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'''Baron von Rotten''', also known as '''{{PAGENAME}}''', is the main antagonist, portrayed by [[Christopher Lloyd]] in the film ''[[Who Framed Roger Rabbit (film)|Who Framed Roger Rabbit]]''. He is the much-feared Judge of [[Toontown]]. Despite presiding over a city of [[:Category:Toons|Toons]], Doom is totally without mirth and passes capital punishment on Toons who break the law, placing them in a chemical vat of turpentine, acetone, and benzene (paint thinner) which he dubs the "[[The Dip|Dip]]". This concoction will dissolve Toons, permanently murdering them when submerged. The Judge employs his Toon henchmen (the [[Toon Patrol]]) to assist him in hunting down [[Roger Rabbit (character)|Roger Rabbit]] for the murder of [[Marvin Acme]]. | |||
== Appearances == | |||
Doom wears a black ensemble which includes a trenchcoat, a fedora, gloves, and rimless yellow-tinted glasses. He also carries a pocketwatch and a swordstick that also serves as a walking stick. | |||
Judge Doom | == Personality == | ||
Judge Doom started off as a xenophobic austere judge who holds a hatred towards Toons, even abusing his own Toon Patrol when they laugh at something amusing. However, this was shown to be a facade to cover his true nature as a heartless, psychopathic, homicidal, manipulative, and pitiless Toon who enjoys doing terrible acts for his own pleasure, even gleefully boasting to a shocked [[Eddie Valiant]] that he killed Eddie's brother [[Teddy Valiant|Teddy]]. He is also described as evil, murderous, fearsome, stingy, abusive, cruel, cold-blooded, merciless, chicken-hearted, calculating, monstrous, relentless, prideful, petty, loathsome, intimidating, serious, strict, power-hungry, hammy (at times), brilliant, accountable, rational, obstinate, negative, violent, organized, no-nonsense, reasonable, obsessive, nightmarish, testy, thoughtless, efficient, and nasty. | |||
Doom | == Powers and abilities == | ||
In his human guise, Doom uses his skull-headed swordstick and ACME products to fight Valiant. While in his toon form, he has evil red eyes and a squeaky voice, and is able to produce an arsenal of tools from his body which he can employ as weapons, including a buzzsaw and an anvil. He uses springs in his feet to jump far distances, and (like most toons) can survive anything but his own dip, which dissolves him to his death. | |||
When the film first introduces Judge Doom, Lt. Santino confides to Eddie Valiant that Doom bought the election. Later, at the Terminal Bar, Doom uses the "Shave and a Haircut" trick to lure Roger out, then prepares to execute him. After a brief scuffle inside the bar, the Judge orders the weasels to capture Roger and Eddie Valiant. Roger realizes he's in trouble with Doom after him, and begs Eddie to hide him. When Eddie learns that studio head R.K. Maroon is connected to the plot to frame Roger, Eddie interrogates him, but Maroon pleads that he is "a dead man" if he confesses. Just as Maroon is about to spill everything, he is killed by an unseen gunman who nearly shoots Eddie as well. | == History == | ||
When the film first introduces Judge Doom, [[Lt. Santino]] confides to Eddie Valiant that Doom bought the election. Later, at the Terminal Bar, Doom uses the "Shave and a Haircut" trick to lure Roger out, then prepares to execute him. After a brief scuffle inside the bar, the Judge orders the weasels to capture Roger and Eddie Valiant. Roger realizes he's in trouble with Doom after him, and begs Eddie to hide him. When Eddie learns that studio head R.K. Maroon is connected to the plot to frame Roger, Eddie interrogates him, but Maroon pleads that he is "a dead man" if he confesses. Just as Maroon is about to spill everything, he is killed by an unseen gunman who nearly shoots Eddie as well. | |||
Upon chasing the killer to Toontown, Eddie catches Jessica Rabbit, thinking she's the murderer, but Jessica reveals that Judge Doom was the one who killed Acme and Maroon. At the film's climax, Doom traps Eddie, Jessica, and Roger in the Acme Factory to explain his scheme: Literally erase Toontown from the map using a giant, mobile vat of Dip linked to a high-pressure water cannon, and then build a freeway over it. Doom then plans to retire from being a judge and control all the profits from the new road system. Doom also reveals that he is the sole stockholder of Cloverleaf Industries, and explains that he bought the "red car" (a variant on the name of the Pacific Electric Railway) for the sole purpose of putting it out of commission. He then orders Jessica and Roger Rabbit to be tied up and raised into the air via skyhook to be sprayed by the Dip cannon. | Upon chasing the killer to Toontown, Eddie catches [[Jessica Rabbit]], thinking she's the murderer, but Jessica reveals that Judge Doom was the one who killed both Acme and Maroon. At the film's climax, Doom traps Eddie, Jessica, and Roger in the Acme Factory to explain his scheme: Literally erase Toontown from the map using [[Dipmobile|a giant, mobile vat of Dip linked to a high-pressure water cannon]], and then build a freeway over it. Doom then plans to retire from being a judge and control all the profits from the new road system. Doom also reveals that he is the sole stockholder of Cloverleaf Industries, and explains that he bought the "red car" (a variant on the name of the Pacific Electric Railway) for the sole purpose of putting it out of commission. He then orders Jessica and Roger Rabbit to be tied up and raised into the air via skyhook to be sprayed by the Dip cannon. | ||
