10 Terrifying Comic Supervillains (Who Only Appear Once)

In DC’s prime universe we know that Martha Wayne was tragically gunned down by Joe Chill. But, thanks to some meddling by Barry Allen, readers were treated to an alternate, darker, version of Martha.

In an attempt to save his own mother, Barry Allen creates an alternate future. This results in all sorts mayhem, but one of the most interesting ones is the fate of the Wayne family. Rather than Joe Chill killing Thomas and Martha Wayne, he ends up murdering Bruce as a young boy. This has the effect of driving both parents completely bonkers.

Thomas Wayne hunts down Chill and beats him to death becoming a grimmer version of the Caped Crusader. When he visits Martha in the hospital to tell her of the dark deed he asks her to smile. She responds to his request by cutting her cheeks into a rictus grin. Upon her release, she starts to call herself the Joker, and well, we can all see where this is going.

As her husband’s mortal enemy she paralyzes Catwoman and manipulates Jim Gordon into shooting Harvey Dent’s daughter. Her crimes culminate when she corners Batman at Wayne Manor. There she bludgeons him to near death with a hammer. He managers to tell her that Barry Allen plans to reset the timeline and bring back their son Bruce. This message does breakthrough as she temporarily regains her sanity. However, when she learns that her son will become Batman she is driven back into madness and throws herself from a cliff.