Top 10 Victor Zsasz Stories!

 

Widely regarded as Batman's most sadistic villain next to the Joker himself, Victor Zsasz is a straightforward, yet highly effective antagonist. Created in 1992, Victor's only real goal is to kill as many people as possible and carve their "memory" into his own flesh. A serial killer who carves tally marks into his own body after killing them is something straight out of a slasher movie and I love it. However, this was yet another tough list to compile, not because Zsasz is lacking in quality stories, but because he actually hasn't starred in that many. Even though he is not as classic as other Batman rogues, Zsasz has been around for well over thirty years, yet he is rarely given a starring role in the comics. But with enough digging, I was able to find ten Victor Zsasz stories well worth your time, so let us get into them!

10.) Spiritual Currency

by Devin Grayson & Dale Eaglesham 

During the events of No Man's Land, Victor Zsasz is critically injured and brought to a medical encampment run by Dr. Leslie Thompkins. Despite being well aware of her patient's evil nature, Leslie abides by her vow to help anybody under her care no matter what, much to the chagrin of Batman, Huntress and even Killer Croc, who is looking to settle a score with the serial murderer. 

Even though he is unconscious for most of the story, Spiritual Currency still makes effective use of Victor's character as he is the catalyst for a debate of morals and ethics between Leslie and the other heroes. Leslie is a pacifist who believes in never resorting to violence and that every life is worth saving. Despite valuing life immensely himself, Batman cannot bring himself to agree with helping and sheltering someone as dangerous as Zsasz, causing the two to clash. Despite Leslie standing her ground, the Caped Crusader is soon proven right when the maniac regains consciousness and isn't exactly receptive to his host's hospitality. 

Spiritual Currency highlights Victor's evil nature as, even when rescued by somebody, gratitude doesn't even enter the madman's mind. In his own words, Zsasz's true nature is to kill and nothing will change that. 

09.) Draining (Black & White)

by Devin Grayson & Roger Robinson

During his latest killing spree, Victor Zsasz manages to successfully escape the Batman and sets his sights on a nearby city block. Zsasz begins murdering his way through the district with the Dark Knight unable to stop him. Or is he...?

Despite its short length and seemingly straightforward premise, Draining manages to be a great encapsulation of Victor's character and a strong showcase of his savagery. The utter glee that the sadist takes in brutally dispatching his victims is unrivaled, yet so nonchalant that it makes him all the more chilling. The fact that he is also capable of flying into a psychotic rage at any given point only adds to the fear factor.

But what makes Draining truly memorable is the climax. No spoilers here, but the way Batman manages to defeat Victor is truly unique and creative, even managing to recontextualize the preceding horror the readers had witnessed.

08.) Birthday

by Brian Buccellato & Marco Santucci

Taking place in the Injustice universe, Superman has grown increasingly ruthless in his pursuit of Batman. In an effort to set a trap for his former friend, the Man of Steel releases Victor Zsasz from prison and sends him on a special mission: to eliminate Alfred Pennyworth! The death of his surrogate father is sure to draw Bruce Wayne out of hiding.

Anybody who has read the Injustice comics is well aware of what a truly bleak series it is, but Birthday manages to be especially effective in this field. Superman sending Zsasz of all people after Alfred (and on the butler's birthday no less) shows just how far the Kryptonian has fallen, as there seems to be no low he is willing to sink to in order to capture Batman. When Zsasz finally does arrive at Wayne Manor and infiltrates that Bat Cave, your heart immediately sinks because you know there is no happy ending for Alfred here. 

Even though we can guess the grim outcome, the fight is still brutal and intense, as Alfred has no intention of being an easy target for Victor. Without getting too technical, I do think that Alfred's fate here is far more effective than the one Tom King gave the character during his Batman run. Birthday manages to be one of the most emotional chapters of the entire Injustice saga, which is really saying something.

