TO THE BATPOLES #160: Bat-rankings

[bat-rss]

After more than six years of doing this show and reliving our childhoods, what have we decided is our favorite story of the series? Our favorite piece of bat-equipment? Our favorite villain? This time, we rank all our favorites!

Listen here, then comment and tell us YOUR rankings!

[High C]

Thanks for shouting out my disagreements in advance! And thanks for using my idea of ranking the made-for-TV villains!

OK, in terms of made-for-TV villains, my No.1 won't surprise anyone.

1--Siren. Granted, the femme fatale/seductress was a role Joan Collins could play in her sleep by 1967, but I still thought she brought the right amount of menace and believability to the character. Chew the scenery too much with a high-concept villain, and it falls apart. Joan kept the series' most 1950s comic-bookish villain in the real world, at least to some extent.

2--Bookworm. Roddy McDowall's characterization is mild-mannered one moment, out of control the next. But it works. Even his own henchpeople don't seem to know what to make of him at times, and Lydia sometimes genuinely seems scared of him. The writing is good, too. A criminal who is, in essence, a plagiarist.

3--King Tut. He only doesn't rate higher for me because of personal bias AND my opinion that although Buono's ad-libbing and scenery-chewing both were brilliant, I do feel the character influenced the tone of the show toward comedy. Yes, it likely would've gotten there anyway, but I do feel Catwoman, in particular, started being written more Tut-like in season 2, with her snide asides to her flunkies and her 0-60 rev-ups from comedic to evil. As great as Julie was at comedy, her line deliveries in both of those recurring situations weren't as good as Victor's. And really, who could compare to his line readings?

4--Carpet King. Part 1, when he had his moll, Plush, hypnotize all the carpet cleaners in Gotham City, and then try to work on Batman himself, 'Ohhhh, Batmannnnnnn,' was tremendous. And who could forget part 2, when he teamed up with King Tut to rejuvenate an ancient Egyptian carpet beetle. Oh, this was all a fever dream of mine? Oops.

[robinboyblunderer]

The more time goes by the more False Face rises in my estimation. It's one of the finest scripts in the series, with a really good flow; both episodes breezing right by while packed with interesting scenes and a unique structure. To wit...

While I'm glad Susie and Finella have a change of heart I think Blaze's is the most interesting starting at the end of Part 1 and into the beginning of Part 2.

She's one of the most active of the henchwomen and has a well acted progression, from gleeful evil accomplice slowly becoming regret, leading to her helping the heroes escape as best she were able and later actively assisting them in pursuing FF, all the way to full blown redemption, appreciation and humility by the epilogue.

And she's quite attractive as well no matter what color wig she wears.

FF is the creepiest villain in the series.

While the Riddler oscillates between mania and barely restrained anger and glee that somewhat opaque mask FF wears is unsettling; Holy Uncanny Valley, Batman!

False Face's lair captures the backstage energy of some demented playhouse.

While his henchmen are perhaps the most inadequate group of fighters next to Catwoman's, their unhinged loyalty adds a the surreal element to the story and one of the laugh out loud moments when they cheer on their boss and he proudly notes they don't mean it. It's hilarious with perfect timing.

And that bit of humor both humanizes the main villain and makes his later antics more menacing as when his evil visage appears in the vending machine. Nightmare fuel indeed.

Earlier I mentioned the flow of the episode, I think no scene encapsulates this more than Blaze's entry into Gordon's office. The fun of the clue, Batman piercing her disguise, the way the camera follows her as she glides through the office, the spin of the globe, to her leaping from window to a cushion...it's great. Her movements rival the best of Julie Newmar's Catwoman! Even the shot of her saluting from the cushion and the ensuing chase is thrilling and unlike other episodes.

And speaking of chase scenes, many a villain has attempted to steal or successfully stolen the Batmobile but not even the Joker's tricky van or Catwoman's sleek Catillac (?) can match False Face's van, it can disguise itself, comes equipped with its own missiles and with the pull of a switch somehow shifts FF from the driver's seat onto his own getaway motorcycle. Why would he ever want to steal the Batmobile when his car can blow it up with rockets?!

FF as O'Hara appearing in front of O'Hara strikes a surreal horror note, the first and last of its kind as the beloved and somewhat competent Chief stares befuddled at his evil reflection. What makes it worse, what really adds edge to it is the low key menace of seeing the actor who plays O'Hara act out of character. It's disturbing in a way the show never quite matches again.

Sure by now the audience expects the Dynamic Duo to wander into a trap as the seconds count down on Part 1, but having "O'Hara" encourage them into peril ups the sense of dread.

