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| − | {{Infobox Character |
+ | {{Infobox Character |
| − | |image=[[ |
+ | |image=[[File:The Creeper-4.jpg|250px]] |
| − | |Character name= |
+ | |Character name=The Creeper |
| − | |real name=Jack Ryder |
+ | |real name=Jack Ryder |
| − | |Appearance=''Showcase'' #73 ( |
+ | |Appearance=[[Showcase Issue 73|''Showcase'' #73]] (April, 1968) |
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| − | |actor=n/a |
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| − | |Abilities=Superhuman Strength, Speed, Endurance, and Agility; Regeneration |
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|creator=[[Steve Ditko]] |
|creator=[[Steve Ditko]] |
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| + | |Abilities=[[Expert Combatant]] |
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| + | |actor=[[Jeff Bennett]] (Voice)<br>[[Brian Bloom]] (Voice) |
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| + | ==History== |
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| − | '''Jack Ryder''' is an investigative reporter turned controversial talk show host, well-known for his aggressive manner and determination to get to the truth. What his viewers don't realize is that he's also '''The Creeper''', a garishly-covered vigilante who Ryder can, with effort, turn into at will--although at that point, the Creeper's somewhat maniac personality takes over. The Creeper is usually on the side of good and just barely on the side of sanity. |
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| + | ===Origin=== |
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| + | Jack Ryder, '''The Creeper''', is an outspoken television newscaster and reporter for a Gotham City TV station. As Ryder, he is the anchorman of a show in which he deliberately antagonizes his guests in order to raise attention on hot topics, like stem cell research and medical nanotech. During his research on the revolutionary "nanocells" therapy of Doctor Vincent Yatz, he discovered an experimental mixture which enabled the body to regenerate to the point of completely replacing the skin of a badly scarred burn victim, not to mention the ability to heal practically any injury of any kind. Ryder was caught by mobsters when he attempted to steal Yatz's newly discovered technology. Unable to escape, Dr. Yatz injected his last sample of (still unstable) nanocells into Jack Ryder, as an attempt to keep it safe from the mobsters. Immediately afterwards, the mobsters shot Ryder in the head, seemingly killing him. However, the regenerative substance of the nanocells interacted with his body chemistry, thus resurrecting him as the Creeper. Ryder dispatched his opponents, and soon discovered that he was able to call forth his bestial alter-ego at will. When the Creeper began fighting crime in [[Gotham City]], his archnemesis was the supervillain [[Remington Cord|Proteus]], who met a violent demise during these encounters. Eventually, the Creeper would encounter [[Batman (Bruce Wayne)|Batman]] for his first superhero team-up. He met the rest of the [[Justice League of America]] when Batman asked them to help determine whether or not he was an outlaw. During the recruitment drive, the Creeper was deemed more suitable for Justice League reserve status, rather than as a regular team member, despite Batman's recommendation. |
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| − | == |
+ | ===Death=== |
| + | [[Eclipso]] tricked The Creeper into taking up one of the [[Heart of Darkness|Dark Crystals]], thus putting him under his control. The Creeper was later freed by [[Bruce Gordon]], along with all the other enslaved superheroes. The Creeper and Gordon teamed up again to try and defeat Eclipso when they made an initial foray into the South American territory that Eclipso had conquered. This led to an Eclipso-possessed peasant throwing The Creeper (and himself) off a cliff and plunging to their deaths. However, with the intervention of a stunt squad, their lives were saved. Several other heroes joined in the fight against Eclipso, including [[Major Victory]], the original [[Commander Steel|Steel]], [[Amanda Waller]] and [[Wildcat (Yolanda Montez)|Wildcat]]. They formed a team called the [[Shadow Fighters]]. Despite being caught and escaping once, the Creeper was eventually killed by Eclipso when the team re-invaded the country Eclipso was ruling. Several hyenas, possessed by Eclipso, tracked down the Creeper and tore him to shreds. Most of the infiltration team was slain; only small parts of the Creeper were actually recovered. The remains, along with the other dead heroes, were stolen out from under Eclipso's control by surviving Shadow Fighters. |
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| + | ===Resurrection=== |
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| − | [[File:27511.gif|thumb|left|Jack Ryder]]Jack Ryder was originally a television news reporter who was demoted due to his outspoken nature. Relegated to network security, he protected a scientist ([[Doctor Yatz]]) who gave him two devices. One enabled him to instantly heal from any wound and gave enhanced strength and agility, but at the cost of somewhat unbalanced personality. The other enabled him to instantly change into the costume of a green-haired, yellow-skinned, and red-furred wildman; the costume, "imprinted" on the device and thus capable of being summoned and dispelled at will, was originally adopted by Ryder while rescuing the scientist from kidnappers. |
