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Stanley "Mad Stan" Labowski was a nonconformist radical that went up against the "System."
History
Mindless Havoc
Mad Stan's origins and back-story remain largely untold, but at some point, in the futuristic Gotham, he became convinced that the system had become corrupted by bureaucracy, and people inhibited by technology and information overload. Stan figured that the only solution was to start anew by blowing it all up.
He armed himself with a wide spectrum of explosives and ran amok against the "Man". Despite Stan's maniacal personality, he did, however, have a softer and caring side. He adopted a pet Chihuahua which he tenderly cared for. Stan befittingly named the dog "Boom-Boom" and used him as an early warning system.
According to Bruce Wayne, Mad Stan was unstoppable when on a rant,[1] which was generally triggered by something on the news.[2]
One time, Mad Stan attempted to blow up a public library archive, claiming that society was crumbling due to the information overload that people could not absorb. He was foiled, though, after an intense battle with Batman.[1]
Despite his resolute purpose, Mad Stan's hot temperament usually got the better of him. So, all he accomplished most of the time was random destruction with his array of explosives. On one undocumented conflict with Batman, Mad Stan managed to inflict some damage to the Batsuit with a grenade.[3]
A Pawn in a Plot
During the re-election campaign of D.A. Sam Young, Mad Stan barged in the ball room, where Police Commissioner Barbara Gordon was hosting the gala, and attempted to detonate the entire facility. Batman confronted Stan and a battle ensued. Stan had rigged the entire facility with explosives, and blew up a few in his getaway. In the rooftop parking lot, he threatened to detonate the entire floor, but Batman promptly disarmed the bomb and knocked Stan unconscious. However, Spellbinder, who was lurking, generated an illusion that made Barbara Gordon see Batman murdering Stan in cold blood. Then, while Batman was being hunted down by the GPD, Spellbinder took Mad Stan's unconscious body and trapped him in one VR Room. There, Stan experienced his long sought dream: demolishing the Gotham City Hall. Eventually, he was found by the Police and presumably taken into custody.[4]
The Counterplay
Some time later, Stan was back to his agenda. He assaulted World's Science Symposium and caused a ruckus. He was intercepted by Batman but in the midst of the confusion, Stan eluded capture. Later that night, he stumbled upon Agent Bennett and some federal agents who were in pursuit of Zeta. However, deceived by its human disguise, Stan intervened and saved Zeta from the governments grip. Stan headed back home, where he found out, thanks to Boom-Boom, that Zeta was in fact a robot. Paranoid, Stan deduced that it was part of a conspiracy to get him. So, he decided to turn the tables on the "Man". Stan strapped a time bomb to Zeta's back and led it to the Department of Health. Stan wanted to blow it up to hinder the planned raise of taxes for pet licenses.
Stan had anticipated that Batman would track him down, so he left him a message and sedated himself, in order to avoid any kind of interrogation. In the recording, Stan gloated and taunted Batman, daring him to find Zeta until midnight, when the time-bomb was set to explode.
Mad Stan's plan was almost successful, but Batman eventually managed to thwart it.[2]
Abilities & Equipment
Stan was an expert with explosives, using a wide variety of bombs and grenades in his arsenal. He also possessed immense physical strength due to his huge physique thereby making him all the more dangerous of a combatant. Bruce Wayne described him as "unstoppable" when enraged. This manifested as apparently superhuman durability and endurance, though he eventually keeled over from the exertion and the beating he took, both of which he apparently ignored.
Appearances and References
Batman Beyond
- "Rats"
- "Babel" (Mentioned Only)
- "Eyewitness"
- "Countdown"