While the epoxy looks like the material used to wrap Stouffer's frozen pizza, and the train an HMI Light, there remains some scary elements; one of the Duo will be run over while the other has to listen and remain there helpless, Batman's barely restrained urgency as he insists on Alfred breaking with protocol to short circuit the device on Batman's gauntlet and the overall dingy atmosphere, you can smell the dust in the scene, no brightly colored lair or overly cartoonish trap, just a classic one set in the gray of the abandoned platform with the grim notion of Gotham's Guardians being killed without anyone ever knowing, in the lonely and barely lit tunnels beneath the city they so love.

What his gang lack in fisticuffs, they make up for when it comes to FF's big robbery. But the true highlight of the second half is FF going completely wild (apologies to 2nd season Mr. Freeze) with the disguises. The chaos right after the safe is busted is a highlight with the Dynamic Duo, police and False Face running amuck until he escapes as a policeman.

Speaking of Bat-fights, this episode eschews a final one; who needs to see Robin hoisting a little person in the air or Batman pounding on crooks with even glassier jaws than the usual thugs when they can be ensnared in their own net, thus opening up the conclusion to another unique chase and puzzling final battle as FF tries and nearly succeeds at deceiving the good guys.

I like the wire frame Batmobile and Batman using a variation of the villain's trickery against him. Improbable? Not in the '66 Batman universe.

But that's still not enough;

we get a motorcycle/foot chase,

a fake cowboy with western music on a western stage set where even Robin sees through his disguise

followed up by FF's last amazing quick change/disguise ability that Batman sees through before finally bringing the villain to justice!

It's one of my favorite episodes and for a series that slowly succumbed to formula and the ruinous decison to make the main character more and more stupid over time, this tale is an example of how much fun there was to be had by sidestepping the more common elements and really embracing the central conceit of the villain throughout both parts and in the climax.

Its mix of disturbing elements, unexpected twists, energized performances, snappy dialogue and surreal elements make this one of the best Batman episodes.

cheers

[Ricky]

As was said on the Podcast regarding King Tut I too was not a fan of him as a kid but as an adult I do enjoy his episodes but still they are not at all my favourites. The question regarding favourite villains made for the series is an interesting one but this is what I came up with.

1) Black Widow - I never understand why this character is given so much negativity by Batfans. Tallulahs quirky and creepy portrayal was very 'spider-esque' if that makes any sense? Her lair was the best concealed in the series for me - took our heroes a task to track her down. Even though the storyline in effect was a simple one - in terms of just a series of bank robberies - the whole part of Batman being goofed by Black Widow's brain changer is one of the funniest scenes in the series.

2) Egghead (Season Two) - if they wrote more appearances for Vincent Price in the same portrayal then I reckon Batfans would talk about the character on the same level as they do King Tut. Simply as Vincent Price did an amazing job at bringing such a crazed character to life who in turn had an elite criminal mind to almost outmatch that of Batman.

3) Bookworm - echoing the comments by High C on this one. Roddy McDowell was marvellous in the role and the story was action packed from start to finish.

4) The Siren - this choice is mostly nostalgia as a kid taking over I feel as her whimsical & playful ways of Joan's Siren was all that was needed to love the episodes (and develop a slight crush) - she didn't need the octave above High C on me!

5) King Tut - I actually enjoy his season three appearances the most, the whole crazed man figuring out our heroes true identities and literally finding the bat cave in his last appearance certainly had me on the edge of my seat as a kid. I have to admit to this day I loathe both his season two capers - for me they drag on immensely and find the character to be way to whiney - much to how Egghead was in the third season.

Heres some comments on some of the other parts. My favourite window cameo is the Green Hornet one, simply as its the only one that has actually ever made me laugh - for the very reason highlighted in the podcast. The disappointing story one is an interesting one too and I thought and thought about it and went with 'The Penguin Goes Straight' as we was racking our brains all this time figuring out if he really has gone straight and why Penguin has gone to all this effort and the end result was simply to steal the wedding presents - I found that very anti-climatic.

[robinboyblunderer]

1) Black Widow - I never understand why this character is given so much negativity by Batfans. Tallulahs quirky and creepy portrayal was very 'spider-esque' if that makes any sense? Her lair was the best concealed in the series for me - took our heroes a task to track her down. Even though the storyline in effect was a simple one - in terms of just a series of bank robberies - the whole part of Batman being goofed by Black Widow's brain changer is one of the funniest scenes in the series.

Good point about her "spider-esque" acting and I like her lair as well, from the house facade to the creepy underground base with hidden trapdoors and tunnels. It's a fun episode and we get to see another side of Adam West's acting.

