EPISODE REVIEW: (SPOILER ALERT!)
(by "Belle Book")
BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES
"Pretty Poison"
Written by: Paul Dini
Story by: Paul Dini and Michael Rogers
Teleplay by: Tom Ruegger
Directed by: Boyd Kirkland
Airdate: September 14, 1992
Rating (out of 5 stars): ****1/2
After spending a good part of his evening capturing an escaped prisoner,
Bruce Wayne has dinner with his good friend, DA Harvey Dent, and Pamela Isley, a beautiful
woman whom Dent's madly in love with despite knowing her for only a week. Pamela leaves
early, kissing Dent before she goes. Soon afterwards, Dent falls unconscious (into his
chocolate mousse), a victim of poison. Batman's able to isolate the toxin, which comes
from the wild thorny rose, but the plant has been extinct for five years - or has it?
Could someone have rescued the wild thorny rose and used its poison on Dent? Batman's got
to find the truth, and fast!
This episode was a really interesting one. It's the first appearance in the
series of Poison Ivy, and as such it gives us a look into her motives for trying to kill
Dent. Because Dent's project of building Stonegate Penitentiary threatened the existence
of the wild thorny rose, and destroyed a bunch of other weeds and wildflowers growing on
the site, she feels that he committed murder and therefore must die. It also shows us her
insanity - the charge of murder is a little strong for what Dent did, and besides, the
wild thorny rose is a poisonous plant.
But what interested me the most was not the Poison Ivy plot, but the scene
that took place before Poison Ivy's attempt to murder Dent. We see Pamela Isley (Poison
Ivy) and Dent waiting for Bruce (Batman) to arrive, and Dent begins to order, saying that
Bruce is always late. As he describes Bruce, we are treated to glimpses of Batman in
action. For example, he says that Bruce probably got hung up on business - and we then see
Batman take down a helicopter that was used to get the prisoner out of Stonegate! There's
increasing irony in the contrast between what Dent says and what we see Batman doing,
culminating in Dent's claim that "There's nothing we two don't know about each
other," followed by Batman's telling the prisoner he captured that he's the
prisoner's "worst nightmare"! It's really funny!
The characterizations are very good as well. Alfred proves his usefulness
once again, telling Batman that the wild thorny rose has been extinct for nearly five
years (we soon learn that he's mistaken), and getting info on Isley. As for Harvey Dent,
it's nice to see him in his last appearance before he becomes Two-Face. Also, there's
plenty of irony in his relationship with Bruce Wayne - they're such good friends, and yet
Dent doesn't realize that Wayne's got a hidden side, nor that he will become an enemy of
Batman - Bruce's hidden side.
As I said earlier, Pamela Isley/Poison Ivy is an interesting character. She
obviously loves plants, and tries her hardest to save them. The problem is that she goes
too far trying to save them, resorting to attempted murder as the case may be. She's proof
that the ends don't always justify the means, something that quite a few Batman villains
have in common (Catwoman, Mr. Freeze, and Ra's Al Ghul being the most notable of those
villains). As a result, she is buried in Stonegate but promises to grow back like the
plants she loves.
And finally, there's Bruce Wayne/Batman. He has to do a lot of detective
work in this episode. First, Bruce has to isolate the toxin that's killing Dent. Then,
once he figures out that Isley might have had something to do with Dent's poisoning (don't
know why - maybe her hug reminded him of her kissing Dent), he has Alfred gain information
on her - information that convinces him that she tried to kill him. After that, he becomes
Batman and attempts to find Isley and find a way to save his friend. He shows his
resourcefulness in the fight that follows her poisoning him, first by managing to get
himself free, then by getting her to release the antidote in exchange for the wild thorny
rose she saved. All in all, it's Batman at his best.
Though this episode isn't as classic as "Heart of Ice", it's still
a fine
episode and worthy of BTAS.
Belle Book
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COMIC REVIEWS
(BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES by Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton)
WANTED: A reviewer for JUSTICE LEAGUE ADVENTURES comics. Send me an e-mail
at juno@dccnet.com if you're a JUSTICE LEAGUE fan and
you'd like to take a stab at it!
BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES
ISSUE: "Early Thaw" (#51)
WRITTEN BY: Jason Hall
PENCILS: Brad Rader
INKS: Terry Austin
ISSUED: June 26, 2002 (Cover date: Aug 02)
RATING: *****
I don't know who this Jason Hall guy is or where he came from, but don't let
him get away! After a string of not-so-special issues by Scott Peterson, this new blood
has instilled new life into GOTHAM ADVENTURES. Not to knock Peterson's work or anything,
because I have enjoyed a number of his stories (such as the terrific Catwoman story in
), but this is exactly what this title needed. Why?
