Jerome

Biodata

Background / History

Jerome describes a childhood marked by abuse and violent retaliation. While he was living with his uncle, the man burned his left hand by using it to “make soup.” Jerome claims that he later made soup out of his uncle in return 49.

His mother brought him to amusement parks while dating other men because bringing a child earned a discount. She dismissed Ferris wheels as unexciting and “for girls,” and Jerome had never ridden one before his date with Ririko. He also recounts tying one of her boyfriends to roller-coaster tracks, after which that ride broke 49.

According to Jerome, he was confined to Arkham after shooting his father and displaying his body in City Square. He treats the murder as a failed decorating project, suggesting that his next “decoration” should be prettier 12.

Appearance

• Build: Taller than Ririko, with a slender frame and a lean, well-defined waist 10 46 49.
• Hair: Bright red and frequently messy 10 40 48.
• Face: Deathly pale skin, amber eyes, freckles over his cheekbones, and dark circles beneath his eyes 40 41 42 48.
• Scars: A pale pink electrical-burn mark near his temple, restraint marks on his neck and wrists, and wrinkled burn scars on his left hand 10 49.
• Clothing: Initially wears patient clothes. At the Iceberg Lounge, he wears a white shirt, waistcoat, black jacket, and crookedly tied tie; at HappyLand, he wears a purple shirt and black trousers 10 25 47.
• Ririko’s impression: Despite his exhausted, damaged appearance after Arkham’s experiments, she repeatedly finds him strikingly handsome 10 40 41.

Personality

Jerome treats violence as entertainment. He turns captives into shooting targets, devises potentially fatal games, and recounts murders with the enthusiasm of someone sharing amusing memories. His cruelty extends to his own followers: he shoots a Clown Army member for interrupting his date 12 42 47 49.

His apparent foolishness conceals deliberate deception. At the Iceberg Lounge, he seems incapable of following basic criminal assignments, yet later reveals that he had been playing dumb. He recognizes trackers in Ririko’s possessions and arranges food for her by kidnapping a cook rather than attracting attention through a conspicuous restaurant robbery 26 41 43.

Around Ririko, he becomes unusually hesitant and eager for approval. He copies her gestures, checks whether she watches him leave, offers gifts, and invents a minor injury to keep her nearby. His confidence collapses around romantic intimacy: after their kiss, he secretly follows her, and he approaches their date with knowledge apparently learned from television 11 46 48.

This affection does not make him harmless. He refuses to let Ririko leave, insists that she participate in his games, and threatens her when he discovers her helping Bruce escape 41 50.

Abilities & Skills

Firearms and Armed Violence

• Uses a heavy machine gun during the car chase with Butch and a handgun to kill a subordinate 40 49.
• Loads a dart-firing air gun with practiced ease and aims it at captives’ faces 42.
• Claims that he never misses a shot; this is his own boast rather than an established guarantee 42.
• Is vulnerable to physical interference: Ririko’s kick disrupts his machine-gun aim and redirects the burst into Butch’s tires 40.

Deception and Planning

• Maintains the appearance of an obedient, ineffectual employee after Arkham’s supposed brainwashing 26 43.
• Disguises himself as a waiter to approach Bruce and knock him unconscious during the Iceberg Lounge attack 40.
• Removes Ririko’s phone and ring after identifying their trackers 41.
• Uses stink bombs behind an announced bomb threat to disrupt the lounge and anger Oswald 40 41.
• Has a cook abducted to supply burgers without the conspicuous robbery Ririko hoped would alert rescuers 43.

Gang Leadership and Coercion

• Commands the Clown Army during the banquet attack, hostage confinement, and amusement-park games 40 42 47.
• Orders his followers to dress captives in maid outfits, procure food, and operate abandoned rides 44 49.
• Rules through fear; his followers expect defiance to provoke lethal punishment and immediately obey when he silences them 41 42.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Heavy machine gun — Stored beneath the SUV’s seat and used against Butch’s pursuing Mercedes 40.
• Handgun — Carried in his pocket during the amusement-park date 49.
• Dart-firing air gun — Fires metal-tipped darts capable of penetrating wooden boards; used in his hostage-target game 42.
• Stink bombs — Used to disrupt the Iceberg Lounge; the announced threat did not involve actual explosives 41.
• Clown Doll — A red-haired, green-clothed plastic toy given to Ririko at Arkham. It contains the code L-527-1340, which helps her identify an escape route. Jerome later claims it belongs to his brother Jeremiah and burns it 11 18 21 25.
• Plastic flowers — Presented to Ririko when he asks her on a date 48.

