Episode 48: Bindings
Takes place 11-14 May 2011.
Short version
Swamp Thing invades Gotham and covers it in plants to demand the release of his wife from jail; Paul negotiates a peaceful settlement, and the Team frees his daughter from Dark Druid's captivity.
Longer version
Paul attends a meeting of Justice League members who could counteract a nuclear strike if it ever occurred, then the citizenship ceremony of Red Tornado and Red Inferno, and visits the Rush Hour family to learn more about the origins of their Super-Speed.
He then goes to Bruce Wayne's wedding to Talia al Ghul, in company with Doctor Quinzel. The ceremony proceeds without incident, but afterward, plant life grows explosively all over the city, turning Gotham into a jungle. Paul suspects that Swamp Thing must be responsible, and learns that Swamp Thing's wife has been arrested and his daughter Tefe is missing.
Euanthe and the former Poison Ivy help Paul to track down Tefe; she is held prisoner by Dark Druid and Anton Arcane, who are hijacking her connection to plant life in order to corrupt the Earth's arcane networks with death magic. Anton assembles a giant avatar of corrupted matter and demonic magic to fight Swamp Thing, but is defeated by the Team and Nabu, who also captures and imprisons Dark Druid.
In the aftermath, Diana and Paul are able to negotiate a compromise to free Swamp Thing's family. Paul takes Dr Quinzel home, and she's on the verge of propositioning him when Eris shows up and takes Paul to meet Shivering Jemmy, Princess of Chaos, who gives him a chaos magic focus for his plans to neutralise Klarion.
The Renegade meets Geoffrey Talbot, a retired police officer who was silenced and threatened after he came across traces of the corruption in the British government, and brings him on board with the plans to root it out.
The origin of the title is unclear, although it may refer to the wedding.
- Best Served Cold: Geoffrey Talbot has so thoroughly mastered and channeled his burning desire for revenge that his quote marks are red, an indication of Red Enlightenment.
- Botanical Abomination: Anton Arcane's combat form, a giant mass of rotten wood infested with maggots, surrounded by insects, and infused with demonic magic.
- Clark Kenting: Jade observes that Batman's disguise is wearing thin with his marriage to Talia, since a lot of the Shadows knew that Talia was into Batman, and now she's marrying Bruce Wayne who has a similar build and a matching arrival date in Gotham and an adopted son matching Robin's age.Paul: Maybe she has a type?
Jade: Yeah, that's probably it. - Didn't See That Coming: Dark Druid warded his hiding place to block power ring scans — but his wards left a measurable hole, where the storm drain blueprints say there should be a space but the ring can't scan there.Paul: HAH! 'Oh, he'll never find me if I put up a scry ward'! Sucker!
- Driven to Suicide: Joan Talbot, in response to the hate mail aimed at Geoffrey.
- Lesser of Two Evils: Jade is apprehensive at first about Paul inviting Harleen Quinzel to Batman's wedding, since Doctor Quinzel was her counselor in prison. Then Paul indicates that the other option was Jade's mother.
- Necromancer: Swamp Thing's instant jungle is attacked with death magic by Anton Arcane and Dark Druid, using his imprisoned daughter as a point of connection.
- Nuke 'em: Paul is invited to a planning meeting of the Justice League members who are capable of stopping nuclear missiles if it ever becomes necessary. At this stage it's just general preparedness.
- Painting the Medium: Shivering Jemmy's words, and sometimes even the narrative in her presence, are t̡a̷i͢n̨t̸e҉ḑ w̸it͝h҉ o̶t͟h̸e̴r̸-ness.
- Person of Mass Construction: Swamp Thing's plants disrupt regular services, but provide replacements. Paul comes across food and water gourds, wooden playground equipment, and some time later he notes that the sewers are now self-cleaning and there's a bridge support made of ultra-hard wood.
- Plant Person: Swamp Thing takes over Gotham City and turns it into a jungle. He actually did have a semi-understandable grievance though, and was eventually willing to talk it out.
- Sorting Algorithm of Evil: Lampshaded by Kid Flash when Swamp Thing's avatar is stomping its way across a bridge (and crushing cars).Wallace: Y'know, I can still remember a time when all Gotham had was freaks in bad suits. Whatever happened to them?
Paul: We beat them all. Giant Swamp Thing is our level now.
Wallace: I like the way you think. - Taking You with Me: Mr Talbot carries a briefcase bomb at all times in case of government snatch squads, after he barely got away the first time.
- What Measure Is a Non-Human?: The Sophont Recognition Act is passed in the USA and several A.I.s gain citizenship, as well as the Genomorphs. Unfortunately, it also means the Demon Constantine can't simply be truth-lassoed and pumped for information.
- Wowing Cthulhu: Paul tells Shivering Jemmy that he intends to make John Constantine a Lord of Chaos. She laughs so hard that she has to transform into a huge Eldritch Abomination to express the laugh properly.
