Doctor Phosphorus almost killed Batman, when we witnessed him in the recent detective comic.
In Gotham City, it is the dream of many villains of being the only one to kill Batman. Whether it is the iconic psychopaths, murderers, or a street thug, the person who kills Dark Knight successfully will be remembered forever, a legacy passed down throughout the underworld for ages to come.
In Detective Comics #1027, we see an aged Bruce Wayne on his deathbed, having somehow entered a developed old age, but dying of cancer. But far from being a normal development, the villain accountable is none other than Doctor Alex Sartorius aka Doctor Phosphorus. We find Doctor Phosphorus almost killed Batman.
It is created by Steve Englehart in Detective Comics #469 (1977), Dr. Sartorius was an ingredient of a high-class group of businessmen who expected to build a nuclear power plant in Gotham City but were compelled to create it elsewhere when the city rejected construction. This rejection turned out to be reasonable when the decent doctor was altered by sand irradiated during the plant’s nuclear meltdown, altering him into a villain with see-through skin and a fatal radioactive touch.
Vowing revenge on Gotham, his endeavor to contaminate the city’s water supply brought him into a confrontation with Batman and – despite seeming to die more than once – Doctor Phosphorus has returned to combat not only Batman but distinct heroes in DC Comics time and again. Here we see Doctor Phosphorus almost killed Batman.
Doctor Phosphorus Almost Killed Batman In Legacy
In “Legacy” by writer Tom King and artist Walter Simonson, Doctor Phosphorus finds that the accident that provided him his strengths also gave him cancer and, worrying death, he agrees to make history. Threatening to destroy Gotham unless Batman combats him without the practice of his fancy gadgets or suits, the Dark Knight complies, ripping his signature cape into crumbs for makeshift gloves.
As they fight, Doctor Phosphorus discloses that Batman’s vulnerable disclosure to radiation will give him cancer. Although it would take Batman years to perish, the old doctor could die realizing that he achieved that which several of his fellow villains failed to do. Though it would take years for Batman to die, thus Doctor Phosphorus almost killed Batman.
Legacy is the theme of this tale and both creators show what that suggests to both the hero and the villain of the story. The tale starts with the death Bruce Wayne comforted by his partner Selina, sadly clenching his hand in his last few moments, and the Doctor revealing why he did it. To Doctor Phosphorus, this was his swan hymn, the final act that he preferred to be remembered for so he could perish knowing his life meant something.
But when Doctor Phosphorus inquires Batman if he expects to know why he did it, Batman acts real to character with a simple, “No.” When Gotham is in danger, he appears to defend and, if essential, die for it. It is barely the price he pays to be Batman. The price was known after reading the comic, as Doctor Phosphorus almost killed Batman.
Detective Comics #1027 is available now. It is by Matt Fraction, Brian Michael Bendis, Peter J. Tomasi, Grant Morrison, Dan Jurgens, Mariko Tamaki, Greg Rucka, Scott Snyder, Marv Wolfman, Kelly Sue Deconnick, Tom King, Jim Cheung, José L. García López, Lee Bermejo, Jamal Campbell, Dan Mora, Ivan Reis, Emanuela Lupacchino, Riley Rossmo, Eduardo Risso, Chip Zdarsky, David Marquez, and Chris Burnham.