Relationships

• Ririko — Initially his neighboring Arkham patient and an “accomplice” in sharing food. His attachment becomes increasingly romantic, while she uses his attention to obtain necessities, delay violence, and arrange the hostages’ escape 10 12 42 48 50.
• Hugo Strange — Oversees the experiments intended to make Jerome a controllable weapon. Hugo insists that Arkham retain control over him even after handing him to Oswald 11.
• Harley Quinn — Supervises his modification and claims she can control him. Jerome reacts fearfully to her threat of further treatment and obeys when she orders him away from Ririko 11 12.
• Oswald Cobblepot — Sends Jerome to Arkham for modification, then employs him at the Iceberg Lounge. Their arrangement collapses when Jerome attacks the club and abducts its employees and guests 11 26 43.
• Bruce Wayne — His principal hostage and an object of persistent mockery. Jerome threatens Bruce’s parents, fights him, and keeps him alive despite Mr. E’s desire to kill him 45 46 49.
• Sofia Falcone — A hostage captured alongside Bruce. Ririko considers her a secondary target whose abduction also creates trouble for Oswald 40 45.
• Butch — Pursues Jerome after Ririko’s kidnapping, then becomes a captive in his dart-target game 40 42.
• William Earle / Mr. E — Conspires with Jerome to kidnap Bruce as part of a bid for control of Wayne Enterprises. Jerome resists ending his games merely because Mr. E wants Bruce dead 49 50.
• Jeremiah — Identified by Jerome as his brother and the supposed owner of the Clown Doll 25.

Infatuation Value

Ririko’s system identifies Jerome as a core character with an Infatuation Value Resistance of 0.4. His initial passive growth rate is two points per hour within effective range; physical contact can accelerate that growth 5.

Ririko regards a value above 80 as a critical threshold and fears what Jerome might do if his attachment reaches it 48.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Arkham Experiments

• Jerome’s screams and laughter interrupt Ririko’s encounter with Hugo. After he is subdued, guards place him in the isolation room beside hers 3 4 5.
• Oswald’s objective is to turn him into a controllable weapon. Harley declares his modification complete and his condition stable, though Hugo demands continued control over him 11.
• Jerome befriends Ririko during recreation time, gives her the Clown Doll and a beef burger, and begins responding strongly to her attention 10 11 12.
• He is transferred out of Arkham before Ririko begins working in the experimental section. The doll’s hidden code later contributes to her escape 17 18 21.

Iceberg Lounge

• Jerome works at the lounge but denies knowing Ririko when they reunite. He burns the doll and smiles cryptically after she leaves 25.
• Butch reports several failed assignments: Jerome feeds opponents stolen hot dogs, kills a debtor before collecting payment, and literally watches a door while allowing police inside 26.
• Jerome ambushes Raymond, learns that Mr. E is working with Arkham, then kills him and steals his case of money 29.

HappyLand Hostages

• Attacks Sofia’s birthday celebration, abducts Ririko and Bruce, and brings his captives to the abandoned HappyLand amusement park 39 40 41.
• Presents Ririko’s abduction as a rescue from waitress work, but refuses to release her. When she rejects a small stool beside his throne, he orders another king’s chair for her 41 42.
• Lets Ririko redirect his shooting games into feeding the captives and making them clean the castle as servants 42 43 44.
• After fighting Bruce, prepares a rooftop game in which one of three captives has an insecure safety rope. Ririko interrupts him with a kiss, and he falls into a junk pile below 46 47 48.

Date and Escape Attempt

• Takes Ririko on an awkward carousel-and-Ferris-wheel date while she buys time for Selina to evacuate the hostages through a secret passage 48 49.
• Reveals that Mr. E wants Bruce dead, but insists that he has not finished playing 49.
• Confronts the escapees and accuses Ririko of deceiving him. She counters that William intends to discard him once Bruce is dead; Jerome hesitates and allows her to explain further, while threatening to kill her if her argument fails 50.

Notable Quotes

“So we’re accomplices, then.” 10

“Happy stories... they’re all about you.” 49

“He just wants to kill Bruce... but I’m not done playing yet.” 49