The Riddler was the alias of a criminal that operated in Gotham City. One of the first so-called "supervillains" to operate in the city, he terrorized its citizens during the time Thomas Wayne and Carmine Falcone controlled the city. Eventually disappearing, he returned after hearing rumors about the vigilante Batman and the fall of crime following the Children of Arkham's attack.
Biography
Not much is known about the Riddler at this moment in time, but he claims to have been a victim of the Agency, a government organization with multiple complaints about unethical operations, claiming his tendencies, such as narcissism and multiple obsessive compulsive personality disorders, had surfaced around the time he was abused. It is unknown whether these were true, though is likely to be.
According to Alfred Pennyworth, the Riddler began his criminal career in Gotham, during the years it was controlled by Thomas Wayne, Carmine Falcone and Hamilton Hill. He would terrorize the city for some time, which lead to the trio giving him his own berth to operate out of. However, during the midst of his criminal career, he disappeared so suddenly that many people believed he had died.
It is unknown what really happened to the Riddler after his disappearance, but he made his presence known when he broke the inmates out of Pena Duro Penitentiary on Santa Prisca, murdering the warden in the process. After this, he gained the attention of the Agency and its current director, Amanda Waller. Later he was almost captured by them while in Sudan, but managed to escape. The Riddler was also approached to join the Pact, a group of criminals assembled by an unknown source. Because of this, he returned to Gotham and learnt of the vigilante Batman and his war on crime.
Against the wishes of the Pact, the Riddler decided to attract Batman's attention and make his return to Gotham known to the authorities and civilians. For his, he decided to attract Waller's attention and draw a number of the Agency's operatives to Gotham, targeting and killing the ones they sent. For his plan, Riddler created a long ranged signal and worked with Arms Dealer Rumi Mori on a deal to retrieve radio-wave guided homing missiles. With the necessary components collected, Riddler planned to hack the agents' phones, make them produce the signal and, when allowing it to play long enough, fire a radio-wave guided missile to their location.
After Mori bowed out, Riddler set up plans to murder Mori in retrobution. He also began putting his own criminal organization together, consisting of some of the more intelligent criminals he could find. One such was Eli Knable, who became his second in command.
Batman: The Enemy Within
The Enigma
In the weeks coming up to the Pact's attacks, Riddler and his men confronted Mori within his own casino, the Virago. When a security guard tried to escort him out, he murdered the guard and locked down the building. After taking hostages, the Riddler then place Mori in one of his death traps and promised to let him out, if he successfully solved a riddle. During the commotion, Batman appeared and incapacitated a number of his men, including Knable. As Riddler held Batman at knifepoint with his cane, the vigilante ordered Commissioner Gordon to raid the casino.
Stunned at this turn of events, Riddler fought with Batman, but was easily overpowered by the vigilante. Deciding to make his escape, he activated the death trap to murder Mori, hoping it would distract Batman long enough for him to escape. However, the vigilante was able to disable the trap and confronted Riddler on top of the Virago's statue. Stunned on why he had saved Mori from certain death, Riddler was once again defeated by Batman. After detonating a bomb to open his escape, Riddler then left Batman a puzzle box. Threatening to kill others including Mori unless Batman was able to solve the puzzle, he destroyed the statue's supports and made his escape.
Batman would be able to solve Riddler's box, but only found a signal emitter inside. Due to the Batcave having a scrambler installed, the missile was unable to fire and locate the Batcave. After taking it to Wayne Enterprises to look at it closely, the signal was allowed to play long enough to send a detonation order, resulting in the partial damage of Wayne Tower and the death of Lucius Fox.
During the next week, Riddler created another death trap within the East End, hoping that it could murder one of his targets. After kidnapping Special Agent Mario Fernandez, he took him to the trap he had set up and forced him to solve it, promising a hint to what he was planning for the Agency. Fernandez was unsuccessful and was killed by the ultra-sonic emitter. Batman and Gordon would later discover the trap, thanks to a tip the vigilante had received from one of his contacts. Using evidence they were able to find, pointing to Fernandez's mistakes, Batman and Gordon were able to solve the puzzle, finding one of the homing missiles bought by the Riddler. The criminal then appeared on screen, revealing his past with the Agency and claiming their responsibility for his condition. During this, Riddler also mocked Batman for not telling Gordon about his connection to the rocket being fired at Wayne Enterprises, knowing he had a connection to Lucius Fox.
Later that night, Riddler retreated to his personal barge, the Lady of Dublin, along with his men. He was also able to locate and kidnap four of the Agency's agents, including Iman Avesta and Vernon Blake, placing them within death traps. As he and his men prepared to murder the agents around Gotham, Batman arrived, having retrieved a location from either a deal with Mori or interrogating Knable. As he defeated the Riddler's goons, he made an attempt to knock out the criminal with his Bat-Stunner. However, the criminal had prepared for this, as he was wearing protective materials under his suit. As Batman released Avesta from her trap, the Riddler activated a trap to hold Batman. He then revealed himself to be conscious and showed the vigilante where the missile launcher had been hidden.
With the vigilante now in his grasp, the Riddler threatened to murder the other hostages, unless Batman solved three simple riddles. However, in solving these, he and Avesta would be blasted by the sonic devices he had set up in their cage, which could kill her within those three blasts. Depending on Batman's decisions, two possibilities will happen.
Batman complies with the Riddler's plan, solving the riddles and allowing himself and Avesta to be blasted with the ultrasonic blasts for the agents' lives. However, during the final riddle, Batman instead uses a drone provided by Tiffany Fox emit the signal, directing one of the missiles towards the cage. Furious at the turn of events, Riddler fires the rest of the missiles to kill the other agents, but these are directed by the drone into Gotham's river, where they can detonate without harming anyone. Batman then defeats the criminal and places him in bonds. Though he admits defeat, the Riddler mocks the vigilante for having harmed Avesta and rendered her deaf to save the other hostages, commenting that his "friends" would have been proud.
