Plot summary: The Riddler signs a deal with a toy company and becomes a legitimate celebrity, but Batman is convinced Nygma is still up to his old tricks.
Each Saturday and Sunday Matt Waters recaps an episode of the legendary Batman: The Animated Series, building an overall ranking along the way. Plus best performances, the ever-popular Villain Watch and more!
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Notes
Episode Title: ‘Riddler’s Reform’
Original Air Date: September 24th, 1994
Directed: Dan Riba (8)
Written: Alan Burnett (7), Paul Dini (19) (story) and Randy Rogel (8)
Some versions of the title card did not contain an apostrophe. Garbage-tier.
Riddler’s commercial can be heard in the background of the upcoming episode ‘Make ‘em Laugh’
There is no real explanation as to how Riddler was freed from his catatonic state from ‘What is Reality?’
Recap
Edward Nygma is released from prison early for good behaviour, but Batman is having none of it, bringing Robin to help harass him and a pair of cohorts transporting a mysterious box.
Only it turns out it’s a legitimate delivery to Wacko Toys, who have licensed his name and likeness for new products, as corroborated by their CEO, Craig Baxter. Batman has never been this owned.
Bruce sulks the next day, until he hears a news report about the theft of priceless artefacts and becomes convinced Nygma’s remarks from the night before were a clue. Running with the idea, he takes a series of numbers in a TV ad for the new Riddler products and turns them into map coordinates leading to Gotham First National Bank.
But when the Dynamic Duo find nothing untoward at the location Bruce realises that in the commercial Riddler flipped the chalkboard containing the number upside down to show the other side, and when doing the same to the number itself (31753701) it reads: 10 LESLIE.
Sure enough, Batman & Robin arrive just in time to stop Riddler’s men from robbing a jewellery store on 10 Leslie Street. The goons manage to get away though, after Dick’s leg gets caught under a heavy case.
Batman crashes Baxter’s private party, where Riddler is a hit with some sultry ladies. The two geniuses trade barbs, but Nygma gets the better of the exchange by broadcasting Batman’s comments to the rest of the guests, humiliating him.
A mopey Nygma confirms to his henchmen that he did in fact trick the police, doctors and parole board to secure his early release, but fears Batman will inevitably catch him and send him back to Arkham.
Thus Riddler embeds another clue in a commercial, luring Bats to the Gotham Toy Fair after hours, where a series of whimsical but deadly traps await… all distractions from an enormous bomb that explodes in magnificent fashion!
Nygma is thus stunned to see Batman alive and well, and demands to know how Bruce escaped, offering to confess how he pulled off a string of robberies in exchange. Batman records the entire interaction, just as Nygma did to him at the party, which is more than enough for Jim Gordon to send him back to jail.
Bruce later delights in telling Dick that he survived the explosion by hiding inside a safe. The episode ends with Riddler in Arkham deliriously screaming over and over that he HAS to know.
Best Performance
Once again John Glover proves himself to be the definitive Riddler, pulling off the smug know-it-all in spectacular fashion, bolstered by a plot that maximised that trait. But more than that, for the first time we see more sides of Nygma, from becoming flustered by flirtatious females, to hyping himself up in the mirror, to his melancholy acceptance Batman is going to thwart him eventually, and finally his tormented ravings in Akrham.
Glover has won this category twice on his strength in the default setting, but laps his past performances by absolutely nailing these higher gears. Bravo.
Kevin Conroy is also in fine form, frustrated by his inability to foil Nygma, and then absolutely revelling in the eventual victory.
Ranking
Finally, a Riddler episode worthy of their version of the character! This was a delight from start to finish and it’s just a shame it took three tries to get here. First and foremost it’s a spotlight on a top-tier member of the Rogues Gallery and what makes them tick, and it goes without saying that it utterly excels in that regard, but I’ll discuss that in the next section.
It’s also just a great window into Bruce’s own psyche, as he’s completely unable to accept that one of the villains has turned over a new leaf… but it turns out he’s absolutely right. That stubborn pessimism in the face of a naively optimistic mission statement is a delicious dichotomy. He’s also ALWAYS right. Batman is a ridiculous character, but in the best possible way, and this episode perfectly encapsulates that.
Above all, I’m just glad the riddles are finally not only Actually Good, but deployed in a wholly effective manner. ‘If You’re So Smart, Why Aren’t You Rich?’ featured puzzles that barely made sense, or demanded a person knew how to speak Arabic. ‘What is Reality?’ did a little better, but was structured poorly. Here we have the platonic ideal of a Riddler episode. I have no notes.
