***“Blatant Insubordination” is a regular column published at Primary Ignition by Rob Siebert, editor and Fanboy Wonder. The views expressed here are his, and do not reflect those of the staff of Primary Ignition.***

We know very little about The Dark Knight Rises at this point, which is understandable considering it won’t be seen until 2012. But speculation continues to run wild about who the villain will be. We know Aaron Eckhart won’t be back as Two-Face. Director Christopher Nolan has apparently ruled out both The Riddler and Mr. Freeze. There was, however, a rumor that casting directors are looking to fill two female roles…

Meanwhile, the teaser trailer for Batman: Arkham City recently hit the web. This time, in addition to The Joker, Harley Quinn, Two-Face, and likely numerous other villains, it’s looking like Catwoman will play a key role in the game’s story. And, as the trailer clearly illustrates, so will a lesser known villain: Professor Hugo Strange.

Recently, a rumor surfaced regarding Nolan and his crew looking to base the film off a 1990 Batman story called Prey, which features none other than Professor Hugo Strange. The character’s appearance in Arkham City has only served to squirt lighter fluid on to the rumor cook out.

Image from absorbascon.blogspot.com.

Though casual fans may not have heard of him, Hugo Strange has actually been around longer than The Joker or Catwoman. To give you an indicator, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27. Strange debuted in issue #36. And would you believe Batman actually kills him in that issue? A punch from The Dark Knight causes the evil professor to fall to his death. This was 1940, mind you. The Batman character was less than a year old, and his rules hadn’t been established yet.

The Prey story was first published in Legends of the Dark Knight #11-15 in late 1990. Believe it or not, DC apparently hasn’t re-printed the story in graphic novel form since 1993.

Written by Doeg Moench and pencilled by the amazing Paul Gulacy, Prey is set in the early days of Batman’s career, as the public still isn’t quite sure what to make of his war on crime. Jim Gordon is placed at the head of a task force to bring The Dark Knight down, and Strange is brought in as a consultant. Strange psychoanalyzes Batman almost to a T.

Image from dannygraydon.com.

But we soon learn Strange is obsessed with Batman. He creates a Batman costume of his own, and hypnotizes a cop into becoming “The Night Scourge,” his own nighttime vigilante. Scourge kidnaps the mayor’s daughter for Strange. Using a hallucinogen not unlike The Scarecrow’s, he’s able to find out Bruce Wayne is Batman. Eventually, Gordon’s task force shoots Strange down in his Batman costume, and he plummets into a river. Catwoman also plays a minor role in the story, but it’s nothing too significant.

The Prey story was loosely adapted into an episode of Batman: The Animated Series, where Strange uses a machine to figure out Batman’s identity, and tries to auction it off to the villains.

In 2001, Moench and Gulacy reunited for a sequel: Terror (which IS available in trade form). Set not long after Prey, we find out Strange is alive, and serving as The Scarecrow’s doctor. But eventually, Scarecrow turns on Strange and kills him. He lures Batman and Catwoman into an old mansion, and spookiness ensues. It’s a nice follow up.

Image from dc.wikia.com.

In Prey, Strange is depicted as a brilliant psychologist, but also a deranged sex pervert. He’s got some issues with women, as he illustrates in some dialogue with the mayor’s daughter, who he’s tied to a bed and stripped to her underwear. He also lives with a mannequin, who he seems to regard as his wife or lover. Though not nearly as well known as The Joker or The Riddler, Strange can certainly hang with them.

If re-worked a bit, I can definitely see Prey and Terror being the basis for Nolan’s third film. He would need two new actresses to play Catwoman and the mayor’s daughter, which fits with that rumor. Also, the Gordon/task force storyline would fit perfectly with the way things were left off in The Dark Knight. If Nolan chooses to use The Scarecrow, he can always call up his pal Cillian Murphy.

But what about Hugo Strange? How do you market a character like him? He’s not a character casual fans know from the Adam West show or the Burton films. Considering how much hoopla there was with both Joker and Two-Face appearing in The Dark Knight, moviegoers might feel disappointed that another A-list Batman villain isn’t around this time. Granted, Catwoman would be in the picture, but chances are she wouldn’t be playing a villain, per se. She’d be best kept in that gray area between good and evil, which could cause Batman to question his philosophies.

Mind you, the simple fact that this is the next (and probably last) Christopher Nolan Batman film will provide the movie with most of the hype and anticipation it needs. The film markets itself. But the more incentive you can give moviegoers, the better. Plus, The Dark Knight owes much of the fortune it made to repeat viewings. Could Hugo Strange, Catwoman and Scarecrow bring fans back to theaters as much as Heath Ledger’s Joker did? But if given a good story to perform in, it’s possible…

Hugo Strange in "Arkham City." Image from gamingunion.net.

One of the big reasons The Dark Knight will be such a hard act to follow is that it perfected the blockbuster superhero/supervillain face off, and had extra thematic tones about what heroes really are, what happens when heroes fall from grace, etc. If Nolan and his crew try a similar formula with The Dark Knight Rises, comparisons will inevitably be made to Dark Knight, and things probably wont turn out as well as we’re hoping. That’s likely why he’s not going with more standard, gimmicky villains like The Riddler.

Using a character like Hugo Strange, Nolan would have the chance to create a Batman movie unlike any other. Using Strange to mess with Batman’s mind, using Gordon to reluctantly threaten his bodily health, and using Catwoman to tempt his heart, which is still broken from the death of Rachel Dawes, The Dark Knight Rises could be a film centered around the cataclysmic fall, and subsequent rise of our hero.  (Get it? The Dark Knight Rises.) This would be an amazing role reversal that mainstream movie audiences haven’t seen before. Although I suppose you could argue it was done to an extent in Batman Forever, but that was Joel Schumacher. We’re talking about a movie done WELL.

As for the marketing value of Hugo Strange, I think the Arkham City trailer speaks well in that respect — especially if you get a good actor in the role. Oddly enough, do a Google Image search for “Hugo Strange,” and one of the first images that comes up is a cross reference between the character’s likeness and that of Philip Seymour Hoffman. Yet another Oscar winner in a Batman movie? I’ll take it!

Obviously, all of this is speculation. But in terms of villains, a lot of the big money ball players have already been ruled out. Who’s left? The Penguin? Not the greatest candidate for lead villain (no offense Danny DeVito). Ra’s al Ghul? Doubtful. Poison Ivy? Maybe, but Nolan seems to want to keep the movies more realistic. Hugo Strange seems to have as good a chance as anyone of landing the spot. If he can be used to create a story that’s dramatic, compelling, and at least in Dark Knight‘s ball park in terms of quality, I say bring him on. A lot of people are going to have a good amount of time, creativity, and Lord knows MONEY sunk into this film. And if this is going to be Nolan and Christian Bale’s last go-around, then let’s go out with the biggest, loudest, best bang we can.

So let’s get Strange…

Front page image from collider.com.
For more on The Dark Knight Rises, check out No  More Bats For Bale?