Orpheus (DC Comics)

Last updated
Orpheus
Orpheus2.png
Orpheus as depicted in Batman: Orpheus Rising #2 (November 2001). Art by Dwayne Turner.
Publication information
Publisher DC Comics
First appearance Batman: Orpheus Rising #1 (October 2001)
Created byAlex Simmons (writer)
Dwayne Turner (artist)
In-story information
Alter egoGavin King
Team affiliationsHill Street Gang
Batman Family
Abilities
  • Expert martial artist
  • Camouflage in shadows (via suit)

Orpheus is a fictional comic book character appearing in books published by DC Comics. He first appears in Batman: Orpheus Rising (October 2001), and was created by Alex Simmons and Dwayne Turner. [1]

Contents

Fictional character biography

Gavin King grew up in Gotham dreaming of becoming a professional dancer and singer. His ambitions made him a target for local bullies, and after one too many beatings, King began studying the martial arts, excelling at them from the start. His father, a TV sports producer, and his mother, a former professional dancer, were very supportive—as long as he completed his college education.

Having reached his goal in his late teens, King toured the world as part of a famous dance troupe, but his travels exposed him to a world full of famine, poverty, violence, prejudice and lack of faith. King tried to help these unfortunates on more than one occasion, nearly getting himself killed in the process. Eventually, he was recruited by a secret organization dedicated to correcting some of the world's problems. Getting special training and technological support in the form of a stealth-circuitry-enhanced costume, King became Orpheus – a force against evil and ignorance. [2]

Reasoning that Gotham City needed a black hero, Orpheus returned to his native city as a successful entertainment producer as well as a crimefighter. Orpheus' first cases in led him into contact with Batman, who was not fond of the debut of another inexperienced vigilante in Gotham, but recognized Orpheus as a competent force for good.

War Games

During the 'War Games' story arc, Spoiler, desperate to prove herself, took one of Batman's contingency plans and set it into action. The plan was to get all of Gotham's crime lords under the control of Orpheus, an agent of Batman, and therefore under the control of Batman himself. The plan failed because Spoiler was unaware that the man who was set to meet with the crime lords, Matches Malone, was really just one of Batman's disguises. When "Matches Malone" did not show the meeting quickly broke out into a fight, leaving many dead. [3] This quickly erupted into a brutal gang war on the streets of Gotham.

When Spoiler comes to tell Orpheus what he must do to reclaim the situation, Black Mask appeared from the shadows and cut Orpheus's throat before torturing Stephanie to learn the extent of the plans so that he can instead appear inside Orpheus's stealth suit. [4]

Bibliography

Further reading

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penguin (character)</span> DC Comics supervillain

The Penguin is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. The character made his first appearance in Detective Comics #58 and was created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger. The Penguin is one of Batman's most enduring enemies and belongs to the collective of adversaries that make up Batman's rogues gallery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scarecrow (DC Comics)</span> Fictional supervillain in the DC Universe

The Scarecrow is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, the character first appeared in World's Finest Comics #3. He has become one of the most enduring enemies of the superhero Batman and belongs to the collective of adversaries that make up his rogues gallery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bane (DC Comics)</span> Comics character

Bane is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Chuck Dixon and artist Graham Nolan, he made his debut in Batman: Vengeance of Bane #1. Bane is usually depicted as a dangerous adversary of the superhero Batman, and belongs to the collective of enemies that make up Batman's rogues gallery. Possessing a mix of brute strength and exceptional intelligence, Bane is often credited as the only villain to have "broken the bat", defeating him both physically and mentally. Bane went on to kill Alfred Pennyworth in 2019 during the City of Bane storyline. He is the son of another Batman enemy, King Snake and has a clone/daughter named Vengeance, introduced in 2021.

