History Recap / BatmanTheAnimatedSeriesE14HeartOfIce

** ZigZagged with Ferris Boyle. Batman ''does'' save him from getting murdered, but gives the taped evidence of what Boyle did to Victor and Nora to Summer Gleeson and does not offer to unfreeze Boyle.

* AntiVillain: This episode was considered a turning point for the character of Mr. Freeze, who was previously a silly and unremarkable one-shot villain from UsefulNotes/{{the Silver Age|OfComicBooks}}. He was revamped in this series as a heart-breakingly TragicVillain who only wanted revenge on the person who ruined his life, not to mention that of poor Nora.

** Also, right after giving the evidence of Boyle’s heartless treatment of Mr. Freeze and Nora to Summer Gleason, Batman coldly bids a half-frozen Boyle good night and doesn’t try to unfreeze him! By contrast, Batman was quite willing to save one of Freeze’s mooks after his legs were frozen! That indicates how much Batman despised Boyle.

* AntiVillain: This episode was considered a turning point for the character of Mr. Freeze, who was previously a silly and unremarkable one-shot villain from UsefulNotes/{{the Silver Age|OfComicBooks}}. He was revamped in this series as a heart-breakingly TragicVillain who only wanted revenge on the person who ruined his life.

* EvilCannotComprehendGood: Ferris Boyle showing his true colors around Bruce Wayne while acting cordial to him seems to come from Boyle being unable to believe that his fellow executives are capable of being genuinely philanthropic. Perhaps because Boyle is incapable of genuine philanthropy, he assumed that his fellow executives were the same way.

* ShownTheirWork: Besides the physical impact smashing the soup thermos against Freeze's helmet, the thermal shock of the hot soup coming into contact with the freezing cold glass is enough to shatter it.

* EvilCannotComprehendGood: Ferris Boyle showing his true colors around Bruce Wayne while acting cordial to him seems to come from Boyle being unable to believe that his fellow executives are capable of being genuinely philanthropic. Perhaps because Boyle wouldn’t be genuinely philanthropic, he assumed that his fellow executives were the same way.

In the Batcave, Batman places the henchman in a hot chemical bath where his legs can recover. He is able to heal, but Batman isn't feeling so good himself; he caught a cold during the fight. He says that he can't worry about that right now, since Bruce Wayne has an appointment with Ferris Boyle. Bruce asks Boyle who would make attacks on Goth Corp. Boyle describes one man who could possibly hate the company--if he was still alive, of course. One employee, a scientist, was using Goth Corp equipment for personal reasons, so Boyle called company guards to arrest him, but there was an explosion and they lost the employee. Boyle doesn't seem too heartbroken over this; he says that he can't have "wage slaves" acting like they own the place. Boyle gets a call that his next appointment has arrived, explaining that Goth Corp is hosting a ceremony for the Gotham Humanitarian Industrialist of the Year Award, which Boyle has won. Bruce quietly expresses his disbelief, then congratulates Boyle, assuring him it's well-deserved.

* GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

* CruelMercy: On one hand, you wouldn't blame Freeze for wanting to make Ferris Boyle pay dearly for ruining his and Nora's lives. On the other hand, if Batman didn't save his life, he wouldn't live long enough to witness the Dark Knight do something worse: turn in evidence of his crime that would certainly tarnish his [[SlaveToPR precious]] reputation.

* EvilCannotComprehendGood: Ferris Boyle showing his true colors around Bruce Wayne while acting cordial to him seems to come from Boyle being unable to believe that his fellow executives are capable of being genuinely philanthropic.

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

* AssholeVictim: Ferris Boyle, the target of Freeze's plan. Batman still feels compelled to save Boyle, but he also sympathizes with Freeze and outs Boyle for who he really is -- complete with the evidence of him trying to kill Victor and Nora -- right after subduing Freeze. Then he leaves Boyle half-frozen, when he wouldn't even do that to one of Boyle's henchmen.

* MoralityChain: Nora for Mr. Freeze. Freeze put down a gun while she was still "alive" in a cryogenic chamber, but now he is willing to get his revenge and kill anyone who gets in his way.

* ArtisticLicenseLaw: Although the tape was an incontestable proof of Boyle's crimes, it may not have been evidence to prepare criminal charges against him, given that Batman outright stole the video rather than police acquiring it with a search warrant.

* PetTheDog: During Mr. Freeze's initial break-in, instead of trying to kill the guards, he simply freezes the door so they can't get in his way. A little later, he tells Batman he doesn't want to fight and warns him to stay out of his way instead of immediately attacking him like other villains would.

* HarmlessFreezing: Averted by Mr. Freeze's guns. The henchman who is hit needs a hot chemical bath to return him to normal. Even Batman has to cope with the aftereffects.

* PetTheDog: During Mr. Freeze's initial break-in, instead of trying to kill the guards, he simply freezes the door so they can't get in his way. A little later, he tells Batman he doesn't want to fight and warns him to stay out of his way instead of immediately attacking him like other villains would. Even after he captures Batman, the conversation they have when he wakes up shows that Mr. Freeze doesn't hate Batman; he simply wants him out of the way so he can get his revenge (his gun is fully capable of killing people, but he deliberately chose a setting that would just knock him out).

* PetTheDog: During Mr. Freeze's initial break-in, instead of trying to kill the guards, he simply freezes the door so they can't get in his way. A little later, he tells Batman he doesn't want to fight and warns him to stay out of his way instead of immediately attacking him like other villains would.

** Overlapping with PragmaticVillainy, Freeze doesn't try to kill people until he makes his move on Boyle, at that point accepting them as collateral damage. Indeed, he gives Batman a chance to back out of their first encounter, and spares Batman until it's clear he won't let Freeze get his revenge. But even then, he settles for locking Batman up (presumably until he can finally give Boyle his due).

* StealthInsult: As Boyle reveals his true [[{{Jerkass}} contempt for his employees]], Bruce remarks, "I feel ill". Boyle shows no sign of understanding that it's anything but Bruce commenting on his cold.

* AdaptationalSympathy: The most famous example of this trope came from this episode. In the past, Freeze was nothing more than a gimmicky, ice-themed villain with no origin or name, resulting in him being killed off without much fanfare. This episode rewrote his origin story as a cryogenics scientist named Dr. Victor Fries, who was turned into a being unable to survive outside subzero temperatures when his attempts to save his dying wife were cruelly disrupted by his corrupt boss--and put him back on the map by making him one of fictions most [[TragicVillain tragic villains]].

-->'''Mr. Freeze:''' I failed you. I wish there was another way I could say it. I cannot… I can only beg your forgiveness, and pray you hear me somehow... someplace… someplace where a warm hand waits for mine…

** The episode contains two references to ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack''. Batman returns a criminal partially frozen by Mr. Freeze to health using a similar device to the "Bacta Tank" that revives Luke. Later in the episode, Batman is frozen upside down on to the ceiling by Dr. Fries much like Luke Skywalker was in the wampa's cave.

* BlessedWithSuck: Due to being pushed into chemicals that froze him, Victor Fries needs his suit to stay cold, otherwise he will die. This is how Batman incapacitates him, using a thermos of chicken soup.

* SympatheticCriminal: Freeze pilfered company assets and later tried to get murderous revenge against Boyle. But considering the circumstances, it is almost impossible ''not'' to pity him.

** In his introduction, Mr. Freeze says "Revenge is a dish best served cold", often referred to as a Klingon proverb in pop culture. Michael Ansara had played the Klingon Captain Kang in ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''.