (#3, I think), we see a red-nailed, feminine hand pouring tea for Ra's, but that was never confirmed as being Talia.