Batman Beyond: Season 3

Sort of an innocuous ending for the series but overall quite good.

For a final batch of 13 episodes that more or less capped off this series I have to say I was in a better mood and far less nitpicky this time around. We get some standout episodes this time around including a loooong awaited return for Inque, a slight throwback to The Animated Series with Talia al Ghul, a two parter involving the future Justice League which has some important behind the scenes ties I'll share momentarily, and of course the season and series finale which showcases Terry unmasked but not quite for the reasons you think. I feel the quality of the storytelling is on par if not slightly above the second season, in retrospect that first season was easily the best but let that not dissuade you from enjoying the rest of the show. It's a damn fine piece of television that has garnered a cult following for almost the entirety of my life, and the simple fact that there has been so much spinoff material with Terry in decades past proves it deserves the love. The animation is still rock solid and has some neat visual moments, and while the actual character development is slim to nothing the acting is still gold standard from everyone. It was undoubtedly a treat to finally talk Batman Beyond and though I've really only been a fan for just a notch over a decade I'm glad to say I own it all on video. But all things must come to an end and in a bizarre twist of fate Warner Bros. Animation shelved and ended Batman Beyond in favor of pursuing a Justice League series which is a fantastic show in my estimation and hopefully the day will not be far where I can review that in it's entirety, so the story of future Batman was rather unceremoniously ended and given a tiny bit of an epilogue which...I don't entirely hate but I certainly have questions. I was rather debating on if I should include that cause it really is the sendoff for the series (kinda) but it involves megaton spoilers so it's not really like I could divulge it anyway. Do I wish we got more overarching character progression and development just overall for the show? Of course, even though it really wasn't the style yet in animated shows until a good while later. It's simultaneously an immense blessing and an unfortunate curse for older cartoons, cause on one hand you get your episode of the week, you can just watch it, enjoy it, and move on to the next. Yet on the other hand you kinda want a more expansive involved story especially cause it's original characters, it's a new setting, we don't have, well at that point anyway, 60 years of backstory to know about Batman and his villains. But you know what? It's okay, we've had other stuff come after this that embellishes the world of 2039 Batman and anybody who is curious can dig into that. I still love the show, I love the animated universe it inhabits, and this is just the beginning actually of my own personal dive back into the Batman mythos in preparation for Legacy Of The Dark Knight which I can't wait to play! It was a very good birthday week and a very good show, I give this final season 3 stars, 8/10, and I'll see you very soon for Kombat.

Batman Beyond: Season 2

Boy we upped that episode count like nobody's business.

After a small but respectable 13 episodes in season 1 we jumped all the way to 26 making this the longest season of the show. And after paving the groundwork and setting up the world and characters logic would dictate we vastly expand upon it, which we simultaneously do and yet stick to a good bit of the same. I do strongly appreciate Terry has his own rogues gallery that keeps popping back up while still flourishing some original stories as well, they go kinda out there at times with a backstory episode with Ace, one of Terry's maidenless dweeb schoolmates gets a robo-girlfriend, one of the most fucking gruesome images in children's television is present as the villain early on in the season, we even get a telepathic almost spiritual predecessor to doomed child Ace from Justice League. The variety is strong and we even get a highly welcome addition to the cast in Max who I'm just gonna say it, is a much better candidate for Terry in a relationship than Dana and she's pretty rad as well! I'm right, no questions at this time! Though and I swear whenever I say this I'm not taking shots or giving this show shit I wanna preface that before I say, a lot if not even the overwhelming majority of the episodes this season have pretty...not lackluster but certainly very rushed resolutions. Now am I being a cataclysmic ass for kinda picking on the 22 minute cartoon from the turn of the millenia? Yes, without question. I cannot imagine how difficult it truly is to create a scenario, introduce a threat, make a memorable or compelling story, and have to wrap it up in less than half an hour and have it get gold stars every time. And YET, The Animated Series somehow did with even endings that erupted goosebumps along my body to this day just thinking about it. Maybe slight fatigue was setting in, or maybe the writers didn't have the time frame they needed to make this excellent television but instead very good television, and while indeed the very first time I sat down to watch this season I was game all the way through but right here right now I was taking much more notice of it. Is it absolutely show breaking and I'm gonna eviscerate this series with a flaming buzzsaw? No not at all, I still love the show, I was still engaging with the episodes and some even got big reactions out of me, you just have to acknowledge all the facets. But all the technicals from the animation which is still top notch, to the voice cast who commit lock stock and barrel to the performances, to the music which dear sweet tap dancing Christ was really on my radar this go around and I ain't got no problem saying I'd buy volumes of the score for this series it was that damn good, are on such firm standing much can be forgiven. To throw some favorites out for this season I point to Hidden Agenda which is our first true introduction to Max, Mind Games which has an almost Over The Edge vibe from the last season of The Animated Series to it, The Last Resort which got me raging hardcore at the villain who just reeks of evangelical child absuing pieces of dog shit that makes my skin crawl, and Ace In The Hole because hey I'm a sucker for a Great Dane and it's a compelling story. I like we get more of an expansion with Terry's love life, having Max be an ally who knows the secret is a nice and great shake up, seeing higher stakes in the plot feels like natural escalation, and the more teen after school metaphor episodes are few and far between. Even with it's slight shortcomings and questionable actions from characters on a regular basis, it's still a very very good show and I'll be damned if I said I didn't like it. All in all I give it 3 stars, 8/10, and thankfully next season will not take all flippin' day to finish.

