#36 - Firefly
First Appearance: Detective Comics #184 (Jun 1952)
"No! Not YOU again!" ~Firebug
Firefly has always been a personal favorite villain of mine, since he's the little villain that could. After his debut, he disappeared for years, and was dug out almost 10 years later for his next go-round; from there, Firefly slowly developed interesting B-plots like his rivalry with Firebug; he even gained prominent story arcs in several major Bat-events such as Cataclysm and No Man's Land. Here's a guy that barely made it into Batman: The Animated Series, yet is quite memorable in his turn in The Batman. Here's a guy that was killed off in OMAC Project, only to get a reprieve from editorial and be returned in Villains United: ICS. Here's a guy that, despite editorial asking otherwise, was DEMANDED by two different writers to be used AT THE SAME TIME. Here's a guy that went from being an afterthought on BTAS to be extremely memorable on Arrow. Here's a guy who went from a one-shot post Golden-Age villain to one of the highlights of Batman: Arkham Origins.
What makes Firefly work? For me, it's the psychosis born out of a fiery origin. His mind is set, his goals made clear - some men just want to watch the world burn, and even the Joker would have to admit that Firefly's desire for destruction can sometimes even go beyond that of the Clown Prince's. Watching Firefly move around in the DCU, from his tangles with Batman to Batgirl to the Outsiders to even the Justice League, it's like watching a lost soul attempt to lash out at a world that can't provide him what he thinks he so desperately needs. Firefly needs help, needs treatment, but instead he finds time and time again that no one is willing to stand in his corner; he's a pitiable character without being pitiful, and for me that makes him a great, sympathetic villain I can still root against.
Greatest Firefly Story Ever Told: Batgirl: Year One - Firefly is pitch-perfect in his tangles with the newly-minted Babs-Batgirl in this amazing story written by one guy who knows his Barbara: Chuck Dixon. Just a great all-around mini-series.
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Top 100 Batman VILLAINS
RandomName basically describes it. It's a list of the top 100 Batman villains. (Note: This isn't MY list. So, if you don't agree with it, don't freak out and rant in the comments)
