Rupert Thorne is a well known mob boss in Gotham City in Batman: The Animated Series. He is usually able to avoid being apprehended by the authorities, but if he ever is caught, he is usually able to quickly get released.
History[]
Thorne muscled his way into Gotham and swiftly took control over the majority of the organised crime syndicate. Although his criminal actions were well known to the public, the corruption inside Gotham's justice system kept Thorne in his penthouse and the authorities off his back. His brother, Matt Thorne, lost his medical license as a result of removing a bullet from Rupert and failing to report it to the police.
Harvey "Two-Face" Dent[]
Gotham's District Attorney Harvey Dent began pressuring the police and justice department to arrest Thorne. motivated by his desire for re-election, Dent aggressively pursued Thorne's case personally. However, Thorne acquired Dent's psychiatric files and learned that he was seriously ill, mentally with a barely controlled case of multiple personality disorder. Thorne used this information at Dent's re-election victory to blackmail him. The overflowing anger at Thorne's threats and his mob's taunts brought Dent's alter ego, "Big Bad Harv", to the surface, and Dent attacked Thorne. As Thorne fled the scene with Dent in pursuit, a henchman shot and destroyed a vat of chemicals, scarring the left half of Dent's body. The accident hit on multiple levels: scarred physically and emotionally, Harvey Dent became Two-Face, a criminal driven solely by luck and chance.[1]
Thorne's business were targetted by Dent, who took upon the identity of the criminal Two-Face to destroy Thorne's empire. Helpless, Thorne sent Candice to trick Harvey's former fianceé and give her a tracking device that would help them locate Two-Face. Time passed and Thorne's business were still going down and Two-Face managed to get a file of every dirty business Thorne had made in Gotham. Using the tracking device, Thorne and his gang were able to locate Two-Face's hideout, but once there, they were confronted by Two-Face who was about to murder Thorne if Batman had not intervened and stopped Two-Face. After the incident, the police arrived and arrested Thorne and his gang.[2]
Gang War[]
Thorne vs. Stromwell
Some time later, Thorne became involved in a gang war with Arnold Stromwell, an aging crime boss, whose control over the Gotham Underground was crumbling as Thorne gradually gained more power. In an attempt to eliminate Stromwell, Thorne planned a meeting at Pete's Restaurant, where he trapped Stromwell and planted a bomb that would kill him. His plan failed as Batman saved Stromwell from a certain death and Thorne set out to find and kill them both. After locating them at Stromwell's old headquarters, Thorne tried his best to eliminate them, but Batman came up victorious, knocking Thorne unconscious and leaving the police to deal with him.[3]
One of Thorne's later criminal activities was foiled by Batman, thanks to the interference of Sidney Debris, who became part of Thorne's gang and blundered every possible activity.[4] On a later occasion, Thorne was seriously ill and he sought help from his brother, Matt Thorne, who was known as the Crime Doctor. Thorne was saved, but Matt was locked away as a result of his involvement with Rupert's affairs.[5]
Eventually, Thorne grew tired of the hits on his dealings and operations usually as a result of Batman's involvement so he tried to dispose of him. In an attempt to do so, he hired Bane; a chemically boosted mercenary fighter from South America to assasinate the Dark Knight. However, despite proving far stronger physically than Batman, he failed to kill Batman and was imprisoned in Stonegate Penitentiary. His plan's failure lost Thorne further street cred.[6]
He was later interrogated about Harvey Dent's abduction by Robin, but having nothing to do with the incident, Thorne had his men kidnap Robin and toss him in the river.[7]
Appearances[]
- It's Never Too Late
- Two-Face Part I
- Two-Face Part II
- Vendetta
- The Man Who Killed Batman
- Shadow of the Bat Part I
- Shadow of the Bat Part II (mentioned only)
- Paging the Crime Doctor
- Bane
- Second Chance
Video Games[]
Trivia[]
- Rupert is the only normal villain of the series, being a crime boss with no gimmicks and relying on solely hired manpower to achieve his goals. He never sees Batman until it's time fit his arrest/being accused of crimes.