Doctor Death (DC)
Doctor Death is a male comic supervillain who features in DC Comics.
Contents |
Biography
Origin
Karl Hellfern was a male villainous scientist who had adopted the name of Doctor Death.
As Doctor Death, he began developing a deadly pollen extract that he intended to use to blackmail the wealthy in Gotham City. However, he was concerned that his activities would have attracted the attention of the masked vigilante known as the Batman. As a result, he dispatched his men in order to kill him. Batman ended up discovering Doctor Death's hideout where he battled his servant Jabah who he managed to defeat. During the struggle, they alongside Doctor Death accidently set the laboratory on fire. It was believed that the mad scientist had died with Jabah in the fire. (Detective Comics v1 #29) Despite the inferno, he managed to survive but had lost most of his face as a result of the fire. He returned to Gotham continue his schemes of blackmail only to be opposed once more by Batman who battled the villain alongside his new servant a Cossack named Mikhail. The vigilante managed to defeat Doctor Death once more and handed him over to the Gotham City Police Department. (Detective Comics v1 #30)
Modern
Following the Crisis on Infinite Earths, a new version of reality was created with a different history of events. Karl Hellfern
Years earlier, he was working at Elliot Pharmaceuticals whilst secretly cutting heroin for the Guzzo crime mob. (Batman: Streets of Gotham v1 #18) He was hired by Salvatore Guzzo and Judson Pierce to create a poison to kill the people at Leslie Thompkins Clinic. Hellfern injected the plague into a rat and had it bite an orphan from the clinic that was spying on them with the aim of spreading it whilst the child was getting treatment. However, Thomas Wayne along with staff at Wayne Medical managed to quickly combat the disease thus stopping it from spreading. (Batman: Streets of Gotham v1 #20) It was his confession and Thomas Wayne testimony that were responsible for sending Judson Pierce to Blackgate Penitentiary. (Batman: Streets of Gotham v1 #19)
He later came to reappear in Gotham where he developed a deadly new nerve agent that he planned to sell to he highest bidder. Doctor Death came to use impersonators to avoid appearing in public as held an auction where he offered his services to prospective international clients. Batman and Batgirl Cassandra Cain looked to stop it but were too late as Doctor Death departed for Tarakstan who won the auction. (Batgirl v1 #42)
Black Mask had Professor Hugo Strange, Doctor Death and Fright as part of his Ministry of Science that were working for the False Face Society. (Batman v1 #692) Around this time, the Society was involved in a gang war against the Falcone crime family that was headed by Mario Falcone. (Batman v1 #693)
Hush along with the recently released criminal Judson Pierce along with his men approached Doctor Death for a job where they managed to evade his deadly gas. (Batman: Streets of Gotham v1 #19)
He came to be one of many mad scientists being abducted by Intergang to become part of their Science Squad that was based on Oolong Island. These scientists were provided unlimited funding to develop their evil creations for Intergang's future use. (52 v1 #26) Oolong was later attacked by Black Adam forcing Doctor Death to contributes to their defense with an acid rainstorm. They came to subdue Adam where Doctor Death helped in torturing him by pouring deadly chemicals on top of him. (52 v1 #46)
Post-Flashpoint
Following the Flashpoint, a new reality and history of events were created with different backstories for the various characters.
Philip Kane set up a bio-initiative that sought to create a powerful restorative with this consisting of three scientists named Dr. Karl Helfern, Dr. Paul Dekker and Dr. Hugo Strange. Each were working on different aspects of this project that included bone, soft tissue and regenerating neural tissue respectively with the trio being called the Doctors Three. (Batman v2 #38) Helfern had a son who went into the military with Helfern worrying about his safety. It was during this time that Phillip Kane offered to put Karl's son on an assignment that was a search and rescue. Helfern agreed thinking it was simple mission into the desert to find Kane's lost nephew Bruce Wayne. However, the nomadic tribes made use of booby-traps with these responsible for killing Karl's son. (Batman v2 #29)
After being fired from Wayne Enterprises, Helfern continued his research with this being funded by Edward Nygma who kept Karl's work at his black box running. (Batman v2 #29)
Dr. Karl Helfern continued his research on a chemical that would cause bones to harden upon receiving trauma, with the end goal being military application and protecting soldiers. Helfern became uncontrollable, and after being let go worked in a number of unregulated labs where he acquired the nickname Doctor Death for all the animals that died after being injected with his serum. Doctor Death made himself a guinea pig, but the growth of his bones took over his soft tissue, turning him into a monster. He went mad and vowed to kill the rest of his research team. He killed Wayne Enterprises scientists Bill Kelvar and Dell Paji after injecting them with his experimental chemical that caused their bones to grow out of control, tearing apart their soft tissue. Batman investigated the crimes, and in his civilian identity of Bruce Wayne he visited Lucius Fox at Gotham University School of Engineering, where he’d been working since he was fired from Wayne Enterprises by Phillip Kane. Bruce implicitly trusted Lucius, who his father always described as reliable. Lucius put together the research team led by Helfern, and explained why Helfern had been scrubbed from the Wayne Enterprises databases after being fired, as he was a liability. Lucius injected Bruce, paralyzing him, and told him nothing could stop Doctor Death as the villain emerged from the shadows. Doctor Death had injected himself with his own serum some time ago, giving him a monstrous bony appearance. Doctor Death held a grudge against Lucius since he was the once to convince Thomas Wayne to fire him, and injected Lucius with his bone chemical, but Lucius was immune because he had developed a vaccine which he’d already injected, the same vaccine he’d just given to Bruce. Bruce recovered and fought Doctor Death, who claimed he had a story to tell Bruce about something terrible that happened a long time ago any why the billionaire had blood on his hands. Bruce locked him in an experimental jet engine, but Doctor Death got free and cracked Bruce’s skull with his bony hands. Lt. Gordon arrived on the scene, shooting Doctor Death in the back and the villain jumped out a window and fled. Bruce spent a day in the ICU nursing a fractured cranium before changing into Batman and going to the Newton Center where Deeds and Booker, the other members of Helfern’s research team worked. Doctor Death had already come and gone, injecting the scientists who were in painful death throes. Commissioner Loebs and the GCPD ambushed Batman, and Loeb, who had a vendetta against the Caped Crusader, blamed Batman for the scientists’ deaths, ordering the GCPD to open fire. (Batman v2 #26)
