The idea for the Peacock was a pretty simple one. If Cactus Joe is the TORCverse's Superman, and Death Moth is Batman, then it would make sense for Death Moth to have a Joker that he would have to deal with. But Death Moth already had a nemesis in Dr. Dendull, and to further complicate matters, Dr. Dendull used to be Doc Silver, who used to the Death Moth's partner (back when DM was a human superhero called Gold Hawk). So I had the idea, what if Death Moth was forced to work side by side with his original "Joker" from back in the Good Ole Superhero Days. What would that be like? And so, Peacock was born.
There were two major inspirations for the character of Peacock. The first was the version of the Joker that appears in Frank Miller's "Dark Knight Returns" and Grant Morrison's "Arkham Asylum". This version of the Joker, to me anyway, always seemed like he was attracted to Batman. He was like some lovesick puppy who only knew how to express his love for the Dark Knight by viciously slaughtering hundreds of people. It's the only way he knows he can get the attentions of his beloved, which kinda defines just how sick and twisted the Joker is inside. In DKReturns, there's even a scene where the Joker kidnaps and humiliates Batman's ex-lover Selena Kyle (an elderly Catwoman), as if to say, "I'm the only one for you, not her!" In the original script for "Arkham Asylum", Grant Morrison wanted to have the Joker in a dress. (Hell, while we're on the subject, in the movie "The Dark Knight", the Joker uses the old romantic line from... uh, that one Tom Cruise movie that I can't remember the name of... on Batman, "You complete me." As if to allude to the strangely (one sided) flirtatious nature of their relationship)
The other major influence on the character is Mr. 2 Bon Clay from Eichiro Oda's brilliant Japanese Manga "One Piece". Mr. 2 Bon Clay is a Ballet dancing, Karate Kicking Transvestite Pirate Captain who is one of the most colorful and entertaining characters in the series. A hyperactive weirdo, Mr. 2 starts out as a villain, but evolves into a very heroic and self-sacrificing character. I'm hoping to bring a little of that evolution to the character of the Peacock.
As for the design, like most of my designs, he just popped up fully formed in my mind, and I just sketched him once or twice to tweek the design and work out the bugs. He kinda looks like the bastard child of Killboy and Peyote Pete, y'know?
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