| 1 | [[WMG:[[center:[-''ComicBook/{{Batman}}'' '''[[Characters/{{Batman}} Main Character Index]]'''\ |
| 2 | '''Title Character'''\ |
| 3 | [[Characters/BatmanTheCharacter Batman]] ([[Characters/BatmanBruceWayne Bruce Wayne]])\ |
| 4 | '''Allies'''\ |
| 5 | [[Characters/BatmanBatFamily The Bat-Family]] (Characters/{{Batgirl}} | Characters/{{Batwoman}} | [[Characters/BatmanJasonTodd Jason Todd]] | Characters/{{Robin}}) | [[Characters/BatmanSupportingCast Extended Bat-Family & Other Supporting Cast]] (Characters/{{Azrael}} | [[Characters/BatmanHuntress Huntress]])\ |
| 6 | '''[[Characters/BatmanRoguesGallery Villains]]'''\ |
| 7 | [[Characters/BatmanBane Bane]] | Characters/{{Catwoman}} ([[Characters/CatwomanSelinaKyle Selina Kyle]]) | [[Characters/BatmanClayface Clayface]] | Characters/HarleyQuinn ([[Characters/HarleyQuinnTheCharacter Harleen Quinzel]]) | [[Characters/BatmanTheJoker The Joker]] | [[Characters/BatmanLadyShiva Lady Shiva]] | [[Characters/BatmanLeagueOfAssassins League of Assassins]] ([[Characters/BatmanRasAlGhul Ra's Al Ghul]] | [[Characters/BatmanTaliaAlGhul Talia Al Ghul]]) | [[Characters/BatmanMrFreeze Mr. Freeze]] | [[Characters/BatmanThePenguin The Penguin]] | [[Characters/BatmanPoisonIvy Poison Ivy]] | [[Characters/BatmanTheRiddler The Riddler]] | '''The Scarecrow''' | [[Characters/BatmanTwoFace Two Face]] | [[Characters/BatmanRoguesGalleryPart1 A-F]] | [[Characters/BatmanRoguesGalleryPart2 G-L]] | [[Characters/BatmanRoguesGalleryPart3 M-R]] | [[Characters/BatmanRoguesGalleryPart4 S-Z]]\ |
| 8 | '''Spin-Offs'''\ |
| 9 | ''Characters/Batgirl2000'' | ''Characters/BatmanIncorporated'' | ''Characters/DarkNightsMetal'' ([[Characters/DarkNightsMetalTheBatmanWhoLaughs The Batman Who Laughs]]) | ''Characters/IAmBatman'' | ''Characters/{{Nightwing}}'' ([[Characters/NightwingDickGrayson Dick Grayson]]) | ''Characters/{{The Outsiders|DCComics}}'' | ''Characters/RedHoodAndTheOutlaws'' | ''Characters/Robin1993'' ([[Characters/RobinTimDrake Tim Drake]]) | ''Characters/Robin2021'' ([[Characters/RobinDamianWayne Damian Wayne]])-]]]]] |
| 10 | |
| 11 | !!The Scarecrow |
| 12 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/batman_scarecrow_tales.jpg]] |
| 13 | [[caption-width-right:350:The Master of Fear. The Lord of Despair. Cower before him in witless terror.]] |
| 14 | [[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see his "Classic" design]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/classic_scarecrow.jpg[[/labelnote]]]] |
| 15 | [[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see his ''The New 52'' design]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_scarecrow_new_52.jpg[[/labelnote]]]] |
| 16 | [[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see his ''Rebirth'' design]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/scarecrow_rebirth.jpg[[/labelnote]]]] |
| 17 | [[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see his ''The New Frontier'' design]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/scarecrow_infinite_frontier.jpg[[/labelnote]]]] |
| 18 | [[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see him as a civilian]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jonathan_crane.jpg[[/labelnote]]]] |
| 19 | [[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see him as a Scarebeast]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/scarebeast.jpg[[/labelnote]]]] |
| 20 | [[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see him as a Yellow Lantern]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/scarecrow_yellow_lantern.jpg[[/labelnote]]]] |
| 21 | |
| 22 | !!! '''Alter Ego:''' Jonathan Crane, Scarebeast |
| 23 | !!! '''Species:''' Human |
| 24 | !!! '''Team Affiliations:''' Legion of Doom, [[Characters/GLSinestroCorps Sinestro Corps]] |
| 25 | !!! '''First appearance:''' ''ComicBook/WorldsFinest1941 #3'' (August, 1941) |
| 26 | |
| 27 | -> ''"Fear is primal. Raw. Blood pressure increases. Veins in your skin contract. Your immune system shuts down. Even if you attempt to steel against fear, ... it is undeniable. Fear makes us human. That was the conclusion of Charles Darwin. Who am I to argue? I'm a man of science, too. A psychologist. But few know my academic achievements. If you know me at all, you know me as ... the Scarecrow!"'' |
| 28 | -->-- '''ComicBook/GreenLanterns #17''' |
| 29 | |
| 30 | Constantly mocked and bullied as a child, Jonathan Crane developed an interest in fear and its effects on the mind. Eventually becoming [[DependingOnTheWriter either a psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum or a Psychology Professor at Gotham State University]], Dr. Crane's career came to an end when his obsession with instilling fear in others resulted in his performing dangerous experiments on patients. Adopting a scarecrow motif, Crane turned to crime to fund his research, becoming one of the Dark Knight's most unnerving foes. |
| 31 | |
| 32 | Much like Mr. Freeze, and to some extent, [[Characters/BatmanTheRiddler The Riddler]], the Scarecrow was a one-shot character in the comics, revived decades later to become a major part of ComicBook/{{Batman}}'s RoguesGallery. Thin and bookish, he was (predictably) bullied by kids at school. As a result, he became even more withdrawn and angry at the world, culminating in him pulling a prank of his own during the high school senior prom and attacking JerkJock Bo Griggs and his AlphaBitch girlfriend Sherry Squires (who had rejected Crane's affections), killing the latter. |
| 33 | |
| 34 | A [[PsychoPsychologist psychologist who seemed more interested in studying the fears of patients than in curing them]], Crane eventually developed a chemical toxin that when converted into a gas or injected into a victim, creates powerful hallucinations that have its subjects [[SupernaturalFearInducer experience their greatest fears]]. Prolonged exposure to Scarecrow's gas often does drive his victims into madness, and in some cases, death. |
| 35 | |
| 36 | Not to be confused with the Creator/MarvelComics AlternateCompanyEquivalent villain The Scarecrow, real name Ebenezer Laughton. |
| 37 | |
| 38 | ---- |
| 39 | |
| 40 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 41 | |
| 42 | !!Scarecrow Provides Examples Of: |
| 43 | |
| 44 | [[folder:A-F]] |
