ISFP: Clayface, “Batman: The Animated Series”

ISFP – the Composer, the Seeker, the Virtuoso

(aka: Matt Hagen)

I really dug Clayface as a kid simply because of the fantastic possibilities that being a shape-shifter offered (this was also around the time of Terminator 2 and Deep Space Nine, which both offered similar gooey shape-changers). He’s probably the villain I’d have the most fun being because of those powers, and certainly the one I imagined myself as the most often, but unfortunately, he’s a really sad guy. Maybe one of Batman’s most tragic tales—a man who loses himself and literally goes to pieces.

I have to credit the writer at The Animated Batman for his insight into the psychology of Clayface that informed my thoughts as I wrote this profile.

Dominant Function: (Fi) Introverted Feeling, “The Deep Well”

Anything bad you’ve ever wanted to say about us Fi-doms you can say about Matt Hagen—self-absorbed, vain, selfish, and run by the whim of his damaged emotions.

From the start, he’s lost in own grief and anger over being disfigured in a car accident. Even after he latches on to a miracle cure in order to continue his acting career, he continues to fume bitterly over what he’s lost, unable to get over it. He just wants to be left alone to stew in his own emotional cesspool.

He denies any attempt to comfort or help him, abusing those who care about him while feeding on their patience and generosity—from his buddy Teddy, to his girlfriend Stella, even Batman.

He once had an identity as a handsome movie star, but after he loses that, Clayface doesn’t know who he is. “I’m not an actor anymore! I’m not even a man,” he says. He rages at Stella for watching his old movies because he doesn’t want to reminded of who he used to be.