Line #21 Recap/BatmanBeyondS1E7Meltdown


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/49ece6df34826c0e8e7c703a017dd1b3_batman_beyond_fries.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:Freeze returns for one more round.]]
3
4	After burning through yet another artificial skin, Powers starts to become impatient over his doctors' inability to find a cure for his condition. One of them, Dr. Stephanie Lake, suggests an experimental procedure to transfer his mind into a new, healthy cloned body. To test the procedure, they perform it on Mr. Freeze, whose head had been stored in Wayne-Powers for over 40 years. With a new body and a second chance at life, Victor Fries promises to right the wrongs and suffering he caused to his victims. Terry becomes hopeful that Fries has truly changed for the better, but Bruce isn't convinced.
5	----
6	!!Tropes:
7	* AlasPoorVillain: Both Terry and Bruce mourn Freeze's death in the end. Bruce even changes his mind about Freeze, at least to the extent of believing that he sincerely ''tried'' to reform before being pushed too far.
8	* AssholeVictim: Given the fact that prior to her murder at Freeze's hands, she treated him less as a human being and more as a guinea pig and eventually decided to kill and dissect him for further study with absolutely zero remorse -- turning up the temperature in test chamber Fries was locked in and watching with [[LackOfEmpathy complete and total indifference]] as he was slowly dying and fruitlessly begging her for mercy -- it's ''really'' hard to feel sorry for Dr. Stephanie Lake even when she's killed.
9	* TheAtoner: Fries genuinely seemed to want to make things better this time around. After being targeted in an assassination attempt by a man that he once wronged, he refuses to press charges against the man and instead decides to start a charity named in his late wife's honor to repay the victims that he had harmed in the past. Unfortunately, his new body soon begins breaking down and reverting back to its old state...
10	* AndIMustScream: Fries is now reduced to a mere head this whole time until he was given an offer by Dr. Lake.
11	* BackportedDevelopment: When Mr. Freeze was cloned, he was depicted as still being bald despite having hair when we see a pre-Freeze Victor Fries in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries''--though considering the clone later redeveloped the condition, maybe it was a sign of CloneDegeneration.
12	* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: Terry shows Freeze kindness earlier; as such even when Freeze goes on a rampage he gives Terry the chance to leave.
13	* {{Bookends}}: The phrase, "Remember, there might be some momentary discomfort."
14	* BothSidesHaveAPoint: In the end, when Terry admits Bruce was right about Mr. Freeze, Bruce points out they were ''both'' right (that vengeance may be in Mr. Freeze's nature, but there's also still good in him).
15	* ButForMeItWasTuesday: When Victor Fries is saved by Batman from an assassination attempt, the assassin turns out to be one of the many people Victor hurt years ago as Mr. Freeze, and Victor has no idea who the man is. Then again, the man is around 50 years older than he was when Victor was Mr. Freeze, so it's doubtful Victor would be able to recognize the man even if the list of people whose lives he ruined was smaller. But at any rate, Victor's list of lives he's ruined is apparently large enough for him to immediately believe this story despite not remembering him or having any proof, and he simply lets the man go, [[TheAtoner feeling he's caused the old, miserable man enough pain in the past without making him spend the rest of his life in jail for an act of understandable rage]].
16	* ChronicVillainy: Despite his best efforts to change, Fries's deteriorating condition and betrayal by his doctors causes him to revert back to his old ways.
17	-->'''Terry:''' (''sadly'') Oh, Fries...
18	* CloneDegeneration: Mr. Freeze's clone body was still bald despite having hair before his accident in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries''. Considering that his condition later redeveloped, it might've been an early sign of the clone body degenerating.
19	* CurbStompCushion: Despite being largely overwhelmed by Blight, Freeze is able to get the last word in, and Blast Blight away into a nearby lake, effectively incapacitating him.
20	* DarkerAndEdgier: This episode featured Freeze's ''first onscreen murder'', albeit with a ScreamDiscretionShot.
21	* DeathSeeker: Freeze, after reverting back to his old form and being betrayed by Dr. Lake, sets out to destroy the entire facility that he had been cloned in, [[TakingYouWithMe taking everyone else out with him]]. Before the experiment, he mentions as a head that despite being "immortal", he actually thought about dying.
