 | |
| Arnold Flass | |
| Aliases: | Detective Flass |
| Continuity: | DC Universe |
| Notability: | Antagonist |
| Type: | Law enforcement |
| Occupation: | Detective |
| Gender: | Male |
| Race: | Human |
| Location: | Gotham City |
| Associations: | Gotham City Police Department |
| Status: | Deceased |
| First: | Batman #404 |
| Final: | Batman: Dark Victory #3 |
| Actor: | Mark Boone, Jr. Dash Mihok Fred Tatasciore |
Arnold Flass is a fictional police detective and a recurring antagonist featured in comic books published by DC Comics. He is associated with the Batman line of titles and first appeared in Batman #404 in February, 1987.
Biography[]
Arnold Flass was a police detective for the Gotham City Police Department during the time that Gillian B. Loeb was serving as police commissioner. Like many officers on the Gotham City Police Department at that time, Arnold Flass was as corrupt as they come. His illicit activity was conducted with the approval of Commissioner Loeb, who often turned a blind eye to Flass' extracurricular activities. He specialized in shakedowns and was always willing to accept a bribe – if the price was right. When affairs proved unsatisfactory, Flass and several of his cohorts would often resort to violent measures to assure the outcome of their goals.
Approximately three months before Batman's arrival, Flass was partnered with a lieutenant detective from Chicago – James W. Gordon. He attempted to bring Gordon into the department's fraternal fold, but he quickly realized that James was a man of strong moral fiber, one who refused to allow the department to corrupt him as it did everyone else.
Fearing that Gordon was not a "team player", some weeks later Flass obtained approval from Commissioner Loeb to teach the new lieutenant a valuable lesson. One evening, Flass and his cronies (also cops) waited for Gordon in the shadows of the parking garage at police headquarters. Donning ski masks, they mercilessly brutalized him with wooden baseball bats, careful not to allow him to be hospitalized. During the incident, Gordon recognized Flass' laughter from beneath his mask and swore to pay him back.
That same evening, Jim followed Arnold and his pals to the home of one of their friends. He patiently waited outside while the officers whiled away the evening. After everyone left, Gordon cornered an inebriated Flass and challenged him to a fight. Aware of Flass' military service, Gordon inwardly commented that it had been "fifteen years since [he] beat up a Green Beret." He even tossed Flass a baseball bat to help him even the odds. The bat did little good however, as Gordon quickly took him down. He handcuffed Flass with his own handcuffs and left him lying naked on the side of the road. The embarrassment of the situation guaranteed that Flass would not report the incident back to Loeb. [1]
Shortly thereafter, Gordon became a hero to the media, and Commissioner Loeb was forced to order his men to leave Jim alone – much to Flass' lament.
Flass continued with his underhanded operations however and even suffered through a chance encounter with the Batman. The crooked detective sensationalized the affair when he reported his findings to headquarters describing the Batman as a horrible demonic monster with fangs and flying fingernails. His ultimate downfall came at the hands of a man named Jefferson Skeevers. Skeevers was a narcotics dealer who frequently paid Flass substantial bribes insuring that the detective would "look the other way" while conducting business. Lieutenant Gordon found Skeevers, however, and arrested him. Initially, Jefferson was unwilling to reveal any incriminating information against Flass or Commissioner Loeb. Loeb even had Skeevers released on bail. [2]
A visit from the Batman changed all of that, however. Batman crept into Skeevers' hotel room and terrified him so immensely that the following day he went to police headquarters and filed a report with James Gordon. In the report, Skeevers revealed everything he knew about Flass and about Loeb. Gordon brought an indictment against Detective Flass, and he faced a sentence of ten years in prison. He made a deal with then-District Attorney Harvey Dent to testify against Loeb and the other corrupt officers on the force for leniency. [3]
After the GCPD, Flass eventually got a job working as a bouncer at a sleazy strip club called the Cheetah Room to make ends meet. He was outside for a cigarette break when he was murdered by the Hangman Killer. From the wounds on his fingers, he appeared to have put up a fight. [4]
Notes & Trivia[]
- The character of Arnold Flass was created by writer Frank Miller and artist David Mazzucchelli.
Related categories[]
See also[]
Batman Media
The World of Batman
Batman miscellaneous
External Links[]
Appearances[]
- Batman 404
- Batman 405
- Batman 407
- Batman: Dark Victory 3
- Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight Annual 2
Films
Gotham
- Gotham: Everyone Has a Cobblepot
- Gotham: Welcome Back, Jim Gordon
- Gotham: What the Little Bird Told Him