Batman refuses to answer one of or both of the riddles, leading Riddler to murder Blake. He will also kill another Agent, Patrick, if Batman answers a second riddle incorrectly. During the final riddle, Batman uses a drone provided by Tiffany Fox emit the signal, directing one of the missiles towards the cage. Furious at these turn of events, Riddler fires the rest of the missiles to kill the other agents, but these are directed into Gotham's river by the drone, where they can detonate without harming anyone. Batman then defeats the criminal and places him in bonds. However, the Riddler considered it a victory, having made Batman kill the agents, even if it was indirectly, and break his rules.
The Riddler revealed that he had set the plan up to draw the Pact's attention and show them how he had been a worthwhile addition to the group. Realizing that one of their former comrades may have set him up, Riddler was shot by a poisoned dart from a mysterious man. As he died, Riddler mentioned how they had "broken the pact", causing Batman to realize that "John Doe" and "his friends" had been involved.
The Pact
The Agency would later take Riddler's corpse and place it into a cryogenic unit to preserve it. Waller would later order it to be transferred out of the city. After learning of Riddler's death, the Pact put together a plan to retrieve his corpse, so that he could help with the next stages of their plans. After they retrieved a Phalanx Key and EMP generator from Wayne Enterprises, they attacked the convoy set to escort him and collected his body. They would later unlock the casket with the key, planning to use it further in their plans.
Personality
Despite his high intelligence, the Riddler was brash and arrogant, taking pleasure in beating his opponents and believing himself to be superior to his victims and pursuers. Riddler also seemed to be sadistic, taking pleasure in seeing his victims either scared or be gruesomely injured. Riddler would also leave elaborate clues and puzzles behind at his crimes, believing that the people who would not be able to solve them, something which he was proven wrong on many occasions. He was also willing kill civilians or put them at risk, as seen when he ordered one of his men to execute a hostage to distract Batman.
Equipment
Costume
Riddler's costume consisted of a dark green suit jacket, a purple shirt, a green tie, dark green trousers and a pair of black leather shoes. To hide his identity, he would also wear a green domino mask and a hood, the latter of which seems to been sown to his suit jacket. Riddler also wore a golden question mark on his left lapel and black gloves, to prevent him from leaving evidence that could lead to the authorities learning his identity. It is unclear how much protection he wore, but it is known that he had equipped a device that neutralized Batman's Bat-Stunners during their final confrontation.
Cane
Riddler would wield a golden-topped black cane during his crimes, which he used as both a weapon and a tool during his crimes. The top of this cane was stylized as a question mark, though the inside of it was sharp enough to cut human flesh. Riddler would use this as a method of execution of his victims and within combat with his opponents, using the hooked edge to grab at his enemies and objects to use in combat. The hook could also act as a grappling hook, with a button to detach and fire it at specific objects. This also came with a pulley system to pull the Riddler towards his target. The cane also had a multitude of different buttons on it, which could act as transmitters to activate or operate devices and contraptions, such as explosives and his death traps.
Riddle Boxes
The Riddler would often leave these boxes at his crimes, believing that his pursuers would not be able to solve them. These would often consist of elaborate puzzles, including riddles and methods to reshape them, and clues to his plans. Riddler would also place advanced circuitry within them for the purpose of challenging his opponents, such as one where the person had to manipulate waveforms to access their next clue.
Death Traps
The Riddler would use death traps (or "murder boxes", as Batman and Gordon referred to them) to either taught his victims or challenge his opponents. These would consist of many different machines or devices, including controllable saw blades, sonic blasters and a multitude of different devices, most of which he made himself. One such was used on Rumi Mori, where he was trapped within a small glass chamber and his fingers were removed for each time he got the solution to a riddle wrong. Another trap, set for Batman, forced the vigilante to solve a puzzle whilst coping with a sonic blast if he got a riddle right, or killing an Agency agent if he refused or got it wrong.
Relationships
Batman
To the Riddler, Batman was a "wannabe" who filled the void he himself had left after taking a leave from Gotham. Upon coming to blows with Batman, Riddler admitted to his formidable skill and forfeited the fight by causing a diversion and leaving a puzzle. After Batman and Gordon solved Riddler's "murder box", Riddler started to admire the vigilante's intelligence and began to see him as a worthy opponent. However, he never shied away from mocking the vigilante, particularly with Lucius' death, and would try to use his own moral code against him in their final encounter.
Rumi Mori
Mori had sold radio wave guided homing missile and silos to the Riddler prior to their confrontation at Mori's casino. After Mori backed out of their deal for either realizing Riddler's plans or after he requested the use of his biotech company, Riddler swore retribution on Mori and attacking him at the Virago casino. The encounter resulted in two of Mori's fingers being cut off, leaving him traumatized by the experience, and being placed under surveillance by the Agency. If given the chance and incentive, Mori would be easy to sell out Riddler.
Trivia
- This iteration of the Riddler differentiates from other versions, as he is skilled at hand to hand combat, older than Batman and wears a hood rather than the traditional bowler/derby hat.
- The version of Riddler seen in Gotham is the only other version of Riddler thus far who is older than Bruce Wayne, and much like this Riddler, predates Batman.
- It is unconfirmed whether this was actually Edward Nigma or another character who uses the Riddler identity.
- However, in a message between Riddler and Harleen Quinzel, another member of the Pact, he is referred to as "E".