22	* DespairEventHorizon: Apparently, after he regressed to his previous condition and his hopes for normal life have been dashed, Freeze saw no more reasons to live beyond taking vengeance on people who tried to kill and dissect him (and murder everyone who simply got in the way while he's at it). When Batman tries to get him to escape after his suit was crippled and the entire facility is about to collapse on him, Freeze has only this to say:
23	-->'''Freeze:''' Believe me... you're the only one who cares.
24	* DoubleMeaningTitle: The episode title can refer to either the return [[BackForTheDead and death]] of Mr. Freeze or the debut of [[AtomicSuperpower Blight]].
25	* DownerEnding: Mr. Freeze's story gets a very bitter end -- his lover betrays him so he can be turned into a lab rat, he's driven back to murderous revenge, and finally he allows himself to be killed by falling ice, claiming that Terry is the only one who cares.
26	* EtTuBrute: Freeze is betrayed by Dr. Lake, who, without warning, turns up the heat in his chamber to hasten his body's breakdown, so she can perform a biopsy on his remains.
27	* {{Foreshadowing}}: The artificial skin Powers is using to conceal his condition is becoming less durable and he's burning through them at a faster rate. This will come to a head during "Ascension".
28	* FreezeRay: In place of his gun, Mr. Freeze's new suit is equipped with gauntlets that are capable of firing icy blasts.
29	* GoryDiscretionShot: In addition to her ScreamDiscretionShot, we don't see Dr. Lake's body after she's killed by Freeze.
30	* HeelFaceDoorSlam: Freeze tries to reform and [[TheAtoner make up for the harm he did]], but goes back to his old vengeful ways when Dr. Lake turns on him.
31	* InhumanEyeConcealers: Derek Powers has to put sunglasses on and cut a meeting short due to the artificial skin over and around his eyes starting to crack.
32	* IronicEcho: While his mind is being transferred to his new body, Dr. Lake tells Fries, "Remember, there might be some momentary discomfort." He later uses the same line on her [[PreMortemOneLiner before he kills her]].
33	* LaserGuidedKarma: Dr. Stephanie Lake is killed by the very same man she created and later tried to murder and experiment on herself.
34	* LimbSensationFascination: Mister Freeze has his consciousness transferred from a [[BrainInAJar Head In A Jar]] to a cloned body. After the completion of this process, he walks to the window (looking out on Gotham in winter), puts his hand to it, and says "cold" with a look of absolute joy on his face. It's been decades since he was able to feel anything, especially that.
35	* KilledOffForReal: The DCAU Mr. Freeze.
36	* MeleeATrois: The climax is a three-way battle between Batman, Mr. Freeze, and Blight.
37	* MuggingTheMonster: During his rampage, Fries attempts to freeze Derek Powers in the belief that he's just a CorruptCorporateExecutive nuisance, not a radioactive superpowered freak not unlike Fries himself. It takes Derek less than a minute to melt through the ice and confront Fries in his new "Blight" persona.
38	* MustMakeAmends: Fries builds a foundation named after his late wife to help the families of his own victims as a supervillain.
39	* NiceJobFixingItVillain: Blight attacking Freeze in the climax. Apart from indirectly saving Terry, the damage Blight causes to Freeze's suit (and the ensuing damage to the building for the remainder of the fight) derails Victor's goal of destroying the entire Wayne-Powers compound. In the end, only one building is destroyed as planned (with Freeze himself as the sole casualty).
40	* PetTheDog:
41	** In his first public appearance in his new body, Fries saves a little girl's cat from being hit by a train.
42	--->'''Terry:''' [[SarcasmMode Yeah, there's a real menace to society]].
43	** When the building is collapsing at the end, rather than attempt a TakingYouWithMe on Batman, Fries creates an ice wall to force Terry to leave him behind rather than waste time trying to save him.
44	* {{Pun}}: When Powers and Lake are surprised by Freeze's new suit, Freeze says "It's something I've kept in cold storage."
45	* RedemptionEqualsDeath: Mr. Freeze.
