Gilda Dent
Encyclopedia
Gilda Dent, occasionally referred to as Grace instead of Gilda, is a fictional character who has appeared in Batman
comic book
s since Detective Comics
#66 (August 1942). Associated with her fiancée (later husband) Harvey Dent, who becomes the criminal mastermind Two-Face
, she has since been a recurring character throughout various Batman stories involving Two-Face. Her largest role is in the Jeph Loeb
and Tim Sale
collaboration Batman: The Long Halloween
.
of Gotham City
. When acid
is thrown onto Harvey's face by gangster Boss Maroni
during Maroni's trial, Dent's fragile mind snaps. Because Gilda is a sculptor, Harvey believes that she worships beauty; therefore (in Dent's mind), neither she -- nor anyone else -- could ever love or accept a person with such a monstrously "hideous" face as his. Gilda creates a bust of Harvey, which he smashes with a mallet to symbolize his new, seemingly ruined self. Even as Two-Face begins a dual career of crime and Robin Hood
-style philanthropy
, he still longs passionately for Gilda, and she for him.
In Detective Comics # 80 (1943), she is in the audience when Two-Face and his gang try to rob a classical
concert. Gilda follows Two-Face to his hideout, just as Batman and Robin
burst in. When Two-Face, having the drop on the caped crusader, pulls his gun and opens fire upon his former ally, Gilda leaps in front of the bullet. Pleading to Harvey that she had to make him "understand… before it was too late…", she passes out, shocking Two-Face into thinking he's killed her. Harvey turns himself in, realizing that he'd been a "blind fool," and Gilda is sent to the hospital.
When Harvey learns from the doctors that "she doesn't seem to want to live! She keeps saying over and over, Kent doesn't love me enough! Kent doesn't love me!", he vows to give up his life of crime for good. After a final tussle with the last of Two-Face's men, Harvey undergoes plastic surgery
and is released from jail after one year. His face and sanity restored, Harvey Kent promises to finally marry Gilda.
In Superman Family #211, Harvey Kent (causing confusion with the name of Clark Kent
) and Gilda attend the wedding of Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle (the now-retired Catwoman
). It is presumed that this version of Harvey and Gilda live happily ever after.
) claims to be her daughter, conceived apparently during the brief period seen in Batman #234 where Harvey Dent is cured of being Two-Face. After Dent's reversion to Two-Face (also seen in flashback in Batman #234), Gilda leaves Dent. She is seen carrying baby Duela in one hand and a suitcase in the other.
In Batman # 328, it was revealed that Gilda remarried Dave Stevens, a former assistant of Harvey Dent's. Stevens was murdered by Moroni, who was subsequently killed by Dent in fury over the pain caused to Gilda. Dent disguised himself as a man named Carl Ternison and courted the newly-widowed Gilda, trying to have a normal life with her.
When Gilda discovers the truth, Dent's madness escalates, and he eventually traps Batman inside an abandoned courthouse. However, before he can pull the trigger, Gilda intercedes, swearing that if he kills Batman, she will think of him only as a murderer and never forgive him. She gives him an ultimatum: "Will it be vengeance or hope?" Torn apart, Two-Face breaks down and begs her for help. He is arrested, but Gilda promises to be there for him as long as he wants to get better.
alcoholic who would nightly play a game with his young son: "I'll flip a coin: if it's heads, I beat you. Tails, I don't." Dent spends a lifetime burying his rage and resentment, only to discover that the coin was two-headed all along. She clearly shares his resentment, but without the love he feels that is tearing him apart. She scoffs that after a lifetime of abuse and cruelty, the only thing Dent's father ever gave him was a coin.
Gilda tries to comfort Dent as his sanity deteriorates. She pleads with him when, upon awakening from a nightmare, he races out of their bed in the middle of the night and goes to his office, "where it's safe." After Harvey is disfigured, Gilda visits him in the hospital to try and give him back the coin. It was in his pocket during the trial, and was also hit by some acid, scarring one side of the coin. She last appears in this story right after Two-Face murders his corrupt former assistant, Adrian Fields, tearfully explaining Dent's abuse history to Batman.
