#she's from Batman: the audio adventures

[ghosts-of-gotham]

**TEST MUSE: MISS TUESDAY**

"Wow, Eddie." She said sarcastically.

@question-marked

[sketchp00ch]

So I made the mistake of listening to Rogues! The Podcast on Spotify and Batman: The Audio Adventures as well as rewatching BTAS (both on MAX)

Because I wanted to bring a sorta existing and sorta canon character to light in my own interpretation that fits into both Rogues! The Podcast and BTAS:

Miss Tuesday

(Ariadne E. Isychía)

I drew two versions of her:

- The first is based on the old designs from the original three seasons of BTAS and the design itself is based on the fashion wear of 1940’s women’s business attire

- The second is based on Bruce Timm’s more pin-up female designs for the fourth and final season of BTAS where they revamped the entire cast, as well as for Batman Beyond and Justice League and JL Unlimited, and the costume itself is based on roller skating derby girls

I’ll make a proper character sheet for her later but TLDR she is pretty similar to the original Miss Tuesday except I made her a jaded 36-year old and is more stoic and Daria-like with a rather different but pretty boring backstory.

So sorry there’s no angst for her 🤷🏻‍♀️

She’s pretty much on the same level of intellect as Edward Nygma but she’s on the opposite side of the spectrum where she holds herself back and keeps to herself and just does what she’s being paid to do instead of showing off and monologue someone’s ear off like Eddie does.

I’ll write down her full boring background once Tumblr allows me to paste anything here!

Okay ily bye-bye!! 👋🏻

[vintagerobin]

what comic is the bestselling joker book from?

So the specific example I was thinking of was Joker: The World, where there are multiple books and a documentary about the Joker readily available internationally.

But I'm pretty sure this trend of books and documentaries about Gotham rogues (and especially the Joker) goes back much further, I could swear I remember references to both characters intending to write about him (like Harley when she was still a psychiatrist) and to books actually existing in multiple other instances, I just read about it long enough ago that I don't remember specific comics anymore.

It also comes up in Batman media outside of the comics, like in the recent Joker movie (where Arthur Fleck's memoir and a documentary about him are major plot points) or in Batman Audio Adventures where other rogues (like Harvey) also have books and/or documentaries.

Wrt the post this question is referencing there's definitely also canonical documentaries and other media about the Wayne murders that gets circulated on at least a national level. Gotham is like... a really weird true crime mill.

[maxwell-grant]

do you have any favorite batman henchmen?

I put a lot of stock into how a Batman work tackles the resident henchmen and assistants and organization surrounding any specific Batrogue and how those intersect with each other so yes, absolutely I have Bat-henchman opinions, and favorites per villain. I'm gonna about pick about one or two among my favorites and name a few honorable mentions, with one exception and that's Rhino, Scarface's muscle. I know he's sort of a package deal with Mugsy, and Mugsy's pretty good too, but Rhino's the one I love.

I have a huge amount of fondness for Rhino and Rhino specifically because of his showing in "Read my Lips", as one of my favorite musical pieces for the series is the leitmotif that plays specifically for Rhino's moments in the opening heist and his brawl with Batman in the climax, and frankly he earns a top spot for me solely on the basis that he has his own theme and it's a banger on top of that. Scarface is exactly the kind of Bat-villain you want funny stereotypical cartoon gangsters attached to, and the big dumb grunt archetype is always more fun when paired with a proportionally much smaller partner or boss. And in Rhino's case, not only is he a titanically strong wall of muscle taking orders from a hand-held puppet dressed like a gangster, but cowering in fear when said puppet gets angry at him and relieved when reminded that he's too stupid to betray da boss. They made a lot with very little out of a bit character and it makes me love the episode so much more, and again, he has his own theme song and it opens the episode even, pretty hard to top that.

Penguin: My favorite overall has usually been Lark, specifically the version of her that was introduced in Tony Daniel's run. Like with Rhino and Scarface, the tiny funny-looking Oswald Cobblepot having a tall, intimidating lady chaffeur following him around makes for good contrast, and although I didn't like "Bullies" much at all, I really liked that scene of them being on friendly terms with each other, how much Penguin trusts her with his life and what he does. I like she is not abiding by any kind of formal dress code, like everyone else who tends to work at the Lounge, she's got almost like a punk thing that really contrasts with Oswald's own outfits and I always liked that, her individuality.

A more recent favorite would be Lili Kwan from Penguin: One Bad Day, someone who is far more marginalized than Oswald, and someone who was marginalized and pushed aside BY Oswald, but who joins up with him because he is the best lesser evil she is going to get and because they have enough in common that he can relate to her and respect her and ensure she is respected, but she pointedly does not mince words around him and does not entertain Oswald's delusions and self-loathing. She kinda demands Oswald to be the better class of criminal he paints himself as, to learn from his mistakes and earn having her by his side because "a king can't have illusions", and that's an incredibly interesting dynamic to me, this person with a vision of what Penguin and his empire should be like and in a position to have Penguin listen to her about it, not just muscle by his side but a voice in his ear pushing him to get his head in the game, be someone who deserves the loyalty he has from the underprivileged and the outcasts he claims to be a part of.

Honorable mentions would be the Red Triangle Gang from Batman Returns. I don't think they would really belong in any other version of the Penguin, and I have some very mixed feelings on Returns still, but I like the history they have with this Oswald and I like them in the movie proper, my favorite is the Poodle Lady for no real reason. I would also name the Kabuki Twins from The Batman cartoon, and Mr Decondor from The Batman Audio Adventures.

Joker: I gotta go with Bob the Goon, the Number One Guy. He is not even called Bob the Goon in the movie, he's just become so emblematic a figure for goons everywhere that he earns that name, Bob the Goon. See, I actually don't think the Joker should employ clowns in his gang, I think if you have more than one clown going around doing crimes, then they're not that special individually, I don't see the Joker surrounding himself with people who look or act even half as outlandish as himself, and that’s part of why Bob works for me, this comically ordinary schlub grunt who nevertheless endears himself to our sympathies for putting up with the Joker, being endlessly loyal to Napier before and after his accident. We like him in no small part because the Joker clearly likes this guy as much as he's capable of liking anyone on the planet, which is why it actually lands when the Joker guns him down just to vent. Rest in peace Bob, an example to low-lives everywhere.

