WESTSIDE RIPPER

Real Name: Officer Evan "Race" Racette, Detective Dick Richards, Mrs. Ophelia Taranova

Identity/Class: humans, conventional weapons users

Occupation: (Racette & Richards) police officers; Taranova (housewife)

Group Membership: (Racette & Richards) New York Police Department

Affiliations: (Richards) Officer Clair Dodge (former partner), Jack Taranova;
    (Taranova) Trent Squint (friend of her son's)

Enemies: Officer Clair Dodge, Typhoid Mary/Bloody Mary/Mary Walker;
    victims: Cynthia Henry, Hester, Rachel, Tulip, three others unnamed

Known Relatives: (Richards) unnamed wife and possibly kids
    (Taranova) Jack (husband), Quince (son)

Aliases: none

Base of Operations: New York City, New York

First Appearance: Typhoid#1 (November, 1995)

Powers/Abilities: none. Each used a gun or bladed weapons to murder unsuspecting victims.

History: A series of four prostitute murders led to the investigation of the alleged Westside Ripper.

(Typhoid#1 (fb) - BTS) - Prostitute Cynthia Henry was murdered. When her mother, Gladice, learned she was missing, she informed her halfway house roommate, Mary Walker, leading her to investigate this and other deaths.

(Typhoid#1) - The prostitute Rachel, having had recent affairs with Officer Racette, Jack Taranova, and an unnamed politician, was murdered by Mrs. Taranova.

(Typhoid#2) - In the course of investigating the Ripper, Typhoid posed as a hooker, servicing Race. When he told her to suck his gun, Typhoid shifted to her Bloody Mary persona and killed him

(Typhoid#3) - Mrs. Taranova killed the prostitute Hester, who had just had an affair with Jack Taranova. Typhoid had staked out the room next to Hester's due to suspicion over Jack, but she was then drugged by Trent and was unable to react when the scarf-wearing Mrs. Taranova attacked Hester.

(Typhoid#4) - Jack Taranova confronted his wife, telling him that there would be no more women for either of them. After Typhoid escaped Trent and Quince, she learned that Mrs. Taranova had killed the prostitutes that Jack had visited. However, seven women had been killed in all, and while she knew Race had killed one, Mrs. Taranova had only killed four. Typhoid correctly figured that Det. Richards had killed the other two. Typhoid confronted and slew Richards.

Comments: Created by Ann Nocenti and John van Fleet.

Why didn't they ever name Mrs. Taranova? She looks like an Ophelia to me.
Similarly, why didn't Trent get a last name? Based on the fact that the Quince Taranova name sounds similar to Quentin Tarantino, I'd called him Trent Jules, after Samuel Jackson's character from Pulp Fiction. Or maybe Trent Wallace, after Marsellus (sp?) Wallace.

Not all of the prostitutes killed were named, and it was not clear who killed each one of them. It's an interesting story, but a bit hard to follow. I think I've read it four times, and I'm not positive I've got it all figured out.

I also don't really understand while Typhoid allowed anyone in the Taranova house to live. Maybe she did kill them all, but there's nothing to support that in the story that I saw. It certainly seemed that she couldn't kill Mrs. Taranova b/c she was a woman.

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
No known connection to:

Race

Officer Evan Racette.

He was a cop who freQuinceed prostitutes. He had a fetish about making prostitutes literally suck on his gun. He killed one prostitute (or possibly two) , after which Typhoid posed as a hooker and was picked up by him. As soon as he told her to suck his gun she changed into Bloody Mary and killed him, putting the gun in his mouth and firing it.

--Typhoid#1 (2

Detective Dick Richards

It was unclear whether "Dick" was his real first name, or just a nickname (both short for his last name and an accurate descriptor of his personality)

A member of the New York Police Department, he was an old friend of Jack Taranova, and possibly of Race. He was corrupt, accepting bribes, using confiscated drugs, and both using and abusing prostitutes. He apparently killed one or two prostitutes, and he covered for Mrs. Taranova to protect Jack. He was partnered with Clair Dodge in the investigation of the Westside Ripper, and his abusive behavior earned him several slashes on his face from Typhoid, who left him with a gun tied to his face with the barrel inside his mouth.

