Welcome to Adventure(s) Time's 102nd installment, a look at animated heroes of the past. This week, we look at the first time Batman and Robin teamed up against one of the more obscure members of the rogues' gallery. Although it's technically the last, really, but that won't prevent us from also looking at a related issue of the comics tie-in. And if you have any suggestions for the future, I'm happy to hear them. Just contact me on Twitter.
Fans of Batman: The Animated Series surely remember when the show returned from hiatus as The Adventures of Batman & Robin, now a weekly Saturday morning series instead of a weekday-afternoon staple. FOX Kids already had plenty of episodes to rerun, but justified ordering a new, shorter batch. And given internal testing that showed Robin to be rather popular, an edict was made to include the Boy Wonder in each episode.
That didn't place great strain on producers, but they acknowledge a few scripts had to be retooled to work in Robin. (Paul Dini has also remarked his proposed episode starring Black Canary and Catwoman was killed because there was no place for Robin.) Many fans were just excited for new Batman episodes, and if having Robin in every story was the price, so be it. Losing the original opening credits for the rebranded Adventures opening, which is just a simple clip show, however, did hurt a little.
The first episode to air under this banner was Oct. 8, 1994's "Time Out of Joint," from writers Alan Burnett and Steve Perry, and director Dan Riba. The story serves as the return of Clock King, a villain with one of the more memorable debuts in the first season. While that story utilized the villain's gimmick as a representation of his psychological quirk (an obsession with schedules and the passage of time), this episode has a far more literal take.
The Clock King now has a device that can alter time, allowing him to become a literal master of his obsession. The story plays fair with the audience, in the sense that Clock King doesn't magically transform into a scientist overnight. He's instead working undercover as an aide for an old, eccentric scientist who's created this device. He hopes the handheld gadget will be able to accelerate the dissolution of nuclear waste or freeze time for terminal patients. Clock King clearly doesn't care about any of this. He's still obsessed with gaining revenge against Mayor Hill, the man he irrationally blames for ruining his life.
It's not as if the beats of this one are hard to predict. Batman and Robin slow down footage of Clock King's first use of the device (a theft at a public auction; merely a test run, the villain boasts after tossing away the priceless clock he's swiped) and quickly discern his identity.
During a botched assassination attempt against the mayor, Clock King leaves behind pieces of the device that the heroes track to the eccentric Dr. Wakati's lab. After escaping a time trap planted on the Batmobile, Batman and Robin use other samples of Dr. Wakati's device to foil Clock King's next assassination attempt.
Some fans complain about the episode literalizing Clock King's gimmick. For lacking the psychological intrigue of the villain's debut. It also takes some grief for being a little too sci-fi for a series that always strived for a "grounded" feel. An argument's also been made that this shouldn't be the episode to introduce your new Robin-centric era, as the story doesn't really need him at all. Personally, I'm more forgiving of the episode than most. It has no shortage of inventive ideas, and it's honestly just fun to see Clock King once again.
The visual representation of altered time is one of the more memorable aspects from this run of episodes. For everyone still "in time," the world turns blue, a visual representation of reality being "frozen." From the perspective of those witnessing the time-altering device, they see quick flashes of color, or hear accelerated noises they can't explain. (The best use of this is the sound of Clock King knocking on Mayor Hill's door being interpreted as machine gun fire.)
And while Batman's assertion that anyone colliding with the Batmobile while it's trapped in a time bubble will cause an atomic explosion is silly, the scene has a clever predicament for the heroes to figure out. Revealing that forty-eight hours passed during what seemed like a minute for them is also a smart way to ramp up tension before the climax.
Is the episode a little odd? Perhaps not the best use of the Clock King? Arguably, but it's entertaining in its own right. I will grant that some of the dialogue is a bit corny, however. FOX Kids apparently enjoyed Robin's little puns and one-liners, but they don't truly fit the tone of the series.