Valiant escapes and defeats the weasels then attempts to rescue Roger and Jessica when he is interrupted by Doom. The two men then square off, duelling with various ACME props. During the fight, Judge Doom is run over by a steamroller. He survives | Valiant escapes and defeats the weasels, then attempts to rescue Roger and Jessica when he is interrupted by Doom. The two men then square off, duelling with various ACME props. During the fight, Judge Doom is run over by a steamroller. He survives, revealing himself as a toon. Doom re-inflates himself with a helium gas tank. As he does so, Doom's hat pop off of him and his eyes popped out as well, revealing them to be fake. After Doom re-inflates himself with a helium gas tank, he reveals himself, much to Eddie's horror, as the same Toon who murdered Eddie's brother, Teddy Valiant, thus triggering his hatred towards Toons and explaining how Doom managed to buy the judicial election and the trolley car company. His voice grew higher until it reaches a horrifyingly high pitch and his eyes turn to daggers, showing Doom's intent that he is now out to kill him, as well. Doom taunts Eddie and exhibits his hidden Toon powers, leaping after Eddie with springs in his shoes, changing his right hand into a massive anvil and a circular saw. After Eddie breaks open a vat of Dip with a boxing glove hammer, Doom is doused in his own Dip. While he is dissolving to his death, he shrieks the familiar "melting" lines of the Wicked Witch of the West, cursing Eddie. Following Doom's death, his scheme is finally exposed and all charges against Roger are dropped. | ||
== Graphic novel version == | |||
In the graphic novel ''[[Roger Rabbit: The Resurrection of Doom]]'', it is explained that Doom was originally a Toon named Baron von Rotten, who took up the role of playing the antagonist in animated movies, until a filming accident in which he suffered a concussion, and awakens believing he is a real villain. Von Rotten thus begins his crime career, robbing the First National Bank of Toontown, then killing Teddy Valiant by dropping a piano on his head from 15 stories, and spreading the stolen money all over the town in order to buy the election for Judge of Toontown, assuming the new name of Judge Doom. | |||
== Trivia == | |||
* Before Christopher Lloyd was cast in the role, Tim Curry auditioned for the role, but the producers thought his performance was too scary. | |||
** John Cleese expressed interest in playing Doom, but both [[Wikipedia: Steven Spielberg|Steven Spielberg]] and [[Robert Zemeckis]] refused, thinking nobody would take a former member of Monty Python seriously as a sadistic villain. | |||
** Christopher Lee was considered for the role, but turned it down. | |||
** Roddy McDowall, Eddie Deezen, and Sting were all considered for the role as well.<ref>[https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/62910/15-things-you-might-not-know-about-who-framed-roger-rabbit 15 Things You Might Not Know About Who Framed Roger Rabbit | Mental Floss]</ref> | |||
* Doom's death is an allusion to the Wicked Witch of the West's death in [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]]'s ''The Wizard of Oz'', as they both melt while shouting, "I'm melting! Melting!". | |||
** In addition, both have weaknesses to liquid. The Witch's demise comes from water while Judge Doom's demise is the Dip. | |||
* The character was originally going to have an animated pet vulture (one of the two that appeared in ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'') named [[Voltaire]] (after the French philosopher) that sat on his shoulder, but that idea was dropped in the interest of saving time. However, the vulture later resurfaced with Doom when a bendable action figure was produced. | |||
* Doom originally had seven weasels accompanying him, rather like the Seven Dwarfs, but he ultimately ended up only having five. He was also to have a jury of kangaroos, as in "Kangaroo Court". These elements were all dropped, because animating them would be too expensive. | |||
** In a deleted scene, when Doom attempts to dip Roger at the bar, the patrons protest that Roger should at least have a proper trial. The judge agrees, then pulls out a suitcase from which jumps a group of kangaroos that hold out signs reading "Y-O-U A-R-E G-U-I-L-T-Y" (a literal Kangaroo Court, in other words). | |||
* Originally, Doom was going to dip a toon gopher instead of the cartoon shoe seen in the film. This was likely changed for the film to keep a PG rating. | |||
* It's believed by a large group of spectators that Judge Doom is also the Toon who robbed the 1st National Bank of Toontown. This is never told in the film: they only say that it's a day they were searching the guilty party for a rob in this bank that Eddie and Teddy met Doom for the first time and that Doom killed Teddy. Also, they think that the money Doom gave to the Toons for being elected was the one he previously robbed in the bank. | |||
