Over the years, Superman has faced a number of foes, but one peculiar criminal stands out above the rest due to his method of operation. Winslow Percival Schott, sometimes known as The Toyman, was once a devoted husband and child lover, but terrible circumstances led him to turn to crime.
Toyman first appeared alongside Superman in Action Comics #64 in 1943 and went on to become a frequent character in various Golden Age Superman comics, as well as many animated and live-action productions, including Justice League Animated Series. We will look at this weird character with a personality issue in this video.
The Toyman First Appearance (Action Comics Vol 1 #64)
The story begins with Clark Kent and Lois Lane taking a stroll in the park, amidst birds chirping and children playing, when they suddenly meet a kind old toymaker, who introduced himself only as, the Toyman. It seemed that all he wanted was to spread joy, but the Toyman had a sinister side to himself. We’ll explore his dark origins in the next entry, but first, let’s learn how sinister this character actually is.
It turns out that the Toyman was, in fact, a tremendously genius thief, who wanted fame, or maybe notoriety. He would make all kinds of toys that looked beautiful and adorable but were often laced with explosives and poisonous nerve agents. It wasn’t before long that he asked Lois to arrive at a parade if she wanted her next big story.
Upon reaching the prescribed spot with Clark, she saw that the said parade consisted of a toy regiment, and naturally, it wasn’t supposed to take place. The weird but intriguing sight took the passer-by by storm, and they all gathered around to witness the strange event.
So intrigued were they, that even Clark couldn’t notice a strange figure hopping around towards a nearby bank, the Toyman. When the time was right, the Toyman released gas pellets hidden inside the toy soldiers. The people inside the bank started falling unconscious, and Clark changed into his Superman avatar to save them. However, Toyman had managed to steal the money and escape, but Superman couldn’t stop him because he had to save the toy maker’s victims.
The following day, Lois received another such letter; this time, she had been asked to arrive at an apartment complex. By now, Toyman had used a more dangerous strategy to steal precious gems. He had laced a toy firetruck with explosives and made it ram into the building, causing massive fire and damage. Superman was there on the spot, but he couldn’t stop Toyman from fleeing because his first priority was saving the trapped people, especially a few children.
By now, Superman had been tricked twice, and he was determined to catch this sinister man before he put any more lives in danger. As is the case with madmen, they like to boast, and Lois was presented with yet another opportunity by the Toyman to cover his story. He said that a truck with half a million dollars would cross the East Bridge, but it would never make it across.
Lois informs the authorities, and the money truck is escorted by an armored vehicle. However, a miniature version of the armored truck approaches the scene. Just as the guards were about to shoot it down, Superman asked them to withhold their fire because he had seen explosives inside the toy truck.
The Kryptonian grabbed the truck and wrapped it around his body to save the people from the explosion. But nobody noticed another toy truck packed with explosives approaching the bridge from the other side. This truck exploded so vigorously that it melted the bridge, but Superman was able to join the mighty iron rails of the bridge as if it were rubber, hence saving the people.
Lois was witnessing the events unfold from a canoe in the below waters, but unfortunately for her, she saw Toyman escaping, and he realized it. Naturally, he kidnapped her and took her to his hideout, planning to kill her with his remote-controlled dolls, which had poisonous fingertips. However, Superman’s senses told him that he should head to Toyman’s shop, and upon reaching there, he found Lois tied to a chair, awaiting her death. He crashes through the roof, destroying the dolls and saving Lois. Toyman is dropped off at a police station, while Lois is taken to the Daily Planet.
The story might seem a little over the top, but it was efficient enough to give character and cunning to the nefarious man that Toyman went on to become in later comics and digital media.
The Toyman Tragic Origin
Like many supervillains from the DC universe, Toyman’s origin and fall from grace were tragic, dark, and a factor by unpleasant circumstances. And like many supervillains, he believes he’s an instrument of change in this world full of injustice. Nevertheless, Toyman was born Winslow Schott, and the name was popular amongst children because Schott’s Toys produced some of the best toys in town.
His toys would consist of high-end mechanics, which not only made them appealing but were very life-like and natural. For instance, who would not love toys that imitated flying birds, teddy bears that could tuck you in bed, and baby dolls that could actually grow along with children? But why was he so interested in making such meticulously detailed toys? Well, nature had forbidden him and his wife, Mary, from bearing children, and so, they opened their gates to as many children as possible by running the toy shop.
Things were going smoothly for the Schott couple until a man named Walter Dunhill arrived. He came to Winslow with a business proposition, claiming that with Dunhill’s riches and wide network, Winslow would be able to spread happiness to children from all corners of the globe.
However, Mary Schott advised Winslow that it was better to keep things simple and under control. Being the loving husband that he was, Schott turned down Dunhill’s lucrative offer. But as fate would have it, three weeks later, Mary passed away in a road accident.
And Dunhill paid another visit to Schott after another three weeks, and he came with the same offer. Now that Schott was left alone and heartbroken, he accepted Dunhill’s offer. It’s quite possible that it was Dunhill’s long con to eliminate Mary because it was because of her that Schott had initially refused the offer.
Nevertheless, Schott started working with Dunhill but soon learned that Mary had been right all along and that Dunhill had sold Schott’s designs to weapons manufacturers. While Dunhill offered Schott his share of the huge sum of money, the toymaker only wanted his company and his happiness back.
