- "Fear lives in darkness."
- —Jonathan Crane to Jim Gordon[src]
Jonathan Crane, also known as the Scarecrow, is a deranged, criminally insane teenage psychopath and anarchist. He is the son of the late Gerald Crane and the late Karen Crane. As a child, his mother died in a house fire, causing his father to try curing fear until his inevitable death. Not long before this, his father injected his son with the serum he had; made; which had overloaded Jonathan's fear response causing his mind to create a boogeyman of what he feared the most; a scarecrow, driving him insane.
Crane would later be transferred to Gotham Asylum for his condition, until Merton and his gang bribed the warden into releasing him so they could make Jonathan recreate his father's serum and pose as a threat to Oswald Cobblepot. However, the gang locked him in a closet with a scarecrow much to his dismay and horror until he became one with his fear, wearing the scarecrow as a costume and abandoning his birth-given name in favor of The Scarecrow. After spraying a member of the gang with fear toxin, he would return to the old asylum seeking revenge on the warden and attempting to "free" his fellow inmates until Jim Gordon would arrive and discover that the serum's weakness is water.
Crane would eventually be captured again and sent to Arkham Asylum. However, he would soon escape with his new allies Jerome Valeska and Jervis Tetch. This alliance later evolved into the Legion of Horribles, reinforced with Oswald Cobblepot, Mr. Freeze, Firefly and Solomon Grundy, which operated with the goal to drive Gotham City into madness according to a plan by Jerome, while the other members were promised to rule the city after its downfall. On Jerome's request, Crane therefore developed the dangerous Laughing Toxin. The Legion was ultimately dissolved after their leader Jerome Valeska died once again, whereupon Scarecrow allied with Jerome's brother Jeremiah Valeska, assisting him in driving Bruce Wayne mad, while Crane also fought Selina Kyle in order to prevent her from ruining Jeremiah's plan.
During the No Man's Land event, Crane had claimed his own territory and established a gang.
Biography[]
Early life[]
Jonathan lived with both parents in a house outside of Gotham. Though most of the exact details of his childhood (along with the exact relationships he had with both of his parents) are unknown, it is known that his mother died in a fire when he was eight years old.[1]
Assisting his father[]
During his first appearance, a teenage Jonathan helped his father murder people by killing them with their worst fears, although he did so with some reluctance and second thoughts over his father's actions. While Gerald was in the process of drowning a bound and gagged Scottie Mullen at a swimming pool (due to drowning being her worst fear) he ordered his son to return to the van and feed the parking meter. But Gerald's plan to kill Scottie failed as detectives Jim Gordon and Harvey Bullock arrived on the scene and save her, though Gerald managed to escape in the van with Jonathan.
Using the adrenal glands taken from his victims, Gerald created a serum which he believed would remove all fear. He uses it on himself in order to face up to the death of his wife, having felt extreme guilt over allowing her to die due to his fear. When the process works, Gerald planned to use it on Jonathan to eliminate his fear. The terrified young man flees their home and showing reluctance at his father's beliefs, says he isn't afraid, though Gerald manages to convince Jonathan to return home by saying that he's trying to help mankind. Later that evening, Gordon and Bullock track them down. Once they hear knocking at the door, Gerald grabs the serum and takes Jonathan out to a field, where he withdraws a large amount of the serum (which Jonathan tries, but fails, to tell him is 'too much') with a syringe and injects it into Jonathan's arm; as he looks up at a Scarecrow, the serum immediately kicks in, and he starts screaming in terror. At the scene Gerald ends up being killed when (due to not having fear) he opens fire on the two detectives, which leads to him being
