Heretic (DC)
The Heretic is a male comic supervillain who features in DC Comics.
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Biography
The Heretic was an adult male clone of Damian Wayne who was the son of Batman and Talia al Ghul. Damian was born in secret when the bear slept together with Talia hoping that bearing the Batman's child would unite them as a family to rule the world. However, Batman refused her plans with Talia instead grooming her child to usurp the name Batman but this also failed when Damian sided with his father. As a result, she turned to a new plan namely to make a new heir for herself that was a genetically engineered clone of her own son Damian Wayne that was forcibly grown to adulthood. The Heretic was one of many attempts at cloning Damian with these being done in secret until one was a success.
He was dispatched to the Yemen facility where he first encountered Batman and Robin but rather than engage them he departed the scene. (Batman: The Return v1 #1)
The Heretic was dispatched to Wayne Tower alongside Leviathan forces that included various brainwashed children. It was during this time that Damian had broken into the site looking to stop them. Dealing with the guards, he was aided by Nightwing which was when the Heretic confronted the pair. Despite working together, they were unable to defeat the Heretic whose sheer strength allowed him to overpower them. This saw Nightwing being thrown aside with Damian all alone in his fight against his clone. The Heretic then challenged Robin to a fight to the death, with the winner being deemed Talia al Ghul's chosen son. Robin accepted where the two fought and it appeared to be evenly matched at first. However, Leviathan henchmen fired arrows on Robin, making the fight uneven but despite that Damian continued the fight. In the fight, the Heretic turned his attention on one of the children taking shelter at Wayne Tower. This saw Damian stabbing the Heretic with a sword with the clone diverting all his attention on Robin. Ultimately, Damian had thought his mother would call the Heretic off but instead the clone ended up murdering Robin by stabbing him with a sword whereupon he left the scene. In the aftermath, Batman arrived at that section of Wayne Tower to find his deceased son where he came to mourn for Damian. (Batman Incorporated v2 #8)
It was then that a rogue assassin moved in to say the body of the Heretic in order to prevent the loss of the bloodline of Ra's al Ghul. The Heretic was placed within a Lazarus Pit and restored to life where afterwards he locked himself away in a distant monastery to discover his own path in life. From there, he read and learnt from the books about an ancient evil that plagued the Earth for millennia and tracked down this individual called the Other. Ultimately, he killed the Other and took over his identity along with his empire where he used the reputation to manipulate the world from the shadows. (Teen Titans v6 #37)
The Sons of Batman remained on West Ghul Island when the Lu'un Dargan emerged where they sacrificed their loves to save their 'brother' Damian from Den Dargan. (Robin: Son of Batman v1 #5)
He came to see that his body was dying and sought to be reunited with his 'brother' in order for him to pass the mantle of the Other to him. As the Other, he hired the bounty hunter Lobo with the goal of capturing the Teen Titans so that he could meet with Damian. (Teen Titans v6 #37) He intended to pass his empire onto his 'brother' so that they could achieve everything they intended for the world. To tempt Damian, he offered to return his friend Djinn to him after she was trapped within her own ring. During the brief contact, Djinn showed him the dark future that Damian could usher with the Other's resources and thus rejected his 'brother's offer. This led to the Other deciding to forcibly take the power of the Teen Titans and change the world himself. In the resultant fight, he was beaten and the structure collapsed on him seemingly killing the Other with the Teen Titans managing to escape the carnage. (Teen Titans v6 #38)
Overview
Personality and attributes
He eventually came to take a new name as the Other. (Teen Titans v6 #37)
As such, he came to see Damian as his twin brother and as his rival. (Batman Incorporated v2 #8)
In time, he came to respect his 'brother' Damian where he felt that the two of them were the same. He saw the similarities in how they sought to make their mark in the world, rewrite their past and reshape the world. As he faced dying, he wanted to pass on the mantle of the 'Other' to Damian as he felt that he could use those resources to change the planet. It would have offered him the means of making their respective dreams a reality. He felt that one could not defeat crime but one could control it. (Teen Titans v6 #37)
Powers and abilities
The Heretic was a genetically engineered clone of Damian Wayne who was the son Bruce Wayne and Talia al Ghul. He was grown as a baby in an artificial womb through an illegal bio-factory that used a whale as a means of gestating him. It was noted that his development was accelerated leading to him growing to adulthood immediately upon his hatching from his host. (Batman Incorporated v2 #7)
Such was his strength that he was easily able to lift a safe vault and carry it one-handed on his shoulder. (Batman Incorporated v2 #7) This made the Heretic a formidable fighter in close-combat as he could overpower trained human fighters by using his brute strength. (Batman Incorporated v2 #8)
It was noted that a generation of designer super humans were used to teach the Heretic on how to kill. (Batman Incorporated v2 #7)
As the Other, he was the head of a criminal empire with a network allowing him the ability to manipulate others as he saw fit. (Teen Titans v6 #37)
Notes
- The Heretic was created by Grant Morrison and David Finch where he made his first appearance in Batman and Robin v1 #12 (July, 2010).
Alternate Versions
- In Batman and Robin: Futures End v1 #1 (2014), an alternate version of the Heretic appeared in the possible future reality of Future's End in the Multiverse.
In other media
Films
- In Batman: Bad Blood, the Heretic appeared as an antagonist in the animated film where he was voiced by actor Travis Willingham. He was shown as a clone of Damian Wayne created from his genetic material under the orders of Ra's al Ghul. Ra's intended to breed an entire line of supersoldiers through this process but each clone died and the only successful subject lacked any mind or personality. This was until Talia had the Madhatter place Damian's incomplete memories into the clone and awakening him. He then took the name the Heretic and served Talia but desired to have complete memories. Under Talia's command, he led a group of supervillains where he confronted Batman. During the battle, he detonated some explosives with Batman being declared dead but in reality he was taken captive. The Heretic later saved Damian Wayne from the Electrocutioner and took him hostage against Talia's orders. An angry Talia later killed the Heretic for disobeying her commands and she continued with her plans.
Appearances
- Batman and Robin v1: (2010)
- Batman Inc. v2:
- Batman:
- Teen Titans v6:
External Links
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