Episode Title: Batman’s Satisfaction
Original Airdate: March 2, 1967
When we last left Gotham City, Batman and Robin had ended up stuck to a giant adhesive pad while the Green Hornet and Kato end up turned into huge stamps. Can they save themeselves and stop Colonel Gumm’s plot? Let’s find out in Batman’s Satisfaction.
As Gumm prepares to feed the Caped Crusaders into his giant stamp making machine, our heroes manage to land some well timed punches. They then run to shut off the machine. See, Batman knows Green Hornet and Kato are still alive inside. As Gumm and his goons escape, the Green Hornet uses his Hornet’s Sting to blast out. It seems that the machine actually just took a picture of the Green Hornet and Kato to make the stamps.
Things aren’t over, though. Gumm still has Miss Pinkston as a hostage. But as our heroes prepare to leave they notice a bowl of alphabet soup which Miss Pinkston had been feeding to her dog, Apricot. Batman collects the soup with an empty Alphabet Soup Bat Container so he can analyze it back at the Batcave. It seems that all the J’s, Q’s, and Z’s are missing. Apparently she left a message in the letters, which our heroes decipher with the Batcomputer. The message is quite complex, but it tells our heroes to keep an eye on the stamp exhibition later that night. Meanwhile, at a hidden warehouse, Gumm has Miss Pinkston tied up. While eating a bowl of Alphabet Soup (he loves the stuff) he theorizes that the true identity of the Green Hornet is none other than Bruce Wayne…and Britt Reid is Batman.
Of course, all the masked vigilantes end up converging on the stamp expo where Gumm plans on nabbing some valuable stamps. A huge fight breaks out with Gumm’s men being taken out easily. That leaves Batman and Robin to battle Green Hornet and Kato. The battle ends, though, when Gumm pulls a gun on Miss Pinkston. So, the Caped Crusaders slip out a window to sneak up behind Gumm. Meanwhile, Green Hornet and Kato escape.
Like with our last episode, I still have no clue as to what Colonel Gumm’s ultimate plan was. He’s out to get his hands on some stamps, but beyond that I’m lost. So, storywise, this one is a mess. However, this episode does have several wonderfully wacky moments. The whole message in the alphabet soup thing is completely nuts. Beyond the complexity of the message, the simple fact that Batman had, not just a container, but specifically an alphabet soup container in his utility belt (and a funnel) is hilarious. I also got a kick out of the whole switched secret identities part of the story, though I wish they’d done more with that.
Speaking of “kicks,” one of this episode’s highlights is that Bruce Lee lets the kicks really fly in the final fight sequence. Poor Robin is the one who gets to experience the business end of his foot, for the most part. We’re talking about Bruce Lee here, folks! This is several cuts above the normal fake punch action we get on this series.
This episode does feature another window cameo as Batman and Robin climb their way up to the stamp exhibition. It’s none other than classic movie tough guy Edward G. Robinson! Though, strangely, he ends up having a conversation with our heroes about art. He even takes a jab at Andy Warhol, “I think canned tomato soup is to eat, not to frame and put on a wall.”
All in all, this is an episode that really fizzles in the story department, but has a level of lunacy that still makes for some enjoyable moments. Next time, though, we get the return of one of my favorite villains from season one. King Tut is back in King Tut’s Coup. Same bat-time, same bat-channel (superhero).
Bat Gadgets Used:
Bat Magnifying Glass
Alphabet Soup Bat Container
Bat Funnel
Batcomputer
Bat Rope
Holys:
Holy Living End
Holy Uncanny Photographic Mental Processes
Holy Unlikelihood
Channel: Superhero 