Terriers in the DC universe
Dec. 31st, 2011 11:40 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
seriousficSometimes there's a bit of fanon that I actually wish someone would run with. I would genuinely buy a Batgirl Mystery Club title. Hey, here's another band of misfits Scott Free could run into that could be considered a stealth pilot: Riddle Me This Detective Agency.
Basically, a Renee Montoya/Edward Nygma buddy comedy.
Yes.
Renee Montoya: In this AU, Vic Sage never got cancer, so Renee kept riding her suspension into a downward spiral. One night, in a drunken rage, she took a shot at Jim Corrigan, Crispus Allen's killer. The sad part is, she hit. She was cop enough to cover her tracks, but people read between the lines. That was the end of her career in the GCPD. So now Renee's what you might jokingly call a functional alcoholic, working in a detective agency with a joke of an ex-supervillain. Dealing with the guilt of something she won't even admit she was wrong about.
Eddie Nygma: Eddie always fancied that he'd end up a folk hero. After all, his crimes were meticulously crafted so that he never fired a shot. In a fight with a psychopath who dressed up as a bat, how could anyone side against the man in a smart green suit? But slowly and surely, Eddie's become a has-been. The death of Batman was the last straw. His neurosis now says that the only way Eddie can "defeat" Batman now is to be a better crimefighter than he ever was. So he's burnt his old tights once and for all (in their backyard, to Renee's disgust. "Is that polyester?") and gone straight.
Rolling off his Neil Gaiman story, Eddie's an analog man in a digital world. Just like in fandom, Eddie is seen as a bit of a joke, which we'll play for sympathy. As he complains, the Joker gets hot psychiatrists falling in love with him. All Eddie got was a kiss from Poison Ivy once, and he was in the hospital for three weeks. He actually collects and geeks out over the giant typewriters and such of Old Gotham, storing them in the warehouse where the detective agency is located (leading to some interesting scenery as they discuss cases). And Eddie's actually trying to get help for his riddling compulsion (here played for a bit of drama; we'll go into exactly why he has this fixation with proving he's the smartest and it ain't pretty) and as he continues to get treatment from Dr. Quinn, there's always the possibility that he will be cured and go back to a life of crime.
Our heroes: They're basically a Sherlock/Watson duo, with Eddie being capable of Sherlock-scanning just about everything. Only it's not a case of the great detective and his bumbling sidekick. Eddie can't fight worth a damn (which is why he keeps a taser in his walking stick; shh), Renee has a right hook that can knock you into next week. Eddie knows super-crime, but Renee knows gangbangers and Mob types. Renee can turn on the charm and intimidation to interrogate someone, while all Eddie can do is make snide accusations. Eddie is book-smart, Renee is street-smart. And ironically, as an ex-con, Eddie is on the straight and narrow, while Renee is as self-destructive and irresponsible as they come. These two need each other, not that they'd admit it under pain of death.
The support: Harvey Bullock, Renee's old partner, still slips them a case now and then. The fact that he actually approves of Corrigan's killing is a real test for Renee; he means well, but he's an enabler. Two-Face hates the Riddler on general principle, but loves Renee, so he's their go-between with Red Hood's faction. Kate Kane, naturally, acts on behalf of Team Grayson in both her civilian and superhero identities. Only Renee doesn't know she's Batwoman, so we get the classic secret identity problems as seen from the other side. All those sudden exits and half-baked excuses... it's no wonder Renee would get the idea that Kate is cheating on her. It's when she tells Eddie to get the lowdown on her that shenanigans ensue.
Margo (formerly Query, of Echo and Query, Riddler's henchgirls) owns the warehouse that Eddie's office space is located in. She's letting them stay as a favor to Eddie, who she's always had a soft spot for (Eddie was so shy around the girls that they thought they were his faghags; they much preferred that over working with the Penguin, who couldn't keep his flippers to themselves). She's, you know, the landlord.
Finally, Magpie (here, her replica "shinies" are less lethal and more annoying) is trying to make a name for herself as a supervillain, and decided the best way to do that is to become the "Catwoman" to some hero's Batman. There's decidedly little interest, but she eventually falls in with Eddie, who has decided that the best way to be "Batman" is to have a "Catwoman." Naturally, no one cares.
Eddie: Don't you disapprove? I'm being tempted by a dangerous supervillain!
Renee: I am trying to play Words With Friends. Shoo.
Eddie: Answer's 'fluorescence'.
In keeping with the lampoon of Bat-canon, Magpie tends to wear a variety of ridiculously revealing costumes which inevitably prove ill-suited to doing much of anything. So, basically, she's the anti-Emma Frost.
The case: In addition to the usual PI craziness, there's an overarching story. A serial killer is stalking the city... and he's calling himself the Riddler. Taking a page from Arkham City Riddler and the fanon Nolanized Riddler, this Scorpio wannabe is playing for keeps. Naturally, Eddie is scandalized that someone is tarnishing his good name, and also killing people Saw-style for watching reality TV. But in the end, will Renee believe him when he says he's innocent or will she turn him in to get back on the force?
Straight-up, this isn't a series about being Gotham's Dark Knight, or any sort of super-ninja uber-detective sex god. It's about the other guys, the little guys. The people who, at the end of the day, aren't drowning in man-pain while posing on gargoyles; they're clocking out, going home, and popping an Advil.
Tl;dr smartly-dressed ex-criminal genius in green teams with tough-as-nails lesbian ex-cop in a tanktop. Awesome ensues.
Basically, a Renee Montoya/Edward Nygma buddy comedy.
Yes.