If I had to name another favorite, and one I think works better on a reocurring basis, it would be Charlie Charleyhorse, from The Batman Audio Adventures. Charleyhorse has the mannerisms of a smooth-talking wise guy and is the guy who handles the day-to-day businesses of the Joker, sweet-talking recruits and negotiating deals and convincing rookies to eat poison and even hosting his broadcasts, and in contrast to the other villain sidekicks in the show who provide comedic contrast he is this very efficient, very charming and dangerous man, fully cognizant of the cruelty he's assisting and the man he works for. To me he feels like a very organic way of establishing how much more dangerous the Joker is compared to the other villains, that he runs his disorganized crime with the efficiency of a well-oiled machine, that behind all the chaos and mayhem there is an unfathomably brilliant mind at work and a smart, affable businessman to act as a conduit between that mind and the city, as if the Joker plucked the ghost of Jack Napier from his soul and found a sweet deal that lets them both happily exist.

Honorable mentions would be Prank, from The Batman cartoon. I think Joker gunning for his own Robin is an idea with legs (Harley never really counted in that regard), I really liked his design, a perfect combination of Robin aesthetics with a clown/jester motif, and I thought he had one of the more interesting set-ups for a "Joker corrupts people into extensions of him" story, definitely one of the better Joker episodes in that show. Other honorable mentions would be Jackanapes and Captain Clown from TAS, because the Joker getting unreasonably attached to a horrible giant clown android is a pretty funny concept to me.

Riddler: God, what a perfect character Miss Tuesday is. Pairing up the self-obsessed artist of crime with the harshest critic of all, the disinterested judgemental teenager, is such a perfect combo and it does so much to breathe new life into a very classic take on Riddler. The fact that she regularly stays in touch and coordinates stuff with other villain interns is amazing and part of the incredible worldbuilding The Batman Audio Adventures has in general. Miss Tuesday is this physical embodiment of ennui to deflate his cartwheeling histerics, manifesting every bit of self-awareness that the Riddler completely ignores, annoying him just as much as he annoys everyone else (her included).

It's punctuated by her being casually murderous to an extent that even surprises him, and the fact that she is just as smart as he is, so by the standards he lives his life by, he can't brush her off as another small-minded knuckle-dragging ignoramus like he does with everyone else, no, he can't tell himself that she simply doesn't understand what he is doing. She does understand him, she is just not that impressed by him, and Eddie will simply have to roll with the barbs and work harder if he is to prove himself. She is the closest The Riddler has to a conscience and thus her job is not to push him towards any kind of moral self-improvement or an approach to his work that doesn't involve murder and terrorism, but to dunk cold water on his head and call him cringe when he gets in too deep or for doing this instead of, like, making money off this crap or something.

The other candidate would be the Riddler's Followers from The Batman. They're not a concept I think would work for a more traditional version of The Riddler, but God they work SO well for that movie and that version of him, marking Eddie Nigma's transition from malajusted murderer into not just a supervillain with a city-destroying plot, not just the rise of supervillains as a thing Gotham is gonna have to deal with forever, but as a sickness aimed at the heart of the city, and a sickness that Batman is indirectly responsible for and that he must owe up to. I really like how The Riddler: Year One elaborates on them with "He doesn't trust people. But numbers never lie." His "henchmen" are numbers, numbers on a screen he never has to actually interact with, but can still send on to be proxies of him, embodiments of how much bigger this is than anything Batman could have imagined it being.

Honorable mentions would be the classic duo of Query and Echo, and much like Bob, we gotta bring up his henchgirl Molly from the Batman 66 pilot two-parter, who tragically died by falling into the Batcave's nuclear reactor. "What a way to go-go".

Two-Face: It's common for Two-Face to have twin sets of named thugs but I can't say any of them have ever been particularly memorable to me, but one that does stick out to me is Benny from Long Shadows. I'm of the opinion that if any Batman villain should be establishing a working relationship with a henchman/assistant, if any Batman villain really needs to be depicted putting in the work as far as convincing people to work for him, it should be Two-Face, the former widely-beloved District Attorney/politician turned crimelord who somehow stays a dominant player in the Gotham underworld despite everything stacked against him (his face, his reputation, his past being public record, the coin-based decisions, etc). I think Two-Face needs to be some degree of charismatic and conversational and convincing, he's someone with more tangential history in this world than the other villains and should be willing and able to engage with people at any level, even if, and especially if, he's going to betray or save them at the flip of a coin, and the closest anyone's ever come to capturing that for me has been Benny, this guy who's willing to question Two-Face's decisions and is smart and sensible and generally pleasant enough that Two-Face lets him do it (with some limits, of course) and lets him in on what he's planning. Being drawn by Mark Bagley, who can convey a lot of expression and personality on any character, is definitely a bonus.

Scarecrow: Not so much of a henchmen since this was technically a villain team-up, but Scream Queen as she was featured in that Brave and the Bold segment has literally nothing in common with comics Scream Queen as debuted in Scare Tactics to the point she is a new character in every way. I like comics Scream Queen quite a lot, and I wouldn't want her to be any kind of underling to Scarecrow, but BATB Scream Queen is a very cool design and concept and in general I think Scarecrow could stand to have some cool and inventive henchmen, I wouldn't be opposed to seeing BATB Scream Queen turn up again so long as she had a different name. I'm also extremely partial to the Strawmen and the idea of him employing former students and offering them teaching exercises mid-crime.

Bane: There's really only one form of Bane henchmen that matter and it's Bird, Zombie and Trogg, the Fabulous Five to his Doc Savage (I always felt like there could be two more members to actually make them five, I know it doesn't have to be an exact reference but). I like them as they are in regular canon but my favorite depiction of them so far has been in the Batman 66 comic by Jeff Parker, which retrofits Bane to fit the 66 aesthetic and tone by further emphasizing his lucha motif, and having his Fabulous Three all dress up in distinct masks of their own referencing existing iconic luchadore characters.