Batman Beyond: Season 1

This has been coming for a long long time.

Pretty early on I knew I wanted to review The Animated Series and Batman Beyond but you would be surprised how long it actually took me to come around to this show. I have a fairly clear memory of when I was about 5 or 6 and my cousins were over and gonna watch Batman Beyond on Kids WB, and I said outright that I'll just stick to The Animated Series. Fast forward to the year 2011, the hype for Arkham City is unreal, and everybody is losing their shit hardcore over the Beyond skin for DLC whereas I was most stoked for the Dark Knight Returns and once again The Animated Series skin. And finally about 3 years later when I was in college I finally decided to know what this show was about and gave it a watch. I kind of have a track record with brushing off really damn good shows for significant amounts of time. So let's get this show on the road. Premiering in the year 1999 this show is a follow up to The New Batman Adventures following somewhat in the art direction style as we jump ahead to a cyberpunk futuristic rendition of Gotham as we meet high schooler Terry McGinnis who after a run in with a gang crosses paths with an elderly Bruce Wayne and kinda stumbles upon the secret under stately Wayne Manor, before taking up the cowl against Bruce's wishes until he's more or less "hired" for the job. This has such a stark and definitive look and style that is evident straight from the opening which is pretty kickass in my estimation and is easily one of the best intros to any animated show. They essentially took the goth out of gotham, it's all futuristic with flying cars, mega skyscrapers, and barely a dark alley to it's name yet I'm surprised how well it still works and I'd kill to have this Gotham in a game to play! Obviously the timeframe isn't stated lending to the more timeless aspect of this animated world but it's a solid shake up that I can see younger more novice viewers easily able to jump in and the older veterans can still dig as well. The animation is really nicely done feeling still akin to that turn of the millenium DC animated vibe but still retaining an identity of it's own, with a lot of blues and purples in play (the red sky is not even prevalent) which makes the batsuit and villains really pop. I now see why people rave about this suit, undeniably minimalistic and I'm just a sucker for red and black color combos, the ears I swing between looking stylistic and awesome or closer to bunny ears depending on the angle, but all the tech built into it and the wingspan are such cool attributes so I'm definitely a fan now. The music also is actually pretty fantastic, foregoing the themes of individual characters and villains but delivering a more metal edge at times, why people don't comment more on the score baffles me because I genuinely adored it! Now obviously I was quite young when this show was going on and I have no recollection as to the reaction and fandom that was there since day one, but people nowadays claim it as an underrated gem that was stuck in the shadow of it's Emmy award winning predecessor which isn't far from the mark. Comprising of only 13 episodes for this season it does a pretty remarkable job setting up all the world building details and character introductions, giving a small taste of what is to come. Will Friedle as Terry is a very very good lead, though still a teenager it never feels outlandish or dumb that he becomes the Batman and almost is a precursor to when Dick Grayson took up the cape and cowl in the comics years on down the road, he's more upbeat and jokey and has good chemistry with Bruce who takes on a stronger mentor role, he struggles with the balance of the identities, and you know he's still a kid who has more to learn in his years so it's never a case of seeing him act stupid and thinking he's insufferable. Of course Kevin Conroy (God rest his strong soul) is back and I almost feel I love him more in this role than any other time he has voiced The Batman, simply because it is so different and while he can still deck a fool he's more in the background of events taking on a more Oracle-ish role giving Terry support and information from the Batcave, and just seeing Bruce as this grumpy old man won me over quick. Not too many side characters at play here besisdes Terry's sweetheart Dana who thank God they just made them a couple already and didn't slip oh so easily into that will they/won't they on again off again relationship nonsense that plagues maaaany teen orientated shows, it just shows another aspect of how it's hard for Terry to maintain a stable life. The show takes on a severe episode of the week stance, this before animated shows became almost serialized with overarching plots and character development, with a few reoccuring villains as far as I know all made specifically for the show, the main one being Derek Powers who now owns the vast majority of Wayne Enterprises and hires the help of various supervillains to progress his schemes which comprise of shapeshifting blob woman Inque, technician and sound guy Shriek, he even has a hand in ressurecting Mr. Freeze. We got some independent evil doers as well including hypnotist and laziest robber ever Spellbinder, aristocratic card enthusiasts the Royal Flush Gang, and The Fantastic Four. How DC did not get sued over that is a mystery for another day, stretch armstrong dude, translucent lady woman, and a literal flaming beast of a man, kinda on the nose there guys! Thankfully no bad epsiodes to speak of or a shred of filler, if I had to pick favorites here I'd go with the opening two parter Rebirth or Mr. Freeze's return in Meltdown. And for not even a 5 hour sit it's well worth it for this season. I give it 3.5 stars, 8.5/10!

Batman The Animated Series: Season 4

You cannot ever change my mind that this isn't a part of the Animated Series.

