Wikis
| Arkham Asylum | |
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 Arkham Asylum as it appeared on Batman: The Animated Series. |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Batman #258 (1974) |
| Created by | Dennis O'Neil |
| In story information | |
| Type | Hospital |
The Elizabeth Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane, commonly referred to simply as Arkham Asylum, is a fictional psychiatric hospital in the DC Comics Universe, usually appearing in stories featuring Batman. Many psychopathic criminals from across the DC Universe, mostly from Batman's own rogues gallery (such as the Joker, Poison Ivy, the Riddler, Two-Face, the Scarecrow, and Harley Quinn) have been imprisoned within the Asylum.
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Arkham Asylum is located on the outskirts of Gotham City and is where those of Batman's foes considered to be legally insane are incarcerated (other foes are incarcerated at Blackgate Penitentiary). Although it has had numerous administrators, recent comic books have featured Jeremiah Arkham. Inspired by the works of H. P. Lovecraft, and in particular his fictional city of Arkham, Massachusetts, the asylum was created by Dennis O'Neil and first appeared in Batman #258 (October 1974); much of its back-story was created by Len Wein during the 1980s.
Arkham Asylum does not have a good record, at least with regard to the high profile cases (most notably the Joker who is frequently shown escaping at will); escapes are frequent and those who are 'cured' and released tend to re-offend. Furthermore, several staff members, including at least one director, have ended up as residents, notably Dr. Harleen Quinzel, Lyle Bolton and, in some incarnations, Drs. Jonathan Crane and Hugo Strange.
In addition, prisoners with unusual medical conditions that prevent them from staying in a regular prison are housed there. For example, Mr. Freeze is not always depicted as insane, but he requires a strongly refrigerated environment to stay alive; Arkham, with special conditions required for certain patients or inmates being a regularity rather than exception, is potentially seen by authorities to be an ideal location under such circumstances.
Gotham criminals deemed "insane" or "mentally unfit" by a court of law generally are treated at Williams Medical Center before being deemed dangerous enough to be sent to Arkham Asylum[1].
The one-shot graphic novel Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth establishes that the Asylum was named after Elizabeth Arkham, the mother of founder Amadeus Arkham. The original name of the asylum was Arkham Hospital. Its dark history began in the early 1900s when Arkham's mother, having suffered from mental illness most of her life, committed suicide. (It was later revealed that her son actually euthanized her, and repressed the memory.) Amadeus Arkham decided, then, as the sole heir to the Arkham estate, to remodel his family home in order to properly treat the mentally ill, so others might not suffer as his mother had. Prior to the period of the hospital's remodeling, Arkham treated patients at the State Psychiatric Hospital in Metropolis, where he and his wife, Constance, and daughter, Harriet, had been living for quite some time.
Upon telling his family of his plans, they moved back to his family home to oversee the remodeling. While there, Arkham received a call from the police notifying him that Martin "Mad Dog" Hawkins (a serial killer) referred to Arkham by Metropolis Penitentiary while at State Psychiatric Hospital — had escaped from prison, and sought his considered opinion on the murderer's state of mind. Shortly afterward, Arkham returned to his home to find his front door wide open. Inside, he discovered the raped and mutilated bodies of his wife and daughter in an upstairs room, with Hawkins' nickname carved on Harriet's body.
Despite this family tragedy, the Elizabeth Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane officially opened that November. One of its first patients was Martin Hawkins, whom Arkham insisted on personally treating. After treating Hawkins for six months, Arkham strapped him to an electroshock couch then deliberately and purposefully electrocuted him. The death was treated as an accident but contributed to Arkham's gradual descent into madness, which he began to believe was his birthright. Eventually, Arkham was institutionalized in his own hospital, where he died.
Arkham Asylum first appeared in 1974, in Batman #258 by Dennis O'Neil. In this story, it is named as "Arkham Hospital" (although it is clear what kind of hospital it is); "Arkham Asylum" first appeared in another O'Neil story the following year, but it was not until 1979 that "Arkham Asylum" completely replaced "Arkham Hospital" (and the occasional "Arkham Sanitarium") as the institution's name. By 1979, too, the move to have the asylum closer to Gotham had begun; that was completed in 1980, when Batman #326 by Len Wein described the Asylum's location "deep in the suburbs of Gotham City". (Perhaps for this reason Batman #326 is listed in some histories as the first appearance of Arkham Asylum.) It was also Wein who, in 1985's Who's Who #1, created its current backstory.
