Fans of 'Batman' in his most recent guise as 'The Dark Knight' must regard the 1960's incarnation with bewilderment. How did a series mocking Bob Kane and Bill Finger's caped crusader get to be one of television's greatest ever successes? Fox had sat on the rights for a long time before producer William Dozier hit on the idea of making it so over-the-top it became funny. It also helped that this was also the era of 'The Monkees' and 'The Man From U.N.C.L.E.'. I doubt whether a straight approach to 'Batman' would have worked at that time. Then there was the miracle ingredient - colour! 'Batman' was tailor-made for the medium.
'The Entrancing Dr.Cassandra' was the penultimate episode of Season 3, by which time the show's popularity had waned and not even the lovely Yvonne Craig as 'Batgirl' ( how I used to cringe at that awful song played whenever she rode her motorbike! ) could save it. Stanley Ralph Ross, author of the 'Catwoman' episodes, created 'Dr.Cassandra' ( Ida Lupino ), alchemist, occult scientist and swinger. She has invented 'camouflage pills' that, when taken by her and her husband ''Cabala' ( Lupino's real-life husband Howard Duff ) make them invisible, enabling them to rob banks with ease. She has other gimmicks too, such as a ray gun that turns Batman, Robin and Batgirl into two-dimensional cut-outs ( how did anyone notice the difference? ). Cassandra, clad in an orange bowler hat, looks like one of those eccentric women you see each year at Ascot. As 'Batman' villains go, she ranks alongside 'Clock King' and 'The Archer' as one of the least interesting. Cabala, on the other hand, wears a blazer covered in astrological symbols and behaves like one of those middle-aged movie stars ( like Peter Lawford ) who tried to get 'with it' by fooling about with mind-blowing substances. He calls his wife 'Docky baby' an awful lot.
Cassandra's grand plan is to release Gotham City Penitentiary's top criminals, including The Joker, The Penguin, The Riddler, Catwoman, King Tut and Egghead. None of whom are played by the original performers ( 'Catwoman' seems to have reverted to her Julie Newmar persona. She'd been Eartha Kitt for most of Season 3 ). The climactic fight between our heroes and their invisible opponents is as ingenious as it probably was cheap to make.
One bad note of continuity - 'I'll Be A Mummy's Uncle' ended with King Tut ( Victor Buono ) about to reveal Batman and Robin's secret identities, but regaining his memory before he could so so. Here he has reverted to Tut, but seems to have forgotten his previous adventure with the Dynamic Duo.
'The Entrancing Dr.Cassandra' was the penultimate episode of Season 3, by which time the show's popularity had waned and not even the lovely Yvonne Craig as 'Batgirl' ( how I used to cringe at that awful song played whenever she rode her motorbike! ) could save it. Stanley Ralph Ross, author of the 'Catwoman' episodes, created 'Dr.Cassandra' ( Ida Lupino ), alchemist, occult scientist and swinger. She has invented 'camouflage pills' that, when taken by her and her husband ''Cabala' ( Lupino's real-life husband Howard Duff ) make them invisible, enabling them to rob banks with ease. She has other gimmicks too, such as a ray gun that turns Batman, Robin and Batgirl into two-dimensional cut-outs ( how did anyone notice the difference? ). Cassandra, clad in an orange bowler hat, looks like one of those eccentric women you see each year at Ascot. As 'Batman' villains go, she ranks alongside 'Clock King' and 'The Archer' as one of the least interesting. Cabala, on the other hand, wears a blazer covered in astrological symbols and behaves like one of those middle-aged movie stars ( like Peter Lawford ) who tried to get 'with it' by fooling about with mind-blowing substances. He calls his wife 'Docky baby' an awful lot.
Cassandra's grand plan is to release Gotham City Penitentiary's top criminals, including The Joker, The Penguin, The Riddler, Catwoman, King Tut and Egghead. None of whom are played by the original performers ( 'Catwoman' seems to have reverted to her Julie Newmar persona. She'd been Eartha Kitt for most of Season 3 ). The climactic fight between our heroes and their invisible opponents is as ingenious as it probably was cheap to make.
One bad note of continuity - 'I'll Be A Mummy's Uncle' ended with King Tut ( Victor Buono ) about to reveal Batman and Robin's secret identities, but regaining his memory before he could so so. Here he has reverted to Tut, but seems to have forgotten his previous adventure with the Dynamic Duo.
