Friday, March 28, 2008

BATMAN (1943)- Chapter 2


Chapter two is entitled THE BAT’S CAVE and begins with Batman falling to his death from a multi-story building! But luckily he only falls a few (?) feet before landing on the window washer’s platform below. Leaping back into action he joins Robin in subduing one of Daka’s henchmen and getting their hands on the mighty Atom Smasher Gun (which for some reason is now being called the Radium Gun). Knowing they need to pump the criminal for information they blindfold him and take him back the Bat Cave for interrogation. In a funny scene Batman tells the poor sap that the bats flying around the cave will attack him and drink his blood. When this fails to produce answers he threatens the criminal with the Atom Gun. He finally spills what little he knows about the Japanese organization and the dynamic duo dump him in front of the police department with a note pinned to his chest.

Now at this point I have to note that there has been nothing mentioned about Linda’s Uncle who was last seen plunging off the top of the building. And indeed there is no mention of old Uncle Martin’s apparent death at all. By any one. It’s like he was never there. The next time he’s spoken of it’s by Daka ordering another henchman to impersonate his voice to lure Linda someplace to kidnap her. It seems the wily Jap bastard thinks she might know where the missing Atom—I mean Radium Gun has gone.

Of course Linda falls for the phone call from her ‘uncle’ and is easily gassed and grabbed in a restaurant. But Bruce and Dick have followed her and realize she’s been carted off by the bad guys. The clue gleaned from the captured henchman was the name of a flop house called the House of the Open Door. Working on intuition (or a peek at the script) they go there in disguise and spot one of Daka’s men enter a carefully chosen room. Sure enough this is where Linda is being held as the goons slap her around and ask her questions.

Our heroes change into their pajamas, scale the building and crash through the window to rescue the lady. But they choose a risky means of escape! With the unconscious Linda slung over one shoulder Batman walks across electrical wires to the roof of an adjacent building as a henchman swings a connecting wire over his walkway. Will the sparking electricity kill the mighty Batman? Will he drop the not very convincing dummy he has over his shoulder? Will someone clear up the mystery of Uncle Martin’s amazing disappearance between the roof and sidewalk?

Some or all of these questions will be answered (or at least addressed) in chapter three of BATMAN.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.