| Talia al Ghul | |
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Talia al Ghul. Art by Greg Land. |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Detective Comics #411 (May 1971) |
| Created by | Dennis O'Neil |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Talia al Ghul |
| Team affiliations | Secret Society of Super Villains LexCorp League of Assassins |
| Notable aliases | Talia Head |
| Abilities |
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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, a love interest of Batman, and the mother of his son Damian Wayne, the fifth Robin. 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 antiheroine. 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.
IGN's list of the Top 100 Comic Book Villains of All Time List ranked Talia as #42.[1]
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The graphic novel Batman: Birth of the Demon (1992) explains how her father met her mother, who was of mixed Chinese, European, and Arab descent. Talia's mother later dies of a drug overdose. This is a retcon of Batman: Son of the Demon (1987), which states that Talia's mother was named Melisande and was murdered by a former servant of Ra's named Qayin.
In her youth, Talia travels with Ra's around the world. He teaches her hand to hand combat as well as the use of most conventional weapons, from swords to guns. She helps him in the management of various organizations that he controls.
Talia first meets Batman in the story "Into the Den of the Death-Dealers!" in Detective Comics #411 (May 1971) by Dennis O'Neil. In the story, Batman rescues her from Dr. Darkk, apparently the leader of the League of Assassins. It is eventually revealed that the League is just one part of Ra's al Ghul's organization, The Demon, and that Darkk 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.
Talia next appears in "Daughter of the Demon" in Batman #232 (June 1971). In the story, 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 loves Batman and that the entire kidnapping is a setup designed by Ra's as a final test of Batman's suitability as an heir. Though Batman rejects Ra's offer, he nevertheless returns Talia's feelings.
In the years since Talia meets Batman, she is repeatedly torn between loyalty to her father and her love of Batman. However, she has proven an important 'ally' in her way; most prominently, she encourages Batman to return to Gotham City when it is declared a "No Man's Land" following an earthquake, and he has lost his fighting spirit and did not believe he could save Gotham.
In the graphic novel Son of the Demon, Ra's al Ghul successfully enlists Batman's aid in defeating a rogue assassin who had murdered his wife. During this story line, Batman marries Talia, which later results in her becoming pregnant. Batman is nearly killed protecting Talia from an attack by the assassin's agents. In the end, Talia concludes that she can never keep Batman, as he will be continuously forced to defend her. She fakes a miscarriage, and the marriage is dissolved.
In reality, Talia gives birth to the child. The child is left at an orphanage; he is adopted and given the name Ibn al Xu'ffasch which is Arabic for 'son of the bat'. The only clue to the child's heritage is a jewel-encrusted necklace Batman had given to Talia which Talia leaves 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 also 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.
During the "Death in the Family" storyline, Jason Todd, the second Robin, is murdered by the Joker in Ethiopia. Batman and Alfred Pennyworth bring Jason's body back to Gotham and bury him with the rest of the Wayne Family. However, six months later, Superboy Prime resurrects Jason with a reality-altering punch. Although Jason is returned to life, his body and mind are still broken from the Joker's attack. Some time later, he is discovered by the League of Assassins. Out of her love for Batman and the desire of making Batman love her again, Talia takes Jason to her father and Jason spends months in the care of the League of Assassins. Although his body recuperates, Jason's mind is shattered.
Seeing no other way to help him, Talia takes Jason down to the Lazarus Pit and throws his body in while her father regenerates himself. Jason is fully revived in body and mind. Immediately afterward, in order to spare Jason her father's wrath, she aids the boy's escape.
Livid at the fact that Batman failed to avenge his (Jason's) death by killing the Joker and that Batman had done nothing more than imprison him again, Jason pursues his own brand of justice. In order to stall him from killing Batman, Talia agrees to finance Jason and aid him in his training, so that he then become the second Red Hood.
After Bane enters the League of Assassins, Talia's father, Ra's al Ghul, considers Bane a potential heir to his empire and wants his daughter to marry him. However, Talia rejectes the international brute, and after Batman defeats Bane, Ra's agrees that Bane was unworthy of his "only" daughter.
Talia, disillusioned with her father and his plans, leaves him to run LexCorp for Lex Luthor when Luthor becomes President of the United States. Although she seemingly supports Luthor, she secretly works to undermine him, anonymously leaking news of his underhanded dealings to Superman. In Superman/Batman #6 (March 2004), when the time comes for Luthor's downfall, she sells all of LexCorp's assets to the Wayne Foundation, leaving Luthor penniless and his crimes exposed to all.