Gilda does not reappear until Secret Origins
Special # 1, where she (here named Grace) appears on a TV talk show focusing on Gotham's villains. She talks about a time when one of the criminals Dent put away as D.A. returned for revenge by taking her hostage. Two-Face eventually rescued her, beating the ex-con to the point of death, but holding off because Grace demanded he stop. This represents a rare case where Two-Face is not influenced by the coin, but rather by someone else's welfare. She tries once again to appeal to his "good" side, but fails. At the end of the interview, she professes her belief that, one day, Dent would return to her.
Gilda returns in Batman: Two-Face Strikes Twice. Here, she finds herself at odds with her now-ex-husband, as he believes their marriage failed because he was unable to give her children. She later marries Paul Janus, a reference to the Roman
god of doors who had two faces, one facing forward, the other backward. Two-Face attempts to frame Janus as a criminal by kidnapping him and replacing him with a stand-in, whom Two-Face "disfigures" with makeup to make it look as if Janus has gone insane just as Two-Face had. Two-Face is eventually caught by Batman and sent away, and Gilda and Janus reunite. Years later, Gilda gives birth to twins named James and Luke, prompting Two-Face to escape once more and take the twins hostage, as he erroneously believes them to be conceived by Janus using an experimental fertility drug. The end of the book reveals a surprise twist; Batman learns from Gilda that Janus is not the father of Gilda's twins - Dent is. Some of his sperm had been frozen after a death threat had been made against him, and she used some of it to get pregnant. Batman uses this information to convince Dent to free the twins and turn himself in.
Gilda has a larger role and story arc in The Long Halloween
, a maxi-series that is part of Two-Face's origin in Batman Annual #14. During the nearly year-long story, a serial killer
called Holiday
systematically murders prominent gangster
s. During the series, Gilda's marriage to Dent shows signs of strain; she wants to settle down and start a family, while he is obsessed with capturing Holiday. In a private monologue at the end, Gilda states that she was the original Holiday killer, having committed all of the murders up until New Year's Eve
. Gilda indicates that Dent murdered Alberto Falcone
on New Year's Eve, taking her place, and that he was the one responsible for the crimes from that point on. The confession is only known to readers since Alberto confessed to all the Holiday murders upon his capture and Gilda had not been brought to justice.
Gilda destroys the evidence of her alleged crimes and leaves Gotham City. Due to the success of The Long Halloween, the events of the story have generally been accepted into continuity as the "official" story of Batman's early years, given that Zero Hour
retcon
ned the events of Batman: Year Two
and rendered them non-canonical
. In Batman: Dark Victory
, the Calendar Man
was about to reveal who he believed Holiday was, to which an enraged Two-Face cut him off.
In Greg Rucka's novelization of Batman: No Man's Land
, Dent is written to think that Gilda had died at some point in the past, but this has never been elaborated upon.
In the "One Year Later
" story arc Batman: Face the Face
, Dent mentions Gilda when recalling his past life, but the Two-Face persona states "No, Harvey. She's gone now," without explaining what that means.
Gilda has also appeared outside the DC Universe. In Jeph Loeb
and Tim Sale
's Marvel Comics
miniseries, Daredevil: Yellow, a mysterious woman named Grace seeks help from Matt Murdock
and Foggy Nelson
's New York City
law firm. She claims to be from out of town and has some knowledge of the legal system, saying her husband was a great man and she did terrible things to protect him. The Owl somehow discovers her secret and blackmail
s her into helping him kidnap Karen Page
, who pleads with her for help. In a panel that strongly resembles Tim Sale's Gilda Dent, she just says, "Someday you'll have a secret too," and leaves.
In Batman #710, she returns standing over a gun-shot Harvey Dent. However, it was revealed according to the Riddler, that she faked her death (apparently she was to have died at some point of unexplained causes) and was institutionalized following The Long Halloween, where she met Mario Falcone, who suffered a similar breakdown following the event of Dark Victory. After getting involved upon their release, Falcone kept Gilda like a prisoner, and she conspired with the Riddler to steal Two-Face's coin and entice him to rescue her. Knowing that Falcone was on Dent's tail, Gilda faked Harvey's death by seeming to shot him close blank. When they were finally reunited, she explained how much she missed him, and that she now believed in Two-Face as well as Harvey Dent. Feeling betrayed and manipulated, he was about to kill her but hesitated, only to be stopped by Batman. To save Harvey, she shot Batman with a .22, knocking him out for them both to escape. Her ultimate fate remains unknown, and Dick Grayson even expressed doubt that she was in fact the real Gilda Dent.