shot dead. Jonathan is then taken to hospital, where the doctor reveals to Gordon that he received a massive injection of condensed hormones (cortizal, and adrenaline, specifically), along with the Fear Toxin (which they were constantly trying to identify), the combination of which nearly killed him, and that they ran a catscan to determine if he had suffered any brain damage, but the results were like nothing they had ever seen before: the hormones themselves had long since worn off, but the effects seemed to be lingering and that Jonathan's brain activity showed that he was not just scared, but was constantly in a state of intense terror. When Gordon asks whether or not he will make a full recovery, the doctor says they can't be certain if he will, and that he'll be forced to see his worst fear every moment of his life. As the doctor leaves, Gordon sadly watches a terrified Jonathan, who is strapped to a bed and under a great deal of stress as he hallucinates a monstrous scarecrow sneaking around his bed, and eventually 'attacking' him.[2]
Sent to Gotham Asylum[]
At an unspecified point in time afterwards, Jonathan Crane was sent to Gotham Asylum. During his three-year stay at the asylum, Jonathan was treated horribly: he received no treatment or therapy, just ice baths and electric shocks 'once in a while'. Three years later, Warden Reed was paid to release Jonathan from the asylum, and hand him over to Grady Harris and his cousin, Merton, whom wanted Crane's formula to use as part of their plan to send a message to Penguin, who wanted all criminals in Gotham to own a license so he would get part of their earnings.[3]
Becoming the Scarecrow[]
A confused and still unstable Jonathan took the gang back to his family home, where he uncovered his father's notes from the floorboards of the porch, and was ordered to make a new batch of the formula. He initially tried to refuse saying that he only knew "some, but not everything" about his father's experiments, but the gang refused to hear it and made him comply by forcing him to be in the presence of a large scarecrow, causing him to go into a panic. Jonathan managed to replicate the formula, which the gang used to attack a bank. Later in the evening, just as Jonathan was finishing up a third batch that they would use to lead their planned attack on Penguin's new club, the Iceberg Lounge, he politely asked them to get rid of the scarecrow, but instead, they locked him in a closet with it. While begging to be let out, he heard a 'voice' call out to him (which he believed came from the scarecrow) and, his mind having finally snapped, Jonathan tore apart the scarecrow and began wearing it as a suit, giving him the form of a terrifying living scarecrow.[3]
When Grady returns after the attempt to rob the Iceberg Lounge failed, he initially begins barking orders at Crane to make another batch of Fear Toxin in order to bust Merton out of jail, but when he opens the door to the closet Jonathan is in, he is confused to see Jonathan standing in the corner and calls out to him. Under his new persona, Jonathan informs Grady that "Jonathan Crane [was no longer present]", before turning around and spraying Grady in the face with the Fear Toxin while identifying himself as 'The Scarecrow'.[3]
Tying up Grady, Jonathan dresses him as a scarecrow and leaves him outside for reasons unknown. He then invades Gotham Asylum and sprays Reed with his Fear Toxin, in vengeance for his hostile actions towards him. He then sprays the Asylum inmates with his fear toxin, and turns them loose, in order to convert them into his army. When Gordon arrives, he recognizes him as the one that killed his father and (after the inmates fail to kill Gordon), he confronts him and sprays him with Fear Toxin in an attempt to make Gordon kill himself to avenge his father's death, but this fails when Gordon overcomes the effects of the Fear Toxin. After Gordon activates the sprinklers which removes the fear gas in the area, Scarecrow gets away.[4]
Alliance with Valeska and Tetch[]
- "Shall we, Mr. Tetch?"
"Let us be in pains, Mr. Crane." - —Scarecrow and Mad Hatter escape
At some point later, Scarecrow was recaptured and imprisoned at Arkham Asylum. Whilst locked up in Arkham, Jonathan managed to perfect an explosive liquid in his cell toilet. He formed an alliance with fellow prisoners Jerome Valeska and Jervis Tetch, and the three of them calculated a plan to break out of the asylum, which they managed by Tetch hypnotizing the guards and Jonathan destroying the lock of Valeska's cell with his new concoction. In doing so, they released over 50 inmates in the process.
