Hush (DC)
Hush is a male comic supervillain who features in DC.
Contents |
Biography
Origin
Thomas Elliot
At school, he went to his locker where he met a boy his age named Bruce Wayne where the two struck a friendship. (Batman v1 #614) As children, both him and Bruce Wayne often played strategic games with one another where they seemingly got along very well. This saw people comparing the two to being brothers and that they were best friends for life. (Batman v1 #609) On one occasion, he showed to Bruce a jade pendant he had taken from his brother with Wayne grabbing onto the item leading to an angry Tommy beating his friend in order to get the treasured heirloom back. (Batman v1 #613)
Once when visiting Metropolis, Bruce came to invite Tommy who attended the Wayne family trip where they saw the Green Lantern Alan Scott and witnessed the hero battle Icicle. (Batman v1 #611)
It was then that he decided that his parents needed to die and plotted their murder. Tommy insisted that the driver stay home whilst his parents out in the car on a rainy night with him also severing the brake line. (Batman v1 #619) He then went to Wayne Manor to tell Bruce that Tommy's parents had suffered from an accident. (Batman v1 #610) The badly injured Elliots were in the hospital with Thomas Wayne in charge of the operation to save them but he could not save Tommy's father. However, Tommy's mother managed to survive with him infuriated as it meant that he could not take the family fortune and instead had to wait for her to die. For years afterwards, he had to pretend to be a good son to his mother but waited for her to die. (Batman v1 #619)
When he was 10 years old, he wanted to go on a camp trip with Bruce but his mother was against it. This was until Martha Wayne managed to convince her to let their sons go together. Whilst on a boat, Tommy came to confess to Bruce on how his father used to beat him. Shortly afterwards, Elliot came to find his mother waiting for him as she was ready to take him back home as she felt it was too dangerous for him to be at a camp and could not part with her child. This led to one of the other children calling him a 'mommy's boy' with Tommy snapping and hitting them with a shovel. The incident led to Tommy being taken for counselling for rage issues where he was being treated by a young intern named Dr. Crane who believed the roots of his rage stemmed from fear. In this time, Tommy came to blame Bruce for this predicament and cursed himself for his weakness for his earlier confession to his friend. He became determined to never reveal such a weakness again and began to plan events so that the doctor would release him following the counselling. Crane came to provide a report that indicated Thomas Elliot was now happy, emotionally stable and aggression free. Following his release, his mother took him home where during the drive she revealed that Thomas and Martha Wayne had been killed by a mugger whilst he was away leaving Bruce an orphan. (Detective Comics v1 #847)
When Bruce Wayne's parents died, he and Tommy hardly ever saw each other again. (Batman v1 #611) He later went to medical school with Tommy wanting to follow Thomas Wayne's footsteps and become the world's greatest surgeon. (Batman v1 #614)
Years ago, he attended a dinner with his mother where he was re-united with Bruce Wayne who was travelling around the world. However, the years had simply led to him resenting him and his mother for feeling trapped under Mrs. Elliot's control. During the dinner, he met Peyton Riley who similarly grew up under controlling parents and the two felt a kinship with one another. (Detective Comics v1 #848)
Around 10 years ago, he met a girl named Peyton Riley whose father was a notorious criminal but in her he found a kindred spirit in that she was also under controlling parents. The two started dating and he brought her home to introduce her to his mother but she instantly hated her on sight. One day, the two came to the Elliot home when he shockingly discovered that his mother Marla had called the family lawyer as she intended to cut her son from the family fortune as a result of an argument they had earlier. An angry Tommy had planned to use the money to become a surgeon and being denied it saw him snap where he told his mother that he had been responsible for his fathers death. He then confessed that he played the role of a dutiful son but only because he wanted the family fortune and then proceeded to murder his mother by strangling her to death. Meanwhile, Peyton had arranged for the murder of Mr. Prescott the family lawyer before he could draft the papers that would have denied Tommy his inheritance. He then arranged a story that his mother as happy at Tommy meeting Peyton after seeing how happy they were but her frail body caused her to stumble with her suffering from a crushed windpipe as a result. After gaining the family fortune, he cut ties with Peyton after finding her to be too needy and instead flew to Paris alone as he had no intention of being tied down to another person. (Detective Comics v1 #850)
Hush
He was later approached by the Riddler who had offered a cure to cancer and thus a means of curing his mother. However, Elliot had no desire to cure his mother and instead had a burning need to destroy Bruce Wayne. Thus, him and Nigma formed an alliance with one another with Riddler suggesting he take the name of Hush as part of the plan. Tommy's mother eventually died from cancer allowing him to finally come to inherit the Elliot fortune. (Batman v1 #619)