- The Laughing Fish
- Mask of the Phantasm
- Almost Got ‘im
- Heart of Ice
- Harlequinade
- The Trial
- Riddler’s Reform
- Shadow of the Bat Part I
- I Am the Night
- Robin’s Reckoning Part I
- Baby-Doll
- The Man Who Killed Batman
- Perchance to Dream
- Two-Face Part I
- Bane
- A Bullet For Bullock
- Joker’s Favor
- Read My Lips
- Feat of Clay Part II
- Catwalk
- The Demon’s Quest Part II
- Harley and Ivy
- Robin’s Reckoning Part II
- House & Garden
- Beware the Gray Ghost
- Mad as a Hatter
- Heart of Steel Part II
- Appointment In Crime Alley
- Two-Face Part II
- Pretty Poison
- Shadow of the Bat Part II
- Feat of Clay Part I
- His Silicon Soul
- Off Balance
- Vendetta
- Birds of a Feather
- Heart of Steel Part I
- On Leather Wings
- See No Evil
- The Clock King
- It’s Never Too Late
- Joker’s Wild
- Eternal Youth
- The Cape and Cowl Conspiracy
- The Cat and the Claw Part I
- Zatanna
- Day of the Samurai
- Avatar
- The Demon’s Quest Part I
- The Mechanic
- The Strange Secret of Bruce Wayne
- Terror in the Sky
- P.O.V.
- Christmas with the Joker
- Fear of Victory
- Be a Clown
- The Worry Men
- What is Reality?
- Fire From Olympus
- Night of the Ninja
- Mudslide
- The Cat and the Claw Part II
- The Lion and the Unicorn
- Nothing to Fear
- Prophecy of Doom
- Tyger, Tyger
- Blind as a Bat
- If You’re So Smart, Why Aren’t You Rich?
- Dreams In Darkness
- The Last Laugh
- Cat Scratch Fever
- Moon of the Wolf
- Paging the Crime Doctor
- Time Out of Joint
- Sideshow
- The Under-Dwellers
- The Forgotten
- Showdown
- The Terrible Trio
- I’ve Got Batman in My Basement
Villain Watch
The Riddler (John Glover) (third appearance)
Welcome back to the top ten, Eddie. I’ve always enjoyed their take on the character, from the design to Glover’s voice work, but felt that he’s had his legs kicked out from under him with substandard showcase episodes. Not only is he at last adequately supported, he’s expanded upon.
A recurring Nygma trait is that he takes extreme offence to being labelled as insane, given his nearly unrivalled intelligence… and yet his obsession with besting Batman can become so extreme that he inadvertently proves his accusers right. It’s a shame this episode came after ‘The Trial’, because the prosecution would have had a strong argument for Riddler as a victim of Batman.
We also see the hints at the mind behind the mind, with his suave showmanship melting away when attractive women hit on him, leaving him tongue tied and having to give himself a little pep talk in the mirror. It’s cute, and humanises him. We also see that behind closed doors he’s genuinely haunted by Batman’s dogged pursuit, and knows deep down he can’t beat him. Aww.
- The Joker
- Poison Ivy
- Harley Quinn
- Mr. Freeze
- Two-Face
- The Ventriloquist
- Catwoman
- The Riddler
- The Phantasm
- Baby-Doll
- Bane
- Mad Hatter
- Penguin
- HARDAC (and Randa Duane)
- Clayface
- Ra’s al Ghul
- Lloyd Ventrix
- Killer Croc
- Count Vertigo
- Clock King
- Rupert Thorne
- Nivens
- Josiah Wormwood
- Scarecrow
- Roland Daggett (and Germs & Bell!)
- Talia al Ghul
- Sid the Squid
- Queen Thoth Khepera
- Maxie Zeus
- Jimmy ‘Jazzman’ Peake
- Tony Zucco
- Man-Bat
- Hugo Strange
- Red Claw
- Arnold Stromwell
- Mad Bomber
- Tygrus
- Rhino, Mugsy and Ratso
- Kyodai Ken
- Gil Mason
- Nostromos (and Lucas!)
- Cameron Kaiser
- Dr. Dorian (and Garth)
- Mad Dog
- Ubu
- Professor Milo
- Romulus
- Arkady Duvall
- Sewer King
- Boss Biggis
- Montague Kane
- The Terrible Trio
Plugs
Eager for more long-form coverage of Batman? Why not check out my podcast with Mike Thomas, The Tape Crusaders, which reviewed every Batman movie and delved a tiny bit into the animated series.
The Reel World 