Arkham Asylum has been demolished or destroyed several times in its history, notably during the events of Batman: The Last Arkham (see below). It is also seriously damaged at the beginning of the Knightfall storyline, when Bane uses stolen munitions to blow up the facility and release all the inmates. After these events, the asylum is relocated to a large mansion known as "Mercey Mansion". At the beginning of the No Man's Land storyline, the asylum is closed down and all its inmates set free (a timer is used to open the doors two minutes before the city is sealed). This is orchestrated by the administrator himself, who had the choice of releasing the inmates or watching them all starve or kill each other. In the middle of the story, it is revealed that Batman has established a hidden base within the subbasement of the asylum during the Prodigal storyline known as "Northwest Batcave." [2]
During the No Man's Land storyline, the Joker and Harley Quinn take over Arkham. With the sole exception of the Riddler, the inmates elect to remain in the cut-off Gotham City.
After the events of the Sinestro Corps War when Amon Sur is murdered, the Sinestro Corps ring seeks a replacement sentient from Sector 2814 and travels to the Asylum where it chooses the Scarecrow. They nearly induct him into the Sinestro Corps before they are foiled by Hal Jordan and John Stewart.[3]
After Batman's disappearance due to the events of Batman R.I.P. and Final Crisis, Black Mask frees the inmates from Arkham as they are being transferred at the start of Battle for the Cowl. He declares himself their new leader, proving his power by blowing up the Asylum. [4]
In the Battle for the Cowl one-shot, Dr. Arkham wanders among the remains of the Asylum as he muses on his life. He reveals that he has discovered blueprints created by his ancestor, the first Dr. Arkham, for a new Arkham Asylum. He also contemplates the fates of his own nonviolent, "special" patients: an artist with almost no facial features who must paint facial expressions onto his almost blank face to express himself; a man obsessed with his own reflection in a series of mirrors in his room; and a woman supposedly so ugly, one glance at her face would drive anyone insane. Upon discovering his "special" patients (unharmed from the destruction thanks to their secluded cells), Arkham resolves to rebuild the facility according to his ancestor's vision, but to serve as a literal asylum for mentally ill patients in order to shelter them from the outside world. However, when told to be happy with the new development, the artist secretly paints his face white with a hideous grin, reminiscent of the Joker; it is implied that the "special" inmates, as well as Arkham himself, have given in to madness.
In Arkham Reborn mini-series, the Arkham Asylum is rebuilt by financed Dr. Arkham.[5]
Originally, Arkham Asylum is used only to house genuinely insane characters - the Joker and Two-Face are inmates from its very first appearance - but over the course of the 1980s a trend was established of having the majority of Batman's supervillain opponents end up at Arkham, whether or not they are actually insane. Nearly all of Batman's enemies have spent some time in Arkham.
Other DC Universe publications that feature Arkham Asylum and its inmates include Alan Moore's Swamp Thing (wherein Jason Woodrue — The Floronic Man — is detained) and The Sandman by Neil Gaiman, wherein Doctor Destiny escapes to wreak havoc on both the real and dream worlds.
Arkham has also been featured in varying capacities in a number of high profile DC miniseries events, such as Identity Crisis, Day of Vengeance, Countdown, and Crisis on Infinite Earths among others.
The Dark Knight Returns, written by Frank Miller, takes place about 10 years after Batman "retires". It depicts an "Arkham Home for the Emotionally Troubled", presumably a renaming of the asylum which occurs as a result of the extreme political correctness which had evolved in Miller's dystopian setting. The Joker is housed there, catatonic since Batman's disappearance, but awakens when the vigilante resumes action. Under the employ of the home is Bartholemew Wolper, a condescending psychologist who treats the Joker humanely, even going so far to arrange for him to appear on a late night talk show, while arguing that Batman himself is responsible for the crimes his enemies commit by encouraging their existence (Despite such factors as Harvey Dent becoming Two-Face again before Batman returned to action); Wolper is killed when the Joker uses his lethal gas on the talk show audience.