Black Mask: I think the False Face Society is one of the more interesting parts of Black Mask's concept and it really doesn't come up enough, and when it does it gets folded into just being a name for his gangster lackeys instead of the weird cult aspect it acquired when it was folded into his character, I'd like to see that stuff get folded back in.

Hugo Strange: Honestly I love all of Hugo's varied forms of henchmen over the years, all of them have their place in the grand tapestry of his designs (I'm not too big on Sanjay from Batman and the Monster Men, there is stuff to like about their dynamic but I don't think the pulp racial manservant is a thing deserving of the charming throwback treatment). The gangsters from his debut, the androids/mannequins, Night Scourge, the TYGER guards/troopers from Arkham City, the mind-controlled villains and inmates from his Deathstroke arc, and of course the Monster Men. I do prefer the horrific body horror kaijus from Night of the Monster Men, but I also like the mutated giants, especially when they dress up in oversized trenchcoats and slouch hats.

There are a few others but I'm lastly gonna say Mr.Freeze and his polar bears Notchka and Shaka, from Batman and Mr.Freeze: Subzero. I'm not opposed to Mr.Freeze having regular henchmen, or even ice-themed henchmen like in Batman and Robin, there are ways to have it make sense, but the polar bears I think have this sort of almost innocent fairytale logic to them that just fits Mr.Freeze and his imagery a lot better, abstract guardians of the concept of the arctic that Mr.Freeze claims dominion over. Even at their most benign, you can't extricate human henchmen from the inherent brutality of their profession, but when it's trained animals defending a master, it's easier to find innocence and sympathy, traits that fit well with Mr.Freeze. If there's anything in that movie I remember, it's the bittersweet ending where they walk off into a blizzard together, his sole two companions into this new life he's cursed with.

Does it really make any sense for Mr.Freeze's established skillset and character for him to have a duo of trained polar bears on call to do crimes with, the way Penguin and Catwoman have their own trained animals? No. Is it corny? Arguably yes. Do I think it's cool? Is it a cool image? Very much so, and when it comes to Batman, that tends to be the final word in things.

[thesardines2007]

Anyone watch 2008 The Dark Knight? No? Me neither:| but I love the “Dear Bruce” audio from it where Batman’s love interest breaks up with him once and for all because she knows he can’t give her what she needs and she’ll never be able to really be with him like a normal man could be, so she leaves him for her other love interest and eventually marries him😭

I’m my sonic AU (/HC, Shadow and Amy are basically soulmates but due to super natural events, their timeline is corrupted leading to their backstories and futures changing (Amy gets her wings cut off and ends up running away from home due to her parents neglect as well as the overtaking of King Julian, she is gifted with super strength, invisibility, sensing, and weapon spooning, as well as her Piko Piko hammer. Shadow on the other hand originally had a loving adoptive family (A.K.A. the Robotnik family) but instead was created by them and used as a pawn instead of a son, he is now ageless, immortal, and invincible (he can regenerate from any sort of damage cause to his body), and he and Amy can now never be together as she will grow and age while shadow will stay the same forever, he can’t mature and is stuck on the past while Amy wants to move forward). They get together for a bit during the time Amy feels as though she’ll never be what Sonic is after, but they break up a little while into the relationship and that whole scenario reminds me of the “Dear Bruce” letter from The Dark Knight and all the edits of Batman standing over watching Gotham off of TikTok.

For all the ShadAmy fans who don’t care about my stupid AU, this was really actually inspired by Amy and Shadow’s closeness over the years and what I’d think Shadow’s reaction would be to getting a letter or voicemail from Amy saying how she loves him but her heart belongs to Sonic and Shadow won’t ever be there for her like Sonic can be (Shadow works for G.U.N., dwells too much in the past from the Ark, doesn’t care about her friends like she wants him to, and is too caught up on his adventures and nihilistic point of view).

Here it is plus the reference✨ I made this on IbisPaint X if anyone is wondering…

[kaneandfeels]

SO A LOT OF YOU ASKED A LOT OF QUESTIONS So we answered every one we were asked

1. What is an element of your story that surprised you?

How quickly the Holmes and Watson dynamic we used as a writing crutch entirely flipped through our characters growing and developing. Feels became the star rather than the sounding board in a way that is really organic and good - Jack

Its scope. I had dabbled with absurdism before Kane and Feels, but never gone full existential horror. I’m more of a like quiet melodrama type so i love that jack was able to get me writing more esoteric bullshit- Oli

I don’t know if it's surprising, but there’s a tenderness to a lot of the series that I wasn't expecting when we started. It sets its tropes out strongly, and then the characters interact in that space and take it in wildly different directions, while remaining true to the genre. - Jude

2. Is audio drama the only medium you've worked in? How does it compare to other mediums?

Audio dramas are the only form I've ever received feedback for really, I have a literature degree and I am constantly making stories but I don't really have any other published works like this. - jack

I’ve studied in other mediums, but not worked in them. I’ve done bits of filming at school but found quickly my talents laid in sound. - Jude

I’m an audio nerd, through and through. Started as a musician, became a DJ, wrote a sitcom, did a degree, made some docs and factual programmes and then it's been audio dramas since then. It's a difficult medium to master but a rewarding one when its’ done right. - Oli

3. What are some audio dramas that inspire you? Both in general and for your podcast.

Welcome to nightvale was a big early touchstone, the work of Dirk Maggs like batman knightfall meant a lot to me as a child, I had it on cassette tapes

HItchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (the radio series) is a big one. I listened to it religiously when growing up. Neverwhere was another one that inspired me from a sound perspective. The shifting brickwork always tickles my brain. - Jude

I listened to a lot of HP as a kid, while going tobed. I graduated onto the BBC7 ‘Comedy Club’ which played a mix of half hour sitcoms and stand up comedy vehicles between 10 and midnight when I was going to sleep… occasionally I would drift into the ‘seventh dimension’ where I’d hear the man in black, Blake 7 and all other sci-fi horrory affairs.  When Nightvale turned up, that was a game changer, cause it opened the field to people like me to go make audio dramas without the clout of the BBC behind us. Same with Wooden overcoats. 