Whilst Mad Hatter kept the police distracted by hypnotizing various citizens of Gotham, Jerome tracked down his uncle Zachary Trumble for information. Crane gathered the materials he needed to brew his fear toxin and created a new Scarecrow costume. Jerome also got a new suit while Jonathan took a coat and a top hat for Mad Hatter. Tetch was eventually captured by the GCPD and his mouth covered with a mask that prevented him from putting others under his spell. At night, a prison van was meant to transport Jervis, the driver equipped with ear defenders. However, Scarecrow and Jerome attacked the prison transporter to the delight of Jervis. When the driver left the van, Crane sprayed him with the fear toxin, causing the man to scream and run away. Jerome and Jonathan then opened the doors, Valeska asking Jervis how he likes the new threads, whereon Hatter began to nod strongly. While Scarecrow showed Jervis a new coat and top hat he got for him, Valeska said "Oh, speechless, I know" before removing the mask that covered Mad Hatter's mouth.
Crane then began unlocking the handcuffs whilst saying "You look a fright, Mr. Tetch", whereon Jervis responded "Somewhat lame, my dear Mr. Crane. But I do confess pure joy in besting Jimmy boy with our ploy.". While Tetch began to laugh, Jerome told him that he did a great job keeping Gordon occupied, meanwhile, Crane got his fear gas and Jerome got his information, so everything is going according to his plan. Valeska then said "But, no time to palaver, gentlemen. We have fish to fry. And by fish, I mean faces, or feet. Ah, something fun to fry.". While Jervis took a look at his new top hat and put it on, Jerome jumped out of the van and said "buckle up" before closing the doors in front of Crane and Tetch. Valeska then bounced around the transporter, yelling "All aboard!" while knocking on the van. Jerome then put himself behind the wheel and said "Oh, I'm coming.", before he began to laugh madly, whereon the stolen prison van vanished into the night.[5]
The Legion of Horribles[]
Mandatory Brunch Meeting[]
- "Crane, where are we at with the "you know what"?"
"It's coming along, dreadfully."
"Oh, pun worthy. Excellent." - —Jerome Valeska and Jonathan Crane during the villain brunch[src]
Valeska now planned to recruit more of Gotham City's most dangerous villains for his terrorist organization, assembling Victor Fries and Bridgit Pike as well as fellow escaped Arkham inmates Jervis Tetch, Scarecrow and Oswald Cobblepot in one great Legion of Horribles. Jerome then took the whole Legion to the Falcone Mansion, much to Penguin's dislike, who took control of the manor after Sofia Falcone's downfall. Valeska had his followers from the asylum serve food and drinks to the guests, as he himself officially welcomed all of them to their first ever mandatory brunch meeting. He then gave an answer to the question everyone waited for, the reason for the gathering of this Legion of Horribles, as he calls the group. Noticing that this name has a nice ring to it, he orders one of his servants to write it down. Jerome begins explaining that he came up with a plan to turn the city into a madhouse back when he was in Arkham and that he is now at the cusp of making that happen, however he still needs help from all of them.
Thereupon, Mr. Freeze raised his arm, but Valeska commanded him to put all questions on ice until the end, before Jerome turned to Oswald, thanking him for doing his part in hosting them today. Cobblepot then responded that he would do anything for an old friend in a sarcastic tone, leading to Jerome asking Crane for the progress concerning Scarecrow's secret work. Next, Valeska calls Freeze an "ice man" and gives him the task of finding a big laboratory, since Victor is a man of science. He now turned back to the whole group and explained that all they need is Tetch to return with some very important information, but then started shouting at Carl, one of the servants from Arkham, ordering him to use the tongs to lay down the food. However, Firefly next accused him of still being silent about how he plans to take over the underworld, but Jerome stated that this is not his goal, instead he sees himself as an artist who just wants to paint the town crazy. Once that happens he could care less how the other members of the Legion of Horribles rip the city apart. Even though Bridgit seemed very euphoric for this proposal, Valeska explained that it is too early and nothing can happen until they have their one last essential ingredient, the one thing that will tie it all together. Right then, Jervis Tetch entered the Falcone Mansion and came into the dining room, leading to Jerome asking Jervis to sit down and join their conversation by pointing at the empty chair next to him, much to Penguin's curiosity.