as Grace Lamont, fiancée to D.A. Harvey Dent. Alongside Dent's best friend Bruce Wayne, she is helpless and can only stand by and watch as the D.A. quickly degenerates into Two-Face. As he scours the underworld, trying to wipe out the empire of gangster Rupert Thorne
, Thorne plots to use Grace against Two-Face. A couple of Thorne's men disguise themselves as police officers and offer Grace a handheld tracking device, in case Two-Face ever approaches her. Two-Face eventually does, bringing her to his lair and wearing a scarf to cover his scars. She nearly succeeds in bringing back the good in Dent, when Thorne's men show up, revealing that Grace inadvertently betrayed Dent. Despite this, Grace helps Batman and Dent fight off Thorne's men, and remains by Dent's side as he is taken into custody with Thorne. She is not seen again in the series after this.
Grace returned to animated continuity in the comic series The Adventures of Batman and Robin issues # 1 and # 2, where the Joker
fools Two-Face into thinking that Grace and Bruce are having an affair. Two-Face abducts her and tries to kill Dick Grayson
, but is ultimately thwarted when Grace jabs the jagged edge of the scarred coin into the deformed side of his face. The story ends with the implication that their relationship is now damaged beyond repair.
Grace appears again in The Adventures of Batman and Robin issue #22 where Two-Face's life is thrown into chaos when an unplanned breakout from prison makes him lose his trademark coin and has it replaced with a quarter. Little Jonni Infantino, the mastermind behind the breakout, threatens to hurt Grace if Two-Face doesn't provide information on one of Rupert Thorne's thugs, Weird Tony Hendra who was one of Harvey Dent's last cases as District Attorney.
Gilda is briefly mentioned in Batman: Arkham City by Dr. Hugo Strange. During Two-Face's final interview, Hugo claims that Dent always had psychological problems, saying that his wife was scared of him at times.
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
s since Detective Comics
Detective Comics
Detective Comics is an American comic book series published monthly by DC Comics since 1937, best known for introducing the iconic superhero Batman in Detective Comics #27 . It is, along with Action Comics, the book that launched with the debut of Superman, one of the medium's signature series, and...
#66 (August 1942). Associated with her fiancée (later husband) Harvey Dent, who becomes the criminal mastermind Two-Face
Two-Face
Two-Face is a fictional comic book supervillain who appears in comic books published by DC Comics. and is an enemy of Batman. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #66 , and was created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger....
, she has since been a recurring character throughout various Batman stories involving Two-Face. Her largest role is in the Jeph Loeb
Jeph Loeb
Joseph "Jeph" Loeb III is an American film and television writer, producer and award-winning comic book writer. Loeb was a producer/writer on the TV series Smallville and Lost, writer for the films Commando and Teen Wolf and was a writer and Co-Executive Producer on the NBC TV show Heroes from its...
and Tim Sale
Tim Sale (artist)
Tim Sale is an American Eisner Award-winning comic book artist. He is primarily known for his collaborations with writer Jeph Loeb.-Early life:...
collaboration Batman: The Long Halloween
Batman: The Long Halloween
Batman: The Long Halloween is a 13-issue comic book limited series written by Jeph Loeb with art by Tim Sale. It was originally published by DC Comics in 1996 and 1997. It was inspired by the three Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Specials by the same creative team...
.
Pre-Crisis
In her first appearance Gilda Gold is the fiancée of Harvey Kent (later renamed Dent), the brilliant and handsome district attorneyDistrict attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
of Gotham City
Gotham City
Gotham City is a fictional U.S. city appearing in DC Comics, best known as the home of Batman. Batman's place of residence was first identified as Gotham City in Batman #4 . Gotham City is strongly inspired by Trenton, Ontario's history, location, atmosphere, and various architectural styles...