| 45 | * AcquiredPoisonImmunity: For years writers liked to have Crane be HoistByHisOwnPetard by being exposed to his own [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]]. But over time, he has been exposed to his fear toxin so many times that he became immune to its effects. Sometimes he's even shown to have been [[EmotionSuppression rendered incapable of feeling fear]]. |
| 46 | -->'''The Scarecrow:''' I [[NightmareFetishist want to feel the terror]], but I'm immune to it, you see. I used my fear gas, oh, one too many times. I scare people, but nothing can scare me. Nothing... nothing but [[TheDreaded the Batman]]. |
| 47 | * AbusiveParents: His great-grandmother [[RaisedByGrandparents who raised him]] was very abusive, emotionally ''and'' physically. In the ComicBook/{{New 52}}, he was subject to similar experiments he uses on others when he was a child by his father, and kept in a basement filled with crows when not. |
| 48 | * AdaptationalAttractiveness: Crane usually has a rather unattractive appearance, that of a [[GeekPhysiques skinny and lanky man]] who's always unkempt. But rarely, DependingOnTheArtist he may be draw as much more attractive: |
| 49 | ** In ''Year One: Batman/Scarecrow'', Crane looks nothing like his previous portrayals. While tall and thin, he doesn't have the same gangly awkwardness as he is usually given and comes across looking more like Creator/DavidTennant than Ichabod Crane. |
| 50 | ** In ''ComicBook/BlackestNight'' when drawn by Creator/IvanReis, without the mask Crane doesn't look anything like how artists usually portray him. |
| 51 | * AGodAmI: Creator/AlanGrant's "God of Fear" mini-arc (which took place shortly after ComicBook/{{Azrael}} had taken over as Batman in ''ComicBook/{{Knightfall}}'') portrays him with this personality. A student of all the world's mythologies, Dr. Jonathan Crane becomes annoyed that there is no historical record of a god of fear, even though that should be the most obvious god because fear is what sustains the gods. Determined to halt the modern world's "flight from religion," he kidnaps several students from the psychology department at the university where he once taught, [[BrainwashedAndCrazy drugs them until they are stripped of their will]], dresses them in scarecrow costumes, gives them plastic skulls containing [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] and has them use them to spread chaos throughout various parts of Gotham City, creates [[EvilOverlooker an enormous hologram of himself that he projects against the sky]] to make himself look like a god, and orders the Gothamites to officially recognize him as a god or he will destroy the entire city with an entire tanker truck full of his toxin (when in fact he plans to empty the tanker into the city water supply, thus poisoning everyone who uses tap water). While negotiating with him on the phone, Commissioner Gordon tries to get the Scarecrow to see how insane he is acting, pointing out that he is a human being and that, even if Gotham City did declare him a god, he still wouldn't be one. This only enrages the Scarecrow, who, [[InsaneTrollLogic working from completely backward logic]], says that as a god he is incorruptible, and therefore can't possibly be insane. (That's right: The Scarecrow is so insane, he ''doesn't even know he's insane.'') |
| 52 | * AnimalMotifs: Despite often having a fear of them, he is often associated with [[CreepyCrows crows]]. Or in the case of the Arkham games, [[BeetleManiac beetles]]. |
| 53 | * AppropriatedAppelation: 'Scarecrow' was a mocking nickname given to Crane by his colleagues at the university. When he turned to crime, he adopted it as his alias, swearing he would make it a name people would fear. |
| 54 | * ArtisticLicenseReligion: In the "God of Fear" story Scarecrow claims there is no such thing as a god of fear to be found in any mythology. This is simply false. To take just Greek mythology as an example, they had ''two'' gods of fear: Phobos (from which the word "phobia" is derived) was the god of imminent, panicked fear, and his twin brother Deimos was the god of the kind of fear that is the dread of things to come. |
| 55 | * BadassBookworm: A former Psychiatrist and college professor, who regularly faces Batman and threatens the entire city. His original appearance saw him be able to physically overpower Batman ''repeatedly'' when he was just a scrawny college professor with no combat training or his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]]. |
| 56 | * BadassNormal: He doesn't have any superpowers, relying on his genius intellect and [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] for most of his plots. If forced to fight, he's actually learned how to be a decent martial artist, having trained himself in a kung fu fighting style that he calls "violent dancing", which makes use of his long limbs. He did briefly become an EmpoweredBadassNormal a few times, when he became Scarebeast, Schrocken and even a yellow lantern. |
| 57 | * BadBoss: He hardly cares about terrorizing his own henchmen, and sometimes even keeps them BrainwashedAndCrazy to better serve him. |
| 58 | * BastardBastard: At least in the pre-''ComicBook/New52'' continuity where he was born in a [[TeenPregnancy brief high school fling]] that led to ParentalAbandonment and him ending up raised by his abusive great-grandmother. This ended up being a SelfFulfillingProphecy on his great-grandmother's part though due to her fanatical Christian beliefs constantly reminding him of how he was born in sin. |
| 59 | * BigBad: |
| 60 | ** The primary reason behind Gotham becoming ComicBook/{{Gothtopia}}. |
| 61 | ** He's the main antagonist for the ''ComicBook/FearState'' story arc of ''ComicBook/BatmanJamesTynionIV'', although he started out working alongside Simon Saint's in a BigBadDuumvirate, pushing his Magistrate PoliceState on Gotham City, but Crane eventually decided to hijack the plan, becoming the sole Big Bad. |
| 62 | * BirdsOfAFeather: During the ''ComicBook/BlackestNight'', Scarecrow was temporarily deputized into the Sinestro Corps, a ComicBook/GreenLantern villain organization that also weaponizes the use of fear. |
| 63 | * BrainwashedAndCrazy: DependingOnTheWriter, his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] combined with his [[PsychoPsychologist psychological expertise]] has him putting people under his thrall. This is mostly a PlotDevice so writers can give him minions or have an excuse to have the heroes go evil for a bit. |