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| + | ===Reign in Hell=== |
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| − | It was later revealed that the scientist surgically implanted the devices (or device, since some accounts claim that it is a single device that can both enhance physical ability and re-create any object whose "imprint" is stored in its circuitry) in order to save Ryder's life after he was attacked and drugged by the criminals he was investigating; because the scientist was unaware of the drugs in Ryder's system, he inadvertently recorded the "imprint" of the drugs at the same time he recorded the "imprint" of the costume. Thus the same device that re-creates Ryder's costume when he becomes the Creeper also re-creates the drugs in his system, explaining the Creeper's odd personality. |
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| + | When Neron told Lilith, the Mother of All Monsters, to call her children home, among those who responded, was The Creeper, who was physically Jack Ryder during one of his shows. He was shocked by this news. |
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| + | ===The Outsiders=== |
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| − | [[File:Creeper_001.jpg|thumb|178px|Beware the Creeper!]]Apparently, the drugs were so overwhelming that it was impossible to completely cleanse their effect from the Creeper's system, and the Creeper gradually descended into ever more intense irrationality, while Jack Ryder, instantly free of the drugs' influence the second he changed back to normal, suffered no such condition. |
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| + | After spending time alone traveling in [[Kahndaq]], the Creeper was approached by [[Alfred Pennyworth]]. Pennyworth was reforming the [[Outsiders]] after the death of [[Batman (Bruce Wayne)|Batman]] and invited The Creeper, and several other heroes, to be part of a team in order to keep the villain [[Hush]] from exploiting his resemblance to Bruce Wayne. The Creeper accepted the offer and disguised himself as a high-level employee of WayneCorp, as an excuse for him to accompany 'Wayne'. Jack quits the team following The Blackest Night, admitting that the only reason he joined the team in the first place was because he believed that they could help him find a way to remove The Creeper. |
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| + | [[File:Justice League Dark Vol 1 23.1 The Creeper Textless.jpg|thumb|274x274px|The Creeper in the DCnU]] |
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| + | ===FlashPoint=== |
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| − | Eventually, Ryder came to believe that he and the Creeper were two entirely different people instead of two character roles played by the same man; he also held this belief in his Creeper persona, which became increasingly disdainful of "Jack Ryder." The Creeper once regained his rationality while bound by Wonder Woman's magic lasso, but the implications of this have never been explored. |
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| + | During The Event of FlashPoint, Jack Ryder is in news broadcasting. He sends a message that Wonder Woman leads the Amazons in conquering the United Kingdom, renaming it New Themyscira during the war. |
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| + | ===DCnU=== |
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| − | The Creeper was tricked into taking up one of Eclipso's dark crystals, putting him under Eclipso's control. He was later freed by [[Bruce Gordon]] along with all the other enslaved superheroes. The Creeper and Gordon teamed up again to try and defeat Eclipso (The Creeper was chosen to join the Shadow Fighters team because of his dislike for Eclipso following his possession and also because he was mad enough to agree). Despite being caught and escaping once, the Creeper was eventually killed by Eclipso, when the team re-invaded the country Eclipso was ruling. The manner of his death was ironic as he was torn to shreds by laughing Eclipsed hyenas in the building in which the chemicals he was created by were manufactured. |
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| + | The Creeper is shown to have been one of the rejected potential candidates for the Justice League International; the reason for creeper not getting in is that the JLI feared he would scare the public. |
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| + | ==Powers and Abilities== |
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| + | ===Powers=== |
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| − | Jack Ryder recently took over the demoted [[Superman|Clark Kent]]'s beat. |
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| − | [[File:229746013_cac76efed4.jpg|left|thumb|Criminals fear the Creeper even more than Batman.]]He also shows up as a reporter for a [[Gotham City]] television station. Ryder is the anchorman of a show in which he deliberately antagonizes his guests to raise attentions on controversial topics, like stem cells theraphy and medical nanotech. While searching a scoop on the revolutionary "nanocells" therapy of Doctor Vincent Yatz, a mixture of nanotech and stem cell therapy able to enhance the body regenation at the point of giving a new skin to a badly scarred burn victim, he was an inadvertant witness to an attempt to steal Yatz's newly discovered tech. Unable to escape, Yatz injected into his body the last sample of nanocells, still unstable, in an attempt to keep it safe from the villains. This was a timely act for, when the robbers shot Ryder into his head, the regenerative substance interacted with his body chemistry resurrecting him as the Creeper. Ryder dispatched his opponents, discovering that now he's able to call forth his bestial alter-ego at will. |
