Batman Beyond:Crush

However, I didn't like two of these episodes as much as I thought I would. Not that they are all that weak, but they lack some of the edge that made School Dayz so effective, an edge that is maintained in Spellbound.

"Rats" and "Terry's Friend Dates A Robot" are the tape's weaker episodes. "Robot," while not as satisfying as an episode like "Spliced," is still quite funny. It starts with an outstanding sequence - a sim battle between Terry and several of Bruce Wayne's old adversaries - the Riddler, Two-Face, Killer Croc - in synthoid robot form. The company that makes Bruce's sim robots also makes illegal "escort" robots; when Hill High's resident fat nerd Howard Groote discovers this fact, he purchases a synthoid girl - named (what else?) Cynthia - with which he shows up the school's "in" crowd. This, though, gets him and everyone else in trouble, as we see a desturctive new twist on the term "A woman scorned...."

"Rats" has an intriguing premise - a mutant ratboy who lives in Gotham's sewers surrounded by outsized rodents kidnaps Terry's sometime girlfriend Dana Tan (voiced by Lauren Tom) in order to make her his companion. The episode features an effective sequence where Dana crawls through the sewer in an ultimately vain attempt to escape the ratboy.

The lesser of the episode's twin weaknesses are that the ratboy doesn't get quite enough screentime to register a full impact with the viewer. This, though, doesn't compare with the larger weakness - I just don't like the Dana Tan character. In previous episodes she has consistently come across as snooty and somewhat self-centered; it shows even at the end when she sobs on Terry's shoulder. She's not likeable enough for people to believe Terry should waste any time with her, yet at the same time she's not hateable enough for the audience to feel enough guilty pleasure at seeing her humiliated.

Perhaps sensing that Dana Tan isn't enough of a character to spend too much time with, the show also has Terry palling around with another young lady, Max (Cree Summer), who is far more sympathetic, and also knows Terry's secret, which she uses to help Terry with his crime fighting in the tape's best episode, the very good "Once Burned." This is a sequel to "Dead Man's Hand" and returns The Royal Flush Gang and Terry's most passionate girlfriend, Melanie Walker - aka Ten. Ten is robbing an underworld card game - similar to the one from the Batman: The Animated Series classic "Almost Got 'im!" - for ransom money to pay The Jokerz, who are holding her family hostage. Batman stops her, but when he attacks The Jokerz' damside hideout, he finds he's been doublecrossed. Even more, he's not the only one who's been doublecrossed.

The best scene here comes when Melanie reunites with Terry. After they kiss, they talk about their previous encounter - this leads to a cute "cheap thrill" edit; when Melanie asks Terry if he still finds her attractive, he affirms that he does, as the camera pans upward following Melanie's figure.

George Lazenby - James Bond in On Her Majesty's Secret Service - returns as King, while Sara Douglas - Ursa from the Superman movies - replaces Amanda Pays as Queen.