| 64 | ** In ''ComicBook/{{Gothtopia}}'', The Scarecrow has all of Gotham in a gas-induced hallucination, making them think everything is wonderful while attacking anyone who thinks otherwise. This includes the heroes; they eventually break free of the hallucinations and try to figure out what's going on. |
| 65 | ** Crane accidentally caused this to happen against Jean-Paul / ComicBook/{{Azrael}}. When Jean-Paul took over for Bruce Wayne during the events of ''ComicBook/{{Knightfall}}'', his first supervillain encounter just so happened to be against Scarecrow. When Jean-Paul got nailed by Crane's Fear Toxin-coated barbs, the System (a deep {{brainwashing}} program used by the Order of St. Dumas for those chosen to be their Avenging Angel) kicked in to get him through it... and never shut off. This sent Jean-Paul over the edge as time passed, leading to him getting more and more brutal with his enemies, nearly killing ComicBook/{{Robin|1993}} when he tried to stop him and culminating in the death of Abattoir and Bruce Wayne needing to come back in order to fix things. |
| 66 | ** In ''Superman/Batman'' issue #77, Scarecrow's fear toxin makes [[Characters/SupergirlTheCharacter Kara]] believe that Robin is her parents' killer Reactron, so she fights him. |
| 67 | * BreakThemByTalking: A incredibly skilled PsychoPsychologist, Crane is a walking encyclopedia and knows everything there is to know about fear, phobias and anxiety disorders, and uses this insight to find people's mental pressure points and exploit them, sometimes even being capable of causing them to become BrainwashedAndCrazy. And while often uses his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] to help with the process, he's not entirely dependent on it, having once managed to [[DrivenToSuicide drive two men to suicide]] using nothing but words. |
| 68 | * BullyMagnet: He's often presented as one in many versions of his StartOfDarkness backstory, due to being a shy [[GeekPhysiques lanky bookworm]] (and in the case of the ''Year One: Batman/Scarecrow'' continuity, being a literal bastard in the Bible Belt doesn't help). In one post-Crisis version of his origins, he snaps after one PrankDate and more or less [[TheDogBitesBack snaps]] and sets his path on becoming The Scarecrow from there by [[BullyingADragon killing/crippling two of his worst tormentors]] a la ''Literature/{{Carrie}}''. Frankly, it'd be weirder if he didn't become a supervillain from all the constant abuse from his peers. Even as an adult this didn't stop, during his time working at Gotham university, he was often ridiculed by his peers due to his unkempt appearance and clothing. His supervillain peers also mostly seem to hate him, and he was often bullied and abused by The Penguin during the time he worked under him. |
| 69 | * CerebusRetcon: Crane's initial backstory was that he was [[BullyMagnet mocked and bullied by his peers]] because he [[GeekPhysiques looked like a scarecrow]], culminating in his first act of violence being a case of WhosLaughingNow when [[BullyingADragon he scared two of his tormentors so bad]] one died in a car crash and the other was crippled for life. ''Year One: Batman/Scarecrow'' added that Crane was [[RaisedByGrandparents raised by]] a [[GruesomeGrandparent sadistic great-grandmother]], snatched from his teenage mother's arms the moment he was born. Great-Grandmother Keeny made him work on their dying plantation's crops while [[AbusiveParents regularly punishing him]] via locking him in an abandoned aviary as prey for the birds. It later turned out ''she'' was the inspiration he received for his work in chemistry, as the reason the birds always attacked him was that she would soak his clothes in rat's blood mixed with a blend of chemicals meant to drive the birds crazy. Crane's first act of violence was now [[TheDogBitesBack doing to her]] what [[PayEvilUntoEvil she was doing to him]] as a matter of survival. Batman and Robin [[AssholeVictim found her bones buried in the aviary years later.]] This backstory seemed to have stuck before the ''Flashpoint'' reboot, since Crane's birth mother was featured in a standalone story, feeling guilty for how her son turned out and [[DrivenToSuicide attempting to kill herself]] before she was convinced otherwise by ComicBook/{{Deadman}}. |
| 70 | * CharacterisationMarchesOn: In his Golden Age appearances he didn't use [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear gas]], but was simply an extortionist who frightened people with mundane things like guns. |
| 71 | * {{Contortionist}}: DependingOnTheWriter, Crane has used his skinny and lanky build to his advantage and learned how to move and twist his body in extreme ways, for example, being able to twist his body in such a way that he can escape for Arkham's straight jackets. |
| 72 | * ConsultingAConvictedKiller: During ComicBook/{{Aquaman}}'s time as the defender of Sub Diego, he had to deal with a serial killer in the underwater city. With limited access to experienced detectives, Aquaman decided to consult Crane for his insight into the killer, with Crane offering useful advice that helped Aquaman determine the killer's motive and identity. |
| 73 | * CostumeEvolution: A very interesting one at that. From his first appearance in the 40's to the '90s, he pretty much just dressed like a walking scarecrow, which isn't all that scary in certain contexts. After The New Batman Adventures completely reinvented his look, anything goes be it the burlap sack look in The Dark Knight trilogy, the mask sewn onto his face in the Arkham games, or whatever the hell one would call his Injustice 2 design. |
| 74 | * CrackIsCheaper: InUniverse this is the origin of Crane's AppropriatedAppellation. Crane spent all of his money on buying books, so he was always very shabbily dressed. As a result, his university colleagues nicknamed him 'Scarecrow'. When he turned to crime, he adopted this as his alias. |
| 75 | * CreepyBlueEyes: His piercing, eerie blue eyes are often all that's visible of him under his scarecrow costumes. |
| 76 | * CreepyMonotone: The most common portrayal of his manner of speaking is with a slow and creepy monotone voice. |