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| − | *Determined Reporter |
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| − | *Known for his aggressive pursuit of stories |
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| − | *Famous for his controversial talk show |
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| − | *Secret identity as his alter ego, the Creeper. |
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| ⚫ | Apart from issue |
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| − | It was recently announced that a new 6-issue Creeper mini-series, written by [[Steve Niles]] and drawn by [[Justiniano]], will begin in August 2006. The series will reboot the Creeper's history, with Niles saying "I’m retelling the origin, but it is very close to the original so that The Creeper still fits into the DC Universe in the same way he has for years..." The preview in DCU: Brave New World showed Jack Ryder as the host of a controversial show "You are Wrong!", promising $1,000,000 to the person who catches the Creeper. |
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| − | ==Alternate versions== |
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| − | *The Creeper found a new guise in the early 20th century when the ''Beware The Creeper'' series (written by [[Jason Hall]] and illustrated by [[Cliff Chiang]]) was released under the Vertigo brand. Set in 1920s Paris, and featuring a female Creeper, it was somewhat different to its predecessor. |
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| − | *The Creeper also makes a nigh non-existent appearance in Batman: [[The Dark Knight Strikes Again]] wherein he has already been struck fatally when we see him. |
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| − | *In the DC One Million crossover the year is 85,271. On the planet IAI, a being known as "Insanitation" lands on the planet, drawn to a raw force known as "the Creeper". The trail leads to Jack Ryder, who was tired of being a super-hero. Jack and the Creeper became separate parts of each other, actual living beings. After the Creeper side got injured by Insanitation, Jack realized that whether he liked it or not, the Creeper was a part of him. Insanitation could live with this and had the two bodies separte back together, and the Creeper was reborn. |
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| − | In [[Amalgam Universe|Amalgam Comics]] the Creeper is combined with the X-Men character Nightcrawler as the Nightcreeper in JLX. Jack Ryder appears as a Daily Bugle reporter in Spider-Boy and it is hinted in the (fictional) lettercolumn there is a connection between them. Spider-Boy himself uses Professor Yatz' matter transformer to take on the identity of "Pete Ross". |
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| − | *The Bouncing Beatnik and Jack-in-the-Box in Kurt Busiek's Astro City series are partly based on the Creeper. |
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| − | *In ''[[Batman: The Animated Series]]'', the Creeper was created by the [[Joker]] when he got pushed into the same vat of acid that created the Joker, but as an addition, the Joker had hit Ryder with his laughing gas/Venom. The resulting interaction between the two substances had the effect of creating a benign psychosis in Ryder, who still maintained a sense of right and wrong. |
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| − | [[File:Arkmans_jackrydercreeper_aa1--article_image.jpg|thumb|right|500px|The guard's radio which plays a Jack Ryder broadcast in ''Batman: Arkham Asylum''.]] |
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| − | *Jack Ryder is mentioned as a television reporter in the video game ''[[Batman: Arkham Asylum]]'', and he can be heard giving a report on the situation on Arkham Island over a security guard's radio set in the Utility Corridor of the Intensive Treatment Center. Oddly, the radio also has "Jack Ryder" ''written'' on it, as though it were only capable of picking up Ryder's broadcasts. This radio is the solution to one of the [[The Riddler (Batman: Arkham Asylum)|Riddler]]'s puzzles; solving it unlocks a Jack Ryder character bio. Joker can also be heard calling out to him during the final boss fight. |
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| − | The following is a script for the first broadcast from the Jack Ryder show as he covers the situation on Arkham Island. This message can be heard playing over the guard's radio in the Utility Corridor: |
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| − | Newsman: "We apologize for this interruption to our regular broadcast. Jack Ryder is live from the Gotham Bay area with some breaking news." |
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| + | * '''Expert Acrobatic: '''Combining combat and acrobatic skills, this makes him very unpredictable (has similar acrobatic moves to Nightwing, Spider-man and Daredevil, whom are the greatest acrobatics in their respective universes). |
