Potential spoilers for Batman 110 ahead!

DC Comics has introduced a new version of Killer Croc, named the Instigator. While the name may sound amusing, the Instigator is anything but funny, and takes drastic steps to get Ghost-Maker’s attention. In a special preview for the backup story in Batman #110, readers meet this new threat to Batman’s ally and learn just how brutal he is. The issue is on sale July 6 in print and digital.

Killer Croc is one of Batman’s most brutal villains, a man born with deformities that make him resemble a lizard. Growing up an outcast, he drifted to a life of crime, which brought him into conflict with Batman. The two have fought numerous times, with Croc being one of the most physically intense foes in Batman’s rogue’s gallery. In a hand-to-hand fight, Killer Croc’s sheer brute strength could easily overwhelm Batman’s, which forces the Dark Knight to outthink him. And now, Ghost-Maker and Harley Quinn are fighting a riff on Killer Croc, one who is just as vicious and sadistic.

Related: Batman Finds an Uneasy Ally in Killer Croc 

In the preview, readers meet the Instigator and learn of his backstory. At some point, Instigator was a regular human, one with a grudge against Ghost-Maker. As a human, Instigator believed that Ghost-Maker’s power was in his armor and that was all that made him a formidable fighter. Instigator eventually grew disillusioned with this idea and underwent treatments that made him into the reptilian behemoth he is today. To test his theory that Ghost-Maker’s armor was his “crutch,” Instigator killed two dozen people and scattered their bodies across the China Sea, as both clues and a challenge to Ghost-Maker. The preview ends with Instigator calling Ghost-Maker a “coward,” and Ghost-Maker, sans armor, is ready for a fight.

Batman, Ghost-Maker
Batman, Ghost-Maker
Batman, Ghost-Maker

The preview revealed nothing else about the Instigator, nor do readers see how his fight with Ghost-Maker turns out, yet the Instigator made quite the debut. While his name may sound silly, his actions are anything but—massacring two dozen people just to make a point, for instance; Killer Croc would appreciate that. Instigator definitely seems to have more resources at his disposal than Killer Croc, making him potentially even more dangerous. The main difference between the two is that Croc was born his way, whereas Instigator altered himself until he was no longer human, and this shows another reason why Instigator may be even more dangerous: he is so committed to his goals - in this case killing Ghost-Maker - that he is willing to go to great lengths to accomplish them, including turning himself into a human/alligator hybrid.

The Instigator is the newest addition to Batman’s rogue's gallery, and while it may be tempting to dismiss him as a Killer Croc knockoff, he is just as sadistic and vicious. The story, appearing in Batman #110, is written by James Tynion IV with art by Ricardo Lopez Ortiz, colors by Romulo Fajardo Jr and letters by Clayton Cowles.

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