Batman came to locate Doctor Death’s lab in the Gotham catacombs, and from his papers he discovered that Death had taken materials from each of the scientists he had killed to create at doomsday device at the behest of Riddler. Riddler appeared on a screen in Death’s lab, telling Batman he only wanted to force people to be smarter to survive because the world was dying and controlled by the rich and elite who did not care for them. He detonated a bomb in the catacombs, and Batman found himself buried under water and bodies. Batman freed himself and called Gordon, who was busy evacuating the Narrows as superstorm Rene was about to hit Gotham. Batman had triangulated the power surges Riddler used and realized they formed a question mark with Wayne Tower acting as the dot. Batman knew he’d be there, prepared to unleash his doomsday device, a remote hacking hub he could use to control or turn off any part of Gotham’s infrastructure. It was set to be activated when Gotham’s power was turned back on. Gordon called Dan Corrigan, pleading with him to have Gotham l or shut down Gotham’s infrastructure. It was set to go off as soon as Gotham’s power was turned back on. Batman piloted his Bat Blimp towards a weather balloon Riddler had stolen to boost the signal of his hacking hub. As the storm tore apart his blimp Batman barely made it to the weather balloon, where he was confronted by Doctor Death. Batman tried to reason with Death, saying Riddler’s reign of terror could kill thousands. Doctor Death was loyal to Riddler because he’d funded his research after he was let go by Wayne Enterprises, and retorted that his bone serum would save millions. Riddler was the one to convince Doctor Death to inject himself with his own serum, and Death bragged that he was living proof the serum worked. He admitted it made him into a monster, but said it was a start. They fought and Batman’s scrambler he planned on using on the signal booster fell off the side. Batman laid Doctor Death low, ripped off one of his boy protrusions and used it to start bashing the signal booster. Doctor Death revealed that his son was a soldier who Philip Kane, as a favor to him, gave him what he thought was a safe assignment, tracking down nomads in the desert. One of the nomads’ tunnels was booby trapped and his son was killed, all in the vain attempt to track down Phillip’s nephew Bruce Wayne. Death attacked Batman again and the signal booster exploded, filling Death’s body with shrapnel. His bones grew to cover over the wounds but would not stop until Doctor Death died, crushed by his own bones. (Batman v2 #29)
Overview
Personality and attributes
In his long years of service, he had been afforded many memorable names including the Firestorm Kid, Nagasaki Slim, Agent Orange and as the Butcher of Belgrade. (Batgirl v1 #42)
It was claimed that the Batman was an obsession for Doctor Death despite him being defeated by the vigilante numerous times. (Batman: Streets of Gotham v1 #18)
Powers and abilities
Pre-Flashpoint: He came to advertise himself as a genocidal genius with decades of experience and a personal kill rate unmatched by the most notorious war criminals. He used such a reputation to offer his services as the world's deadliest scientist to clients that could pay for his work. (Batgirl v1 #42)
Among his creations included:
- Soul : a new designer drugs that was a by-product of experiments on human cadavers with those dosed with it being sent into a psychopathic rage and attacking anyone near them including allies. (Batgirl v1 #45)
- Formula O : harmless until exposed to air, the oily black substance transformed into a black mist able to creep through the smallest gaps where its victims were reduced to fossilised remains as oil. Under normal circumstances, the cloud created by it dissipated within 24 hours leaving no sign of its existence. (Batgirl v1 #44)
He once created a sulfonated organo-phosphorous compound similar to the nerve agent VX or methyl-phosphonothioic acid. This new compound was several times more lethal than VX which normally could kill within minutes upon the slightest exposure. The content of a bottle of this compound was said to be capable of killing a small city depending on the delivery system and weather conditions. (Batgirl v1 #42)
A trademark of his was the use of deadly gas that he deployed against his enemies. (Batman: Streets of Gotham v1 #18)
It was shown that he sent impersonators disguised as him to serve as decoys and to prevent his capture. (Batgirl v1 #42) For a time, he was assisted by a number of female lab assistants that were a gang called the Lost Girls. (Batgirl v1 #46)
Post-Flashpoint: The serum caused his body to regenerate but left awful scars behind and led to the growth of further bones. (Batman v2 #29)
Alongside Dr. Strange and Dr. Dekker, Helfern was among a group of scientists that specialists in one aspect of the human body where they were referred to as the Doctors Three. (Batman v2 #38)
Notes
- Doctor Death was created by Gardner Fox and Bob Kane where he made his first appearance in Detective Comics v1 #29 (July, 1939).
In other media
Television
- In Batman: The Animated Series, Doctor Death did not appear but a possible reference to him was made in the episode "Beware the Gray Ghost". One of the television adventures of the Gray Ghost included him fighting a villain by the name of Dr. Death.
- In Harley Quinn, Doctor Death was referenced in the setting of the animated television series in the episode "A Fight Worth Fighting For". He was shown as being a contact on Doctor Psycho's phone.
Appearances
- Detective Comics v1: (1939)
- Batman v1:
- Batgirl v1:
- Batman v2:
External Links
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