. When acid
Acid
An acid is a substance which reacts with a base. Commonly, acids can be identified as tasting sour, reacting with metals such as calcium, and bases like sodium carbonate. Aqueous acids have a pH of less than 7, where an acid of lower pH is typically stronger, and turn blue litmus paper red...
is thrown onto Harvey's face by gangster Boss Maroni
Sal Maroni
Salvatore "The Boss" Maroni is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, usually as one of Batman's first enemies, and among the toughest gangsters in Gotham City...
during Maroni's trial, Dent's fragile mind snaps. Because Gilda is a sculptor, Harvey believes that she worships beauty; therefore (in Dent's mind), neither she -- nor anyone else -- could ever love or accept a person with such a monstrously "hideous" face as his. Gilda creates a bust of Harvey, which he smashes with a mallet to symbolize his new, seemingly ruined self. Even as Two-Face begins a dual career of crime and Robin Hood
Robin Hood
Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....
-style philanthropy
Philanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
, he still longs passionately for Gilda, and she for him.
In Detective Comics # 80 (1943), she is in the audience when Two-Face and his gang try to rob a classical
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
concert. Gilda follows Two-Face to his hideout, just as Batman and Robin
Dick Grayson
Dick Grayson is a fictional superhero that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger and illustrator Jerry Robinson, he first appeared in Detective Comics #38 in April 1940....
burst in. When Two-Face, having the drop on the caped crusader, pulls his gun and opens fire upon his former ally, Gilda leaps in front of the bullet. Pleading to Harvey that she had to make him "understand… before it was too late…", she passes out, shocking Two-Face into thinking he's killed her. Harvey turns himself in, realizing that he'd been a "blind fool," and Gilda is sent to the hospital.
When Harvey learns from the doctors that "she doesn't seem to want to live! She keeps saying over and over, Kent doesn't love me enough! Kent doesn't love me!", he vows to give up his life of crime for good. After a final tussle with the last of Two-Face's men, Harvey undergoes plastic surgery
Plastic surgery
Plastic surgery is a medical specialty concerned with the correction or restoration of form and function. Though cosmetic or aesthetic surgery is the best-known kind of plastic surgery, most plastic surgery is not cosmetic: plastic surgery includes many types of reconstructive surgery, hand...
and is released from jail after one year. His face and sanity restored, Harvey Kent promises to finally marry Gilda.
In Superman Family #211, Harvey Kent (causing confusion with the name of Clark Kent
Clark Kent
Clark Kent is a fictional character created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Appearing regularly in stories published by DC Comics, he debuted in Action Comics #1 and serves as the civilian and secret identity of the superhero Superman....
) and Gilda attend the wedding of Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle (the now-retired Catwoman
Catwoman
Catwoman is a fictional character associated with DC Comics' Batman franchise. Historically a supervillain, the character was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, partially inspired by Kane's cousin, Ruth Steel...
). It is presumed that this version of Harvey and Gilda live happily ever after.
Earth-One
Gilda did not return to comics again until the late 1970s in Teen Titans #48 (June 1977), page 2, panel 2 where Harlequin (Duela DentDuela Dent
Duela Dent is a fictional character in the DC Universe. She is a former member of both the Teen Titans and Titans East. Introduced under the alias of Joker's Daughter, she has also used the aliases "Catgirl", "Scarecrone", "Riddler's Daughter", "Penguin's Daughter", "Card Queen", and...
) claims to be her daughter, conceived apparently during the brief period seen in Batman #234 where Harvey Dent is cured of being Two-Face. After Dent's reversion to Two-Face (also seen in flashback in Batman #234), Gilda leaves Dent. She is seen carrying baby Duela in one hand and a suitcase in the other.
In Batman # 328, it was revealed that Gilda remarried Dave Stevens, a former assistant of Harvey Dent's. Stevens was murdered by Moroni, who was subsequently killed by Dent in fury over the pain caused to Gilda. Dent disguised himself as a man named Carl Ternison and courted the newly-widowed Gilda, trying to have a normal life with her.
When Gilda discovers the truth, Dent's madness escalates, and he eventually traps Batman inside an abandoned courthouse. However, before he can pull the trigger, Gilda intercedes, swearing that if he kills Batman, she will think of him only as a murderer and never forgive him. She gives him an ultimatum: "Will it be vengeance or hope?" Torn apart, Two-Face breaks down and begs her for help. He is arrested, but Gilda promises to be there for him as long as he wants to get better.