1. Good writing. No, Peterson's writing wasn't poor, and we know he is
capable of good stuff. Then again, I was happy to see that we didn't discover that the
real "villain" pulling the strings in this issue was a crazy unappreciated chef
or a laid-pack artiste. The writing was serious and dealt with an interesting topic.
Low-key "stories about nothing" with silly twists at the ending are fine, but we
had been getting far too many in this title recently.
2. A different style. Look at how the mainstream titles were rejuvanated
following NO MAN'S LAND when the new creative teams were brought in. In , we were
without the Peterson trademark - the three opening pages of splash art, and little
dialogue. Hall's pacing worked perfectly for this story - it went very quickly, but there
was still a lot of dialogue to get through. A change of pace never hurt any body.
3. Characters were developed. The focus of the story was obviously the
relationship between Victor and Nora Fries, and it came off without a hitch. Freeze's
characterization was spot on; it was only a matter of time before he tried to get back to
Nora. It was also great to see how Nora's character was portrayed when NOT restricted to
suspended animation...even if it was just on the final page.
The hinting at the future relationship of Bruce and Barbara was a nice
touch, too. We all know that, if BATMAN BEYOND is considered "real", these two
do hit it off; never have we seen any hinting at such a thing happening. Not until now.
Not only that, but I thought that Batgirl's inclusion in this story worked. Usually I find
that she is placed into any story as a "sidekick by default", and that her
character isn't terribly strong; she worked on every level for me this time, mushy
pre-romance with Bruce or not.
Oh yeah, as for seeing the Clayface/Roland Daggett thing revisited...nice
touch. It's great to see that Mr. Hall knows his continuity this well.
4. The art. Not that the art was fabulously better in this issue, or that it
was poor to begin with (because it wasn't), but I thought the shading was fabulous -
particularly during the Freeze/Nora fight, and when we first meet Batman and Batgirl atop
the skyscraper in the opening pages.
I, for one, hopes Mr. Hall steps in for more "filler" issues in
the future!
;-Y
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COMIC SCHEDULES & COVERING THE BASICS
This section gives a little bit more in-depth look into each monthly issue
of BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES and BATMAN BEYOND. Below each comic listing is a link to the
cover of that comic. TALK ABOUT SERVICE! The price for any of these issues, unless
otherwise posted, is $1.99 in the US and...grrrrr...a whopping $3.25 (or higher) in
Canada. (Both our editors and many subscribers are Canadian, hence the well-deserved
"grrr".)
If we are unsure of the exact date of when an issue is being released, just check out
"DIRECT CURRENTS" for details:
http://www.dccomics.com/directcurrents/
FOLLOWING MONTH:
In stores August 28. Gotham gets strangled by a super-plant whose roots run clear to the
Batcave. It's got Poison Ivy written all over it...but where is she? And has she uncovered
the Dark Knight's secret? Batman must track it - and her - deep into the Amazon jungle to
find out.
Cover: http://www.toonzone.net/comics/solicitations/2002-08/batman/bga53.gif
-JUSTICE LEAGUE ADVENTURES #9
"Stepping Out," the troubling tale of a super-hero's dilemma: balancing a love
life with his duties to the JLA. When evil strikes, it's never convenient - and the Flash
somehow must help the Justice League save the world without raising the ire of his
beautiful date.
Cover: http://www.toonzone.net/comics/solicitations/2002-07/dcuniverse/jladvs09.jpg
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Due to demand by some of our subscribers, we've decided to give a
"Letters to the Editor" section a shot. Feel free to submit something you'd like
to say to us, and each issue we'll choose one to post and then reply to. (NOTE: It can be
completely uncensored, positive OR negative, though any coarse language will be bleeped
out. We want this to be a no-holds-barred column!)
Wow, we had lots of letters to get through today. I decided to lump them all
together in the same issue - unbelievably, they all deal with a similar topic: upcoming
adaptions of our favourite comic book characters.
> "*THE FOURTH ANIMATED BATMAN MOVIE
> -No new news here. It probably won't be another BATMAN BEYOND movie,
> though."
Why not, twip? I thought the uncensored ROTJ kicked batbutt!!!! Watching it on DVD is
sa-weet!
Sincerely,
Terry McGinnis
LETTER #2
Tim,
Have you seen the so-called [independent BATMAN BEYOND movie] "trailer?" I
could have filmed that. I think it is a big hoax. Why isn't Paul Dini
involved? And I did IMDB and other searches for the "cast members" and
found none of them anywhere. I would love for it to be true but something tells me
it is not!!