The plan to destroy Batman later came to involve tricking Harold Allnut into working for him. This involved placing a hidden relay within the Batcomputer that sent subliminal messages that would make Bruce reach out to Elliot. (Batman v1 #619) After Bruce Wayne was badly injured seemingly from a car accident, Dr. Elliot as flown in from Philadelphia to help operate on him. The surgery was a success and Wayne was expected to make a full recovery. (Batman v1 #609) He then went to Wayne Manor to check on Bruce but he was not at his home residence. (Batman v1 #610) As Hush, he was present in Metropolis where he witnessed Batman working with Superman after the Man of Steel had shaken off the effects of Poison Ivy's pheromone control. (Batman v1 #612) Tommy Elliot then attended the performance at the Gotham City Opera House where he joined Bruce Wayne, Leslie Thompkins and Selina Kyle who were present at the event. The performance was interrupted by Harley Quinn who had disguised herself as one of the performers and held the attendees hostage as she stole a jade pendant from Elliot. In the chaos at the opera house, Tommy chased after Quinn to get back the pendant only to seemingly be confronted and killed by the Joker when Batman arrived at the scene. (Batman v1 #613) In the aftermath, a funeral was held for Tommy Elliot with Bruce Wayne at the event where he mourned his friend. (Batman v1 #615)
Afterwards, he forged an alliance with Prometheus as they began to look for the Riddler as Hush intended to get revenge for being used by Nygma. At this time, a gang war had broken out in Gotham though Elliot wanted no part in the matter. He was approached though by Black Mask who wanted to recruit Hush to his side though Elliot refused him. He then confronted the Penguin where he wanted to know the Riddler's location but Cobblepot was surrounded by supervillains protecting him. Hush tried to force the truth from the Penguin who revealed that he did not know Nygma's whereabouts and simply lied in order to get Elliot to join him. (Batman: Gotham Knights v1 #56) Looking to avoid further attention, Hush came to approach Black Mask and made him an offer. Elliot had no interest in the power struggle in the city but as a sign of good faith he told the Gotham crime lord the location of the Batcave. (Batgirl v1 #56) However, in realty, Thomas had actually given Black Mask the location of the Gotham Clock Tower. (Batgirl v1 #57)
Heart of Hush
Hush's return was hastened when he heard rumors of the Black Glove's upcoming attack on Batman. Believing that it his right alone to kill Batman, Elliot sought outrace the Black Glove. (Detective Comics v1 #846) Setting the Sacred Heart Convalescent Home as a base of operations, Hush made an alliance with the Scarecrow and kidnapped Selina Kyle to remove her heart from her body. Ambushing Catwoman, he attacked her where he managed to pull out a blade to stab her. Hush then had her prepped for surgery and removed her heart with machines only keeping her alive as a way of torturing Batman. (Detective Comics v1 #848) Batman found Hush and tried to retrieve Selina's heart from him, but Hush paralyzed Batman and then revealed that he had performed plastic surgery on his own face in order to look nearly identical to Bruce Wayne. With Bruce at his mercy, Hush prepared to kill him and then, posing as the real Bruce Wayne, he would destroy Bruce's empire, life, family and friends. (Detective Comics v1 #849)
Upon Selina's recovery, she enlisted the help of various friends including Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, Oracle, and Holly Robinson to uncover all of Thomas' bank accounts and hidden money stashes, and then robbed him of every single penny of his treasured inheritance. She also exposed him to the authorities and Slam Bradley, who started looking for Elliot with renowed interest. Hush, now broke, injured and defeated, couldn't help but wander the streets of Gotham as a wanted criminal and a random derelict. (Detective Comics v1 #850) Elliot tried to commit suicide and jumped off a bridge. A few days later, he was saved by some fishermen and they recognized him as Bruce Wayne, due to his surgically altered face. Elliot started building a new life for himself using Bruce's identity and after a few more crimes, he regained some of his lost fortune. During one of his international travels, Elliot went to Vietnam to get more money from companies owned by Bruce Wayne. However, his plan failed as people started getting suspicious of him and he tried to escape, but he was chased and captured in the jungle by several thugs. They tied Hush and delivered him to their boss, Catwoman. (Detective Comics v1 #852) Elliot was tortured and beaten by Catwoman's thugs and some of the jungle animals. After a few days, Catwoman delivered Elliot to Nightwing and Robin, who took him back to Gotham and locked him in a special cell at the top of Wayne Tower. (Batman v1 #685)
Batman: Reborn
