It's been more than 50 years since the Batman TV series premiered, and the campy superhero show remains a favorite among many DC Comics fans. The last few years have been especially kind to that era of the Caped Crusader's history thanks to the series finally being released on Blu-ray and DVD, new comics centered on this iteration of the Dynamic Duo and, last but not least, the animated movie Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders, which saw Adam West, Burt Ward and Julie Newmar reprising Batman, Robin and Catwoman, respectively. In a few months, the sequel, Batman vs. Two-Face, will hit shelves, and we now have our first trailer teasing the battle with the duality-obsessed deviant.
Adam West passed away back in June, but he left Batman fans with one last performance as Gotham City's protector: Batman vs. Two-Face. This movie, which also features Burt Ward and Julie Newmar's return, will see Batman and Robin going up against a William Shatner-voiced Harvey Dent, a.k.a. Two-Face. While there were originally plans to include Two-Face in the original Batman TV series, those fell through, and five decades later, the coin-flipping antagonist is finally debuting in this continuity. Along with causing trouble with his own gang of goons (thankfully wearing identifying shirts), Two-Face will also try to bring down the Dynamic Duo with the help of Gotham City's other colorful cretins, including The Joker, The Riddler, The Penguin, Catwoman, Egghead, Mr. Freeze, Shame and The Clock King.
The biggest surprise in this trailer (which debuted on IGN), however, was the reveal of Hugo Strange being Batman vs. Two-Face's secondary antagonist. Strange debuted in the comics in 1940, making him one of Batman's earliest super villains. In this movie, he appears to be keeping faithful to his comic book counterpart and experimenting on criminals under his supervision. This time, he's created an Evil Extractor, but when the machine malfunctions and explodes (hinted to be on purpose), it ironically ends up creating a new villain by scarring Harvey Dent and turning him into Two-Face. If that wasn't bad enough, Two-Face will later seek Strange's help in getting the Evil Extractor back up and running for a nefarious scheme.
Like Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders, Batman vs. Two-Face looks like it will be a fun blend of action and campy material, the two elements key to making any Batman '66 story captivating. This movie is also bittersweet, as this will be the last time we hear Adam West voicing the Bright Knight. Thankfully, he left behind a body of work for fans of all generations to enjoy, and fingers crossed that Batman vs. Two-Face is a wonderful swan song to his Batman legacy.
Batman vs. Two-Face will be available for purchase starting October 13.