Officially titled The New Batman Adventures, this series started about 2 years after the Animated Series wrapped up and despite the same voice cast and character relationships is a heavy departure in animation style. Dubbed "the red sky season" by fans, the character designs, backgrounds, and overall animation got a major new facelift essentially making the lines sharper and the colors more on the colder darker side. Now on one hand I can see why people might be against certain characters that got redesigned, but I don't actually take issue with any except one (but not the one you might think). But it baffles me how people say this isn't a part of the Animated Series based on animation style alone, that's like someone saying Star Wars Rebels has nothing to do with The Clone Wars because it looks different. Sod that and sod off, this is the last season of the show. Only totalling in 24 episodes, it's a mighty quick season to knock out to the point where you could feasibly do it in a day. So what stood out most? We start off in a fun multi-story of Gotham Knights, and right off the bat (no pun intended I swear) you can tell the tone in this is more lighter than the other 3 seasons. It's difficult to explain but easy to notice as we see Ivy and Harley go on a shopping spree, Babs takes on Clayface, and the Joker and Batman have a new year's eve brawl which reminds me of The Long Halloween sorta. And you may notice this like I did but I almost feel like one of the animators had a massive black lipstick fetish because seriously, every woman in this show seems to wear black lipstick or dang near close to black. It's very odd and I have no idea why, but I like that Harley kept her design despite a slightly bluer face and Red actually looks more plant like which I dig the hell out of. Next up is Sins Of The Father working as a origin for technically the third Robin Tim Drake, but no love for Jason in this show, as we see young Tim as a thief on the streets that gets tangled up in a Two-Face caper and becomes the new Boy Wonder. It's good to see a young Robin with a lot of attitude and it works quite well for the show. I will not tarnish the young actor Mathew Valencia, he does admirable work but I did notice a fair few times where the line delivery was very flat, but not in a sarcastic smartass way like we see often, yet no harm no foul. Harvey I think looks the slickest of all the redesigned rogues gallery, and that suit is still pure Kino. Next episode Cold Comfort. Alright. I f***ing hate how they handled Mister Freeze in this season, which is odd because the episode set farther in the future with him in Batman Beyond I felt was a pretty good send off for the character which was after this episode was made. So Freeze after his wife has been revived and cured is going after people's passion projects for no other reason than for people to feel his pain which already is so unlike Victor and the fact that....Jesus Christ. His body has deteriorated away due to his condition and he is now a head in a robot suit. Yet they somehow crafted him one in Batman Beyond, go figure. His story should have ended in Subzero, that is all I am saying on the matter. But then! Ohhhh yes! My boy is back, Dr. Crane and holy jumping lemurs is this the version I wish we had so so much more of. Listen to the creators talk about the redesign, even they felt they went too far and too scary with this character. So unfortunately we lose Henry Polic but in his stead is Herbert West himself, Jeffrey Combs and guess what? That voice is nightmare fuel in it's most glorious state. Just this eerily quiet, calm, haunting voice coming out of what looks like a walking corpse in a old west duster and hat, just 10 out of f***ing 10!! Why in the depths of hell was he not used more? Now I treasure Henry Polic, John Noble is mind shatteringly amazing in Arkham Knight, Robert Englund is the epitome of fan casting brilliance in Injustice, but this is the one I feel we need back. Great episode material too with Crane actually taking people's fears away and ransoming the antidote, while actually eliminating Batman's fear of even killing people. Damn, this was a home run. Then we get some Nightwing action in You Scratch My Back, where he forms a fragile alliance with Selina, who I think the redesign is more minimalistic but still works, and the constant power shift between master cat burglar and solo mullet crusader is pretty great honestly. Joker's Millions could easily be an episode of The Twilight Zone with some little rewrites and I never thought I would see the Joker living in poverty, well besides in Joaquin's movie of course. Growing Pains, wow. This episode kinda cut me as a kid, with Robin finding a young lost girl who has more to her past than she remembers. This is a fairly emotional story, with a heartbreaking ending that I must applaud as an adult that they went that far with the story. Mean Seasons while a good episode I think is elevated by the commentary within, a former model has taken on the monicrum of Calendar Girl and pulls a Baby Doll kidnapping her old bosses for booting her out for turning 30. Like man, I am dead serious this bullshit system where older women who aren't even close to being old can't find work in some shade of entertainment or modelling industry can get off my goddamn planet, it is insane how unbelievably relevant this still is today and you can also kinda read it as how people with low self-esteem or even depression can only see faults in themselves despite there being plenty to like and admire about them. It's very good