But in my opinion, Bankhead was too old to play the character, she sounds sick and reminds me of someone's Grandmother suddenly acting on the show, it's jarring. There's a sad, decrepit physicality that makes the whole thing upsetting; she feels more fragile than Aunt Harriet. Another younger actress altogether would've been good or even having Anne Baxter pull a hat-trick and play BW.

No pun intended, this is probably an old criticism of the character.

cheers

[robinboyblunderer]

Thanks for shouting out my disagreements in advance! And thanks for using my idea of ranking the made-for-TV villains!

OK, in terms of made-for-TV villains, my No.1 won't surprise anyone.

1--Siren. Granted, the femme fatale/seductress was a role Joan Collins could play in her sleep by 1967, but I still thought she brought the right amount of menace and believability to the character. Chew the scenery too much with a high-concept villain, and it falls apart. Joan kept the series' most 1950s comic-bookish villain in the real world, at least to some extent.

I agree with your points except for "...in the real world, at least to some extent."

I think her vocal ability is in the same territory as Joker's keybox device, Catwoman's voice stealer and Batman using the ancient rope trick..! It's as fanciful as most things on this show, but I think that's a good thing.

In my opinion, it wasn't the increasingly bizarre situations and gimmicks that contributed to the weakest season but more the writng; if it had only been sharper in Season 3 and had they'd kept to Semple's (I think) respect for the character and the dry, completely serious portrayal of Batman without him becoming moronic, there would be more to enjoy in the final season.

How could the man who invented Instant Costumes with functioning utility belts from warm water be so naive as to shake the Joker's hand?

Now that I think about it, I wonder why SRR wrote Siren's voice being wiped out by Robin's threat. Was her voice just too powerful to exist in this series? Maybe it just felt right to SRR. It's like if Batman hypnotized the Riddler into hating riddles to cure his compulsion. Aside from subjecting BW to her own device it's a unique moment in the show. And it does give Robin a chance to be utterly ruthless (when not under the influence of Cataphrenic of course).

Typing this out I remember the older draft where the wind blows her away, another seemingly definitive defeat for the character as Sirens are not known to have 9 lives.

Too bad the Batpoles Podcast never had a chance to interview SRR, it might've been interesting with their in-depth knowledge and love for the show. Of course, it might have been disappointing as maybe a lot (most?) of script writing decisions were based on amusing themselves and outpacing the grueling schedule.


A true highlight episode for Batgirl and Robin's most powerful moment, besides figuring out the location of King Tut's lair in "Rut" and untying himself and reverse reversing the polarity of Batman's mind in the aforementioned BW.

Still, it's nowhere near my favorite despite these factors, a befuddled Bruce Wayne is just as bad as an inept Batman but it definitely was an atypical episode and too bad more in the 3rd season didn't try to mix up the formula.

Holy Long Windedness!

cheers

[robinboyblunderer]

Thanks for shouting out my disagreements in advance! And thanks for using my idea of ranking the made-for-TV villains!

OK, in terms of made-for-TV villains, my No.1 won't surprise anyone.

1--Siren.

I should add, despite the lack of budget in Season 3, her lair stood out as unique.

cheers

[robinboyblunderer]

2--Bookworm. Roddy McDowall's characterization is mild-mannered one moment, out of control the next. But it works. Even his own henchpeople don't seem to know what to make of him at times, and Lydia sometimes genuinely seems scared of him. The writing is good, too. A criminal who is, in essence, a plagiarist.

He had a good gimmick that could've lead to a variety of stories too. Lydia really stood out as well, as noted in the podcast it feels like she should have returned had their been a second Bookworm tale. However, sometimes less is more, while I like Egghead and Shame in Season 2, their second appearances were disappointing, particularly Egghead who was neutered by Olga. So maybe it's good there's only one Bookworm tale. Who knows? The Shadow? The 1966 Bat-Board? Probably Alfred.

cheers

[High C]

And speaking of chase scenes, many a villain has attempted to steal or successfully stolen the Batmobile but not even the Joker's tricky van or Catwoman's sleek Catillac (?) can match False Face's van, it can disguise itself, comes equipped with its own missiles and with the pull of a switch somehow shifts FF from the driver's seat onto his own getaway motorcycle. Why would he ever want to steal the Batmobile when his car can blow it up with rockets?!

Its mix of disturbing elements, unexpected twists, energized performances, snappy dialogue and surreal elements make this one of the best Batman episodes.