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| ⚫ | *Apart from issue 1st Issue '''Special #7''' (in 1975), and back-up series in '''Adventure Comics #445-447''' (in 1976), World's Finest #249-255 (in 1978-79) and '''The Flash #318-323''' (in 1983), all The Creeper's subsequent appearances have been guest roles. Over the years, The Creeper's personality underwent changes by different writers; at times his deranged behavior was depicted as only an act to frighten criminals, while at other times he seemed genuinely psychotic. DC gave The Creeper another chance in a solo entitled The Creeper, lasting 12 issues including the one millionth, Len Kaminski focused on the breakdown of Jack Ryder's sanity as influenced by The Creeper and making many references to the previous continuity. |
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| + | ===Several Origins=== |
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| − | Jack Ryder: "This is Jack Ryder with some breaking news in the Gotham Bay. We're getting reports of an armed siege on Arkham Island. Two minutes ago, the Joker broadcast to all news channels this chilling message:" |
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| + | *Originally, Jack Ryder became The Creeper when he was powered with a serum given to him by Doctor Vincent Yatz, a scientist being hunted by the mob. The serum gave him enhanced strength and agility, and a second mechanical device allowed him to phase his costume in and out from his surroundings, so he could become The Creeper almost at will. Ryder chose a cackling and maniacal facade to frighten criminals. |
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| + | *After the Crisis on Infinite Earths, The Creeper's origins were different. While Ryder had been on the trail of a local mob boss at a masquerade party, he was captured, beaten, and injected with hallucinogens. Shot and left for dead, he was rescued by Doctor Yatz who implanted him with a device to keep him alive. The device meant to keep Jack Ryder separate from The Creeper accidentally imprinted the drugs in his system, causing The Creeper's activity to be genuinely psychotic. His garish costumed disguise was also imprinted with him, as the Doctor had no time to remove it. In this form, Ryder eventually began to believe that he and The Creeper were two completely separate people. |
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| + | *After the Infinite Crisis, The Creeper appeared with a new origin once more. Ryder was accidentally injected with experimental nanocell technology, which additionally gave him regenerative capabilities. He found himself able to switch back and forth between being the Creeper at will. |
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| + | *It has been revealed that The Creeper is a demon of some sort. |
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| + | *Jack Ryder was born to the publisher of a successful Union Dispatch. His father's history would influence Jack's own future but so would his mother's. She was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia while Jack was still a child and died in an institution. |
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| + | *A Creeper action figure was introduced by DC Direct in 2009 as part of their The History of the DC Universe line. |
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| − | [[File:Ryder.jpeg|thumb|Jack Ryder's photo.]] |
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| + | ===Television=== |
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| − | The Joker: "Greetings, Gotham. This is the voice of your new master!" |
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| + | [[File:Creeper-0.JPG|thumb|226x226px|The Creeper in The New Batman Adventures]] |
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| + | *In ''[[The New Batman Adventures]]'', Jack Ryder has a recurring role as a news reporter. In a later episode, the Creeper is created by the Joker after being exposed to his Joker Venom and pushed into the same vat he had fallen into. The resulting interaction between the two substances creates a benign psychosis in Ryder, though he still maintains a sense of right and wrong. |
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| + | *Creeper later appears in the show ''Justice League Unlimited'' as a member of the expanded Justice League. |
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| + | *In ''[[Batman: The Brave and the Bold]]'', Jack Ryder's show is mentioned in an episode. In a later episode, the Creeper single handedly saves Batman and takes down Hellgramite while making many crazy comments. He then runs away when the police show up. |
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| + | ===Video Games=== |
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| + | ====''Batman: Arkham series''==== |
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| + | {{Main|Jack Ryder (Arkhamverse)}} |
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| + | ====''Batman: The Telltale Series''==== |
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| − | The Joker: "Oh, Hang on. Heh, Heh! I've skipped a bit." |
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| + | {{Main|Jack Ryder (Telltale)}} |
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| + | ==See also== |
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| − | (The Joker clears his throat.) |
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| + | *[[Creeper/Gallery]] |