| 77 | * CriticalPsychoanalysisFailure: Being a former psychologist with a knack for toying with people's minds, he's been shown doing this from time to time when stuck in Arkham; most notably in his patient interviews in ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamAsylum''. |
| 78 | * CutLexLuthorACheck: In one comic, where Batman was relating to one of the Robins all of the {{death trap}}s that he has foiled, Batman mentions a Haunted House of Death that Scarecrow created to try and kill Batman. Robin states that Scarecrow would have made a fortune in the entertainment industry, making haunted houses for theme parks. Batman actually states that he recommended that to the Scarecrow after capturing him, but, Scarecrow being Scarecrow, he didn't listen. More generally, the Scarecrow could probably have named his own price for selling his fear toxins to spy agencies like the CIA or [=MI6=], or to political dictators. Instead, he prefers to pursue his own research using the people of Gotham as his unwilling guinea pigs. |
| 79 | * DeadlyDoctor: Doctor Jonathan Crane used to be a clinical psychiatrist (often the head psychiatrist at Arkham) before he became The Scarecrow and he is skilled in psychology, chemistry, and psychopharmacology and often uses this knowledge in his supervillainy, and wielding medical equipment such as needles and [[PlayingWithSyringes syringes]]. He also has a knack of treating some of his victims as if they were his "patients". |
| 80 | * DeadlyScratch: He often only needs to deal a single scratch to his victims to inject them with his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] when they're in liquid form. Even in its gaseous form, contact with the skin is all it takes for the fear toxin to begin to affect someone. |
| 81 | * DeathByAdaptation: His mother Karen Keeny was alive and well in the post-Crisis continuity, but became a victim of DeathByOriginStory in the ''ComicBook/New52'' reboot. |
| 82 | * DeathSeeker: A variation: in addition to being obsessed with making other people feel terror, Crane himself is addicted to fear. Over time, though, exposure to his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear gas]], plus constantly analyzing the phobias of others, have gradually deadened his ability to be afraid. He eventually reaches a point where even the EmotionEater Black Lanterns ignore him because he's become so frigid. Crane eventually realizes that the only person who makes him afraid anymore is Batman, and thus actively seeks out confrontations with the Caped Crusader--which are almost inevitably hopelessly one-sided--just so he can get a "fix" of terror. |
| 83 | * DependingOnTheArtist: Unlike Joker, Two-Face, or Penguin, there's no consistent Scarecrow costume. Crane's gone through several different looks with various clothes, masks, color schemes, hats (or lack thereof), and degrees of resemblance to an actual scarecrow. Some designs, like the ''Film/TheDarkKnightTrilogy'', just use the sack mask on top of regular clothing. Though InUniverse it's just a case of Crane trying new looks and reinventing himself. |
| 84 | * DisappearedDad: In the post-Crisis continuity story ''Year One: Batman/Scarecrow'', his father Gerald Crane was a GlorifiedSpermDonor who didn't care to raise Jonathan since he was conceived in a TeenPregnancy. When Jonathan finally tracks down and meets his father, it's [[{{Patricide}} to try to kill him]] as {{Revenge}}, but was stopped by Batman. |
| 85 | * TheDragon: He worked as Hush's junior partner in crime in ''Batman: Heart of Hush''. |
| 86 | * TheDreaded: He's probably the most feared criminal in all of Gotham save for ComicBook/TheJoker, and with good reason as he's a SupernaturalFearInducer who dedicated his life to understanding and causing fear and panic. In fact, during the events of ''ComicBook/BlackestNight'', he was deputized into the [[Characters/GLSinestroCorps Sinestro Corps]], which proves him to be one of the scariest entities in his entire ''space sector!''[[note]] "One of" because the yellow ring detected residual traces of a green ring when it went for [[ComicBook/{{Batman}} the scariest]].[[/note]] |
| 87 | * EmotionSuppression: DependingOnTheWriter, extended exposure to his own [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] and research into fear has rendered him almost incapable of feeling fear, or sometimes even any emotion at all, causing him to act like a creepy version of TheStoic. |
| 88 | * EvenBadMenLoveTheirMamas: |
| 89 | ** ''Horrifically'' subverted in ''ComicBook/TheLongHalloween'', where it's revealed that he killed his mother--on Mother's Day, no less. Later stories would instead make his great-grandmother the target of his murderous revenge. |
| 90 | ** In ''Year One: Batman/Scarecrow'', he tries to kill his mother, Karen, due to blaming her for his abusive upbringing (even though she had no choice in giving him up and didn't know he was even alive until years later). |
| 91 | * EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: The Scarecrow started as basically any other themed Batman villain, not even being a particularly popular one. His [[TheGimmick main gimmick]], the [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] didn't even make an appearance until ''twenty-six'' years after his first appearances. The way he terrorized his victims? The old-fashioned way: with guns and death threats. |
| 92 | * EvilMentor: |
| 93 | ** Eventually revealed to be one to an Evil Student, [[spoiler: Thomas Elliot aka Hush]]. |
| 94 | ** He also tortured his student Abigail O'Shay causing her to become Madame Crow and join The Victim Syndicate. |
| 95 | * EvilSoundsDeep: The mask sometimes enhances his voice, and those exposed to his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] generally hear the VoiceOfTheLegion. |
| 96 | * FaceYourFears: One whiff of his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] and you can expect anyone with enough willpower (namely, Batman himself) to have to do this. It's been a theme whenever the two face off in the comics. Crane himself does it whenever he goes after Batman, who Crane admits is his greatest fear, which is partially why he faces the Dark Knight so often. |
| 97 | * FiredTeacher: The main thread all of the versions of his origin share is that he used to be a university professor that got fired for his harsh and bizarre teaching methods (the original story had him dismissed for firing a revolver in class). Naturally, he later hunts down the people responsible for his dismissal. |
