Recap / Batman: The Animated Series E48 "What Is Reality?"

While plotting the destruction of all traces of his previous life as Edward Nigma, the Riddler distracts Batman and Robin by trapping Commissioner Gordon in a virtual reality machine.

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Tropes in this episode include:

• And I Must Scream: The ending has the Riddler turned into a complete vegetable. Whether his mind is literally destroyed or still trapped inside the computer somewhere is unknown. Batman says that restoring the Riddler would be the greatest riddle of all—though he is shown to have recovered in a later episode with no explanation. Apparently it's such a good riddle that even the writers couldn't think of an answer.
• Animation Bump: Per Bruce Timm:
  "Strangely enough, it's one of AKOM's better shows. They pulled off all the special effects really well."
• Bat Deduction:
  • This exchange between Batman and Alfred in the Batmobile, where Batman has a handful of coins and the clue, "Ask me no questions and I'll tell you no tales. It all makes sense when you add it up."
    Batman: Penny... Penny... Cent... Red cent... Copper! It's made of copper!
    Alfred: And "copper" is another word for "policeman"!
    Batman: And no tails would be heads. Police... Head... Quarters!
    [...]
    Batman: And four quarters and one penny make 101 cents, so... Police headquarters, room 101!
    • The silliest thing about this? Batman was going to go back there eventually anyway.
  • Leading into the above example, three computers crash around Gotham, displaying only a riddle on screen: "Where does a 500-pound gorilla sleep?"^Answer"Anywhere it wants." "What's worse than a millipede with flat feet?"^AnswerA giraffe with a sore throat." "How do you fit 5 elephants into a compact car?"^Answer"Two in the front seat, two in the back seat, and one in the trunk." Train of logic: the Riddler doesn't usually use such commonly known riddles, meaning the answers to the riddles are a red herring. The riddles themselves all contain numbers: 500, 1000, 5. Convert to roman numerals and get D,M,V... the Department of Motor Vehicles!!! Which is exactly where the Riddler's goons are.
  • Right before the simulation collapses, the Riddler remarks "If the planet were equitable, I'd still have my old job." Batman rewords this into "If the World's Fair, I'd still have my exposition" and sure enough, that's where the Riddler's hideout is.
• Batman Gambit: Batman knows he can't solve the puzzle cube in time, so he multiplies himself, predicting Riddler will do the same, on the assumption that he cannot sustain a collective consciousness and the entire virtual world. Batman is correct; the world falls apart, destroying the cube and letting Batman and Commissioner Gordon escape.
• Call-Back: During his Motive Rant, Riddler mentions Daniel Mockridge, the corrupt employer who cheated him in his debut episode.
• Chekhov's Skill: Robin mentions early on that he solved a Baxter's Box in 37 seconds using a hammer. So when Riddler confronts him with a Baxter's Box, Batman turns his hands into sledges and starts hammering. Subverted, in that he ended up destroying the simulation by getting Riddler to duplicate himself so many times that it falls apart.
• Chess Motifs: The Riddler traps Batman in a virtual reality simulator. At one point, the Riddler has Batman chase him across a giant chessboard, only to have the squares slowly disappear beneath Batman's feet. The villain's riddle is, "Move according to the rules or it's the end of the day." Robin deduces that the Riddler is playing with Batman's nickname The Dark Knight, and that in order to avoid disappearing squares, Batman has to move like a knight ("according to the rules" of chess); two forward, one to the side, to avoid the "end of the day" or nightfall (knight fall). Batman completes the puzzle by confronting the opposing King to simulate a checkmate.
• Cut the Juice: This is Batman's first instinct when he discovers Gordon's predicament... unfortunately, as Riddler explains, the resulting whiplash would kill Gordon.
• Cutting the Knot: When the heroes get to the center of the virtual world, they discover that their goal is inside a Baxter's box. Batman's solution? Turn his hands into hammers and break the thing, referencing an earlier comment by Robin:
  Robin: You're looking at the guy who solved the Baxter's Box puzzle in 37 seconds. Of course, this time I don't have a sledgehammer.
• Door Roulette: The first obstacle Batman encounters. This being the Riddler, however, the doors are all labeled with clues as to what is behind them. The door labeled "crazy intent," you guessed it, contains an oncoming locomotive.
• "Eureka!" Moment: Batman and Alfred are staring at the riddles and Alfred makes the comment that the riddles all involve numbers. From that, Batman turns the numbers into Roman numerals and then simultaneously, both declare, "Of course! The Department of Motor Vehicles!" (suddenly seeing the Roman numerals DMV together could easily be a Eureka Moment for any American.)
• Failed a Spot Check: Robin is smart enough to search the system thoroughly before actually using the VR program to make sure the Riddler can't access it via the net. However, as the villain points out later, he fails to check the hardware, and doesn't discover the wireless modem.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: The Riddler can't resist hanging around inside the crashing program to give out one last riddle to Batman. It's to his own misfortune.
