The Riddler's False Notion (2) - S1-E32
Continuity mistake: When the Riddler has a blindfolded Robin out on the window ledge, the position of Robin's blindfold changes between shots, from covering his nose entirely to being just above it.
Not Yet, He Ain't (2) - S1-E22
Factual error: When the Penguin steals the Batmobile, Batman spies on him from a tiny camera he says is hidden behind the car's fuel gauge. But the picture he and Robin are viewing has been shot from several feet away from the car, not from inside it. (00:11:15)
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)
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)
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)
Other mistake: After King Tut's men deliver the statue, it's referred to as a Sphinx. Even Batman says, "Rather good imitation of the 4th Dynasty's Sphinx at Giza." Problem is, the Great Sphinx of Giza is a reclining lion with a human head. The statue in Gotham's park is a ram's head atop a seated human body, resembling Egyptian God Khnum, and looks nothing like the Egyptian Sphinx. Bruce Wayne is a member of Gotham City Museum's Board of Trustees, which recently opened the new exhibit of Egyptian antiquities. (00:10:35)
Continuity mistake: While Bruce Wayne is lying on a gurney at the back of the ambulance, in the wide shot of Tut's henchmen driving along on the street, there's a rearview mirror on the windshield and a single beacon light on the roof, but in the closeups the rearview mirror is gone and there are two beacon lights on the roof. (00:21:30)
Smack in the Middle (2) - S1-E2
Revealing mistake: While Riddler is with the unconscious guests at the Moldavian exhibit, in the basement of the Moldavian Pavilion the Mole Hill gang blow up the ceiling to create an entry to the exhibit, on the floor above. They lean two tall ladders at the side of the hole and climb up. When Riddler makes for an escape Batman follows him down below, and now we can see long metal brackets bolting the ladders to the floor for safety. (00:20:20 - 00:22:00)
Smack in the Middle (2) - S1-E2
Continuity mistake: When Fake Robin takes Riddler's wheel to drive, the shot cuts to the Batmobile. It appears that Robin is a passenger, but he is supposed to be Riddler's prison service.
Smack in the Middle (2) - S1-E2
Factual error: The mammoth is filled, according to the Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldavia, with "used postage stamps from ancient kingdom of Moldavia." Postage stamps are a 19th century invention, not something an 'ancient kingdom' would have used. (00:17:20)
The Penguin's a Jinx (2) - S1-E4
Revealing mistake: When the Penguin orders his hook to be fired, it barely moves, then suddenly takes off. If you look closely at the hook before it moves, the connecting wire used to pull it out of frame can be seen. (00:13:30)
Smack in the Middle (2) - S1-E2
Continuity mistake: During the fight, the breather Batman has disappears, but suddenly returns afterwards. (00:21:50)
Smack in the Middle (2) - S1-E2
Revealing mistake: After Batman tosses his Batarang up to get to Molly, the lifting wire attached to him is plainly visible.
He Meets His Match, the Grisly Ghoul (2) - S1-E16
Factual error: Dick Grayson's mini-camera, which is sitting on the bar, takes several shots of the villains from impossible angles several feet away from its location. And though he conspicuously places the camera in plain view, the crooks never notice it. (00:10:40)
He Meets His Match, the Grisly Ghoul (2) - S1-E16
Continuity mistake: When Batman surprises Joker and his henchmen in the gym, his shadow is on the wall behind them, his cape spread out and forming a menacing bat shape. But when the shot cuts to him and Robin, Batman's cape isn't spread. He's standing with his arms down. (00:20:40)
The Riddler's False Notion (2) - S1-E32
Revealing mistake: The film can Riddler hands Van Jones supposedly contains his silent movie. But the hollow thump, obvious light weight and lack of the distinctive rattle a film reel would make, all reveal that the can is actually empty. (00:19:00)
The Purr-Fect Crime (1) - S1-E19
Continuity mistake: Catwoman dangles an unconscious Robin face-down on a tilting board over her tiger pit. He comes to, pulls his arms free and clutches the board's edges. In the next, closer shot, he's unconscious again, wakes up and repeats the grabbing-the-board motion. (00:07:30)
The Purr-Fect Crime (1) - S1-E19
Continuity mistake: Catwoman curls up with a large red book. In the master shot, she's holding and reading the lefthand pages. In the close-up insert, her hands are suddenly grasping the righthand pages instead. Cut back to master shot, and she's again holding the left side of the book. (00:08:30)
The Penguin's a Jinx (2) - S1-E4
Revealing mistake: While listening to Batman and Robin plan, the camera is close enough to the Penguin to see the prosthetic nose is differently colored. (00:07:00)
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 ★