One of the great things about Batman, even going back to the glory days of the Golden Age, is that he was always at home with the surreal, whether it was clashing with foes like Tweedledum & Tweedledee or the Mad Hatter or battling in settings that would have made Dali proud. While they were often straightforward detective stories, they took place in the most extraordinary of places.

As the days of the "Old Look" dwindled, the Dynamic Duo made one last foray into Wonderland...


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"The Mystery of Madcap Island"

Writer: Bill Finger

Artists: Sheldon Moldoff & Charles Paris


The story opens as our heroes close in on a shop owner dealing with stolen goods. After some threatening words from Batman, he gives up his underworld contact, a member of the notorious Green Hood Gang named Ed Kiley. The Dynamic Duo raid his apartment [apparently even in 1963, Batman still had a bit of the vigilante in him!], but the gangster has been tipped off and the place is cleaned out. However the always alert Caped Crusader notices that he left behind account ledgers in his open safe in his hurry to leave. He examines the books, and seeing that they're numbered 1, 2, and 4, concludes that the missing book is the one with the incriminating evidence.

In digging further in the safe however, he also turns up a slip of paper with a strange drawing that looks like Noah's Ark with an X marked along side it. Following a hunch, he goes to a nearby waterfront dock and confirms that the crook has just rented a boat. "Then my hunch was right... he's gone to Madcap Island!" says Batman.

It's explained that the island in question is a place where rich, eccentric people have built crazy summer homes, one of which, naturally, is modeled on Noah's Ark, which led to Batman's hunch. On arriving at the island, our two heroes are confronted with a bizarre scene:

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[One of the things I love about this story is I found myself wishing I could spend some time on Madcap Island! If it doesn't exist in the real world, why haven't some rich guys started building it for crying out loud!]

Batman concludes that Kiley himself isn't smart enough to run a sophisticated operation like the Green Hood Gang, so he must be here to give the incriminating ledger to his boss, who must be on the island fronting as a respectable businessman. Suddenly, the duo spot Kiley ducking into a nearby house, but as they close in...
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Batman explains that they're chasing a criminal, so Benson pitches in and rounds up some nearby residents to spread the word to look out for Kiley. After they disperse, our heroes are treated to another strange sight:

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[I love the way that Batman's cape forms a nice patio off the back... these guys thought of everything!]

Later, the Dynamic Duo continue their search in another part of the island when they're menaced by someone wielding a giant water pistol mounted on a fire engine. Unfortunately, they can't identify him as he's wearing a mask over his face, but he continues to drive them back toward a cliff:

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Just as they reach the top of the cliff, however, they spot the unknown assailant leaving the scene in Benson's binocular-car! When they track down the car, they also spot Benson, who tells them that the car was stolen. Batman wonders whether that's the truth... after all, it was Benson's car who also conveniently blocked them from pursuing Kiley earlier. But before he can interrogate Benson, a gun shot rings out from Bart's Soda Shop, another island attraction in the shape of a soda fountain.

The Caped Crusaders, accompanied by Benson, quickly arrive on the scene. The owner (Bart, naturally) tells them that Kiley was hiding out in his store:

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Batman & Robin comb the area around the shop, but find no trace of Kiley. Later, as they pass near the town hall, Batman observes that the building's clock is sounding the hour too early. As they investigate, they spot Kiley's lifeless body draped over the clock's cuckoo mechanism! Apparently, the killler didn't reckon that this would mess up the tolling of the clock, and he's still there as the Dynamic Duo arrive on the scene. He attempts to flee to a nearby billard hall:

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After delaying Batman with the billiard ball, the killer escapes, using the pool cue as a pole vault to leap to a nearby sand dune! Meanwhile, Batman returns to the clock tower to have a closer look at the victim:

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"What I need now is a dime, some nail polish, and a little talk with the town gossip" says Batman mysteriously.

Later that night, a shadowy figure enters a house, and in the upstairs study, is revealed to be none other than Bart, the soda shop owner. It turns out that when he spotted Kiley in his store, they struggled and Kiley's shot missed him. Bart knocked him out and examined the ledger he was carrying. Seeing the gang leader's name in it, he lied to Batman and snuck into the head crook's house, who is now revealed to be none other than Jason Reid, the Batman fan!:

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After subduing the crooks, Batman tells Bart that he knew he was lying because he mentioned light glittering on Kiley's revolver, which on close inspection was a commando gun painted dull black to avoid glitter. Suddenly, Reid (who was playing possum) slips out a nearby window, leading to a final confrontation on top of the Bat-house:

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By the time Batman regains his footing, Reid has gotten to his plane, which in keeping with the rest of the objects on this loony island is shaped like a cup and saucer (yes, it's quite literally a flying saucer!). Batman uses one of the lounge chairs on the patio to launch himself in pursuit:

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Later, Batman explains that he showed a special dime to the town gossip, saying that it had been dropped by the killer. When word got round to Bart, he panicked and went to the gang boss. Reid doesn't understand the significance of the dime, to which the Caped Crusader explains:

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...and there you go! Your prototypical Batman tale containing ordinary events in extraordinary settings... but what made this one a bit special (aside from the inspired structures on the island) is that this was one of the last stories to go down this road.

A special thanks to Yossarian for mentioning this one - I thought it was worthy of a closer look!


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"As for contentment, that is a myth.  Give a man everything he wishes and he will be unhappy, because he didn't wish for more; give him more, and he will die of his worries.  Only a turtle, asleep on a sunny log, knows contentment!"
-Merlin to Prince Valiant

            Hal Foster 3-7-43