Doctor Phosphorus (Alexander James Sartorius) is a

supervillain A supervillain, supervillainess or supercriminal is a major antagonist and variant of the villainous stock character who possesses Superpower (ability), superpowers. The character type is sometimes found in comic books and is often the primary ...

who has appeared in various

comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

series published by

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

. Primarily an enemy of

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

, the villain exists in DC's main shared universe, known as the

DC Universe The DC Universe (DCU) is the shared universe in which most stories in American comic book titles published by DC Comics take place. In context, the term "DC Universe" usually refers to the main DC Continuity (fiction), continuity. It contains v ...

. Doctor Phosphorus appears in the

series ''

Creature Commandos The Creature Commandos are the name of several military special forces groups appearing in American comic book, American comic books published by DC Comics. Co-created by writer J. M. DeMatteis and artist Pat Broderick, the team first appeared i ...

'', voiced by

Alan Tudyk Alan Wray Tudyk ( ; born March 16, 1971) is an American actor. His film work includes roles in '' 28 Days'' (2000), '' A Knight's Tale'' (2001), '' Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story'' (2004), voice and motion capture for Sonny in '' I, Robot'' (2 ...

Publication history

Doctor Phosphorus first appeared in ''

Detective Comics ''Detective Comics'' (later retitled as ''Batman Detective Comics'') is an American comic book series published by Detective Comics, later shortened to DC Comics. The first volume, published from 1937 to 2011 (and later continued in 2016), is ...

'' #469 (May 1977), and was created by writer

Steve Englehart Steve Englehart (; born April 22, 1947) is an American writer of comic books and novels. He is best known for his work at Marvel Comics and DC Comics in the 1970s and 1980s. His pseudonyms have included John Harkness and Cliff Garnett. Early li ...

and artist

Walt Simonson Walter Simonson (born September 2, 1946) is an American comic book writer and artist, best known for a run on Marvel Comics' ''Thor'' from 1983 to 1987, during which he created the character Beta Ray Bill. He is also known for the creator-owned ...

Fictional character biography

Alexander Sartorius was a member of the Tobacconists' Club who wanted to build a nuclear power plant in

Gotham City Gotham City ( ), or simply Gotham, is a fictional city in the Northeastern United States that serves as the primary city appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. It is best known as the home of the superhero Batman and his List ...

with help from chairman

Rupert Thorne Rupert Thorne is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The character is a crime boss and enemy of Batman. Thorne has made several appearances in animated DC media, such as '' Batman: The Animated Series'', in whic ...

. However, he was forced to build elsewhere following public opposition and was transformed into a metahuman during a meltdown at the plant, gaining transparent, burning skin and the ability to generate harmful radiation. He then battled Batman before falling into a nuclear reactor and being presumed dead. During the ''

Underworld Unleashed ''Underworld Unleashed'' was a multi-title American comic book crossover event released by DC Comics in 1995. The main theme of ''Underworld Unleashed'' involved the new ruler of Hell, a demon-lord named Neron, offering first many of the DC Un ...

'' storyline, Phosphorus sells his soul to the demon Neron to gain increased control over his powers. In James Robinson's series '' Starman'', Phosphorus battles Starman and douses him with radiation that will soon kill him. In response, Starman uses his cosmic rod to bury Phosphorus deep underground, apparently killing him. Phosphorus returns in ''Detective Comics'' #825, where he is being held in

Cadmus In Greek mythology, Cadmus (; ) was the legendary Phoenician founder of Boeotian Thebes, Greece, Thebes. He was, alongside Perseus and Bellerophon, the greatest hero and slayer of monsters before the days of Heracles. Commonly stated to be a ...

Research laboratories. Cadmus scientists discover that he is no longer human and has had his organs replaced by energy. He eventually escapes before being defeated by Batman and imprisoned in

Arkham Asylum Arkham Asylum () is a fictional psychiatric hospital appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in stories featuring Batman. It first appeared in ''Batman'' #258 (October 1974), written by Dennis O'Neil with art by Irv N ...

. During Batman's absence after his presumed death, Phosphorus escapes custody and kidnaps Kirk Langstrom and his wife

Francine :''This is a disambiguation page for the common name Francine.'' Francine is a female given name. The name is of French origin. The name Francine was most popular in France itself during the 1940s (Besnard & Desplanques, 2003), and was well used ...

for information about their research. However, Kirk stops him after transforming into Man-Bat. In ''

Brightest Day ''Brightest Day'' is a 2010–2011 Crossover (comics), crossover storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of a year-long comic book Limited series (comics), maxiseries that began in April 2010, and a number of tie-in books. The story is a dir ...

'', Phosphorus escapes Arkham when

Deathstroke Deathstroke is a character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez, the character first appeared in ''The New Teen Titans'' #2 (December 1980) as Deathstroke the Terminator. In his co ...

and the

Titans In Greek mythology, the Titans ( ; ) were the pre-Twelve Olympians, Olympian gods. According to the ''Theogony'' of Hesiod, they were the twelve children of the primordial parents Uranus (mythology), Uranus (Sky) and Gaia (Earth). The six male ...

attack the facility before being stopped by

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

. In 2011,

The New 52 The New 52 was the 2011 revamp and relaunch by DC Comics of its entire Line (comics), line of ongoing monthly superhero American comic books, comic books. Following the conclusion of the "Flashpoint (comics), Flashpoint" Fictional crossover, cros ...

rebooted the DC Comics universe. In this new continuity, Phosphorus appears as a member of the

Secret Society of Super Villains Secret Society of Super Villains (SSoSV) is a DC Comics title that debuted in May–June 1976. The series presented a group of DC's supervillains, mostly foes of the Justice League, Justice League of America. The series was cancelled with issue #1 ...

