Axel Walker (Prime Earth)

Trickster
Mainstream Universe‎‎, 2011‎-present
Gallery
Real Name	Axel Walker
Main Alias	Trickster
Affiliation	formerly Rogues, Secret Society of Super-Villains
Base Of Operations	Central City
Status
Identity	Secret Identity
Citizenship	American
Marital Status	Single
Occupation	Professional Criminal
Characteristics
Gender	Male
Height	5' 7"
Weight	150 lbs (68 kg)
Eyes	Blue
Hair	Blond
Origin
Universe	Prime Earth
Creators	Geoff Johns · Scott Kolins
First Appearance	The Flash Vol 4 #3 (January, 2012)

Axel Walker, better known as the Trickster, is a criminal from Central City and enemy of The Flash.

History

Going Solo

Early in his criminal career, Trickster was recruited by the Rogues and eagerly worked alongside the band of thieves. During an attempted robbery they were apprehended by the Flash, but quickly escaped. Captain Cold, leader of the Rogues, blamed the robbery's failure on Trickster, who in turn, tried to blame Cold's sister instead. Feeling this was one mistake too many, Trickster was fired from the Rogues.

Without a team to work alongside, Walker allied himself with Mob Rule as a paid henchman, setting a trap to capture Darwin Elias.

When Mob Rule was eventually defeated by the Flash, Walker worked freelance for a while, again left without a team to pal around with. Despite losing his association with the Rogues, Trickster rescued Captain Cold, the man who had fired him in the first place, from Pied Piper in order to settle a debt the Trickster owed him.

Soon after the Rogues stopped fighting, Gorilla Grodd invaded Central City, intent on taking it over. When Trickster tried to align himself with the gorilla fiend and act as a tour guide for the simian army, Grodd mercilessly ripped Trickster's right arm off from the bicep and left him to die in the street.

Trickster commissioned a slick new robotic arm in place of the one he lost and soon returned to crime. At a bar in Keystone City, Walker showed up and began to (foolishly) brag about his successes as a thief in the past when he was soon escorted away by a S.W.A.T. team for murder, something he swore he didn't do. While Walker was taken to Iron Heights, the Flash cleared his name by discovering evidence that Trickster was framed for the murder by Marissa Rennie but still needed to serve his prison term for plenty of other charges.

Rogues Rebellion

Deciding that Trickster deserved to be reinstated as a Rogue, the gang of villains prepared to break Walker out of Iron Heights but, as they approached the prison, it was ripped open by a mysterious speedster. Happily rejoining his former team, Trickster and the Rogues followed this mysterious savior to Happy Harbor.

There, the Crime Syndicate announced that the Justice League was dead and that villains were allowed to roam free around the world. However, the Rogues, because of their morals, decided they weren't interested in the Syndicate's sinister agenda and returned to Central City, already in ruins by an invasion by Grodd and his army. Trickster, worried that opposing the new overlords could be unnecessarily dangerous, suggested joining them instead, but his idea was quickly shot down by Captain Cold, who insisted that they work to protect the city and, more importantly his comatose sister, from further decay. Because of their open defiance, the Rogues caught the attention of the Syndicate and were ordered to be executed by Deathstorm and Power Ring.

Rogues on the run for opposing the Syndicate

Using the Mirror World to evade capture, the Rogues ended up disconnected from Cold when they were transported to Metropolis. There, Trickster was shot in the foot with a arrow from a villain trying to make a name for himself.

Again teleporting, the group found themselves in Gotham and were captured by Poison Ivy, who poisoned Trickster with her deadly kiss and threatened to let him die if Weather Wizard didn't use his powers to bring the sun back for her flowers. Unable to satisfy her demands, the Rogues tricked Ivy into healing Trickster anyway. The Rogues fled elsewhere in Gotham, but Trickster was lost along the way at the police impound lot. Briefly encountering Victor Zsasz, Walker reunited with the remaining Rogues, picking them up in a hotwired paddy wagon and escaping Gotham.

Though they were out of the Arkham War's path, the remaining Rogues were attacked by Johnny Quick, the crime lord that freed Iron Heights, who began to use his super speed to whoop Trickster and Mirror Master for opposing the Syndicate. Saved only by Weather Wizard and a little good luck, the Rogues were then forced to fight some of the Secret Society's deadliest foes after they were teleported to their location by Grid. Shooting them all into the Mirror World, Trickster and his allies were finally able to rest as the Crime Syndicate was defeated by the Injustice League, and heroes reemerged.

Working with the Riddler

Axel and the other Rogues lay low for awhile, having lost their leader Captain Cold when he went to work for Lex Luthor at LexCorp.

When Cold returned to crime, though, the Rogues were back in business. Secretly aligning himself with the Riddler, who had come to Central City to challenge the Flash, Trickster hoped that working with the criminal who caused the Zero Year in Gotham would make him a better Rogue. As payment for working as his right-hand man, Walker was gifted a new right hand, man. However, as the Riddler's plan to threaten every person in the city with drones left the Flash helpless, the madman betrayed Trickster and the other Rogues, causing the thieves to help Flash fight back and defeat the Riddler.

Powers and Abilities

Powers

• Cybernetic Enhancement: After losing his right arm with his first encounter with Grodd, Trickster was equipped with a new robotic one, essentially functioning like a normal human arm.

Abilities

• Gadgetry
• Thievery
• Genius Level Intellect

Weaknesses

• Missing Limb: Axel's right arm was ripped off by Grodd during one of his early invasions.
  

Paraphernalia

Transportation

• Trickster's Anti-Gravity Boots
  • Flight

Notes

• Axel Walker was created by Geoff Johns and Scott Kolins, first appearing in The Flash (Volume 2) #183 and Trickster was created by John Broome and Carmine Infantino, first appearing in The Flash #113. However, in the rebooted Prime Earth continuity his first appearance as part of the DC Universe is in Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato's New 52 Flash series.

Related

• 66 Appearances of Axel Walker (Prime Earth)
• 27 Images featuring Axel Walker (Prime Earth)
• Quotations by or about Axel Walker (Prime Earth)
• Character Gallery: Axel Walker (Prime Earth)

Footnotes

Rogues Gallery This character is or was a member of the Rogues, a loose collection of enemies to the Flash, in any of its various incarnations. They are a team of highly effective super-villains with their own internal code that prevents them from killing speedsters. This template will categorize articles that include it into the "Rogues Gallery members category."

Flash Villain(s) This character, team, or organization, is or was primarily an enemy of any or all of the various incarnations of the Flash. This template will categorize articles that include it into the category "Flash Villains."

Secret Society of Super-Villains member This character is or was a member of the Secret Society of Super-Villains, a cadre of super-villains who band together to accomplish feats no one super-villain can do alone, in any of its various incarnations. This template will categorize articles that include it into the "Secret Society of Super-Villains members" category.