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EPISODE REVIEW: (SPOILERS!)
(by Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton)
All of Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton's reviews
of the new-style BTAS episodes and BATMAN BEYOND can be found via these links,
which link to "Two-Face's Tower of Tranquility and Terror":
NOTE: ALRIGHT! I've been messing up WHO is writing
WHAT for this column for too long now. If you wanna see who's writing each
review, just go to the bottom - they all sign it there. Sorry Zanna and
Justin! I feel so foolish...agh...*HALF OF MY FACE BLUSHES*
NOTE: Since there are no new episodes to cover, I
went back and inserted a copy of my review of COLD COMFORT from two years ago.
It's getting chilly out, and I already reviewed the Christmas episodes, so I
figured this would be a perfect candidate.
-Tim
<BATMAN BEYOND>
COLD COMFORT
Written by Hilary J. Bader
Directed by Dan Riba
Animation by Dong Yang
Original air date: October 11, 1997
My rating: ***1/2
Cold Comfort is the first Mr. Freeze episode on
the new BTAS, which takes place a couple of years after the yet-to-be-released
Sub-Zero.
In Sub-Zero, Nora Fries was finally saved...but by
a doctor other than Freeze. Freeze was also presumed to be dead at the end of
the movie. Nora had waited for Victor to return, but he never did...so she
married the doctor that saved her.
That is Freeze's motivation...he is on the prowl
in Gotham, destroying everything that everyone values, for he lost everything
he loved - Nora. he eventually attacks Bruce Wayne, and freezes Alfred inside
the manor. Batman and Batgirl then track Freeze down and discover that he
plans to drop a reverse-atomic bomb in Gotham which would freeze the city in a
white blanket of death. But that's only part of the discovery...
The freezing of his body finally caused Victor to
deteriorate...which, in short, caused all parts of his body below his neck to
wilt and die. Now, Freeze has been decapitated...he's just a disembodied head
in a detachable glass dome, and a newer, sleeker, cryogenic suit. Quite a cool
switch for Mr. Freeze...and a welcome one at that...just a little hard to
digest at first.
I liked this episode. It is, in many ways, just
like BATMAN & ROBIN, but has a much darker tone - a combination of the
grande-scaleness that Schumacher is known for, and the mood of Burton.
Perfect for Batman. A great touch was the fact that the sky was blood red
through the entire episode - even when the sun was up. Another plus was that
only Batman and Batgirl were used in this episode...no overcrowding of heroes.
Other cool (no pun intended) scenes are Batgirl's
training in the cave, the interaction between Bruce and Tim about failing a
politics test, and the fact that this is the THIRD time in the BTAS continuity
that Batman bleeds! (The only other time was in On Leather Wings and Mask of
the Phantasm.) That was a nice touch...the animation is great, as always. The
moodiest scene was when Batman and Batgirl discover Freeze's lair...no music
is used, just a tonne of creepy X-Files-type sounds...I love it!
__________________________
EDITORIAL
(by Kelly Tindall)
WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR CHRISTMAS?
Ho ho ho, my happy little elves!
It is I, your loving uncle Kelly, bestowing his
good wishes (and 500-hundred page wish list) upon you. Let's have some
'special' eggnog, and go move Grandma away from the fire! I hate the
smell of roasting geriatrics!...
So, my kiddies, what have the wise and wonderful
gods of the WB bestowed upon us for Christmas?
Lessee...Pokemon...Pokemon...AHH! Here we go! The Batman Beyond
aisle! Let's go have a look...
ACKK!
These are TOYS? What MOCKERY is THIS?
These are NOT TOYS, they are the unused plastic from leftover SUPER-SOAKERS!
What loon thought these toys up! They're all ugly. None of them
look like Batman actually looks like. They're not even colored like him!
They're all REPAINTS! No new molding at ALL...oh, sorry, wait, I almost
forgot the 'crappy little gas mask' Batman with Ace the Bathound. Now,
there's an ugly add-on right there.
And villains? HA! Just one badly-done
Jokerz toy. Ugly, ugly, ug-ly. I've heard something about a Blight
toy...but I haven't seen one in this part of the world. Sad, really.
