Dread
TMNT 1984-2009
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- Oct 11, 2001
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The Joker is Batman's #1 nemesis and usually considered his most popular. In the 90's B:TAS he got the lion's share of solo episodes, and that appears to be the same in THE BATMAN. Some have been good; others mediocre and unfortunately some have been downright awful (especially the pilot). "The Joker Express", however, slips into the foremost category. If I thought about it longer I could probably find a better Joker episode in THE BATMAN's list of episodes, but it was pretty good. It offered a capable mystery, some good action, kept with the theme and so forth. It also had the benefit of being paired against some depressingly underwhelming episodes this season, and so far I'd argue it was the best episode of Season 5 so far, with Phospherus a close second.
Random people are starting to suffer from "Joker's Smile" syndrome and not only cackle with laughter, but seem to steal items and toss them into the bay, where Joker has a barge awaiting all the ill gotten loot. Batman, Robin, and Batgirl have to rise to the rescue to figure out this spree. The only downside is that the "Joker effect" wore off without any cure; Joker's motivation was stealing valueables, not in killing people. And while that isn't unusual, having that chill to him, that sense of him seeking lives, makes him seem more than a clown faced thief. That said, THE BATMAN's Joker has flip-flopped from being chilling to just being goofy, so in the terms of this show, the scene wasn't out of character. After Batgirl suffers from the effect and has a brief fight with Robin, Batman figures out that all of Joker's victims rode the same train in the morning, and so the team goes undercover to see what it was. Perhaps expecting gas (Joker's usual modus operendi), he somehow hooked something in with the subway's lights, and all three end up going goofy and stealing.
In the end, though, the team tracks Joker down, hands him a beating and prevents him from escaping from Gotham with a bountiful booty, as well as saving it from destruction. Trying to blow up the city added some danger factor in the end.
Joker had a conductor costume on and it was nice seeing a character model change mid-season, which notes the show has a decent budget. It also had Batman performing daylight heroics, but this show has already established their Batman has become more of a "Costumed Cop" like he was in the 50's and 60's than a "Dark Knight myth". As I have said before, THE BATMAN seems to treat their character as if DARK KNIGHT RETURNS never happened. He's been a loner and brooded, but it has rarely gotten as deep or pathos driven as other incarnations. It isn't the best interpretation of the character, but it is one some have liked; Grant Morrison including.
Season 4 may have been the creative peak for a show that underwhelmed quite a lot, but this episode was pretty good regardless.
Random people are starting to suffer from "Joker's Smile" syndrome and not only cackle with laughter, but seem to steal items and toss them into the bay, where Joker has a barge awaiting all the ill gotten loot. Batman, Robin, and Batgirl have to rise to the rescue to figure out this spree. The only downside is that the "Joker effect" wore off without any cure; Joker's motivation was stealing valueables, not in killing people. And while that isn't unusual, having that chill to him, that sense of him seeking lives, makes him seem more than a clown faced thief. That said, THE BATMAN's Joker has flip-flopped from being chilling to just being goofy, so in the terms of this show, the scene wasn't out of character. After Batgirl suffers from the effect and has a brief fight with Robin, Batman figures out that all of Joker's victims rode the same train in the morning, and so the team goes undercover to see what it was. Perhaps expecting gas (Joker's usual modus operendi), he somehow hooked something in with the subway's lights, and all three end up going goofy and stealing.
In the end, though, the team tracks Joker down, hands him a beating and prevents him from escaping from Gotham with a bountiful booty, as well as saving it from destruction. Trying to blow up the city added some danger factor in the end.
Joker had a conductor costume on and it was nice seeing a character model change mid-season, which notes the show has a decent budget. It also had Batman performing daylight heroics, but this show has already established their Batman has become more of a "Costumed Cop" like he was in the 50's and 60's than a "Dark Knight myth". As I have said before, THE BATMAN seems to treat their character as if DARK KNIGHT RETURNS never happened. He's been a loner and brooded, but it has rarely gotten as deep or pathos driven as other incarnations. It isn't the best interpretation of the character, but it is one some have liked; Grant Morrison including.
Season 4 may have been the creative peak for a show that underwhelmed quite a lot, but this episode was pretty good regardless.
What the hell in this episode ?!?
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