| 98 | * ForScience: [[DependingOnTheWriter When writers decide to go]] for the MadDoctor / MadScientist interpretation. Other times, he seems to just spray people with [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] ForTheEvulz. |
| 99 | * FourEyesZeroSoul: He is sometimes depicted with glasses albeit it's largely DependingOnTheArtist. |
| 100 | * FreudianExcuse: Scarecrow gets an [[MommyIssues abusive great-grandmother and maternal abandonment]], as well as [[BullyMagnet vicious school bullying]]. |
| 101 | * FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse: In ''ComicBook/{{Batman}} New Year's Evil'', when Crane attempts to convince one Becky Albright, that his status as a supervillain is justified due to his tragic past, but she doesn't buy it. |
| 102 | -->'''The Scarecrow:''' [[WeCanRuleTogether But I'm offering you the chance to see the fear in their eyes!]] I have spent enough time in Arkham Asylum to know the symptoms, Becky. [[{{Supervillain}} You have the classic psychological profile to be one of us!]]\ |
| 103 | '''Becky Albright:''' You're ''[[YoureInsane crazy]]''. That's not the way to deal with it. That's not the way ''I'm'' going to deal with it!\ |
| 104 | '''The Scarecrow:''' I am ''[[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial not crazy!]]'' This is a [[NeverMyFault perfectly sane and rational response to my traumatic experiences.]] And if you don't believe me... IllKillYou\ |
| 105 | '''Becky Albright:''' [[IAmWhatIAm Then... You'll have to kill me]]. |
| 106 | [[/folder]] |
| 107 | |
| 108 | [[folder:G-L]] |
| 109 | * GeekPhysiques: One of Batman's more cerebral enemies, with his only consistent (and most notable) physical trait being how incredibly lanky and skinny he is, much like an actual scarecrow is. |
| 110 | * GreenEyedMonster: In his ''Year One: Batman/Scarecrow'' iteration, he tries to kill his [[WouldHurtAChild toddler half sister]] out of spite [[InfantSiblingJealousy that she was able to be raised properly by their mother]]. |
| 111 | * GruesomeGrandparent: His great-grandmother was an abusive fundamentalist who would beat him for even minor disobedience, and when in a real bad mood set crows on him. His grandmother wasn't much better, as she was fine with simply burying Jonathan behind the house and acting like he never existed. They both ripped him out of his mother's arms as soon as he was born and threw her out. |
| 112 | * HarmfulToMinors: Though they sometimes [[FromTheMouthsOfBabes accidentally]] invoke his sympathy, he is not above using young children in the testing or construction of his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxins]] |
| 113 | * HoistByHisOwnPetard: He gets gassed with his own toxin in several arcs, including in adaptations as well. |
| 114 | * HulkingOut: After being turned into the monstrous Scarebeast by [[Characters/BatmanThePenguin The Penguin]] and Fright, he reverted back into human upon his first defeat, but could [[InvoluntaryShapeshifting involuntarily transform]] back into the Scarebeast form if he even felt great rage or was in great danger. He also does not seem to retain any memory of these interludes. |
| 115 | * IKnowWhatYouFear: His [[TheGimmick gimmick]]. Crane is a PsychoPsychologist who is an expert in the field of fear, phobias and anxiety disorders and he often demonstrates his prowess by quickly analyzing people and figuring out what type of things they fear, so he may take advantage of them. And if he can, he can just cheat and use his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]], which leaves people in a state of terror that often reveals their greatest phobias. |
| 116 | * {{Idiosyncrazy}}: {{Zigzagged|Trope}}, as his crimes tend to be split about 50/50 between "using fear gas and other means to terrorize others to ostensibly continue studying fear" and "steal the funds to be able to make more fear gas". |
| 117 | * InfantSiblingJealousy: A dark example in the two-shot ''Year One: Batman[=/=]Scarecrow''; Crane, who in this continuity was taken from his teen mom's arms at birth and raised by his [[TheFundamentalist fanatically religious]] and abusive grandmother, tracks down his birth mother and discovers she married and had a baby girl... [[WouldHurtAChild he doesn't take it very well]], as one would expect from someone with abandonment issues. Thankfully Batman manages to save the girl before Crane can do her any harm. |
| 118 | * InvoluntaryShapeshifting: His transformations into the monstrous forms of Scarebeast and later Schrocken were both forced on him by other villains (Scarebeast by [[Characters/BatmanThePenguin Penguin]] and Fright, Schrocken by ComicBook/{{Darkseid}} and [=DeSaad=]) and he had little control on triggering the transformation, or his actions when he was transformed. |
| 119 | * IronicNurseryTune: When written by Creator/JephLoeb (such as in ''ComicBook/BatmanHush''), he [[VerbalTic tends to sing bird-related nursery rhymes]]. |
| 120 | * JekyllAndHyde: During the "As the Crow Flies" story arc, he worked under [[Characters/BatmanThePenguin The Penguin]] who secretly had Crane's assistant Fright use Crane's own DNA research to turn Crane into a murderous creature known as the Scarebeast. In this form, the Scarebeast possessed SuperStrength and SuperToughness, easily beating Batman and could even release a stronger hallucinogenic gas. After being defeated by Batman, the Scarebeast reverted back into his human form, although it's later revealed he retained the ability to transform in case he [[HulkingOut felt great rage or pain]]. He also did not seem to retain any memory of what he did as Scarebeast, acting simply as [[TheBerserker berserker monster]]. |
| 121 | * LeanAndMean: Scarecrow has an extremely slender and lanky build. Ironically, his bullies tended to nickname him The scarecrow for it, and Crane decided to adopt it as his supervillain name when he decided to become a psychotic killer. |
| 122 | -->'''The Scarecrow:''' In the story of my life, the scrawny Scarecrow will win in the end - and the last laugh, I swear, will be mine!! |
| 123 | [[/folder]] |
| 124 | |
| 125 | [[folder:M-R]] |