No Inque...Spellbinder...Dana(mrrrr-ow!)... not even Bruce-with-a-cane.
Sight. Depressing.
So, because THAT stank, what else have we got?
Ohh, here's a nifty thing...the Batman Beyond logo baseball hat. $19.95
where comic books are sold! Not bad..kinda cheesy, but most comic-book
stuff IS...the logo is pretty small, I'm not impressed, really. Moving
on.
Heyyyy...this is more like it! The Batman
Beyond statue! He's in a cool pose, got those wicked-looking wings
spread out, lots of attitude...neat base, too, sort of 'Metropolis'...I like
it! How much...
ACKK!
Okay, moving on...
That's all I know, kids. There's some other
neat junk out there, but nobody really NEEDS a Batman Beyond zippo lighter.
Plus, the amount of cool Batman/Superman junk you can score, I can count on my
left hand.
I guess the moral of our story is, its not what
you get for Christmas, it's what you're mad at for NOT getting for Christmas!
Next year, we've got to raise our dissenting voices high! "We want
more Batman/Superman action figures! Scarecrow first!" We'll
yell, "Good Batman Beyond stuff for less than $170!" And we'll
bark, "The Harley Quinn 11-inch doll is nice, but overpriced and hard to
get!"
Oh well. I guess we'll just have to watch
our shows on television, and hope one day that they'll be a bit more
3-dimensional.
Until then, I gotta get out of here. This is
bat country!
Kelly
__________________________
AND THAT'S THE FACTS
(by "Reliable Source")
(Yes, I understand that the title is grammatically
incorrect. So sue us. Actually, nix that. Don't sue us.)
(DISCLAIMER: For those of you who are not
yet familiar, Reliable Source is an anonymous character who first surfaced on
Batman: The Animated Message Boards, spewing forth ridiculous predictions
about the future of Batman Beyond under the guise of spoiler warnings.
His controversial posts created quite a buzz, and have landed him a temporary
column with this newsletter. The thoughts and ideas expressed by this
shady character are in no way officially connected to Kids WB, Batman Beyond,
this newsletter, or anything that is decent or holy. That said, on with
the show.)
__________________________
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! *EVIL LAUGH* 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.
CORRECTION: Question #233 of the trivia (in ) was as follows:
233. At the time of this newsletter's publication,
which of the following villains have yet to make more than one appearance in
the BATMAN BEYOND series (including both TV and comics)?
A: Inque
B: The Terrific Trio
C: Blight
D: Dr. Cuvier
E: Shriek
I claimed the answers were C and E. I was
mistaken (obviously), for Blight has appeared more than anyone else has. The
correct answer was B and E. Sorry for the mistake, and the many that
noticed and e-mailed me about it! ;-Y
*****
It's Christmas-time - isn't it a magical time of
year? That said, I thought I'd focus this quiz on the magical and
sorcery-like elements in Gotham. (I used up all the Christmas questions
last year, so sue me.)
236. What does Zatanna believe Bruce's name really
is?
A: JOHN
B: ALFRED
C: BRUCE
D: DICK
E: JIM
237. What was the object of Klarion the
Witch-Boy's desire in THE DEMON WITHIN?
A: KING ARTHUR'S CROWN
B: MERLIN'S MAGIC WAND
C: AN IRON BRAND
D: A CAULDRON LADEL
E: AN ANCIENT SCROLL
238. What is the name of the magician that Batman
and Zatanna joined forced to defeat?
A: Klarion the Witch-Boy
B: Zatarra
C: Montague Cain
D: Onyx the Sorceress
E: Houdini
F: Paul Dini
239. Aside from Ra's Al Ghul, which of the
following people have ever entered a Lazarus Pit?
A: Talia
B: Ubu
C: Jonah Hex
D: Arkady Duvall
E: NO ONE
240. It's not magical, but it's close...what is
the name the girl referred to the "Invisible Man" as?
Answer: ____________
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ANSWERS TO THE TRIVIA
Answer to #236: A
Answer to #237: C
Answer to #238: C
Answer to #239: E
Answer to #240: "MOJO"
