The Forgotten Batman Character Pee-Wee Herman Played
Did you know that Paul Reubens, better known as Pee-wee Herman, had a brief stint in the Batman universe? Not only did Reubens famously portray Penguin’s father, Tucker Cobblepot, in 1992’s Batman Returns, he also voiced a character named Bat-Mite in the short-lived Batman: The Brave and the Bold animated series.
And much like Pee-wee’s Playhouse, Bat-Mite often broke the fourth wall by cracking jokes that were mostly self-referential, and brought a lot of laughs to the series.
Among all of the Batman properties, The Brave and the Bold has to be the silliest incarnation of the Caped Crusader to date, and it makes sense that the legend behind Pee-wee Herman would somehow be involved. Reubens’ Bat-Mite character is a total trip who idolizes Batman, but often annoys him with his misguided attempts to cause trouble so he can see his hero in action.
Though he only appeared in four episodes throughout the series’ 65-episode run, they’re quite memorable, and highly quotable.
Not only did Reubens famously portray Penguin’s father in 1992’s Batman Returns, he also voiced Bat-Mite in the short-lived Batman: The Brave and the Bold animated series.
Bat-Mite is a unique character in his own right, but he undeniably sounds like a more subdued Pee-wee Herman, which should be expected. In the final episode of the Batman series, he goes off on a tangent about how he wants to cancel the show because he feels like it had run its course, and expresses his fear that it became too formulaic.
During this epic rant, he goes off to name all of the talented voice actors who made the series possible, including Diedrich Bader as Batman, Tim Conway, NPH (Neil Patrick Harris), Adam West, and “the one and only Paul Reubens.”
Reubens concluded his rant as Bat-Mite by stating that he had grown tired of the “Campy Crusader,” and went on to suggest that the show had jumped the shark. But we wish we could have seen a whole lot more of the meta-humor that his Pee-wee Herman character was so well known for, because it sounds like he had quite a bit of fun playfully paying homage to the silver age of comic books in The Brave and the Bold.
Reubens’ Bat-Mite character is a total trip who idolizes Batman, but often annoys him with his misguided attempts to cause trouble so he can see his hero in action.
It’s not every day that a fifth-dimensional menace with a fixation on Batman uses his incomprehensible technology to devise schemes, not as an antagonist, but rather as an overenthusiastic fan.
As we continue to simultaneously mourn the loss and celebrate the legacy of Paul Reubens and his iconic Pee-wee Herman character, we can’t help but look back at his wide body of work, and revisit his career. Not only did Reubens dabble with Batman, he also voiced Pavel in 17 episodes of Tron: Uprising, and even made an appearance on Bob’s Burgers as a character named Pat, which was his final role before his passing.
Much like Pee-wee’s Playhouse, Bat-Mite often broke the fourth wall by cracking jokes that were mostly self-referential, and brought a lot of laughs to the series.
If Batman isn’t your thing, then there’s plenty more Paul Reubens material to admire. Perhaps the most notable appearance Reubens made as Pee-wee Herman came in the form of a WWE Raw episode, in which he had an in-ring confrontation with The Miz and Alex Riley.
Not only did Pee-wee Herman do all of his usual gags, like having the entire arena cheer while The Miz unknowingly said the secret word, there’s something surreal about witnessing Pee-wee Herman talking smack to somebody twice his size.
It’s hard to imagine a world without Paul Reubens and Pee-wee Herman, but we’re thankful for his ability to make us laugh, and we’ll be forever grateful for his grey suit, and giant red bow tie.