46	* ReformedButRejected: Bruce refuses to believe that Fries had truly reformed and completely rejected his old ways, even though Terry believes it.
47	-->'''Terry:''' Just because he ran off doesn't mean he'll come back.\
48	'''Bruce:''' He'll be back. Count on it. He lives for revenge.\
49	'''Terry:''' Not the Victor Fries I met.\
50	'''Bruce:''' What you met was a ghost.
51	* ScreamDiscretionShot: Dr. Stephanie Lake's death. We only hear her scream in horrified pain as Mr. Freeze shoots her with his freeze gun.
52	* SpannerInTheWorks: Freeze of course had no way of knowing about Powers' irradiation when he froze him. The now-freed and pissed-off Blight gunning for him completely derails Freeze's endgame (resulting in ironically saving the entire compound and ensuring only Freeze himself dies as planned).
53	* SuddenlyShouting: Powers after burning through yet another artificial skin.
54	-->'''Powers''': It's useless. It barely lasts a day anymore. ''What do I PAY YOU PEOPLE FOR?!''
55	* SurroundedByIdiots: Powers says this about his employees when they give him a warm blanket "in case (he's) cold" after escaping from Batman and Freeze while in full [[WalkingWasteland Blight-mode]].
56	* TaughtByExperience: Subtly implied with Mr. Freeze's final suit -- specifically the Freeze Gun(s) now being built directly into the gauntlets rather than being wielded as separate firearms. As SF Debris [[https://www.sfdebris.com/videos/animation/bbs1e05.php points out]], this seems like a pretty wise precaution given how many times Freeze has clashed with Batman, i.e. a guy who ''loves'' to knock firearms out of their wielders' hands with his Batarangs. It's a bit difficult to do that if the guns are now directly integrated into the suit, innit it?
57	* ThoseTwoGuys: Stephanie's fellow scientists, who Powers shows signs of irritation towards by the end of the episode.
58	* TitleDrop:
59	-->'''Batman:''' (''referring to Blight'') This guy--he's like a walking meltdown!
60	* ATwinkleInTheSky: Mr. Freeze sends Blight flying out of the building and through the air, landing in a distant park.
61	* {{Understatement}}: When Blight joins the battle, Bruce radios Terry to warn him "There's something hot in there."
62	* VillainsDyingGrace: As the building collapses around them, Freeze throws up an ice barrier to stop Batman from risking his own life to save him.
63	* VillainousRescue: Mr. Freeze saves Terry from Blight, although it was likely more motivated out of anger at Blight rather than for Terry's well-being. Though he later stops Terry from risking his own life to save him.
64	* WalkingWasteland: Blight.
65	-->'''Blight:''' [[BadassBoast And behold, I shall be a blight upon the land,]] [[PreAsskickingOneLiner and everything I touch...shall wither and die!]]
66	* WeatherDissonance: The weather goes through some major shifts over a few days, from warm to cold enough for Freeze to feel comfortable after his new body begins reverting and back to warm enough for Powers to assume that Freeze must be dead if he hasn't found a refrigerated hiding place.
67	* WhoWantsToLiveForever: Freeze in his first scene. Since he's been nothing but a disembodied head for decades, it's not surprising.
68	-->'''Freeze:''' Take a good look, Doctor. I've been like this for nearly fifty years and I haven't aged one day. I have become what many men have dreamed of--an immortal. And yet, there hasn't been a day, an hour, a minute, I haven't thought about death. It obsesses me. Even now.
69	* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: Freeze, yet again. The poor guy just can't seem to catch a break.
70	* TheWorfEffect: Freeze appears in a new, bulletproof PoweredArmor, and displays a more powerful Freeze Gun built into the suit. However, he gets [[CurbStompBattle one-shotted]] by [[WalkingWasteland Blight]] in order to demonstrate the strength of the new BigBad.
71	* YouKilledMyFather: Fries gets attacked by an assassin whose family had been murdered by Freeze years ago.
72	* YouWontFeelAThing:
73	-->'''Mr. Freeze:''' There might be some momentary discomfort.

Context Recap / BatmanBeyondS1E7Meltdown