solid writing that makes me recommend this as a must watch episode. The Demon Within brings back a ton of magic in this series, and I just love the comraderie and unspoken past encounters and friendship Bruce has with Jason Blood, better known as the demon Etrigan, which comes up later on in the Justice League series. Good stuff. Then the bomb drops, Over The Edge. I am not saying a friggin' word, just imagine the most worst possible Elseworlds situation about the Batfamily and watch it. Solid gold. Love Is A Croc, really only struck me by just the sheer fascinating idea of what if Baby Doll and Killer Croc did heists together? I am so bewildered this pairing even exists let alone how and why someone thought it up. I will however state I love Baby Doll's voice actor, and we were on the verge of a truly niche relationship in this episode. Just watch it and try not to think anything nauuuughtyyyyy. The Ultimate Thrill was a lot of fun, entirely on the basis of Roxy Rocket who I might be admiring a bit too much, she's a total adrenaline junkie and does some wild ass stunts just to rob people but there's something about her I just like. God dang redheads man, I cannot help myself! Then we jump ahead a bit to Old Wounds, which for very briefly albeit had my money as the best episode of the show. Just the fact that we finally see the seed which was planted back in 1992 with Dick being in college, grow to where we see him call it quits with Bruce and becomes his own agent was wonderful to see and even if you are a major Batman fan and knew Dick would become something more it pays off very well I think. But then comes the crown jewel of the season, Legends Of The Dark Knight. It is so simple but such a loving and wonderful tribute to the iterations of the World's Greatest Detective, where three kids discuss what Batman actually is like. We get a terrific 1950s tribute with a silly Joker, an out there caper, the Dynamic Duo just one stop short of Adam West and Burt Ward revisiting the characters, and it is presented in all it's silver age glory even to the point I myself shouted great scott! Then we flip to the other side of the board where The Dark Knight Returns is presented and while still keeping it's feet firmly in the animation style of the show did such a faithful job getting so many touches of that story, abridging the fight with the mutant leader and giving some fair recognition to Carrie Kelley. I will not however stand for that snub shot to Joel Schumacher, yes I'm in a minority here but the man introduced me to the Batman and made me the fan I am today from Batman Forever alone, I have a lot to owe him. Best episode of the season, probably even top 10 of the whole show. Girl's Night Out at first I thought was going to be another Harley and Ivy romp but turns out all the female costume crowd came out to play, we get Livewire from the Superman Animated Series which I will admit I haven't seen much of but I love her voice and personality a great deal, our favorite girl team is still living together, and both Batgirl and Supergirl team up and even find some solace in each other's opposite lives. This is easily an episode just for the fun match ups and thusly is one of the most fun episodes of the entire show. Beware The Creeper honest to God, the only things I have to say about this episode is that Harley scene, holy moly. And the character of the Creeper practically shouted Freakazoid to me from the word go, I almost was flat out expecting the same voice actor to do both parts. Other than that, pretty crazy but pretty funny. Now we come to a similar problem that the last season had, the last ever episode broadcasted for this show was Mad Love finally laying Harley's backstory bare and seeing her near fatal death which is a positively shocking way to go out. Yet the last episode on my DVD's is Judgement Day, which truthfully is almost if not more shocking and weird to end on as a new face arrives in Gotham and passes sentence on various rogues gallery inductees, and had an almost Psycho-esque ending the more I think about it. The show ends on a fairly creepy note and then that's it. It's all over. So it is an unfortunate circumstance that there really was no definitive ending, but I don't think that was fully a thing for animated shows back then and really, knowing full and well that more shows came out which only built upon the backbone of The Animated Series makes that criticism a moot point, it keeps continuing in some form or another. Batman Beyond, Justice League, the Superman Animated Series, even Static Shock kept this animated DC legacy going. True there are other timelines, universes, whatever you want to call them but this is the one all of them have to thank for even being around. Batman The Animated Series did a tremendous lot for the comics, for the shows, for the games, for an entire generation and then some to this day. Not every episode is a 10/10, not every season has nothing but great things to talk about, it's the overall experience that makes it so good. It's seeing these animators, these creators, these voice actors commit to bringing you Batman and making it accesible and fun for everyone to watch. It's a classic still talked about for a reason, and I just like talking about it. 4 stars, 9/10 for the season but a full 10/10 for the show as a whole, and my lord there is still so much to talk about with the other shows for another day. It can be cruel, poetic, or blind but when denied it's violence you may find in my reviewing mind for The Batman. Will justice be served for all fans?