In the sequel entitled The Dark Knight Strikes Again it is revealed that the patients have taken over and have resorted to cannibalism. Plastic Man is one of the more notable patients in this version of Arkham Asylum.
Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth is an original graphic novel written by Grant Morrison and drawn by Dave McKean. It was published by DC Comics in 1989. The book sold over 500,000 and was for many years DC's best-selling graphic novel.
The book was praised for its exploration of ideas, storytelling, and unconventional artwork and also proved financially and artistically lucrative for Morrison.
Written by Alan Grant; pencils by Norm Breyfogle.
Originally a four-issue storyline that kicked off the Shadow of the Bat series. In it, the old Arkham Asylum is destroyed, to be replaced by a new and more modern facility. The story introduces Jeremiah Arkham, the asylum's director, and nephew of Amadeus Arkham; and serial killer Victor Zsasz. In an attempt to discover how criminals, specifically Zsasz, keep escaping, Batman has himself committed to the asylum. Jerimiah uses various methods, such as unleashing many inmates on Batman at once, in an attempt to see what makes him tick.
This story makes a few passing references to the flashback events of Arkham Asylum, such as Amadeus Arkham taping over the mirror, and his journal is shown early in the story. Jeremiah also mentions his relative's descent into madness.
An episode of Batman: The Animated Series titled "Dreams in Darkness", also about Batman in Arkham, seems to have been a very loose adaptation of this storyline, replacing Zsasz with the Scarecrow, and replacing Jeremiah Arkham with a more nondescript administrator, who is portrayed as naïve rather than sinister.
Living Hell was written by Dan Slott, penciled by Ryan Sook with inks by Sook, Wade Von Grawbadger and Jim Royal. The series was edited by Valerie D'Orazio. Eric Powell created the painted cover art which appeared on both the original series and graphic novel compilation.
This six-issue miniseries and the subsequent trade paperback provided an intricate and multi-layered look at Arkham Asylum from several points of view: the director (Dr. Jeremiah Arkham), a psychiatrist (Dr. Anne Carver), the guards (particularly one Aaron Cash), and the inmates. There is a particular focus on previously-unknown residents: Jane Doe (a cypher who assumes the identities of those she kills), Junkyard Dog (a man obsessed with trash), Doodlebug (an artist who uses blood in his paintings), Lunkhead (a hulking bruiser), Death Rattle (a cult leader who speaks to the dead), and Humpty Dumpty (an obese idiot savant obsessed with taking apart and repairing various objects, often resulting in disaster). The driving force is the recent incarceration of a ruthless investor, Warren "The Great White Shark" White, as well as the demonic element suggested by the title. White, facing charges of massive fraud, pleads insanity and has himself committed to Arkham. He soon realizes the horrors of the place and tries to survive. Ultimately, he is locked in a freezer and suffers facial wounds. He now resembles his nickame. The demonic threat is nullified after the sacrifice of several patients.
The most familiar characters, such as the Joker, Commissioner Gordon, Batgirl, and Batman himself, appear for a few pages apiece.
Black Orchid, written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Dave McKean, also featured Arkham Asylum. The award-winning graphic novel introduced an updated version of the crimefighter Black Orchid, who dies, is reborn and starts a quest to find her identity. During this she encounters Batman, who directs her to Arkham Asylum, where she meets The Mad Hatter, Poison Ivy, Two-Face and the Joker. Arkham is viewed as a desperate place where inmates dwell in madness and terror, much in the same fashion as in A Serious House on Serious Earth (also illustrated by McKean).
Arkham Reborn is a three-part mini-series written by David Hine and Illustrated by Jeremy Haun. It tells the story of the rebuilding of the Asylum after being destroyed by the Black Mask during the events of "Battle for the Cowl".
Arkham has appeared beyond the pages of the comics in numerous guises and designs. Its appearances include:
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