Artifacts (The Batman)

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“Artifacts”
The Batman episode
Episode no. Season 4
Episode 46
Guest stars Nightwing voiced by Jerry O'Connell, Oracle voice by Kellie Martin, Grey voiced by Rino Romano, Superior voiced by Kurt Fuller, Pilot voiced by Robert David Hall
Written by Greg Weisman
Directed by Brandon Vietti
Production no. 407
Original airdate 3 February 2007
Episode chronology
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"The Breakout" "Two of a Kind"
List of The Batman episodes

"Artifacts" is the forty sixth episode of the television series The Batman. It originally aired in the UK on Cartoon Network UK on Tuesday 23 January 2007 and then in North America on Saturday 3 February 2007.

Contents

[edit] Plot synopsis

One thousand years into the future Gotham City is terrorized by a dangerous villain from it’s past, Mr. Freeze. Now the citizens of new Gotham must uncover the history of the Batman to save the city, but can the city defend itself from such a threat without the Batman?

[edit] Plot summary

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

In the year 3027, a team of archeologists, led by a man named Grey and a woman named Moria, manage to find the old Batcave and try to find answers about how to deal with Mr. Freeze, who had survived into that era. As they discover that the cave was reinforced with Titanium, with additional Titanium on the walls. As they find a tank-like Batmobile, the old Bat-suit, & a wheelchair, they theorize who the Batman was, several of their guesses being obviously incorrect. They’re hoping that the computer will hold some info on Freeze.

A millennium earlier, in the year 2027, Mr. Freeze, in a big, bulky robot suit, attacks the airport to retrieve an item. However, an older Batman (based visually on the version from Batman: The Dark Knight Returns), suffering from headaches, confronts Freeze. After trying to having a chemical solution that’d disrupt Freeze’s abilities, only for it to be unable to get though Freeze’s suit. Batman then confronts Freeze and they fight with Batman having difficulty and feeling his age. Barbara Gordon, now Oracle, had managed to redirect flights to the airport, but a plane nearby has to land and its wings are icing over.

Dick Grayson, now Nightwing, flies in on the Batwing and tried to deice the plane, but is unable to. However, Nightwing gets out of the plane, and using gliders in his wings, glides over to the pilot’s cockpit and rescues the pilot. However, as Batman gets out of the way, Freeze blasts at the plane and destroys it. As Nightwing lands, the pilot runs off and Nightwing confronts Batman. Concerned about Batman, Nightwing asks Batman to sit the fight out and asks about passing the torch, with Batman replying that he’ll pass the torch “when the mission’s over.” Nightwing then responds by saying that the mission will never be over.

Freeze, digs thought the flaming wreckage of the plane and find the African star, a diamond and then puts it into a giant freezing cannon. As Batman and Nightwing confront Freeze, he freezes them. Meanwhile, Oracle’s worried about them after not hearing from them, Alfred tries to reassure her. As the city begins to freeze over, James Gordon, now retired calls his daughter and expresses concerns for her. She then quickly tell him by, when the Batwave goes off and discovers that the Batwing is about to fire on Batman.

The Batwing proceeds to fire on them, destroying the cannon and freeing Batman & Nightwing. With the ice having numbs the pain, Batman then attacks Freeze. He then grabs the diamond from the cannon’s wreckage and stabs it into Freeze’s dome, cracking it. He then, though the cracks, injects the solution. However, after doing that, Freeze smacks Batman off, only for Batman to crash the Batwing on him. Looking over the wreckage, Nightwing notices the Freeze is missing.

With his suit damaged and the solution in it, Freeze storms to his hideout and gets out of his suit, revealing the everything below his waist is gone and that it their place are three robotic legs. He then crawls over to the cryogenics chambers and freezes himself, hoping that then someone frees him, he’ll awaken in a future without Batman.

In 3027, after discovering that the Batcomputer’s memory didn’t survive and failing to retrieve it, Grey slams his hand into a wall and Moira looks and they discovers that the Titanium has coding on it. Realizing it is binary code and that Batman put it there to preserve all the computer code that was on his computers, they translate in with an image of Batman coming up on a screen, greeting them.

As Freeze rampages throughout, New Gotham, as the city’s called in that era, and comments on the absence of Batman. However, seemingly, Batman confront Freeze and Freeze wondering what’s going on as “Batman” disappears and reappears. Then, after reappearing “Batman” fires a diamond-tipped projectile, with several more joining it, releasing the solution into Freeze. As several Batmen confront Freeze, it is revealed that they were all holograms and it was really the team that found the Batcave that defeated Freeze. With Freeze captured, they then began to restore the Batcave and erect a stature in Batman’s honor.

Spoilers end here.

