Moloch AKA Rufus Macob is a sideshow freak turned murderer who has served as an enemy of Batman.
History[]
Origins[]
Rufus Macob was born hideously deformed and as such grew up in a circus freak show in Louisiana. By adulthood he had developed incredible strength and fighting abilities all while faking being crippled.
As a criminal he took up the name of Moloch. Moloch being an ancient Caanite deity who in post-Christian beliefs was demonized and affiliated with the practice of child sacrifice.
Cursed Carnival[]
Moloch went about murdering a jazz-music legend named Charles "Blind Buddy" Holden in-order to steal Charles' horn. Moloch did this due to the horn having a map carved into it which lead to a gold-mine of oil somewhere in the Louisiana bayou. However, this murder lead to Batman's involvement as the two engaged in a race to the location of the dead man's trumpet.
Moloch kidnapped an old friend of Holdens in-order to learn the trumpet's location while taking him captive aboard his steam-boat on the Mississippi River. Batman intervened only to fall into a prepared trap, causing Moloch to get a head start to Holden's grave in New Orleans where the trumpet was found.
Batman confronted Moloch at the grave with the incident overlapping with Mardi Gras festivities. After a fight, the trumpet fell into a crowd and was damaged to an extent that the map became illegible. Moloch was then defeated by Batman.
Powers and abilities[]
Moloch possessed superhuman strength, especially in his legs, capable of leaping over small buildings and effortlessly overpowered Batman with his leg strength alone.
Notes[]
- Moloch was the first original Batman villain created by comic-book legend Dennis O'Neil. As the story didn't fit the camp of the Silver Age, it was delayed until 1970, being one of the stories that marked the dawn of the Bronze Age of Batman comics.