Shoot a Crooked Arrow (1) - S2-E1
Continuity mistake: When the Archer robs Wayne Manor's safe, an unconscious Dick Grayson shifts positions on the floor between takes. At first, he's lying with both hands folded over his chest. A few shots later, his left arm is stretched out over his head. (00:01:30)
The Joker Trumps an Ace (1) - S1-E25
Continuity mistake: The Joker reveals himself by throwing off his cape, which drops to the floor behind him. But when the shot cuts, the cape instantly disappears. (00:00:50)
The Puzzles Are Coming (1) - S2-E31
Continuity mistake: In the Batcave, Batman is holding Puzzler's pink balloon while he and Robin deduce its clues. The shot cuts to a wider angle when they turn to race to the Batmobile, and the balloon disappears. (00:12:50)
The Joker's Provokers (2) - S2-E22
Factual error: Tsk. After all his lectures to Robin about the importance of education, Batman should and would know better. On the chalk board, where he's written out Joker's message (dictated to him over the phone), the caped crusader mis-punctuates the phrase "a gargoyle's key" by leaving out the apostrophe. Definitely not a mistake that stickler-for-correctness Batman would make. (00:09:30)
The Impractical Joker (1) - S2-E21
Continuity mistake: Toward the end of the fight in the fur salon, one of Joker's henchmen shifts locations instantaneously. In the first shot, he's on the far side of Robin, falling against the wall. In the very next shot, he jumps to a spot between Robin and the camera, where he takes a swing at Batman. (00:17:00)
Continuity mistake: Batman folds up the Bat Shield and starts to tuck it into his belt, which it is much too large to fit into. In the very next shot, the shield has disappeared. (00:21:00)
Continuity mistake: Tied to a conveyor belt, Batman and Robin move past a stack of boxes stenciled with the factory's name. Cut to close-up, and they're now back to a position right next to the boxes. Back to master shot, and the boxes are once again several feet away - at least until the next close-up. (00:02:50)
Continuity mistake: As Tut prepares to re-animate the scarab beetles, his apothecary henchman stands to his immediate right, close enough to touch his shoulder. But when the shot cuts to a wider angle, the man is standing a foot away. (00:08:45)
Factual error: King Tut is said here to have been a 4th Dynasty ruler. Just as in the previous Tut episode, Egyptian history seems to have entirely escaped Batman's writers. They previously mis-identified Tut's namesake as a 14th Dynasty ruler, and this time around, guessed wrong again. In fact, Tutenkamen's brief rule was part of the 18th Dynasty. (00:03:30)
Tut's Case is Shut (2) - S2-E8
Continuity mistake: Tut's "pets," which are a little too obviously plastic, are crocodiles (with pointed snouts), and they're sitting on a grassy island in their water tank. The stock footage inserts, however, are of alligators (which have flat snouts) swimming in open water, with no island in sight. (00:02:30)
Other mistake: Riddler says that his "universal wax solvent" can eat through anything. Which begs the question, just what is that vat he cooks the stuff up in made of? We see the wax burn through solid steel vault doors. So it also ought to be eating through the vat, the floor and the bedrock, and sizzling its way down to the Earth's core. (00:07:00)
A Horse of Another Color (2) - S3-E5
Revealing mistake: Ethel Merman just can't keep a straight face amidst Batman's campy silliness. Here and in the previous episode, she can be seen cracking up in several of her scenes with Burgess Meredith. (00:05:00)
Enter Batgirl, Exit Penguin - S3-E1
Plot hole: When he abducts Alfred, believing him to be a minister, Penguin suffers a peculiar memory lapse. He's encountered Alfred twice before in previous episodes, even kidnapped him once before (knowing full well that he was Bruce Wayne's butler). Yet here, he fails to recognize Alfred at all. (00:12:30)
The Zodiac Crimes (1) - S2-E37
Continuity mistake: Joker's floating zap-wand is hanging in the air right in front of Chief O'Hara's face. But when the shot cuts, it's instantly ten feet away, and is now floating behind the Joker. (00:01:45)
The Penguin's Nest (1) - S2-E27
Revealing mistake: When Bruce, Dick and Aunt Harriet get into what's supposed to be an elevator, there's solid concrete under the sliding doors where there should be a break separating the lift car from the building's floor. It's visible again in Part 2, when Batman and Robin use the same elevator. (00:04:30)
The Clock King Gets Crowned (2) - S2-E12
Continuity mistake: Batman and Robin are trapped in the overturned hourglass. They're sitting upright when Batman suggests an escape plan. In the very next shot, they're sprawled face down on the sand. (00:04:15)
The Greatest Mother of Them All (1) - S2-E9
Revealing mistake: When Ma Parker activates her jet-propelled wheelchair, the much younger stunt woman's face is visible as the chair speeds down the hallway toward Batman and Robin. (00:09:15)
Not Yet, He Ain't (2) - S1-E22
Continuity mistake: Penguin loads all his loot into the stolen Batmobile - so much loot that the trunk can't close. Yet in the very next shot, as he drives away, the trunk has somehow shut itself. (00:17:30)
He Meets His Match, the Grisly Ghoul (2) - S1-E16
Continuity mistake: In the bistro, Batman thwarts Joker's booby-trapped juke box by whipping out his bat shield. Afterward, he places the shield on the floor behind him. In the next shot, as he turns around, the shield has disappeared. He and Robin race off without retrieving it. (00:15:00)
Nora Clavicle and the Ladies' Crime Club - S3-E19
Revealing mistake: Not only does Batman's solo flute play two music tracks at once, it also keeps on playing after he's taken it out of his mouth. (00:20:00)
Answer: It's wasn't unusual for multiple actors to play one character on this show. The villains on the TV Batman were played by guest stars, not regular cast members. George Sanders, Otto Preminger, and Eli Wallach played the part at various times. They may simply have only wanted to play the part once or twice, or they were later tied up with other projects, making it necessary to cast someone else. Other characters, like Catwoman, were also played by more than one actress.
raywest ★