Talia al Ghul
| Talia al Ghul | |
|---|---|
| File:Taliasonof.jpg Cover to Batman: Son of the Demon (1987). Art by Jerry Bingham | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Detective Comics #411 (May 1971) |
| Created by | Denny O'Neil |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Talia al Ghul |
| Team affiliations | Secret Society of Super Villains Jason Todd LexCorp League of Assassins |
| Notable aliases | Talia Head |
| Abilities | - Expert at hand-to-hand combat and in the use of weapons - High level intellect - Utilizes her father's Lazarus Pits to restore life and heal wounds |
Talia al Ghul (Arabic: تاليا الغول) is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe, the now-estranged daughter of the supervillain Ra's al Ghul, and a love interest of Batman. She sometimes uses an anglicized form of her name, Talia Head (derived from her father's name, which is Arabic for "Head of the Demon").
She first appeared in Detective Comics #411 (May 1971). Her usual role is as a recurring romantic interest for Batman; her father, the leader of a worldwide criminal empire, considers Batman the man most worthy to marry Talia and to become his heir. It is natural that Batman is uninterested in the criminal empire, but he has shown considerable interest in Talia.
She is a complex character, not quite heroine nor villainess but more of an anti-hero. She has undoubtedly committed criminal acts; however, they were usually committed due to her loyalty to her father rather than for personal gain. She has saved Batman's life or helped him on numerous occasions. Furthermore, she helped to bring about the downfall of Lex Luthor.
Character biography
Early life
The graphic novel Batman: Birth of the Demon (1992) tells how her father Ra's al Ghul met Talia's mother, who was of mixed Chinese and Arab descent, at the Woodstock Festival. Talia's mother later died of a drug overdose. This was a retcon of Batman: Son of the Demon (1987), which stated that Talia's mother was named Melisande and was murdered by a former servant of Ra's named Qayin.
In her youth, Ra's took her traveling with him around the world. He taught her hand-to-hand combat as well as the use of most conventional weapons, from swords to guns. She helped him in the management of various organizations that he controlled.
Batman
Talia first met Batman in the story "Into the Den of the Death-Dealers!" in Detective Comics #411 (May 1971) by Denny O'Neil. In the story, Batman rescued her from Dr. Darkk, apparently the leader of the League of Assassins. It was eventually revealed that the League was just one part of Ra's al Ghul's organization, The Demon, and that Darkk had apparently turned against Ra's after failing in a mission (the usual punishment for this being death). At the end of the story, she shoots and kills Darkk to save Batman's life.
There are reasons to believe that the entire incident with Dr. Darkk was a setup designed to test Batman. These reasons include:
- Ra's al Ghul, not Dr. Darkk, is the traditional leader of the League of Assassins.
- The members of the League of Assassins are fanatics willing to die at a word from Ra's or Talia.
- Talia's acting as a damsel in distress, unfamiliarity with and reluctance to use a gun, and reluctance to kill, are all behaviors completely inconsistent with future characterizations of Talia.
- The killing of Dr. Darkk, thus preventing him from being able to talk, is very convenient for Ra's and the League of Assassins.
That "Into the Den of the Death-Dealers!" was a setup would be consistent with the storyline of the next appearance of Talia, in "Daughter of the Demon" in Batman #232 (June 1971). This storyline, by Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams, introduced Ra's al Ghul and is widely considered one of the greatest classic Batman stories. In "Daughter of the Demon", Dick Grayson (Robin) is kidnapped. Ra's al Ghul enters the Batcave, revealing to Batman that he knows Batman's secret identity and saying that Talia was also kidnapped along with Dick. Batman then goes with Ra's to search for Dick and Talia; in the end, it is revealed that Talia loved Batman and that the entire kidnapping was a setup designed by Ra's as a final test of whether Batman were suitable to marry Talia and to become his heir. Though Batman rejected Ra's offer, he nevertheless returned Talia's feelings.
In the years since Talia met Batman, she would repeatedly be torn between loyalty to her father and her love of Batman.
Son of the Demon
In the graphic novel Son of the Demon, Ra's al Ghul successfully enlisted Batman's aid in defeating a rogue assassin who had murdered his wife. During this story line, Batman married Talia and she became pregnant. Batman was nearly killed protecting Talia from an attack by the assassin's agents. In the end, Talia concluded that she could never keep Batman, as he would be continuously forced to defend her. She faked suffering a miscarriage, and the marriage was dissolved.
In reality, Talia had given birth successfully. The child was left at an orphanage; he was adopted and given the name Ibn al Xu'ffasch. The only clue to the child's heritage was a jewel-encrusted necklace Batman had given to Talia which Talia left with the child.
The story used to be considered to be outside of the DC universe's standard continuity. The story has apparently been modified and is once more canon however.
It is referenced in three Elseworlds storylines: Kingdom Come, its sequel The Kingdom, and Brotherhood of the Bat feature two alternate versions of the child as an adult, coming to terms with his dual heritage.
