The Dark Knight Rises Riddle Me This: The Riddler Characterization Thread

[Rodrigo90]

My only problem with this is that when people have existential meltdowns, they usually dwell on philosophical questions which by their nature are broad, vague and open ended. They don't really manifest themselves as complex, bizarre riddles.

The Riddler makes the most sense as an extreme 'I hate the world', 'I hate capitalism', 'I hate technology', etc. type person who engages in homicides or terrorist acts and devises complex riddles and schemes to taunt law enforcement into catching him.

I should of explained it more.

Riddler deliberately asked himself complex questions. That gradually manifested into Riddles and Enigmas. He did it to suppress his anger, frustration and his life in order to stay sane. He also suffers from obsessive compulsive disorder. He has no other choice in the matter,his mind cannot process the alternative. He NEEDS and MUST think of riddles.

 

[namtaB]

I should of explained it more.

Riddler deliberately asked himself complex questions. That gradually manifested into Riddles and Enigmas. He did it to suppress his anger, frustration and his life in order to stay sane. He also suffers from obsessive compulsive disorder. He has no other choice in the matter,his mind cannot process the alternative. He NEEDS and MUST think of riddles.

I likes.

 

[Rodrigo90]

I also tried to do a new and realistic take on why he commits his crimes. He suffers from cancer and before he succumbs to it,he wants to put his issues to rest. His deathtraps are inspired by his question on why some people can escape it and others cant. This manifests into his intellectual challenges for his victims and only escape if theyre smart.

He puts Batman through his riddles and puzzles in order to judge if hes smarter than himself to crack the TRUE meaning to his riddles. Cause he wants to be caught by Batman cause he wants Batman to help him solve the riddle of better understanding himself. Cause Riddler is very messed up man and in truth wants Batman to help him. But when Batman answers his personal riddle "What is the Enigma of the Riddler"?. Riddler snaps.

He frames Bruce for murder. Because Gordon framed him years ago by planting evidence on him. He wants to ruin Harveys reputation for humiliating him and destroy Gotham. But he'll only stop if Batman proves hes smart to answer his riddle.

 

[Rodrigo90]

By the start he already knows who Batman is and sets up his plan.

The full story is on Batman 3 Where will the story go from here? page 62.

 

[rfU]

I also tried to do a new and realistic take on why he commits his crimes. He suffers from cancer and before he succumbs to it,he wants to put his issues to rest. His deathtraps are inspired by his question on why some people can escape it and others cant. This manifests into his intellectual challenges for his victims and only escape if theyre smart.

He puts Batman through his riddles and puzzles in order to judge if hes smarter than himself to crack the TRUE meaning to his riddles. Cause he wants to be caught by Batman cause he wants Batman to help him solve the riddle of better understanding himself. Cause Riddler is very messed up man and in truth wants Batman to help him. But when Batman answers his personal riddle "What is the Enigma of the Riddler"?. Riddler snaps.

He frames Bruce for murder. Because Gordon framed him years ago by planting evidence on him. He wants to ruin Harveys reputation for humiliating him and destroy Gotham. But he'll only stop if Batman proves hes smart to answer his riddle.

This sounds a little too complex for me but I like it. Only I don't get why he starts asking himself these complex questions and how they, over time, develop into riddles. And what type of deathtraps did you have in mind? Also, when you say he frames Bruce for murder, do you mean Bruce Wayne or Batman? And isn't Harvey dead by Batman 3?

 

[Rodrigo90]

He is a very proud man the Riddler. He was the best police officor on GCPD. He loved the fact that he was better than most of the top detectives there.

But he was friends with Sal Maroni and working for Falcone. But he was ALWAYS careful,not at getting caught. But Gordon and others knew this. Gordon then planted sufficient evidence on him to be found by Harvey Dent. Dent deliberately waited until Riddlers promotion day to arrest him.

Riddler was sentenced to 12 months in prison. He began reflecting on the events and his life. He was eventually starting to crack up. So in order to cope, he began focusing his questions about himself that were driving him mad,into compldx riddles and enigmas. This was to keep his mind preoccupied,so he didnt have to think about reflecting on his life. But it turned twisted him. The cancer, later on is what tipped him over to insanity.

