Jervis Tetch a.k.a Mad Hatter is a peculiar Batman villain. Not peculiar because he’s obsessed with Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, but because he’s a C-List villain who, when used properly, can be extremely creepy. The problem is, he isn’t used too often by writers.
The Mad Hatter was very well written and used in the Emmy Award winning show Batman: The Animated Series. He was even the main protagonist in one of the series’ best episodes Perchance to Dream. This version of the character was a technical and electronic genius, who created devices to control people’s minds, usually powered by his hat.
He also has well written appearances in Batman: Arkham City and Batman: Arkham Origins, where he is written with more adult tones, causing the character to come off as creepy. Still using technology to control minds, this version also uses different chemicals and hallucinations as well, that he hides in his tea.
First appearing in Batman #89 in 1948, Tetch has only had one live-action appearance in Batman media, in the 1960’s TV show starring Adam West. That is, until now. Being portrayed by Benedict Samuel, the Mad Hatter is being used as a primary focus during the first half of Season 3 of Gotham. Out for revenge against James Gordon, Tetch will torment the GCPD Detective with hallucinogens in next week’s episode, much like he does in the Arkham games.
Check out the promo for the next episode of Gotham, airing on Halloween.