| 126 | * MadDoctor: Of the "Mad Psychiatry" type. Scarecrow likes to experiment on people with the sole aim of learning what they fear most, so he can better understand how fear works. |
| 127 | * MadScientist: Well, not quite a scientist, but the gist of this trope. |
| 128 | * MasterOfIllusion: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. While he can infect people with hallucination-inducing gas, he rarely has much control over the specifics of what they hallucinate. |
| 129 | * MasterPoisoner: Crane has enough chemistry skills to be able to concoct his fear toxins, which doesn't work as poisons for the body, but for the ''mind'', working as SupernaturalFearInducer that give his targets nightmarish hallucinations. |
| 130 | * {{Matricide}}: In ''ComicBook/TheLongHalloween'', he killed his mother on [[{{Irony}} Mother's Day]]. |
| 131 | * MeaningfulName: He's possibly named after [[Literature/TheLegendOfSleepyHollow Ichabod Crane]]. |
| 132 | * MindRape: His shtick. He uses his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear gas/toxin]] to make his victims experience their worst fears. |
| 133 | * MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: In most continuities, he ''is'' a legitimate psychological therapist. You'd have to be out of your mind to seek him for treatment now, of course. |
| 134 | * NiceJobFixingItVillain: One storyline saw him recruited as an ally by Hugo Strange early in Batman's career, only for Crane to unintentionally ruin Strange's plan. Thanks to the other psychiatrist's "therapy", Crane overcame his fear of Batman, left Strange in an apparently fatal trap, and then tried to use Strange's plan against Batman for himself. Unfortunately for Crane, since he lacked the necessary context to understand Strange's full plan, his own efforts were far more amateur; as an example, Strange's plan involved luring Batman to Crime Alley, but since his notes didn't provide any context for why that alley was significant to the Dark Knight Crane's own plan boils down to decapitating a man Batman has never met (an old classmate of Crane's) and then trying to attack his foe from behind. |
| 135 | * NightmareFetishist: Almost literally, as his fascination with fear reaches disturbing proportions, and he may seek out conflict with Batman just to feel afraid. |
| 136 | * NightmareWeaver: Some versions of his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] have people experience their worst nightmares and fears, even if Crane is unaware of them. |
| 137 | %%* NooseNecktie: Some of his costumes implement this. |
| 138 | * NonActionGuy: DependingOnTheWriter, he doesn't have any fighting skills and mostly relies on his wits and [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] to keep Batman and other heroes at bay. |
| 139 | * NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist: During ''ComicBook/FearState'', he claims that he is trying to help Gotham by pushing it into fear and beyond to something greater, but he is really just driving the city into terror. |
| 140 | * OffscreenVillainDarkMatter: {{Subverted|Trope}}, a great deal of his crimes are just for him to acquire the funds to continue his fear research, which is actually rather expensive, and due to him being too insane to work a real job, he resorts to crime. |
| 141 | * OneDoseFitsAll: His [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear gas/toxin]] rarely ever takes dosage into account, having the same effect on people of varying physiologies or who inhale vastly different quantities of it. |
| 142 | * OneWingedAngel: |
| 143 | ** In the "As the Crow Flies" story arc, [[Characters/BatmanThePenguin The Penguin]] and Crane's assistant Fright arranged for Crane to be unwillingly transformed into a creature known as the Scarebeast. In this form, he had SuperStrength and [[SuperToughness endurance]], as well as the ability to naturally produce and release a form of [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] that was stronger than his usual fear toxin. Although he eventually reverted to his normal form, he retained the ability to transform into Scarebeast [[HulkingOut during times of great stress and frustration]]. |
| 144 | ** Later on in ''ComicBook/SupermanBatman'', ComicBook/{{Darkseid}} and [=DeSaad=] ''also'' captured and experimented on him, turning him into a creature called the Schrocken, and said form was strong enough that it could take on ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'' in a fight. He was eventually rescued by Batman and Superman and returned back to normal, this time also losing the Scarebeast transformation powers. |
| 145 | * TheParanoiac: He was [[BullyMagnet violently bullied in his youth]] and was left with a crippling inferiority complex that developed into an obsession with fear and a career in super-villainy, his "[[TheGimmick gimmick]]" is to scare people to death with hallucinogens and drugs. Like most Batman villains he is prone to BadBoss behavior and violent overreactions. He also believes that the entire world runs on fear; hard to get a bleaker worldview than that. |
| 146 | * ParentalAbandonment: In the post-Crisis continuity, due to being a child conceived in a TeenPregnancy. His father didn't care enough to do anything, while his mother was kicked out of the house and had Jonathan taken from her by her mother and grandmother. When he grew up and became a supervillain, he sought out to kill both in {{Revenge}}, blaming his tormented childhood on them. |
| 147 | * {{Patricide}}: His ''Year One: Batman/Scarecrow'' iteration tries to kill his father, Gerald Crane. Although he doesn't succeed at this. |
| 148 | * PetTheDog: |
| 149 | ** He has had these moments especially with students that he either finds very smart like [[ComicBook/TheBatmanAdventures Molly Randall]] [[spoiler: who was raped by her boyfriend]] or has problems with bullies. |
| 150 | ** In the ''Kings of Fear'' miniseries, he tries to give Batman genuine therapy to help his mental health. It's admittedly because Scarecrow wants him to retire because Crane assumes that no one who's sane and mentally stable would keep dressing up lie, a bat, but he's genuinely happy Batman had a breakthrough. |
| 151 | * {{Pheromones}}: He uses these for his SupernaturalFearInducer, the fear gas/toxin. [[DependingOnTheWriter Sometimes]] he calls it his '[[{{Pun}} Fearomone]] gas'. |
