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Arthur Reeves was a city councilor in Gotham City. Previously working for Carl Beamont, he was secretly worked for Salvatore Valestra's mob. Reeves would later be responsible for the creation of the Phantasm after betraying his former employer to the mob.

Biography[]

Before Batman began his war on crime in Gotham, Arthur Reeves was an intern for Carl Beaumont. He secretly held feelings towards his employer's daughter Andrea. After they fled the country to escape Sal Valestra and his mob, Reeves fell into contact with the gang.

Secretly, Arthur kept tabs on the Beaumonts and retained contact with them. Around the time he was running as councilor, he contacted Carl to ask him for funding. When Beaumont refused, Reeves betrayed their location to Valestra, leading to his assassination. In return, the mob financed his campaign and Reeves was elected into the Gotham City Council.

The Phantasm Attacks[]

When Batman was spotted at the death of Chuckie Sol, Reeves held a press conference in an attempt to rally support to go after Batman, pinning blame on the murder on the vigilante. When Commissioner James Gordon refused to lead the hunt for the Dark Knight, he tasked Detective Bullock with leading the hunt. During this time, Reeves reestablished contact with Andrea and began to court her. Reeves was also present on several attempts to capture Batman.

After a failed pursuit of the vigilante, Reeves was contacted by the Joker, a former member of Valestra's mob who suspected a connection. Joker revealed that Batman wasn't the murder and tried to interrogate Arthur to discover any suspects. Receiving a call from Andrea, Reeves unintentionally revealed she was back in Gotham to the Joker. Having acquired enough proof of his suspicions, the Clown Prince of Crime attacked Reeves and doused him with his Joker Venom.

Reeves was taken to Gotham City Mental Hospital to receive treatment, during which he was adviced to remain calm to slow the toxin coursing through his veins. As he recovered, Batman confronted him and interrogated him on his role with Valestra's mob. Stressed by the vigilante's presence, Reeves revealed his betrayal of the Beaumonts to Valestra. As the toxin began to retain effect, Batman left whilst staff returned to treat him.

Vendetta and Death[]

A sequel in 1996's Batman & Robin Adventures Annual #1 (written by Paul Dini) found Arthur Reeves completely unhinged by the experience: his facial muscles were contorted into a permanent smile and his skin was yellow. He took Andrea Beaumont's Phantasm persona for his own and attempted to kill her, no longer having any love for her. Not only did Reeves find out that Andrea was the Phantasm, he also found out that Batman was Bruce Wayne, the two people that he had betrayed years ago. He blames them both (along with the Joker) for his condition and his ruined career following his criminal ties being exposed. Andrea then manipulated Reeves into leaping from a skyscraper balcony to his death before she left Gotham.

Personality[]

Arthur Reeves was a handsome yet selfish arrogant young man who was a corrupt city official who acted as a puppet to the Mob. Although he was nasty if his life or his career was threatened, Reeves became quite nervous and anxious as shown when the Joker brutally assaulted him and Reeves started to pant, sweat, and knew that what Joker had in store for him wasn't good. Reeves would do anything to save his own skin and did not care who got hurt in his place, which was evident by the fact that he pleaded with Sal Valestra's Mob to help him if he sold Carl Beaumont out to them (Beaumont believed that the Mob "just want their money back"). Although he was seemingly in love with Andrea Beaumont, Reeves never told her that he let her father die (at the hands of the man who became the Joker) and knew that she might leave him or report him to GCPD. Reeves also seemed to be insecure about himself and acted overly confident or even cocky around others in order to get his way.

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