Hush notes how Gotham has fallen apart in Batman's absence, and ponders how to use this to his advantage. Elliot fakes experiencing the spontaneous combustion of the public being caused by Firefly, and when Alfred Pennyworth arrives at his cell to assist, Elliot overpowers him and escapes. Tommy then publicly re-emerges as Bruce Wayne, stating that he will donate a billion dollars a month to the city of Gotham until their financial crisis is over. By posing as Bruce Wayne, Elliot initially believes himself to be untouchable by Wayne's children, as he can now claim control of Wayne Enterprises, as well as knowing the true identities of the Batman Family. However, Elliot soon discovers himself to be underestimating them, as Dick and Damian along with the Outsiders and assorted other super-heroes explain to Elliot that he will forever be watched and controlled by them, and should he step out of line, that there will always be someone ready to take him down. With no other option available, Elliot reluctantly agrees to be Grayson's puppet posing as Bruce Wayne, thus preventing the public from realizing he was dead. (Batman: Streets of Gotham v1 #3)
Though this has prevented Elliot's original plan of sapping the Wayne fortune, he has not allowed it to halt his scheming altogether. Hush notably appeared as a member of the Gotham Shield Committee, and around Gotham quite frequently, often attempting to make connections. When Ra's al Ghul arrived in Gotham, promising to ruin the Wayne family in retribution for Red Robin's actions against him, he immediately sought out Hush. (Batgirl v3 #8) Faced with the prospect of Elliot using Ra's al Ghul's support to turn on the Batman Family again, Red Robin activated a contingency plan set in place by Wayne to transfer control of Wayne Enterprises to Drake if something like Hush's case were to occur, leaving him with no official standing in the company. (Red Robin v1 #12)
House of Hush
Hush continuously attempted to push the boundaries of his new role as Wayne for the Batman Family - such as recommending that convicted criminals should be allowed back on the streets - while confident in the knowledge that, even if he provokes them to kill him, he could die knowing he left them with a permanent mark. (Batman: Streets of Gotham v1 #14) Despite this fact, the Bat-Family would still use Hush to their convenience, and when Vicki Vale threatened to reveal the whole truth about Batman, Elliot was forced to impersonate Bruce with her and convince her that he was in no way involved with Batman. While his performance was good, Vale wasn't convinced and Elliot was returned to his penthouse prison. (Bruce Wayne: The Road Home: Batman and Robin v1 #1)
Taken into the sewers, he vowed to kill the Architect if he murdered Bruce Wayne as Elliot believed that no one could harm the man except himself. However, he was knocked unconscious with the Architect planting a modified deadman's switch on him where he was tied to a site at Wayne Tower. The bombs were then on a timer where they were supposed to detonate alongside other explosives around the city. Batman arrived on the scene but was unable to disarm the explosives and had a choice of either saving the tower or saving Hush with him ultimately choosing the latter. (Batman: Gates of Gotham v1 #2)
Post-Flashpoint
Following the Flashpoint, a new version of reality was created with a different history of events. Thomas Elliot
Jealous of his friend, Elliot began dressing like Bruce, attempting to court the same women in school, eventually getting to the point of calling himself Bruce Wayne in order to get the attention of women. When Bruce found out the latter, Thomas told that he believed that Bruce was ignoring the fact that he had everything he could ever want in life. This ignorance to Bruce Wayne's grief caused a rift between the friends, the obsession with Bruce gave way to the disguised hatred of him, resulting in him angrily bashing his forehead into a mirror, injuring himself, but bandaging his wound soon after along with the rest of his head. Seeing himself as exactly like Bruce, Thomas proceeded to develop an identity as "Hush" once he learned of Bruce's new role as Batman. (Batman Eternal v1 #26)
Hush would later return to Gotham during the mayhem caused by Carmine Falcone's siege of the criminal underworld. During this time, he broke into the Wayne Mansion where he attacked Alfred Pennysworth and injected him with Fear Toxin leaving him paralyzed with fear. (Batman Eternal v1 #21) His machinations behind the scenes also led to the Architect being released from Blackgate Prison and eliminated the architect Andrew Trondsen for Zachary Gate. It was during this incident that Batman managed to realize that Hush was responsible for the attack at Wayne Manor. (Batman Eternal v1 #22)
Afterwards, he his amongst the pro-vigilante crowd that had gathered in opposition to the flash mob assembled by the Mirror. Fighting erupted between the two groups with the Bat Family intervening in the crowd. Hush used this as an opportunity to find and capture each of the vigilante's who he took hostage. He then had Nightwing send a false message to Batman after threatening Batgirls life as Tommy embarked on his new plan. (Detective Comics v1 #1031) After taking the Bat Family hostage, he decided that he would torment Batman by harvesting their organs and giving them to donors around Gotham. The first he decided to work on was the Red Hood with Tommy securing a recipient for the organs and ordered chloroform to keep Jason Todd unconscious whilst he conducted the operation. (Detective Comics v1 #1032)