More specifically though, there is a direct line between Aker and Blacker’s “beyond Belief’ on the Thrilling adventure hour’ and the early drafts of Kane and Feels

4. Who is a character that took you by surprise?

Councilman Geoff Grace. Go listen for why - Jack

Jeanine (the housewife) wasn’t surprising, but she was shocking. I just loved her framing and existence in the story. It's one of those ones where you can feel the screen on the scene. you ‘re looking in at this strange commercial of a woman as she lives this warped 50’s vibe. - Jude

For me, its the monster from wonderland. I had this idea for something grotesque, that pulled apart the idea that words don’t hurt. Of course words hurt. That’s why they can lead us to violence or action or whatever. So I had this idea of a monster who said words ‘scar from the inside’. Jack said ‘this is great, what is this monster?”…. And i hadn’t thought that far ahead. I said ‘I dunno, that’s your job, spookyman’ - so suddenly its the voice of the goddess of spite, we get Vivi P, the most terrifying italian woman ever to grace our studios to do her voice, and then pepper her in through out the series making her a serious big bad. Didn’t know she’d have that milage considering it was essentially a joke about sticks and stones breaking bones. - Oli

5. If you're the writer, how did casting/producing change how you thought about the podcast?

No one gave a fuck about our opinions on this particualr subject. - Oli

6. If you are a voice actor or audio editor, what is your favorite blooper moment?

There's a line with constituents in season one episode 4 that I just couldn't say - Jack

I think a lot of our weird bloopers end up in the show, either as the take or buried beneath some stuff. Season 2 is lousy with them, from Chippie’s final monologue to the sound of me and Oli in Thornbush’s charity shop. To even the joke about Paul Bearer in the final episode. - Jude

There’s one take we never used, where Ali Cambell, Jeanines’ actor, improvised a story about their first hamster. In the story, she crushes it to death. We loved it at the time, but it was arguably better than anything any of us had written so I personally coward’d out and didn’t put it in. - Oli (Id’ forgotten about that - Jude)

7. If you could make a crossover (canon or non canon) with any other audio drama, what would it be?

Am I allowed to say ‘Camlann’? Even though its very recent we’d slot in very well.or Victoriocity - Jude

I mean, I want to be on hello from the magic tavern, but not as kane - Jack

Sandman. Wanna work with Dirk. or What’s the Frequency or if Rose Drive ever resurrects.  - Oli

8. What is an inside joke or reference that is hidden in your podcast?

So many wrestling kayfabe references -  Jack

I always think of ‘GET BACK VILE BEAST’ *dunstan throws a spanner at a bird* - The real joke is that a lot of the rocks from St Dunstan made it into Camlann episode seven when the hill opens up into the underground.

The inside joke for me is the loops. “Jude’s discount Loops” - hacking these beautiful pieces of music that Oli has made and getting them to work. They’re all like 14 minutes long and there’s chopping that needs to be done. 

9. What are some of your favorite podcasts to listen to?

World Beyond Number. Westminster Insider, Too many Tabs, Chapo Trap House. I’m a trash person who listens to trash. (other than WBN, most exciting actual play on the scene RN) = Oli

Is it terrible I’m more of a music person? I’m currently spiraling back into Nonagon Infinity by King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. I listen to old audiobooks to sleep. At the moment it's the good omens radio series with Mark Heap and Peter Serafinowitz. - Jude

I have an elaborate weekly schedule of podcasts I listen to, my current favorite is 'mom can't cook'

10. Are the podcasts you make / enjoy making the same kind you enjoy listening to (genre, formatting, etc)?

I mostly listen to character improv comedy and comedy reviews of film and wrestling. A little bit of D&D actual play too. so I guess... no? - J

I can’t just say ‘I don’t listen to podcasts’... I mean I can and I don’t. - Jude

No. - Oli

11. Free space! Tell me something cool about your podcast!

The music is crazy good - Jack

The Sound Design is once in a generation. - OliThe writing is ambitious and exciting - Jude

[wingdingdaddy]

batman the audio adventures is my new fav thing. batman sounds so corny ok. i can’t. it’s perfect. and it’s so modernized. miss tuesday is so gen z asjbjdnnwnwnkssnskn

catwoman is incredible she’s such an antihero i love everything about her her her voice actor is perfect she’s such a femme fatale and you can’t even SEE her

riddler sounds like merle from twd

im almost done w season 1

[maniacwatchestheworld]

Several small BatFam notes

@moss-covered-thoughts (I'm answering questions and providing information for DPxDC fans.)

lol don't worry about it! Nothing about you talking about your fic will make me feel left out! I'm just happy to help you out with your work! If anything will make me feel left out, it's the lack of rogues content and people within this fanspace underutilizing Vlad and not having much of that juicy, juicy polycule content (specifically Vlad/Jack/Maddie) that I keep coming back to Danny Phantom for. :p Speaking of, I want to be as transparent as I can with the information I'm giving out, because just like all comics fans, I'm not an expert on everything and I am very much in my own specific niche and haven't read everything out there! I'm actually not much of a Batfam fan and am much MUCH more of a rogues fan! (Specifically my hyperfixation is focused around Harvey Dent and Two-Face.) So while I do have some information about the members of the batfamily, my knowledge isn't nearly as comprehensive as someone who's deep dived into that part of the DC universe! I'll give you the information I can, and hopefully someone with more cohesive Batfam knowledge can reblog this post with extra notes to fill in the holes I have in my knowledge. >.<

Adoption Order

So I can't tell you the specific specifics of adoption specifically, but I believe that the order of each member joining the Bat Family would probably be along the lines of: Dick Grayson -> Barbara Gordon -> Jason Todd -> Tim Drake -> Cassandra Cain -> Stephanie Brown -> Damian Wayne -> Duke Thomas.

Batgirl and Duke recs

Again, I haven't read much Bat Family stuff because my primary focus is on the rogues. But I do have a handful of recs! If you're willing to watch a long-ass video instead of reading, I would actually highly recommend Linkara's retrospective on Cassandra Cain and here's the link to said video! It's very good and goes into just about every major comic appearance she was in at the time of the video first coming out (in 2019)! You will get a very good image of her character from that, I like Linkara's analysis, and by watching that video, you will definitely be able to come away from it with a number of recommendations for both Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown! (He does talk about Steph some in this video, but it's limited.)

