Ventriloquist (character)
Ventriloquist | |
---|---|
Batgirl #20 (July 2013) | |
Created by | Wesker: John Wagner (writer) Alan Grant (writer) Norm Breyfogle (artist) Riley: Paul Dini (writer) Don Kramer (artist) Belzer: Gail Simone (writer) Fernando Pasarin (artist) |
In-story information | |
Alter ego | Arnold Wesker Peyton Riley Shauna Belzer |
Species | Human |
Team affiliations | Wesker: Secret Society of Super Villains Black Lantern Corps Justice League of Arkham |
Abilities |
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The Ventriloquist is the name of multiple
The character has been featured in various media adaptations, such as
Publication history
There are currently three incarnations of the Ventriloquist: the first and original incarnation, Arnold Wesker, first appeared in Detective Comics #583 (February 1988) and was created by John Wagner, Alan Grant, and Norm Breyfogle;[1] the second Ventriloquist, Peyton Riley, was introduced in Detective Comics #827 (March 2007) by Paul Dini and Don Kramer;[2] in September 2011, The New 52 rebooted DC's continuity and, in this new timeline, the third and final incarnation of the character was introduced, Shauna Belzer, first appearing in Batgirl #20 (July 2013), as created by Gail Simone and Fernando Pasarin.[3]
Fictional character biography
Arnold Wesker
A meek, quiet man named Arnold Wesker (the first Ventriloquist) plans and executes his crimes through a dummy named Scarface, with the dress and persona of a 1920s gangster (complete with pinstripe suit, cigar, and Tommy gun). His name comes from the nickname of Al Capone, after whom Scarface is modeled.[4] Born into a powerful organized crime family, Wesker develops dissociative identity disorder after seeing his mother assassinated by thugs from a rival family. Growing up, his only outlet is ventriloquism.
In the 1995 Riddler story Riddler: The Riddle Factory, it is revealed that a gangster named "Scarface" Scarelli had once been active in Gotham City, though he had apparently died long before Batman's era. A supernatural aspect to Scarface was hinted at in Wesker's alternate origin story in Showcase '94 #8-9, when Wesker's cellmate creates the first Scarface dummy from pieces of wood from the remains of Blackgate Prison's gallows. Batman/Scarface: A Psychodrama (2001) reinforces this and shows the dummy to be indirectly responsible for two accidents while separated from Wesker (with at least one fatality). The dummy also retained his speech impediment while operated by a young boy and seemed to even show awareness of his name during this period.
The Ventriloquist is one of many
During the events of the
In
In September 2011, The New 52 rebooted DC's continuity. In this new timeline, Arnold Wesker was never killed. He appears in Batman: The Dark Knight (vol. 2) #2. Implied to be in possession of the Venom steroid, he clashes briefly with Nightwing.
During The War of Jokes and Riddles, Wesker and Scarface are seen as part of the Joker's gang in his gang war against the Riddler's gang.[10] In Harley Quinn: Rebirth, after turning on the Penguin, the Ventriloquist and Scarface join up with the few remaining crime lords of New York that managed to escape from the Penguin's giant penguins and they help Harley Quinn to fight back. Afterwards, he is put in charge of Coney Island's Mafia.
Peyton Riley
A new female Ventriloquist, Peyton Riley, called "Sugar" by Scarface, soon surfaced in the pages of Detective Comics. Batman responded to a police scanner call - witnesses said Catwoman had been shot. He got to the body, which had a note on it that read "dummy." A counter started at four seconds - he got out as the place exploded. When he got back to his car, there was a dummy posing as Robin. He shot it with a grapple and it, too, exploded.
Batman had the police exhume Arnold Wesker's body, but the coffin was empty. Bruce uses one of his disguises, small-timer Lefty Knox, to see what the underground was saying. Within a week, he heard the Ventriloquist was making a comeback at the
Sugar is a more compatible partner than Wesker, since Scarface no longer substitutes "B" with "G", and she is far more willing to commit violent crime. When nearly captured by Batman and Harley Quinn (who had been close to Wesker after he tried to cheer her up when she was initially sent to Arkham while the Joker was still on the loose), Sugar has Scarface say, "Save yourself." Unlike Wesker, who is horrified at any damage to Scarface, Sugar rigs her dummies to explode, using this to cover her escapes. She has numerous identical dummies at her hideout, easily switching from one Scarface to another as needed.
During
In Detective Comics #843 (April 2008), Scarface kidnaps a rival gangster, Johnny Sabatino, and takes Bruce Wayne hostage. While alone, Sugar breaks away from Scarface and talks to Bruce in what appears to be her 'real' personality. She reveals that she was engaged to Wayne's friend, Matthew Atkins, "years ago." Her real name is revealed to be Peyton Riley, and she expresses remorse for her crimes before the Scarface persona reappears and interrupts their conversation.