. In '' Batman: Three Jokers'', Doctor Phosphorus is incarcerated at

Blackgate Penitentiary This page lists the locations in the DC Universe, the shared universe setting of DC Comics. Sites Arrowcave The Arrowcave is the former base of operations of the Green Arrow and Speedy. Avernus Cemetery Avernus Cemetery is a hidden burial gro ...

when Batman goes there to see

Joe Chill Joe Chill is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of ...

Powers and abilities

Doctor Phosphorus has the ability to manipulate radiation for various effects, such as burning skin and toxic fume emissions. His body's major

organs In a multicellular organism, an organ is a collection of tissues joined in a structural unit to serve a common function. In the hierarchy of life, an organ lies between tissue and an organ system. Tissues are formed from same type cells to a ...

are not present, but he produces an endless source of energy for himself. When he sold his soul to Neron, Sartorius was granted greater powers, as well as temperature control.

Other versions

An alternate universe variant of Doctor Phosphorus appears in '' Flashpoint''.

In other media

Television

* Doctor Phosphorus was used as inspiration for '' The Batman''s incarnation of

Firefly The Lampyridae are a family of elateroid beetles with more than 2,000 described species, many of which are light-emitting. They are soft-bodied beetles commonly called fireflies, lightning bugs, or glowworms for their conspicuous production ...

(voiced by

Jason Marsden Jason Christopher Marsden (born January 3, 1975) is an American actor, director and producer, who has done numerous voice roles in animated films, as well as various television series and video games. He is best known for his voice roles as the ...

). In the episode "White Heat", Firefly and his girlfriend, Dr. Jane Blazedale attempts to steal a phosphorus isotope so he can upgrade his arsenal. However, an accident occurs that turns Firefly into Phosphorus, granting him volcanic physiology, fiery skin, and a burning touch. As he slowly goes insane, he attempts to destroy Gotham in retaliation for no one being able to remember his name, only to be defeated by Batman. * Alexander "Alex" Sartorius / Doctor Phosphorus appears in ''

'', voiced by

. This version is an inmate of Belle Reve Penitentiary's Non-Human Internment Division, former scientist turned crime boss, widower to an immigrant woman named Parvin, and member of the eponymous group. In flashbacks, Alex sought out industrialist and crime lord

's help in funding research to cure cancer via nuclear fusion while secretly giving Thorne falsified data due to the latter's involvement with the fascist nation of

Bialya This page lists the locations in the DC Universe, the shared universe setting of DC Comics. Sites Arrowcave The Arrowcave is the former base of operations of the Green Arrow and Speedy. Avernus Cemetery Avernus Cemetery is a hidden burial grou ...

. Upon discovering this, Thorne had Parvin and the Sartoriuses' son killed, framed Alex for it, and attempted to kill him with his nuclear equipment. Following his transformation, Alex went insane, killed Thorne and his family, and took over his criminal empire until he was defeated by Batman and sent to Belle Reve.

Film

Doctor Phosphorus appears in ''

The Lego Batman Movie ''The Lego Batman Movie'' is a 2017 animated superhero comedy film, based on characters created by DC Comics and the Lego Batman toy line. It was directed by Chris McKay (in his feature directorial debut) from a screenplay that is based on a ...

''.

Video games

* Doctor Phosphorus appears as a character summon in '' Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure''. * Dr. Alex Sartorius appears in '' Batman: Arkham Knight'' via

Simon Stagg Simon Stagg is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, serving primarily as an antagonist to the superhero Metamorpho in most comic book stories and their adaptations. He is responsible for turning Rex Mason ...

's audiotapes. This version was raised as a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, but chose science over faith and became an employee at Stagg Industries. He later discovers that Stagg is collaborating with the

Scarecrow A scarecrow is a decoy or mannequin that is often in the shape of a human. Humanoid scarecrows are usually dressed in old clothes and placed in open fields to discourage birds from disturbing and feeding on recently cast seed and growing crops. ...

to develop the Cloudburst technology and is exposed to the latter's fear toxin, causing him to develop

pyrophobia Pyrophobia is a fear of fire, which can be considered irrational if beyond what is considered normal. This phobia is ancient and primordial, perhaps since humanity's discovery of fire. Usually pertaining to humans' comprehensible reaction to fi ...

Miscellaneous

Doctor Phosphorus appears in ''

Smallville Season 11 ''Smallville'' is an American superhero television series developed by writer-producers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, based on the DC Comics character Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The series was produced by Millar/Gough ...

: Titans''.''Smallville Special Titans''

References

External links

Doctor Phosphorus
at Comic Vine {{Starman Fictional characters who have made pacts with devils Fictional characters with energy-manipulation abilities Fictional characters with fire or heat abilities Fictional characters with nuclear or radiation abilities DC Comics scientists DC Comics supervillains DC Comics metahumans Comics characters introduced in 1977 Characters created by Steve Englehart Characters created by Walt Simonson Batman characters Fictional nuclear physicists de:Schurken im Batman-Universum#Doctor Phosphorus