Realizing that he has lost the corporate battle, the once mild-mannered toymaker sent an explosive-laden teddy to Dunhill, which killed him. He was apprehended by the cops, but Schott’s story was far from over. He soon met with Oswald Loomis or The Prankster, another villain from the DC universe and one of Superman’s enemies.
He was the first one to address Winslow Schott as Toyman, and also offered to work together. Toyman realized that he wished to punish the adults because they were the ones who brought injustice upon the world, but he was a tad bit wrong to make Superman his archenemy.
Toyman Story From DCAU
However, Toyman’s story is slightly different in the DC Animated Universe than his comic book origins. In the animated shows, he was named Winslow Junior, the son of an excellent toymaker named Winslow Schott. The old man was kindly and generous and wished to create a huge factory that made toys but coming from a humble background, Winslow didn’t have enough money to bring his dream to life.
Things changed for Winslow when a notorious man named Bruno Mannheim came to him and offered finance for the toy factory. Winslow was ecstatic and agreed to the offer, but the poor man was naïve enough to believe in Bruno. Winslow’s dream factory soon became a den of criminals and a front for their crimes. It wasn’t before long that these crimes came to the fore, and the factory was busted by the cops.
Since it was in Winslow’s name, the cops arrested him, and he died shortly after in prison. As for Winslow Junior, he was left to fend for himself, and he spent the coming years in various foster homes. Clearly, the little kid had lost his childhood, a fact that would haunt him for the rest of his life, and something that would shape his future.
Upon reaching adulthood, Winslow Junior became obsessed with reclaiming his lost childhood, and in a desperate attempt to do so, he assumed a childlike persona. Of course, he inherited his father’s talent of creating toys with high-end mechanics, but while his father made toys for the amusement of children, our Toyman made toys to scare the parents away.
Once he knew his life’s agenda, Toyman decided to avenge Mannheim, the man who had destroyed his family and childhood and led to his father’s death. Lois Lane happened to write an article on Toyman, where she criticized the horrific acts he had committed all across Metropolis.
This enraged Toyman because he believed his cause was justified, and Lois had wrongly portrayed him. So, he abducts her and explains his unfortunate story to her, while planning to execute Mannheim in front of her. However, Superman arrived and saved the day. What happens next is a story for another day, but one thing that’s certain is that Toyman did indeed have a troubled childhood. Despite being a mechanical genius, he chose the wrong path to avenge himself. I mean, even though Batman and Superman had troubled childhood, both of them were orphaned, they channeled their grief into something positive, unlike Toyman.
Terrifying Versions of Toyman In Various Forms Of Media
Toyman has starred in various animated and live-action shows, including Challenge of Super Friends, where he was a member of the Legion of Doom. But, let’s dive into some of his more prominent depictions across various media.
The Adventures of Superboy
The show didn’t categorically say that the character of Nick Knack was the Toyman, but it was evident that it was heavily influenced by our notorious toymaker. Nick Knack appeared in the second season episodes titled Secrets of Superboy and Nick Knack. There were certain differences between Winslow Schott and Nick Knack, for instance, the latter was a young, immature thief who obsessed over toys and crime.
In one of the episodes, Nick Knack swears revenge on Superboy, who had put the former in prison. So, after his escape, he drains Superboy’s powers and transfers them into a specially crafted suit. However, Superboy manages to stop Nick Knack and retrieve his powers. His second appearance, however, was more sinister as he uses hypnotism to brainwash certain characters, but as would be expected of him, Superboy manages to thwart Nick Knack’s evil plans.
DC Animated Universe
But of course, Toyman’s major portrayal was seen in the DC Animated Universe, where he appears in various different forms and versions, each more sinister than the previous. In the episode, but since we have already explored that in the previous entry. However, he did appear in two Justice League Animated Series episodes titled Hereafter and Alive. The latter of these is often considered to be one of the best episodes of the show and revolves around two factions of villains fighting against each other.
Not only does he pilot the giant spaceship of the supervillains, he also takes down his colleagues such as Killer Frost and a few parademons. In Batman: The Brave and the Bold, a character named Fun Haus appears, who resembles the Toyman in modus operandi. Interestingly, Haus uses an exploding doll that resembles the villain Baby Doll from Batman’s The Animated Series. You can check out our video titled 11 Darkest Moments Of Batman Animated series – Explored.
Live-Action
In Smallville, Winslow Schott was played by Chris Gauthier, who was famous for bringing toys to his workplace. However, he was soon fired when it was discovered that he was lacing his toys with explosives. Such talents never go unnoticed in the criminal world, and he was soon contacted by Lex Luthor so that Lex could use Toyman’s devices to further his own plans. Although he was stopped, he escaped custody.
He later appeared in Season 9 of the show to exact his revenge and even created his own version of the Legion of Doom, which included the Dark Archer, Captain Cold, and Black Manta. But of course, he couldn’t go ahead for long as he was soon stopped by Clark Kent. Apart from this, he appeared in the show Supergirl, where Toyman had retired and wanted to mend his relationship with his son, Winslow Schott Junior, who was now serving as Supergirl’s IT guy and her best friend
So, you see, the Toyman was a cunning man with a tragic backstory, someone who was left bereft of everything he held dear. Although he starts to tread down a path full of evil and crime, there’s a sense of relatability in this man.