Batman The Animated Series: Season 3

The end of an era and technically the end of The Animated Series.

This is where the game changes a bit. Time for backstory! Originally Batman The Animated Series was 65 episodes, but Fox ordered twenty more episodes once they saw what a powerhouse show it was, so the show was only two seasons, and even technically the name was changed from Batman The Animated Series to The New Adventures Of Batman & Robin. But as I said I'm reviewing the show based off the volumed releases on DVD which not only splits it into 4 (we'll talk about that next time) seasons but it also plays the episodes in a different order from when they were broadcasted. I actually prefer it the way the DVD's present it which I will elaborate on when we get to the end. I feel though the animation style hasn't changed it's found it's sure footing and still looks really good, you can see subtle improvements throughout the show as you progress. Again, not really delving into productions aspects but discussing the best episodes that stuck out to me. We start off very very strong with the two parter Shadow Of The Bat that introduced Batgirl into the show and has a proper good story as to why she takes up her own secret identity. Another two parter that very much had me hooked is The Demon's Quest where we finally come face to face with Ra's al Ghul played splendidly by David Warner who has such a terrific voice and carries himself flawlessly as Ra's, as he enlists the help of Batman to find both Robin and Talia. You can tell they really did base the Arkham series first and foremost on this show and not just because of the voice cast, they introduce Ra's who is over 600 years old and the lazarus pits and the romance between Bruce and Talia. It's a great episode and hey I'm sure a shirtless Batman dueling with swords was a very eye opening (in more ways than one) experience for a lot of young folks out there. A Bullet For Bullock might be the best underrated gem of this season, not only did it nab the show another Emmy but it finally gives us some one on one time with Harvey, and I love how the show crafted his gruff demeanor and distaste of Batman without making him a completely unlikable jackass, you get so many character moments of him throughout the show but this episode really had a lot to appreciate from me. Right after that comes another big fan favorite episode Trial, where the new DA of Gotham is kidnapped along with the Caped Crusader and is forced to defend him in a kangaroo court of Arkham's finest, with the slight issue of the fact that our DA well she's not a big fan of bats by any stretch either. This is a terrific episode that brings up the question of does Batman really create the supervillains he fights, without being very pretentious in terms of writing and has fun with the idea of a madcap not even barely legal court trial with the Joker as judge, it's a wonderful time with our beloved maniacs. You know what I realized? We get more solo Ra's al Ghul stories in this season than we get solo Joker stories, a trilogy of the demon's head with The Demon's Quest, Avatar which I think is the first episode in this series that unequivocally introduces elements of the supernatural, and Showdown which is kind of a weird off story with Jonah Hex encountering Ra's in the late 1800s, still a good and actiony story in my opinion though it does make me wonder why they decided to introduce Jonah in the first place. Lord knows if I got David Warner on my project I would use him as much as possible too, but it's interesting to see how he stacks up in terms of episodes. I guess you could argue the same could be kinda said in the Dark Knight trilogy but I digress. Harlequinade is a bonkers story pretty much from the word go, somehow....I will never know how, some dipshit gangster gets his hands on an atomic with a capital A-Bomb which is then stolen by the Joker forcing Bats to enlist the help of Harley so Gotham isn't turned into the opening titles of Terminator 2. Granted I like the story and it is unashamedly comic book, which if there is anything I have learned in my entire life is, our lot loves the lavishly ludicrous. Comic books are weird and I wouldn't have them any other way. Top performances from Mark Hamill and Arleen Sorkin, who made me laugh to beat the band. Then we get an episode I don't surprisingly hear that much about with Bane, and I don't know why. This is proper intelligent, cunning, mercenary Bane hired to kill the Bat, and granted up front I haven't read Knightfall it is on my list, but this really really seems like Knightfall Bane in animated form. They get so much character info on him in 22 minutes that would please any hardcore Batman fan, his life sentence in prison, Project Gilgamesh, Bane's obsession with the Bat, his tactical thinking, Venom, he even almost does the back breaker move, and remember Bane wasn't even in the comics yet for 5 years. He was introduced in 1993, so it's impressive how much of an impact he made while the show was still being made to the point where they had to include him. And the hits keep coming with a surprisingly dark, psychological, and kinda depressing ending with Baby Doll where a television star who was born with a rare disease that stops her from aging kidnaps all her co-stars to essentially live the glory days of her career. It's like if you took Misery, Sunset Boulevard, and Orphan, mixed them all together and presented it as an episode of a children's animated show. I mean obviously it doesn't dig super deep in her psychosis or does anything graphic but you can read everything into it and it really is compelling and powerful storytelling. I genuinely get misty eyed at the end in the house of mirrors, it's just such an emotional climax and a f***ing downer to boot. I love it. Then we kinda get into a last hurrah, a victory circuit for some of the rogue's gallery as we reach the end which is probably why they did it in the first place. Riddler's Reform might honestly be my favorite of his episodes, where the Riddler goes straight but not yet he ain't as he is forcefully compelled to give clues and hints to his overall scheme with Batman giving him one puzzle he can't solve. I was surprised how much I enjoyed this episode over his other appearances, and I can't even really narrow it down as to why this is my favorite. I think because the riddles and puzzles are more subtle, and it weaves such an interesting story cause you almost believe Nygma is being legitimate but Batman is fully right when he says he can't stop and always will leave a clue behind. It just further compliments why the Riddler is one of my all time favorites. And right after that we get Second Chance which I almost feel is based off a Two-Face comic, where Harvey is about to have reconstructive surgery but is kidnapped during the operation and Batman takes the case very personally and close to the chest to find Harvey. I cannot fully express how much I love the relationship between Bruce and Harvey in this series, because Harvey is still Bruce's best friend even after what happened to him and Bruce never gives up on his friend and helps him pay for the surgery. I mean you can feel that bond, that care and respect between these two men which only bolsters the tragedy of Harvey Dent, it's some of the show's absolute best writing in my opinion. But we get a light and fun episode with Harley's Holiday where Harley is released from Arkham and through the smallest of misunderstandings kidnaps a young socialite, and then is proceeded to be chased by the Batmobile, the cops, and the socialite's father in a friggin' tank, yes I'm serious. It almost goes for a Smokey And The Bandit vibe with the car chase shenanigans which I greatly appreciate but this is an episode steeped in madness meant for nothing but unadulterated enjoyment which I feel it succeeds at. And then, we finally get the return of Mr. Freeze in Deep Freeze, an episode that while edging towards comic book outlandishness has some of the best animation cells in the show's history and still has the heart and emotion that made Heart Of Ice so damn good and a return of Victor Fries must be applauded, and for those who want the end to his story go read my Subzero review and watch it because it is a great movie and a terrific send off for his character. And now comes the last episode of the season but not the true last episode of The Animated Series, like I said the episodes are not watched in order of broadcast and this is where I get to talk about it. The real last episode of Batman The Animated Series debuted September 15th 1995 entitled The Lion And The Unicorn, a decent episode where Alfred is kidnapped by terrorist Red Claw and some light is shed on Alfred's service in the British Secret Service, and that was how the whole show ended. But the last episode on the last disc of volume 3 is Batgirl Returns, where Babs teams up with Catwoman to find a jewel thief while Robin is on their heels and Bruce isn't even in Gotham leaving the sidekicks to keep track of Selina and her possible double cross and the culprits who stole a jade statue. I think this is actually a terrific and much more appropriate end to the series, it almost reminds me of the Birds Of Prey show with a very similar ending, the sidekicks are looking after the city while Batman is gone and that there will always be another time when crimefighter and wrong doer will cross paths again. I think the dynamic between Barbara and Selina is a strong one and shows a capable but still young Batgirl in her crimefighting career, though I personally do not ship Bruce and Babs on any level as I've gotten older. Regardless, in my opinion the true final episode and a mighty good one to go out on if you ask me. Yet it's not really the end, years went by and a new Batman series came out that follows so closely in the footsteps of this show that I see zero reason why it can't also hold the title of Batman The Animated Series. 4 stars, 10/10, and one more season to cap it off.

