| "Mayhem of the Music Meister!" | |
|---|---|
| Batman: The Brave and the Bold episode | |
The villainous Music Meister |
|
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 24 |
| Directed by | Ben Jones |
| Written by | Michael Jelenic |
| Original air date | October 23, 2009 |
| Running time | 22 minutes |
| Guest stars | |
|
Neil Patrick Harris as the Music Meister[1] |
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| List of Batman: The Brave and the Bold episodes | |
"Mayhem of the Music Meister!" is an episode of the Batman: The Brave and the Bold animated series. The episode features the villainous Music Meister, who uses his power to control people through song to try to take over the world. Written by Mike Jelenic and directed by Ben Jones, the episode premiered on October 23, 2009, the 24th of the first season.
The musical episode, which has been compared to Buffy the Vampire Slayer's "Once More, with Feeling",[1][2] was generally critically acclaimed and well-received by viewers.
Contents |
The Music Meister uses his powers to control people through music to induce Black Canary, Green Arrow, Aquaman, Black Manta, Gorilla Grodd and Clock King to hijack a United Nations' communications satellite, launching it into space after they install a device for him. When Batman intervenes, he orders them to attack the hero, which they do in a dance style reminiscent of West Side Story. His plan successful, the Meister frustrates Batman once more, escaping by forcing his captives to dance towards the rocket blast, making the hero rescue them rather than apprehend the villain. Meister escapes to an empty opera house where, in a parody of Phantom of the Opera, he plays the organ to a cardboard audience. Batman tries to capture him on a cross-town chase while he sings "Drives us Bats", eventually releasing prison inmates (including villains seen from past episodes) to attack the heroes. Having heard Black Canary sing, he also has fallen for her, but not enough to give up villainy, and she rejects him. Meister manages to capture Batman and Black Canary and put them in a death trap. They escape as Music Meister hypnotizes the world with his music (with help of the satellite). When Black Canary becomes his slave, Batman gets the satellite to transmit her sonic scream which breaks Music Meister's mind control and frees everyone. Batman then finally gets his hands on the Meister, defeating him with a single punch to the jaw, while saying, "Put a sock in it!"
"Mayhem of the Music Meister!" screened June 24, 2009 at Comic-Con,[3][4][5][6][7][8] where supervising producer James Tucker noted that he believed that the show would be successful after seeing people wearing Music Meister costumes after the episode's debut.[9] The episode received a standing ovation at its debut,[9] in part because of the humor of the Maestro's dance-inducing powers on the heroes and villains.[10][2]
The episode was nominated for an Emmy Award[11][9] and has been called one of television's best musicals.[12] It has also been criticized to various extents as absurd[13][14] with a thin plot[2] with a villain lacking a particular goal.[13] The episode has been used as an example of the merits of Batman: The Brave and the Bold.[15]
The soundtrack of "Mayhem of the Music Meister!" was released on October 23, 2009.[16] It contains 8 tracks from the episode and has been praised as being fun while criticized for its brevity.[17]