* The ending scene was originally going to have Doom reveal his Toon mouth and red hands with long nails. | |||
* In early drafts for the film, he was revealed to be a cartoon hunter, as in the early drafts Eddie mentions offhand to Roger that the person who killed Teddy was probably the one who killed Bambi's mother. However, this dialogue was cut from the film for reasons yet unknown. | |||
* In the ''Bonkers'' series, the Collector is the reverse of Judge Doom. He is a human disguised as a Toon, but shares a similar personality and glasses. | |||
* Though Doom's real identity remains a mystery in the film, the yellow paint that remains of him following his death may hint that he was a Toon of a yellow or gold color, as evidenced from the yellow/gold-animated props (handles of his knife-like eyes, springs in his heels, anvil and buzz saw) that sprouted from his black suit during his second fight with Eddie. | |||
* Prior to the publication of ''The Resurrection of Doom'', many fans speculated that Doom's real Toon form was the "Pistol Packin' Possum", a Toon seen on one of the posters in R.K. Maroon's office. This is mainly because the Possum has red eyes just like the Toon that killed Teddy Valiant as well as the exact same gun that Judge Doom had in the scene where he shot Maroon. | |||
** Additionally, in the first scene where Valiant talks to Maroon about taking on the snoop job, behind Maroon are posters of cartoons on a rotating wall. The one on the right is a poster for ''Pistol Packin' Possum''. When Valiant and Maroon walk over to the desk to discuss more business, the rotating wall is closed and the poster (along with the gun the possum is holding) is always pointed towards Maroon with his back turned to it. | |||
*** Even after the release of ''The Resurrection of Doom'', this theory could still be somewhat valid, as "Baron Von Rotten" was known as "the toon with a thousand faces" and played many disguised roles, one of which might have been Pistol Packin' Possum. | |||
* There are many instances throughout the film that foreshadow the fact that Judge Doom is a Toon: | |||
** In the bar, he backs away from the spilled Dip, which is later shown not to affect regular people. Also, when he demonstrates the Dip's effectiveness for the first time by dunking a toon shoe in the chemical, he wears a rubber glove to protect himself. Also, when he decides to get Benny off the road so he can capture Eddie Valiant and Jessica Rabbit, he kicks the Dip and keeps a distance from it. | |||
** On several occasions, Doom is shown to detest laughter. Seeing as it is a Toon's role to be funny, too much laughter may have blown Doom's cover. | |||
** While Judge Doom was luring Roger Rabbit to him with the "shave-and-a-haircut" trick in the bar, Eddie says "I don't know who's Toonier, you or Doom." | |||
** Another instance that implies that Doom is a Toon is when he falls on fake eyeballs, he trips in a cartoonish way before falling down, making the Toon Patrol laugh at him (which he once again ordered to stop). Also, when he gets back on his feet after falling, he hides one of his eyes, not because it's in pain, but so as to conceal his actual red toon eyes with the fake eyeballs that he's wearing. | |||
** Doom's face appears to be made out of rubber as he almost never blinks on-screen, and his teeth look fake. | |||
** Doom constantly performed an exaggerated toon-like turn whenever he turns his body. | |||
** A gust of wind almost always blows on Doom's cape even when he's in an area where there's no wind. | |||
* If one pauses at the shot of Doom getting knocked by the spray of Dip, they will notice the dummy used for filming. | |||
* According to the (non-canon) graphic novel, ''The Resurrection of Doom'', Doom's real name was "'''Baron Von Rotten'''", who worked as an actor until an accident resulted in him believing that he was a villain. | |||
* Fittingly enough, Judge Doom is one of the most evil villains ever involved with Warner Brothers and Disney. He is said to be the "Enemy of all Toons", which probably means that he is also a threat to other cartoon villains such as Pete and Yosemite Sam who were also in the film. | |||
* Wizard Magazine rated him the 60th greatest villain of all time. | |||
=== | == Gallery == | ||
<gallery widths="180" captionalign="center" position="center"> | |||
Who-framed-roger-rabbit-disneyscreencaps_com-10706.jpg|Judge Doom revealing his true nature and evil grin | |||
Who-framed-roger-rabbit-disneyscreencaps_com-10771.jpg|Doom sprouting a toon anvil | |||
who-framed-roger-rabbit-disneyscreencaps_com-10791.jpg|Doom sprouting a toon buzz-saw | |||
Evil Toon from the past.png|Doom in the comic strip | |||
Evil Toon from the past 2.png | |||
RCO036_1477275403.png | |||
</gallery> | |||
=== | == References == | ||
{{Reflist}} | |||
[[Category: Characters]] | |||
== External links == | |||
* [[w:c:disney:Judge Doom|Judge Doom]] at [[w:c:disney|Disney Wiki]] | |||
* [[w:c:villains:Judge Doom|Judge Doom]] at [[w:c:villains|Villains Wiki]] | |||
* [[w:c:disneyvillains:Judge Doom|Judge Doom]] at [[w:c:disneyvillains|Wickedpedia]] | |||
[[Category:Characters]] | |||
[[Category:Deceased]] | |||
[[Category:Males]] | |||
[[Category:Toons]] | |||
[[Category:Villains]] | |||