Batman '67- The Swapper Saga
In the spring of 1967, tensions were high at the ABC network boardroom. The once-booming ratings of Batman, produced by William Dozier, had started to dip. The execs believed the show needed a fresh jolt. Their solution? Eliminate Robin, the Boy Wonder, and replace him with the newly introduced and wildly popular Batgirl, played by Yvonne Craig.
Dozier, ever the showman and innovator, resisted. “You can't just drop Robin,” he argued. “He's part of the brand. Batman needs a dynamic duo.”
But he offered a compromise that made jaws drop: keep Robin --- but change who he was.
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The Swapper: A Caped Crusade Reimagined
The season two finale, "The Swapper Strikes!", opened with a new villain tearing through Gotham --- a flamboyant, dimension-hopping menace known only as The Swapper, played with campy glee by Vincent Price. His gimmick: using an ancient Egyptian amulet and a high-tech energy beam to swap people's minds, bodies, and identities at will. No one in Gotham was safe.
Batman (Adam West) and Robin (Burt Ward) track The Swapper to a museum gala. But when they arrive, it’s a trap. A brilliant flash, a strange sensation---and suddenly, Robin collapses, only to awaken… transformed.
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Enter: Robyn the Wonder Girl
As the second part, "Robin Reborn!", kicked off the third season, audiences were stunned. Robin was now Robyn, a confident, agile, and surprisingly stylish female counterpart to the former Boy Wonder --- played by Yvonne Craig in a modified costume blending Robin's red-green-yellow color scheme with a sleeker, feminine cut. The red and yellow capes flowed more dramatically, and her utility belt had compartments for hairpins and lipstick --- which doubled as gadgets, of course.
The change was explained as permanent --- The Swapper had been destroyed in the confusion, and with him, the chance to reverse the transformation. Bruce Wayne accepted the new Robyn wholeheartedly. In a heartfelt moment in the Batcave, he reminded her: “It’s not the body that makes a hero. It’s the courage, the conviction… and the teamwork.”
Fans were captivated. Ratings surged.
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Behind the Cowl: A Cultural Moment
Yvonne Craig’s dual role as Batgirl and Robyn pushed her to icon status. Though Batgirl remained a recurring character, it was Robyn who now rode alongside the Caped Crusader night after night. Her presence brought a new kind of energy to the show --- still full of zany villains, Biff! Bam! fights, and clever traps, but now with fresh chemistry and clever gender-reversal humor.
Craig played Robyn with a mix of Ward’s eager earnestness and her own sly confidence. Writers leaned into it, crafting episodes where Robyn had to infiltrate girls’ schools, charm giggling henchmen, and resist the flirtations of villains who thought she was “just another damsel.”
Even the show's dynamic duo outro was updated: Same Bat-time, same Bat-channel --- now with twice the flair!”
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