Lisa Singer
LETTER #3
Hi...
The reason I'm writing is just to make a statement to everyone who is crying about the
up-and-coming "Birds of Prey" series on the WB.
People, quit your bitching and stop looking at these things with such closed
minds. So what if it's not exactly like the comics. It seems that everyone is always
reading into stuff like this too much. I, myself, no matter what it is, have always just
sat back and enjoyed the ride and have accepted graciously any form of the Bat-family in
print, small screen, big screen, etc. No matter what they do, you people always find
something to complain about. I feel you should all just open your minds and count your
blessings. I am eagerly anticipating seeing Oracle, Black Canary, and the Huntress make it
to the small screen, even if it's not verbatim.
Sincerely,
Andie Nappi
Inverness, FL
TWO-FACE'S SIDE OF THE COIN
Whoo, that was a lot of stuff to get through. So, I'll answer them one by
one.
#1) Terry, I agree, I think that the WB is crazy not to cash in on their
animated properties nowadays, BATMAN BEYOND or otherwise. Look at how well-received the
ROTJ DVD was, too - everyone loved it! It wasn't so much the unedited features that
people seem to enjoy, but the director's commentary. If the WB would only think
about the fact that putting out quality products (be they new movies, or repackaged
episodes with lots of bonuses and extras), they'd be making lots of $$$ (which is what
they ultimately care about) and a lot of people happy at the same time.
Sadly, BATMAN BEYOND was just a fad as far as the WB is concerned - that's
why they dropped it like a hot potato and favoured POKEMON, which was also ultimately run
into the ground. They probably feel that there isn't a big fanbase for BATMAN BEYOND,
anyway - they made their money, met their 52-episode-quota, so they moved on to something
else. I wouldn't rule out an BATMAN BEYOND animated film, but it's really unlikely right
now. I doubt we'll see any more animated ANYTHING (aside from JUSTICE LEAGUE) until a new
live-action Bat-movie is on the horizon. Those always seem to wake up the brass at the WB.
#2) I have the same reservations about the BATMAN BEYOND feature film. I'm
like you - I'd love for this to be true, but I can't help but think it's not. I've seen
the trailers, and honestly, I applaud the efforts of the filmmakers, but I was still none
too impressed. All we really saw were a bunch of alleyways and dark, cold, concrete areas;
yes, I know it is impossible to recreate a grandiose Gotham on such a tiny budget, but
still. Heck, we don't even see any of the characters - well, Bruce Wayne for a
split-second, but any shot of Terry in the Batsuit was done in CGI! Interesting...
Again, no offense to the filmmakers, but this film looks to be more of a
cool hobby (which it is, because I'm an aspiring filmmaker myself), but as to how such a
huge project can be accomplished on a tight, indie-film budget, I still don't know.
But hey, then again, it's always in the writing and the acting, right?
Apparently it comes out in August of 2002 - yes, just next month - so maybe
we'll hear something about it then.
3) You have a good point about the fan-reaction to BIRDS OF PREY, Andie. I
know there are a lot of people out there that are totally pumped about this show coming in
the fall. I also know a number of people that are excited, but are worried whether they'll
get it right. That's the problem that filmmakers have when bringing comic books to the big
screen. Every movie or TV show is such an event that it should be able to cater to
everyone; each comic series, on the other hand, has their own individual take on the
characters. Everyone has their own favourite interpretation.
Just look at Batman, for example. There must be dozens of depictions of this
character - the murderous vigilante of the 40's, the Adam West version, Frank Miller's
vision, Tim Burton's version, BTAS, the futuristic version on BATMAN BEYOND, Schumacher's
version, the current comic version, and so on, just to name a few. True, Oracle, Black
Canary, and the Huntress haven't gone through nearly as many interpretations over the
years (as they haven't been around nearly as long), but everyone has their favourite take.
If the show doesn't meet our own personal standard, it's a failure; however, that same
show may be great in someone else's opinion.
I'm in the same boat. In fact, when both JUSTICE LEAGUE and SMALLVILLE were
coming to the screen last fall, I was in the "open-minded but critical" frame of
mind. You have to give everything a chance to impress you, and SMALLVILLE did.
JUSTICE LEAGUE, not so much (but I've only seen the DVD so far). Heck, I felt the same way
about BATMAN BEYOND ages ago - and hey, at least it started off really well. :)
We all should keep an open mind. As 63 years of Bat-comics have proved,
there are a number of valid and drastically different interpretations for our favourite
heroes and villains. BIRDS OF PREY is another one of those interpretations. (And honestly,
aside from the "Schumacher vision", I can't think of any that aren't respected
to some degree.)
