Batman: The Animated Series - "Riddler's Reform"

“Now, now, I know what you’re thinking. But those silly riddle crimes are a thing of the past. Ancient history that’s gone now. I’m a new man. But you probably won’t figure that out until it’s too late.”

On their nightly patrol, Batman and Robin bust up what they think is the latest heist by The Riddler (John Glover), only to discover that Edward Nygma’s gone legitimate, licensing his image to a toy company. But has he? Batman’s unconvinced and believes Nygma is still dropping clues. Whether The Riddler has truly gone straight may prove to be the toughest riddle yet...

As fine an episode as Riddler’s debut remains, “Riddler’s Reform” always has a soft spot for me because it feels like a truer Riddler episode. Don’t mistake me – “If You’re So Smart, Why Aren’t You Rich?” is a bang-up episode and transparently one of the best in the whole run of Batman: The Animated Series. But its reliance on the computer game angle always felt, even in the 1990s, a little dated, like someone felt that The Riddler needed to be “hipped up” for a modern crowd. It’s a minor quibble, to be sure, but “Riddler’s Reform” doesn’t come with any of that baggage. It’s a straightforward story, with no technological frills on its riddles; here, The Riddler is just an intelligent guy trying to prove once more that he’s smarter than everyone else. 

The Riddler is at his level-best when he’s walking around with a haughty air of self-assured confidence that he’s the smartest man in the room; indeed, it’s probably his defining characteristic. This episode really gives John Glover a lot of material for his smirking arrogant Riddler, beginning with the poised opener in which Riddler knows he’s legally untouchable. I’ve praised the character animation on The Riddler before, but there’s something just effortlessly polished about the Riddler in his dapper suit, perched on a shipping crate and waiting for Batman to discover his mistake. Glover continues to be one of the best-cast villains in the already overqualified pool of applicants from this series, with one of those voices I can’t help but hear in my head when I read the comics. 

It’s just a shame that the Riddler didn’t make more appearances on this show, because this episode reminds us what a great villain he makes for Batman. The rhythm of this episode is classic Riddler – a riddle inviting challenge, Batman’s efforts to solve the riddle, pursuit and combat, lather, rinse, repeat – but “Riddler’s Reform” takes the formula into new territory by sowing doubt in Batman’s mind. Is Riddler really leaving clues, or is Batman just paranoid in his skepticism that Nygma might be going straight? (I almost wish the writers hadn’t resolved this subplot so quickly; a dark knight in doubt is a very intriguing premise, but then again they do only have twenty minutes.) Riddler’s frustration at being outwitted, then, is matched by Batman’s frustration with his own sense of being outsmarted (perhaps by himself).

I have said that “Ra’s [al Ghul] is the Professor Moriarty to Batman’s Sherlock Holmes,” and in the sense of a criminal mastermind with a vast network of ne’er-do-wells, I stand by that claim. But there is something admirable about the purely cerebral level on which Riddler challenges Batman that makes him a kind of Moriarty to Batman’s master detective. There’s no chance of a physical confrontation with The Riddler, nor should there be, because for him the game is all. Killing Batman only represents the final outfoxing, and in a moment of dark maddening irony the ending of this episode presents the perfect defeat of the Riddler (far better, at least, than the brain-mushing of “What Is Reality?”). If only we’d gotten more episodes as clever as this one; I’d trade a dozen “Terrible Trio”s for just one more Riddler episode.

Original Air Date: September 24, 1994

Writers: Alan Burnett, Paul Dini, and Randy Rogel

Director: Dan Riba 

Villain: The Riddler (John Glover)

Next episode: “Second Chance,” in which Two-Face gets a shot at singularity.

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