| 152 | * PoisonIsEvil: He uses a variety of chemical toxins that cause fear and otherwise alter emotions. |
| 153 | * PragmaticVillainy: DependingOnTheWriter, he tries hard to stick to this, as his motivations are largely economical (there's no way that he'd ever get grant money for his research, so he has to commit crimes to get the money he needs to fund it), but he depends on Batman to validate his existence ''way'' more than he'd like to admit. |
| 154 | * PsychoPsychologist: His oldest and most established backstory is that he's a psychologist, specializing in phobias, who eventually became so obsessed with fear that he went insane and began conducting extreme experiments in inducing fear in others. |
| 155 | * RaisedByGrandparents: In his post-Crisis backstory, due to being conceived in a TeenPregnancy, both of his parents [[ParentalAbandonment didn't want to raise him]] so he ended up being raised by his great-grandmother. [[GruesomeGrandparent She was not a pleasant woman]], with Crane described that she "maintained" him more than she raised him, doing the bare minimum to keep him alive, and often [[AbusiveParents abusing him emotionally and physically]]. |
| 156 | * RelativeButton: Playing on the natural, instinctive fear in people by threatening their relatives is not above him, and is one of the way he can instill fear and panic into people. Notably, this did backfire on him during the ''ComicBook/{{Knightfall}}'' Saga, when he sprayed ComicBook/{{Batman}} with one of his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxins]] and forces him to relive the memory of the ComicBook/{{Joker}} killing [[ComicBook/RedHood Jason Todd]]. Batman, who has already run himself ragged capturing many other criminals that night, responds by going into UnstoppableRage, knocking out the Scarecrow with a single headbutt and [[ExtremeMeleeRevenge beating the Joker (who's partnered up with Scarecrow) within an inch of his life]], [[PapaWolf calling Jason's name all the while]]. |
| 157 | * RetCanon: His ''New Frontier'' design incorporates his syringe gloves from ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamAsylum''. |
| 158 | * RevengeOfTheNerd: Took this to a murderous extreme on his bullies and the people who pulled a PrankDate on him. |
| 159 | * RoaringRampageOfRevenge: The plot of ''Year One: Batman/Scarecrow'' has him going after the people who have wronged him in the past for revenge, such as his parents and his old university mentor. |
| 160 | * RoguesGalleryTransplant: Has been a ComicBook/GreenLantern villain a couple of times, mostly due to his fear expertise making him an ally to the Sinestro Corps. He was even given a yellow power ring during the events of ''ComicBook/BlackestNight''. |
| 161 | [[/folder]] |
| 162 | |
| 163 | [[folder:S-Z]] |
| 164 | * {{Sadist}}: How much is a case of DependingOnTheWriter, but all versions of Crane have some kind of sadism in them. One doesn't devote himself to causing fear so wholeheartedly as he without enjoying the terror he brings. |
| 165 | * SadistTeacher: Okay, so most of the time, the "sadist" and "teacher" parts don't appear together much, but there was that time when he fired a gun in the middle of one of his classes to inspire fear in his students. It's usually the incident that gets him fired. |
| 166 | * ScaryScarecrows: His entire reason for dressing up as a scarecrow is because of the symbolism; after all, a scarecrow's purpose is to ''scare'', and scaring is Crane's GoalInLife. |
| 167 | * ScaryShinyGlasses: When not wearing his mask, he tends to have these and they usually shine eerily when he's being particularly creepy or sinister. |
| 168 | * ScaryStitches: Most of his outfits feature these, to go with the ScaryScarecrows theme. |
| 169 | * ScoobyDooHoax:. While he rarely pretends to be supernatural, he still always dresses as a [[ScaryScarecrows demonic scarecrow]] and uses hallucinogenic gases to create illusionary horrors. |
| 170 | * SelfMadeOrphan: |
| 171 | ** According to ''ComicBook/TheLongHalloween'', he killed his mom. [[{{Irony}} On Mother's Day.]] |
| 172 | ** In ''Year One: Batman/Scarecrow'', he was shown to have killed his grandmother and great-grandmother. He would have killed his mother and father as well if Batman and Robin didn't stop him. |
| 173 | * ShadowArchetype: Like Batman, he uses fear as a TheGimmick in his actions, except Crane uses fear for malicious purposes. Batman himself is very aware of this |
| 174 | -->'''Batman:''' He calls himself "Scarecrow." [[PsychoPsychologist Psychologist turned psychopath]]. He preys on the innocent and instills them with fear. When I chose to wear my... costume, it was to prey upon the criminals, and instill ''them'' with fear. The {{irony}} is not lost on me. |
| 175 | * SiblingMurder: In ''Year One: Batman/Scarecrow'', he was going to shoot his maternal half-sister, who was only a [[WouldHurtAChild toddler]]. |
| 176 | * SinisterScythe: Depending on the issue, he may wield a scythe as his preferred weapons, although pitchforks are somewhat more common. Both go hand in hand with his ScaryScarecrows theme. |
| 177 | * SmugSnake: He has a high opinion of himself and tends to acts especially arrogant whenever he seemingly has the upper hand, which leads to him making mistakes or underestimating his enemies. |
| 178 | * SoftSpokenSadist: Adaptations often give him a CreepyMonotone voice to combine with his sadistic and terrifying speeches. |
| 179 | * SpellMyNameWithAThe: ''The'' Scarecrow. |
| 180 | * SpeaksInShoutOuts: Has the VerbalTic to speak nursery rhymes, when written by Creator/JephLoeb, most famously in ''ComicBook/TheLongHalloween''. |
| 181 | * StoicSpectacles: Whenever he's portrayed as TheStoic, he's got glasses to invoke this image as well as for the FourEyesZeroSoul vibe. He usually gets a lot of quiet moments with ScaryShinyGlasses to make him look sinister. |
| 182 | * SuperheroSobriquets: The Master of Fear. |
| 183 | * SupernaturalFearInducer: Scarecrow uses his fear gas/toxin to [[YourMindMakesItReal cause hallucinations]], paranoia, and even full-on panic-induced heart attacks in his victims. Sometimes this overlaps with IKnowWhatYouFear, while other times it's just straight-up irrational terror. |
| 184 | * ThingsThatGoBumpInTheNight: He dresses up as a [[ScaryScarecrows scarecrow]] in order to invoke this, and people under the effect of his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] usually see him as one. |
