Batman: The Animated Series
Another thing that differentiated B: TAS from other animated series of the time was that it wasn't afraid to use guns firing real bullets. Other animated series of the time like X-Men and Spider-Man didn't use actual guns with bullets. The guards, police, etc used blasters. The fact that the thugs and gangsters that Batman is encountering on a nightly basis are firing on him with actual guns upped the ante and really reinforced the dangers that he was facing. This helped push the series to the next level.
Rupert Thorne is B: TAS answer to Carmine Falcone and this episode puts more focus on him along with a heretofore unseen crime boss rival.
Arnold Stromwell and Rupert Thorne are engaged in an escalating turf war for the drug trade in Gotham City. When Stromwell's son goes missing, he immediately suspects Thorne and things get even worse. Can Batman convince Stromwell to give this up before Gotham pays the ultimate price?
"Two-Face" proved that the show could tell adult stories in this context in a thoughtful, mature way. So, why shouldn't the show be able to tell a story about drugs and it's effects on cities, people, etc.? In theory, nothing, unfortunately this episode doesn't reach the heights of the previous episode and doesn't really add anything new to this well worn narrative. The whole thing really lands with a resounding thud. The entire time I was watching the episode and I would hear Batman start to speak on the subject, Mr. Mackie from "South Park" would flash in my mind saying, "Drugs are bad... Mmmkay." I'm sure that is not what the writers of the episode were going for.
The reveal that Stromwell's son was not taken by Thorne but was really in rehab because he got hooked on the drugs that his father is peddling is supposed to be huge and emotional, but really, it's just more after-school special than anything. It's difficult to get too invested in his plight, since we meet Stromwell in this episode and you know that after this episode he'll never be seen again. It doesn't help that Stromwell is a bit of a caricature. Upon finding out his son is hooked on drugs, his initial reaction is that he needs to get him out of that brainwashing facility. Insert eye roll here.
Everything about the episode when it comes to the drug aspect of things is heavy handed and cloying. Batman bringing in Stromwell's priest brother who lost his leg in a train incident straight out of "Stand By Me" doesn't help.
The episode is successful when it focuses more on the gang war concept. Thorne is a great addition to the series and it's great to see more of him. When it's just Thorne trying to rid himself of his aging rival, the episode is engaging, it's too bad there isn't more of it.
Grade: C+
We've gotten a lot of episodes so far focusing on one-off villains and a lot of Joker episodes, but this episode introduces another classic Batman villain.
Sherman Grant fancies himself a junior detective. He and his friend, Roberta, spot a vulture flying above Gotham and follow it to an abandoned birdseed factory. There, they discover the Penguin has stolen the Volnaster Fabergé Egg. Batman appears on the scene and after a struggle, he is hit with a gas from Penguin's umbrella that incapacitates the Dark Knight. It's up to Sherman, Roberta and their friends to save Batman and thwart the Penguin.
Before re-watching this episode, all I could recall was how much I hated it as a kid. I didn't like it when it aired and I was always really disappointed when it showed up as a re-run. I thought maybe I was being extra hard on it, but turns out, I was actually going pretty easy on it as a 9 year old.
It's surprising that this is the episode that they chose to introduce the Penguin. Penguin is a classic villain and he had just been featured in "Batman Returns." He deserves better than chasing after a bunch of kids. Maybe that's the main issue with the episode. It is the first episode of the series so far that feels really juvenile, like it was aimed specifically at children.
That's not to say that an episode that puts the focus on some enterprising kids is a bad thing. It could have been great, but it's these kids that are the issue. They are so dumb. They almost get killed in the birdseed factory, the Batmobile driving sequence is meant to be funny, but it's just cringe inducing. Sherman is an awful junior detective. Batman is out of it, but he is clearly saying "capsule" and "visor" so Sherman struggling to understand him and figure it out just seems like forced tension. The bullies are broadly drawn caricatures. I didn't even learn their names. How do you live in Gotham City and not recognize the Batmobile? Come on. That being said, they do the most realistic thing in the episode when they try to take off Batman's mask in Sherman's basement.
Here's hoping that Penguin gets his due in his next featured episode.
Grade: D
What do you guys think? These are two pretty underwhelming episodes. Anyone big fans? Did watching the first episode keep you off drugs as a kid? Am I being too hard on Sherman and his pals?
Next up the series rebounds with perhaps the best episode it's ever done and a certain feline fatale gets her due.
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