"Beware the Gray Ghost" is the eighteenth episode of Batman: The Animated Series. It was directed by series regular Boyd Kirkland and was first aired on November 4, 1992. The episode features guest star Adam West, best known for his portrayal of Batman in the 1960s Batman television series. West plays an actor known for his role as the Gray Ghost, a character that resembles Batman antecedent The Shadow.
Plot
The episode opens with a flashback of a young Bruce Wayne watching The Gray Ghost, a black-and-white television show, and the episode cuts between the flashback and events in the present mirroring the show: a whirring sound is heard, a building is destroyed by an explosion, the Gray Ghost goes into action while Batman does the same in reality, and the police receive a ransom letter in both settings from the villainous "Mad Bomber".
In the present Batman makes the connection between the explosions and the television show but does not remember the full synopsis. To get information, he tracks down Simon Trent, who portrayed the Gray Ghost and is now unemployed due to typecasting, and short of money as Simon ducks his landlord. Simon's agent Frankie calls him up telling him that he didn't get the part he was auditioning for and that an opportunity will come for him at some point. After Simon trashes the glass containers containing his memorabilia out of frustration, he eventually sells his Gray Ghost costume and other memorabilia to toy shop owner and collector Ted Dymer to make ends meet, but the next morning finds that Batman has returned it and repaired the broken cases with a letter telling him to meet him in an alley. Unsure of handling the case, he gives Batman a copy of the show from his personal archive, as the production copies were destroyed long ago in a vault fire.
Learning the source of the whirring noises are remote-control toy cars armed with explosives, Bruce realizes the next target will be the Gotham Library. He defends the library and is overwhelmed but rescued by Trent, who is now wearing the Gray Ghost costume.
At the Batcave Batman reveals his own treasured collection of Gray Ghost memorabilia, citing his fictional exploits as a strong influence in his own career. However, they discover a captured toy car has Trent's fingerprints on it, implicating Trent in the bombing, but Trent realizes the Mad Bomber is Dymer, who is carrying out the attacks to raise money as he is obsessed with toys. Batman and Trent capture Dymer, and indirectly destroy his toy store and weaponry. Dymer then weeps over the loss of his toys.
Trent is recognized as a real-life hero, prompting a resurgence in the Gray Ghost's popularity. His complete archive of the Gray Ghost series is re-released, providing him with fresh income from distribution, massive increase in the value of his merchandise, and a revitalized career. Bruce visits him at the product launch and asks for an autograph, repeating what he said earlier: the Gray Ghost was, and still is, his childhood hero. Realizing that Bruce is his protégé Batman, Trent smiles. The scene then pans upward to show a poster cover of People Magazine with the Gray Ghost's return on the cover.
"Beware the Gray Ghost" has been very positively received by critics. The A.V. Club gave the episode an A and called it "smartly written and gorgeously animated".[1]
In Lego DC Batman: Family Matters, while Batman fights Two-Face in the movie theater, a film entitled "Beware the Gray Ghost" is shown on the screen.
Comics
The Gray Ghost made a return appearance in an early issue of Batman: The Gotham Adventures in the late 1990s, and turned up again years later in the most recent Batman Adventures series in 2004, in a story about the making of a Gray Ghost film.
The "Grey Ghost" appears in Batgirl vol. 2, #9 in 2011 during the New 52; he attempts to become the sidekick of Batgirl.[2] His attire is similar to Doctor Mid-Nite, but in shades of gray, and he also wields a shotgun. His real identity is Clancy Johnson. He was killed by a mercenary group called "Order of the Scythe".[3]
In 2015, Simon Trent is introduced to the mainstream comic book canon in Gotham Academy, where he is a famous director and playwright who becomes a teacher at Gotham Academy. He has a rivalry with Clayface.[4]
The Gray Ghost is a tribute to pulp/comic book hero The Shadow, in fact, his name is a reference to the titular villain from a 1936 issue of The Shadow's pulp magazine series.[5] The Gray Ghost poster featured in the episode is based on the cover of "Shadowed Millions", one of The Shadow's novels, illustrated by Jim Steranko. Batman meets an aged Shadow in issues #253 and #259 of the comic series.
In Batman Beyond, one of the original costumes for the Gray Ghost hangs in the Batcave. In the episode "Black Out", Bruce dons the Gray Ghost's hat and goggles to hide his identity from Inque, who had infiltrated the Batcave.
In the Justice League Unlimited episode "Epilogue", Terry McGinnis and his family are shown leaving a theatre playing "The Grey Ghost Strikes", indicating that the Grey Ghost franchise continued to thrive well after the release of the television series. Although the Phantasm does not follow through, this scene parallels the traditional origin of Batman, where Bruce Wayne's parents are murdered as he and they leave The Mark of Zorro. The Justice League Unlimited comic series also referenced the Gray Ghost in the Christmas-themed issue #28. Superman mentions that he had also watched the show as a child, and he was terrified by it but still loved it. The Gray Ghost toys play a key role during the issue.
A movie poster titled "The Ghost in Gray" starring Simon Trent appears in Oracle's clock tower in Batman: Arkham Knight with a depiction of The Gray Ghost.