Speaking of Stephnie I'm sorry to say that I don't really have any recommendations for Steph as I sadly have just not really happened to come across any works that have her in them in my poking around in different comics and related media. But honestly, while I can't give you any recs for Steph, maybe you should toss Linkara (@atopfourthwall) a message! He's actually a decently active Tumblr user and given that he wants to do a different retrospective on Stephanie Brown, certainly he would have things to recommend!

As for other Cass reccomendations... The only thing I have in my back pocket is Spirit World. It's not about her, it's a solo series about the brand spanking new character, Xanthe Zhou, but Cass IS a main character in it, and people seem genuinely happy with what they did with her in that story!

If you're looking for good Barbra Gordon content... Well... Personally I would recommend giving her episodes in Batman: the Animated series or the issues that include her in The Batman Adventures a look-see...? It's always a solid time with her around in B:TAS, or in the Batman Adventures! They characterize her very well in those serieses!

If you want both a Cass and a Barbra suggestion... Maybe check out No Man's Land...? Asking you to read all of the comics that were part of that saga might be a little much, but there is a novel adaptation of the No Man's Land storyline out there, and personally I listened to the reading of that novel as done by Graphic Audio and it is genuinely excellent! Like, the marketing may be tacky, but it is on the level of quality as something like an audio drama podcast or a Big Finish Audio. It just happens to be a book reading. :p But No Man's Land IS where Cass was first introduced, (also where Harley Quinn joined the comics universe fun fact!) and it has plenty of good moments from Barbara in it too!

As for Duke... Honestly, if you aren't already reading the Wayne Family Adventures, then you really ought to. >.< That series is available for free on webtoon and the first several strips have him as the main character before it becomes more of an ensemble cast thing. (And in case you were wondering it IS official DC media!) >.< I also haven't read much of Duke's stuff, and so in terms of his backlog, I really don't know what to recommend. The one story that I did happen to read that heavily featured Duke... Was "My Own Worst Enemy" (it's like volume 1 of All-Star Batman) which was... Fine...??? Like, as a Two-Face and Harvey Dent story, it was pretty bad and ablest in how it portrayed Harvey's DID. (But this isn't necessarily unusual for books that include him... SIIIIIGH!) But it was also incredibly stupid and fun, and had a lot of good forwards momentum and offered a number of interesting ideas that I don't entirely hate! So overall I find it... Fine... But as a Duke story... Honestly it's not bad as far as a Duke story can go! And the back-up story for that little arc (the Cursed Wheel) was pretty alright too! I do feel like after I read My Own Worst Enemy that I did understand Duke just a little better as a character! So while it's not good... You might find it to be decent in what you're looking for...? Because I really cannot speak on any other stories he's been in. >.<

So uh... Sorry about my whole limited perspective thing... But I do hope that you find some of this useful at least! I wish you the best of luck in your writing endeavors!

[localebra]

Hench Women of Riddler

Echo & Query

Technically fist appearing in Secret Origins Special Vol 2 #1 1989, but under the names Query and Probe. We will have to discuss all the different names before going into them as individuals.

Detective Comics Annual #8 1995 is the first time they are who we truely know today as Query (Diedre Vance) and Echo (Nina Damfino). At the time working at a sex club called Pandora, they were petty crooks who decided to rob the Riddler after a heist. He was not only able to convince him to not Rob him, but to become his hired help.

Quiz and Query help him with his game show host astetic in Batman: Riddler 1995.

Along with dark skined twin version of Quiz and Query in The Batman and Robin Adventures #3 1996.

Not a woman, but I must mention Kwiz Kid from Teen Titans Go! #15 2003. The Rival to the Robin and boyfriend to Kitten. He is rather a fan, apprentice or spn of the Riddler.

Enigma the Riddler's daughter (Allegedly) first apeared in Teen Titans #38 2006 Joining the heroic team before shortly making an appearance in Gotham alongside her father to carry out his crimes. Eventually betraying the Titans along with Joker's daughter to Teen Titans East. Until being doubled crossed by Joker's daughter and losing to the Titans. Shortly afterwards while working with her father she was killed by him. Dark Crisi she was named Quinn Nash appearing in the Arkham Academy program inside Batman urban Legends 21 2023. Were it is stated father would go on to be mentally abusive. Pushing her to be just as smart as him, when she failed to show this, Riddler tried to kill her for not being as smart as him. Next appearing in DC's 'Twas the 'Mite Before Christmas (2023) #1 where she goes on a date with Batwoman and helps her unravel her father's plans.

Quiz real name Miyu Tangram from Legends of the Dark Knight #2 2021. Marketed as Riddler's Punchline she sent him a riddle which led to an easy bank robbery. He had the wrong code for the safe and she revealed her self from the hostages in told him the code and to take her with him. A massive fan of his work and later on his lover.

Miss Tuesday the Riddlers short lived sidekick in Batman: The Audio Adventures (Podcast) 2021.

Enigma real name Evelyn Rhyme and actual daughter of the Riddler in Batwoman season 2 2021. In which she is a master hypnotist who worked for Black Mask and made Kate Kane think she was Circe Sionis. She effected many other but was killed by Ocean to prevent her from reversing her work on Alice.

For thoughts I feel a story from the perspective of Query and Echo could be very interesting into aspects. Not only would it give us the inner workings of The Riddlers work, but a unique view as a henchmen. At no point of a stepped on or looked down upon unlike other henchmen. They are the lowest of below but they're on top of the Heap. In regards to the various children, partners and fans I think actively bringing them together could be something interesting. Maybe Riddler actively puts a test out there to attract people who are the same level of intelligences him. Trying to build a team to take over Gotham through brains instead of brawn. Project Daedalus it could be called and each of the characters could have a different specialization.