;-Y
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BATMAN: THE ANIMATED TRIVIA
(by Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton)
This is one of my favourite sections, where I get to boggle the minds of all
our readers! (Mwuhahaha!) This trivia is all animated-related in some form, and can deal
with ANY aspect of the show or comics based on the show. Remember, answer the questions
WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF THE ANIMATED CONTINUITY. Now have fun - let's see how well you do!
Answers are provided below.
STUFF THAT NEVER HAPPENED
OK, we have a new theme! Lookadis! The following questions will deal
with ideas that were originally intended to air on BTAS, but for whatever reason, did not.
You just might learn something you never knew!
761. In the end of which episode was Killer Croc originally supposed to be
defeated by falling into a tank filled with electric eels?
762. During the climactic roller-coaster fight in BE A CLOWN, the Joker's
lapel flower squirts gas at Batman. What was originally supposed shoot out of this flower,
but was removed, because BS&P thought it was "too dangerous"?
763. In one episode, we see a lot of Gotham's homeless. Originally the BTAS
crew wanted to show entire families, but it was later changed (thanks again to BS&P)
to show that only men can possibly be homeless. What episode was this?
764. During Batman's DREAMS IN DARKNESS dream sequence, one of the visuals
was changed, concerning the big gun right at the end. What was altered?
765. In the Batcave, Francine Langstrom bites her husband Kirk and he
becomes Man-Bat again at the end of this episode. When was this originally intended to
happen?
766. This show was originally intended to have the traditional hip-hop Joker
theme but it was removed; according to Bruce Timm, he wanted the score to sound more like
one from the ALIEN movies. Which episode was this?
767. When was a "drop the soap" joke intended to be made towards
the Penguin?
768. In BLIND AS A BAT, the military helicopter the Penguin steals wasn't
originally intended to be a military chopper at all. It was originally intended to be for
what?
769. This episode was written to make up for a space left by the lack of a
previous episode, "The Count and the Countess" (episode #15). What replaced it?
770. Clayface was originally intended to die at the end of this episode.
_____________________________________________________________________
AND THESE ARE OUR FINAL ANSWERS (to the trivia)
Answer to #761: VENDETTA
Answer to #762: Acid
Answer to #763: THE FORGOTTEN
Answer to #764: Originally garbage and trash was supposed to fall out of the gun, but it
was changed to be blood.
Answer to #765: TERROR IN THE SKY
Answer to #766: THE LAUGHING FISH
Answer to #767: BIRDS OF A FEATHER
Answer to #768: Police riot control
Answer to #779: SEE NO EVIL
Answer to #770: MUDSLIDE
_____________________________________________________________________
LITTLE FACTS AND BLOOPERS
(by Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton)
Here is a section that just points out various little facts and bloopers
that we have noticed while watching BTAS, STAS and BEYOND countless times. If you have
anything to contribute, feel free to do so! Enjoy!
CONTRIBUTED BY STAFF:
Wow, I think we've covered everything.
CONTRIBUTED BY OTHERS:
But have you?
____________________________________________________________________
FIGURE THIS OUT!
(by Marc Rosenzweig)
Marc was unable to get an article to us in time for publication this issue,
but fear not, he will return shortly!
____________________________________________________________________
FEATURED BATMAN INTERNET ENDEAVOURS FOR THIS ISSUE
(feel free to submit something for our consideration)
This space for rent.
____________________________________________________________________
TWO-FACE'S TRADING POST
For the next few issues, we here at BATMAN: THE ANIMATED NEWSLETTER will be
providing this space for all you subscribers for trading, buying, selling, and whatnot,
just in time for Christmas (and beyond). So, without further adieu, here is what we
have in store:
WANTED:
1) LOOKING FOR BTAS EPISODES:
Over the Edge, Love is a Croc, The Ultimate Thrill, Cult of the Cat, Old Wounds, Knight
Time, Girls Night Out, Judgement Day, Beware the Creeper, Mad Love
Contact cagq64@hotmail.com if you can or would
like to help.
2) LOOKING FOR BTAS EPISODES:
I live in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. I am looking for anyone who can help me out with
obtaining episodes of any Batman/Superman cartoon - live action shows. By obtaining
I mean dubs. If you think you can help me out please e-mail me at
imasuperfan@hotmail.com
3) LOOKING FOR EPISODES:
JLA episodes, particularly the upcoming INJUSTICE FOR ALL two-parter. E-mail this address
if you can or would like to help: cointoss@hotmail.com
4) LOOKING FOR EPISODES:
All TNBA episodes and all Justice League episodes (Non-wide screen format only)
Contact dennisc@dcsi.net.au if you can or would
like to help.