 

[Rodrigo90]

His deathtraps arent gory. Shotguns tied behind doors. Beartraps. Bombs. Falling through the basement, foot deep in water. Having to build a tower to climb out before the electric cable touches it. Riddler driving a speeding car while asking his victim riddles. His victims arent random citizens though. Members from a special team assigned to hunt him and Batman. Riddler slowly sets up Bruce for the kidnap and murder of Coleman Reese. So Bruce himself is a fugitive. This is Riddlers way of making the challenge even greater as even more things are at stake for Bruce. But also as an act of revenge for Batman taking out Harvey.

Harvey isnt dead in my story. But nobody but Gordon,two paramedics and Dr Thomas Eliiot know that.

 

[nolan's roll'n]

I really hope that the rest of the cast for the rest of the franchise, including films 4-6, if Fincher does direct should be like this:
1. Joseph Gordon Levitt as The Joker
2. Helena Bonham Carter as Harley Quinn
3. Johnny Depp as The Riddler (Which is highly unlikely at this moment)
4. Guy Pearce as Man-Bat
5. Hugh Jack as The Madhatter (if you say The Great Danton in The Prestige, Angier's double you will see the resemblance to Jervais Tetch, appearance and acting wise.)
6. Marion Cotillard as Catwoman
7. Charlize Theron as Poison Ivy
8. Philip Seymour Hoffman as Penguin
9. Daniel Day Lewis as Black Mask

as for the story and screen plays have it written by Chris Nolan, Jonah Nolan, Paul Dini, Frank Miller, and David Goyer. It should be directed by David Fincher though. Produced by Chris Nolan and Tim Burton. Music track should be done by Hans Zimmer and Danny Elfman.

 

[Two-Face]

I really hope that the rest of the cast for the rest of the franchise, including films 4-6, if Fincher does direct should be like this:
1. Joseph Gordon Levitt as The Joker
2. Helena Bonham Carter as Harley Quinn
3. Johnny Depp as The Riddler (Which is highly unlikely at this moment)
4. Guy Pearce as Man-Bat
5. Hugh Jack as The Madhatter (if you say The Great Danton in The Prestige, Angier's double you will see the resemblance to Jervais Tetch, appearance and acting wise.)
6. Marion Cotillard as Catwoman
7. Charlize Theron as Poison Ivy
8. Philip Seymour Hoffman as Penguin
9. Daniel Day Lewis as Black Mask

as for the story and screen plays have it written by Chris Nolan, Jonah Nolan, Paul Dini, Frank Miller, and David Goyer. It should be directed by David Fincher though. Produced by Chris Nolan and Tim Burton. Music track should be done by Hans Zimmer and Danny Elfman.

Never ever gonna happen if you want them doing one or two Bat movies.

 

[ronny]

I think it would be interesting if Riddler killed people but felt guilty and denied ever doing so to Batman and Gordon.
The guy who needs others to discover the truth cannot face the fact that he is a monster.
Could be an interesting contrast to The Joker - who relished being a freak.

 

[Mindreaper21]

Take a look at the 1st transformation of The Riddler. He’s not some agent nor some geek. He is as stated a Dangerous Tricky Criminal. He’s also seemingly wealthy judging by his pad (Most likely from all of the money he’s stolen) as well as a sharp dresser. The Riddler is more than just mere question marks as you can clearly see.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inFV1irkvdk
If you want to get deeper into the darker layers of his psyche, check out this video and see his fascination with torture! Weak? Check out more of Gorshin’s portrayals and see that The Riddler has landed some punches, but he and everyone else was beaten up in that show. He also had some nice disguises. Make no mistake, when the giggles stopped, The Riddler was entirely creepy. Of course he really didn’t need the mask because everyone knew who he was and he didn’t mind. Maybe it has a more disturbing meaning, but you can never tell. Though it was a TV show, you can still get an idea of what he does to his victims, and he has plenty of them.