[edit] Characters

[edit] Trivia

  • There are several references to Batman: The Dark Knight Returns within the episode. Among them are:
    • Batman being built similar to the version in DKR and dressed like him. He also has difficulty taking down his foes and suffers pain.
    • Gordon being retired from the police.
    • An older Alfred using a cane, but still remains as Batman’s butler.
    • A tank-like Batmobile.
    • In the 2027 section of the story, upon seeing Batman, Mr. Freeze says "The Dark Knight returns," a reference to the title.
  • In this episode, Oracle tells Bruce that he should be playing Bingo or something at his age, but in the episode "Bird of Prey", it's stated that Bruce is only twenty six. Between then and the fourth season, the oldest Bruce could be is fifty. Then again, Barbara may just be being snide.
  • Bruce has two grey scars over his left eye. However he got these scars remains unknown.
  • Nightwing and Oracle are modern-day elements in the Batman mythos and weren’t in DKR.
  • A line of dialogue from Nightwing implies that Ellen Yin will become Commissioner and that Ethan Bennett, cured from his Clayface condition in Clayfaces, will indeed rejoin the force and become Chief.
  • Mr. Freeze’s condition of part of his body a cyborg with spider-like legs is similar to the version of Freeze seen The New Batman Adventures, though not as severe. However, the TNBA Freeze was only a head; TB Freeze still has his arms and torso.
  • Oracle wears a necklace with a Bat-insignia on it.
  • Oracle, Nightwing, and Mr. Freeze have different voice actors. In the case of Nightwing, it's due to Evan Sabara, who voices Robin being a kid. However, Danielle Judovits, who voices the young Batgirl does appear, but as Moria, one of the archeologists with Kellie Martin voicing Oracle. No voice actor was credited for Freeze.
  • One of Moria's theories regarding who Batman and his partners were, though while clearly incorrect, (Bruce Wayne's parents as Batman & "Batwoman" and Bruce as "Red Robin"), refers to two different characters from the comics. Batwoman was Kathy Kane, a character with no ties to Barbara Gordon, though it's reasonable to assume that the latter was who Moria meant. Red Robin was an identity Dick Grayson assumed in another future story, Kingdom Come. Also, in some early Batman comics, Thomas Wayne did indeed dress up as a bat for a costume party, a few weeks before he and Martha were murdered by Joe Chill)...and young Bruce wore a red-and-green costume and was given the name "Robin" by a detective who trained him.
  • Maoira assumes an old wheelchair belonged to an aged Alfred; it was actually Barbara's. However, the explanation for her infirmity is never revealed.

[edit] Quotes

  • Mr. Freeze: (after seeing Batman) The Dark Knight returns.
  • Mr. Freeze: Time, Batman, has made you weak, slow, irrelevant. Facts that you refuse to accept. Pathetic.
    Batman: Freeze, a man's life is at stake. That plane needs to land.
    Mr. Freeze: Then, land it will--crash land.
  • Mr. Freeze: Aah. The African star.
    Batman: A diamond, Freeze. You bought that plane down for a diamond?
    Mr. Freeze: Diamonds are the hardest substance in the world, Batman. I knew it was the only thing that could survive the crash.
    Nightwing: For all these years, you're still nothing but a cheap crook.
    Mr. Freeze: As I've trying to tell Batman, things change. You see, Batman, the African star is no ordinary diamond. It's unique perfect structure would allow it act as an energy amplifier for my cryo-cannon, a machine with the power to alter this city's weather forever.
  • Mr. Freeze: [after arriving in his lair, struggling] The cryo-chamber. Cold enough to put me on ice until someone wakes me up and puts me back together in the future without the Batman.
  • Mr. Freeze: I love the future especially when it's 100% bat-free.
    Batman: If you believe that, Freeze. The cold must be numing your brain.
    Mr. Freeze: What?! No, it's not possible!
    Batman: There's no where you can run.
    Mr. Freeze: And I waited for thousands of years, you still can't be here!
    Batman: And yet I'm here and always be here to stop you, Freeze. Always.
    Mr. Freeze: No! It can't be!!
    Batman: Freeze! [injects the anti-freeze formula to Freeze]
  • Nightwing: Think you've got another one in you, old man?
    Batman: I'm just worried you won't be able to keep up.
  • Mr. Freeze: The upgraded Freeze 2.0 comes complete with flameproof cybernetics and a shatterproof internal energy supply. That's why your cold medicine didn't work, Batman!
  • Oracle: (about Batman) He's not answering the Batwave.
    Alfred: He always seemed to think he wasn't doing his job unless he worried me half to death. I'm sure he's fine.
  • Batman: Thanks for the icepack, Freeze ... but all you did was numb the pain!
  • Oracle: Batman? Batman, do you read?
    (pause)
    Oracle:What do you read, anyway? After all these years, I never thought to ask. Mystery stories, romance novels, the Sunday comics?
  • Moira: According to records we found, the estate that was once above this cave was owned by a Doctor Thomas Wayne. We can’t be certain, (creates a hologram photo of young Bruce and his parents) but I bet he was The Batman. Which means his wife, Martha, may have been The Batwoman, and their young son, Bruce, The Red Robin.
  • (after saving the pilot from crashing)
    Nightwing: Oracle.
    Oracle: Way ahead of you, Wing-Nut. I’ve alerted Commissioner Yin and Chief Bennett that the pilot’s headed their way. They’ve evacuated the airport and their men have the place surrounded.
    Nightwing: Which means they’re still waiting for us to the do the heavy lifting (changes channel on his ear piece) Right Batman? (no response is heard) Batman?
  • Oracle: Chill, Batman, I sent up a flare. Robin’s on his way.
    Nightwing: Maybe you didn’t get the memo, Oracle, but I’ve been going by Nightwing for, oh, about a decade or so.
    Oracle: Oh yeah (sarcastically) I don’t know why I can’t remember that? Maybe I should try saying it ten times in a row. Nightwing, Nightwing, Nightwing, Nightwing…

[edit] References

    Not available yet

    [edit] See also

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