Batman
The Impractical Joker (1)
TV Flash files “The Impractical Joker (1)” as hour 55 of 120 in the TV Flash guide — Batman (1966–1968) on ABC, season 2, episode 21, aired 1966-11-16, 30 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S02E21: listed hour 55 of 120 in the Batman guide, hour 21 of 60 in season 2. It aired 1966-11-16 (30 min). The listed hour before it is “Deep Freeze (2)” (S02E20). Next is “The Joker's Provokers (2)” (S02E22).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
Joker with the help of his mesmerizing box is stealing Keys. Batman and Robin try to stop him but end up trapped in Joker's giant Key making machine.
Viewer FAQ
Where does The Impractical Joker (1) sit in the Batman guide?
S02E21 is listed hour 55 of 120 — hour 21 of 60 in season 2, season 2 episode 21.
When did Batman S02E21 air?
The Impractical Joker (1) aired 1966-11-16 and is listed at 30 minutes.
Where should I start?
Season 1's twice-weekly cliffhangers are the full candy-colored contract: West, Ward, onomatopoeic graphics, and a guest villain. The 1966 feature film sits between seasons as a longer dose of the same style.
In the series
Why this series still plays
ABC's Batman is camp as a national style guide: Adam West's deadpan virtue, Burt Ward's earnest Robin, and celebrity villains between freeze-frame fight bubbles. Twice-weekly cliffhangers and Pow! graphics locked comic-book TV into prime time. Required viewing before you pick a side in every later dark-versus-fun Batman war.
The freeze-frame is the argument. ABC's *Batman* (January 12, 1966–March 14, 1968) does not wink after the fight; it prints the onomatopoeia on the air itself — Pow, Zap, the candy-colored grammar of a color-TV generation. Adam West plays Bruce Wayne / Batman as deadpan virtue. Burt Ward plays Dick Grayson / Robin as earnestness without an exit. Sincerity is the gag; the gag is the point. William Dozier leaned into camp until camp became a national style guide.
Filed against
- Adam West as Bruce Wayne / Batman
Adam West’s Bruce Wayne / Batman made ABC’s twice-weekly camp a national style guide — deadpan virtue, Burt Ward’s earnest Robin, celebrity villains between freeze-frame Pow! bubbles. Cliffhangers locked comic-book TV into prime time. TV…
- Burt Ward as Dick Grayson / Robin
Burt Ward's earnest Robin made ABC's Batman a national camp style guide — Adam West's deadpan virtue, celebrity villains, freeze-frame fight bubbles, twice-weekly cliffhangers. Pow! graphics locked comic-book TV into prime time. TV Flash…
- Alan Napier as Alfred Pennyworth
Alan Napier’s Alfred Pennyworth kept Wayne Manor mannered while ABC’s Batman went twice-weekly Pow! — Adam West’s deadpan virtue, Burt Ward’s earnest Robin, celebrity villains, freeze-frame fight bubbles. Camp as a national style guide.…
- Neil Hamilton as Commissioner Gordon
Neil Hamilton’s Commissioner Gordon kept ABC’s Batman from becoming only freeze-frame fight bubbles — 1960s camp as a national style guide, Adam West’s deadpan virtue, Burt Ward’s earnest Robin, celebrity villains, twice-weekly…