I’m sure that most of us can agree that this is the best portrayal of The Riddler. Suave, highly intelligent, multi lingual, witty, and indeed creepy. In this version as well as Gorshin’s, The Riddler has got the best of Batman and lured him into a trap, leaving him to die. What gets him caught is that The Riddler spends too much time trying to perfect the trap and misses minor things in which Batman figures out and escapes. The Riddler did not need to say “Riddle me this” to tell you his next riddle, you either got it or you didn’t. Though all of his riddles weren’t that simple, some of them had double meanings so that you were either going the right way or the wrong way. Not every riddle has to make perfect sense, you just have to think like The Riddler, which obviously isn‘t easy. In addition, his tapes from B:AA gives you more of an idea of how he is. His bursts of anger and his intimidation.

Who better to give you an idea of The Riddler’s psychology than the great Hannibal Lecter. You don’t believe me? You should check out the trailer for Silence of the Lambs and see how he’s described. Blue unblinking eyes the haunt you, just like Frank Gorshin. Never mind his eating habits. Just like The Riddler he is suave, sophisticated, dangerous, and creepy. He uses riddles, anagrams and cryptic messages as well.
What messed up The Riddler’s character to a certain point was, without a doubt, was Batman Forever. Though he was still dangerous and strange, he was made a weakling, which bled into the comic world. An element that I did notice was how perverted The Riddler was in BF as he was in the 60‘s TV series. This places me in the mind of this man…

Ted Bundy. You guessed it, suave, sophisticated, dangerous, and creepy (and perverted). He had many disguises as well. He taught himself psychology to trick people into doing what he wanted. Also had outbursts of anger. Look at his smirk, seems familiar right?
There is no need to give The Riddler an origin of something that he never was, because he is perfectly insane, weird and dangerous as he has been. The elements have always been there, but some of you just didn’t see it. Yet, The Riddler is in fact an enigma and in himself a riddle, so how could you easily solve that without thinking as he thinks?
P.S. I thought this page could use some picturest:

 

[Jahu-Momus]

I prefer the Riddler being a behind the scenes man, similar to the way he was in Batman: Hush. Maybe have him indirectly control someone, all the while leaving tiny clues to his true identity throughout the movie.

 

[mothy]

i like the idea of covering the riddler with question mark tattoos. it gives him a very eerie edge, almost taking a cue from calendar man's tattoos and applying it to the the riddler. calendar man is boring and not worth having, so it's best to take those good attributes and apply them to a character with a lot more potential.

for batman 3, the riddler should be a full on psychotic in the tradition of the joker, exemplifying the overall descent of gotham into this sort of madness. after all, the joker's history-making conflict with batman is going to inspire many more psychos to take on batman, and that's precisely what I see going on with the riddler (who's egotistical and arrogant, out to assert his own brilliance over that of batman). he should be, both in the eyes of batman/gordon and the audience, a successor to the joker, and cut from similar cloth.

the riddler should definitely be distinguished from the joker, but I suggest that should be done in personality, motivation, and modus operandi. you can still have a whole other brand of crazy as embodied in edward nigma.

none of the traditional batman rogues are quite as dangerous as the joker, because of the joker's unpredictability and impulsiveness. but in terms of a calculating, formidable villain that could be the first to follow in his footsteps, i can see no one but the riddler stepping up.

with that said, i don't really see the need for the sane/insane divide. he's either dangerous or he's not, regardless of his mental state, and i think it's essential that the villain of batman 3 follows in the footsteps of the joker in the sense that he's an insane theatrical criminal. the riddler has to be one of the "freaks."

clearly if they use the riddler, a suit is relevant, but it's hardly mandatory. i'm not saying the costumes should violate nolan's "real-world" aesthetic, but to say all nolanverse villains should wear suits seems like a bit of a silly rule to me.

now, i'm not sure i'm down with the "finds out batman's identity" angle. it's rather predictable and i’m not sure if all that terribly compelling. what's important is that he forces batman into a position where he must pursue the answers to the riddles or else allow real damage to come to gotham.

