User Reviews

This story was initially written for The Riddler to star, Frank Gorshing had asked for a significant salary increase to participate in the second season, not making arrangements with the production and in the rush to quickly have the program on the air, it was decided to do some modifications to the script and give it to a new villain with a similar modus operandi. The Puzzler teams up with a billionaire in order to gain his trust and seize a prototype plane that belongs to him. During the development of the episode, the dynamic duo is trapped inside a hot air balloon that has a system that will automatically let them fall into the void when they reach 20,000 feet.

"The Duo is Slumming" finds the Dynamic Duo rising to great heights in a hot air balloon, only to drop like two stones once it reaches 20,000 feet. Fortunately, Robin's ability with bird calls enrages one particularly aggressive specimen, which proceeds to poke a hole in the top of the balloon, literally bursting the bubble to sink to a relatively soft landing next to a handy telephone! Believing them dead, The Puzzler (Maurice Evans) sets out to steal the new Retsoor plane from its creator, Artemus Knab (Paul Smith), and ask for a huge ransom at a later date, but not without sending more riddle clues than even Riddler used to do. With Christmas only three days away after its original broadcast, we get a surprising appearance from none other than Santa Claus, the unmistakable voice of Western veteran Andy Devine. Batman has the last laugh: "you and your high flying flunkies are floored forever!" Seven weeks would pass before the other Riddler script would be aired, with the odd choice of John Astin replacing Frank Gorshin this one time.