Batman's Moriarty

[TonyStark1012]

That's sounds kind of lame for Anarky fans... all 10 of us, sadly.

LOL! Theres 12 of us. Me and my brother love the character. Hated what happened to him in Robin before the reboot.

[Aquacatlungfish]

Ra's al Ghul and the Riddler.

[carabas]

Yeah, you may have heard of him before, his name is The Joker.

The Joker is more an anti-Moriarty.

Moriarty-type enemies have the same basic personality as the hero, the same character thraits, the same methods... They're dark shadows, characters the hero could have been if he'd made different choices.

So for Batman, definitely not the Joker... Ra's Al Ghul is the closest thing he has.

[Seattle Freeze]

Ras al Ghul. I think he the closest to being batman's match and dark mirror.

[Mr. Holmes]

I say it's Doctor Hurt. He had the ultimate plan and a wealth of resources to try to crack Batman. Like Moriarty, he's a one story villain (Batman RIP/The Final Problem). Hugo Strange is also a contender, but they've downsized his status as a Batman villain.

I will say though I did feel the Moriarty from Sherlock was basically Riddler done right. I hope Snyder has seen Reichenbach Falls

[TheDarkNut]

Ra's.
Hugo Strange.
Probably Hush or Joker too.

[Haytil]

I say it's Doctor Hurt. He had the ultimate plan and a wealth of resources to try to crack Batman. Like Moriarty, he's a one story villain (Batman RIP/The Final Problem).

While the actual Moriarty was indeed only in one story, I think the general concept of "A hero's Moriarty" has expanded to specifically include a villain who consistently and frequently eludes, bests, or stalemates with the hero.

To that end, Ra's al Ghul fits the bill a lot better than Doctor Hurt. Also, al Ghul's methodology seems a bit more in line with Batman's. Dr. Hurt is more of a spiritual villain.

Hugo Strange is also a contender, but they've downsized his status as a Batman villain.

I think Hugo Strange's characterization has potential, but he's not used often enough. I think I can count on one hand the number of storylines he's been a major part of for the last 70 years.

I will say though I did feel the Moriarty from Sherlock was basically Riddler done right.

Yeah. I just wish Sherlock hadn't done it first, as anything else might feel like a rip-off.

[The Duke]

Even though he was never ever utilised properly, Dr. Tzin Tzin had the pedigree to be a Conan Doyle/Sax Rohmer combination. He had elements of both James Moriarty and Dr. Fu Manchu in his history.



He was always my favorite Batman Villain, even though I think he only turned up in four or maybe five issues.

[Mr. Holmes]

While the actual Moriarty was indeed only in one story, I think the general concept of "A hero's Moriarty" has expanded to specifically include a villain who consistently and frequently eludes, bests, or stalemates with the hero.

To that end, Ra's al Ghul fits the bill a lot better than Doctor Hurt. Also, al Ghul's methodology seems a bit more in line with Batman's. Dr. Hurt is more of a spiritual villain.

I guess since the OP asked about Game of Shadows, that Moriarty was a lot like Ra's.

I think Hurt fits that bill too.

Ra's is more of a Fu Manchu/James Bond villain. Other than the fact that they both have "empires" and pawns, which is kind of generic for supervillains anyway, I don't see it.

I think Hugo Strange's characterization has potential, but he's not used often enough. I think I can count on one hand the number of storylines he's been a major part of for the last 70 years.

His claim to fame is in the original Batman stories which have been retold in Matt Wagner's, where Batman was consciously modeled off Sherlock Holmes. Before Joker became a breakout, they wanted Hugo Strange to be his Moriarty.

[Minerboh]

Joker. THE Batman nemesis!

[adkal]

hmm...

Ra's = Moriarty

Talia = Irene Adler


Hurt and Jezebel = wannabes? pseudos?

[Captain Rabbit]

I believe Neal Adams has said that Ra's was created so Batman would have a Moriarty, so there's that.

[Bruce Kent]

It should be Riddler. But he needs a great reinvention to pull that one off.

The last issue of Batman was a step in the right direction. The silly look with the interrogation marks needs to go, though.

[dupersuper]

Joker in terms of being his worst enemy
Ras al Ghul in terms of resources and danger and style
Riddler and Hugo Strange in terms of matching wits

[cactusmaac]

Probably Bane in terms of him being a dark mirror of Batman. Ra's is more of a global overlord with plans of world domination, Riddler doesn't compare physically and Joker is just too different to be seen as an evil counterpart.

FYI, I've been re-reading the Grant\Breyfogle run over the holidays and it seems apparent the TDKR writers lifted Anarky's class-conscious rhetoric and added it to Bane's persona, which was a rather inspired creative choice.