 

[The Caped Knight]

I think Nolan should go in the same direction BTAS & Batman: Arkham Ayslum took the character of Edward Nygma .
The Riddler
The Riddler (BTAS)
The Riddler (Batman: Arkham Asylum)

 

[BareYourTeeth]

Take a look at the 1st transformation of The Riddler. He’s not some agent nor some geek. He is as stated a Dangerous Tricky Criminal. He’s also seemingly wealthy judging by his pad (Most likely from all of the money he’s stolen) as well as a sharp dresser. The Riddler is more than just mere question marks as you can clearly see.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inFV1irkvdk
If you want to get deeper into the darker layers of his psyche, check out this video and see his fascination with torture! Weak? Check out more of Gorshin’s portrayals and see that The Riddler has landed some punches, but he and everyone else was beaten up in that show. He also had some nice disguises. Make no mistake, when the giggles stopped, The Riddler was entirely creepy. Of course he really didn’t need the mask because everyone knew who he was and he didn’t mind. Maybe it has a more disturbing meaning, but you can never tell. Though it was a TV show, you can still get an idea of what he does to his victims, and he has plenty of them.

I’m sure that most of us can agree that this is the best portrayal of The Riddler. Suave, highly intelligent, multi lingual, witty, and indeed creepy. In this version as well as Gorshin’s, The Riddler has got the best of Batman and lured him into a trap, leaving him to die. What gets him caught is that The Riddler spends too much time trying to perfect the trap and misses minor things in which Batman figures out and escapes. The Riddler did not need to say “Riddle me this” to tell you his next riddle, you either got it or you didn’t. Though all of his riddles weren’t that simple, some of them had double meanings so that you were either going the right way or the wrong way. Not every riddle has to make perfect sense, you just have to think like The Riddler, which obviously isn‘t easy. In addition, his tapes from B:AA gives you more of an idea of how he is. His bursts of anger and his intimidation.

Who better to give you an idea of The Riddler’s psychology than the great Hannibal Lecter. You don’t believe me? You should check out the trailer for Silence of the Lambs and see how he’s described. Blue unblinking eyes the haunt you, just like Frank Gorshin. Never mind his eating habits. Just like The Riddler he is suave, sophisticated, dangerous, and creepy. He uses riddles, anagrams and cryptic messages as well.
What messed up The Riddler’s character to a certain point was, without a doubt, was Batman Forever. Though he was still dangerous and strange, he was made a weakling, which bled into the comic world. An element that I did notice was how perverted The Riddler was in BF as he was in the 60‘s TV series. This places me in the mind of this man…

Ted Bundy. You guessed it, suave, sophisticated, dangerous, and creepy (and perverted). He had many disguises as well. He taught himself psychology to trick people into doing what he wanted. Also had outbursts of anger. Look at his smirk, seems familiar right?
There is no need to give The Riddler an origin of something that he never was, because he is perfectly insane, weird and dangerous as he has been. The elements have always been there, but some of you just didn’t see it. Yet, The Riddler is in fact an enigma and in himself a riddle, so how could you easily solve that without thinking as he thinks?
P.S. I thought this page could use some picturest:

Nice job man, love it, this is exactly how The Riddler should be portrayed on screen and I love the Ted Bundy comparison. They compared the two on the history channel on the Psychology of Batman special which is on the special features of The Dark Knight, you should definitely check it out if you haven't already done so.

 

[The Batman]

Take a look at the 1st transformation of The Riddler. He’s not some agent nor some geek. He is as stated a Dangerous Tricky Criminal. He’s also seemingly wealthy judging by his pad (Most likely from all of the money he’s stolen) as well as a sharp dresser. The Riddler is more than just mere question marks as you can clearly see.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inFV1irkvdk
If you want to get deeper into the darker layers of his psyche, check out this video and see his fascination with torture! Weak? Check out more of Gorshin’s portrayals and see that The Riddler has landed some punches, but he and everyone else was beaten up in that show. He also had some nice disguises. Make no mistake, when the giggles stopped, The Riddler was entirely creepy. Of course he really didn’t need the mask because everyone knew who he was and he didn’t mind. Maybe it has a more disturbing meaning, but you can never tell. Though it was a TV show, you can still get an idea of what he does to his victims, and he has plenty of them.

