Scarecrow, aka Jonathan Crane, is a terrifying villain in the Batman: Arkham series, most notably in Batman: Arkham Knight, which cements him as the series' best villain over the Joker. The strength, resilience, and success that Scarecrow has over the course of the games make him the best villain in the series. The Joker is still the biggest villain from Batman: Arkham Origins through to Arkham Knight, but when it comes to actual villainry, Scarecrow has him beat in several ways, including effectively defeating Batman.
Scarecrow first appeared in Batman: Arkham Asylum as a secondary villain that served to slow Batman's progress as Joker got things ready for his big finale. Scarecrow challenged the Caped Crusader several times in Arkham Asylum by dosing him with fear gas and causing unsettling hallucinations. However, the Master of Fear was ultimately defeated and even appeared to have been eaten by Killer Croc. Crane didn't appear again until he was one of the main villains in Batman: Arkham Knight, but there were hints that he was still alive in Batman: Arkham City.
Surviving being mauled by Killer Croc is an impressive feat in and of itself, but Scarecrow also controlled his anger and acted rationally by planning his revenge slowly. Professor Crane's calculated moves allowed him to predict what Batman would do, and each time he encountered him in Batman: Arkham Knight, he had a twist that allowed him to get away. Scarecrow even momentarily turned Jim Gordon against Batman by using Barbara Gordon as a bargaining chip. Although Scarecrow likely got most of his intel and strategies from the eponymous Arkham Knight, he was able to execute the plan perfectly and ultimately ended up accomplishing his goal of unmasking the Bat.
Why Scarecrow Is Better Than Joker In Batman: Arkham
The Joker enacts many terrifying schemes in the Batman: Arkham series, whether that be the takeover of Arkham Asylum in the series' debut title or his plan to infect Gotham with his poisoned blood, but Crane's are arguably more diabolical. Scarecrow aims to strip hope away from all citizens and anyone who sees Batman as a hero in Gotham. Along with removing Batman's mask and revealing his identity to the world, Scarecrow also manages to successfully cover the entirety of Gotham City with a potent fear gas. Despite Batman trying to stop him every step of the way, Scarecrow creates a cloud of fear to drown the remaining citizens of Gotham in. Batman only disperses the gas because of Posion Ivy's sacrifice, but it didn't seem like he had any other options. Without Ivy's plants, Batman may have also succumbed to the fear gas and Gotham could have been completely destroyed by anyone still left after the evacuation.
The Joker's plans throughout the Batman: Arkham series are on a much smaller scale. In Batman: Arkham Asylum, Joker wanted to use the Titan formula to enhance himself, and in Batman: Arkham City, he was trying to use Batman to find a cure for the illness the Titan drug caused. Joker does manage to do plenty of damage, and even kills Talia in Batman: Arkham City, but he doesn't affect Gotham on the same scale that Scarecrow does. The mass panic and need for a citywide evacuation make Scarecrow a more daunting and grander villain in the games, even if he doesn't have any of Joker's flair to go with it.
Scarecrow Evades & Destroys Batman In Batman: Arkham Knight
The Dark Knight seems to have an idea of what every Batman: Arkham villain in Gotham is up to most of the time, but Scarecrow is able to successfully fly under his radar. While Scarecrow is presumed dead, he gets away with countless deadly experiments on many different individuals, and Batman doesn't notice at all. Scarecrow is able to refine his fear toxin through these experiments, which sets in motion the events of Batman: Arkham Knight. Scarecrow's ability to remain in the shadows and patiently plan his revenge makes him a great Batman villain. He is also smart enough to use his rumored death to his advantage and only recruits a few followers in order to preserve his secret.
During the events of Batman: Arkham Knight's story, Scarecrow manages to evade capture throughout and is only taken down by Batman after revealing his secret identity to the world. Each time Batman confronts Scarecrow, he has contingencies in place to ensure he escapes while the World's Greatest Detective is left behind, usually in some kind of explosion. Batman is often distracted by his hallucinations of Joker when he finds Scarecrow. However, the intensity of Joker's presence is possibly due to the fear toxin that Scarecrow keeps dosing him with. Scarecrow manages to use Barbara Gordon, Jim Gordon, and Tim Drake against Batman to make him do what he wants because he understands his greatest fears.
Scarecrow is arguably only successful because of the help he gets from the Arkham Knight (Jason Todd, who later becomes Batman: Arkham's Red Hood), but he's also intelligent enough to know he needs a partner to take Batman down. Unlike Joker, he doesn't mind sharing the spotlight to accomplish his goals. In the end, he wants to use fear to destroy Batman and take hope away from Gotham City. Scarecrow's efforts result in the end of Batman and the use of the Knightfall Protocol to completely destroy any remnants of the Bat and Bruce Wayne. While Joker was able to hurt Batman in various ways, he never truly beat him the way Scarecrow did in Batman: Arkham Knight.
Scarecrow Successfully Unmasks Batman In Arkham Knight
A variety of criminals attempt to take Batman down throughout the Batman: Arkham series, but Scarecrow actually succeeds in capturing and unmasking him. Scarecrow reveals to the world that Bruce Wayne is Batman, causing him to eventually enact the Knightfall Protocol. By the end of Batman: Arkham Knight, Bruce Wayne decides he can no longer be Batman, and even goes so far as to blow up Wayne Manor with Alfred and himself inside. Batman may have gotten the better of Scarecrow after the unmasking, but Scarecrow effectively ended Batman.
Joker nearly killed Batman by infecting him in Batman: Arkham City, but Scarecrow took the possibility of being the Caped Crusader away from Bruce Wayne. Bruce had to give up his home and his life in Gotham along with being Batman, so Scarecrow essentially won. Along with unmasking Batman, Scarecrow was able to cause a mass evacuation of Gotham and tore the remaining citizens apart with a potent fear toxin. Even though Batman, with the help of Poison Ivy (who may be alive in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League), dispersed the gas, plenty of damage was done beforehand. Although there are other heroes to pick up the pieces, the absence of Batman is a huge loss for the side of good in Gotham. Scarecrow changed the dynamic between Gotham's villains and heroes forever in the Batman: Arkham games, and that makes him the best villain in the series.