From claws to wings to the heart to feet, our anatomical bat-tour continues... oh wait, its feat. Nevermind. :) In any case, this is yet another one hot out of the park. Although this is not Clayface's first appearance in animation (that honor going to the wacky 1977 series The New Adventures of Batman), its the first time that he was treated a a legitimate foe for the Dark Knight. Also like Mr. Freeze, Clayface would fade somewhat over the ensuing years, but this was his moment in the sun.And while he may not have been as sympathetic a villian he certainly had all the tragedy of Batman's best enemies.
This story really benefited from the two part treatment allowing for the setup of a grotesque villain origin leading to the showdown with Clayface. Overall the episode was better paced than The Cat and the Claw which had a few lulls in between high points. Clayface didn't even debut until the very end of part 1, but the build was steady enough, including a thrilling Batwing interrogation sequence, that it worked. Once old Mud Mouth did appear, the action and beautiful animation were in full force and his final curtain was brilliant.
Although I loved Clayface, I really thought the supporting characters in this episode were amazing. Its unusual for a character like "armed thug 2" to really amount to much, but I loved Germs and his OCD. It was a nice flourish that exemplified how the series took things to another level including another amazing interrogation sequence. Also, although some claim he appeared as an unnamed character in the Super Friends Rest in Peace episode, this is Lucius Fox' first named appearance in animation.In all, the series really started off on a roll.
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Episode Count: 0538
Series Count: (4 of 81)
First Appearance: Lucius Fox
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