Jerome's plan was to find his brother Jeremiah Valeska and get revenge on him. After Jerome and Firefly raided Wayne Enterprises for information, Valeska was knocked out and captured by Jeremiah's proxy Ecco. However, Mad Hatter and Scarecrow followed Ecco when she transported Jerome to the maze bunker. When Jonathan and Tetch tracked down the lair in the Gotham Woods, Hatter managed to hypnotize Ecco, whereon she allowed the two villains to enter Jeremiah's maze and revealed the path through Jeremiah's hiding place. While Scarecrow freed Jerome from the prison cell, Ecco and Mad Hatter proceeded to approach Jeremiah's office room, not unnoticed by all the video camera installed at the maze bunker. Mad Hatter then ordered Ecco to find Jeremiah and take him to Jerome, whilst fighting everyone who stands in her way. However, Bullock and Gordon managed to defeat Ecco, while Jeremiah ran away and tried to escape on his own. When Jeremiah reached the end of the maze, he suddenly heard Jerome's voice saying "Hello, brother". Jeremiah turned around in fear to escape in the other direction, however he then stood in front of Mad Hatter and Scarecrow who had followed him, whereon he turned around once again only to be confronted by Jerome who was hiding behind a corner and now held him at gunpoint.
Gloating, Jerome said "So, how ya been? Oh, you look great! To think I used to be the handsome one, right?". While Jerome laughed, Jeremiah asked him how he found his way through the maze. Jerome responded "Oh, bro, we might not look the same anymore, but we still think the same.", whereon he poked his brother's forehead and added "Plus, you used to draw those stupid things all the time as a kid. I paid attention.". Jerome then commanded "Hat Head" to take Crane and find "Jimbo and his bearded sidekick" in order to kill them. Scarecrow and Jervis eventually ran into Gordon and Bullock who were searching for Jeremiah. When they met up, Hatter attempted to hypnotize them and told them to listen to what he has to say, but Bullock drowned him out and loudly yelled "Oh, hell no! You are not hypnotizing me again!", before he started to shout and began to ran after the two villains, causing them to flee. Jim ironically noted "That's one way to do it." before he followed them. Bullock chased Crane and Tetch through the maze, shooting at them several times during the process. Horrifed, Mad Hatter shouted "must go, must go" repeatedly while running through the corridors.
Jonathan and Jervis eventually fled back to the exit and found themselves in the same place where Jerome was still talking to his brother. While he and Crane ran past the Valeska brothers, Hatter yelled "Must go! Must go! They're after me and the Scarecrow". Jerome said "These guys just don't give up, huh?" while Jonathan and Tetch made it to the exit and left Jeremiah's maze. When Jerome heard Bullock yelling, he immediately held Jeremiah in headlock and pointed his gun at him. When Jerome threatened "Get any closer and I splatter him. I splatter bro-ski.", Gordon peeked around the corner and said "No, you won't. If you wanted him dead, you would have killed him already". Jerome then laughed for a short moment before noting "He's right. I'll see you soon". Jerome then pushed his scared brother to the side and started shooting at the two GCPD officers in a comedic way. He then ran out of the maze bunker, laughing maniacally in the process. Bullock and Gordon followed him outside but all the three villains were already gone, they had managed to escape into the nightly Gotham Forest.[6]
Later this night, Jerome, Scarecrow and Mad Hatter returned to Penguin's mansion, Valeska very frustrated that his brother had escaped him. Jerome ordered Mr. Freeze and Hatter to find a test subject for Scarecrow's experiments, while Valeska, Firefly and Crane stayed at the house. Penguin then returned to the Falcone Mansion after fullfilling his individual task, he had managed to recruit Solomon Grundy for the villain alliance, much to Jerome's delight. Scarecrow went into the room and revealed that the test subject had arrived. Tetch and Mr. Freeze entered the room with a frightened civilian they held hostage, Jervis explaining that they captured