Now since Batman was born, he has been known to have some of the most iconic and insane villains in the history of comic books (some of which he himself created). Today I bring you my top 10 all time favourite villains (and you may be surprised with the results):
10 - Solomon Grundy
Though he's technically not a villain of just Batman but other superheroes too, the reason that Grundy is on this list, is because he was born near Gotham City and was created in a similar way to Joker, only with the use of a swamp rather than a pool of toxic waste. He's only known villain in the DCU that is a zombie and with him being a zombie, he cannot die (although many writers have made various stories of his potential death, but its never really explained if he can die or not). He is also known to be just as strong as Superman and normally is under the command of someone else as featured in many DCAU shows and also in some of the DC video games (an example of which is in the Arkhamverse where Penguin takes him in as his pet which he would then use as one of his surprises for Batman in Arkham City). Personally, I like him because he isn't your typical zombie who just wants blood and brains. He is one that is just someone that any villain or superhero can brainwash and use to their advantage. Although most zombies can do that anyway, but he also has this sadness in him that make him the way he is.
9 - The Penguin
Penguin has been one of Batman's most persistent enemies who was rejected by his family which led to him eventually becoming the villain he is today. Like with most of the real world villains, Penguin is a mobster who has his own mob and performs a series of heists, some of which are foiled by none other than Batman. Unlike some of the other villains on this list, the Penguin is not a great fighter and would often have his gang do the fighting for him, but despite that, he does manage to have some gadgets that he can use when necessary, such as some kind of gun built into his umbrella. He is a good villain, but not one that can fight as well as others, but he's always prepared for whatever comes about.
8 - The Riddler
Unlike most of the villains on this list, the Riddler is one that likes to makes things more difficult by giving both the GCPD and Batman a series of puzzles and riddles which if successful, would get both of them closer to their target whether it be a hostage situation or a robbery. He typically wears a green suit and is one of a few villains in the DCU that is human, but with an obsession for puzzles, riddles and conundrums which he uses in all the crimes he makes. He carries a ? cane with him (presumably to battle against his enemies), but its never really explained if he can physically fight people, but I guess puzzles and riddles do the fighting for him, so yeah.
7 - Two-Face
Now Two-Face is one of the more unique and well known of Batman's enemies as he was to begin with, an ally to Batman as Harvey Dent, until some mobster throws acid onto him, which then makes part of his face all scarred, therefore turning him into Two-Face and due to his split personality, he becomes a villain to Batman. Unlike most of the villains on this list, he tends to use a coin to decide on his actions by flipping it and he has an obsession with the number 2 which makes commit crimes at places that have the number 2 on it at 2am or pm. He is a fighter and uses dual guns as his weapons. For those of you that have watched or read The Dark Knight Returns, that version of Two-Face was able to get plastic surgery to make his face whole again, but the Two-Face side of him would forever be in control of him as the Harvey Dent side, is destroyed and that itself is one of the many things that most supervillians have to come to terms with, the ability to not undo the things you have done.
6 - Poison Ivy
This is one villain that just by looking at her, you know what she is all about. Originally a student at a university (not said which one, but we can presume that its in Gotham), she grew an obsession with plants, but when one of her colleagues injects some kind of toxins into her, she transforms into Poison Ivy and now tends to her plants which she uses for the crimes she commits. While not a team player as such, PI often teamed up with some of Gotham's female criminals, but always ends up being more caring to her plants than anything else. She can take control of any individual by just kissing them with her toxins and she is in total control of plants. This alone, makes her very dangerous so Batman must be extra careful when battling her.
5 - Clayface
Just like with Robin, Clayface is not a villain, but an alias that is used by various people in the DCU, all of which, are an enemy of Batman and have shape-shifting powers and sometimes have other powers too. They were all once people who lived somewhere in the DCU and would often have very similar origins to their transformations to Clayface. As complicated as that may sound, Clayface is a villain to Batman and has always been able to use the ability to shape-shift to their advantage, even if its serving someone other than themselves.
4 - Scarecrow
Scarecrow is a master of fear. He has everything he needs to make ones fear come to life. He can twist ones mind and make them see their fear for who knows how long. He was once a psychiatrist who worked at Arkham Asylum, but was fired so he then went to become a criminal and uses fear gas as his weapon of choice. He's one of Batman's deadliest enemies in that he can use the fear gas to both show ones fear and to twist their mind and possibly kill them, and that's why he's on the list.
3 - Bane
Famous for being the one that broke the Bat's back, Bane was an escaped convict from a prison in South America and is known for being a terrorist, an assassin but above all, a super villain. He has undergone experiments using something known as venom which as a result, has allowed him to be physically strong and is one of Batman's toughest enemies to deal with. A lot of you may think this is false because of the Bane that was featured in Dark Knight Rises, but bear in mind that, that was Nolan's vision of the character. This is the character that is the typical Bane, where he uses venom to be strong and at times, can also be a test subject for other substances like The Joker's Titan formula in the Arkhamverse.
2 - Hugo Strange
Hugo Strange is a villain that a lot of you Arkham fans will be familiar with. He is a man who is smart and is one of a few people who try and take down the Dark Knight by using a series of scenarios and a part from the Joker, he is one of a few villains that knows Batman's secret identity, but unlike the Joker, this was way before he even met the superhero himself which is a pretty big deal, all things considered. But he isn't a fighter and much like Penguin, has his own forces and uses them to try and take down Batman. A lot of his character, is explored in Arkham City where he is revealed as the warden of AC and with Batman in his facility, he can begin what he calls protocol 10, a thing that would be used to kill Batman and the villains that he created, with the rest of his world following. That's why I like him.
1 - The Joker
OK, so I know a lot of these lists would have Joker at number 1 and as this is my list, I couldn't find anyone that is so bad and so good as the Joker. He is one of the most iconic characters in the DCU having been the archenemy of Batman since he first came into the comic books. Much like with some of the other villains here, he has his own set of goons, a lady called Harley Quinn who he loves so much and has his own set of gadgets and jokes as it were that he would attempt to use to take down Batman. He has done all sorts of things. He's turned a Robin into his successor, he has killed a Robin which would lead to the existence of Red Hood, he created a formula that would turn any individual into a strong mutated being that would be enough to stop Batman and he himself has been killed many times through many different things, but continues to this day to be one of the most popular characters in the DCU and his jokes and evilness, makes him "my number 1 guy" as Jack Nicholson's portrayal of him once said.
A few honourable mentions go to Catwoman (not on here because of her being more of an ally than an enemy to Batman), Killer Croc (who would've been on here if I could have found anything good to say about him), Calendar Man (I don't know much about him), Ra's Al Ghul along with his daughter and his league of assassins (Can't find anything to say about him) and Mr Freeze (not really a Batman villain as he just wants the best for his wife and he only is a villain because Batman would often get in his way)
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