Batman: The Animated Series
I don't have a lot to say when it comes to the two episodes that are covered in this blog post. I don't have any pithy observations of the show itself. So, I guess I'll just say that these are two pretty great episodes and it was a treat to re-watch them.
The age old question: Can Batman take down a villain he can't see? I bet you don't need a spoiler alert to guess the answer.
A little girl named Kimmy enjoys late night conversations with her imaginary friend, Mojo. When she tells Mojo that she and her mother are planning to move and not tell anyone, Mojo gets agitated. It turns out that Mojo is Kimmy's criminal father, Lloyd "Eddie" Ventrix. He has got his hands on an experimental plastic that renders him invisible. He's been using his invisibility suit to perpetrate robberies across Gotham City, in hopes to buy his way back into his daughter and ex-wife, Helen's, life. Can Batman stop Ventrix before Kimmy gets hurt and the plastic kills Ventrix?
This is another episode that could have very easily veered into after-school special territory. There is the blatant parental abduction theme, but also the more subtle implications that Ventrix was abusive when he was a more constant presence in Kimmy and Helen's life. The show doesn't explicitly point this out, but it is heavily implied, especially during the scene where Ventrix ambushes Helen at her job and follows her to lunch. Also, look at Kimmy's reaction to Ventrix when he reveals himself as Mojo. This is more than just a girl who's been told by her mother that her dad is a bad guy. This is the reaction of someone who has seen her dad be a bad guy for herself. This showing rather than telling is what helps elevate this episode above an episode like say the Batman drug PSA of a few episodes ago.
Another thing that helps is that Ventrix is a compelling villain. You get a sense of malice from him from the very beginning. When he is masquerading as Mojo in Kimmy's bedroom at the top of the episode, you know there is something not right. It is unsettling. It stays with you. Ventrix is also able to put Batman through his paces and comes across as the most credible threat to the Dark Knight than any of the other one-off villains thus far.
Aside from all that, the episode itself is solidly built. Batman gets a chance to flex his detective muscles, which have been sort of on the back burner. There is some comedy that doesn't take away from the seriousness of the episode. The climax of the episode, with Batman riding on top of an invisible car and the final confrontation between Batman and Ventrix, with the water from a punctured tower revealing Ventrix is all top notch. I was a big fan of all the Ventrix reveal techniques the show used to show Ventrix when he was invisible, from powdered concrete to slung paint.
There are a couple small things that hold the episode back from reaching the upper echelon of B: TAS episodes. I liked that Ventrix was a threat, but the writers go a little too far in their first confrontation. My husband even remarked that he doesn't remember seeing the Joker get that many licks in. Kimmy talking to her new "imaginary friend" Batman veered a little too far into corner territory.
This was an episode that I sort of remembered the broad strokes of before I sat down and watched, but it wasn't one that I was looking forward to or thought was going to be any good. It was a pleasant surprise and showed that B: TAS could really nail the one-off villain formula when it wanted to.
Grade: B+
"As a child, I used to watch it with my father. The Gray Ghost was my hero."
Gotham City is being terrorized by the Mad Bomber. Batman knows there is a connection between the bomber and his childhood hero, the Gray Ghost. Young Bruce used to watch the show with his father. He doesn't recall the end of the episode because he fell asleep. In order to stop the Mad Bomber, Batman has to team up with Simon Trent, the man who played the Gray Ghost.
This is another all-time great episode of B: TAS. First off, it's great for the show to acknowledge what came before it, specifically the 1960's "Batman" television series. The show had done that a bit in the past. The cliffhangers of the two parters and some of the threatening situations Batman had found himself definitely felt like homages to the series, but casting Adam West as fading actor, Simon Trent was genius.
It was also a risk, for the show and for West. The episode draws direct parallels between Trent and West, in regards to being so well known for one character and the typecasting that both faced once the were finished playing that character. Dini and Bruce Timm were set on having West voice the Trent character and wouldn't have done the episode without him. The episode handles Trent with respect and it's obvious the impact that the Gray Ghost had on Batman, even before he shows Trent the secret room in the Batcave filled with Gray Ghost memorabilia.
The episode is successful when it comes to tweaking Batman's back story just a bit and showing some heretofore unseen moments between a young Bruce and Thomas Wayne. It makes sense that Bruce would fashion some of his Batman gear/costume after a television vigilante he idolized, especially one he spent time watching with his father. This reveal doesn't feel shoehorned in. It feels organic and real. It's nice to see some memories of young Bruce and Thomas. So much of what we have in regards to the relationship Bruce has with is parents is solely in regards to the trauma of their shooting. Seeing these quieter times, these times that he obviously cherishes, help to reinforce why he is so willing to put himself in harm's way night after night to honor their memory.
The whole episode tells such a wonderful self-contained story. It feels like a throwback and something modern. The twist that the shop owner that Trent sells his Gray Ghost merchandise to in order to make rent is actually the Mad Bomber isn't shocking, but it still works really well.
This will forever be one of my favorite episodes of B: TAS because it is great and because it weaved Adam West into it's history. Something that with his recent passing made it even more poignant.
Grade: A
What did you guys think? If you've re-watched "See No Evil" recently, were you surprised at how good it was? Or am I off base? Does anyone tear up watching "Beware the Gray Ghost?"
Next time, Batman deals with premonitions and the cosmos and deals with Bruce Wayne being framed for attempted murder.
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