CLIFFHANGER!

General goings on in the 1966 Batman World

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mattman
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CLIFFHANGER!

Post by mattman »

Hi guys.

Thanks for the warm welcome back.
Fit and healthy once more!

So, I thought I would start a new thread...

What is your favourite or the best cliffhanger?

Now, bear in mind a great cliffhanger in my eyes had to have a neat resolution too. Take that Dynasty massacre: great season cliffhanger/ worse cop out since Chief O' Hara took, well, his cops for a night out.

So... which is it???

Stay tuned...the worse is yet to come

Same Matt Time
Same Matt Channel
FLOYDLEWIS
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by FLOYDLEWIS »

my favorite bat one...Dynamite in the batmobile engine...my favorite otherwise...empire strikes back..went to see it over and over
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TBolt
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by TBolt »

The Best of Both Worlds STTNG.
To the Bat-Elephant!!
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mattman
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by mattman »

Both great choices
Apart from Batman the best cliffhangers imo were:

Best of Both Worlds
Who Shot J.R?
Bobby in Shower( but dreadful resolution and acceptance)
Friends- when Ross says Rachel's name at his wedding
Dynasty Massacre(but as said earlier, the payoff was as rubbish as the Adamms Family lead actor's portrayal as villains in Batman)

As for the show this forum is all about, my 5 in no particular order:
Ma Parker- over 60 and KABOOM!
The Joker is Riled- Unmasking the Caped Crusader on tv
Marsha- I actually liked the idea of the wedding ("Mrs.Batman?")
The Joker Goes to School- "2 lemons...."
The Joker Trumps an Ace- More how the Dynamic Duo get out, back to back scaling the inside of the gas filled chimney
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John Mack
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by John Mack »

Hands down, the purrfect crime. Full of cliffhangers and I stared at my view master reels until I had imprints from the viewer around my eyes!
Music. BAT! Music.
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njboywonder
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by njboywonder »

I've noted before that my favorites are, for quite polar reasons, the Minstrels' BBQ spit and Riddler's driveshafts.

Granted the former wasn't a strong villain, but that arguably doesn't bear upon the question. This was less a slam dunk of a choice but it's a dynamic trap (Somehow motion and seeing the threat grow closer or in this case intensify are, to me, effective elements of a Battrap.) And Minstrel's singing added a psychological punch to that threat. In the end though, it was extremely 60's family friendly fun and silliness.

The Riddler though, along with the Joker, is the quintessential Batman foe, and his more naturalistic, believable mania serves the realism, including/especially the use of real mechanical elements of the building as opposed to a supposedly created gimmicky trap, and grittiness of that ending scene extremely well.

Very little about this cliffhanger is hokey, comedic, camp, comic book, over the top, etc. In fact it plays as drama, and hints at imagining the characters as real costumed crime-fighters in the real world--an entirely different concept than what the show usually portrayed.
Commodore Schmidlapp
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by Commodore Schmidlapp »

Lots of great ones:

Catwoman frying Batman and Robin on the rooftop. The sexual overtones were strong on this one.

Penguin catapulting the Dynamic Duo across town with a camera strapped to them, watching as it happens.

Zelda blindfolding Aunt Harriet and dangling her above a cauldron. I'm sure they used a stunt double, but that sure looks like Madge Blake!

Puzzler's hot air balloon. Very sinister, and perhaps one that had it succeeded, he could've gotten away with, since there would be little to no evidence.

Quicksand Cake - over the top gimmick and great escape.

Geez, I'd probably have an easier time listing the ones I don't like!
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mattman
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by mattman »

Thanks so far guys.

Great list.

As for the Puzzler cliffhanger, decent resolution.

And yes, the Minstrel singing how the Duo will dissolve in front of him is so 60s
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BATWINGED HORNET
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by BATWINGED HORNET »

"Instant Freeze" - The first Mr. Freeze (Sanders) cliffhanger: eerie, glowing frozen Duo. Probably the best cliffhanger for overall originality of the series.
"Zelda the Great"- Aunt Harriet over the flames
"True or False Face" - the duo tied to train tracks.
"The Bookworm Turns" - Robin suspended in the bell.
"The Spell of Tut" - Robin on the plank above the crocodiles. This cliffhanger would be adapted (in large part) for an episode from Filmation's 1968 The Batman/Superman Hour cartoon.
"The Penguin's Nest" - O'Hara set to be pushed into an electrified pool while Penguin's henchmen prepare to shoot the Duo.
"The Purr-fect Crime" - but its conclusion--"Better Luck Next Time"--has an equally effective mid-episode cliffhanger with Robin suspended over the tigers.
"The Penguin Goes Straight" - Gordon and O'Hara moments away from being the unwitting killers of Batman and Robin at the Penguin's shooting stand.
Beneath Wayne Manor
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mattman
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by mattman »

Aunt Harriet had one.
Bruce Wayne had a few.
Chief O'Hara had one.
Gordon?
Dick Grayson- not sure

Shame Alfred never got one. Would have loved to see him escape thanks to his wits or an Alfred Anti-Scorpion sting pellet
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BATWINGED HORNET
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by BATWINGED HORNET »

mattman wrote: Sun Sep 09, 2018 4:12 am
Dick Grayson- not sure
"An Egg Grows in Gotham" - Although Grayson was not in the thought transfer machine, he was held captive, and there's no way Egghead would set him--or the others free, especially if any harm came to Wayne in the process.
Beneath Wayne Manor
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mattman
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by mattman »

Good Point Batwinged Hornet.
Still thinking if Gordon was involved. I know he was inadvertently going to shoot the Dynamic Duo....
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SprangFan
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by SprangFan »

For set-up and resolution: Joker "drowns" the Duo with poison gas.

Most worrying to me as a kid: Bruce rolls to the edge of a cliff while bound to a stretcher.

Most terrifying: Giant. Clam. :shock:

And though it's ridiculous in concept and resolution, the idea of the Duo sinking to their deaths atop their own anniversary cake left a lasting impression.
"You were right again, Batman. We might have been killed."
"Or worse. Let's go..."
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mattman
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by mattman »

The Giant Clam was well executed, even the resolution where Batman gets so angry he breaks his chains.

Agree with you Sprangfan, the Joker /Chimney Gas cliffhanger' s resolution used no gadgets, no deux ex machina, just wits. And strong calf muscles
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dell
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Re: CLIFFHANGER!

Post by dell »

Not my favorite episode by a long shot, but Bruce falling out of the back of the ambulance and heading for the cliff strapped to a gurney. YIKES!!! And it really was a cliffhanger, so it deserves another YIKES!!!

For a kid that one was as scary as the Blink episode of Dr. Who is for me today. If you're not a fan of Dr. Who, but like "scary" stuff in the style of Alfred Hitchcock, this single Dr. Who episode is worth watching even if you never watch another episode.
dell
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