Clock King doesn't make his next official DC Animated Universe appearance until Justice League Unlimited several years later. And his appearances in the comics tie-ins are also meager. Yet, when the final volume of Batman Adventures featured an ongoing storyline about Mayor Hill losing re-election to the Penguin, reintroducing the villain's hatred of the mayor certainly made sense.
Not that Batman Adventures #12 (May 2004) is in a hurry to reveal Clock King's involvement in this story. I'm, well, spoiling it early for the sake of a decent transition paragraph. "The Duo Dynamic" from writer Ty Templeton and penciler Rick Burchett opens with a classic mystery setup: a wounded man leaves clues to the identity of his attacker in his final breath.
In this case, however, it's the Riddler crashing into Hamilton Hill's new Bludhaven home. And, because he is the Riddler, he won't name his (possible) killer. He whimpers out a riddle instead.
Soon, we learn Hill relocated to Bludhaven following his loss to the Penguin. And, following concurrent comics continuity, Nightwing -- no longer Robin, of course -- has also made his home in the city. (In the New Adventures episodes, and corresponding Gotham Adventures comics, Nightwing was a Gotham resident, and often Batman's third crimefighting partner.)
Batman, who hired the Riddler to investigate Penguin's shady victory, arrives in Bludhaven. His former ward discovers this when he catches Batman spying on Nicholas Simon, the travel agent who arranged Riddler's trip to town.
Here, the Batman/Nightwing dynamic is not the idolized father and son we saw in The Adventures of Batman & Robin. Nightwing has developed his own methods, ones that include fostering a more positive relationship with the community, and open communication with the media. Batman won't outright say he dislikes it, but it's clear he's uncomfortable.
As they investigate the case, Nightwing's more genial persona seems to garner valuable information, but it's Batman who pulls off the classic "unrelated bit of dialogue inspires me to crack the case" bit. Here, Batman realizes Riddler's moans pointed them in the direction of the Clock King, who is some form of "cellar"/"seller" now. They return to the travel agent's office to discover Clock King has co-opted the real Nicholas Simon's identity.
Clock King's watch-related gimmicks enable him to escape and eventually land atop a speeding train. Batman arrogantly believes he can stop the villain, but finds himself in a precarious situation.
But it's Nightwing, who hitches a ride on a friendly news helicopter, who rescues Batman, who then takes down Clock King.
As Batman exits Bludhaven, he acknowledges he doesn't know how Clock King fixed Gotham's election...but he will.
DESIGN-Y
The shape of Clock King's time device is intended to evoke a Möbius strip. As a kid, though, it just reminded me of a Super Nintendo controller.
CONTINUITY NOTES
Robin quotes the famous Superman tagline "Faster than a speeding bullet!" in "Time out of Joint," creating some confusion over the Man of Steel's existence in this world. At this point, the producers didn't expect to create a Superman cartoon, so it came across as more of a general pop culture reference.
[INSERT CORNY ROBIN PUN HERE]
Perhaps "Time Out of Joint" isn't a classic, but it's a fun adventure story with quality animation. And even if granting Clock King a sci-fi weapon seems odd, not using him in the episode that involves time shenanigans also would've felt strange.
Still, "The Duo Dynamic" is the more satisfying story. The feud between Batman and Nightwing was already resolved as of the second season of New Adventures, but Templeton's story effectively portrays a father and son still navigating a relationship as equals. Just as in real life, it won't be easy and perhaps some feelings will be hurt along the way. The drama isn't cheap, and as a character study, it's one of Nightwing's best outings in this canon.
Pulling in Clock King from almost-obscurity is also clever, utilizing the show's continuity while also keeping his identity a secret for most of the story. As I've stated before, this run of Adventures served as a fond tribute to the animated series. It's a shame the series ended prematurely, because Clock King isn't the only Batman villain deserving of another appearance. Perhaps Baby Doll or Lloyd Ventrix could've also played a part in this shadowy election conspiracy.
So that’s all for now. Until next time, check out the G. I. Joe novels I wrote for the Kindle Worlds project for free over at Smashwords.