Post-Crisis
Her role in Dent's past was updated into the currently prominent Two-Face origin: Batman Annual #14 (1990), a story called "Eye of the Beholder." In this story, it is revealed that Dent's father was an abusiveChild abuse
Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
alcoholic who would nightly play a game with his young son: "I'll flip a coin: if it's heads, I beat you. Tails, I don't." Dent spends a lifetime burying his rage and resentment, only to discover that the coin was two-headed all along. She clearly shares his resentment, but without the love he feels that is tearing him apart. She scoffs that after a lifetime of abuse and cruelty, the only thing Dent's father ever gave him was a coin.
Gilda tries to comfort Dent as his sanity deteriorates. She pleads with him when, upon awakening from a nightmare, he races out of their bed in the middle of the night and goes to his office, "where it's safe." After Harvey is disfigured, Gilda visits him in the hospital to try and give him back the coin. It was in his pocket during the trial, and was also hit by some acid, scarring one side of the coin. She last appears in this story right after Two-Face murders his corrupt former assistant, Adrian Fields, tearfully explaining Dent's abuse history to Batman.
Gilda does not reappear until Secret Origins
Secret Origins
Secret Origins is the title of three American comic book series published by DC Comics.The title began in 1961 and for one issue, all reprints. The title Secret Origins of Super Heroes went onto a second series, also reprints, which ran for seven issues from 1973-1974...
Special # 1, where she (here named Grace) appears on a TV talk show focusing on Gotham's villains. She talks about a time when one of the criminals Dent put away as D.A. returned for revenge by taking her hostage. Two-Face eventually rescued her, beating the ex-con to the point of death, but holding off because Grace demanded he stop. This represents a rare case where Two-Face is not influenced by the coin, but rather by someone else's welfare. She tries once again to appeal to his "good" side, but fails. At the end of the interview, she professes her belief that, one day, Dent would return to her.
Gilda returns in Batman: Two-Face Strikes Twice. Here, she finds herself at odds with her now-ex-husband, as he believes their marriage failed because he was unable to give her children. She later marries Paul Janus, a reference to the Roman
Roman mythology
Roman mythology is the body of traditional stories pertaining to ancient Rome's legendary origins and religious system, as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans...
god of doors who had two faces, one facing forward, the other backward. Two-Face attempts to frame Janus as a criminal by kidnapping him and replacing him with a stand-in, whom Two-Face "disfigures" with makeup to make it look as if Janus has gone insane just as Two-Face had. Two-Face is eventually caught by Batman and sent away, and Gilda and Janus reunite. Years later, Gilda gives birth to twins named James and Luke, prompting Two-Face to escape once more and take the twins hostage, as he erroneously believes them to be conceived by Janus using an experimental fertility drug. The end of the book reveals a surprise twist; Batman learns from Gilda that Janus is not the father of Gilda's twins - Dent is. Some of his sperm had been frozen after a death threat had been made against him, and she used some of it to get pregnant. Batman uses this information to convince Dent to free the twins and turn himself in.
Gilda has a larger role and story arc in The Long Halloween
Batman: The Long Halloween
Batman: The Long Halloween is a 13-issue comic book limited series written by Jeph Loeb with art by Tim Sale. It was originally published by DC Comics in 1996 and 1997. It was inspired by the three Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Specials by the same creative team...
, a maxi-series that is part of Two-Face's origin in Batman Annual #14. During the nearly year-long story, a serial killer
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
called Holiday
Holiday (comics)
Holiday or the Holiday Killer is a fictional character appearing in the Batman story The Long Halloween by writer Jeph Loeb and artist Tim Sale as well as Dark Victory...
systematically murders prominent gangster
Gangster
A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Some gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from mob and the suffix -ster....
s. During the series, Gilda's marriage to Dent shows signs of strain; she wants to settle down and start a family, while he is obsessed with capturing Holiday. In a private monologue at the end, Gilda states that she was the original Holiday killer, having committed all of the murders up until New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
. Gilda indicates that Dent murdered Alberto Falcone
Alberto Falcone
Alberto Falcone is a fictional comic book villain appearing in books published by DC Comics, in particular the Batman books. In addition to being a mobster, he has also taken credit to be serial killer the Holiday Killer in Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's series Batman: The Long Halloween and Batman: Dark...
on New Year's Eve, taking her place, and that he was the one responsible for the crimes from that point on. The confession is only known to readers since Alberto confessed to all the Holiday murders upon his capture and Gilda had not been brought to justice.