Hush came to be tipped off to Batman's upcoming wedding by the Joker leading to Elliot attempting to attack Batman's bachelor party, causing an explosion to distract Superman and then attacking Batman and Nightwing. In the course of the confrontation, Hush's attack disrupted a dimensional gate Superman had provided that was intended to take Batman to a peaceful pocket universe. This resulted in Hush and Nightwing being trapped in an in-between place for individuals who had lost all sense of individual identity. As Hush's ranted affirm his inability to forge a life for himself outside of an obsession with Bruce Wayne, he revealed that he had given himself plastic surgery to look like Dick Grayson to try and recapture his old friendship with Bruce. Ultimately, Hush was left behind in the pocket dimension despite Nightwing's attempts to help him. (Batman: Prelude to the Wedding: Nightwing vs. Hush v1 #1)
Overview
Personality and attributes
Upon becoming a supervillain, he took the name Hush which was suggested to him by the Riddler as a joke between them on the need for secrecy to enact their plan against Batman. (Batman v1 #619)
From childhood, the two claimed that they thought alike which made their games fun when they played against one another. (Batman v1 #609) He always told Bruce that one had to think like their opponent in a match. (Batman v1 #611)
Tommy had said that no one stole from him and he worked to get his things back. (Batman v1 #613) According to him, he once thought that if he worked hard and had a fixed goal where he visualised everything then all would go according to plan. By adulthood though, he saw hope as being a foolish concept and one that should not be relied on with instead work being done in a precise way. (Detective Comics v1 #1032)
He had the penchant of calling Alfred Pennyworth by the nickname of 'Alf'. (Batman v1 #610)
Tommy and Bruce shared an expression between them which was 'Stick a Needle'. (Batman v1 #619)
He said he was never angry at Thomas Wayne being unable to save his father but what made him angry was that his mother still lived from the accident. (Batman v1 #619) It was said that the only thing he hated more than his family legacy was the Wayne family. (Batman: Gates of Gotham v1 #2)
His father was never really nice to him with Tommy having to think several steps ahead of him in order to keep from getting hurt. However, most of the time, he tended to leave Tommy and his mother alone. (Detective Comics v1 #847)
Tommy had said that his mother never stood up to his father despite seeing how he hurt their child. (Detective Comics v1 #847) Whilst growing up, he lived under the strict control of his mother where he served as her carer. In reality, he resented her and yearned for complete freedom from her. In those years, he played the role of a dutiful son as it was only then that she would allow him to go medical school. (Detective Comics v1 #848)
In time, Tommy would blame Bruce where he believed his friend had engineered events so that Elliot would be humiliated. After Bruce's parents died, Thomas's first thoughts were that the world was just. Despite that, he remained envious of the freedom Bruce Wayne had compared to himself. After learning Bruce was Batman, his hatred of his best friend came to grow even more. (Detective Comics v1 #847) Elliot was determined to be the hero in the bitter comedy between him and Bruce. (Detective Comics v1 #846)
For a time, he as involved with Peyton Riley who was the daughter of a notorious mob boss in Gotham. In her, he saw someone who had suffered under controlling parents similar to himself. Though they dated for a time, he broke the relationship with her as he came to find her too needy and had no intention of being tied down to anyone. (Detective Comics v1 #850)
He was known to have had a half-sister named Catherine Podolsky who was the product of an affair. Tommy only came to learn of her after he came into his fortune and cut her off. He then used the Elliot fortune to use her position as a Detective in the GCPD to ignore certain crimes perpetrated by him. (Detective Comics v1 #1031)
Powers and abilities
From a young age, his mother forced Tommy to read books about strategy and logic. This led to him reading about Musashi, Aristotle and Caesar where she said that they would protect him. As a result, he had a keen mind for strategy and thought six moves ahead of his opponent. This became invaluable to him as it helped him avoid beatings from his father as a child but it greatly helped him in adulthood when he thought several moves ahead of an enemy. (Detective Comics v1 #847)
He was regarded as the best surgeon in the country with him being as good if not better than Thomas Wayne. (Batman v1 #618)
Hush was known to keep a hidden blade within the sleeves of his jacket that he could pull in a surprise attack on his opponent. (Detective Comics v1 #848) Sometimes, he was known to hide the small blade within a space by his jacket's neck allowing him to pull it out whilst putting his hands up. (Detective Comics v1 #850)
His family once had a chauffeur named Clarence who normally drove the Elliot's car. (Batman v1 #610)
The Elliot family had a retreat called Silent Key that had its own airstrip. (All-Star Batman v1 #13)
Notes
- Hush was created by Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee where he made his first appearance in Batman v1 #609 (January 2003).
