Batman: Instant Freeze & Rats Like Cheese

Instant Freeze

"Nippy, have you ordered the airplane to go zoom zoom zoom?"

Another entertaining opening here as Mr Freeze, from his ice cream van, first melts an ice rink then freezes the road to escape from a chasing police motorcyclist. He's an interesting villain- first, he's only able to exist 50 degrees (Fahrenheit, this being both 1966 and America) below zero, which for the first time introduces outright science fiction into the series, not that realism has ever been much of a concern. Secondly Mr Freeze (or Mr Zero, as he was known in his one and only comics appearance up until now, way back in 1959, wearing a similar helmet) is a very minor baddie to earn a place in the telly series- but so, of course, is the Tiddler. And, in the urbane and effortlessly charismatic (even with a German accent) George Sanders, we have a guest villain second only to Frank Gorshin.

Again, the script doesn't sparkle, not being written by Lorenzo Semple Jr, but the plot is sound and the pacing well done. And the visuals of Freeze's chilly hideout, with his being able to control the temperature with the touch of a button and warm areas in red, are superb.

The story beats are as per usual, with the usual bits of stock footage at the start, with a theme of diamonds and baseball to hint at Freeze's ultimate plan- and of course we have the character of Princess Sandra, who is blatantly Princess Grace of Monaco. And, at the diamond robbery, the manager is the campiest character ever.

And the ending gives us quite the cliffhanger, with the dynamic duo frozen solid.


Rats Like Cheese

"Sorry. Slipped on a baked Alaska..."

For once, the second episode eclipses the first, beginning with lots of rather amusing high camp as Commissioner Gordon and his equally appalled underlings look on as attempts are made in hospital to revive the Dynamic Duo- or, as the Commissioner puts it, "two such magnificent specimens of manhood".

But then Freeze reveals his plan- kidnapping a famous baseball player in order to swap him for the touchingly honourable Batman in order to have his revenge. Fortunately a disobedient Robin (Batman is not pleased!) is able to trace him and, well, get captured too. We then get lots of fun as they all dine together, with Mr Freeze showing an impressive talent for freezing certain types of booze... while Mr Freeze controls the temperature. It seems all is lost...

But hang on a minute... Batman is wearing "special thermal B long underwear. Yes indeed; saved by long johns. Well, that's a first.

Another good and entertaining two parter, then, not as funny as the scripts by Semple but with a particularly impressive villain. And, interestingly, for the first time we get a teaser for the next episode...