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| − | The Joker: "Joker here. I'm in control of Arkham Island and you can all consider it out of bounds! If I see any lawmen, vigilantes, or do-gooders in tights coming this way, I'll start detonating random bombs around the city. What'll it be? A kindergarten? A hospital? A billionaire's mansion? oh, choices, choices, choices." |
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| − | Jack Ryder: "All access to the island has been restricted, air space is closed off, and early reports suggest that Batman himself is trapped on the island. We'll be live here, reporting on any developments. Back to the studio." |
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| − | Newsman: "Thanks, Jack. More as it happens." |
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| − | [[File:Jack_R_Bio.png|thumb|Jack Ryder as seen in ''Batman: Arkham City'']] |
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| − | *Jack Ryder appears in ''[[Batman: Arkham City]]'', having been incarcerated inside the revamped Arkham Asylum for trying to use his talent as an investigative reporter to look into Dr. [[Hugo Strange]], Arkham's mysterious new director and for his involvment with Bruce Wayne's protest of Arkham City, as well as for his reporting on Bruce Wayne's protest, to which he grew irritated at Bruce Wayne for getting him arrested as well. While in Arkham City he is a direct target of [[Deadshot]], who was contracted by Strange to kill him. |
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| − | *While listening to a recording of Vicki Vale speaking with Quincy Sharp in an interview, it is revealed that the Creeper and Huntress are characters in the Arkham-verse, and are vigilantes of Gotham. |
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| − | *He doesn't appear to like Vicki, claiming the reason he wanted to get out of Akrham was to make sure Vicki didn't steal his spot as top reporter. |
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| − | ==Quotes== |
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| − | ===Arkham City=== |
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| − | *''"Batman's back."'' |
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| − | *''"Thank god for that. Batman's back."'' |
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| − | *''"No way is that Vale bitch taking over my show. I'll show her who's the best reporter in Gotham."'' |
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| − | *''"I'm going to find out what the deal is with Strange. Then, I'm gonna tell the world."'' |
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| − | *''"I'm going to get out of here and show the world not to underestimate Jack Ryder!"'' |
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| − | *''"Thanks, Batman. You got time to say a few words? No? Figures."'' |
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| − | *''"I can't believe Strange sent someone to kill me."'' |
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| − | *''"That's it. I'm getting out of here and then I'm telling everyone what Strange did in here."'' |
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| + | ==Links== |
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| ⚫ | *The Creeper was featured in an episode of |
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| + | *http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Jack_Ryder_(New_Earth) |
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| + | *http://www.comicvine.com/creeper/29-5713/ |
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| − | [[Category: |
+ | [[Category:Allies]] |
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+ | [[Category:Former Outsiders Members]] |
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Revision as of 12:54, 6 April 2020
History
Origin
Jack Ryder, The Creeper, is an outspoken television newscaster and reporter for a Gotham City TV station. As Ryder, he is the anchorman of a show in which he deliberately antagonizes his guests in order to raise attention on hot topics, like stem cell research and medical nanotech. During his research on the revolutionary "nanocells" therapy of Doctor Vincent Yatz, he discovered an experimental mixture which enabled the body to regenerate to the point of completely replacing the skin of a badly scarred burn victim, not to mention the ability to heal practically any injury of any kind. Ryder was caught by mobsters when he attempted to steal Yatz's newly discovered technology. Unable to escape, Dr. Yatz injected his last sample of (still unstable) nanocells into Jack Ryder, as an attempt to keep it safe from the mobsters. Immediately afterwards, the mobsters shot Ryder in the head, seemingly killing him. However, the regenerative substance of the nanocells interacted with his body chemistry, thus resurrecting him as the Creeper. Ryder dispatched his opponents, and soon discovered that he was able to call forth his bestial alter-ego at will. When the Creeper began fighting crime in Gotham City, his archnemesis was the supervillain Proteus, who met a violent demise during these encounters. Eventually, the Creeper would encounter Batman for his first superhero team-up. He met the rest of the Justice League of America when Batman asked them to help determine whether or not he was an outlaw. During the recruitment drive, the Creeper was deemed more suitable for Justice League reserve status, rather than as a regular team member, despite Batman's recommendation.