In
When Scarface's hold on the mob begins to crumble, Sabatino, now a crime boss in his own right, decides to cement his own position by wiping out the Rileys. After killing his father-in-law, he personally shoots his wife in the head. She survives, however, and regains consciousness just as the Tally Man is killing Wesker nearby. Peyton finds the body of Wesker, and is shocked to hear Scarface talking to her. Although she suspects she may be hallucinating, she forms a partnership with him when he expresses sympathy and says that he will help her get revenge.
Scarface and Peyton plan to throw Sabatino over the side of his own yacht. After Bruce is rescued by Zatanna, he assumes the role of Batman and proceeds to rescue Sabatino while Zatanna tries to talk down Peyton, explaining that dolls and puppets have powerful magic. Before she can have any effect, a thug named Moose hits her with an oar. While Batman protects Zatanna from Moose, Peyton makes another attempt to throw Sabatino over the side, but gets too close, and he begins to strangle her with the rope around his wrists. Scarface quietly says, "Jump, Sugar", and Peyton sends them both over the side. Before they hit the water, Scarface says "G'bye, kiddo. I loved y..." Riley has not appeared again ever since and is presumed to have drowned with Sabatino.
Shauna Belzer
In the continuity resulting from DC's 2011 reboot of its entire monthly line of books, The New 52, a new Ventriloquist debuted in the pages of Batgirl. Shauna Belzer grew up in the shadow of her twin brother Ferdie, whom their parents treated as a favorite while ignoring her; other children, meanwhile, idolized Ferdie while bullying her. When Shauna learned she could move things with her mind, she used her newfound powers to murder one of her tormentors. She would later use these powers to kill her hated brother and make it look like an accident. Shauna was trying to find her place in the world when she first met Ferdie, the dummy. She saw him at a birthday party and killed the clown who was using him. Shauna would later go on to kill her parents and start doing ventriloquist acts that would usually end with a dead audience.[volume & issue needed]
Shauna is one of six individuals who are kidnapped by a man identifying himself as the Mockingbird, and sealed inside a shipping container on the bottom of the ocean. Besides Shauna, the others are the
Powers and abilities
The first Ventriloquist has no superhuman powers, but possesses some basic hand-to-hand combat skills, though as a side-effect of his mental illness he possesses some degree of telepathic immunity; when the supervillain
The second Ventriloquist is much more skilled in ventriloquism than her predecessor and is capable of pronouncing all speech patterns with more proficiency when in her Scarface persona. Unlike the first one, the second Ventriloquist's personality does not contradict Scarface's and is much more willing to commit cruel acts, especially since she believes that she and the dummy are in a romantic relationship. Coming from an elite mob family, she is also a brilliant criminal mastermind.[citation needed]
Other versions
Superman/Batman
In Superman/Batman, an amalgamation of the Toyman and Ventriloquist, called Ventrilomaker, appears among the mercenaries recruited into the Brotherhood of Injustice and, thanks to Terranado, who had gone undercover within the Justice Titans, they were able to attack the Justice Tower.[17]
Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
In the Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles crossover, Arnold Wesker / Ventriloquist is mutated into a macaw by the Shredder and the Foot Clan to attack Batman and Robin. Batman is captured, but Robin manages to escape. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Splinter then arrive, where Splinter defeats the mutated villains, while Batman uses his new Intimidator Armor to defeat the Shredder and the Turtles defeat Ra's al Ghul. Later, Gordon tells Batman that the police scientists have managed to turn all of the Arkham inmates, including Wesker, back to normal and they are currently in A.R.G.U.S. custody.[18]
The Batman Who Laughs
In The Batman Who Laughs, the Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist is depicted as killed by the Joker during his penultimate act of terror against the Batman.[19]
Batman: White Knight
The Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist has a minor appearance in
Flashpoint
In the alternate timeline of the 2011 Flashpoint storyline, Arnold Wesker is still a criminal in Gotham City; he was subdued by Catwoman and Batman following their partnership together.[21]
In other media
Television
- The Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist and Scarface appear in The Batman, both voiced by Dan Castellaneta.[22] This version of Wesker is a ventriloquist who snapped after being booed off stage one night and turned to crime, with his first successful caper being the robbery of every person who had booed him. In his most notable appearance in the episode "The Big Dummy", Scarface commissions the construction of a giant robot, only to be foiled by Batman.
- An original incarnation of the Ventriloquist appears in GCPD morgue, treats his own injuries, and makes his way to an abandoned magic shop, where he finds an unsold ventriloquist dummy called Scarface. This triggers the creation of a split personality, with Scarface as the dominant personality. Together, Penn and Scarface approach and threaten to kill Cobblepot so the latter can become the dominant mob boss in Gotham City, but Cobblepot "kills" Scarface while his friend Edward Nygma kills Penn, arguing that he can no longer be trusted. Originally, Penn's role as the Ventriloquist was going to be cut from the fifth season due to it being shortened to 10 episodes. However, after Fox extended the season to 12 episodes, this allowed the creative team to continue with their original plan.[23]
- The Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist and Scarface make cameo appearances in Titans, portrayed by an uncredited stunt double.[24]
DC Animated Universe
The Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist and Scarface appear in media set in the DC Animated Universe (DCAU), both voiced by George Dzundza.[22] The series' version of the former is a master ventriloquist who can pronounce every sound perfectly as Scarface, a decision series co-creator Bruce Timm fought for even though DC Comics wanted to maintain Scarface's speech impediment.[25] Their henchmen, Rhino (voiced by Earl Boen) and Mugsy (voiced by Joe Piscopo in Batman: The Animated Series and Townsend Coleman in The New Batman Adventures) also appear throughout the franchise.
