20 Things You Somehow Missed In Batman Returns
3. This Wasn’t The Penguin’s First Run At Being The Mayor
The charm, glitz and glamour (when it happens) of Shreck’s plan for The Penguin to run for the position of Gotham’s new mayor is a brilliant social satire, caused by a period of planned chaos which Shreck himself characterizes as being as being akin to real-world events such as the Reichstag Fire and the Gulf of Tonkin standoff.
However, the plot of The Penguin vying for the position of Mayor of Gotham City was not an invention of Batman Returns; it was an idea drawn by the film’s screenwriter, Daniel Waters from two episodes of the Adam West TV series entitled Hizzoner The Penguin and Dizzoner The Penguin.
Both involved The Penguin’s rise and fall as a mayoral candidate, his efforts to destroy Batman’s reputation, and his hijacking of the Batmobile (although these elements were achieved in different ways).
Even though the Adam West version retains its camp fun, we prefer the Batman Returns spin on the tale.