Death
Eclipso tricked The Creeper into taking up one of the Dark Crystals, thus putting him under his control. The Creeper was later freed by Bruce Gordon, along with all the other enslaved superheroes. The Creeper and Gordon teamed up again to try and defeat Eclipso when they made an initial foray into the South American territory that Eclipso had conquered. This led to an Eclipso-possessed peasant throwing The Creeper (and himself) off a cliff and plunging to their deaths. However, with the intervention of a stunt squad, their lives were saved. Several other heroes joined in the fight against Eclipso, including Major Victory, the original Steel, Amanda Waller and Wildcat. They formed a team called the Shadow Fighters. Despite being caught and escaping once, the Creeper was eventually killed by Eclipso when the team re-invaded the country Eclipso was ruling. Several hyenas, possessed by Eclipso, tracked down the Creeper and tore him to shreds. Most of the infiltration team was slain; only small parts of the Creeper were actually recovered. The remains, along with the other dead heroes, were stolen out from under Eclipso's control by surviving Shadow Fighters.
Resurrection
With his remains recovered, there was enough left to regenerate him. It has been strongly suggested that the convoluted Dr. Yatz origin of the Creeper was an implanted memory (or otherwise false), and that his actual origin was somehow related to his longtime villain, Proteus.
Reign in Hell
When Neron told Lilith, the Mother of All Monsters, to call her children home, among those who responded, was The Creeper, who was physically Jack Ryder during one of his shows. He was shocked by this news.
The Outsiders
After spending time alone traveling in Kahndaq, the Creeper was approached by Alfred Pennyworth. Pennyworth was reforming the Outsiders after the death of Batman and invited The Creeper, and several other heroes, to be part of a team in order to keep the villain Hush from exploiting his resemblance to Bruce Wayne. The Creeper accepted the offer and disguised himself as a high-level employee of WayneCorp, as an excuse for him to accompany 'Wayne'. Jack quits the team following The Blackest Night, admitting that the only reason he joined the team in the first place was because he believed that they could help him find a way to remove The Creeper.
The Creeper in the DCnU
FlashPoint
During The Event of FlashPoint, Jack Ryder is in news broadcasting. He sends a message that Wonder Woman leads the Amazons in conquering the United Kingdom, renaming it New Themyscira during the war.
DCnU
The Creeper is shown to have been one of the rejected potential candidates for the Justice League International; the reason for creeper not getting in is that the JLI feared he would scare the public.
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Creeper Form: The Creeper's powers are physical in nature, as a result of Yatz's invention. Jack Ryder can transform into the Creeper virtually instantaneously, and vice versa.
- Superhuman Agility: The Creeper's amazing agility enables him to perform amazing feats of acrobatics and leaping. He also seems able to climb walls with little or no difficulty.
- Superhuman Stamina
- Superhuman Strength: His strength is enough to send grown men flying with a single punch and jump high enough to scale buildings.
- Enhanced Speed:
- Enhanced Reflexes:
- Superhuman Healing Factor: which enables him to heal from virtually any wound. Indeed, gunshots and stab wounds have healed in a matter of minutes. It even allowed him to return from death when his body regenerated after being torn apart by Eclipsed hyenas.
- Hypnotic Intimidation: apparent intimidation/hypnosis ability as one of the thugs seems to be mesmerized after an encounter with the Creeper.
