BATMAN-98-THE SPORT OF PENGUINS

 

BATMAN-98-THE SPORT OF PENGUINS

 

What’s this? A two parter? With a team up of two villains? A male and a female? Unusually, the cliffhanger isn’t a cliffhanger at all and there’s no bat trap device endangering the dynamic duo who are freed from the glue Penguin put in the BatMobile on the seats and he even put glue on the wheels (by Alfred). I think it’s interesting that Alfred called Barbara to alert her to the goings on at the glue factory. If she were smart, she’d figure out Wayne and Grayson are BATMAN and Robin or maybe she has. The cliffhanger just recounts that maybe Penguin will succeed in his plans, which is refreshing.

 

The Bat Fight is odd this time out. Robin starts off well but first get thrown in the air by a group of villains and keeps yelling out, “Batman!” Then when rescued by Batman, he gets knocked down onto the floor. Batman isn’t faring much better and needs Batgirl to wrap up the goons in sticky tape after lassoing the Penguin, who then gets away.

 

Burt’s problem is prominent again and I can see the long shots trying to cover it up but with a threesome now, the close shots can’t be that close and it is obvious.

 

BTW, last episode had the Batgirl lyrics. I’d have to say that Ethel Merman is a nice presence but hardly the ilk of a good villainess. She’s far too nice and proceeds to almost tell the charmer Batman all her plans and Penguin’s too. She is stopped by Penguin who seems most sinister here as he planted a bomb on the library just to kill Barbara for jilting him and it’s mentioned at least twice in a nice bit of continuity. Barbara also had a library alarm in her bedroom?

 

Charlie, the parrot, makes another appearance.

 

 All in all a good first part, comparable to all the other first parts and coming up just as good and better than a few of them.

 

One aspect I haven’t mentioned is Batgirl’s cool way of vanishing without anyone realizing how or when she left. In one episode (possibly the Riddler or Siren ep), Robin sees which way she left and wants to follow but Batman tells him they have to respect her anonymity as they want their own respected. In the shaky Batgirl vs Killer Moth pilot, her vanishing and leaving is seen and accompanied by a WHOOSH! sound that is thankfully never heard during the series.