07.) Leftovers

by Rich Douek & Stevan Subic

After learning about a small support group for his surviving victims, Victor Zsasz escapes from Arkham Asylum and sets out to finish what he started. Batman is hot on the madman's trail, but will he be able to save everyone in the group?

Leftovers effectively demonstrates the suffering and wreckage a vicious murderer like Zsasz would leave in his wake. Said wreckage not only consist of his victims' corpses, but the shattered souls of their surviving family and friends. Victor is a true monster here as he takes immense satisfaction at witnessing the devastation he has created firsthand, even referring to the people he has hurt or plants to hurt as nothing more than "meat". 

The real highlight of Leftovers comes from one of Zsasz's still-living victims though. After the indescribable grief Victor has caused and continues to cause this man, he is no longer satisfied with Batman merely capturing Zsasz and sending him back to Arkham. Instead, he desires a more permanent solution. Leftovers effectively frames and asks the age-old question: can you resort to your enemies' methods without eventually becoming them yourself? 

06.) ...And Red All Over

by Andersen Gabrych & Pete Woods

While on patrol, Batman and Robin (Stephanie Brown) discover a series of murders in the area. They soon deduce that this is the work of Victor Zsasz and immediately set out to stop him, However, when Zsasz manages to separate the Girl Wonder from the Caped Crusader, will she stand a chance against the sadistic maniac on her own?

Few stories have managed to portray Victor as the true killing machine he is as well as And Red All Over has. Here, he is highly skilled at what he does, dispatching his victims with ease while waiting in the shadows like a true predator. This comic even portrays Victor's point of view in a really unique way, as his vision blocks out every color except for red. 

On top of that, And Red All Over contains arguably the best fight between Zsasz and Batman, as the lunatic is able to match the Dark Knight nearly blow for blow, making for a particularly brutal bout. Victor really does feel like something straight out of a horror movie here, as the character should.

05.) Victims

by Shane McCarthy & Cliff Chiang

After infiltrating one of Bruce Wayne's charity events, Victor Zsasz claims his latest victim: Alfred Pennyworth! Luckily for the loyal butler, he manages to survive Zsasz's attack and is transferred to Gotham City General Hospital. However, upon learning that his intended victim survived, Zsasz begins to unravel. How can his target still be alive when he has already made the mark on his flesh?

Victims really gives readers a good insight into arguably the most important part of Victor's psychosis: the mark. Victor loves nothing more than carving his own flesh after taking a life, as it gives him a twisted purpose and satisfaction that he cannot find anywhere else. But what happens when it turns out that person survived and the tally is now rendered null and void? Victor cannot simply go out and kill somebody else; the tally mark he cut into his skin must represent the person it was meant for. 

Because of this unique psychosis, Victor is willing to risk capture by going after Alfred to finish the job, even though he knows both Batman and the police are waiting for him. These perverse "rules" that Zsasz lives by are exactly what make him such an interesting villain instead of a generic serial killer.

04.) The First Cut is the Deepest

by Alan Grant & Jennifer Graves

During his latest session at Arkham Asylum, Victor Zsasz recounts his origins to the psychologist, unveiling the events that made him into the bloodthirsty monster he is today.

What makes Victor's origin so interesting here is that it forgoes the typical tropes one would expect for a psychopath like him. There are not any abusive parents, traumatic events or a lack of support anywhere to be found here. In actuality, Victor had a splendid upbringing in a wealthy household complete with two loving parents. All throughout life, Victor never wanted for anything, already having unconditional love and all the material items he could possibly desire. However, this complete lack of hardship throughout Victor's life makes the sudden deaths of his parents in boating accident all the more difficult. Depressed from their passing, Victor soon turns to gambling, effectively losing his entire fortune to the Penguin at the Iceberg Lounge. 