- Pain Inducing Laugh: his laugh is depicted as being physically painful to the ears of his victims.
Abilities
- Expert Combatant: His martial arts skills combined with his superhuman abilities make Creeper a formidable fighter, incorporating brawling techniques with his physical prowess. A signature move is jumping onto the backs of his opponents and throwing them off balance.
- Expert Acrobatic: Combining combat and acrobatic skills, this makes him very unpredictable (has similar acrobatic moves to Nightwing, Spider-man and Daredevil, whom are the greatest acrobatics in their respective universes).
Notes
- Following his debut in Showcase, The Creeper was given his own series Beware The Creeper, written by Denny O'Neil (and plotted by Ditko for the first issue only), which lasted only six issues. (The storyline begun would be concluded in Super-Team Family #2 in 1975/76).
- Apart from issue 1st Issue Special #7 (in 1975), and back-up series in Adventure Comics #445-447 (in 1976), World's Finest #249-255 (in 1978-79) and The Flash #318-323 (in 1983), all The Creeper's subsequent appearances have been guest roles. Over the years, The Creeper's personality underwent changes by different writers; at times his deranged behavior was depicted as only an act to frighten criminals, while at other times he seemed genuinely psychotic. DC gave The Creeper another chance in a solo entitled The Creeper, lasting 12 issues including the one millionth, Len Kaminski focused on the breakdown of Jack Ryder's sanity as influenced by The Creeper and making many references to the previous continuity.
Several Origins
- Originally, Jack Ryder became The Creeper when he was powered with a serum given to him by Doctor Vincent Yatz, a scientist being hunted by the mob. The serum gave him enhanced strength and agility, and a second mechanical device allowed him to phase his costume in and out from his surroundings, so he could become The Creeper almost at will. Ryder chose a cackling and maniacal facade to frighten criminals.
- After the Crisis on Infinite Earths, The Creeper's origins were different. While Ryder had been on the trail of a local mob boss at a masquerade party, he was captured, beaten, and injected with hallucinogens. Shot and left for dead, he was rescued by Doctor Yatz who implanted him with a device to keep him alive. The device meant to keep Jack Ryder separate from The Creeper accidentally imprinted the drugs in his system, causing The Creeper's activity to be genuinely psychotic. His garish costumed disguise was also imprinted with him, as the Doctor had no time to remove it. In this form, Ryder eventually began to believe that he and The Creeper were two completely separate people.
- After the Infinite Crisis, The Creeper appeared with a new origin once more. Ryder was accidentally injected with experimental nanocell technology, which additionally gave him regenerative capabilities. He found himself able to switch back and forth between being the Creeper at will.
- It has been revealed that The Creeper is a demon of some sort.
Trivia
- Jack Ryder was born to the publisher of a successful Union Dispatch. His father's history would influence Jack's own future but so would his mother's. She was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia while Jack was still a child and died in an institution.
- A Creeper action figure was introduced by DC Direct in 2009 as part of their The History of the DC Universe line.
- The Creeper was featured in an episode of Batman: The Animated Series, Beware The Creeper, and also made numerous non-speaking appearances in Justice League Unlimited. The Creeper's origin in DCAU differed notably from any of the comic origins.
- In Earth-97 continuity, The Creeper was a human occultist and member of a coven known as, The Dark Circle.
In Other Media
Television
The Creeper in The New Batman Adventures
- In The New Batman Adventures, Jack Ryder has a recurring role as a news reporter. In a later episode, the Creeper is created by the Joker after being exposed to his Joker Venom and pushed into the same vat he had fallen into. The resulting interaction between the two substances creates a benign psychosis in Ryder, though he still maintains a sense of right and wrong.
- Creeper later appears in the show Justice League Unlimited as a member of the expanded Justice League.
- In Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Jack Ryder's show is mentioned in an episode. In a later episode, the Creeper single handedly saves Batman and takes down Hellgramite while making many crazy comments. He then runs away when the police show up.
Video Games
Batman: Arkham series
Main article: Jack Ryder (Arkhamverse)
Batman: The Telltale Series
Main article: Jack Ryder (Telltale)