| 185 | * UnwittingPawn: To [[Characters/BatmanThePenguin The Penguin]] and Fright during the "As the Crow Flies" story arc, as he thought he was working for Penguin in order to create a formula to keep Penguin's man scared and loyal, but in actuality, Penguin had ordered Fright to take advantage of Crane's DNA research to turn him into the Scarebeast monster just so he would murder Penguin's enemies for him without Penguin taking the blame. |
| 186 | * UsedToBeASweetKid: His younger self is often depicted as a shy young lad that kept to himself reading books which unfortunately that combined with his stature made him a [[BullyMagnet target for bullies]], particularly in the ''Year One: Batman/Scarecrow'' origins and the ''ComicBook/New52''. |
| 187 | * VillainForgotToLevelGrind: In the epilogue of ''ComicBook/FearState'', this is part of Batman's TheReasonYouSuckSpeech to Scarecrow, points out that the rest of the RoguesGallery either doubled down and improved [[TheGimmick their gimmicks]] or that they realized they're in over their heads, gave up and [[ReformedCriminal changed for the better]]. Scarecrow, on the other hand, keeps doing the same fear shtick over and over again.[[note]]This seems to ignore how he ''did'' try something a bit new in ''ComicBook/{{Gothtopia}}'', however.[[/note]] |
| 188 | -->'''Batman:''' I don't know what tomorrow looks like, but that doesn't scare me. Not anymore. […] But it does scare you, doesn't it? It terrifies you. Some other villains have built new lives for themselves and moved on from villainy. Some of them doubled down and changed their methods. But you have never changed, and now you tried the biggest attack you ever dared on the city and failed. What more could you do? The same again but bigger? You were so afraid of change that you tried to take control of everyone's future. Push them through the fear state. Make them evolve. I've been shaped by fear and trauma and it has changed me many times… You have pushed yourself to the limits of fear, and you have never changed, never evolved. |
| 189 | * VillainousFriendship: He's been known to hang around fellow villain the Mad Hatter/Jervis Tetch from time to time. |
| 190 | * VillainousCrush: Had one on Becky Albright, a witness who testified against him. Unsurprisingly, making a move on a woman he'd recently dosed with fear gas did not go well. |
| 191 | * VillainousUnderdog: Compared to the rich and resourceful Batman, Crane is just an extremely poor guy who mostly commits crimes to fund his research. But the fact his research is about how to best instill fear in people and that the other half of his crimes is to do horrible experiments on innocent people, he's not exactly a sympathetic figure. |
| 192 | * VillainousValour: The Scarecrow's own phobia is the constant fear of Batman himself. That's right: the one and only thing in the world he himself fears is the thing he is most constantly willfully opposing, and someone whom he frequently seeks out and starts the fight with of his own accord. Although it may not so much be valor as a sort of emotional masochism... He ''craves'' fear. |
| 193 | * VocalDissonance: Often invokes this, with his voice ranging from a CreepyHighPitchedVoice to EvilSoundsDeep. Sometimes it's due to his mask, sometimes his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]] just makes him sound like that to his victims. |
| 194 | * WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: He is often depicted with either a fear of birds (specifically crows) or a fear of bats (after meeting Batman). In ''ComicBook/BlackestNight'', it's revealed his [[AcquiredPoisonImmunity constant exposure to his fear toxin]] has left him [[EmotionSuppression incapable of fearing anything]]. Except for Batman. |
| 195 | * WeakButSkilled: Crane's a scrawny man, and while somewhat stronger than he looks (he's often depicted as being able to support his entire body with his arms spread out for a reasonable period, allowing him to hang himself like an actual Scarecrow) he is constantly depicted as having low durability and not being hard to overpower. However years of practice in his own personal created style of combat to fit with his body (which he dubs "Violent dancing"- a cross between Crane style Kung Fu and Drunken Boxing) has left him able to trade blows with the likes of Batman, [[DependingOnTheWriter sometimes]]. |
| 196 | * WellIntentionedExtremist: He's generally motivated by sadism and/or selfish reasons, but he can occasionally fall into this. There are several stories where Scarecrow genuinely tries to help people with their problems as a therapist would, just in twisted ways that involve murder and the use of Fear Toxin. |
| 197 | * WolverineClaws: Has taken to using a mix of this and PlayingWithSyringes in the ComicBook/{{New 52}}. |
| 198 | * WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: Victim of a PrankDate, [[BullyMagnet bullying throughout his school years]], [[ParentalAbandonment absentee parents]] and an [[AbusiveParents abusive great-grandmother]] with trained [[FeatheredFiend crows]] to attack him for the slightest mistake, no wonder the poor kid became obsessed with fear. This went FromBadToWorse in ''ComicBook/BlackestNight''. Due to [[AcquiredPoisonImmunity being exposed to too much]] of his [[SupernaturalFearInducer fear toxin]], he [[EmotionSuppression can't even feel fear, or nearly any other emotion anymore]], except when facing Batman. Yeah, it means the Black Lanterns don't consider him a priority target and he brought it upon himself, but it's still a raw deal. By the ''ComicBook/{{New 52}}'', however, he seems to have overcome or had never had this problem, as his toxins have become so powerful they even affect him again. |
| 199 | * WouldHurtAChild: While he generally tries to avoid hurting children, in some depictions he is willing to cruelly experiment on them, and in ''Year One: Batman/Scarecrow'', he is willing to [[SiblingMurder kill his toddler half sister]], due to [[InfantSiblingJealousy spite she got to be raised by the mother who abandoned him]]. |
| 200 | [[/folder]] |
| 201 |
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FollowingContext Characters / BatmanTheScarecrow
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