Bane
In the miniseries Batman: Bane of the Demon (March-June 1998), Talia entered a brief alliance with Bane, the man who "broke the Bat" in KnightSaga and whom Ra's had determined might be suitable as an heir. However, after a short time, she rejected Bane, though her father still wanted her to marry the musclebound assassin. However, when Bane was defeated by Batman soon after, Ra's gave up trying to match him with Talia.
LexCorp
Talia, disillusioned with her father and his plans, left him to run LexCorp for Lex Luthor when Luthor became President of the United States. Although she seemingly supported Luthor, she secretly worked to undermine him, anonymously leaking news of his underhanded dealings to Superman. In Superman/Batman #6 (March 2004), when the time came for Luthor's downfall, she sold all of LexCorp's assets to the Wayne Foundation.
Death and the Maidens
In Batman: Death and the Maidens, it was revealed that, during his travels in Russia in the 18th century, Ra's al Ghul met a woman by whom he had a daughter named Nyssa. Ra's abandoned Nyssa at a crucial time: she was tortured, and her entire family was killed in a concentration camp during the Holocaust. Seeking vengeance, Nyssa planned to use her considerable wealth and resources to kill Ra's by befriending, kidnapping, and brainwashing Talia, turning her into a weapon to kill Ra's. Nyssa also planned to assassinate Superman with kryptonite bullets she stole from the Batcave.
While Batman was successful in preventing the assassination of Superman, he was unable to stop Nyssa from killing Ra's. This, in turn, was actually part of a greater plan concocted by Ra's, who wanted to ensure that his daughters would realize that he was correct about his perceptions of the world and what needed to be done to it. His wish being that they would come to accept their destinies as his heirs. Realizing and accepting this, Nyssa and Talia became the heads of The Demon (Ra's al Ghul's organization), with Talia disavowing her love for Bruce Wayne as another result of her torture at Nyssa's hands. (Both sisterss consider Batman to be their enemy.) However, it is unclear whether Talia was acting fully under her own volition, or if she was under the control of her sister.
The Society
In Countdown to Infinite Crisis, it was revealed that Talia was one of the core members of the Secret Society of Super Villains (the others were Lex Luthor, Black Adam, Doctor Psycho, Deathstroke, and Calculator). This was revealed to be part of one of Nyssa's plans to take over the planet and bring about world peace and equality. Nyssa explained why she and Talia were working with the villains of the Society to Batgirl (Cassandra Cain).
"Vast stockpiles of food rot, while people starve. Millions die from curable diseases, while drug companies rake in the billions. Our environment chokes on our waste, becoming so toxic that life fails. It's genocide by greed, apathy, and neglect. These are the real crimes. Something must change."
"But... they're evil."
"The Society's plans are vast... they will succeed. I can't stop them. When the world gets a true taste of violent oppression, and their heroes lie dead and broken -- apathy will die. That's when you'll lead my league to sanction key society members. Leaving Talia and I to lead the revolution. A new world will be born, one of peace and equality. Millions of lives will be saved."
From Batgirl #67, by Andersen Gabrych
Nyssa failed to recruit Batgirl to her new League of Assassins, and the Society failed to achieve its goals.
One Year Later
With the apparent death of Nyssa at the hands of Cassandra Cain (who had usurped control of The League of Assassins), Talia is apparently the sole head of The Demon (with the exception of the League of Assassins, which has apparently broken away from The Demon and is under Cassandra Cain's control).
The child of Talia and Batman from Son of the Demon is reintroduced to continuity in the story "Batman & Son", written by Grant Morrison. However, in this version, Talia did not abandon the child (called Damian) or retrieved him from his adoptive parents, and he was partially raised by The League of Assasins. Talia gives him back to Batman, as part of a grand scheme involving ninja man-bats and the kidnapping of the British Prime Minister's wife. Batman is unsure whether this is his son, but he attempts to deal with his spoiled behavior and rotten temper. Damian, lacking the ethics of Tim Drake or Batman, kills a criminal and seemingly Drake.
In other media
In Batman: The Animated Series, Talia is voiced by Helen Slater, who is known for her portrayal of Supergirl, another DC Comics character, in the film Supergirl. Three of the episodes of the animated series are based on the two classic Talia stories "Into the Den of the Death-Dealers!" and "Daughter of the Demon".
In the Batman Beyond episode "Out of the Past" (a show that takes place in the future of BTAS) it was revealed that, before dying, Ra's al Ghul transferred his mind into Talia's body, "killing" Talia in the process. Actress Olivia Hussey, who is known for playing Juliet in Romeo and Juliet (1968), voiced this incarnation of Talia. Olivia also previously voiced Talia in The New Batman/Superman Adventures.
She does not appear in Batman Begins but is mentioned in the novelization.
External links
- Appearances on the Batman animated series
- Index of her appearances
- Women of Gotham Biography: Talia al Ghul
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