11.05
Issue #5 or “The Owl Laughs At Midnight!”
When we last left our cornered caped crusader he was surrounded by the police after returning from his doppelganger’s devious dimension filled with villainous villains. Though we spent the previous episode with Batman in Owlman’s twisted world where the villains had beaten the heroes, the biggest issue to deal with is that the world’s worst villain from there is now running free in Batman’s world. Not only that, but he’s turned Gotham upside down bringing in outside heroes to help fix the mess! Owlman is almost as good at being bad as Batman is at being good! Our hero might be in over his head this time.
What we have here is the classic villain twist episode, but with a very special… twist to it. Though Red Hood in the previous episode isn’t here to help, Batman instead receives help from someone he thought completely impossible. What results is a very unlikely team up, and one of the most memorable in the series.
So slap on a cap, sit back and relax, it’s time to tackle this episode!
#5 – Game Over for Owlman!
Written by: Joseph Kuhr
Directed by: Ben Jones
Principle Cast:
Diedrich Bader as Batman / Owlman
Jeff Bennett as The Joker
Tom Kenny as Plastic Man
James Arnold Taylor as Green Arrow
Will Friedle as Blue Beetle
After we are first reminded of what occurred in the previous episode, we are brought back to Batman’s predicament. However, since this is a written series and not a visual medium that airs an episode a week, if anyone wishes to see what happened in the previous episode they only need to go to the previous entry.
Read it if you dare, it’s a great episode.
Though Batman is surrounded by the police he quickly uses a smoke pellet to escape from their custody because he’s Batman and the police quickly begin pursuit across the rooftops and the streets after him. Since he is the legendary hero, they’re probably going to need an army to stop him. But Gotham doesn’t have the resources for such high scale measures, instead using the help of other heroes that have volunteered their help.
However, because of Batman’s adventure in Owlman’s world, three weeks have now past and our hero’s reputation is at an all-time low. Luckily, in his hidden perch he spots the doppelganger robbing a bank and begins pursuit after him. Unfortunately, his physical skills are still as sharp as ever.
Of course, it is Owlman is wearing a Batman disguise and is intentionally wrecking our hero’s good name. Noticing that Batman has most likely defeated his allies and freed the heroes in his home world he decides instead to make Batman the greatest villain in this world, thereby wrecking the Caped Crusader’s entire career of crime-fighting and wrecking his biggest obstacle to returning home again. Yes, Owlman really is just that petty for losing a fight.
After slipping out of Batman’s hold, the other heroes arrive to find Batman literally holding the bag. After some speeches about how disappointed they are with Batman’s behavior, he gives them the slip and escapes into one of his many hiding places he has planted around the city. Yet no matter how far Batman runs, he can’t seem to shake them. How can he clear his name if his own allies won’t help?
He’s quickly cornered as Owlman has reprogrammed the Batmobile and his other vehicles, leading him with limited means of escape. It doesn’t take much time for him to simply run out of running room. The world’s greatest hero- taken down by his own allies. How can it get any worse for him? Well, the thing is… he’s not alone.
When suddenly-
Batman is rescued by some stranger. Pulled into a warehouse, he stumbles alone in the dark desperately searching for his rescuer. In the darkness of the warehouse he comes upon the voice of somebody Batman knows all too well, and someone who is disappointed about the supposed crime spree our hero is on most of all.
But that might be for far different reasons. As he steps out of the shadows he reveals his intent:
“Our game was so simple. Brooding hero; dashing, devil-may-care villain. I strap you to a drill press; you lock me in a rubber room. And it’s fits and giggles until Aunt Fanny comes home!”
“But if you think you can switch sides and out-criminal the clown prince of crime, it’s only fair to warn you- I always blow away the competition!”
The Joker.
But despite his words, more than any other person Batman knows, the Joker is the only one who believes that there really is an impostor in town smearing his good name. Batman would never smash the natural order for personal gain; neither would he lower himself to robbing banks. Someone else must therefore be ruining things.
