History
Batman Villain
Origin
Lonnie Machin was an ordinary child who, while abnormally intelligent, is apolitical and socially unaware. At eleven he gained a foreign pen pal, Xuasus, as part of a school program. Every month they would write to each other about their lives; Lonnie about how wonderful the United States is; Xuasus about the poverty and political repression that made up his nation.
After a year of contact, Xuasus stops writing, and all of Lonnie's letters are returned as undeliverable. A year later Lonnie learns of Xuasus' fate. He writes Lonnie a final letter explaining that his father has been arrested, his mother has taken ill, his sister has died of malnutrition, and at age eleven, he is homeless and fending for himself. Driven with worry for his friend, Lonnie fervently learns about Xuasus' country, discovering it to be a Third World dictatorship at war with Marxist guerrillas, with arms dealers from The West making millions in profits from the conflict.
Further studies into war and political violence leads him to hold radical sympathies. He comes to view all wars as being caused by political elites, with common individuals forced or cajoled into fighting on behalf of the former. He also began to read more into esoteric studies regarding science and philosophy, laying the groundwork for his advanced intelligence, and leading to his cover as a straight-A student with a normal job as a paper-boy. Eventually he discovers the extremely rare book, Universe by Scudder Klyce, which attempted to unify all knowledge. Within it he finds several passages that convince him of the need to reshape society. He becomes convinced that if he cannot help Xuasus, he can fight on in his memory and give the oppressed people of Gotham City hope.
The Villain known as Anarky
Lonnie, as Anarky, then made his debut as an adversary to Batman, in which he responded to complaints in the newspaper by attacking the sources, such as the owner of a factory whose byproduct waste was polluting the water. Anarky and Batman ultimately came to blows, and during their brief fight, Batman deduced that Anarky was actually a young child.During this first confrontation, he is aided by a band of homeless men, including Legs, a homeless cripple who became loyal to him and would assist him in later appearances. After being caught, Lonnie was locked away in a juvenile detention center. However, he frequently escaped and peregrinated around Gotham City.
During his detention, he increases his computer skills to the point of becoming an advanced grey hat computer hacker. He takes on the online user alias "Moneyspider" to steal millions of dollars from western corporations, including Wayne Enterprises, outmaneuvering Batman's own data security in the process. He then uses the money to create bank accounts for poor farmers in third world countries. He is caught by Tim Drake in the latter's first solo detective case.
In one of his more notable appearances, during the Knightfall saga from Shadow of The Bat #16–18, Anarky takes on both Scarecrow and Azrael.
Anarky later built a machine that allowed him to fuse both hemispheres of his brain, giving him increased intelligence, and what he perceived as enlightenment. Creating an online bookstore, Anarco, to propagate radical literature, he begins to accumulate funds that he donates through another front company, The Anarkist Foundation, to radical organizations, such as eco-warriors and gun protesters, or kept for his own projects. Anarky eventually chose to shed the encumbrance of his double life, and faked his death. He then worked in seclusion to further his goal of achieving an utopian society. He had several further brushes with Batman, as well as the likes of Etrigan and Darkseid. Additionally, due to the earthquake in Gotham, Anarky relocated to a new base of operations beneath the Washington Monument.
Anarky has had run-ins with Green Arrow, the Justice League, Young Justice and Robin .
Powers and Abilities
- Anarky has enormous talents in both engineering and computer technology.
- A Skilled fighter, knowing many fighting techniques that put him on par with Batman.
Paraphernalia
He has an on-board computer that has an actual personality of its own. Moreover, Anarky has a fully functioning Boom tube, secured in a conflict with Darkseid, and once briefly commanded his own Green Lantern ring. Anarky also wears concealed kevlar to restrain some impact injuries.
In Other Media
Beware the Batman
Batman: Arkham Origins
- See: Anarky (Arkhamverse)