an unwilling businessman in order to test Valeska's plan. Jerome then grabbed the man by the collar and dragged him to Scarecrow. When the businessman begged them for not hurting him, Crane explained that this won't hurt a bit before spraying a strange violet gas into the man's face that first causes him to cough. However, shortly thereafter the man began to laugh softly, leading to louder laughter, while the man's face started to stretch to an unnatural extended smile and his skin turned pale white. Excited by the man's horrible transformation, Jerome started laughing along with him, stating that they are gonna need a lot more of this gas. Disgusted and shocked by this sight, most other members turned away from the two laughing men, except for Victor Fries, who apparently enjoyed it. The laughing toxin eventually showed it's full impact as the man's laughter turned into a piercing scream, leading to blood coming out of his eyes, killing him as a consequence.[7]
Abducting the mayor[]
Jerome Valeska's next plan was to abduct Interim Mayor Holden Pritchard, Commissioner Reynolds, Archbishop McGregor, Gertrude Haverstock, and Gloria Bainbridge. At night, the Legion of Horribles went to the Gotham City Hall where Mr. Freeze and Mad Hatter captured the mayor and the other members of Gotham's high society present. They took them to a van standing outside on the street, in which the other villains were waiting. Pritchard was still trying to convince Victor and Tetch to let them go, promising that he will double whatever they expect as ransom. Right then, the mayor saw Jerome Valeska standing in the van, who was scratched his nose unimpressed by these events and then smiled at the horrified mayor while Jervis handcuffed Holden to a metal rod. Upon noticing Valeska, Pritchard revealed that he has access to the police pension fund. Seemingly pensive, Jerome turned around and said "Wow, that could be a lot of money. Tempting, but, uh no, thanks.". Thereon, the mayor turned to Firefly who was standing next to Penguin a few steps away from Valeska. Pritchard said "Bridgit, isn't it? I can get you safe passage from the city, money, a new home...", but Firefly smiled and responded that it was people like him that locked her up in Indian Hill, and thanks to that, there is no Bridgit anymore. Pritchard immediately turned to Tetch and called him "son", promising that he can get him a pardon and that all will be forgiven, he just needs to stop this "lunatic". However, Hatter said that "lunatic" is a little harsh, he prefers "visionary".
The mayor then turned to Penguin, who was standing in the corner obviously not very happy about Jerome's plan. Pritchard asked Oswald if he can't do something, but Cobblepot put on a forced smile and said "Afraid not. I am with Mr. Valeska 100%.". As none of the villains were open for negotiations, Pritchard yelled that every cop in Gotham City will be looking for them, and when they find them, they should expect no mercy, just a hail of bullets. Jerome then started adjusting the mayor's tie and said "So serious. That's why your approval ratings are so low. Hey, tell you what. Try threatening me again, but this time, try it with a smile." When the mayor didn't start smiling, Valeska hugged Oswald with one arm and said "Aw, see, this is what's wrong. Nobody knows how to have fun anymore, right?", whereon Cobblepot nodded in agreement. However, Jerome then pointed at Scarecrow and said "But see our friend down there? Bag head? He's figured out a way to solve that.". Thereon, Crane came close to Gloria Bainbridge and used his laughing gas dispenser to spray the woman with the insanity toxin. While the gas showed his hideous effects by turning Bainbridge into a madly laughing clown, Jerome talked to the horrified members of Gotham's high society, telling them that it's time to give this city the boost it needs, time to stop taking ourselves so seriously. He then asked what Gotham has to lose, before looking at Gloria who was still laughing from the horrible gas, whereon he added "except your sanity". While Jerome bursted out into maniacal laughter to the delight of the other villains, Penguin seemed to be the only one who was disgusted by Jerome and his plan.