I’m sure that most of us can agree that this is the best portrayal of The Riddler. Suave, highly intelligent, multi lingual, witty, and indeed creepy. In this version as well as Gorshin’s, The Riddler has got the best of Batman and lured him into a trap, leaving him to die. What gets him caught is that The Riddler spends too much time trying to perfect the trap and misses minor things in which Batman figures out and escapes. The Riddler did not need to say “Riddle me this” to tell you his next riddle, you either got it or you didn’t. Though all of his riddles weren’t that simple, some of them had double meanings so that you were either going the right way or the wrong way. Not every riddle has to make perfect sense, you just have to think like The Riddler, which obviously isn‘t easy. In addition, his tapes from B:AA gives you more of an idea of how he is. His bursts of anger and his intimidation.

Who better to give you an idea of The Riddler’s psychology than the great Hannibal Lecter. You don’t believe me? You should check out the trailer for Silence of the Lambs and see how he’s described. Blue unblinking eyes the haunt you, just like Frank Gorshin. Never mind his eating habits. Just like The Riddler he is suave, sophisticated, dangerous, and creepy. He uses riddles, anagrams and cryptic messages as well.
What messed up The Riddler’s character to a certain point was, without a doubt, was Batman Forever. Though he was still dangerous and strange, he was made a weakling, which bled into the comic world. An element that I did notice was how perverted The Riddler was in BF as he was in the 60‘s TV series. This places me in the mind of this man…

Ted Bundy. You guessed it, suave, sophisticated, dangerous, and creepy (and perverted). He had many disguises as well. He taught himself psychology to trick people into doing what he wanted. Also had outbursts of anger. Look at his smirk, seems familiar right?
There is no need to give The Riddler an origin of something that he never was, because he is perfectly insane, weird and dangerous as he has been. The elements have always been there, but some of you just didn’t see it. Yet, The Riddler is in fact an enigma and in himself a riddle, so how could you easily solve that without thinking as he thinks?
P.S. I thought this page could use some picturest:

QFT. You're one of the few posters on here who realize just how good gorshin was as the riddler. He was more than just some cackling menace.

 

[Nightwing 52]

Alot of people know how good Gorshin was as Riddler.

Also, good post Mindreaper.

 

[COMPO]

I always loved the Riddler and I loved how he was calculating at times and then nuts another, like Gorshin did it, but I loved Glover's calculating arrogant riddler. I hope they have a medium between the two.

 

[Jolly C.]

The Riddler from BAS with some dark comedy...he should tell funny riddles but in a serious tone...for example if he is breaking into a building with his goons or whatever and he uses a bulldoxer to plow through a wall he should ask them "what do u call a sleeping bull?" and after he plows through the wall and into the building he gets off and says in a dark badass tone "a bulldozer."...thats the way i see him acting

 

[COMPO]

I don't know that kind of sounds like the Joker to me. I can see the Joker doing something like that.

 

[BestGirl]

The Riddler from BAS with some dark comedy...he should tell funny riddles but in a serious tone...for example if he is breaking into a building with his goons or whatever and he uses a bulldoxer to plow through a wall he should ask them "what do u call a sleeping bull?" and after he plows through the wall and into the building he gets off and says in a dark badass tone "a bulldozer."...thats the way i see him acting

That sounds a little corny to me. I'd prefer a more frightening Riddler with more complex riddles.

 

[Jolly C.]

i totally agree with ya...i was just thought the riddler could have little catchy riddles for every occasion. but i get how it seems like the joker after reading it again.

 

[COMPO]

That's what I meant, I mean it would be cool if the Riddler tortured someone mentally which although funny is quite frightening you know that he just bombardes them with riddles with no time to answer until they snap.

 

[Jolly C.]

like he has a dark comedy aspect to him...i could see him being like a former interrogator or has done some work for the cops ooooor hes just really good lol

 

[COMPO]

I'd imagine the Riddler as a con artist that is just so good at what he does, you don't have to explain too much about him he should be a riddle.