Did Absolute Batman Just get his Most Monstrous Ally?

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As Batman’s friends and loyal adherents, all these characters have either directly or indirectly helped Bruce in his crusade as Batman. Eddie taught Bruce about electronics. Harvey showed Bruce the inner workings of Gotham’s law enforcement and politics. Selina trained him in acrobatics and stealth. Ozzie supplies him with information about the criminal underworld. And lastly, Waylon trained Bruce to be a fighter. At first, none of them had any idea about the secret motives Bruce had for learning all these skills. Still, after they discovered that Bruce was Batman, they supported him and became Batman’s crime-fighting partners and information brokers.

However, with the introduction of Killer Croc into the Absolute Universe in Absolute Batman #10, the question arises as to whether Waylon will be able to remain one of Bruce’s closest friends, or if he is doomed to regress into the bestial abomination that he is in the prime universe.

Who is Waylon Jones?

Image Courtesy of DC Comics

Fans have been speculating since Absolute Batman #1 about if and when any of Bruce’s villains-turned-friends will revert to being the iconic evildoers they are in the prime universe. Out of all the rogues’ gallery villains who have transformed into Batman’s wingmen in the Absolute Universe, however, Waylon raises the most questions because he is the most disconnected from his prime universe counterpart. In the Absolute Universe, he is a kind and respected professional fighter and owner of a gym. And, in the most notable difference from his primary universe analogue, in the Absolute Universe, Waylon Jones, aka Killer Croc, wasn’t born with the iconic skin condition that gives him a crocodilian appearance, complete with scales and razor-sharp teeth.

Mocked for his deformity in the prime universe, Waylon joined the Circus as a member of the freak show. Eventually, the lifetime of abuse drove Waylon mad, and he moved to Gotham to start a life of crime. Waylon’s deformity only made him more monstrous. He grew bigger, stronger, and in some versions, even developed a tail. He has superhuman strength and, over time, has become increasingly animalistic. Now he stalks the sewers of Gotham as a cold-blooded and cannibalistic murderer who’s more animal than man.

Although Waylon may have started as an ordinary and friendly guy in the Absolute Universe, his life there takes a fateful turn, and he ends up following in the crocodile-shaped footsteps of his prime universe counterpart.

How Waylan Jones Became Killer Croc in the Absolute Universe

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One of the significant threats Gotham is facing in the Absolute Universe is Ark M. This private prison was constructed on an island next to Gotham. Batman investigated rumors that Ark M was using its prisoners as guinea pigs for inhumane experimentation. These rumors are proven to be correct, and Waylon becomes the prison’s latest victim. In Absolute Batman #8, the agents of Ark M drug and kidnap Waylon to use him as a test subject. We don’t see the outcome until two issues later. Bruce spent two weeks looking for his friend before confronting Ark M’s lead enforcer, Bane. The inhumanly strong and gigantic villain easily defeated Bruce and delivered him to Ark M’s scientists for experimentation. In Absolute Batman #10, after three months of torture and imprisonment, Bruce managed to break out of his cell with his Batsuit, but Bane thwarted his efforts to escape and once again started to bludgeon Bruce brutally. However, before Bane could finish Bruce off, a giant egg in a nearby cage hatched. From the egg emerged an enormous humanoid crocodile monster that used to be Waylon Jones.

Terrifying to look at, this new version of King Croc has a massive tail, razor-sharp claws, and his jaw extends down to his chest to deliver powerful bites. In this form, Waylon is one of the biggest and potentially dangerous versions of Killer Croc ever conceived. He is so strong that he knocks down the equally massive Bane with one mighty swipe of his tail. Waylon then devours several Ark M scientists with a single bite from his jaws. Nevertheless, despite looking and acting like a mindless beast, Waylon is still able to recognize Bruce and, more significantly, responds to him as his friend, taking action to save him. In a wild scene, Killer Croc lets Bruce ride on his back, together fleeing through the sewers as they escape Ark M.

What’s Next for Batman and Killer Croc?

Image Courtesy of DC Comics

The juxtaposition of Killer Croc’s new, bigger, and scarier rendering in the Absolute Universe with his notable protective response to Batman suggests that Killer Croc’s future in this universe could take different directions. For the most part, in the sequence following Waylon’s transformation into the Killer Croc again at Ark M, he seems to be driven by primal instincts, ferociously attacking the scientists at Ark M and roaring as he does so like a wild animal. Yet, at the same time, while not seemingly capable of talking or advanced thinking, Killer Croc exhibits the human instinct to help Batman, his childhood friend, escape from Ark M. Given these dualities that we see in Killer Croc’s nature, it seems that there are at least two key directions, that the writers could take Killer Croc’s character in future stories.

The first and more tragic outcome would be if Waylon’s new, more savage instincts overpower his human side, turning him into a monster who leaves Batman no choice but to face him as an enemy. In this scenario, Waylon will become like Marvel’s Curt Connors, aka the Lizard, who suffers from a similar reptilian ailment that turns him into a lizard-like monster. Much like Curt, Waylon might try his best to resist the savage, primeval instincts now consuming him—but ultimately, fail to keep them at bay. If this were to occur, while Waylon might be overcome with shame and horror over his new reality, at the same time, his hunger for fresh meat would drive him to attack innocent people. Consequently, even while he tries to find a cure for Killer Croc’s condition, in his role as the protector of Gotham City, Bruce will be forced to fight his friend as he would any other threat or criminal. In Waylon’s turn, tortured and torn apart by the mammalian and reptilian parts of his psyche, he will express pain and guilt in brief intervals before ultimately succumbing to the cold-blooded instincts that control him.

The second, and more hopeful, direction the story could take is that Waylon’s initial aid of Bruce augurs the start of a new partnership between them. The Absolute Universe version of Waylon may look more like a monster than other versions of Killer Croc. Still, he has already shown that he retains at least some of his humanity and memories, as displayed when he helped Bruce escape. The possibility indeed looms that, even as Bruce and his friends work to find a cure for Waylon, Bruce makes one of his numerous hideouts across Gotham a home for his mutated friend and calls upon his aid whenever he needs help. With Waylon’s superhuman strength and reflexes, he would be a force to be reckoned with against the criminals of Gotham. However, Waylon’s animalistic urges could still be the source of a great deal of character drama as he tries to suppress his violent urges. Bruce, in particular, would need to monitor and manage Killer Croc’s urges closely, knowing all too well that his friend had already shown no hesitation in devouring the Ark M scientists.

Whatever the future holds for these childhood friends, Bruce and Waylon’s relationship will be forever altered. As the victim of Ark M’s sadistic experiments, Waylon will most likely be one of Bruce’s driving motivations for seeking revenge against the people who created Ark M. But, one way or another, the plot will no doubt thicken: Waylon may become a tragic villain like his prime universe counterpart or rise above his basic urges and become the scaly hero Gotham needs.