Crazy Jane
Crazy Jane is a fictional character created by Grant Morrison and Richard Case for their work on the Vertigo Comics version of Doom Patrol. She first appears in Doom Patrol Volume 2 #19. According to the afterword in the first trade paperback collection of Morrison's Doom Patrol, she is based on Truddi Chase, whose autobiography, When Rabbit Howls, Morrison was reading while creating the series.
Jane makes her first live adaptation and is part of the main cast of the Doom Patrol television series on DC Universe and HBO Max played by Diane Guerrero.
Fictional character biography
Jane Morris is the current dominant alternate personality, or "host", of Kay Challis's "system". Kay Challis, as a result of repeated childhood trauma, developed dissociative identity disorder. Later in life, while being exposed to the alien Dominators' "gene bomb", each of her alternate personalities, or alters, has a different super-power.Beginning only at five years old, Kay Challis was continuously molested by her father. The first time this happened, she was putting a jigsaw puzzle together; this would become an important symbol in her future. As the abuse continued, Kay withdraws and goes dormant, retreating to the unconscious brain. Her role as host is then taken over by an alter with the name "Miranda". One Easter Sunday, while at church, Miranda is raped, which triggers several flashbacks to her former abuse. This causes the dormancy of Miranda and a massive amount of alters being split off. She is committed to a mental institution soon after. During that time, an alien species called Dominators invade Earth and activate a device to which they call their "gene bomb". When the gene-bomb goes off, Jane and all of her personalities are affected; each personality gains a different power.
The super-hero Cliff Steele, or Robotman, suffered several losses due to this bomb. It killing many of his Doom Patrol team mates, he was struggling emotionally. While he's staying in the same institution as Jane, Dr. Will Magnus, creator of the group "Metalmen", asks Cliff to look after her, which leads to Jane's becoming a member of Doom Patrol.
Near the end of the Grant Morrison run of Doom Patrol, Jane makes a pilgrimage back to her childhood home, facing her own traumas and overcoming them. This brings peace to her inner turmoil, causing her and her alters integrate into one, very complex single personality.
Upon returning to Doom Patrol, Jane is attacked by The Candlemaker and thrown into another dimension, which is similar to the real world, where she is diagnosed with schizophrenia and treated with shock therapy. Cliff eventually rescues Jane from the other dimension and they relocate on Danny the World, formerly Danny the Street. In Rachel Pollack's run, it is revealed that Jane's alters still exist, which causes many arguments between the two. Cliff decides to leave her with Danny and returns to Earth.
Jane makes a cameo appearance in Teen Titans #36, where she is seen on Danny the World through a portal in Dayton Manor in Prague. She returns in Doom Patrol #7, written by Keith Giffen, on Oolong Island, asking for Cliff and carrying with her the remains of Danny the Street. Danny has now been reduced to a single brick, making him Danny the Brick. Jane says "If you build it, he will come", although she does not explain further.
Jane then travels around the universe along with Danny the Brick. A man named "D" then uses Danny the Brick to kill a God and causes another alter to split, or "break off". This alter starts a cult and plans to spread Crazy Jane's alters among the sixty-three cult members and then to kill the cultists. She is stopped by the Doom Patrol, who then return Jane to the front, in order to be the host.
Jane now accepts her mental illness, no longer seeking to cure it, but to cope with it and healthily coexist with her alters. Robotman also helps and accepts her disorder.
Alters
Crazy Jane's alters are organized in a mental subway grid called "the Underground". Each alter has their own 'station', which appears to serve as home when they are not in control. In the lower section of the Underground, is a well where the alters can go to destroy themselves. This is where Miranda was "killed". This well houses Daddy, an alter who resembles their father, in the deepest, most protected part of the Underground. The alters consist of:- Baby Doll: A telekinetic childlike alter that believes everything is lovely. Is said to be one of the few personalities that trust men.
- Baby Harlot: An integration of Baby Doll and Scarlet Harlot.
- Bizzie Lizzie Borden: Jane's ninth alter, who may not be real.
- Black Annis: An aggressive alter, equipped with sharp claws, red eyes, and blue skin. In the TV series, she stood guard over the station that held Daddy. Also misandrist, one who hates men, so she never lets any men pass her.
- Blood of the Lamb: No given information. In this form, their body is covered head to toe in blood coming from unknown wounds.
- Bubble
- Butterfly Baby: Constantly suffers pain on a Hellraiser-like level in the deepest part of the mind.
- Crazy Jane: The dominant alter, or "host". No powers. Her name is derived from that of a character in several poems by William Butler Yeats, as well as the eponymous painting by Richard Dadd.
