It Really Says Something About Me (and I Have No Shame About That Something) That She Was Up And Away

It really says something about me (and I have no shame about that something) that she was up and away my least favorite character in the whole show. While my favorite villains was Gentleman Ghost.

It's probably a Serbian thing.

ok, so this version of harley kidnaps and psychologically tortures rich men into giving up all their money away to charity

i see no problem with this and love her all the more for it

I KNOW WHAT THE NEXT SPOOKY SHORT IS GOING TO BE ABOUT

Okay, I know this is a bit of a clickbait-y title, but I'm writing this in a stroke of inspiration (courtesy of @crossover-enthusiast) and really think I'm onto something.

A while back, Pelo used this image to announce he was working on a second Spooky Short, one about Kevin's greatest fear/enemy, in his own words.

Since then, we've had a few hints on it's further contents and it's from those contents I believe I've cracked it's general plot.

This tiny image show's Kevin at work, nothing noteworthy there, if it wasn't for one of the updates on the short:

It's pretty obvious that Kevin is in casual attire. The best explanation for this, at least in my eyes, is that the short will open with Kevin finishing work and going home. The focus of the short will be on Kevin's personal life. But we can get even more specific in our prediction.

In this video (shoutout to @spooky-month-archive) we hear that Skid and Pump want to go trick or treating, and given when it's being recorded, it has to be for the short.

So now, with all this in hand, let's move onto THE PREDICTION

Kevin gets off work at the Candy Club and goes home (likely a small dingy apartment). He tries to relax, but Skid and Pump turn up at his door trick or treating, he initially tries to get rid off them, but then encounters the enemy alluded to earlier, who I'm guessing is either Kevin's landlord/lady or an ornery neighbor. Whoever they are, Kevin's enemy has a go at him, which provokes the spookees, who stand up for their "friend". The whole idea of the shot being that Kevin is more openly accepting of the spookees by the end.

We only have about 2 months before the short comes out, so we won't have to wait long to put this theory to the test

A lot of people are also assuming it takes place in the 40s, which it doesn't, it's set in an ambiguous time with a 40s aesthetic

Okay, so Batman Caped Crusader was pretty enjoyable. 👀 I loved the callbacks to BTAS, however, it is NOT a sequel or prequel to BTAS, so don't go in thinking that.

For some reason a lot of people are assuming it is, forming the wrong expectations, and then getting upset over it being different from their assumptions. So...don't do that. It's a different take that simply has a very BTAS like aesthetic and Bruce Timm working on it, but they also mix it with Golden Age stuff as well as other things.

Poll Time!!

Finally talking about Batman Caped Crusader (and villains I want in it)

So, up until now, I haven't shown my love of batman, bat-rogues and dc villains in general on this blog, but having finished and marinated on the first season of the phenomenal Caped Crusader series, I've decided to change that.

The show is basically everything I wanted it to be, and though the way its plots are carefully threaded together and amazing, it's the characters, especially the villains, that stand out.

And since arguably the biggest thing about this series is the ways it's reinventing the villains it uses, I thought the best way to start talking about it was to run through some ideas I've had on how it might portray various rouges going forward.

Starting with Scarecrow, as he's been referenced twice in the series. A blink and you'll miss it easter egg in episode 5 shows a self help book written by Dr. Jonathan Crane, which makes me wonder if this take on Scarecrow will lean more towards something like the guru working for Scarecrow in the TNBA episode Never Fear, or possibly a more diluted character who genuinely believes he's helping people overcome their fears.

Moving on to speculative characters, after some thought I've come up with a take on Riddler that would slot neatly into BCC is a traveling magician/escapologist who draws in crowds by offering a cash prize to anyone who can explain his seemingly impossible escapes. He also plans his tours so he can find and pick off other big time magicians by putting them in death trap to see how good their escape skills really are.

And rounding out the dorks, the biggest idea I've had for Mad Hatter is a scientist with a method of inducing intense suggestibility (either the chipped cards or some form of drug) but can't find funding. Because of this, he makes his living as a taxidermist, which would allow both for some creepy visuals and (assuming they go down this route) a jabberwocky patched together out of various animals as a screwed up art piece

I've seen some people suggest Bane for season 2, but I think it would be more interesting to use one of the lesser used bruisers Batman has gone up against like Blockbuster (specifically the version from Nightwing comics), Amygdala or even Solomon Grundy, what with the supernatural aspects we've already seen.

If they do adapt Mr. Freeze, I know this will upset some people, but I want a less sympathetic version of Victor, purely because I'm sick of everything wanting to be Heart of Ice. Maybe he had his accident while trying to freeze Nora against her will, or maybe he causes out of exhaustion because he was neglecting to sleep.

And lastly, this show has the opportunity to be the first animated series to embrace the supernatural implications with The Ventriloquist. Scarface wouldn't even have to be fully alive, just a cursed dummy that amplifies negative emotions and might even be addictive in a way. You could have Batman and Wesker racing to find the dummy as it's being passed from person to person around Gotham.

By the way, if any artists see this and take to one or more of these ideas, feel free to draw your own take on them, just remember to tag me so I can see it :)

Happy Birthday Reece Shearsmith