Now here is where the kicker comes in. The Joker offers to strike a deal with Batman in order to take down “Bat-fake” to set everything right again. But why would the Harlequin of Hate do this? Apparently he feels he owes it to Batman, of all things, for reasons he doesn’t quite know. Could Red Hood’s words be true after all? Does this mean that the Joker is-
Of course Batman flat out rejects his proposal; until Joker reminds him that if the new one is as good as being bad as the old one is at being good then neither of them could beat the other without help. It would make more sense if the Joker wasn’t the one saying it. But Batman knows he has a point since in their early scuffles they were evenly matched and he can’t rely on a slip of ego to take his advantage every time. There’s only one thing he can do so he reluctantly agrees.
Unfortunately, before a plan can be made, our hero’s friends have caught up to the pair in pursuit and after a narrow escape, Batman finds himself riding in the Batmobile with the Joker. It really is a sight that needs to be seen.
“Joker, if we’re going to work together, I need your word that you won’t hurt anyone.”
“Hmm, not really me, but what the heck. I’m in!”
Here’s the really weird part about this odd promise-
The Joker keeps it.
He in fact does not hurt anyone intentionally throughout the episode and plays the part of hero well… surprisingly well. For whatever reason, the Joker is almost as good a hero as Batman. What is it that really keeps the Joker from being a hero? Maybe he could turn a new leaf after all! If only it wasn’t for that pesky insanity issue.
“Oh, shiny! What does this one do?”
“You really don’t want to touch that.”
“Told you not to touch it.”
When Joker finally awakens he is in… the Batcave. Yes, the Joker is now in the Batcave. While Batman discovers that Owlman has looked up his files on his allies and learned their weaknesses. He now has a clear path to removing all his obstacles and making a bid for control of the city. Owlman really is planning a hostile takeover of Gotham!
All his while Joker has sweet memories of the good old days of almost killing Batman… over and over… it’s kind of sweet to watch if not a little insane.
They need to quickly find his friends and warn them before they fall into Owlman’s traps. So after the Joker puts himself to sleep again, the pair head back to Gotham in order to stop his evil scheme. Batman sends out a signal to try to warn his friends but only Plastic Man responds, and since he’s, well, a bit dense, he refuses to listen to Batman’s warning and is quickly frozen by Owlman. However, he doesn’t have much time to celebrate as Batman and Joker arrive on the scene!
Batman and Owlman quickly resume fisticuffs, while the Joker decides on a course of action. Being the Joker, he of course has many options at his disposal. Naturally, as anyone else in such a situation would do, he chooses the bazooka and aims it at the double Batmen.
“The real one will move.”
“He always does.”
However, the Joker’s gambit backfires as it is Owlman who gets out of the way and Batman who takes the brunt of the damage from falling debris. Maybe Owlman isn’t quite as clueless about the Joker as Batman thought? He is, after all, Batman’s doppelganger, so he knows how Batman thinks just as well as his opposite thinks he knows him. That would make more sense if someone else was saying it.
Owlman escapes into the Batmobile and tries to run them over, but the Joker won’t have it and saves Batman’s life. Batman is just as surprised as everyone else as he swings our hero to safety.
The Joker thinks he could really get behind this hero stuff, though who knows how long that could really last?
Owlman catches up to the pair and offers a trade to Batman. His friends for the phase oscillator, to which Batman (The Joker, actually) refuses due to not making deals with criminal scum. Their foe decides to take it out on innocent pedestrians instead, trying to run them over and blow them up. Batman gives the wheel to Joker, and hops on the roof attempting to swing out and save the pedestrians as the Joker chases after Owlman.
Once again, however, the Joker breaks from the chase to save a civilian from harm’s way. The pair reunites and heads out back after the deadly doppelganger.
