About
Secret Identity: Walter Joseph KovacsOccupation: Vigilante
Current Location: New York City, New York
Rorschach, born Walter Joseph Kovacs, is the son of Sylvia Kovacs, a prostitute, and "Charlie" (surname unknown). His mother was abusive and did not care for him. At the age of 10, after a fight with some bullies, during which he bit off one's ear and partially blinded another, Child Services investigated his home life and put him in a special home.
After finishing school, Kovacs took a job as an unskilled tailor, where he would pick up the fabric that he would wear as Rorschach. The fabric, a new material created by Dr. Manhattan, contains heat-sensitive liquids between layers of latex to create black-on-white shifting color. Kovacs recovered the material from a rejected dress that had been a special order by a young woman named Kitty Genovese. A short time later she was murdered, and when Kovacs read about the unresponsiveness of her neighbors, he became disgusted not only with crime but the underlying selfishness inherent in all people. He fashioned a mask from the dress, and began fighting crime as the vigilante Rorschach. Initially, Kovacs let the criminals live and left them for the police to arrest.
In 1975, he investigated the kidnapping of a young girl named Blair Roche. He was given the name of an abandoned dressmaker shop, where he finds a little girl's underwear in the stove and two dogs gnawing on a human bone. Believing that its occupant, a man named Gerald Grice, raped and killed Roche, Kovacs kills the dogs and waits for his arrival. When Grice comes back, Kovacs handcuffs him to a stove and pours kerosene around him. He then hands Grice a hacksaw, implying that he will have to cut off his own hand to escape, before setting the building on fire, killing Grice.
He merely has his will and technical abilities. Rorschach uses any and all weapons that are available at the time. Rorschach is well versed in street combat, gymnastics, and boxing. Rorschach is also relatively indifferent to physical pain and discomfort. Due to his time in juvenile detention facilities and group homes as a child he is as street savvy as any criminal. Rorschach also demonstrates the ability to break into a variety of locked buildings and homes, suggesting the expertise of a master thief. He is also shown to be extremely strong. Despite his mental instability, Rorschach was described as "tactically brilliant, and unpredictable" by Nite Owl, and possesses surprisingly good detective skills. During his childhood he was described as bright, and excelled in literature and religious education.
Comments
View All Comments