James Gordon Jr.
| James Gordon Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Batman #407 (May, 1987) |
| Created by |
Frank Miller Dave Mazzucchelli |
| In-story information | |
| Team affiliations | Suicide Squad |
| Abilities | Genius level intellect |
James "Jim" Gordon Jr. is a fictional character, a supervillain in DC Comics and an enemy of Batman. He is the son of James Gordon and Barbara Eileen Gordon, and the step-brother (or biological brother, depending on the continuity) of Barbara Gordon, who later tries to bring him to justice as Batgirl.
James Gordon Jr. first appeared in Batman #407 and was created by Frank Miller and Dave Mazzucchelli.
James Gordon Jr. first appears in the "Batman: Year One" story arc. Barbara Eileen and James Gordon conceive James Jr. shortly before arriving in Gotham City. Gordon quickly attracts the wrath of mobster Carmine Falcone, who sends hitman Johnny Viti to kidnap his infant son. Viti throws James Jr. off a bridge, but Batman leaps after the child and saves him.
James Jr.'s backstory and character are elaborated upon in the 2011 Batgirl series and in the contemporaneous Detective Comics #871-881. This new continuity establishes that James Jr. is a psychopath who has displayed violent behavior from an early age; as a child, he kills animals and takes them apart as a hobby. He is also implicated in the disappearance of one of his sister's friends, Bess Keller. Barbara swears that she saw James carrying Bess' keychain, although this is never proven. His antisocial behavior contributes to his parents' divorce. He is mentioned having left Gotham to travel around the country at some point.
When James Jr. returns to Gotham years later, he begins secretly following his father. James Jr. confronts his father in a diner and explains that he is taking medication to curb his violent impulses, and is trying to turn his life around. James Jr. announces he is planning to get a job at Leslie Thompkins' clinic, and asks his father to help him by in turn asking Dick Grayson to not speak against his application. While hunting down old cases, Commissioner Gordon meets another murderer who might have been responsible for the death of Bess Keller, and begins to believe that his son may indeed have changed. In reality, however, James Jr. has become a serial killer. Thompkins insists that James Jr. is doing a great job, but his father suspects otherwise and has Barbara test his medication. They discover that James Jr. has reversed the formula to increase his homicidal impulses, and correctly deduce he's going to poison an infant nutritional facility.
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