'Batwoman' season 1 could feature Mad Hatter as episode titles allude to 'Alice in Wonderland' themes
'Batwoman' starring Ruby Rose in the titular role is all set to premiere October 6, Sunday, and the titles of the first four episodes of the show have been revealed. The Pilot episode of The CW show was aired at San Diego Comic-Con 2019 and is set to be aired at Paleyfest 2019 in September. With just over a month left for the show's premiere, we wonder if the first season will emulate the 'Alice in Wonderland' theme, considering Kate Kane will be getting ready for a fight against Gotham's villain Alice (Rachel Skarsten).
This is in keeping with the titles of the episodes revealed as 'Pilot', 'The Rabbit Hole', 'Down, Down, Down', and 'Who Are You?' Fans have known for a while that Batwoman will face off against Alice, especially after a promo video titled 'Shattered' was released in August.
In the comics, the animosity between Batwoman and Alice is deep-seated and the connection between them is a lot more complicated than what meets the eye. For instance, Alice considers Batwoman her number one enemy considering Batwoman supports the cause that Alice greatly objects to.
This growing animosity between Batwoman and Alice leads to Alice kidnapping Batwoman's father in the comics, but in the TV series, the premiere episode featured Kate's ex-girlfriend Sophie Moore (Megan Tandy) getting kidnapped. Also, in the show, Alice isn't against Batwoman but she is against the Crows, a security service Kate's father Jacob Kane owns to provide security to the city of Gotham in the absence of Batman.
It has been three years since Batman has disappeared and in his absence, vigilantes such as Alice have taken it upon themselves to overthrow the Crows in order to gain freedom for herself and others like her. How Kate, who has been in a survival camp for years, will try and save her ex-girlfriend and in the process learn something herself is how the show sets up the origin story.
With Alice's introduction, another question we have is if the show will feature the Mad Hatter. The Mad Hatter aka Jervis Tetch is quite similar to Alice in that he is obsessed with Lewis Caroll's 'Alice in Wonderland' and has come to believe he is the Mad Hatter from the book.
A neuroscientist who completely embraces the illusion commits crimes that fit the theme of his favorite book with the help of his talent for mesmerism. He has only faced Batman in the comics, but looking at the titles of the upcoming episodes of 'Batwoman' it's very possible the Mad Hatter would make an appearance in the show.
In the comics, Alice vehemently denies any connection to Mad Hatter (Jervis Tetch) or the Wonderland gang. Will that change in the show? In an interview with TV Insider, creator Caroline Dries said, "After having been away [at survival] training for five years to become a member of the Crows, Kate comes home early to help save Sophie."
She also added that the show is heavily inspired by writer Greg Rucka's 2010 story 'Elegy'. She added, "That was the first time I ever read a comic where I really got a great sense of [her] backstory."
The story arc of 'Elegy' features Batwoman making an appearance after Batman's death in the present day DC universe after Final Crisis. There, Alice is ready to bring harm to Gotham by releasing a poisonous gas over Gotham City which Batwoman must stop.
What makes the plotline of the show furthermore interesting is the Crisis episode which will be featured as part of The CW show. The second episode of Arrowverse's 'Crisis on Infinite Earth' will be aired on 'Batwoman' December 10, which would be the 10th week after the 'Batwoman' premiere. How Batwoman's battle against Alice will be tied into the Crisis and whether Batman from the future, who is expected to be a part of the Crisis episodes, will be featured on 'Batwoman', is something we'll be eagerly waiting to see.
'Batwoman' premieres October 6 on The CW at 8 p.m. ET.