[ang-artblog]

another character rant and this time it’s Poison Ivy!!! I’ve only been able to draw her a few times and I can’t find my other drawings of her 😔. Some of her design choices come from the voice actors appearance (we love and appreciate you Taylor!!!!), and overall I just knew what I wanted her to look like when I worked on her character with Taylor. Like 100% yup this is it I don’t want anything else type of confidence.

character wise, she is also another interesting character that I play a lot with when it comes to dynamics. Poison Ivy is a lot like Two Face in ANG, being activists and wanting to change Gotham but in their corrupt and violent ways. But unlike Two Face, Poison Ivy is dead-set on what she wants and doesn’t care for criminal organization. She attacks the Mayor because of his mildly (extremely) sexist law-making decisions, she uses her vines to grab Zsasz before he attacks an orphanage and WWE style body slams (vine slams?) him into the ground repeatedly, and the list goes on. Now all of this is so girlboss of her and girlypop, but there has to be some sort of fault in her character, and that’s when we get to her characterization that deals with more of her personal struggles. I imagine Pamela as a bit out of touch with her feelings, and she finds “humans and empathy confusing” (lies and denial, she may be plant hybrid girl but she is human herself, she just doesn’t know how to control and communicate her emotions). I have her with my little group I like to call the “we don’t say we are human because others say we aren’t human but in actuality we just wanna be human like them” gang. They all have their own struggles with this type of outcasting, Waylon Jones totally not being my favorite and totally is not my favorite DC character of all time besides Harvey Dent and Charley Charley Horse (from Batman the audio adventures, he’s may get to be in ANG as well!!!).

Now, I can’t tell you the bigger part of her characters role in this story, but season 2 her will get a much bigger influence in the story. She won’t be in the asylum with the others at any point BUT don’t fret, she gets a character arc on her own without Ernest.

[ponds-of-ink]

Listening to the Batman Audio Adventures is so surreal– Especially when I’m imagining my own personal designs actually doing the stuff.

For example: Catwoman removing her blonde wig... only to reveal her actual blue-black hair underneath. It’s short enough so she can do the bait-and-switch reveal very easily.

And this is just a detail from the first episode.

(Edit: This Catwoman’s voice really fits the personal design too. Very nice. :])

[sketchp00ch]

Revamp on Miss Tuesday in the BTAS/TNBA Style

I basically wanted to try out how my interpretation of Miss Tuesday (or Ariadne Isychía as I’ve named her) would look and fit into both the BTAS and TNBA Universe.

I love both the statuesque style for some of the female characters in BTAS (Selina Kyle and Andrea Beaumont for ex.) and the Pin-Up style Bruce Timm did for TNBA, Justice League, Superman, and Batman Beyond!

So I wanted to practice both styles and incorporate it to Ariadne.

(I also made a new character sheet for her in my own art style! I made something similar to this chart a while back but I wasn’t happy with it so here we are! Especially now that I’m really liking how her hair looks now than before LOL )

MORE ABOUT HER BELOW ⬇️

QUICK DISCLAIMER: As I've stated before, this is a complete reinterpretation of Miss Tuesday and not from the original/canon character of her from Batman: The Audio Adventures

(This interpretation of her is practically an OC at this point as she’s become a completely different character who just has the “Miss Tuesday” alias/title)

ANYWAYS

My MT’s personality, background, and appearance are all mostly the opposite of her canon self in Batman: The Audio Adventures:

Tuesday’s relationship with Riddler in case anyone was curious- is strictly platonic, they’re pretty much besties for life and death, though in all seriousness they still have a professional relationship and view each other as intellectual equals who highly respect one another

Ariadne Isychía, or just Ari, is the full name I gave to this Miss Tuesday

As how she got the alias of “Miss Tuesday” is short but funny; so basically Edward asked her what day she was born in and in true Ari fashion, she responds with- “I was born on a Tuesday, specifically around 3:37am in Greek time, or 8:37pm Eastern Standard Time, sir.”, Edward smiled and said, “Perfect! Miss Tuesday it is!”

I gave her the name “Ariadne” because I wanted give a reference and nod to both Greek mythology (Ariadne was the Cretan Princess who helped Theseus defeat the Minotaur in the Labyrinth using her golden thread and later became the minor goddess of mazes and puzzles after marrying Dionysus) and Riddler’s BTAS debut episode: “If You’re So Smart, Why Aren’t You Rich?” (Where he created a game based off of the same legend called “Riddle of The Minotaur”)

Ari is a burnt out 36-year old former child prodigy with lower-needs Autism, and high functioning OCD

She was born in Athens, Greece but was raised in the U.S. (Gotham City to be more specific)

She graduated high school at the age of 12 and from Gotham University at 16 with a degree in Data Analytics and Cybersecurity

Before working for The Riddler, Ari was once a criminal analyst for the GCPD due to her father being a well respected officer at the time

Despite having a stable job at the time and a supportive father, she was beyond under stimulated with just doing the basics of hacking and analyzing to where she didn’t feel challenged enough nor was she really respected in the department either

So by the time Ari’s father retired and moved back to Athens, she decided to quit the GCPD and made her way to locate and track down Edward (no matter how much he tried to delete all of his information, Ari always found a way because she’s that smart and that good at her job), and managed to convince him to hire her as his assistant

Edward was both baffled and impressed at how talented she was in terms of cybersecurity and how she managed to recover ALL of his deleted information in less than a week that he hired her on the spot

Ari has the same type of dryness and nonchalance that the original Miss Tuesday from BTAA does, the difference is she isn’t always aware that when she’s being slightly apathetic or too blunt and doesn’t mean to be like that (social unawareness be like that sometimes)

Plus she’s more respectful towards Edward and refers to him as either “Mr. Nygma” or simply “Sir” instead of just calling him “Eddie” like in BTAA

Ari respects Edward so much that even though she knows she’s essentially smarter than him, she dims it down just to not hurt his ego

She has a fondness for Owls, she just thinks they’re neat. Edward and the other Rouges like to point that out to her mid-banter as they sometimes refer to her as “Owlet” or “Night Owl” since she has a tendency to stay up very late at night on the computer, and sometimes stares at people for way too long without blinking (she’s not always aware of it until Edward would tap her shoulder and asks her to knock it off, she can’t help it. It’s the ‘tism…)

