Teaser: Batman and Jay Garrick stop Scarecrow and Scream Queen's Halloween plan.
Main Plot: Batman is summoned to 19th Century London by Jason Blood aka Etrigan, who has been accused of several murders. With help from Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, they set out to clear Jason's name, when they run afoul of the demon Astaroth and Jim Craddock, the man who would one day become Gentleman Ghost.
- Achilles' Heel: All demons are vulnerable to iron, and Etrigan feeds Astaroth an iron cane to stop him.
- Adaptational Wimp:
- As is so often the case, Watson is portrayed as a bumbling idiot of no help.
- The Great Detective himself, who in the original books was capable of handling himself in a brawl. Not so much here.
- Ambiguous Situation: It's unclear is Astaroth's "reward" for the soon-to-be Gentleman Ghost was intentionally meant to screw with him or giving him exactly what he asked for.
- Armor-Piercing Response: During their fight, Jim Craddock asks how Batman already knew his name. He doesn't like the answer.Batman: Because in my time, you're a ghost.
- Call-Forward: The episode reveals why Gentleman Ghost has been so insistent on burying Batman alive.
- Cassandra Truth: Etrigan tries warning Craddock that his deal with Astaroth will bite him in the rear, but Craddock refuses to listen.
- Clear My Name: Jason summoned Batman to the past to clear his name of being a serial killer.
- Cold Iron:
- The mob restrains Jason with iron chains, completely incapacitating him and interrupting his transformation. Craddock is later able to escape Etrigan's grasp by hitting him with his iron cane.
- Etrigan finishes off Astaroth by throwing Craddock's cane right down his throat.
- Create Your Own Villain: Batman's actions with Jim Craddock would eventually lead him to becoming the villain known as Gentleman Ghost, who swears vengeance against the Dark Knight for making him this way.
- Deal with the Devil: Jim Craddock asked Astaroth for immortality, and he was told his soul would never move on from the Earth. Batman and later Etrigan acknowledge that Craddock is a fool for not seeing how that would be twisted against him.Etrigan: You're a foolish man to take that deal. A demon's promise is never real.
- Early-Bird Cameo: Before getting pulled to the past, Batman was subduing Crazy Quilt.
- Exact Words: Jim Craddock desired immortality and helped the demon Astaroth to claim it. Astaroth gives him his desired reward, for his soul to never leave the Earth. It isn't until he dies does he realize that doesn't mean immortality.
- Family-Unfriendly Death: Astaroth gets a mouth full of iron, which causes him to turn to dust and crumble away on screen.
- Fantastic Racism:
- Jim Craddock refers to Etrigan as "demon filth" before attacking him.
- Meanwhile, Astaroth comes from the other direction, pouring scorn on Etrigan for being half-human.
- Halloween Episode: The teaser primarily, as Batman and the Jay Garrick Flash team up to stop Scarecrow and Scream Queen from using pumpkins to spread fear gas throughout a town. The rest of the episode doesn't take place on Halloween, though certainly offers plenty of supernatural action.
- Jack the Ripper: Lighter and Softer, of course, with Gentleman Jim Craddock operating in Whitechapel and stealing the souls of his victims for Astaroth. Courtesy of Etrigan, Batman even dons the costume from Gotham by Gaslight. All the victims are restored once Astaroth is killed.
- Mythology Gag: Etrigan gifts Batman his costume from the Elseworlds story Gotham by Gaslight.
- Never My Fault: Jim Craddock is arrested for his crimes, tried, and executed. As a result of the deal he himself made with Astaroth, he is stuck as a ghost for all eternity. He, of course, blames Batman for this development.
- Noodle Incident: Etrigan was responsible for trapping Astaroth in the first place.
- Sherlock Can Read: Batman claims he can recognise Sherlock at a glance because of the distinctive deer-stalker hat (and not because he's from the future, where Sherlock's a well know figure).
- Sherlock Scan: Well, naturally, if you're going to have the guy who named the trope. Sherlock takes a look at Batman, and manages to work out most of the details about him and his modus operandi.Sherlock: He's a hero. It's obvious by the bright blue and yellow in his costume. The mask means he must be well-known, perhaps a wealthy entrepreneur with ample free time. Square jaw indicates strong lineage, perhaps a doctor's son. And the bat motif, most surely inspired by some childhood trauma. "The Masked Bat", perhaps?Batman: Actually, it's Batman.
- A Sinister Clue: Inverted. Jason Blood is left-handed, so Sherlock Holmes knows he is innocent due to the crime scenes pointing to a right-handed culprit.
- Stealth Hi/Bye: Batman pulls this when confronted by angry citizens wondering why their pumpkins were stolen (they were secretly laced with fear gas).Jay Garrick: The only guy I know with a faster getaway than me.
- This Cannot Be!: Batman arrives just after another victim is drained, but then he sees the culprit's face.Batman: Craddock? The Gentleman Ghost?
- Villainous Vow: In the final scene, the Gentleman Ghost rises from the grave and promises to find Batman one day.
- Wham Shot: Batman immediately recognizes the true culprit in all this: the Gentleman Ghost when he was alive.
- You Fool!: Astaroth over Etrigan trying to attack him (a demon dwelling in Fire and Brimstone Hell) with a fire blast.
