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"Rats" is the twenty-second episode of Batman Beyond. It depicts a rough patch in the relationship of Dana and Terry that leaves Dana in a rather dangerous situation. Fed up with his constant absences, Dana leaves Terry, only to be intrigued by a message pledging devotion to her. She soon finds herself kidnapped by a disfigured boy whose short temper could easily be the death of her. Terry soon finds out about her disappearance and tries to find her.

Plot

An ominous newscast speaks of Gotham's "secret shame:" giant man-eating rats. These rats are blamed for several disappearances, which Chelsea seems to believe in, "Remember that girl Sally, who disappeared last month? Maybe giant rats got her!" Dana however is more concerned with the fact that Terry has stood her up again. Terry arrives and tries to patch things up but she refuses to listen and leaves. When she reaches her car, she finds a white rose and a note saying, "I'll be there for you". Assuming the rose came from Terry, Dana changes her mind.

Later that night, Dana calls up Terry and makes a date with him to meet at Rhino's Chili, promising to wear the white dress he likes. She tells her father about the date, but he expresses concern, as he knows of Terry's past. Outside, a shadowy figure looks inside, but runs off when it's noticed.

Meanwhile, Terry heads out to meet Dana but he receives a call from Bruce alerting him to Mad Stan being on a rampage. Knowing his responsibility must come first, Batman confronts Mad Stan, who believes that Gotham is dying due to an information overload, in the library and the two start to fight.

While Batman and Mad Stan fight, Dana waits in front of Rhino's and eventually decides that she's been blown off again. Angrily leaving the scene, she come across another rose with the “I'll be there for you” message. As she reads the note, she is approached by two giant rats that slowly advance on her.

Dana wakes up surrounded by white roses. Looking around, she finds herself in an underground room filled with shelves of junk items. A rat-like boy greets her and tells her that his name is Patrick and that this is his collection of things that people don't want. Dana soon comes across the giant rats again, but Patrick shows that he can control them and that they are his friends.

Back at Terry's house, Terry calls Dana and apologizes. Soon afterwards, there is an insistent knock at the door. Terry answers, and is soon assaulted by Dana's father who demands to know her whereabouts. Terry is taken aback, but now learns that Dana is missing.

In the sewers, Dana learns that Patrick ran away because people called him "ratboy" and he sought to quit being teased. Attempting to escape, Dana offers to take Patrick to Rhino's for some chili, but he refuses to let her go and heads off for himself.

Meanwhile, Terry has told Bruce about Dana missing and is out investigating her disappearance. He comes across Rhino's where patrons are escaping in droves. Inside, Patrick is busy ladling chili into take-out containers for him and Dana. Batman discovers Patrick's giant rats and a fight ensues. Patrick hears them and quickly packs up the chili and escapes with the rats, mentioning Dana as they leave through the backdoor, which Terry overhears, and follows them into the sewers.

Back at Patrick's hideout, Dana searches through his collection and finds a flashlight. With the light in hand, she searches for a way out, passing by several barrels of toxic waste which were presumably the source of the giant rats.

The journey through the sewers proves to be an ordeal for Dana. Unable to negotiate several obstacles, Dana falls into sewer water and soon finds herself trapped in a pit, along with a huge colony of regular-sized rats. Despite their small size, the rats are aggressive and attack Dana. Fortunately, Patrick arrives and scares the rats off.

After being returned to Patrick's dwelling Dana snaps at him for his kidnapping. Angered by her words, Patrick explains that he's done this sort of thing before. He pulls out a whistle, darkly saying "They don't make fun of me anymore", suggesting he murdered his previous victims, and blows on the whistle. The rats, both giant and regular, advance on Dana, but Batman arrives and fights them off. In order to aid Batman Dana takes a hockey stick and sets it ablaze. The two manage to ward off the rats long enough to escape. During the escape, Dana drops the lit hockey stick into the toxic waste, causing an explosion.

Later, Terry finds Dana sitting in an ambulance. He tries to apologize to her, but she doesn't want to listen to words. She just hugs him, and Terry takes her home. As they walk away, the card with the flower given to Dana by Patrick blows away with the wind.

Continuity

  • Dana's father alludes to Terry's criminal record, the details of which will be revealed in "Big Time". The first time it was mentioned was in "A Touch of Curaré".
  • Mad Stan appears for the first time in this episode, but deducing from Bruce and Terry's exchange, Batman has had previous off-screen dealings with him.
  • An action figure of Magma from the Terrific Trio is part of Patrick's collection, as he states that it is something no one wants, this episode occurs after the episode "Heroes" as the Trio has been discredited.

Background information

Home video releases

Trivia

Cast

Actor Role
Will Friedle Terry McGinnis / Batman
Lauren Tom Dana Tan
Kevin Conroy Bruce Wayne
Taran Noah Smith Patrick
Ryan O'Donohue Matt McGinnis
Henry Rollins Mad Stan
Clyde Kusatsu Mr. Tan
Yvette Lowenthal Chelsea Cunningham
Sean Donnellan Virtual Anchor

Quotes

Terry: Dana, I have responsibilities now. My mom and brother depend on me. What do you want?
Dana: Someone who occasionally will be there for me.

Batman: Keep it down, Stan. We're in a library.
Mad Stan: You think this is a joke? Look around, Batman. Society's crumbling, and you know why?
Batman: Too many overdue books?
Mad Stan: Information overload, man. As a society, we're drowning in a quagmire of vid-clips, e-mail, and sound bites. We can't absorb it all. There's only one sane solution: blow it up!

Batman: (after Mad Stan throws him into a wall and he lands on his back on the ground) For this, I'm missing a date?

Dana: Adios, Ratboy.

Batman: Big rodent problem.

Batman: Let's blow this mouse house.

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