[shadethechangingman]

weekly comics 

batman audio adventures - interesting end reveal. i didnt finish the 2nd season though so idfk what happens w that

brave and bold - superman story is really cool. nice art. the batmans were meh

superman vs. meshi - cute still!

superman lex: whatever

ivy uncovered - i do like her current boilersuit/mushroom nightmare look. its cool

knight terrors detective comics - shrug whatever

knight terrors action comics - every time its sooo obvious that PKJ has no fucking clue what to do w kenan he deserves so much better than being a second stringer superfam member

knight terrors angel breaker - i wish she had gotten a mini when she debuted so we knew what her deal was. tbh i thought DC had already moved on from her. this was interesting enough though i will read more

knight terrors harley quinn - REALLY good art but whatever plot...... i dont care for harley multiverse stuff. nice to see supermartian and doc fate though :D

[maxwell-grant]

im researching Scarecrow hench-people and the DC wiki is really unhelpful, can you give me a list of a few notable ones. Also who's this Autumn from the Audio Adventures people keep mentioning. Is she a canon character or is she an OC

thank you! also loved the list you did of your favorite hench people

Thank you! Now that you mention it, it does seem like Scarecrow's kinda lacking in terms of notable henchmen, even purely in terms of visually distinct one-offs. It might have something to do with how little he's been traditionally focused on crime and coalition building, per se, and more so on lone terrorist campaigns and experimentation. Besides Scream Queen, who I already went into in the other post, these are the ones that I can think of:

Autumn / Miss Autumn is canon to TBAA, she just never showed up in the show. We hear about her in S1 via two scenes where Miss Tuesday talks about her friend in Scarecrow's gang, another villain assistant named Autumn that she always texts with and coordinates with, and then later she'd appear in issue #6 of the Audio Adventures comic, kidnapping Dick while he's disguised as a Burma Shave Boy and bringing him over to the Scarecrow as part of his plan. She claims to be a scullery maid in charge of the "kitchen" and is instructed by Crane to prepare a new batch, and Dick finds an Arkham Asylum physician's clearence and security badge that might belong to her, given Miss Tuesday in the show claims to have grown up in Arkham and the two seeming to be fairly close friends.

The Audio Adventures Special prequel comic released along with S2 also showed that, along with his biker gang to peddle in the street, he employs dealers hidden in plain sight such as the elderly librarian Mrs.Elliot, who we don't get to know much more about other than her being known by Dick and his friends, and a willing enthusiastic participant in the Scarecrow's plans to sell drugs to kids, as well as kidnap and experiment on them.

In terms of notable henchmen I think the first one he ever got were the Strawmen from Batman #296: said to be named Otto and Raymond, former students of his who've joined him and became students of the Scarecrow, serving as the muscle to his operation.

There's Linda Frittawa / Fright, introduced in a Judd Winick arc by the name of "As the Crow Flies", who became his assistant and confidant, while secretly manipulating him under a deal she made with the Penguin. She's the one who turned Scarecrow into the Scarebeast, and eventually showed up later working for Jeremiah Arkham Black Mask.

Not quite a henchwoman per se but there is a character named Haunter who showed up in the 2017 Batman (vol.3) annual, who's able to kill people with her DNA and who coordinates a small-scale fear gas with Jonathan to make her escape from Arkham, and it's said the two had a "twisted mutual admiration thing" before Batman put her away. She's only made two appearences in total, in two anthology shorts penned by her creator Scott Bryan Wilson, and I'm including her because given her name and gimmick and lack of prominence, she might as well be a Scarecrow henchwoman or partner or extension of his deal.

There's a fairly long pattern of Scarecrow being responsible for the creation of new villains with his experiments even if they don't necessarily go on to become henchmen - Madame Crow from Tynion's run was a former student who was tortured with fear toxin for months and took over a year to recover, before embarking on her own fear toxin campaigns. Colin Wilkes from Streets of Gotham was an abused orphan kidnapped by Scarecrow and given Venom injections before being ordered to attack Batman, and who was freed and became a hero. The Gotham Knight movie states that this version of Killer Croc was experimented on by Jonathan Crane, who caused his condition to worsen and seems to have kept him around a sewer hideout as an attack dog. The Titans show had him behind the resurrection of Jason Todd and his transformation into Red Hood, and Gotham had him create the show's version of Joker Toxin that kicks off Jeremiah Valeska's transformation.

And finally, we'd be remiss not to mention that a couple of times in his older appearences he's had a pet raven named Nightmare, a concept that's come up again in more recent kid-friendly books where it's named Croward instead, who assisted him in his criminal endeavors. I suppose that raven evidently doesn't make too much sense given Crane's backstory revolving around the crow trauma inflicted on him by his grandmother, or that trained birds are still very much Penguin territory in spite of him never using them anymore, or it clashing too much with the darker tone and vibe he's supposed to have, but there's a self-evident charm to the scarecrow-themed villain having a pet raven circling him.

[alexghegg]

My Stories

Originals

"Truth, Beauty and Metallurgy" - Science Fiction

Free to read or listen to the audio version read by Yours Truly, also in the Amazing Stories Best of 2023

“I don’t regard the universe as owing me things I can easily understand.”

An expedition to investigate signs of intelligent life on a new planet forces the humans to re-evaluate their own presumptions.

"Fossils, Fog and Flippers" - Science Fiction

In the anthology "Beneath the Misty Surface" from 518 Pub.

"A weird kind of indignation rose up in me. I was starting to think there was something wrong with me, and all this time something was stealing my fossils!"

A scientist examining fossils on an alien planet's foggy coastline is troubled by some unknown force in the mists.

Fanfics

The Encanto Revenant - Disney's Encanto - Horror, Mystery

Rated: T

A seemingly natural and timely death in the community is followed by an outbreak of a strange affliction and terrifying events.

Sleep, Mara Dearie, Sleep - She-Ra and the Princesses of Power - Hurt, Comfort

Rated: T

Entrapta stumbles across the mortal remains of Mara, the previous She-Ra. The Best Friends Squad organize a formal funeral for her.