Since his plan required more laughing gas to poison the whole city, Valeska had Scarecrow and Mr. Freeze break into Wayne Enterprises' chemical lab in order to make and obtain a large amount of the toxin. Crane and Victor caused a power failure that made the lights flicker, whereon Mr. Freeze let one of his icy grenades roll on the floor, right in front of two confused security guards. The ice grenade exploded, freezing the two men to the walls, whereon Fries and Jonathan walked around the corner and down the corridor. Scarecrow and Victor then casually went into the chemical lab, Fries saying "Gentlemen, ladies, your assistance is urgently required". Curious, Freeze touched some of the test tubes with his freeze gun, whereon one of the staff members told him that he should be careful since these are very dangerous materials. Victor responded that they're counting on it before laying his freeze gun down on the laboratory bench and starting to take a look at all the chemicals. Scarecrow then gave his insanity toxin formula to the chemist and told her they need to make more laughing gas. Some of Jerome's followers then brought empty canisters into the room. When the woman still hesitated, Crane grabbed her by the shoulder and said "There's no time to waste! We need it in bulk, you see". The frightened chemist then asked him how much they need, whereon Jonathan proceeded to drag her to the canisters that would be filled, revealing they need tons of it. As soon as all the containers were filled with the dangerous toxin, Mr. Freeze began freezing multiple chemists in ice while Scarecrow sprayed some of the lab staff with laughing venom. They then took the canisters with the toxin and left the chemical lab.
- "I thought you'd appreciate the beauty of it all. But Jerome was right. You know, he anticipated your betrayal?"
- —Jonathan Crane to Oswald Cobblepot[src]
After the raid on the lab, Scarecrow along with some of Jerome's followers met with Mad Hatter and Penguin. They went to an airship hangar where Jerome wanted them to steal a blimp in order to disperse the laughing gas on the attendees of the music festival Jerome and Firefly were holding hostage in Gotham. Two blimp pilots noticed the unwelcome guests, whereon one asked them what they are doing in this restricted area. Crane responded that their cargo is too precious to waste while Penguin took a look at the giant airship. Scarecrow said "Let me give you something I like to keep up my sleeves for times just like these" before using his fear gas dispenser to spray a brown acid into the other pilot's face, causing him to scream in pain and collapse onto the floor to his colleague's horror. Tetch then asked the remaining pilot if he can steer this contraption alone. When he agreed, Mad Hatter proceeded to hypnotize the man. Jervis ordered him to look into his eyes while he used his ticking pocket watch to support the hypnosis, causing the pilot's face to become expressionless in the process. Finally losing his edge, Penguin told the other villains that the kidnappings, the concert in the Square was all to draw the biggest crowds, so they can drop the laughing gas on the people. Oswald then tried to put a stop to Jerome's plan by telling Hatter and Crane that this is madness. Scarecrow said that he thought Cobblepot would appreciate the beauty of it all, but that Jerome was right. Crane then revealed that Valeska anticipated Oswald's betrayal and that he knew Penguin would go to Jim Gordon. Mad Hatter then looked at Penguin in disgust about him betraying the Legion. While Cobblepot was still horrified by this reveal, Jonathan proceeded to command a thug to knock out Oswald. Hatter then ordered another follower to tie him up and put him on the blimp, since Jerome wants him to have a bird's-eye view.[8]
Assisting Jeremiah Valeska[]
- "The experiment is nearing its conclusion. Your friend will soon be driven mad."
