The Joker. Two-Face. Scarecrow. The Penguin. Some of the Caped Crusader’s most nefarious villains are the ones we won’t be discussing in this article as we look at the Dark Knight’s crazier, more ridiculous villains who have happened to darken the steps of Gotham City’s door. In Batman’s long career of crime fighting, Bruce Wayne has had his fair share of tussles that nearly got him killed, but the villains mentioned here have done little more than annoy the Batman and left readers scratching their heads as they attempted to figure out how exactly some of these rogues had come into being in the first place. With Warner Brothers’ The LEGO Batman Movie barreling into theaters on February 10th, we thought we’d take this opportunity to go into the backstory, power set, and first appearances of these goofy antagonists.

Kite Man

Real Name: Charles Brown

Powers: Master of Hang Gliding, Kite modeled gadgets

First Appearance: Batman #133 (1960)

Created By: Bill Finger and Dick Sprang

Origin: If you’re wondering if there’s anything more to Kite Man than a guy who happens to fly around using a Kite, you’d be wrong. Charles Brown (get it?) was an excellent hang glider who decided to use his skills to rob banks, commit crimes, free fellow criminals from prison, and fight Batman along the way. In order to stop Kite Man’s first crime spree, Batman created a flying kite of his own in order to combat the goofball of the skies. While Brown has made several appearances throughout the history of the DC Universe, they’ve all been in good fun, with the most recent appearance in the last few issues of the Batman ongoing comic book series. His recent appearances see a criminal who absolutely loves being a hang gliding criminal, stealing jewels, and robbing banks all while yelling “Kite Man! Hell Yeah!” While he’s hardly ever a match for the Caped Crusader, the sheer absurdity and fun of the character is infectious and he makes for a nice change of pace when it comes to Batman’s usual grim and gritty stories.

Ten Eyed Man

Real Name: Philip Reardon

Powers: Uses eyes on his finger tips to have 360 degree vision, better than average hand to hand combat

First Appearance: Batman #226 (1970)

Created By: Frank Robbins, Irv Novick, Dick Giordano

Origin: Ten Eyed Man could work, but his name and appearance are just so ridiculous that it makes it impossible to see Philip Reardon as anything other than a joke character. Reardon was originally a war veteran, who, once the war had ended, found employment as a security guard. During one of his nightly routines, his place of employment was broken into by a pack of burglars who blew up the warehouse as a going away present. While Phil survived, his vision did not and he was made permanently blind, or rather would have been had it not been for a plucky doctor who decided to transfer Reardon’s optic nerves to his finger tips. Not exactly the most realistic operation in the world, it proved successful in the DC Universe and Reardon donned the identity of the Ten Eyed Man, blaming Batman for the loss of his vision as the Dark Knight had failed to save him. Ten Eyed Man continues to make appearances in the comics from time to time, presented as something of a martial arts expert who uses his fingers to his advantage, even though Batman normally manages to beat him by simply having Reardon hold something by mistake, subsequently blinding himself.

Crazy Quilt

Real Name: Paul Dekker

Powers: Helmet which allows him to control minds and fire laser beams, along with high intensity lights.

First Appearance: Boy Commandos #15 (1946)

Created By: Jack Kirby

Origin: There have been far too many Crazy Quilts. While originally appearing as a ridiculous villain to fight the young group of heroes dubbed the “Boy Commandos”, the main Quilt that people knew was named Paul Dekker. Originally a criminal who used his subordinates to commit crimes, he was blinded, much like the Ten Eyed Man, but given his sight back, albeit skewed in that he could only see bright colors. In later appearances, he also sported a power granting helmet that granted him a slew of abilities which actually made him somewhat formidable, minus the name and appearance of course. While Dekker was the primary Quilt, there was also a female version who appeared briefly but not much of her backstory was revealed, simply taking the name and appearance of her predecessor. When the DC Comic Universe was rebooted with the “New 52”, Crazy Quilt was remade as a crazy scientist obsessed with immortality with no powers of his own to speak of. He subsequently fell out of a window, ending the quick lifeline of this new Crazy Quilt.