Batman The Animated Series: Season 2

It's tricky to review this show cause technically the first season is 65 episodes and only technically had two season so just bear with me.

So obviously there isn't much that has "improved" since the last season since these episodes were made in close proximity to the ones previously reviewed, and the cast reamins the same. So at least for right now this is more of a discussion of episodes that I took great interest in and had things I really wanted to talk about. Perchance To Dream, which is Kevin Conroy's favorite episode of them all is the second episode of this season, and has a premise that works brilliantly. Bruce Wayne wakes up one day to find his parents alive, he's engaged to Selina, and someone else has taken up the mantle of the Batman but he still knows he's Batman, so it becomes this psychological dive into Bruce's mind and his perfect world that he wants no part of. Obviously if this was the basis for a graphic novel they could super easily make it a dark, twisted, psychoanalytical story about Bruce and why he feels compelled to put on the cape and cowl, and that's a book I would gladly read. Robin's Reckoning was a powerhouse two parter for me, finally we get Dick's backstory and origin as Robin as he confronts the man who took his parents life. Honestly, with a few rewrites this could be the episode where he becomes Nightwing, he really clashes with Bruce and his emotions get the better of him. A true classic for a character we haven't spent much time with. The Laughing Fish is another iconic fan favorite, more Joker and Harley action that digs just a tiny bit into Harley's undying affection for him, it's a damn good episode. The Strange Secret Of Bruce Wayne introduces Dr. Hugo Strange (I prefer Professor Strange so we don't mux up our Doctor Strange's.) who through a psychological machine discovers the true identity of Bruce Wayne (Just like Batman Forever!), and places his secret to the highest bidder where Joker, Two-Face, and Penguin bid for it. It's always fun seeing those colorful personalities clash and it's great to have another rogue introduced to the animated series. If You're So Smart Why Aren't You Rich finally gives us The Riddler in a unique potrayal of the character who designed a puzzle video game but seeks vengeance on the boss who fired him, it sort of gives a mix of Frank Gorshin's Riddler with a dash of Jim Carrey's and ultimately this classic iteration voiced by John Glover. Then we get a giant consecutive 4 home run episodes starting off with the pinnacle of fan favorite episode's Almost Got 'Im. People worship this episode, I've rarely seen someone counting down their favorite episodes and it not be #1, and I can attribute that to two points. One, these characters and their interactions is the source of the enjoyment as Joker, Harvey, Penguin, Ivy, and Croc play poker and trade stories about how they almost killed the Bat. Two, you get a lot of stories in one episode, some major bang for your buck. The writing is flawless and it does deserve the love but my personal favorite and wildest is yet to come! Birds Of A Feather comes up next with the Penguin intending on going straight and actually falls for a young socialite, but is the subject of a cruel joke forcing him to be a villain once more. Great story, easily manipulates your emotions in Penguin's favor, and shows a side of the rogue's gallery we don't get to see much. What Is Reality, a mental and expertly animated episode where Riddler crafts a virtual reality headset 25 years before Oculus or Playstation, and traps Comissioner Gordon inside leading Batman and Robin to venture into a world where the Riddler controls all. A bevy of almost trivial knowledge, and ends pretty friggin' dark I gotta say! Speaking of dark. I Am The Night. God. Damn. This is the best episode of the season for me, solely because we see Batman in an emotionally, mentally dark place and after the severe injury of Jim goes into a full on depression. Kevin Conroy if people ever had doubts in their mind about him being the best after this episode are well and truly dead. The angry howlish yells of rage, and melancholic musings of whether or not he's really doing much good absolutely floored me. You can keep your Almost Got 'Im, I will take I Am The Night. The Man Who Killed Batman harbors almost on Elseworld territory as a new and bumbling gangster seemingly albeit accidentally murders Batman, and the whole criminal underworld and more importantly the Joker has some words for him. It plainly paints the relationship between Batman and Joker effortlessly and beautifully, culminating in one of the best character eulogies I've ever heard that nearly made me cry from laughter. And we end the season once more with a bang showcasing Harley & Ivy, as Harley is booted from Joker's gang and forms her own criminal dynasty with Poison Ivy and this is where we get the 411 in all it's terrible detail on Harley's codependence and how Ivy tries to get her to be more independent. It's a real fun episode and obviously has a lot of impact on both these wonderful characters decades to come. So another incredibly strong series, with very few episodes that would be considered skippable by the uninitiated, but we are initiated aren't we? So watch them all, judge for yourself, there be gems here for sure but you'd be surprised how well handled all of them are. Another 10/10? I genuinely would say yeah, even more deserving perhaps than the first season which still knocked it out of the park unconditionally. 4 stars, 10/10, and if memory serves the game changes next time. Tune in tomorrow, same time same channel!