- The Ventriloquist and Scarface first appear in Batman: The Animated Series. In the DVD commentary for their introductory episode "Read My Lips", Timm stated that the Fox Kids censors allowed the recurring destruction of Scarface because he was not a "living" character, allowing the production staff to vent their darker impulses by doing so in increasingly gruesome ways.
- The Ventriloquist and Scarface appear in The New Batman Adventures episode "Double Talk". By this time, the former has reformed and been employed at Wayne Enterprises, though Rhino and Mugsy attempt to force him into relapsing before Batman stops them.
- Alternate universe incarnations of the Ventriloquist and Scarface make a cameo appearance in the Justice League two-part episode "A Better World" as one of several supervillains that Superman of the Justice Lords lobotomized to ensure peace.
Film
- The Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist and Scarface make a cameo appearance in The Batman vs. Dracula.[citation needed]
- The Arnold Wesker incarnation of Ventriloquist was originally planned to appear in The Lego Batman Movie, according to concept art,[26] but did not appear for unknown reasons.
- The Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist makes a cameo appearance in Scooby-Doo! & Batman: The Brave and the Bold.[citation needed]
- The DCAU incarnations of Arnold Wesker / Ventriloquist and Scarface make a cameo appearance in Space Jam: A New Legacy.[citation needed]
Video games
- The Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist and Scarface appear as a boss in Batman: Dark Tomorrow, voiced by Michael Goz.[22] This version is a crime boss involved in a gang war with Black Mask.
- The Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist and Socko appear in Batman: The Telltale Series, both voiced by Larry Brisbowitz.[22]
- The Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist appears as an unlockable playable character in the Nintendo DS version of Lego Batman: The Videogame.
- The Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist appears as an unlockable playable character in Lego DC Super-Villains, voiced by Dave B. Mitchell.[27]
Batman: Arkham
Scarface makes minor appearances in the Batman: Arkham games Batman: Arkham Asylum, Batman: Arkham City, and Batman: Arkham Knight.
Miscellaneous
- The Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist and Scarface make a minor appearance in Batman: Arkham Unhinged.[28]
- The Arnold Wesker incarnation of the Ventriloquist and Socko appear in the Harley Quinn and The Joker: Sound Mind Spotify podcast, both voiced by Andre Royo.[29]
See also
References
- ISBN 978-1-4654-5357-0.
- ^ Detective Comics #827 (March 2007)
- ^ Batgirl #20 (July 2013)
- ISBN 9780345501066.
- ISBN 9780313397516.
- ^ Detective Comics #659
- ^ Detective Comics #664
- ^ Detective Comics #818-819 (June–July 2006)
- ^ Blackest Night: Batman #1-3 (2009)
- ^ Batman (vol. 3) #26
- ^ Gotham Underground #2 (January 2008)
- ^ Detective Comics #843 (April 2008)
- ^ Detective Comics #844 (May 2008)
- ^ Detective Comics #850 (November 2008)
- ^ Secret Six (vol. 4) #1-14 (December 2014-May 2016)
- ^ Tom King (w), Mikel Janín (p), Mikel Janín (i), June Chung (col), Clayton Cowles (let), Mark Doyle (ed). "I Am Suicide Part 5" Batman, vol. 3, no. 13 (February 2017). United States: DC Comics.
- ^ Superman/Batman #61 (August 2009)
- ^ Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #6. DC Comics/IDW.
- ^ The Batman Who Laughs #1 (January 2018)
- ^ Batman: White Knight #2 (January 2018)
- ^ Batman Vol. 3 #84 (February 2020). DC Comics.
- ^ a b c d "Ventriloquist and Scarface Voices (Batman)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved February 5, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.
- ^ Venable, Nick (February 19, 2019). "Gotham Is Bringing A Dead Character Back As A Surprising Batman Villain". Cinema Blend. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
- ^ Schmidt, JK (December 18, 2018). "'Titans' Season Finale Reveals First Look at Batman Villains Ventriloquist and Scarface". Comic Book. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
- ^ "Read My Lips" Commentary
- ^ "The LEGO Batman Movie Set/CMF Rumors & Discussion". 24 March 2016.
- ^ "Characters - LEGO DC Super-Villains Wiki Guide - IGN". 2 November 2018.
- ^ Batman: Arkham Unhinged #29-31
- ^ Luken, Jackson (2023-01-31). "Harley Quinn and The Joker: Sound Mind review". Batman News. Retrieved 2023-03-17.