I agree with your last statement, and yes, the dueling Stafford Repps scene is creepy and disturbing in a way the show never quite equalled, but I do feel as if scripter Stephen Kandel drops the ball a bit during the climactic moments.

You say the switch 'somehow' shifts FF from the driver's seat to the motorcycle. Well... that is as fanciful as Siren (guilty as charged, and I will get to that in the next post). False-Face would have to be Plastic Man, Mister Fantastic or Inspector Gadget to survive the G forces of that whiplash. At least if they had a stunt man BACK OUT of the van on the motorbike I could've worked with it. And I won't get into how he changes so quickly from the cowboy to the Commish. If he had a full Gordon suit and tie underneath the cowboy outfit, then he was moving pretty well for all that bulk he was wearing.

Minor points, yes, but they take a little away for me (the motorcycle more than the costume change, really). And that is on the scripter and the director and the time constraints of having to wrap things up.

[High C]

Thanks for shouting out my disagreements in advance! And thanks for using my idea of ranking the made-for-TV villains!

OK, in terms of made-for-TV villains, my No.1 won't surprise anyone.

1--Siren. Granted, the femme fatale/seductress was a role Joan Collins could play in her sleep by 1967, but I still thought she brought the right amount of menace and believability to the character. Chew the scenery too much with a high-concept villain, and it falls apart. Joan kept the series' most 1950s comic-bookish villain in the real world, at least to some extent.

I agree with your points except for "...in the real world, at least to some extent."

I think her vocal ability is in the same territory as Joker's keybox device, Catwoman's voice stealer and Batman using the ancient rope trick..! It's as fanciful as most things on this show, but I think that's a good thing.

Now that I think about it, I wonder why SRR wrote Siren's voice being wiped out by Robin's threat. Was her voice just too powerful to exist in this series? Maybe it just felt right to SRR. It's like if Batman hypnotized the Riddler into hating riddles to cure his compulsion. Aside from subjecting BW to her own device it's a unique moment in the show. And it does give Robin a chance to be utterly ruthless (when not under the influence of Cataphrenic of course).

Typing this out I remember the older draft where the wind blows her away, another seemingly definitive defeat for the character as Sirens are not known to have 9 lives.

I'll admit that was not a great choice of words. I guess what I was trying to say is that Joan Collins' beauty and charisma and her posh, commanding British diction made her seem larger than life and enabled the viewer (at least this one) to buy in and suspend disbelief.

As for your second point, I think the problem was SRR and the show simply didn't have experience writing and plotting for characters that had superpowers or were metahumans, if you will. If someone has a mind-control gimmick that involves a device or a chemical, it's easy enough to disarm them eventually and end the adventure with the heroes prevailing. It's a little different when the villain's gimmick is innate. Let's face it--why didn't Siren simply hypnotize Batman and Robin over the phone (as in Ross' original treatment) or at Barbara's apartment? Simple, because then it would've been more difficult to stop her. The plot goes through a lot of bizarre gymnastics to make The Siren easier than she should be to thwart.

Good point about her lair. I've always felt this was one time in which the third season's lack of budget didn't hurt so much. They made enough actual props to give it a sense of scope, plus grottos are SUPPOSED to be dark.

[BATWINGED HORNET]

Great show, guys--you had some interesting choices for just about everything. Now, you should pick:

1. The scene or episode where you thought West and Ward (individually or as the Duo) were at their overall best as the characters.
2. Best Bat-fight (if you have not covered that in the past).
3. Best villain theme.
4. Best episode score (yes, music was recycled, at one time, there were "firsts".
5. Least thrilling cliffhanger.

...and here's the real challenge: Gordon and O'Hara's most competent scene and/or episode!

As far as Bat-gadgets go, my favorite would be the Bat-laser pistol. No explanation needed for that one--or the Batarang.

Regarding the made-for-TV-villains, I've said it before, but False Face leaves the rest behind by some considerable distance. Aside form the oft-mentioned "creepy" factor (which was great), but he felt like the kind of mystery criminal one would see in Batman stories of the early 1940s, where he was both strange and "out there" in a way that made him stand out next to the comic-based Rogues' Gallery. He was a villain who not only outwitted Batman and Robin, but his signature--false faces--was the most practical and realistic. What's more threatening than a villain who can look like anyone else? Joker, Riddler and Penguin you can coming see a mile away, but False Face? He could stand right behind you, and you'd never know it...in fact, if memory serves, he did that on a couple of occasions in part one of his story.