- On CBR, writer Paul Dini commented in an interview about the character, "Though Thomas Elliot and Bruce Wayne came from similar backgrounds, there the similarity stops. Whereas Bruce's parents were loving and nurturing, that was not quite the case in the Elliot family. I wanted to show that as a boy, Tommy had motivations other than greed for the crimes he committed. His mind for strategy, for setting pawns against each other and playing on other characters desires and fears, were survival tactics he was forced to develop at an early age. He was also a kid who took a gamble on freedom, lost and wound up spending ten years paying a very terrible price. My goal is that in the vein of villains like Mr. Freeze and Mad Hatter, it will be possible for readers to have a small bit of empathy for him."
Alternate Versions
- In Superman/Batman v1 #17 (2005), Ra's al Ghul appeared in an alternate version of history that was interfered with by the Legion of Super-Villains who sought to raise Batman and Superman to be their enforcers. A version of history saw this Batman stop Joe Chill from murdering his parents leading to him being erased from the timeline. In the new version of events, Bruce Wayne's parents lived and he enjoyed life as a playboy billionaire with his best friend being Dr. Tommy Elliot who was a world renowned surgeon.
In other media
Television
- In Gotham, the character made a minor appearance in the first season in the episode "Mask" where he was portrayed by actor Cole Vallis. He was shown as a young boy in the same school as Bruce Wayne who began making fun of the death of his parents and was intrigued at whether he saw their dead bodies. In a second encounter, he would force a confrontation with Wayne and beat him up. After Bruce spoke to Alfred Pennyworth, the butler encouraged the young Wayne to stand up for himself and took him to Tommy Elliot's home. Once there, Bruce him Tommy to a pulp leaving him with a bloody nose and warning him not to make fun of his parents again.
- In Batwoman, Hush appeared in the setting of the live-action television series set in the Arrowverse where Tommy Elliot was portrayed by actor Gabriel Mann whilst actor Warren Christie portrayed him as he took on Bruce Wayne's identity.
Films
- In Batman Unlimited: Mech vs. Mutants, Hush appeared in a minor role in the animated film where he was voiced by actor Dave B. Mitchell.
- In Batman: Hush, the Hush identity featured in the setting of the 2019 animated film. Thomas Elliot was a brilliant surgeon and close friend to Bruce Wayne who was approached by Edward Nygma. Nygma at the time was suffering from a tumour that he wanted removed but he was informed it was inoperable. Thus, in desperation, he sought out the Lazarus Pit and went into its healing waters that gifted him with the insight into the true identity of Batman. He then decided to make a name for himself and crafted the identity of Hush with the purpose of finally defeating his foe. As Hush, he made numerous plans that involved Batman's villains with the goal of using them to weaken the Dark Knight. This chain of events culminated in the murder of Thomas Elliot in an effort to get Batman to kill the Joker.
Video games
- In Batman: Arkham Origins, Hush was referenced in the setting of the video game.
- In DC Universe Online, Hush appeared in the MMORPG video game where he was voiced by actor J. Shannon Weaver.
Appearances
- Batman v1: (2003)
- Detective Comics v1:
- Batman: Gotham Knights v1:
- Batgirl v1:
- Batman: Streets of Gotham v1:
- Batman: Eternal v1:
- All-Star Batman v1:
- Detective Comics v1:
External Links
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