- —Jonathan Crane to Selina Kyle[src]
Weeks after Jerome's death, Scarecrow allied with Jeremiah Valeska to help drive Bruce Wayne insane. Jeremiah's followers abducted Alfred Pennyworth from Wayne Manor and filmed them torturing him. They played the footage to Bruce as he traveled through their maze. When Selina Kyle came in to help Bruce, she came across two cultists watching Bruce on a monitor. However, Scarecrow then appeared behind her and said that he was told by Valeska that Bruce might bring some friend to help him. Selina claimed that she doesn't know Bruce and just happened to enter this building, but Crane said that the experiment is about to get more interesting whereon he commanded Jeremiah's followers to attack Selina. After the two thugs got knocked out, Crane himself started attacking Selina with his scythe, but she is able to defend herself against him. Suddenly Jonathan let go of her and revealed that it doesn't matter anyway since Bruce will soon be driven mad. Scarecrow then left behind his scythe and slowly escaped the building.[9]
No Man's Land[]
- "No. Not hell. Hell is what's coming."
- —Scarecrow, killing the drug maker[src]
When Gotham City became a no man's land, all the villains started to claim territory. Scarecrow, who is now wearing a brown hat, took over a drug maker's lab and began to use his tools for his own experiments. Once the drug maker returned to his home, he immediately noticed that someone had invaded his laboratory. As he thought out loud asking 'what the hell', Crane suddenly appeared behind him. Scarecrow's response was 'no, not hell', before spraying the man with his fear gas, causing the drug maker to scream in dread. Right then, Scarecrow drew his scythe and used it to behead the man. Afterwards, Crane slowly lifted the severed head, before announcing that hell is what's coming.[10]
Crane began to lead his own gang during Gotham's isolation from the mainland. Crane and his gang led an attack on the GCPD storage in order to steal the food supplies, with other members of the gang attacking the hospital and stealing medical equipment. Crane knocked out the power at the GCPD and ended up coming face to face with Gordon. Armoured with his scythe, Crane began to fight Gordon, however ended up hitting a pipe which caused steam to hit Crane, forcing him to retreat.[11]
After Eduardo Dorrance and his Delta Force infiltrated Gotham, Gordon spoke about Crane to him when they were working on taking back the territories from the criminals.[12]
Legacy[]
Following being shot and put in a coma, Gordon had a nightmare about standing on trial. At his imaginary wake, he hallucinates several people in attendance, with Crane (dressed as the Scarecrow) being one of them.[13]
Powers and Abilities[]
Powers[]
- Illusion casting: Using his Fear Toxin dispenser, he is capable of casting illusions which can make people hallucinate their deepest and darkest fears in twisted demonic forms.
Abilities[]
- Chemistry: Despite claiming to have only helped his father's experiments "sometimes," and not knowing everything about them, he is a masterful chemist, having used his father's notes to recreate the Fear Toxin, even while he was under the stress of being in the presence of a scarecrow (his greatest fear). While in Arkham, he managed to create an explosive substance that helped free Valeska from his cell. Following his escaped, he helped Valeska, create a gas that causes people to laugh uncontrollably upon exposure.
- Psychology: He is able to make people embrace their fears after exposing them to his Fear Toxin. Only those with the strongest of wills, such as Jim Gordon, can overcome the effects of the toxin.
- Intimidation: While people are under the influence of his Fear Toxin, he can easily incite fear into them and make himself appear more terrifying while wearing his Scarecrow suit.
- Expert Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Crane is highly trained in combat. He was able to fight evenly with Jim Gordon and briefly hold the upper hand in his fight with Selina Kyle.
- Leadership: Crane has been shown to be capable at leading a gang of criminals; having them commit successful robberies in two separate locations at the same time.
- Stealth/Infiltration: Crane was able to sneak into Gotham Asylum while wearing his Scarecrow suit without noticing him. He has also been able to sneak up behind his victims before spraying them with his fear gas.
Weaknesses[]
Former Weaknesses[]
- Formidophobia: At some point in childhood, Jonathan developed a fear of scarecrows. After being injected with the Fear Toxin, he would hallucinate seeing a living demonic scarecrow coming towards him. Later on, the effects of the toxin would only be triggered if he saw an actual scarecrow. It wasn't until he was locked in a room with a scarecrow that he decided to embrace and in turn, become his greatest fear.
