The animated debut of Clayface is an amazing piece of Saturday Morning body horror
With James Watkins’ live action Clayface movie hitting theaters just in time for Halloween, I think now is a good time to remember something: as good as that movie may or may not be, it won’t be the definitive Clayface story.
That’s because we already got it 34 years ago in an awesome two-part episode of Batman: The Animated Series.
Do I even need to extol B:TAS at this point? Not only is it one of the most beloved cartoons of the 1990s, it’s one of the best pieces of superhero media ever. It was a brilliant, envelope-pushing series that still holds up astonishingly well today. And the Feat of Clay duology is a perfect example of why.
B:TAS delved into horror and horror-adjacent material all the time. Just watch any of the episodes with the Scarecrow, Killer Croc or Man-Bat in them. The series introduction to Clayface definitely fits into that mold, offering viewers an incredibly dark and adult story that hits a TON of undertones that you’d normally never encounter in a “kids” show. Not only is it the perfect introduction to the character, it’s probably the best Clayface story we’ll get in any type of media.
The two-part episode begins as a bit of whodunit mystery with sci-fi touches. Somebody who looks an awful lot like Bruce Wayne, but obviously isn’t Bruce Wayne, beats up a corrupt executive type in public and Batman’s alter ego, understandably, is framed for the crime. It’s actually an interesting little subplot here, as Bruce actually gets arrested for the misdeed he didn’t do; I mean, how often did you ever see Optimus Prime or the Thundercats have to deal with bond hearings and the criminal justice system?
As you’ve probably already guessed, the face-punching Bruce Wayne is an imposter. But not just any old imposter, he’s disgraced one-time movie star Matt Hagan, who saw his career go kaput after a disfiguring accident. As it turns out, he’s actually been able to momentarily correct his facial features a’la Darkman by using an experimental chemical manufactured by crime boss Roland Daggett.
I don’t think you need me to go into graphic detail explaining what happens next, do I?
Well, long story short, Hagan refuses to carry out a hit job for Daggett, so Roland makes him pay by sending some goons after him to literally drown him in the “miracle” chemical. Of course, if it simply killed him we wouldn’t have a part two episode would we?
Sure enough, all of the mystery compound completely rewires Hagan’s DNA and turns him into what looks like a giant, lumbering piece of cookie dough with gingivitis. But it also allows him to momentarily shape shift into other people … and naturally, he wants unholy revenge on Daggett for screwing him up in the first place. Batman manages to sneak his way out of his ongoing legal troubles just long enough to confront Clayface before he goes on a murder spree. In an eerily touching moment, Batman manages to defeat Hagan by showing him a highlight reel of all of his previous movie roles — which triggers a manic identity crisis for the gooey monster that eventually short circuits him altogether.
That’s the Cliffs Notes version of the two-parter, so I’m clearly leaving out a whole lot of important nuance and key details. The basic premise of the episode alone, though, is body horror defined. Indeed, the more you look at the specifics of the duology, the more it sorta resembles an animated David Cronenberg movie. It’s basically The Substance three decades earlier, albeit with a multi-billionaire vigilante dressed up like a flying rodent tossed into the mix for good measure.
Going back and watching the episodes today is nothing short of mind-blowing. Not only are the two episodes immensely well-written, tremendously animated and genuinely spooky, they also get deep with the subtext. Long story short — it’s a metaphor for substance use disorder, with Hagan hooked on the fictitious cure-all instead of heroin or prescription pills. It’s a fantastical way of approaching the real world topic, but it’s literally a one-to-one comparison. And without ever getting preachy or even attempting to make an explicit anti-drug message, they pretty much made the perfect anti-drug message. Watch out what you put in your bodies, kids — or else it might rob you of your identity and turn you into a rampaging monster, too.
If that wasn’t unexpected enough, get ready for something even more amazing: the show pretty much comes right out and tells you that Matt is gay. Of course, they never say the word “gay” in the episode and it’s never made super obvious, but the inclusion of the character’s very close male confident (who is never referenced as a family member or a business associate or anything like that) in the story certainly paints an obvious picture for adult viewers. Those subtle shoulder rubs and tender moments of concern aren’t that subtle, after all.
By the way, it’s an all-star voice acting cast in this duology. Matt is voiced by Ron Perlman — who has kinda made a living playing hideously deformed albeit very sympathetic monsters — while Dagget is voiced by Ed Asner (yep, of Mary Tyler Moore fame.) We even get an appearance from Ed Begley, Jr. (you know, that other guy in Transylvania 6-5000) as a two-bit mobster with an egregious germ complex — which Batman fully exploits in a hilariously brutal shakedown scene that I wouldn’t even think of spoiling for those of you who have never seen it before.
Hardcore B:TAS fans don’t need me to tell them how great these two episodes are. But if you’re still unconverted, do yourself a favor and give the Clayface duology a watch the next time you have an hour to kill. You might be surprised by how touching, engrossing and flat out disturbing a mere “children’s” show from 1992 can be — all I can say is that the live-action movie has some VERY big shoes to fill on this one.
