"Two-Face: Part I" is the tenth episode of the first season of Batman: The Animated Series. It originally aired on on Fox Kids in the United States on September 25, 1992. It depicts the transformation of Gotham City District Attorney Harvey Dent into the villain Two-Face. The story is concluded in "Two-Face: Part II".
Plot[]
Harvey Dent has a nightmare in which he is confronted by a mysterious doppelgänger, flipping a coin over and over again. Just before Harvey wakes up, the figure assures Harvey: "It's time, Harvey... it's time!"
Dent awakens in his office, aroused by a fellow secretary from the D.A.'s office, and heads out to meet with Commissioner Gordon for a raid on a derelict building being held by Rupert Thorne's gang, heavily defended with stolen weapons and supplies from Gotham's Army depots. With Batman's help, the gang is captured.
In front of news reporters, Dent publicly congratulates the police and thanks Gordon. But just then, one of the captured crooks taunts Dent with the assurance that he and his cohorts will soon be free, and kicks a puddle of mud, splattering it on Dent's suit. To the others' horror, Dent goes berserk with fury and attacks the handcuffed man, and has to be pulled off him. A second later, Dent inexplicably reverts to his amiable, courteous self, with seemingly with no memory of the fit of rage.
Meanwhile, Thorne is gritting his teeth, as Dent's actions have crippled his interests in Gotham. He commands his moll Candace, to find something dirty about Dent's past, despite his apparently spotless record.
A short time later, Dent has another violent outburst in public when he is told that Thorne's men have been released for lack of evidence (obviously thanks to bribes paid by Thorne himself). Bruce Wayne is nearby and tries to calm him, but Dent shouts him away and is only calmed by the intervention of his fiancé, Grace. Concerned, Bruce advises him to seek psychiatric help. Dent is reluctant to appear vulnerable during his reelection campaign but agrees.
Under hypnosis with Dr. Nora Crest, while Candice eavesdrops, an alternate personality dubbed "Big Bad Harv" surfaces, who begins flipping a coin over and over again, and calls Dent "a wimp." Crest tries to reason with the violent personality, but it refuses to let "Mr. Goody-good" take over. After Dr. Crest is nearly thrown from the window, she snaps her fingers; Dent resurfaces, and shakily agrees to the continued (but secret) therapy sessions during the reelection campaign.
Later, Dent is giving a speech for his campaign, but afterward receives a call from Thorne, who summons him to a meeting, or else his "secret" will be exposed. Noticing Dent's strange behavior, Bruce changes into Batman and follows him.
At an abandoned chemical plant, Thorne and his gang confront Dent, having found records from his childhood that show that after he fought back against a bully, who was later hospitalized (for appendicitis, in reality), Dent repressed his anger so completely that it has built up over the years until it has become a whole other personality.
Thorne threatens to expose Dent unless he complies with Thorne's agenda. Oddly calm, Dent smiles and says: "You're talking to the wrong Harvey." Now it is Big Bad Harv who rises and attacks Thorne and his accomplices, wiping out the gang with the reluctant aid of Batman. Thorne grabs the psychiatric file and runs out of the office through the plant, and Dent runs after him. One of Thorne's thugs opens fire with a gun, and Batman knocks his aim off. A stray bullet hits an electrical switchboard, and a live cable falls into a vat of chemicals beneath the catwalk where Dent has fallen face-down. The ensuing explosion tears through the catwalk and nearly kills Dent. Batman is horrified to see the man's scorched side.
Dent is rushed to a hospital, while Bruce is worried about the man's "mental scars." Thorne believes that Dent is "out of his hair." At the hospital, the doctor removes his bandages, confessing to Dent that there will be some scarring. But when the bandages are gone, both the doctor and nurse back away in horror. Dent demands to see a mirror...
Grace walks down the hall to Harvey's room carrying flowers, then hears a horrible scream and sees Dent bolt from his room, clutching his face. He turns at the sound of her voice, and she sees one side of his body has been scarred by the chemicals, making him seem half-human, half-monster. She faints dead away. Dent, muttering a rueful farewell, disappears through the hospital's window.
Cast[]
- Kevin Conroy as Batman
- Bob Hastings as Commissioner Gordon
- Richard Moll as Two-Face
- Murphy Cross as Grace
- Mari Devon as Summer Gleeson
- Bob DoQui as Doctor
- Matt Landers as Frankie
- Diane Michelle as Candace
- Linda Gary as Dr. Nora Crest
- Marc Tubert as Carlos
- John Vernon as Rupert Thorne
See also[]
External links[]
- "Two-Face: Part I" at Batman: The Animated Series Wiki
- "Two-Face: Part I" at DC Animated Universe Wiki
- "Two-Face: Part I" at IMDb