Batman The Animated Series: Season 1

If series 13 of Doctor Who has taught me anything, it's to elaborate fully on my points. So from henceforth if a show deems it necessary, each review will be split into parts. This is most definitely one of those shows and the bulk of this entire series will be contained in the first season.

So, where exactly to start with Batman The Animated Series? Well apologies up front for not reviewing it sooner, given my reputation for all batmedia. I was heavily late to the party when the show was airing in it's hayday, so I strangely enough was introduced to this show not through the Cartoon Network but by one single VHS tape that I still own after all this time. Now keep in mind at such a young age I saw only Batman Forever, Batman & Robin, and Batman Returns, in that order even so my knowledge of Batman was increased tenfold watching the show as I grew up, and the Arkham games pushed it to a partial encyclopedic knowledge roughly 10 years later. The first episode I ever watched actually caps off the first season, and I'm splitting this up not how it was broadcasted but by my good old season collections on DVD, with Dreams In Darkness so we'll come to that in good time. It's almost overwhelming to get to talk about this show because I genuinely could go on for longer than anyone would read. I could easily make a 10 part retrospective on the show's history alone so I'll summarize briefly. In the gaps between the Burton and Schumacher eras plans were set for an animated Batman show that was just as much for adults as it was kids. It kickstarted in 1992 and almost singlehandedly changed the game of animated shows in the first episode. The animation, dark and stylized quite literally being drawn on black paper so every frame is seeped in shadow and black so the animation team had to know better than anyone how to work with light, color, and movement creating a whole new style dubbed dark deco by the creators. It looks good to this day with gorgeous backgrounds, sharp lines, excellent use of color and shading, I think there are videos upon videos dissecting and revelling in this unique animation style. The cast while dipping it's toes in the celebrity department is mostly made up of then not well known actors, but now my God I'd almost dare say this was one of the first shows where people really started paying attention to who was voicing what character. Kevin Conroy has cemented a legacy as the Dark Knight, the voice that has lasted generations and only has just recently stepped into live action, is THE Batman to so many people above even Michael Keaton, living and breathing the character for 30 years now. And lest we forget the clown prince of crime himself, Mark Hamill. Okay. Who.....the hell, thought when they were making this show, you know who we should consider for the archnemesis of Batman? Luke Skywalker. How? Why? What? It seems so out there, but surprise surprise he is in a league of his own, once again pretty much beating out every actor as THE Joker for so many folks, and has secured a legacy of madness that will continue for a very, very long time. 10/10! The cast alone once more could take ages to praise in turn, so I'll throw out my all time favorites a giant round of applause for voicing these villains. Richard Moll as Two-Face solidified him as my forever favorite villain of Batman's rogues gallery, Tommy Lee Jones got me on board but this man made me stick around. Henry Polic the II was the first new villain I knew in this show, introducing me to the master of fear the Scarecrow and maaan what a splendid job he did. I know this is sacrilegious but because of this show if you asked me my top 5 Batman villians even today, the Joker is #5, Mr. Freeze is #4, Riddler is #3, Scarecrow is #2, and Two-Face takes the #1 spot. He did that good a job, not really scaring me too bad but endlessly owning my attention when he was on screen. Scarecrow's episodes are always a highlight for me. Michael Ansara as Victor Fries. I gotta wait. We're gonna talk episodes later on and there will be much to say about Heart Of Ice and this character. Put a pin in that, we'll come back to that. Those were the big standouts for me this season, and I couldn't love them more, both actor and character, and no doubt more will come in the other 3 seasons. Not ever to discredit or shy away from the rest of the cast, Bob Hastings is a great Jim Gordon and was a good addition to Pat Hingle's version. Loren Lester though shockingly only in two episodes as Robin shows not the boy wonder but the Dick Grayson college student version of his character and does it well, can't wait to see more in future episodes. Efrem Zimbalist Jr. gives so much wit and humor to Alfred, and while my heart forever belongs to Michael Gough in the role, with unfathomable levels of love and admiration for both Alan Napier, Michael Caine, and Sean Pertwee's renditions, gives a strong and memorable performance. I can't point out a bad performance, even in a bit player, so onwards to music. I love it, from the opening theme, to the ending theme, to the reoccuring villain motifs, to the score for each individual episode. Shirley Walker and her team practically was 1/3 of the success of the show, giving us that dark moody and even triumphant music that accentuates the adventure. Never once does the music not give me goosebumps throughout the entire first season at one point or another, that's the power we are talking about here. Onto the fun part as we discuss what I consider to be the best episodes of the season. Obviously I have to give a shoutout to On Leather Wings the first epsiode, it has some very good animation and sets the tone for the show perfectly, and once the studio execs saw it they had a heck of a lot more faith in the show. Christmas With The Joker follows up on that and it's actually really fascinating to see the show not give a ton of