FOR SALE:
1) I am looking to sell some VHS which have some BTAS/TNBA episodes on them. These VHS
tapes were originally available from Columbia House. They each come in a hard case which
has information printed on it about the episodes contained.
All VHS tapes and hard case containers are in excellent condition. E-mail etiquette45@hotmail.com if interested.
Tapes available are listed below.
*Tape "Title" (by Columbia House): episodes contained
COPS AND ROBBERS: P.O.V., Vendetta, Riddler's Reform, A Bullet for Bullock
FRIENDS AND FOES: Beware the Grey Ghost, The Mechanic, The Man who Killed Batman, Sideshow
NOTE: Batman: The Animated Newsletter has takes no responsibility in
business transactions. We're working on the honour system here, people, so PLAY NICE! ;-Y
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ANIMATED BATMAN/SUPERMAN SITES:
Wow, our links section has grown so big that we've had to eliminate it from
the newsletter! Fear not, you can still find all these links at the WORLD'S FINEST
NEWSPAGE, if you follow this link...that's hypocrisy for ya!
QUESTIONS, SUBMISSIONS, AND FAN-MAIL
If you have any questions, problems, links do not work, or anything else,
then please e-mail this address with your problems and we'll try to fix them as soon as
possible. Also if you'd like to send any fan-mail then please send it to this address:
As for submissions, feel free to submit an article or opinion on anything
pertaining to BTAS. Keep in mind that as the editors, we have the right to edit your
submissions if we deem it necessary. Such instances would include problems with length,
grammar, and language. If we do feel we must edit something, however, we will do our
utmost to ensure that the opinion and the basic message of the submission does not change,
as that is the most important part of any article, and everyone is entitled to it. And if
you do submit something, please don't just submit a basic review of an episode or a comic
or something (because we have people writing for those purposes already) - write about an
issue you'd like to discuss.
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BATMAN: THE ANIMATED ARCHIVES
The very kind people at TOONZONE were nice enough to give us our own little
section of their huge and diverse website. The archive contains past newsletters and is
semi-regularly updated with the latest one. To check it out go here:
TOONZONE's BATMAN: THE ANIMATED NEWSLETTER ARCHIVES
http://www.toonzone.net/news/btan
____________________________________________________________________
LIKE WHAT YA SEE? WANNA SUBSCRIBE? HERE'S HOW!!!
For those of you who are seeing this at the WBC HOMEPAGE BTAN ARCHIVES
section and want to subscribe, just follow these simple instructions:
To subscribe email juno@dccnet.com, put
SUBSCRIBE in the subject line, and put the e-mail address you'd like the newsletter to be
sent to in the body of the message.
For more information about the newsletter just email either of the previous
e-mail addresses - preferably the prior.
Thank you for your time, and thanks for reading! Tell your friends!
-Tim TWO-FACE Leighton and Dick Grayson, editors
____________________________________________________________________
TO ALL GOOD THINGS...
...there must be an end. We would like to thank the endless amount of contributors for
contributing their editorials, columns, news, reviews and other articles. We hope you've
all enjoyed it as much as we've enjoyed making it! Thank you for reading! See ya next
time!
CREDITS FOR BATMAN: THE ANIMATED NEWSLETTER
EDITOR AT COLLEGE, & WORKING, TOO!: Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton
CO-EDITOR AT COLLEGE, ALSO WORKIN': "Dick Grayson"
AIR DATE SCHEDULES: Toonzone, Cartoon Network, and YTV
EPISODE REVIEWS: "Belle Book"
EDITORIAL: Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton, and anyone that writes in
COMIC REVIEWS: Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton
FIGURE THIS OUT: Marc Rosenzweig
"BTAN ARCHIVES" MODERATOR: Eileen Delgadillo
TRIVIA: Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton
PROMOTIONS, JUST GETTIN' THE WORD OUT: Dick Grayson, Eileen Delgadillo, Brian Cruz, Brian
Davis
DELIVERY: Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton
E-MAIL RECEPTION HANDLING: Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton
THE CREATION OF THIS NEWSLETTER INSPIRED BY: Alan J. Porter (of GWN)
BATMAN CREATED BY: Bob Kane & Bill Finger (who else?)
Batman and all related indica are trademarks of DC Comics, Copyright c 2002.
___________________________________________________________________
And a special thank you to Jason Hall for participating in our interview
this
issue!