Renee Montoya: In this AU, Vic Sage never got cancer, so Renee kept riding her suspension into a downward spiral. One night, in a drunken rage, she took a shot at Jim Corrigan, Crispus Allen's killer. The sad part is, she hit. She was cop enough to cover her tracks, but people read between the lines. That was the end of her career in the GCPD. So now Renee's what you might jokingly call a functional alcoholic, working in a detective agency with a joke of an ex-supervillain. Dealing with the guilt of something she won't even admit she was wrong about.
Eddie Nygma: Eddie always fancied that he'd end up a folk hero. After all, his crimes were meticulously crafted so that he never fired a shot. In a fight with a psychopath who dressed up as a bat, how could anyone side against the man in a smart green suit? But slowly and surely, Eddie's become a has-been. The death of Batman was the last straw. His neurosis now says that the only way Eddie can "defeat" Batman now is to be a better crimefighter than he ever was. So he's burnt his old tights once and for all (in their backyard, to Renee's disgust. "Is that polyester?") and gone straight.
Rolling off his Neil Gaiman story, Eddie's an analog man in a digital world. Just like in fandom, Eddie is seen as a bit of a joke, which we'll play for sympathy. As he complains, the Joker gets hot psychiatrists falling in love with him. All Eddie got was a kiss from Poison Ivy once, and he was in the hospital for three weeks. He actually collects and geeks out over the giant typewriters and such of Old Gotham, storing them in the warehouse where the detective agency is located (leading to some interesting scenery as they discuss cases). And Eddie's actually trying to get help for his riddling compulsion (here played for a bit of drama; we'll go into exactly why he has this fixation with proving he's the smartest and it ain't pretty) and as he continues to get treatment from Dr. Quinn, there's always the possibility that he will be cured and go back to a life of crime.
Our heroes: They're basically a Sherlock/Watson duo, with Eddie being capable of Sherlock-scanning just about everything. Only it's not a case of the great detective and his bumbling sidekick. Eddie can't fight worth a damn (which is why he keeps a taser in his walking stick; shh), Renee has a right hook that can knock you into next week. Eddie knows super-crime, but Renee knows gangbangers and Mob types. Renee can turn on the charm and intimidation to interrogate someone, while all Eddie can do is make snide accusations. Eddie is book-smart, Renee is street-smart. And ironically, as an ex-con, Eddie is on the straight and narrow, while Renee is as self-destructive and irresponsible as they come. These two need each other, not that they'd admit it under pain of death.
The support: Harvey Bullock, Renee's old partner, still slips them a case now and then. The fact that he actually approves of Corrigan's killing is a real test for Renee; he means well, but he's an enabler. Two-Face hates the Riddler on general principle, but loves Renee, so he's their go-between with Red Hood's faction. Kate Kane, naturally, acts on behalf of Team Grayson in both her civilian and superhero identities. Only Renee doesn't know she's Batwoman, so we get the classic secret identity problems as seen from the other side. All those sudden exits and half-baked excuses... it's no wonder Renee would get the idea that Kate is cheating on her. It's when she tells Eddie to get the lowdown on her that shenanigans ensue.
Margo (formerly Query, of Echo and Query, Riddler's henchgirls) owns the warehouse that Eddie's office space is located in. She's letting them stay as a favor to Eddie, who she's always had a soft spot for (Eddie was so shy around the girls that they thought they were his faghags; they much preferred that over working with the Penguin, who couldn't keep his flippers to themselves). She's, you know, the landlord.
Finally, Magpie (here, her replica "shinies" are less lethal and more annoying) is trying to make a name for herself as a supervillain, and decided the best way to do that is to become the "Catwoman" to some hero's Batman. There's decidedly little interest, but she eventually falls in with Eddie, who has decided that the best way to be "Batman" is to have a "Catwoman." Naturally, no one cares.
Eddie: Don't you disapprove? I'm being tempted by a dangerous supervillain!
Renee: I am trying to play Words With Friends. Shoo.
Eddie: Answer's 'fluorescence'.
In keeping with the lampoon of Bat-canon, Magpie tends to wear a variety of ridiculously revealing costumes which inevitably prove ill-suited to doing much of anything. So, basically, she's the anti-Emma Frost.
The case: In addition to the usual PI craziness, there's an overarching story. A serial killer is stalking the city... and he's calling himself the Riddler. Taking a page from Arkham City Riddler and the fanon Nolanized Riddler, this Scorpio wannabe is playing for keeps. Naturally, Eddie is scandalized that someone is tarnishing his good name, and also killing people Saw-style for watching reality TV. But in the end, will Renee believe him when he says he's innocent or will she turn him in to get back on the force?
Straight-up, this isn't a series about being Gotham's Dark Knight, or any sort of super-ninja uber-detective sex god. It's about the other guys, the little guys. The people who, at the end of the day, aren't drowning in man-pain while posing on gargoyles; they're clocking out, going home, and popping an Advil.
Tl;dr smartly-dressed ex-criminal genius in green teams with tough-as-nails lesbian ex-cop in a tanktop. Awesome ensues.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2011-12-31 10:07 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-12-31 10:59 pm (UTC)Quoi?
no subject
Date: 2012-01-01 02:24 am (UTC)Basically, I want to do that, then have Edward Nygma hit him a lot with a question mark-shaped cane.
no subject
Date: 2012-01-01 12:08 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-01-02 12:33 am (UTC)Great stuff in any event. About the riddle killer, how about the Puzzler? He was actually around before Eddie.
-Nobody
no subject
Date: 2012-01-02 12:41 am (UTC)