murmur
05-03-2003, 09:43 PM
This discussion started in the thread Which Rogue has came the closest to Almost Gettin Em? (http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?threadid=74766), referring to the connection between Croc nearly crushing Batman with a rock in "Sideshow" and the "I hit him with a rock" line in "Almost Got 'Im." It now seems too OT to leave in the original thread, so I'm starting a new one. My apologies if this is confusing or steps on any toes; maybe the mods will shift things around.
I bet that was a nod to ALMOST GOT 'IM, because ever since that corny one-liner of his (which I liked the first time around), it became an ongoing gag with Croc. They harp on it again in TRIAL. I mean, honestly, is he really that dumb? :pMy answer is "no." In "Vendetta" especially, Croc is a very conniving character, possesing key street smarts and a fairly good understanding of the Justice system. Nothing all that terrific, mind you, and he is obviously very poorly educated, but as Croc says, "Hey, I'm adaptable. When you look like me you need to learn to go with the flow."
He is less intelligent than most, if not all, of the other Rouges, but you have to remember--the Rouges are generally an extremely intelligent group of crooks! How else can they even attempt to be a match for Batman? I think it is Croc's relative intelligence that he gets such flack for. If you went to study literature at Harvard, and you could only recite 18 Shakespeare monologues, you might get flack too! Besides, I think Croc can use this as an advantage. Authorities seem to underestimate him, treating him like nothing more than a big brute (this happens in "Sideshow" with disastrous results).
Also, the simplest methods are often the most effective. Croc won't come up with elaborate schemes just for the sake of it; he'll do only what needs to be done for his selfish or hateful ends. I think one of the glorious aspects of the episode "Almost Got 'Im" is the idea that Batman's most dastardly foes are so enamoured of the Batman legend that they cannot bring themselves to merely end Batman with a pull of the trigger. It's an ego contest not just to see who can do Batman in, but who looks the coolest while pulling it off. And the enemies that wouldn't hesitate to give Batman a quick end are too simple, too cowardly and supersticious if you will, to do the job. Killer Croc is, IMHO, an interesting middle ground between these two types of foes.
As for why he shouts out "Hit 'im with a rock!" in "Trial" -- it's not necessarily true to my interpretation of the character, but I have to admit, it was pretty funny!
I bet that was a nod to ALMOST GOT 'IM, because ever since that corny one-liner of his (which I liked the first time around), it became an ongoing gag with Croc. They harp on it again in TRIAL. I mean, honestly, is he really that dumb? :pMy answer is "no." In "Vendetta" especially, Croc is a very conniving character, possesing key street smarts and a fairly good understanding of the Justice system. Nothing all that terrific, mind you, and he is obviously very poorly educated, but as Croc says, "Hey, I'm adaptable. When you look like me you need to learn to go with the flow."
He is less intelligent than most, if not all, of the other Rouges, but you have to remember--the Rouges are generally an extremely intelligent group of crooks! How else can they even attempt to be a match for Batman? I think it is Croc's relative intelligence that he gets such flack for. If you went to study literature at Harvard, and you could only recite 18 Shakespeare monologues, you might get flack too! Besides, I think Croc can use this as an advantage. Authorities seem to underestimate him, treating him like nothing more than a big brute (this happens in "Sideshow" with disastrous results).
Also, the simplest methods are often the most effective. Croc won't come up with elaborate schemes just for the sake of it; he'll do only what needs to be done for his selfish or hateful ends. I think one of the glorious aspects of the episode "Almost Got 'Im" is the idea that Batman's most dastardly foes are so enamoured of the Batman legend that they cannot bring themselves to merely end Batman with a pull of the trigger. It's an ego contest not just to see who can do Batman in, but who looks the coolest while pulling it off. And the enemies that wouldn't hesitate to give Batman a quick end are too simple, too cowardly and supersticious if you will, to do the job. Killer Croc is, IMHO, an interesting middle ground between these two types of foes.
As for why he shouts out "Hit 'im with a rock!" in "Trial" -- it's not necessarily true to my interpretation of the character, but I have to admit, it was pretty funny!