| Dr. Leslie Thompkins | |
|---|---|
Leslie Thompkins as seen on Batman Chronicles #18 (Fall, 1999) |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Detective Comics #457 (March 1976) |
| Created by | Dennis O'Neil Dick Giordano |
| In-story information | |
| Full name | Dr. Leslie Thompkins |
| Team affiliations | Batman Family |
| Supporting character of | Batman Robin Nightwing Stephanie Brown |
Dr. Leslie Thompkins (sometimes spelled Tompkins) is a fictional character from the Batman mythos. Created by writer Dennis O'Neil and artist Dick Giordano, she first appeared in Detective Comics #457 (March 1976). Her character draws partial inspiration from Dorothy Day.
A close friend and medical colleague of Bruce Wayne's father, Leslie serves as a surrogate parental figure to Bruce after his parents are murdered, and later becomes a confidant in his crusade as Batman, as well an occasional critic against some of his extreme tendencies. In addition to being one of Batman's allies, Leslie is also a renowned medical professional who has dedicated her considerable skills towards helping Gotham's neglected and impoverished population.
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In her first comic book appearance, Leslie's connection to Batman began on the night his parents were murdered in the Park Row section of Gotham City. She was the only stranger to comfort young Bruce Wayne as he grieved at the crime scene. Inspired, she would spend the rest of her life helping slum kids avoid a life of crime.
Every year on the anniversary of the murders of Thomas and Martha Wayne, Batman would visit the now elderly woman in Park Row (now referred to as Crime Alley). However, Leslie had no idea he was the boy she had helped decades before.
In later years, Leslie is portrayed as having been a close friend of Thomas Wayne. She took it upon herself to look after Wayne's son, Bruce, after the boy's parents were murdered, often acting with the family butler, Alfred Pennyworth, as a parental figure and guardian. in Batman Special #1 (1984), after costumed cop-killer Wrath dies in combat with Batman, Leslie comforted Wrath's grieving girlfriend much as she had young Bruce.
Leslie disapproves of Bruce's vigilantism, and feels partly responsible for his transformation into Batman, fearing that somehow she failed him as a role model. She also has been linked to Alfred romantically on more than one occasion.[1]
She runs a clinic for criminals and drug addicts in Gotham City. While the majority of her patients are repeat offenders, she continues to do her job with great perseverance and determination. During the No Man's Land storyline, she runs Gotham's only medical clinic, operating under a strict 'No Violence' policy regardless of her patients's actions and intent. Even Killer Croc respects the rule and stays out, despite his strong desire for revenge against Victor Zsasz.[2]
Spoiler suffers serious injuries at the hands of Black Mask during the War Games crossover, and is taken to Leslie's clinic for treatment. Initially thinking Spoiler died of her injuries, Batman later discovers, during the War Crimes storyline, that Leslie deliberately treated her improperly, resulting in her death while hoping that it would teach Batman the lesson that his constant use of children as partners was only putting their lives in danger.
After liquidating her assets and giving them to Spoiler's daughter, she flees to Africa. Batman follows her and forces a confession, coldly informing her that he may not stop violence, but he had never thrown another body onto the pile in the hopes of making a statement. He warns her that she was just another murderer in his eyes, and if she ever returned to the United States or practiced medicine again, he would bring her to justice.
A mysterious familiar figure has been stalking Tim Drake wearing Stephanie's Spoiler costume, which at one point Tim thinks he imagined it to be Stephanie herself[3]. The stalker indeed turns out to be Stephanie; Robin #174 reveals that Leslie faked the girl's death and switched the body with an overdose victim who had a similar body type.
A 2008 Robin/Spoiler one-shot special shows both Leslie and Stephanie alive and in exile, protecting a village somewhere in Africa.
After the events of Batman: Battle for the Cowl, Leslie Thompkins has once again set up shop in Gotham, attempting to start over and continue to help unfortunates. She has recently gained the Cavalier as her bodyguard and has, along with Barbara Gordon, begun helping a former associate of the Teen Titans, Wendy Harris, deal with the loss of the use of her legs.[4] Leslie meanwhile, has been welcomed back warmly by Alfred and Dick Grayson. Tim Drake, however, maintains a frosty attitude towards her due to her actions regarding Stephanie.
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