YMMV / Batman: The Animated Series E51 "The Man Who Killed Batman"

• Ensemble Dark Horse: Sid "the Squid", aka The Man Who Killed Batman, appeared in just this one episode and yet he's considered one of the most popular characters in the entire franchise.
• Fridge Horror: Yes, we get the nice cheery ending shot, but let's be honest: How long will Sidney get to enjoy his "bigshot" status before the Joker finds out the truth and has Sidney "dealt with"? Or some other random guy like the one in the bar decides to pump up his cred by shanking him? Of course, also like in the bar, there could still be a number of inmates willing to take his side.
• Harsher in Hindsight: The Joker's eulogy to Batman in this episode hits differently with the passing of Kevin Conroy in November of 2022 and Mark Hamill's own last respects in response, some parts of which would fit right in with it.
  Mark Hamill: "For several generations, he has been the definitive Batman...He will always be my Batman."
  • It gets even more poignant as in February 2023 Hamill stated in an interview with Empire Magazine that it is almost certain that he will never voice the Joker again as Kevin Conroy is now unavailable to play Batman.
  Mark Hamill: "They would call and say, 'They want you to do the Joker,' and my only question was, 'Is Kevin Batman?' If they said yes, I would say, 'I'm in.' We were like partners. We were like Laurel and Hardy. Without Kevin there, there doesn't seem to be a Batman for me."
  • Hamill further confirms his retirement from voicing the Joker in November 2023, citing what he stated as the Clown Prince in this episode: "Without Batman, crime has no punchline."
• Hilarious in Hindsight:
  • Joker should consider himself lucky that Batman managed to save Sid when Joker tried to kill him with the same chemical bath responsible for his transformation considering what happens the next time he tries to kill someone that way.
  • Matt Frewer kills a Bat-themed character and earns the ire of the setting's Big Bad, who's obsessed with his victim. Said Big Bad draws out his attempt to murder him as slowly as possible. Twenty years and change later, Frewer voices The Bishop of Gresit, who murdered the loved one of a Bat-themed character who also draws out his killing of him, though ultimately succeeding in killing him.
• Retroactive Recognition: Listen closely and you'll recognize Sid's voice as Matt Frewer. He's been in a bunch of stuff (in the 80s, he was Max Headroom), but nowadays, he's known to Orphan Black fans as Dr. Leekie or to Disney fans as the voice of Panic.
• The Woobie: Sid the Squid. He'd veer into Jerkass Woobie if he wasn't so utterly pathetic.

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