Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for Batwoman season 3.
Several classic Batman villains will be making their Arrowverse premieres in Batwoman season 3. This is surprising yet welcome news, given that Warner Bros. has been seemingly reluctant to allow the CW series to utilize many of the more infamous villains who menace Gotham City on a regular basis. Presumably, this was due to the character rights being tied up in the upcoming movie The Batman, but with production on the film having come to a close, Batman’s rogues gallery may once again be free for adaptation elsewhere.
Batwoman season 2 ended in triumph for the new Batwoman, Ryan Wilder (Javicia Leslie), who succeeded in her quest to bring her adoptive mother’s murderer to justice and rescued a brainwashed Kate Kane from captivity. Kate officially passed the Batwoman mantle to Ryan, as Luke Fox (Camrus Johnson) took up a heroic identity of his own, Batwing. Despite this, Batwoman season 2 also ended on a foreboding note, with the weapons of many of Batman’s greatest enemies having been stolen by Black Mask and finding their way into the Gotham City underground.
The plot of Batwoman season 3 will center around the recovery of these villainous artifacts, while Batwoman, Batwing, and their allies contend with a cornucopia of classic Bat-foes. While some of the weapons in question will find their way into the hands of new wielders, many of the original rogues have been confirmed as still being active and will be making their first appearances in the Arrowverse. Here is a rundown of every Batman villain confirmed to be a part of Batwoman season 3.
Mad Hatter
Several criminals have used the Mad Hatter name over the years, but the most infamous is Jervis Tetch. A scientist who was obsessed with the writings of Lewis Carroll (particularly Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through The Looking Glass), Tetch developed advanced mind control technology that allowed him to enthrall others into obeying his commands or trap them in their own personal Wonderlands. Tetch’s trademark top hat, which was the source of his powers, was briefly seen in the final episode of Batwoman season 2, floating downstream to parts unknown.
The title of Batwoman‘s season 3 premiere, “Mad As a Hatter,” makes it plainly clear that the Mad Hatter’s hat will be the first of the Bat Trophies to emerge. However, the Mad Hatter that tests Batwoman and her allies appears to be a new villain; he is identified in the episode credits as Liam Crandle, which is not the name of any previous incarnation of the Mad Hatter in the comics. Played by Amitai Marmorstein, it seems likely that Crandle is the “Alice admirer (who) stumbles upon one of the missing Bat Trophies” described in the story summary of “Mad As a Hatter.”
Killer Croc
The victim of a congenital medical condition that gave him scaly skin, Waylon Jones had a rough childhood, which culminated in his wrestling alligators in a Florida sideshow under the name Killer Croc and eventually turning to crime. Originally a brilliant but fearsome-looking crime boss, Croc was later infected with a virus that transformed him into a truly reptilian monster with regenerative abilities and enhanced strength. The Arrowverse Killer Croc was established as existing in an earlier episode of Batwoman; however, based on the episode synopsis of Batwoman season 3, episode 2, “Loose Tooth,” which mentions “a new incarnation of Gotham’s swamp slumming Killer Croc,” it seems likely that the virus that transformed Waylon Jones has infected another unfortunate soul.
Mr. Freeze
While many Batman villains were born of tragedy, Dr. Victor Fries may be the most sympathetic. A cryogenics expert, Fries found his life’s work put to the test after his wife was diagnosed with a terminal illness and he was forced to put her in cryogenic suspension. Unfortunately, Victor’s employer was more concerned with profits than saving lives and tried to shut down Victor’s lab. The violent altercation that followed left Fries unable to survive outside a sub-zero environment. Arming himself with a freeze ray, Victor turned to crime to finance his research and save his beloved Nora.
Mr. Freeze’s existence in the Arrowverse was confirmed both before and after the Crisis on Infinite Earths event. Nothing has been said about his current whereabouts, but Batwoman season 3, episode 3 is telling titled “Freeze.” The episode synopsis also says that “cryogenics is the name of the game” and makes mention of an unfortunate incident in downtown Gotham, suggesting that Mr. Freeze’s (or someone using his technology) will be on the loose.
Nora Fries
While normally a passive figure, Nora Fries has taken an active role in some comic storylines. Prior to the New 52 reboot, Mr. Freeze bargained with Nyssa Al Ghul and was allowed access to a Lazarus Pit that might restore his wife’s health. Unfortunately, the chemicals that preserved her had an unexpected effect on the Lazarus Pit, transforming Nora Fries into a deranged, heat-radiating being who called herself Lazara. In the DC Rebirth reality, Mr. Freeze made a similar bargain with criminal mastermind Lex Luthor, who was able to cure Nora’s illness while leaving her with the same condition as her husband. Nora took up the name Mrs. Freeze, and briefly joined her husband’s criminal enterprises as he searched for a way to make them both normal again. Sadly, Nora decided to leave Victor and strike out on her own, having grown to love the power granted by her new life after years of feeling weak.
Nora Fries was confirmed to have been frozen by her husband on Earth-Prime in the Arowverse, thanks to one of the trivia questions asked by the Cluemaster in the Batwoman season 2 episode “I’ll Give You A Clue.” Before Crisis on Infinite Earths, she briefly appeared during the Elseworlds crossover event, played by Cassandra Jean Amell, the wife of Arrow star Stephen Amell, and was depicted as an inmate at Arkham Asylum who was desperate to keep cool for some unexplained reason. While nothing has been said about Nora’s fate or state of mind in the Arrowverse, there is a chance that a villainous version of her could show up in Batwoman season 3, episode 3, “Freeze” or Batwoman season 3, episode 4, “Antifreeze.”
Professor Pyg
A sinister surgeon who became obsessed with his own twisted ideas of physical perfection, Professor Pyg is one of the most frightening villains to terrorize Gotham City. Performing surgery without anesthetic or permission, Pyg lobotomizes his patients at the same time he permanently attaches new faces to their flesh. The professor made his live-action debut in a horrifying episode of Gotham. Professor Pyg’s Arrowverse premiere was confirmed by the title of Batwoman season 3, episode 5, “A Lesson From Professor Pyg.”
Poison Ivy
Possibly the single most powerful of the many supervillains Batman has battled over the years, Dr. Pamela Isley is notable for having worked with the Dark Knight almost as much as she’s fought against him. Connected to the Green, the force which connects all plant life in the universe, Dr. Isley has devoted her life to protecting the Earth from humanity under the title Poison Ivy. It has been confirmed that actress Bridget Regan (Dottie Underwood in Agent Carter) will be playing Poison Ivy in Batwoman season 3 and it is suspected that she will be the primary villain of the season’s chief storyline.
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