Gilda destroys the evidence of her alleged crimes and leaves Gotham City. Due to the success of The Long Halloween, the events of the story have generally been accepted into continuity as the "official" story of Batman's early years, given that Zero Hour
Zero Hour (comics)
Zero Hour: Crisis in Time is a five-issue comic book limited series and crossover storyline published by DC Comics in 1994. In it, the former hero Hal Jordan, who had until then been a member of the intergalactic police force known as the Green Lantern Corps, mad with grief after the destruction of...
retcon
Retcon
Retroactive continuity is the alteration of previously established facts in a fictional work. Retcons are done for many reasons, including the accommodation of sequels or further derivative works in a series, wherein newer authors or creators want to revise the in-story history to allow a course...
ned the events of Batman: Year Two
Batman: Year Two
"Year Two" is the title of a four-part story arc featuring Batman, written by Mike W. Barr and illustrated by Alan Davis, Paul Neary, Alfredo Alcala, Mark Farmer and Todd McFarlane...
and rendered them non-canonical
Canon (fiction)
In the context of a work of fiction, the term canon denotes the material accepted as "official" in a fictional universe's fan base. It is often contrasted with, or used as the basis for, works of fan fiction, which are not considered canonical...
. In Batman: Dark Victory
Batman: Dark Victory
Batman: Dark Victory is a 14-part comic book limited series written by Jeph Loeb and drawn by Tim Sale. The series is a sequel to Batman: The Long Halloween and was originally published from 1999 to 2000 by DC Comics. The series takes place primarily during the third/fourth year of Batman's career...
, the Calendar Man
Calendar Man
Calendar Man is a fictional comic book supervillain, and an enemy of Batman, who appeared in books published by DC Comics. He first appeared in Detective Comics #259...
was about to reveal who he believed Holiday was, to which an enraged Two-Face cut him off.
In Greg Rucka's novelization of Batman: No Man's Land
Batman: No Man's Land
"No Man’s Land" is an American comic book crossover storyline that ran for the whole of 1999 through the Batman comic book titles published by DC Comics....
, Dent is written to think that Gilda had died at some point in the past, but this has never been elaborated upon.
In the "One Year Later
One Year Later
"One Year Later" was a 2006 storyline event running through the DC Universe. As the title suggests, it involves a narrative jump exactly one year into the future of the DC Comics Universe following the events of the Infinite Crisis event, to explore major changes within the continuities of the many...
" story arc Batman: Face the Face
Batman: Face the Face
"Face the Face" is an eight-issue Batman story arc written by James Robinson with art by Leonard Kirk, Andy Clarke, Don Kramer, Keith Champagne, Michael Bair, and Wayne Faucher. It was originally published in Detective Comics #817-820 and Batman #651-654 by DC Comics from May through August 2006...
, Dent mentions Gilda when recalling his past life, but the Two-Face persona states "No, Harvey. She's gone now," without explaining what that means.
Gilda has also appeared outside the DC Universe. In Jeph Loeb
Jeph Loeb
Joseph "Jeph" Loeb III is an American film and television writer, producer and award-winning comic book writer. Loeb was a producer/writer on the TV series Smallville and Lost, writer for the films Commando and Teen Wolf and was a writer and Co-Executive Producer on the NBC TV show Heroes from its...
and Tim Sale
Tim Sale (artist)
Tim Sale is an American Eisner Award-winning comic book artist. He is primarily known for his collaborations with writer Jeph Loeb.-Early life:...
's Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
miniseries, Daredevil: Yellow, a mysterious woman named Grace seeks help from Matt Murdock
Daredevil (Marvel Comics)
Daredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby, and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood...
and Foggy Nelson
Foggy Nelson
Franklin P. "Foggy" Nelson is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe, part of the supporting cast of Daredevil ; Foggy is Matt's best friend. The character was created by Stan Lee and Bill Everett....
