Cornelius Stirk
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| Cornelius Stirk | |
| http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/thumb/c/c1/100px-Cornelius_Stirk.JPG |
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| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Detective Comics #592 (November 1988) |
| Created by | Alan Grant (script) Norm Breyfogle (art) |
| In story information | |
| Notable aliases | Fear |
| Abilities | Can cause fear or hallucinations through telepathy |
Cornelius Stirk is a fictional character in the DC Universe. He first appeared in Detective Comics #592 (November 1988) as an enemy of Batman.
[edit] Character overview
Stirk, like Scarecrow, uses fear to get to his victims. Stirk has the ability to make other people see him as someone else, allowing him to get close to his victims. He operates under the delusion that he requires the nutrients and hormones from peoples' hearts in order to stay alive, and these are best prepared with norepinephrine by inducing fear in the victim prior to death.
In his first appearance, Stirk is released from Arkham Asylum, where he is confined at the age of 16 for trying to kill a classmate, after being certified as sane — probably following his use of his psychic abilities on his doctors. He then subsequently stops taking his medication and begins his escalation into a serial killer.
[edit] Knightfall
During the "Knightfall" storyline, Stirk works with the Joker in an attempt to kidnap Commissioner Gordon. However, Stirk tries to kill Gordon rather than kidnap him, much to Joker's dismay. Gordon hallucinates that Stirk is actually Batman as Stirk tried to kill Gordon with a knife. Batman stops Stirk, but Gordon is still screaming in fear. In order to capture Stirk, Batman is forced to leave a terrified Gordon with his wife, who brings him to a hospital.
