Gotham socialite Veronica Vreeland (Marilu Henner) returns from South America and hosts a gala fundraiser to save the rainforest and celebrate her homecoming. She introduces Bruce Wayne to her latest find, a “Worry Man” – a tiny doll placed under one’s pillow to absorb stress and anxiety. In spite of Bruce’s skepticism, Alfred smuggles the doll into his master’s bed (“Every little bit helps.”), but the next morning, Bruce Wayne robs himself of $20 million. Is the worry man to blame for this unwitting heist? And what of the aforementioned witch doctor, spotted prowling near Veronica’s party?
I always feel I should put up a disclaimer for episodes that are structured as a mystery, and so if you don’t want to be spoiled on the secret of the worry men, we’ll see you next week. My big surprise was that this episode was written by Paul Dini. (I should have known it was Dini – he still finds a way to sneak in Joker and Harley!) It’s not a bad episode by any stretch, but nor is it one of Dini’s best. It’s an episode that I really didn’t remember, which is surprising, given my wearying refrain that Dini’s episodes are the best.
To be sure, there is much about “The Worry Men” that works. Though I remembered the truth about the worry men, I had entirely forgotten about the witch doctor, who presents a very compelling visual and who features prominently in several very rousing action scenes with Batman. Then there’s the episode’s climax, in which Batman faces down mammoth murderous marionettes of his greatest enemies, their rosy cheeks and goliath grins like something out of a grotesque Babes in Toyland. These are the moments when Dini’s great love of Batman really shines, and the episode does some pretty special and somewhat unique things with the character.
In isolation, “The Worry Men” is probably a very solid episode, but it stands in the shadows of two greater ones. First, Veronica Vreeland returns from “Birds of a Feather,” a truly first-rate Penguin episode which gave us a Vreeland who was as complex as she was contemptible; here, though, she’s a party girl through and through, burning through daddy’s trust fund like that other Veronica from Archie Comics. Then – I can delay the spoiler no longer – “The Worry Men” marks the first appearance of Jervis Tetch, the Mad Hatter, since “Perchance to Dream.” The plain fact is that “Perchance” is arguably the best Mad Hatter story that’s ever been told (including, I daresay, the Lewis Carroll story that inspired him), and this episode ends up being a little like trying to follow up “Heart of Ice.” (We’ll get there, though, in the penultimate episode of the series.)
What redeems the episode, aside from the animatronic ballet of death that runs Batman through a garish gauntlet (Dini’s dark humor on full display, to boot), is the self-aware nature of the episode’s paling in comparison to “Perchance.” Batman is almost disappointed to hear that the whole scheme was just about money, as if he expects better of a twisted mind like Tetch. But the Mad Hatter gloats about his impending retirement and then makes an attempt to steal Batman’s cowl (itself a kind of hat) before sending him off to a guillotine. The mania of the episode’s third act whirls with all the grandeur of Roddy McDowall’s voice – and a more perfect Hatter I could not imagine. It is not “Perchance to Dream,” though both episodes withheld the Hatter until the third act, nor do I expect you’d see it on a “Top 10 Dini Episodes” list, but it is a suitably odd feature with enough good material to lead me to question why it was that I didn’t remember much of it.
(Oh, and if you’re still wondering about that witch doctor, did you notice he’s wearing a hat?)
Writer: Paul Dini
Director: Frank Paur
Villain: The Mad Hatter (Roddy McDowall)
Next episode: “Sideshow,” in which a croc runs away and joins the circus.
🦇For the full list of Batman: The Animated Series reviews, click here.🦇
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