<i>The Batman Adventures</i> DC Comics comic book series

The Batman Adventures is a DC Comics comic book series featuring Batman. It is different from other Batman titles because it is set in the continuity of Batman: The Animated Series, as opposed to the regular DC Universe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hugo Strange</span> Fictional comic book supervillain

Hugo Strange is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. The character is one of Batman's first recurring villains, and was also one of the first to discover his secret identity. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #36.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cluemaster</span> Fictional DC Comics character; enemy of Batman

The Cluemaster is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman as well as a recurring enemy of Tim Drake, the third Robin. Cluemaster first appeared in Detective Comics #351 and was created by Gardner Fox and Carmine Infantino.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephanie Brown (character)</span> DC Comics character

Stephanie Brown is a fictional superheroine appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, most commonly in association with Batman. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #647, and was created by Chuck Dixon and Tom Lyle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Mask (character)</span> Comic book supervillain

Black Mask is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Doug Moench and Tom Mandrake, the character debuted in Batman #386. He is commonly depicted as a brutal and ruthless crime lord in Gotham City who has a fixation with masks and derives sadistic pleasure from the act of torture. Black Mask is one of the most enduring enemies of the superhero Batman and belongs to the collective of adversaries that make up his rogues gallery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rupert Thorne</span> Comics character

Rupert Thorne is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The character is a crime boss and enemy of Batman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Hood</span> Various DC Comics characters, first 1951

The Red Hood is an alias used by multiple characters appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The identity was first used in the 1951 story line "The Man Behind the Red Hood!", which provides the earliest origin story for the Joker. The storyline depicts an unnamed criminal wearing a red dome-shaped hood who, after a chance encounter with Batman, is disfigured by chemicals and becomes insane, giving birth to his future Joker persona.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ratcatcher (comics)</span> DC Comics character

Ratcatcher is a character appearing in American comic books and other media published by DC Comics, primarily as an enemy of Batman. He belongs to the collective of adversaries that make up the Dark Knight's rogues gallery. Once an actual rat-catcher in Gotham City, Flannegan sank into a life of crime. Calling himself the Ratcatcher because of his special ability to communicate with and train rats, Flannegan has used his minions to plague Gotham on more than one occasion by unleashing hordes of the vermin.

<i>Batman: Dark Tomorrow</i> 2003 video game

Batman: Dark Tomorrow is an action-adventure game developed and published by Kemco for the GameCube and Xbox in 2003. It is based on the DC Comics character Batman and his iteration from the DC Universe source material. Many precedents of the comics are cited, especially as it pertains to Ra's al Ghul, and Batman's "undefined" relationship with al Ghul's daughter, Talia al Ghul.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leslie Thompkins</span> Fictional character in the DC comics universe; surrogate figure to Bruce Wayne

Leslie Maurin Thompkins is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, usually as a supporting character in stories featuring Batman, of whom she is an ally. Created by writer Dennis O'Neil and artist Dick Giordano, she first appeared in Detective Comics #457.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Batman: War Games</span>

"War Games" is a 2004-2005 major storyline comic book story arc published by DC Comics that ran in its Batman family of titles, Detective Comics, Legends of the Dark Knight, Nightwing, Batman: Gotham Knights, Robin, Batgirl, Catwoman, Batman, and Gotham Central. The storyline, which was published from October 2004 until January 2005, was preceded by a prologue that appeared in Batman: The 12 Cent Adventure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Batman: The 12 Cent Adventure</span>

Batman: The 12¢ Adventure is a one-shot comic written by Devin Grayson and illustrated by Ramon Bachs with a cover date of October 2004. It is a prelude to the Batman: War Games storyline that ran in 2004 and 2005.

Lewis "Lew" Moxon is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is most famous for hiring Joe Chill to murder young Bruce Wayne's parents in early versions of Batman's origin story, thus making him indirectly responsible for Batman's existence.

<i>Gotham Underground</i>

Gotham Underground is a nine-issue limited series from DC Comics, written by Frank Tieri, with art by Jim Califiore.

The Mutants is the name of a fictional street gang appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. While the Mutants were first seen in The Dark Knight Returns, there were other incarnations of the Mutants that appeared in later Batman comics.

References

  1. Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; Manning, Matt; Wiacek, Win; Wilson, Sven (2016). The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK Publishing. p. 225. ISBN   978-1-4654-5357-0.
  2. Greenberger, Robert (2008). The Essential Batman Encyclopedia. Del Rey. p. 282. ISBN   9780345501066.
  3. Batman: The 12-Cent Adventure #1 (October 2004)
  4. Batman: Gotham Knights #57 (November 2004)