Jervis Tetch is creepy. Not just "comic book villain" creepy, but the kind of unsettling that makes you want to wash your hands after finishing his missions. In the world of Rocksteady’s swan song, the Batman Arkham Knight Mad Hatter appearance is tucked away inside the Season of Infamy DLC, and honestly, it’s one of the most effective pieces of psychological horror in the entire series.
While Scarecrow is busy trying to gass the whole East Coast, Tetch is just sitting in an interrogation room at the GCPD. He’s already surrendered. Why? Because he’s bored. Or rather, he’s finished setting the stage for his final "story."
If you’ve played Arkham City or Arkham Origins, you know how this goes. He’s obsessed with Alice. He’s obsessed with tea parties. But in Arkham Knight, the stakes feel different because he isn't just trying to put a rabbit mask on Batman’s face. He’s targeting the GCPD directly.
The Wonderland Mission: More Than Just a Tea Party
Most players dive into the "Wonderland" Most Wanted mission expecting another hallucination sequence. You get that, eventually. But first, you have to deal with the police officers Tetch has kidnapped and stuffed into the trunks of rigged patrol cars.
He plays a siren’s song. Literally.
You have to track down three specific squad cars hidden across Gotham. It sounds simple, but the tension is real. When you find the cars, you’re greeted with a bomb-defusal mini-game that can be genuinely frustrating if your timing is off. Inside the trunks? Officers dressed as characters from Lewis Carroll’s book. One is the Cheshire Cat. Another is the Queen of Hearts. It’s a grim reminder that Tetch doesn't see people as human beings; they’re just props in his play.
The Problem With the Third Car
The third car is the kicker. It’s parked near Panessa Studios, and when you open it, there’s no hostage. Just a book. This is where the Batman Arkham Knight Mad Hatter storyline takes a sharp turn into the surreal.
Batman returns to the GCPD to grill Tetch, and that’s when the "Batman’s Adventures in Wonderland" sequence begins. This is easily the highlight of the DLC. The game shifts its art style to a cel-shaded, pop-up book aesthetic. It’s gorgeous and jarring at the same time. You’re fighting through scenes from previous games—the Asylum, the City—rendered as if they were drawn in a twisted children’s book.
Why the Detective Vision Glitch Isn't a Bug
There’s a detail in this mission that bugs people. If you scan the third car with Detective Mode, you’ll see a skeleton inside. But when you open the trunk, it’s empty.
Is it a developer oversight? Nope.
It’s actually a brilliant piece of environmental storytelling. It shows that Tetch’s hypnotic suggestion is so powerful it’s actually affecting Batman’s perception of his own technology. You see what you expect to see. You expect a body, so your brain (and by extension, the HUD you’re seeing through Batman’s eyes) provides one. This isn't the first time the Arkham games have messed with the player's UI—remember the "middle stick" fake-out in Asylum?—but it’s a subtle touch that highlights how far Tetch has gotten under Bruce's skin.
Dealing With the "Storybook Endings" Fight
The final brawl inside the book is a trip. You’ve got three waves of enemies:
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- Arkham Asylum Inmates: A throwback to where it all started.
- TYGER Guards and Joker Thugs: Representing the chaos of Arkham City.
- The Militia: The current threat in Arkham Knight.
The challenge here isn't just the combat; it's the environment. The "pages" of the book are constantly flipping, and the borders of the world feel thin. Once you clear the thugs, you have to take down Officer Hutch—the "White Rabbit"—without killing him.
Honestly, the way Batman handles Tetch afterward is satisfying. No more games. He just slams the book shut and leaves Jervis to rot in a cell next to the very villains he was reminiscing about.
Mastering the Bomb Defusal
If you're struggling with the bomb-defusal mechanic in the Batman Arkham Knight Mad Hatter mission, you aren't alone. It’s a speed test.
On a controller, you have to use both sticks to keep the "frequency" within the moving circles. The third bomb is notoriously fast. The trick is to not over-adjust. If you're on PC playing at 4K, some players have reported that the visual cues can actually lag or become unreadable. If you keep blowing up, try dropping your resolution to 1080p just for that sequence. It sounds weird, but it fixes the registration issues for a lot of people.
Quick Tips for the Hacking Game:
- Use "kitty-corner" movements with the thumbsticks.
- Don't wait for the circles to stop; they won't.
- Focus on the right stick first, as it often has the more erratic pattern.
- If you fail, the game usually gives you a slightly more forgiving pattern on the next attempt.
The Lore Connections You Might Have Missed
Jervis Tetch’s dialogue in Arkham Knight is much more rhythmic than in previous entries. He rhymes almost everything. This isn't just a stylistic choice; it’s a sign of his deteriorating mental state. In Arkham City, he was still somewhat "functional" as a mastermind. By the time we get to the end of the trilogy, he’s fully submerged in his delusion.
There’s also a heart-wrenching bit of continuity regarding "Alice." In Arkham Origins, we see the immediate aftermath of him kidnapping a young woman. In Arkham Knight, through the audio tapes and the interrogation, you realize he’s been repeating this cycle for years. He isn't looking for a person; he's looking for a feeling of control that he'll never actually achieve.
Actionable Steps for Your Playthrough
To get the most out of this mission, don't rush it as soon as it unlocks.
- Wait for the Batsuit v8.03: The cel-shaded effect in the pop-up book looks significantly better with the main story suit than it does with most DLC skins.
- Listen to the GCPD Intercom: After you lock Tetch up, stay in the Maximum Security ward for a bit. The banter between him and the other inmates (like Penguin or Two-Face) is gold. They absolutely hate him.
- Scan the Book: Even after the mission is over, you can find the "Batman’s Adventures in Wonderland" book in the evidence room. Scanning it gives you the final piece of the Mad Hatter’s story in the Arkhamverse.
Once you’ve locked Jervis Tetch away and secured the GCPD, your next move should be to clear the remaining Season of Infamy targets, specifically the Killer Croc mission "Beneath the Surface," which provides a similar level of environmental storytelling and a much-needed upgrade to the Remote Electrical Charge.