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"Dead...Till Proven Alive!": Rock fans worldwide are finding clues buried in Oliver Twists albums that the lead singer, Saul Cartwright, is dead and has been replaced by an impostor. Batman and Robin investigate the matter while the roc

Quote1 The day a case is too small for the Batman is the day I hang up my cowl! Quote2
Batman

Batman #222 is an issue of the series Batman (Volume 1) with a cover date of June, 1970. It was published on April 21, 1970.

Synopsis for "Dead...Till Proven Alive!"

Rock fans worldwide are finding clues buried in Oliver Twists albums that the lead singer, Saul Cartwright, is dead and has been replaced by an impostor. Batman and Robin investigate the matter while the rockers are guests at Wayne Manor and find criminal ties to one member.

During their investigations, the Dynamic Duo come across a couple of deadly traps and they realize that one of the members of the group has tried to kill them. Batman and Robin confront the rockers about this, Saul breaks down and confesses that he is not the impostor, but instead the rest of the band are. Some time ago, the three members of the Twists died in a terrible plane accident, leaving Saul as the only living member of the group. Instead of going into retirement, Saul hired three look-alikes to his former bandmates and after a couple of months of intense rehearsal, they started touring as the Twists and he started the rumor that he was dead, in order to attract all the attention away from the others. Batman and Robin noticed when the fake trio realized the fame and fortune their new roles provided, they decided to keep pretending, but now that Saul doesn't want to play along anymore, he is ready to reveal the truth to Batman and Robin. After this, Saul and the trio start a new band and they start rising to popularity as they did before.

Appearing in "Dead...Till Proven Alive!"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Chumley (Single appearance)
  • Pritchard (Single appearance)
  • Gilbey (Single appearance)

Other Characters:

Locations:

Vehicles:


Synopsis for "Case of No Consequence!"

After a long night of fighting crime, Batman is exhausted, but as he is ready to return home, he spots a mugger taking away something from a man. When Batman approaches, he learns that the victim was mute and could only speak in hand signs. The man tells Batman that the thief took away his camera, which is his only means of livelihood. Batman decidess to fulfill the mute photographer's request to retrieve his stolen camera and he starts a chase across the city.

Weakened by the second, Batman manages to find the thief in a bar, but during the fight, he manages to escape from Batman's grasp. Unable to run anymore, Batman takes a short cut through the sewer system and gets to where the thief is headed. Confronting the thug for a second time, Batman just lets his body drop on top of the thief, knocking his enemy to the ground and retrieving the camera. Unfortunately, the camera broke during the struggle and Batman has to use his gadgets to repair it before he gives it back to the mute man. As dawn breaks, Batman starts going on his way home, but the mute man asks Batman to pose for one last picture in gratitude for his service. While tired and beaten, Batman still manages to look good in the picture.

Appearing in "Case of No Consequence!"

Featured Characters:

Antagonists:

  • "Bleeker" Bill (Single appearance)

Locations:

Notes

  • This story is heavily based upon the urban legend called Paul is dead, which alleged that Paul McCartney of the English rock band The Beatles died in 1966 and was secretly replaced by a look-alike. This conspiracy theory reached its top popularity in 1969 and 1970, reason why it was printed in this issue. The musicians are drawn wearing outfits similar to the ones the musicians wear on the cover art of the album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. For copyright purposes, all the names in the story were changed and/or slightly altered. Following is a list of changes:
  • The letters page includes a missive from Mike W. Barr.



See Also


Links and References

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