's New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
law firm. She claims to be from out of town and has some knowledge of the legal system, saying her husband was a great man and she did terrible things to protect him. The Owl somehow discovers her secret and blackmail
Blackmail
In common usage, blackmail is a crime involving threats to reveal substantially true or false information about a person to the public, a family member, or associates unless a demand is met. It may be defined as coercion involving threats of physical harm, threat of criminal prosecution, or threats...
s her into helping him kidnap Karen Page
Karen Page
Karen Page is a fictional character in Marvel Comics' Daredevil series created by writer Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett. She first appeared in Daredevil #1 .-Character overview:...
, who pleads with her for help. In a panel that strongly resembles Tim Sale's Gilda Dent, she just says, "Someday you'll have a secret too," and leaves.
In Batman #710, she returns standing over a gun-shot Harvey Dent. However, it was revealed according to the Riddler, that she faked her death (apparently she was to have died at some point of unexplained causes) and was institutionalized following The Long Halloween, where she met Mario Falcone, who suffered a similar breakdown following the event of Dark Victory. After getting involved upon their release, Falcone kept Gilda like a prisoner, and she conspired with the Riddler to steal Two-Face's coin and entice him to rescue her. Knowing that Falcone was on Dent's tail, Gilda faked Harvey's death by seeming to shot him close blank. When they were finally reunited, she explained how much she missed him, and that she now believed in Two-Face as well as Harvey Dent. Feeling betrayed and manipulated, he was about to kill her but hesitated, only to be stopped by Batman. To save Harvey, she shot Batman with a .22, knocking him out for them both to escape. Her ultimate fate remains unknown, and Dick Grayson even expressed doubt that she was in fact the real Gilda Dent.
In other media
Gilda/Grace appeared in Batman: The Animated SeriesBatman: The Animated Series
Batman: The Animated Series is an American animated series based on the DC Comics character Batman. The series featured an ensemble cast of many voice-actors including Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, Efrem Zimbalist, Jr., Arleen Sorkin, and Loren Lester. The series won four Emmy Awards and was nominated...
as Grace Lamont, fiancée to D.A. Harvey Dent. Alongside Dent's best friend Bruce Wayne, she is helpless and can only stand by and watch as the D.A. quickly degenerates into Two-Face. As he scours the underworld, trying to wipe out the empire of gangster Rupert Thorne
Rupert Thorne
Rupert Thorne is a fictional character, a crime boss and enemy of Batman in the DC Comics universe. Created by Steve Englehart and Walter Simonson, the character first appeared in Detective Comics #469.-Fictional character biography:...
, Thorne plots to use Grace against Two-Face. A couple of Thorne's men disguise themselves as police officers and offer Grace a handheld tracking device, in case Two-Face ever approaches her. Two-Face eventually does, bringing her to his lair and wearing a scarf to cover his scars. She nearly succeeds in bringing back the good in Dent, when Thorne's men show up, revealing that Grace inadvertently betrayed Dent. Despite this, Grace helps Batman and Dent fight off Thorne's men, and remains by Dent's side as he is taken into custody with Thorne. She is not seen again in the series after this.
Grace returned to animated continuity in the comic series The Adventures of Batman and Robin issues # 1 and # 2, where the Joker
Joker (comics)
The Joker is a fictional character, a comic book supervillain published by DC Comics. He is the archenemy of Batman, having been directly responsible for numerous tragedies in Batman's life, including the paralysis of Barbara Gordon and the death of Jason Todd, the second Robin...
fools Two-Face into thinking that Grace and Bruce are having an affair. Two-Face abducts her and tries to kill Dick Grayson
Dick Grayson
Dick Grayson is a fictional superhero that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger and illustrator Jerry Robinson, he first appeared in Detective Comics #38 in April 1940....
, but is ultimately thwarted when Grace jabs the jagged edge of the scarred coin into the deformed side of his face. The story ends with the implication that their relationship is now damaged beyond repair.
Grace appears again in The Adventures of Batman and Robin issue #22 where Two-Face's life is thrown into chaos when an unplanned breakout from prison makes him lose his trademark coin and has it replaced with a quarter. Little Jonni Infantino, the mastermind behind the breakout, threatens to hurt Grace if Two-Face doesn't provide information on one of Rupert Thorne's thugs, Weird Tony Hendra who was one of Harvey Dent's last cases as District Attorney.
Gilda is briefly mentioned in Batman: Arkham City by Dr. Hugo Strange. During Two-Face's final interview, Hugo claims that Dent always had psychological problems, saying that his wife was scared of him at times.