Night of the Bat

"**Night of the Bat**" is the third episode of Justice League Action. It is also the third part of the Shazam Slam series premiere.

## Summary

When a djinn takes possession of Batman to use the power source of the Hall of Justice to crack open the Earth, it will need the joint actions of the Justice League members to attempt to foil the plan.

## Story

The Batmobile speeds through the streets of Metropolis at night, chasing a dark figure. Over a video link, Superman tells Batman that it is a disguised Djinn and that he needs backup to deal with it. Batman insists that he does not need help, but swinging down from above comes Green Arrow and he shoots an entangling net that traps the djinn. But the fiend breaks free and flees up to and across rooftops, pursued by the two superheroes. Green Arrow again hits the target and the djinn falls down into an alley. Batman confronts it and a fight ensues. The djinn says that he is "Uthool" and makes a lunge at Batman, shrouding him in mist. When it disperses, only Batman is left, but when Green Arrow joins him it becomes apparent that something is wrong with his colleague.

They both go off in the Batmobile but Batman becomes irritated by his partner's conversation and ejects him into the river before continuing on to the Hall of Justice. There, he meets with Superman and Wonder Woman who also notice his odd behaviour. Batman goes down towards the 'Power Core' room but gets dragged into the training area by Booster Gold and challenged to a sparring match. Although he surprisingly floors Batman with a judo throw, Booster is comprehensively beaten, and Batman prepares to leave. His exit is blocked by Wonder Woman who has realised that he is not the real Batman and they fight together. Batman now reveals himself to be possessed by Uthool and, throwing a Bat-smokebomb, takes Wonder Woman's lasso and ties her up.

Leaving, he continues down to the Power Core where he finds Cyborg who is repairing the mechanism. Paralysing him with an electric shock, Bat-Uthool makes the core go into overload and declares that he intends to use it to split open the Earth's crust to implement the Djinn's plan. Green Arrow now reappears but he gets knocked aside when his shafts shatter on the foe's body and, when Superman also arrives, Bat-Uthool transforms into a large winged monster with a noticeable 'Bat' theme.

While Green Arrow takes Cyborg to safety, there follows a long, violent fight in which Superman tries to get the better of his powerful opponent, and which causes increasing structural damage to the Hall. Elsewhere, a recovering Booster Gold notices the bound Amazon nearby, and she asks him to untie her so that she can join in the fight. That struggle continues and the Hall collapses into rubble just as the other superheroes (except Booster) get clear. Uthool grabs the tiring Superman and flies high into the air. Meanwhile, Wonder Woman sees the glowing power core amongst the debris and lassoes it, and, as Uthool drops Superman, she hurls the core at him causing a violent reaction in which Batman's body is released. She catches the latter, but Uthool, now reduced to his normal size, plummets to the ground. As he continues to shout defiance, Superman stomps him and he is tied up with the Lasso.

While Booster climbs out of the rubble wondering what has just happened, the gathered superheroes realise that they will need a new headquarters and wonder whether they will sleeping in the Batcave in the meantime.

## Notes

* Booster Gold reviews his previous battles with Batman, which all end with Batman knocking him out in one punch. This is a tongue in cheek reference to the infamous "One Punch" moment in *Justice League International* #5 where Batman KO'd Green Lantern Guy Gardner in one punch after he antagonized the Dark Knight, much to the shock and amusement of the other League members.