In Batman: Death and the Maidens, it is revealed that, during his travels in Russia in the 19th century, Ra's al Ghul met a woman by whom he had a daughter named Nyssa. Ra's abandons Nyssa at a crucial time: she is tortured, her entire family is killed in a concentration camp during the Holocaust, and she is rendered sterile when Nazi doctors pour acid into her uterus. Seeking vengeance, Nyssa plans to use her considerable wealth and resources to kill Ra's by befriending, kidnapping, and brainwashing Talia, turning her into a weapon to kill their father. To this end, she captures Talia and, using a Lazarus Pit, kills and resurrected her in rapid succession, leaving Talia virtually broken from the trauma of dying again and again in so short a time. Rendered apathetic by her time in the camp, unable to feel anything, Nyssa also plans to assassinate Superman with Kryptonite bullets she stole from the Batcave, hoping that, by uniting the world in one moment of tragedy, she would manage to rouse herself once more.
While Batman is successful in preventing the assassination of Superman, he is unable to stop Nyssa from killing Ra's. This, in turn, is actually part of a greater plan concocted by Ra's, who wants to ensure that his daughters would accept their destinies as his heirs and take up his genocidal campaign. Realizing and accepting this, Nyssa and Talia become the heads of The Demon, with Talia disavowing her love for Bruce Wayne as another result of her torture at Nyssa's hands (both sisters then consider Batman to be their enemy).
In Countdown to Infinite Crisis, it is revealed that Talia is one of the core members of the Secret Society of Super Villains (the others were Lex Luthor (secretly Alexander Luthor, Jr. in disguise), Black Adam, Doctor Psycho, Deathstroke, and Calculator). This is revealed to be part of one of half-sister Nyssa's plans to take over the planet and bring about world peace and equality. Nyssa explains why she and Talia are 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." |
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Nyssa fails to recruit Batgirl to her new League of Assassins, and the Society fails to achieve its goals.
After Nyssa's apparent death at the hands of Cassandra Cain (who usurps control of the League of Assassins), Talia becomes the new Demon's Head. However, the League of Assassins has apparently splintered and Cassandra Cain has gained only partial 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. Talia either does not abandon the child (called Damian) or retrieves him from his adoptive parents and allows him be raised in part by the League of Assassins. 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 attempts to deal with the spoiled, hot-tempered child anyway. Damian, effectively raised to be an assassin, kills a criminal and nearly kills Tim Drake, the current Robin. Shortly afterwards, father, mother, and son confront each other on a ship which is destroyed by a torpedo.
Talia and Damian survived the explosion and Talia continues to keep a close eye on Bruce. Meanwhile, Damian is injured severely and undergoes a transplant of all his major organs.
Talia is prompted to read the history of Ra's al Ghul to her son Damian by a mysterious figure from Ra's past: the White Ghost. Unbeknownst to her, the White Ghost plans to use Damian as a vessel for Ra's return. However, mother and son manage to escape before the plan is completed. After the escape, Batman confronts the White Ghost; he fights Batman, but accidentally ends up falling into a Lazarus Pit.[2]
During the Batman R.I.P. storyline, Talia and Damian become aware of the Black Glove's plot against Batman and begin devising a plan to help save him. They arrive at Wayne Manor just in time to save Commissioner James Gordon from being killed by assorted booby traps created by the Black Glove. She offers to join forces with Gordon to save Batman. She and Gordon arrive too late, however, and are informed by Robin that Batman went missing and may be dead following a battle with Doctor Hurt.
Furious that her love may be dead, she sends out her ninja bats to murder Jezebel Jet, who plays a major role in trying to kill Batman. Soon after it is revealed Batman did not die, but survives only to be captured by Darkseid during the Final Crisis and then apparently murdered by the New God.
Following Batman's apparent death, Talia apparently decides to leave Damian in the hands of his adopted brother Dick Grayson, who later takes on the role of Batman, and selects Damian to succeed Tim Drake as Robin.
In Final Crisis, she is placed on the new Society's inner circle by Libra. Despite Talia's interaction with the new Society she still behaves lovingly and almost devoted to Batman.
It is revealed in Gotham City Sirens #2 that Talia has trained Catwoman to resist even the most intense psychological coercion to reveal Bruce Wayne's secret identity.
Following an operation in which Damian's spine is replaced, it is revealed that Talia inserts an implant into his spine that allows her or anyone she chooses, including Deathstroke, to control Damian's body remotely. She intends to use this device to force Damian to kill Dick Grayson, whom she perceives as holding her son back from his potential.[3] After Grayson frees Damian, Talia reveals to her son that she has begun cloning him after realizing that the Boy Wonder has completely sided with his father's circle during their confrontation. She is too much of a perfectionist to love her son after he has defied her in such a manner, and is no longer welcome in the House of al Ghul.[4]
She is later revealed to be the mastermind behind the Leviathan, a shadowy organization formed to oppose Bruce's "Batman Incorporated" project. She places a bounty of 500,000,000 dollars on Damian's head, and declares war on Batman.[5]
Talia is an Olympic-level athlete, having been trained since birth in many forms of martial arts. She is also quite proficient with most hand weapons. Often underestimated, Talia is also an excellent hand to hand fighter.
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