Batman: The Animated Series/Fridge

Fridge Brilliance

• The show is subtle and quick-witted, quite often clear-cut issues presented in episodes have double or even triple meanings that will only be revealed hours later.
  • In Almost Got 'Im, Killer Croc's story about almost defeating Batman was comically simple and unimpressive, climaxing with him throwing a rock at Batman ("It was a BIG rock!"). This actually doesn't jive with the portrayal in the rest of the series where, while Croc isn't by any means a smart villain, he isn't stupid either, he just relies on strength and animal cunning. The brilliance is that that's not really Killer Croc playing poker with them.
  • In "If you're so smart, why aren't you rich?" has the camera focus on the future Riddler. Also next to him, a large collection of cubicles in the form of a maze
  • Given the way Dick Grayson's parents died, it makes a lot of sense that the majority of his panic attacks in "Fear of Victory" are kicked off by heights.
• "Over the Edge". Although Gordon's grief over the death of Barbara is highly understandable, he quickly goes from remorseful to irrational and finally outright delusional in his vendetta against the Batfamily, acting severely out of character to the point that he blames Batman for most of his Rogues Gallery coming to be (at least the Arkham ones), and willingly makes a deal with Bane just to take Batman down, something he would never do in his right mind. This makes the reveal that the entire episode was a fear-gas induced hallucination by Batgirl all the more believable. Her greatest fear is that, because she never told her father the truth, her possible death would set him against Batman, so of course he would act utterly irrational in the dream.
• The episode in which Harvey Dent becomes Two-Face is two parts long. Not that there weren't other two-part episodes, but that's definitely the most appropriate one to be such.
• In the ending of Harlequinade, the Joker, perhaps for the first time ever, shows genuine love and affection to Harley, after the she tries to blow his head with a machine gun and fails by no fault of her own. The obvious Fridge Brilliance is that the Joker revelled in seeing Harley pushed far enough to pull the trigger. In his own twisted mind, she finally matched up to a standard that he did not believe she could.
  • There is, however, a subtler brilliance to the scene - Not only did Joker believe he was about to die, which probably exhilirated him, but the revelation that the gun was a dud probably confirmed in his mind some sort of perceived immortality that was played up a lot with Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker.

Fridge Horror

• It happened a lot early in Batman the Animated Series. For instance, the Scarecrow's out of control blimp would careen around the city, with Batman, the hostage, and the villains escaping in the nick of time. And the blimp crashes into a skyscraper, which may have been a high rise apartment complex filled with relaxing civilians. Or an office building where some late night workers were trying to put in enough hours for that promotion.
  • In later episodes, at least, the characters tended to mention that no one was hurt or that the victim had narrowly survived.
  • In the beginning of the episode, "Joker's Favor", the Joker is driving around in a station wagon with luggage strapped to the top. The radio mentioned he had just escaped police custody, so the car probably wasn't his. Not that this is a stretch for the Joker, but this seems to imply that he killed some vacationers for their car.
• Step One: Watch Return of the Joker. Step Two: Watch any Batman episode that focuses on Tim Drake, especially if it features his trademark recklessness and devil-may-care attitude. Step Three: Hide under a blanket; eat ice cream out of the carton; try not to cry.
  • Alternatively, Step One: watch Mad Love. Step Two: watch ANY episode with the Joker and Harley Quinn in it, and realize that her attempts to save face when goofing up are less about her being a Perky Female Minion, and more about just trying not to get hit for it.
    • Yet another one. Step One: Play Batman: Arkham Asylum and take down a few goons with Suicide Collars on, taking careful note of the mechanical laughing noise the collar alarms make. Step Two: Watch "The Joker's Wild" and listen to the mechanical laughter the giant Joker sign on the casino makes. Step Three: Remember that Mark Hamill is the voice of The Joker in both Arkham Asylum AND Batman: The Animated Series. Congratulations, you are now seeing the Animated Series' Joker doing everything that the Joker does in Arkham Asylum. Enjoy your heebie-jeebies.
• In Scarface and the Ventriloquist's first episode, they're hiding out in a warehouse full of (all-female) mannequin parts. Since Scarface is the Ventriloquist's other personality, is he surrounding himself with dismembered women?
• In the first part of "Feat of Clay", Bats drops an unconscious man, from the air, into a swimming pool. While reviving the senseless with water is a cartoon staple, Bell very well could have drowned before the cops got to him, and broken bones from the rough landing. And then you have Clayface slapping pieces of himself onto people...