Mr. Freeze is a secondary antagonist in Batman: The Enemy Within. A scientist who desperately searched for a cure to his wife's terminal illness, Dr Victor Fries was rendered unable to survive in sub-zero temperatures after an accident in his lab. To get the funds he needed, Freeze joined the Pact and swore to use the funds to help find a cure for his wife.
Biography
Not much is known about Dr. Victor Fries' past before he joined the Pact. However, he was once a brilliant scientist and cryogenics expert, working for GothCorp. However, after his wife, Nora, was diagnosed with an incurable condition, he sacrificed both his personal and professional lives to finding a cure. After placing her into a cryo-chamber to preserve her, he suffered an accident in his lab, during which he was dosed with chemicals.
Now unable to survive outside of a sub-zero temperature, Fries created a suit to sustain him and a gauntlet that froze objects when it touch them. Going underground, he operated as a criminal that the media dubbed "Mr. Freeze". Five years after his accident, he became a member of the Pact, hoping to use the profits to help fund his research into his wife's disease.
Batman: The Enemy Within
The Pact
During the Pact's attacks on Gotham, Freeze lead an attack on GothCorp. During his assault, he killed at least twenty personal with his cryo-gauntlet and caused the loss of limb of an unknown number. He also caused serious damage on the labs by freezing objects, leaving very little evidence to trace him and his men. Freeze, along with his gang, managed to get away with a number of biological materials, leaving no witnesses to identify him to the police.
Whilst checking on Nora, another member of the Pact, "John Doe", 'accidently' set off a EMP generator shutting down the equipment keeping her alive. Horrified by loosing her, Freeze entered the room and forced Bruce Wayne to turn it off. After the billionaire did so, he returned to check on Nora and ensure her unit had not been badly damaged by the blast.
Freeze was later seen working on an unknown device during the final preparations to retrieve the Riddler's body from Amanda Waller and her agency. During this, Freeze was approached by Bruce Wayne, who offered to take Nora and give her to one of his subsidiaries, should he be captured or unable to save her. Depending on dialogue chosen, Freeze will either agree to side with his membership, believing himself to have misjudged Bruce, and votes for him to join the Pact. However, if Bruce is unable to persuade Freeze, he will decide not to vote for his membership.
Freeze would later take part in the heist, during which he froze the doors of the vehicle containing Riddler's corpse and tried to kill the guard, only for Bruce to step in. He also killed a number of agents by freezing them with his gauntlet and escaped with the others, leaving either Harley Quinn or Bane behind to be captured. If the latter is left to fight the agency, Freeze warns Quinn and Doe that he believes Bane will survive and will extract vengeance upon them. He was also present when Bruce unlocked the case containing Riddler's corpse and when Catwoman returned with a component they required.
Fractured Mask
Shortly after her arrival, Freeze introduced Bruce and Catwoman to each other, believing that this was their first meeting. If Harley was left behind, he also gives her the condition of Harley and tells her how she can access the diamonds promised. After she and Wayne had finished scanning Riddler's eyes, he and the other members returned to check on their progress. He was also present when the member left behind returned and Quinn took over the Pact.
Whilst they prepared to raid the blacksite, Freeze began creating freezing bomb to take out the fire-failsafe to destroy evidence. After acquiring the necessary components with Bane, he tested it on a number of the Pact's men to see whether it was successful. Deciding they should be deployable, he began working on smaller versions which could be deployed from a launcher. Freeze later shared his findings with Bruce, believing that he would appreciate his findings. He also witnessed Bane's interrogation of a suspect, later freezing and shattering his body after he was killed.
When Harley narrowed down the mole to either Bruce or Catwoman, she asked him to prepare a cryogenic chamber to execute the person. Depending on who Bruce chooses to give up, the following will take place.
If Bruce chooses to give up Catwoman as the mole, he and the rest of the Pact prepare to execute her in his chamber. However, after she is able to subdue the men guarding her and knocks the device over, damaging it, Freeze interferes and freezes part of her arm. He then places her in one of Riddler's "murder boxes" whilst he, Bruce and the rest of the Pact make their move on the blacksite.
If Bruce chooses to blow his cover, Freeze and the rest of the pact prepare to execute him in his chamber. After Bane places the billionaire into the chamber, he seals it and activates it on Harley's orders. He and the Pact then leave with Catwoman to raid the blacksite.
Personality
Not much is known about Mr. Freeze's personality, but he seemed to care about his wife's safety over anything else. He would often act very calm and collected, even in times of jeopardy or stress. However, this demeanor would break whenever Nora was mentioned or under threat. Freeze also seemed not to have a regard for human life, even killing whenever the chance presented itself and not caring about the men he killed testing a prototype ice grenade.
Equipment
Suit
Mr. Freeze's suit would allow him to survive in environments that would otherwise kill him. The amount of protection it provided is not specified, but it seems to be bulletproof and sustainable against some forms of attack or damage.
Glove
Freeze had developed the glove some time between his accident and joining the Pact. How it works is not specified, but it was powerful enough to engulf a person in ice, in some cases so seriously they would break upon impact. The glove also allowed Freeze to break through certain materials, including metal, as demonstrated when he destroyed both a thug's gun and the door to one of the Agency's vans.
Relationships
Bruce Wayne
When they first met, Victor had very little respect for Wayne, believing him to be a naïve socialite out for himself. However, if Bruce offers to house Nora and research a cure if he is arrested, Freeze begins to respect Wayne and votes him into the Pact. After the heist, Freeze would share research details with Bruce and willingly talk with him. If Bruce outs himself as the traitor, Freeze would prepare one of his devices to execute Wayne, showing very little concern over him.
Trivia
- Unlike other iterations of the character, Freeze uses special glove that allows him to freeze objects rather than a traditional gun or rifle.
- The lack of a dome for his suit draws similarities with the Otto Preminger and Eli Wallach versions seen in the 1960s TV series (where they utilized freeze collars), the Nathan Darrow version from Gotham (which had a variation of the freeze collar built onto the suit), and the Injustice 2 version (before the error was fixed). If one looks closely, this version's suit is shown to have a freeze collar-like device built onto the neck part of the suit.