Ain't Misbehavin' - Hazbin Hotel - Hurt/Comfort

Rated: T

An expansion on how Princess Charlie found a wounded sinner and helped her begin a new afterlife

Kiramman Sick Days - Arcane: League of Legends - Hurt/Comfort, Romance

Rated: G

Caitlyn comes down with the flu, and she and Vi take the chance to get away from it all at the Kirraman family chalet. Post-canon but written before season 2 released

Midnight Waking - Arcane: League of Legends - Romance

Rated: G

Caitlyn wakes up and worries. One-shot.

Heart of Honour - Star Trek: the Next Generation - Adventure

Rated: T

Episodes in the career of Kirana, daughter of K'Var, officer of the Klingon Defence Force

Syberia: Down the Tunnel of Dreams - Syberia - Adventure

Rated: T

Kate Walker returns from Syberia, and begins coming to terms with what she's done, and what it means, while dealing with the enemies she's made on her way. Set after Syberia 2.

Most of the Way to the Moon - Bubblegum Crisis - Action, Hurt/Comfort

Rated: M

An unexpected opportunity is brought to the Knight Sabres to strike back at the system that put them through their recent crises and break the power of some of the future's most depraved power players.

The Art of Madness - Steven Universe/the Magnus Archives crossover - Horror

Rated: G

Statement of Garnet - no last name given - regarding a scroll briefly in her possession. Original statement given November 14, 2013. Audio recording by Jonathan Sims, Head Archivist of the Magnus Institute, London.

Blood, Water and Hock - She-Ra and the Princess of Power/Killjoys crossover - Adventure

Rated: T

The Best Friends Squad's post-war road trip has brought them to the Quad.

The Harlequin's New Clothes - Batman: the Animated Series - Hurt/Comfort, Thriller

Rated: M

Harley Quinn completes rehabilitation and gets an exciting new job ahead of the Christmas season.

[zuretha-metal]

Update 8/27/23

Hey, y'all. These oast couple months have been interesting. One of my physicians is moving on to the biggest and best job, my favorite coworkers quit, and we're officially down two nurses in-clinic. Podcasts might literally be the only thing holding me together, lol.

Penumbra S5: Okay, so this season so far has just sort of... made me cry? It wasn't much of a tearful reunion in Juno, but listening to them bicker like the old days and get back to the basics (the first thing that drew me in about this show was the space noir private eye vibes) was refreshing. So refreshing, in fact, that I went back and re-listened to, "The Case of the Murderous Mask", "The Train From Nowhere" -- the end of Season 1, Season 3 in it's entirety, and then I re-listened to Season 4 just to listen to Juno and Nureyev be in love and listen to Juno pine. The lady has some big emotions, and I love him for it. As for Second Citadel, that first scene of Season 5 hits like... really hard. And I was so scared for Talfrin, but then Angelo was there. The second he swooped in and announced himself, I started sobbing. I'm glad Damien was able to be reunited and that they've learned what is happening to their world. Quanyii is a little scary right now but I think I would be too if I took a magic edible and bad tripped my way through the Mirrored Planes and gained horrible knowledge and as soon as I woke up, I found out the love of my life had gone missing and the place was getting bombed. Definitely an understandable reaction. Our little lizard kissing boquet made me cry at the end of the episode. You know why. Last season brought everyone together only for this season to send them sprawling apart to possible doom.

Desert Skies -- I didn't get to listen to much of this yet, but it is a trip. If their frozen burrito aisle didn't send me, the fact that they refer ghosts glitching and having unfinished business by using the acronym "SUB"bing has my absolutely dying. I have no idea how to explain any of this to anyone, and it's still like...weirdly well-written. It's wholesome for being so, so nuanced.

Midnight Burger -- KB got burnt out about halfway through the second season. Still, I've got about 4 new episodes the listen to, and I'm very excited. We have a chaplain at our hospital who does the same three prayers on a loop, but she prays so nice it reminds me of Effie, and I actually feel better after hers.

Batman: The Audio Adventures -- This is great to listen to. It gives me spooky noir detective vibes and also lets me simp over a man who can't eat dinner until 2:22 in the morning because he's got two occupants in his mind. These voice actors are so good, and they paint a picture of Gotham that is so immersive and interesting. I had to stop listening so my boyfriend could catch up, so I'm excited to listen to more.

Things are so busy right now as our clinic transitions to make sure we can still see patients, and also because I've accepted a position in as an extra in a dinner theater production. Our first rehearsal is tonight, so wish me luck!

My Running Favorite Podcasts List:

The Penumbra Podcast - Juno Steel mysteries. I've dipped my toes into Second Citadel, not sure if I want to sacrifice my soul for it just yet. As for Juno's stuff, I would die for every member of the Carte Blanche and the first episode still gives me chills, even on the fourth relisten.

Welcome To Night Vale - my first podcast. My favorite baby. I listened to this thing walking the mile to and from campus and the mile across the highway to work for a year. I based my marching band tech assignments in Night Vale 's school district. Go Scorpions! (The web address is floating around somewhere out there if you're interested in the Big Rico's Sell-A-Slice fundraiser for new marching band uniforms!)

Good Morning Night Vale - Great recaps of episodes and the cast are just...abolsute goblins. Very feel-good. Good for my soul, good for yours, good for the All Mighty Glow Cloud's - all hail ❤

The Two Princes - Absolutely lovely. Short, dynamic, and absolutely charming. I listened to this one a while back and don't remember much except a totally relateable main character, a cursed forest -- also lots of gayness and a flying ship. Beauty and grace.

The Orbiting Human Circus - Strange. Very Pan's Labyrinth in the realm of, "reality?" I love the music and the old-timey feel. Still picking my way through the Naughty Till New Year's collection, but I'm a sucker for the stories they bring to the table.

The Magnus Archives - I cried a bunch. Made art. It's beautiful. The only smart man in this podcast is Joshua Gillespie. Amen to my man with all the braincells who said, "Put the key in a bowl of water and freeze it." I, of course, picked all of the stupid people as my favorites and all of them are dead. Except one.

Marsfall - Just started this one. Chaos. Amazing imagery. Also ANDI - I'd die for that sweet boy. And for some reason it just makes me think of Starkid's Starship? Bc like, it's detrimental AND campy. Excellent.