Victor Batrachian

Victor Batrachian (born April 8, 1961): Born to a wealthy banker in Geneva, Switzerland, Victor is the leader of "The Five", known as "The Lizard King". Victor was quite a brilliant student and, by the end of his education, held a Ph. D. in forensic psychiatry. He was also a licensed general practitioner. This is when he began murdering his elderly female patients after convincing them to leave him large sums of money in their wills. As the heat rose in Europe, Victor used forged documents to attain a Green Card and emigrate to the US. Again, he began his killings, taunting the authorities with letters signed "The Lizard King", but was eventually captured, tried, and convicted for his crimes in the US. By the time the events of the game begin, he's awaiting punishment on death row in Gardelle County Jail, Texas. It's implied through the in-game documentation, along with the events that permeate his level, that he has the power to kill by exploding the heads of his victims, and then bringing their corpses back to life, but an explanation is never given. Victor is another of the game's boss characters.

Batrachian's victims were all young men found with exploded heads and the "lizard king" symbol burned into their chests above the heart. They were also found clutching a poem in their hands which read:

The Lizard King shall lead The Five,

From out of the Southern gaol shall cut HIS bloody swathe,

In HIM the darkness stands revealed,

HIS eyes are void as a dead man's gaze,

As cold as the light of a dying star.

FOR WE ARE MANY.

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Victor Batrachian is based on the fictional serial killer Hannibal Lecter, in particular his portrayal by Anthony Hopkins in the film The Silence of the Lambs lent a great deal to Batrachian's model and character sketches. Some elements of British serial killer Harold Shipman also seem relevant, being named as "Dr. Death", a history of murdering his elderly patients with drugs, and a history of forgery/fraud.
His surname may be an intentional pun on the developer's part, as "batrachos" (βατραχος) means "frog" in Classic Greek.
"Pange lingua gloriosi corporis mysterium", which plays after his defeat, contain a great deal of symbolism concerning blood, rebirth, and salvation.
Jim Morrison wrote a poem called "The Celebration of the Lizard" that first apeared on the sleve of The Doors' album Waiting For The Sun. The poem contained the line: "I am the Lizard King, I can do anything." Fans thought Morrison was refering to himself instead of another persona who Morrison created as the fictional author. The nickname stuck and, after a while, the band added music and the poem was performed several times live. References to The Doors and Morrison feature heavily in the Shadow Man video game.

Victor Batrachian

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