[robinboyblunderer]

And speaking of chase scenes, many a villain has attempted to steal or successfully stolen the Batmobile but not even the Joker's tricky van or Catwoman's sleek Catillac (?) can match False Face's van, it can disguise itself, comes equipped with its own missiles and with the pull of a switch somehow shifts FF from the driver's seat onto his own getaway motorcycle. Why would he ever want to steal the Batmobile when his car can blow it up with rockets?!

Its mix of disturbing elements, unexpected twists, energized performances, snappy dialogue and surreal elements make this one of the best Batman episodes.

You say the switch 'somehow' shifts FF from the driver's seat to the motorcycle. Well... that is as fanciful as Siren (guilty as charged, and I will get to that in the next post).....

Minor points, yes, but they take a little away for me (the motorcycle more than the costume change, really). And that is on the scripter and the director and the time constraints of having to wrap things up.

Definitely as fanciful as Siren's voice.

The motorcycle switch is zany, with one flick he somehow ends up on a bike facing out with helmet; it's as improbable as his quick change ability. For me, all of that is fine, Indian Rope Tricks, Surfing Transforometer, the Joker somehow controlling time to the point he can age or de-age someone (!). It's all part of the crazy fun of the show.

cheers

[robinboyblunderer]

Thanks for shouting out my disagreements in advance! And thanks for using my idea of ranking the made-for-TV villains!

OK, in terms of made-for-TV villains, my No.1 won't surprise anyone.

1--Siren. Granted, the femme fatale/seductress was a role Joan Collins could play in her sleep by 1967, but I still thought she brought the right amount of menace and believability to the character. Chew the scenery too much with a high-concept villain, and it falls apart. Joan kept the series' most 1950s comic-bookish villain in the real world, at least to some extent.

I agree with your points except for "...in the real world, at least to some extent."

I think her vocal ability is in the same territory as Joker's keybox device, Catwoman's voice stealer and Batman using the ancient rope trick..! It's as fanciful as most things on this show, but I think that's a good thing.

As for your second point, I think the problem was SRR and the show simply didn't have experience writing and plotting for characters that had superpowers or were metahumans, if you will. If someone has a mind-control gimmick that involves a device or a chemical, it's easy enough to disarm them eventually and end the adventure with the heroes prevailing. It's a little different when the villain's gimmick is innate. Let's face it--why didn't Siren simply hypnotize Batman and Robin over the phone (as in Ross' original treatment) or at Barbara's apartment? Simple, because then it would've been more difficult to stop her. The plot goes through a lot of bizarre gymnastics to make The Siren easier than she should be to thwart.

Why not just go on TV or radio and broadcast her note? It's frightening that level of power. However, Siren is both difficult to stop and ridiculously easy; a pair of Bat-Ear Plugs or Policewoman Mooney on the job and she's finished. The bigger issue is undoing her control over other men.

Maybe having her power only work in person could've made her less over-powered yet still be deadly.

Heck, maybe having Robin convince Siren to destroy her own ability was the way to go, otherwise there'd be even more contrivnances to beat her in future episodes. And there is the novelty of a villan being "eliminated" as it were. Not too many of those...Zelda and I guess Tut if you bonk him in the head.

Again, I feel like I'm overthinking something that presumably was a fun script for SRR to write and maybe the show just isn't meant for this kind of discussion, interesting as it is.

cheers

[robinboyblunderer]

2. Best Bat-fight (if you have not covered that in the past).

Good suggestion!

Bat-fights seem an under-examined aspect of the show.

Early on, the first Joker episode and the Maharajah ones had melee style fighting, it felt like watching chaos vs the more stylized fight structure that followed. Too bad there's no interviews with the stunt people, aside from a specific script instruction it seems the fights were under the jurisdiction of the stunt team and laid out a certain way by them. I wonder if they had designations for certain moves, as some examples:

Robin assisting Batman punching someone.
Batman lifting Robin so he can kick.
The combined charge by henchmen.
The one hero down, one swinging to help.
Robin being carried over the shoulder, etc.

They could quickly forrmat a fight having a certain number of key moves/positions that they liked using. A way to get them filmed as efficiently as possible.

cheers

[robinboyblunderer]

I thought about this as its own topic but I don't know where it could go really, so I hope it's all right to post here.

I just found this interesting:

I think in a lot of SRR's scripts he has a well respected Gothamite turn out to be part of the villain's gang:

Reporter Jack something or other from Cat and Fiddle.

Chief Screaming Chicken.

Evil Cossack guy with Olga.

Alan A. Dale from Archer.

Used Car Salesman from the first Shame eps.

---Quite a shift from the more fan type/respectful interactions between Gothamites and the Dynamic Duo.

cheers