The Joker fairly wonders why Batman decided to legitimately give his greatest enemy a chance instead of throwing him back in jail. All he tells him is that it was “something a friend said”, referring to Red Hood. Though his adventure with the Red Hood showed Batman that anyone could be a hero if they wanted to, it’s not quite clear until we learn what Batman already did.
That being that the Red Hood is the Joker’s doppelganger. What a difference between them, yet they can both be great heroes. So what holds the Joker back?
The Owl-signal (!?) lights the sky and we are taken to the Owlman’s hideout where he reveals his elaborate death traps for his captured heroes. There is a lot of exposition so it is easier to just say that these traps make heroes dead- once Owlman hits the switch. Just before he decides to get dangerous with his evil ways before both Batman and Joker show up to put a stop to his dastardly destructive denouement of his captured heroes.
Batman won’t give up the phase oscillator, and Owlman won’t give up his friends, so the villain’s recruited bad guys decide they’ve had enough.
A free-for-all fight occurs and though the pair tries their hardest they are quickly overwhelmed. Owlman reveals the final stage of his plan, and that is to prepare a death trap with Batman’s name on it- but gives the switch to Joker to push. The Joker thinks it over long and hard but decides to be the clown prince of crime once again.
So we get to the point that was first brought up in Fall of the Blue Beetle, that being that being chosen to be a hero isn’t enough. You have to choose it, and the Joker throws his choice away with his own free will. That is what makes Red Hood different from him.
Despite the Joker’s best intentions, he simply refuses to admit that he might be a better hero than villain and pushes the button. With a final button press, the Joker’s new-found hero career dies as Batman is finally dead.
Or so they think.
Batman had actually used the phase oscillator to travel through worlds and recruited his own team of Batmen in the few moments he was gone. It looks like Owlman’s plan was more than a bit short-sighted. He didn’t count on Batman actually using that phase oscillator. There’s that ego at work again!
It doesn’t take long for the skirmish to free the trapped heroes and give the heroes the edge once again, though Joker still spends the entire battle running around with a bomb completely unaware of anything going on. In the fray, we have Green Arrow, Aquaman, Blue Beetle, the Atom, Red Tornado and Plastic Man as well as six different Batmen going up against the villains.
There’s only one way for this to go.
It doesn’t take long for the Joker to arrive at Batman and Owlman with his bomb. When he finally throws it, Batman takes advantage of the two conflicting connivers and their inability to work together and drops Owlman’s own death trap on them (death-free, of course) and gives everyone the immortal image they all love.
“Funny thing about wild cards, Joker- you never know which way they’ll fall.”
The other Batmen take Owlman back through the portal after the villains ultimately fall in battle to which he swears revenge. Batman’s world hopping adventure finally comes to an end as he leaves the phase oscillator with the other travelers. Owlman has finally been stopped. What an ordeal!
But it isn’t over as the Joker admits to Batman that he regrets being a homicidal maniac and wishes he could be the hero he really could be. In some other world, they could have even been friends. But in the end, he would rather be the clown prince of crime and, just like Owlman did, he swears revenge on him. The Joker made his choice, just like the Red Hood did, just like Owlman did, and just like Batman did.
So much for rehabilitation.
And so ends the first two-part episode in the series. We had a fun ride as we visited parallel worlds, battled twisted villains and teamed up with unlikely heroes, not to mention learned a lot about a rather important character and saved two different worlds from an evil version of our hero! All this within the first half of the first season!
We see Batman’s words to Jaime a few episodes ago lived out as we see a hero and villain with the exact same background and origin choose their own fates each as a hero and a villain. The only thing stopping the Joker from choosing to be a hero was his own choice, instead becoming the world’s worst villain while the Red Hood pushed past all his mad inclinations to become the hero he needed to become. Another mirror exposed for the smoke and sunlight that floats somewhere nearby.
Or however that goes.
I would say Batman deserves a bit of a break after such a chaotic adventure, but what comes next might not be as chaos-free as he would hope.
Until next time, Bat-fans! Same brave blog, same bold place!