• Homage: This episode might as well be one to the 60s TV show's treatment of the Riddler.
• Impersonating an Officer: The Riddler's 2 goons from their boss's first appearance on the show are dressed as Gotham PD officers to clear out the department so they can get the files on Nygma.
• Inside a Computer System: The Riddler creates one and tricks the Gotham PD into bringing the computer into their headquarters, where he traps Commissioner Gordon inside and dares Batman to go in after him.
• It's Personal: It's implied that one reason the Riddler targeted Commissioner Gordon and forced Batman to confront him is because he's angry that Batman outwitted him when he tried to kill Daniel Mockridge.
• Logic Bomb: During Batman and Riddler's clone-off, Batman asks Riddler how can he split himself into several copies and maintain his virtual world at the same time? That question makes the game start to collapse on itself, allowing Batman to rescue Commissioner Gordon.
• Me's a Crowd: In the end, Batman faces off against the Riddler, who demonstrates his mastery of the domain by duplicating himself. Batman realizes he can do so as well, and the two get into a ridiculous arms race of clones. Eventually the Riddler's consciousness is spread too thin for him to maintain the simulation, and it collapses, with Riddler's mind still inside. Batman somehow knows how many duplicates are too many for the Riddler to handle.
  Batman: [while merging back into one] Tell me, Riddler, how can you split your focus in thirty-two directions and sustain the concentration it takes to keep your world together? You can't!
• Moral Myopia: The Riddler wants revenge on Batman for forcing him to become an outlaw. When Batman points out that this is because the Riddler tried to murder his former boss, Nygma dismisses his previous crime as "a personal matter" and blames Batman for getting involved.
• Most Dangerous Video Game: And unlike his previous plan, it truly is computer-generated. As Batman gets shot at, Riddler mocks him that there's no getting extra lives in this game.
• Mundane Solution: Riddler tells Batman the final riddle he has to complete is a giant Baxter's Box that contains Commissioner Gordon. Solve it and he's free. Batman had no time to solve it normally, so he opted to form his hands into hammerheads and simply break it apart.
• Pungeon Master: Like before, many of Nygma's traps involve Stealth Puns. "Crazy Intent" is a synonym of "Loco Motive," the door with that label hiding a train that tries to run the hero down.
• Shout-Out:
  • The aforementioned "loco motive" trap involves a train emerging from a fireplace, a reference to Rene Magritte's painting Time Transfixed in which the same thing is depicted.
  • The computer lab wherein Nygma the takes control of Gordon's reality is Room 101.
• Simple Solution Won't Work:
  • Commissioner Gordon ends up trapped in a virtual reality program by the Riddler, where he is forced to experience high G-forces. Batman attempts to free Gordon by merely unplugging the machine, but the Riddler reveals that doing so will result in Gordon experiencing a rather sudden and fatal stop, forcing Batman to enter the program.
  • At the climax of the episode, Batman tries to cut the knot of the final puzzle between him and Gordon by smashing the thing, but the Riddler is there to fight him and reassemble the puzzle. This forces Batman to take another route to win: overwhelm Nygma‘s mind, causing the whole game to crash.
• That Man Is Dead: The Riddler is trying to enforce this by destroying computer and paper records of his Edward Nygma identity.
• Too Clever by Half: The Riddler develops a brilliant plan to seemingly destroy Batman in a world where he makes all the rules. Unfortunately, when Batman outwits him, his computer program shatters and seemingly takes his mind with it.
• Un-person: The Riddler erases all of the records of his existence as Edward Nygma, including birth certificates, drivers licenses, employment records and so on.
• Virtual-Reality Warper: As expected, the Riddler has full control of the simulation and can warp it any way he pleases, even duplicating himself to prove the point... but as Batman has power over himself in the simulation, he duplicates himself to show that the Riddler's power isn't absolute. This leads to a showdown where the Riddler breaks his own mind and his control over the virtual environment trying to out-double the Batman, thus releasing his trapped prisoners. Batman then pulls himself together and goes to capture Riddler, who is now ironically trapped in a hell of his own creation.
• Voice with an Internet Connection: Robin, once Batman enters the program. Eventually, the Riddler sabotages Robin's headset to stop him from giving Batman any more clues.
  Riddler: No coaching from the peanut gallery!
• Voluntary Shapeshifting: Batman realizes he can do this inside the simulation. He turns his hands into hammers and uses them to smash the Baxters' Box containing Gordon.
• Your Mind Makes It Real: The Riddler's virtual reality program is somehow able to induce a heart attack in a user by simulating high G-forces. Of course, pulling the plug is a bad idea since it'll be like "slamming into a brick wall."

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