#52 - Carmine Falcone
First Appearance: Batman #404 (Feb 1987)
"People from your world have so much to lose. Now, you think because your mommy and your daddy got shot, you know about the ugly side of life, but you don't. You've never tasted desperate. You're, uh, you're Bruce Wayne, the Prince of Gotham; you'd have to go a thousand miles to meet someone who didn't know your name. So, don't come down here with your anger, trying to prove something to yourself. This is a world you'll never understand. And you always fear what you don't understand." ~Carmine Falcone
I could talk about the fantastic character that was an essential part of Batman's early career in comics. I could talk about one of the focal points of Batman: Year One that is Falcone, or the main fixture of Long Halloween that is The Roman. I could talk about his legacy that spreads out from Dark Victory into nearly every facet of the Batman mythos.
But I won't.
Instead, let's talk about the performance of Tom Wilkinson as Falcone in Batman Begins, one that I think really defines the transition of Gotham from a town controlled by a mob to a town controlled by villains. Falcone has Gotham in a death grip at the beginning of Batman Begins, and it's so well-defined by Falcone's earned arrogance. He bristles with unbridled power in his early confrontation with Bruce Wayne, and yet when he faces the Bat, everything begins to change. The symbolism of vigilantes and supervillains is something that Falcone cannot overcome. In fact, he becomes defined by it; he BECOMES the Bat-signal and is swallowed by the madness and fear of the Scarecrow. Gotham is being cured of an illness and simultaneously developing an unexpected side effect, and the old world mentality of Falcone is being swept away. I found the plight of Falcone to be a moving one, one that deserves more recognition in the Batman franchise.
Greatest Carmine Falcone Story Ever Told: The Long Halloween - When you play with fire, you're gonna get burnt. And Carmine, when you play with supervillains, you're going to get killed. The fall of the most powerful man in Gotham is a riveting, dark journey.