Bloody Mary later killed him after learning that he actually was one of the killers.

--Typhoid#2 (3, 4

Mrs. Ophelia Taranova

The wife of Jack and mother of Quince, she became jealous and began killing the prostitutes that her husband visited. She killed four hookers (a blond, a redhead, an Asian, and black girl), definitely including Rachel and Hester. She allowed her son freedom with his filming projects and spent her wealth on plastic surgery and home shopping networks. Typhoid eventually learned of her guilt, but could not bring herself to kill a woman. Jack promised that he would stop seeing prostitutes, which would mean that Mrs. Taranova likely stopped killing hookers.

--Typhoid#1 (2-4

Officer Clair Dodge

She was partnered with Detective Richards in the investigation of the Westside Ripper, but she found her efforts frustrated by her partner, who blocked her investigations, as well as the fact that no one would talk to her while she was with Richards. When she tried to investigate the police angle, Richards recommended she be transferred to a Mexican border town. She turned in her badge and gun to prevent that, and then she subseQuincely told Richards that since she had neither a badge nor a gun she couldn't help him when Bloody Mary came to kill Richards. Bloody Mary gave Dodge her gun as a souvenir.

--Typhoid#2 (3,4

Quince Taranova

The son of Jack and Mrs. Taranova, he was obsessed with filming projects and also had aspirations of being some sort of psychologist. He worked on his projects with his friend Trent, and he was also friends with Dr. Hunt, who had formerly treated Typhoid and had given Quince copies of the footage of some of Typhoid's therapy sessions. He was aware of the halfway house in which Typhoid had been stationed, and he sent Trent to abduct her. With Typhoid strapped in place and controlled with drugs, he tried to use a variety of therapies to cure her on film. Eventually believing her to be cured, he released her. Typhoid revealed that she had been lying to them both and only pretending to be cured. However, she apparently left, taking no vengeance on Quince or Trent.

--Typhoid#1 (2-4

Jack "Baby" Taranova

The father of Quince, husband of Mrs. Taranova, and a former member of the New York Police Department, he was a respected undercover detective until the pressures became too much for him and he retired. He frequented prostitutes, among whom he was known as "Baby," because he liked them to dominate him. He was suspected by some of being the killer when those he visited died soon after, but it turned out to be his own wife who was killing the hookers. Jack actually went back and filmed his wife during one of the killings, doing nothing to stop it and keeping the film as evidence of his own "innocence." Detective Richards was aware of his involvement in the killings, and Taranova apparently knew about Richards' involvement as well. He eventually confronted his wife and told her that neither of them would have any future involvement with prostitutes.

 --Typhoid#1 (2-4

Trent Squint

Quince's partner in film, he had a history of being in a mental institution, with which he sympathized with Typhoid. He met with her and discussed their pasts, then ambushed her in a hotel room and drugged her. Typhoid had staked out the room next to the prostitute Hester, so that she could protect her in case the Westside Ripper came for her. However, since Typhoid was drugged by Trent, she could not react to Hester's signals for help, and Mrs. Taranova killed Hester. He brought Typhoid back to the Taranova household where they strapped her in place and controlled her with drugs. He and Quince tried to use a variety of therapies to cure her on film. Eventually believing her to be cured, they released her. Typhoid revealed that she had been lying to them both and only pretending to be cured. However, she apparently left, taking no vengeance on Quince or Trent.

--Typhoid#1 (2-4

images:
Typhoid#4, p22, panel 1 (Mrs. Taranova)
    p19, panel 2 (Jack Taranova)
Typhoid#2, p6, panel 4 (Richards)
    p7, panel 2 (Dodge)
Typhoid#1, p16, panel 4 (Racette)
    p10, panel 3 (Quince Taranova)
    p10, panel 4 (Trent)

Typhoid#2-4 (December, 1995 - February 1996) - Ann Nocenti (writer), John Van Fleet (artist), Bobbie Chase (editor)

Last updated: 09/27/09

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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