Crime Doctor (DC)

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The Crime Doctor is a male comic supervillain who features in DC Comics.

Contents

Biography

Pre-Crisis

Golden Age

The Crime Clinic in Detective Comics v1 #77.

Matthew Thorne

Silver Age

Dr. Bradford Thorne was a prominent Gotham City physician who turned to crime for a thrill in life. He found himself addicted to committing crimes, even though he would never take a life in accordance with the Hippocratic oath. He built a Crime Clinic in a secret sub-basement of his town house, offering criminals medical services, a place to hide, or advice on upcoming crimes. He turned over almost all of this money over to charities, since his intention was in the thrill of crime, not its’ rewards. Called on one day to treat an injured Bruce Wayne, he was shocked when, as the Crime Doctor, he encountered Batman II and discovered them to be the same man. Batman deduced Crime Doctor’s secret identity as well. Crime Doctor decided to flee Gotham City, but a medical emergency came up, and he could not in good conscience turn away from it. Crime Doctor was then kidnapped by the eccentric crimeboss Sterling Silversmith, who demanded to know Batman’s identity. Crime Doctor refused, so Silversmith fed him quicksilver and told him he would only be saved if he gave in to Sterling’s demand. Before he could respond, Batman burst in, defeated Sterling and rushed Crime Doctor to the hospital. Crime Doctor’s life was saved, but his mind was destroyed by the quicksilver; he was left a helpless vegetable. (Detective Comics v1 #495)

Post-Crisis

Following the Crisis on Infinite Earths, a new version of reality was created with a different history of events. Bradford Thorne

Overview

Personality and attributes

Thorne claimed to follow the canon of medical ethics which forbade him from taking a human life. (Detective Comics v1 #494)

He admitted that the reason he launched his criminal practice was for the pure unadulterated joy of it. Thorne had loved medicine but he found crime to be like a narcotic to him. He noted that it was only as the Crime Doctor that he ever felt truly alive. (Detective Comics v1 #494)

Publicly, he was known to be a respected Gotham physician. (Detective Comics v1 #494)

Powers and abilities

He had a bag filled with his medical instruments that he carried with him. In some cases, he used these to help him during his criminal ventures such as using mild dose of anaesthesia to knock out guards. (Detective Comics v1 #494)

As the Crime Doctor, he charged fees for his 'house calls' and said that if he planned any criminal operation then his costs would be reduced. He was known to write prescriptions out for his patients in the criminal underworld. (Detective Comics v1 #494)

Thorne was shown to own a lavish town house that was his home and office. In addition, he maintained a Crime Clinic that had a concealed entrance which allowed access to a long abandoned sewer tunnel. Located hidden far underground, it was a place where he could secure his professional reputation and hide his criminal activities. (Detective Comics v1 #494)

Notes

  • The Crime Doctor was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane where he made his first appearance in Detective Comics v1 #77 (July, 1943).
  • The second Crime Doctor was created by Marc Andreyko and Michael Gaydos who appeared in Manhunter v3 #32 (September, 2008).

In other media

Television

  • In Batman: The Animated Series, the Crime Doctor appeared in the animated television series set in the DC Animated Universe where he appeared in the episode "Paging The Crime Doctor" where he was voiced by actor Joseph Campanella. The brother of Rupert Thorne, Matthew Thorne wanted to become a doctor where he joined medical school with him being close friends with Thomas Wayne and Leslie Thompkins to the point that the three were referred to as the three musketeers. Afterwards, he worked as a doctor but practiced without a license where he was reported by one of his patients. Disgraced, he was taken in by his brother Rupert who had him work as a crime doctor to help his criminal ventures under the promise that he would restore Matthew's career.

Video games

  • In Batman: Arkham Knight, the Crime Doctor was referenced in the setting of the video game. At the Elliot Memorial Hospital, a lab coat was shown in an office that had Matthew Thorne's ID badge with him name and face.

Appearances

  • Detective Comics v1: (1943)
  • Birds of Prey v1:

External Links

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