- Daddy: An introject of Jane's father as a giant monster made of insects, excrement and puzzle pieces. Daddy talks with Jane's voice. It was destroyed. Resided in a mental representation of the Well where Kay was sexually harassed by him.
- Dr. Harrison: White streak of hair and blue eyes. Able to telepathically suss out the childhood traumas of others. Power to influence anyone who hears her voice. "Insane".
- Driller Bill: An African-American woman.
- Driver 8: Conductor of the Underground subway, named after the R.E.M. song. The Driver's hat has an infinity symbol on it.
- Flaming Katy: One of the "protecting" personalities, protecting Jane whenever she feels threatened. Very antisocial, someone who doesn't like to be interrogated. She is a pyrokinetic and can fly. Also usually emerges at Baby Doll's request.
- Flit: She can teleport anywhere. Dresses in late 80s fashion.
- Hammerhead: Another protector, like Katy. She is very aggressive towards everyone. Super-strength. In the underground, she is bald and wears a leather jacket.
- Jack Straw: A living scarecrow.
- Jeann: Her station could be seen as Cliff was falling into Jane's mind.
- Jill-in-Irons: She is wrapped in large chains. A reference to Jack-In-Irons.
- Karen: A perky but unstable alter with the power to cast "love spells". Loves 90's rom-coms and her boyfriend, Doug.
- K-5: The original host, Kay Challis, who vanished at age 5. She is "sleeping", or otherwise known as "dormant", in one of the lower stations of the Underground.
- Kit W'the Canstick: An old woman who carries a burned-out candle.
- Lady Purple: She can see the future but rarely speaks.
- Liza Radley: A stable, more "normal" appearing alter, awakened as a result of a loving environment, who pushes Jane to recovery. The other alters are unsure of how to react to Liza and feel threatened by her. She is named after a song by The Jam, the B-side of their single "Start!".
- Lucy Fugue: She has radioactive bones and see-through skin. She can also generate harmonic vibrations, a power she used to defeat the Antigod. In the live-action series, this personality has electrical powers. In the underground, this personality is portrayed as an Asian woman with electric-blue streaks in her black beehive hairdo.
- Mama Pentecost: An expert enigma and cryptogram solver.
- Merry Andrew: Dresses as a Harlequin and carries toys.
- Miranda: The former host who took over after Kay went dormant; she destroys herself after the church incident. Her "station" is now occupied by some indescribable horror, visible from a distance only as a weird light, which only Driver 8 can see without being destroyed by the vision. Per the TV show's canon, Miranda's station is populated by noose-hung bodies and tortured souls. Miraculously returned after the Candlemaker killed Katy and Baby Doll in the Underground, and took over as primary to better ensue Kay's needs.
- No One: She is very aggressive; was able to sense the Fifth Horseman and the Painting before it was activated.
- Penny Farthing: She speaks with a stutter when on the surface, but speaks without one in the underground. Her job is to run. A Penny Farthing is the English name for the early bicycles that had different-sized wheels.
- Pepper's Ghost
- Pretty Polly: Wears a black Victorian dress and has X's carved into her eyes.
- Rain Brain: She speaks in a stream of consciousness and can take on an abstract immaterial form.
- Scarlet Harlot: A nymphomaniac with the power to create ectoplasm projections and absorb stray psychosexual energy.
- Sex Bomb: She explodes when sexually aroused.
- Silver Tongue: Her vocalizations are actualized in silver font, and can then be used as edged weapons.
- Spinning Jenny: Prone to panic attacks.
- Stigmata: She bleeds from her hands and feet and relives the church incident endlessly.
- Sun Daddy: A gigantic figure with a sun for a head with the power to throw fireballs.
- Sylvia: She bears Jane's feelings of claustrophobia. She is locked inside of a small room, reciting poem fragments. She believes if she can put the fragments together she can use them as a key out of the room. Speaks with a "spooky" voice.
- The Engineer: He assists Driver 8 in maintaining The Underground.
- The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter: An artist with the power to psychically activate her paintings; whose name is taken from the title of an album by the Incredible String Band. She has a Frida Kahlo-esque unibrow.
- The Nun: A Catholic nun armed with a chainsaw.
- The Pointman: He assists Driver 8 in maintaining The Underground.
- The Secretary: A neat and orderly pessimist who rarely shows emotion.
- The Shapeless Children: Constantly repeat "Daddy don' do it". Is made to constantly relieve the trauma of Kay in the deepest part of the Underground.
- The Signal-Man
- The Sin-Eater: She believes she must suffer for her sins. Jane brings her out as a defense when being tortured.
- The Snow Queen
- The Weird Sisters: A three-in-one alter similar to Three Witches. Shown as a Three-Headed Lady.