For Zsasz to go from this to a complete psychopath might seem odd, but I think it makes total sense. Because he lived a seemingly "perfect" life for so long, Victor never knew pain or struggle, so when it hit him all at once, his mind couldn't handle it. Not only that, but since Victor always had everything handed to him, he never really had any goals or aspirations himself; he simply went through the motions of life, doing what society expected someone of his luxury to do. The First Cut is the Deepest cleverly showcases that having everything you want throughout life can ultimately backfire on you, as it can leave you deeply unsatisfied and unprepared for when cruel reality eventually catches up with you.

03.) Final Cut

by Paul Dini & Dustin Nyguen 

After unexpectedly saving Black Mask's life from Firefly, Victor Zsasz is rewarded with a massive sum of money from the crime lord. Zsasz uses this money to open and finance an underground gladiator arena, where orphaned children are kidnapped off the street and forced to fight to the death for the sadistic enjoyment of the paying customers. If any of the kids actually manage to win against their opponents, they must face one final challenger: Zsasz himself! However, when Damian Wayne and a mysterious boy named Colin are abducted and brought into the arena, things take a hairy turn.

Aside from maybe the Joker, Zsasz is often said to be Batman evilest rogue and Final Cut shows exactly why this is. Forcing children to kill each other for his own amusement is sick enough, but what Victor truly takes pleasure in is killing them himself and putting on a show for his equally twisted customers. This entire operation is really just a more lucrative way for Victor to do what he loves: murder innocent people. This arc shows off Victor's psychosis in an interesting way by having him envision brutally slaying everybody around him, even his own allies and henchmen, but suppressing those urges when they might be inconvenient for him.

Also of note in Final Cut is Zsasz's final confrontation with Damian and Colin. This battle shows how truly lethal Victor is and why he should never be underestimated. 

02.) Red Slash

by Doug Moench & Norm Breyfogle 

During the Knightfall event, Victor Zsasz has escaped from Arkham Asylum and taken a group of girls hostage at boarding school. Batman and the police must stop Zsasz before he kills all of the girls one by one. 

Here we have another straightforward premise executed superbly. Zsasz is truly frightening here as he sadistically taunts each of his hostages, assuring them that at least several of them will die while the others might have a chance. Of course, he has no intention of letting any of them go but will drag this night's events out for his own sick amusement. You can feel the terror and desperation of the girls as some want to fight back but the others are too scared to do anything but pray. 

Perhaps more than any other story on this list, Red Slash really does give off horror/slasher movie vibes, especially with Victor's choice of victims being a bunch of teenaged/young adult girls. There is also some great dialogue between him and Batman, as Victor lays out some startling similarities between the two, with the differences being their choice of targets and the fact that one of them refused to take life. Victor's taunts soon result in a brutal clash with the Caped Crusader, who has just about reached his physical and mental limit. 

01.) The Last Arkham 

by Alan Grant & Norm Breyfogle

After a series of familiar murders, Batman becomes convinced that Victor Zsasz has been escaping Arkham Asylum to continue his bloody work. Unable to prove this, the Dark Knight arranges for himself to be incarcerated within Arkham so he can catch Zsasz in the act. However, our hero soon gets more than he bargained for when he is subjected to the cruel "treatment" of Jeremiah Arkham, the asylum's administrator. 

Sometimes a character just cannot quite top their first appearance and Zsasz is a strong example of that. The Last Arkham immediately establishes Victor as a force to be reckoned with as not only is he a truly vile psychopath, but also a master manipulator who plays everybody around him to his own advantage. The scenes where he taunts Batman and pulls Jeremaih's strings are chilling, as it soon becomes clear that Zsasz is the only person who is truly in control here.

Other than the excellent portrayal of Victor Zsasz, The Last Arkham is an outstanding story for Batman in general, as few comics in the Dark Knight's catalogue showcase the madness and terror of Arkham Asylum so effectively. Arkham truly is a living hell (pun intended) that corrupts everyone and everything it comes into contact with, including Jeremiah himself. As such, Zsasz really is the perfect representation of the insanity that haunts the Asylum's halls.