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This week on The BATTASS Podcast, Alfred heads out on his own to tie up some loose ends of his pre-Wayne life back in merry old England in The Lion and The Unicorn, and Batman gets relegated to a framing device in order to introduce Old West anti-hero Jonah Hex in Showdown! It’s an underwhelming look into the personal life of Alfred Pennyworth, and a good, albeit awkwardly set up, departure for the series.
First up, in The Lion and The Unicorn, the villainous Red Claw makes her return to the series as she kidnaps Alfred because he knows the code that she needs to arm a weapon of mass destruction pointed directly at London! Mass destruction is a really relative term here, though, as it doesn’t seem to do much damage once it explodes. Red Claw’s plan is pretty stock, but we get our first look at Alfred’s days as a British Intelligence operative, but despite being a great premise, unfortunately it leaves a lot to be desired in execution. They leave a lot on the table with this one.
Next up in Showdown, While the Dynamic Duo race to stop Ra’s Al Ghul from performing a kidnapping, the wild west story of how he was once opposed by the disfigured bounty hunter, Jonah Hex, is told. We get all sorts of new stuff in this episode, from heavily-armed airships to bright, southwestern landscapes, to Ra’s al Ghul using ninjas to break into a nursing home when he easily could have just checked the guy out during visiting hours. It’s a different kid of episode, but it’s a lot of fun!
Join Sean and as they get into the nitty gritty of merry old England, the plot of Wild Wild West, 22 page silent comics where you watch Batman listen to a walkman, what Jonah Hex’s appearance means for the creative direction of the series, and how John Wayne is the worst. Saddle up and hit the trail!