Equipment[]
- Scarecrow Suit: After being locked in a closet with a scarecrow, Jonathan's sensitive fear-filled mind snapped, and thus, he tore apart the scarecrow (and apparently modified it, as it featured an air hose across the mouth, and eye holes for Jonathan to see through) and began wearing it as a costume. After escaping Arkham, Crane made a new suit that looks similar to his original one except the mask also includes a hood attached to it and the mouth area of the mask does not have tubes on both sides and stitches that form a frown. When Gotham City became a no man's land, Crane added a brown hat to his suit.
- Fear Toxin Dispenser: On the right arm of his Scarecrow suits, Jonathan wears a device that is capable of spraying Fear Toxin onto his victims.
- Scythe: Crane wielded a scythe during his attack on Arkham Asylum. He later used the weapon against Selina Kyle, as well as a drug maker whom he beheaded with it.
- Knife: Crane drew a knife during his confrontation with Gordon and threw it at him to escape.
Appearances[]
Appearance List for Jonathan Crane |
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Season 1[]Season 4[]
Season 5[]
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Trivia[]
- Unlike every other depiction of Scarecrow, whom are methodical and calculating (to the point that even skilled psychiatrists diagnose them as very sane), this incarnation displays traits often associated with clinical insanity, such as being very calm and collected one moment and very angry the next moment.
- Also, unlike other incarnations of Scarecrow, this one is much younger, and is not either a college professor or Arkham doctor, but instead a teenager. This makes Scarecrow unique amongst Gotham’s villains, as he is the only teenage gang leader while all the other criminals are grownups.
- It is unknown when and how Jonathan Crane ended up in Arkham Asylum in "A Dark Knight: One of My Three Soups" since he was able to escape the GCPD at the end of "A Dark Knight: The Fear Reaper".
- He tends to work fear-related puns into his speech. For example, he says "fear" instead of "think" or "believe"; he says "scarcely" instead of "barely" or "hardly". He also says "dreadfully" instead of "well" or "Good."
- He is the creator of Laughing Gas in this universe, albeit prototype version.
- He is seen wearing his classic hat from the comics in A Dark Knight: No Man's Land.
- Similar to Batman, Jonathan Crane lost both his parents (with one of them being gunned down before him). Like Batman he embraced his fear and used it to strike terror in his enemies (with Crane being Scarecrows whereas with Bruce Wayne it is bats), however unlike Batman, Crane chose to lead a criminal career and cause chaos.
Notes[]
- Jonathan Crane, otherwise known as the fear-based supervillain "Scarecrow", was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger and he was introduced in World's Finest Comics #3 (Fall 1941). Although he initially made only two appearances, the character was revived during the Silver Age of Comic Books by writer Gardner Fox and artist Sheldon Moldoff.
- This is the second live-action version of the Scarecrow, with the first being in the 2005 live-action movie Batman Begins (and its two sequels The Dark Knight in 2008 and The Dark Knight Rises in 2012) played by Cillian Murphy.
- Jonathan having a device on his arm capable of dispensing Fear Toxin is likely a nod to the Arkham Asylum and Arkham Knight video games, in which the "Arkhamverse" incarnation of Scarecrow (voiced by Dino Andrade in Asylum and John Noble in Knight) used a glove to inject Fear Toxin directly into his victims' bloodstream, and the "Nolanverse" incarnation (portrayed by Irish actor Cillian Murphy), which also used a wrist-mounted device to expose his victims to the Fear Toxin.
- As a further nod to the "Arkhamverse", his second Scarecrow suit strongly resembles his incarnation from Arkham Knight and his Fear Toxin dispenser features numerous tubes and needle-like fingertips like the one used by his Arkham Asylum incarnation (but unlike those two incarnations, this incarnation wields two dispensers, one on each arm, rather than one).
- Jonathan is similar to Ed Nygma and Bridgit Pike, in the fact they only fell into their villainous personas after taking so much abuse from their tormentors.
References[]
External links[]