Content Warning: Major SPOILERS For DC's The Batman Are Discussed In This Article.
With The Batman finally out, fans have gotten perhaps the most menacing live-action portrayal of the Riddler yet. Paul Dano's rendition of the classic supervillain gave Robert Pattinson's Dark Knight -- as well as Jeffrey Wright's James Gordon -- a nightmarish case to solve. The shadowy serial killer left a bloody trail of breadcrumbs for the heroes to follow, which progressively looked to expose bombshells about Gotham City's history of corruption.
Since the Riddler is known for testing Batman's wit and detective prowess, he needed a meticulously thought-out plan to get the better of him. And as the story unraveled, he demonstrated a frightening level of intelligence, despite thankfully being thwarted in the end.
Forcing The D.A. To Reveal (Most) Of His Lies Live
This scene was one of the most teased from The Batman's trailer and overall marketing materials. Like with most officials in high positions of power within Gotham, District Attorney Gil Colson has long been associated with Carmine Falcone's mob circle. Pouncing on him leaving the Iceberg Lounge's secret club was the simple part, but attaching a collar bomb and forcing him to attack the mayor's funeral was where things got more gruesomely elaborate.
Taping Colson's phone to his hand and forcing Batman onto the scene set the stage perfectly for the Riddler to publically air the corrupt D.A.'s dirty laundry. Playing a lightning-round-like game of riddles and using Batman as a proxy made Colson admit to almost all of his crimes against the city, knowing that he still wouldn't give up the informant in the final riddle. It's what kept his brutal plan playing out longer, and an example of how the Riddler's cunning makes him one of Batman's greatest villains.
Amassing Extremist Followers To Carry Out Riddler's Plans After He's Arrested
Edward Nashton was able to enact a disturbing amount murders before Batman and Lieutenant Gordon were able to mitigate the full scope of his plans, but he certainly couldn't do it entirely alone. Similar to the World's Greatest Detective needing to team up with Gordon to save (most of) the day, the Riddler turned to the darkest corners of the internet and social media to get the tools he needed.
After the Batman and Riddler's tense interrogation, he discovers the password into the sadist's social media account where it's revealed he amassed over 500 radicalized acolytes to help him gather the weapons and explosives. It was heavily implied that he's been doing this steadily and without creating any suspicion for months, and it was a failsafe for when he was inevitably arrested.
Leading Batman & Gordon On A Wild Chase With The "El Rata Alada" Riddle
It was certainly one of the villain's most morbidly funny riddles in The Batman, as the mysterious identity of "el rata alada" resulted in the Dark Knight going on a mad car chase for the Penguin. Though it's very rough, that phrase translates to "the flying rat" from Spanish to English. This alludes to the fact that whoever the informant was had something about them related to a flying animal.
But, as revealed in the amusing back-and-forth between Penguin, Gordon, and Batman, the correct wording would be "la" not "el" rata alada. The superhero eventually deduces that the riddle starting with "you are el" was actually a clever play on words that referenced a website URL, leading to the site rataalada.com. It takes a lot to force one of DC Comics' greatest heroes' minds to work overtime like this, which speaks to the frightening efficiency that the Riddler's capable of.
Stationing Car Bombs Along Gotham's Seawalls
In an elaborate plan reminiscent of writer Scott Snyder and artist Greg Capullo's Batman: Zero Year comic book arc, the bigger picture of the Riddler's endgame was breaching Gotham City's seawalls. During the palpably tense interrogation of Nashton by Batman, the former mocks the hero for failing to recognize how much bigger the stakes of this gory game were.
He had secretly stationed car bombs along the sea walls set to detonate, resulting in flash floods so fast that evacuating citizens would be impossible. Batman at least managed to rush to mitigate the full scope of this attack, but the ensuing flooding and blackouts will assuredly have major ripple effects for the people of Gotham going forward.
Using Mayor-Elect Reál's Acceptance Venue To Ambush Survivors
As heinous as that plan was, the flood was only the first in a two-part endeavor for the Riddler's final act. The flash floods all around the city would prevent evacuation, but it would also force those surviving on Gotham's streets to use Mayor-elect Bella Reál's acceptance venue as a makeshift shelter.
From there, the villain turned his plan over to his faithful and radicalized fanatics to pick them off from the rafters. It was chilling how orchestrated the plan was, and while Batman thankfully caught on just before it was too late, how far the Riddler managed to get will leave a long-standing scar on the city. And if it wasn't for both the Dark Knight and Lieutenant Gordon's quick-thinking, the Mayor-elect wouldn't have survived either.
Forcing Gotham City Into Martial Law
In the aftermath of the Riddler's partially-thwarted attack, Bruce Wayne is heard narrating his journal on the challenges ahead and how he'll need to evolve into something more for Gotham to recover and have a prosperous future. One of the obstacles the city will collectively face is the incoming power plays made by what's left of the city's criminal underworld.
Many -- including the Penguin -- will desperately try to fill the void that Carmine "The Roman" Falcone left when the Riddler assassinated him. This, and the inevitable sequel, seems heavily inspired by the sprawling Batman: No Man's Land comic book arc where an earthquake has the rest of the U.S. declare Gotham a quarantine zone. Given that context, the ensuing mayhem that'll occur under martial law could make the city eat itself.