Heart of Ice

[HarryCanyon]

Ah yes the episode that won an emmy for best episode and deserved so.

One of my favorite episodes ever and moved me, i remembered being saddened by how Mr. Freeze would do anything to save his wife when i was 11 as me and my bigger brother and mom dug the episode.

Who knew a campy villain like him can be  a tragic figure?

[Paul (ral)]

Brilliant episode. I took audio clips from it for a feature I was doing a good while back.

It struck me that it plays well as a radio show.

[Bobthegoon89]

I actually think "Two-Face Part 1" should have won an award. There's a lot of mature dramatic stuff going on in that story. It's unlike any animated cartoon I've ever watched.

I've always liked Mr Freeze and never exactly saw him as a "B-lister" villain. I guess because of his prescence in the tv show. It's amazing to think a character who made a gigantic impact in that cartoon only appeared twice in this story and "Deep Freeze" (a third appearance clocked up in the movie "Subzero"). New Batman Adventures doesn't count for me. I didn't like his redesigned look.

[HarryCanyon]

Yes the redesign grew on me but i learned to cope with it.

[gordonblu]

This is another ep that just clicked with me. I viewed it (as well as Two-Face 1 & 2 and Read My Lips) as the true successor to Burton's films. If you can find it, you should check out the special holiday issue of the old "Batman Adventures" comic book, the Mr. Freeze story contained therein is just as memorable and poignant with great artwork by Glen Murakami. My mom (who also adored the series) asked if she could read my comics and was in tear after reading that story.

[Azrael]

I actually think "Two-Face Part 1" should have won an award. There's a lot of mature dramatic stuff going on in that story. It's unlike any animated cartoon I've ever watched.

I've always liked Mr Freeze and never exactly saw him as a "B-lister" villain. I guess because of his prescence in the tv show. It's amazing to think a character who made a gigantic impact in that cartoon only appeared twice in this story and "Deep Freeze" (a third appearance clocked up in the movie "Subzero"). New Batman Adventures doesn't count for me. I didn't like his redesigned look.

Of all the poor re-designs seen in the TNBA (never liked how the women were much smaller, Ivy and Catwoman were just ridiculous), Freeze was IMO a relatively minor one, at least until it was revealed that he was just a head on a robotic body.

[gordonblu]

I would have been okay Freeze's redesign if they kept the original design for the face. The whole "he's just a head" thing turned me off too.
Actually of all the redesigns the two most successful IMO were Two-Face and the Scarecrow. Two-Face was only altered slightly, mainly to bulk him up and make him look even more physically imposing (on the DVD the creator's felt he benefited the most from the slightly new look), while "hanged corpse" Scarecrow gave him that important element he was somewhat lacking: He's frickin' terrifying!

[The Laughing Fish]

Mark Hamill on Ferris Boyle, the man who inadvertently created Mr Freeze:

FUN FACT: This was my very first role on the series, long BEFORE they cast me as that demented clown.
#TrueStory

https://twitter.com/HamillHimself/status/1284600757358977024

It's a testament to Hamill's skill as a voice actor that I every time I hear him speak as Boyle, it doesn't remind me of the Joker.

Without a doubt, Boyle is true villain of this episode. It may not justify Mr Freeze's quest for vengeance when it risked putting innocent bystanders in harm's way, but the idea of Boyle getting awarded as Humanitarian of the Year is ironic and totally unjust. It would've made anyone else in Freeze's position insane too.

The corrupt businessman who had a hand in creating a supervillain is a consistent stock character trope in Batman media: Ferris Boyle/Mr Freeze and Roland Daggett/Clayface in BTAS, Max Shreck/Catwoman in BR, and Simon Stagg/Metamorpho in JL, Beware the Batman and the comics (although to be fair, Metamorpho isn't exactly a villain, but he was initially at odds with the Justice League and Batman in those two cartoons). Judging by Boyle's greed and cruel disregard for Nora and Victor's lives, there's no doubt he would've attempted something as equally horrendous to satisfy his own political and business ambitions, as Shreck and Daggett had attempted.

[thecolorsblend]

Of all the poor re-designs seen in the TNBA (never liked how the women were much smaller, Ivy and Catwoman were just ridiculous), Freeze was IMO a relatively minor one, at least until it was revealed that he was just a head on a robotic body.

Awwww, I like the redrawn Harley Quinn.

Without a doubt, Boyle is true villain of this episode. It may not justify Mr Freeze's quest for vengeance when it risked putting innocent bystanders in harm's way, but the idea of Boyle getting awarded as Humanitarian of the Year is ironic and totally unjust. It would've made anyone else in Freeze's position insane too.

The corrupt businessman who had a hand in creating a supervillain is a consistent stock character trope in Batman media: Ferris Boyle/Mr Freeze and Roland Daggett/Clayface in BTAS, Max Shreck/Catwoman in BR, and Simon Stagg/Metamorpho in JL, Beware the Batman and the comics (although to be fair, Metamorpho isn't exactly a villain, but he was initially at odds with the Justice League and Batman in those two cartoons). Judging by Boyle's greed and cruel disregard for Nora and Victor's lives, there's no doubt he would've attempted something as equally horrendous to satisfy his own political and business ambitions, as Shreck and Daggett had attempted.

One thing that works for me about BTAS is how villains weren't the Legion Of Doom. They weren't BFF's just because they both opposed Batman. In many cases, they had grudges and rivalries against each other. There are many episodes where Batman isn't so much a crimefighter as a referee.

[The Joker]

Of all the poor re-designs seen in the TNBA (never liked how the women were much smaller, Ivy and Catwoman were just ridiculous), Freeze was IMO a relatively minor one, at least until it was revealed that he was just a head on a robotic body.

I tend to think it worked in terms of the animated canon.

The idea that Freeze lost any semblance of a normal life, his wife, and then his own very body really hammers home the sense of tragedy when it comes to the character in the DCAU.

In terms of an overall assessment, it's kinda amusing to think about just how influential media outside of the comic book source material has had on Mr. Freeze in terms of lasting impact. Whether it be going from Mr. Zero to Mr. Freeze for the `66 Adam West Batman series, to a more tragic backstory with TAS Heart of Ice episode, and of course being played by Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1997. I have the Batman Arkham: Mr. Freeze tpb, and can see why he was thought of as a gimmicky villain prior to TAS, but its pretty clear media outside the comics has been much more influential with Mr. Freeze than anything of note from the comics themselves.