Condiment King

Real Name: Mitchell Mayo

Powers: Various gadgets that are all “condiment” themed

First Appearance: Batman: The Animated Series

Created By: Paul Dini and Bruce Timm

Origin: Much like Harley Quinn, the Condiment King was originally created for the Batman Animated Series, then brought over to the comic book universe. Originally a standup comic, Mitchell Mayo was brainwashed by the Joker and forced to fight Batman and Robin wearing a completely ridiculous outfit, wielding a ketchup and mustard gun that fired high intensity condiments at his victims. Mitchell Mayo is about as ridiculous as you can get, though his appearance did manage to translate well to the comics wherein he first appeared in an issue of Batgirl: Year One. Condiment King wasn’t long for the world of heroes and villains, as he was eventually beaten to death by the villain, the Human Flame, and has not appeared since.

Polka Dot Man

Real Name: Abner Krill

Powers: Can transform the polka dots on his costume into weapons and various gadgets

First Appearance: Detective Comics #300 (1962)

Created By: Sheldon Moldoff and Charles Paris

Origin: The Polka Dot Man started off during the wacky era of the Silver Age of DC Comics, hitting the Gotham streets while vowing that he would make a name for himself in the Gotham underworld. After escaping the clutches of Batman and Robin numerous times, Robin employed the help of a crime tracking leopard (no, seriously) in an attempt to find Abner Krill. After getting captured by the villain, Robin managed to send a message out to Batman, was subsequently rescued and managed to beat the spotted antagonist. Krill was fairly absent throughout the career of Batman, but reappeared at a later date when he was used in filmmaker Kevin Smith’s comic book series, Batman Cacophony. In this, Abner appeared as a sad bank robber, no longer wielding his enhanced suit, rather simply holding a baseball bat while quickly being captured by Gotham police. Much like the previously mentioned Condiment King, Polka Dot Man met his demise in a tussle with the Human Flame.

Killer Moth

Real Name: Drury Walker

Powers: Flight, Razor Sharp Claws, Proportionate Abilities to that of a Moth

First Appearance: Batman #63 (1951)

Created By: Bill Finger, Dick Sprang, Lew Schwartz

Origin: Killer Moth, to me, is the most bizarre of all the characters on the list as he somewhat became the most popular by leaps and bounds. Walker has shown up in numerous Batman cartoons and has made countless appearances in the comics themselves. The moth based villain’s original modus operandi was a clever one as Drury presented himself to the criminal underworld as something of a “Reverse Batman”. Should criminals find themselves in trouble from the law or Batman himself, they could throw up the “Moth Signal” and get help from Killer Moth in their exploits. He even managed to build himself a “Moth Cave”! Eventually, Killer Moth decided to get himself an upgrade during the comic book crossover, “Underworld Unleashed” which saw the DC’s version of the Devil, Neron, offer super villains additional powers and abilities for their souls. Walker gleefully accepted only to now find himself a hideous monster who now truly resembled the name of Killer Moth.

Orca the Whale Woman

Real Name: Grace Balin

Powers: Super Strength, Endurance, Excellent Swimmer as she’s part Orca Whale

First Appearance: Batman #579 (2000)

Created By: Larry Hama and Scott McDaniel

Origin: Might as well finish our list of Batman foes strong with Orca the Whale Woman. Much like Killer Moth, her origin wouldn’t be half as bad if not for the ridiculousness of her appearance and name. Dr. Grace Balin is a marine biologist working at the Gotham Aquarium who unfortunately gets into an accident that leaves her paralyzed. Starting to experiment on Orca whale genetic material, Balin injects herself with a concoction that transforms her into the super villain Orca, allowing her to switch between her massive new form and her paralyzed regular appearance. Establishing something of a Robin Hood motif, Orca begins stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, but during a conflict with Batman, finds herself unable to transform back to her former self, now trapped in the body of a humanoid orca whale. Prior to the New 52 reboot, Orca was found dead after being shot by Two Face but was later revived once the universe reset itself. She recently made an appearance fighting the one time Robin, Nightwing, and is once again a part of the DC Universe proper.