buildup for these iconic characters, it does the character justice but nowadays it's almost all about the buildup to see a certain character, but it's a very fun episode and gaves us the first hit off Mark Hamill's performance and laughter. After that we have Nothing To Fear which not only introduces Scarecrow in a very good way but is the episode with the honor of having the whole I am vengeance lines, and personally has one of the most hair raising scary Batman moments, I mean sweet lord I actually recommend the episode more for that than the I am Batman part. POV is flat out another animated tribute to Akira Kurosawa this time the influence being Rashomon, and any episode with Renee Montoya is a win for me. I actually will give credit to the show for setting up Harvey Dent several times and not just introduce him when he is disfigured, showing up in the first episode, he dates Poison Ivy which is pretty wild and her introduction episode as well is a standout, but this was it man. This was the episode to cement Two-Face as my favorite, giving Harvey a split personality even before going full on villain and introduced two parters to the series, it's a terrific episode and the entire design of Two-Face is nothing short of classic. The Penguin oddly enough is introduced in one of the more kid centered episodes, of course it's a show for kids but this takes it to another level with two young children saving Batman's life and tries to hide him away from the clutches of the Penguin. It's not a terrible episode, not even a pandering or cheesy episode, but you can tell this one was for the kiddos I mean the title is I've Got Batman In My Basement for crying out loud. But boooooy do we switch gears fast with Heart Of Ice. It literally is just as good as people make it out to be, taking a one off villain from the comics and adding so much pathos and tragedy to it that it's not difficult to see why this is the episode that got this show an Emmy. Michael Ansara knocks it out of the park from line one and it just goes to show how big an impact this character made. I mean every Batman adaptation since, even Batman & Robin does his origin this way, because it has such an emotional impact, because he is such a well written villain, I mean the first season is either getting a 9 or full 10/10 but Heart Of Ice alone gets a 10/10. Then we meet Selina in The Cat And The Claw, again an absurdly good introduction to the character and nails the Batman/Catwoman dynamic effortlessly. Adrienne Barbeau is perfect casting and I like how Selina and Bruce's relationship evolves through this two parter, I genuinely love their interactions and couldn't wait to see her next episode. Now it's time to talk about Beware The Gray Ghost. Holy mother and great scott! Wow wow wow. What a perfect example of art imitating life with Adam West the Bright Knight himself, as the childhood hero of Bruce and teams up with the Batman in his older years. It's a gorgeous and loving tribute to the legend himself, and does dig into what happened after he put up the cape and cowl all those years ago. 11/10, the Gray Ghost is my hero. Feat Of Clay is a solid two parter introducing Clayface, once again introducing an element of tragedy to how he became the way he is and is a story I don't hear many people talk about but it's worth the time. Again sort of following up that case of characters showing up without much fanfare, Harley Quinn just kind of pops up in Joker's Favor, and I betcha' a million bucks no kid or adult who saw it live back then would know how much love and attention this character would get. It does reinforce how much I miss Arleen Sorkin and even I'm a bit perplexed how Harleen got so much popularity in the coming years, and we're talking long before even Margot Robbie got the part, but it's wonderful to see her all the same. Scarecrow appears once again in Fear Of Victory, get used to me shining a lot of light on his epsiodes, with a unique villain plot and once again kind of another blood rushing creepy moment that I can only imagine freaked kids out something fierce back then. An Appointment In Crime Alley is easily one of the best Batman stories to come out of this show, it introduces Leslie Thompkins and without one word of dialogue shows everything you need to know about her relationship with Bruce and it does have in my opinion one of the strongest and emotional endings to any of the episodes. Mad As A Hatter, one of my favorites when I was younger and thoroughly obsessed with Alice In Wonderland, a good introduction to a lesser known villain but made very memorable through the story. Here we go again, Scarecrow part the third with Dreams In Darkness, the first episode I ever saw of this show and man I got a lot of memories about this. I watched it a ton and it really got my imagination going at such a young age, easily the reason why I hold Scarecrow so highly. I love the story, the animation for the hallucinations, I still want that awesome pocket watch, it's another stand out for me and I'm glad to see it get a lot of appreciation. I hope there's been some videos to really delve into these episodes because what they did for animation, television, and comics cannot be understated. It's such a rich show that has so much to offer, even in an episode like The Forgotten you can still enjoy it, it's very well written, innovatively animated, and just fun to watch. I doubt it's no secret the first quarter of this show gets the full 4 stars, 10/10, and I hope that trend continues as we dig straight into season 2 tomorrow.

Batman And Harley Quinn

Before I start this review I would just like to say, what the f*** was that??

Okay I'm gonna level with you, I really really, let me say that one more time, REALLY did not think this was going to be good. I saw the trailer for this and it looked like hot garbage, and I was half correct. At some points I was very much enjoying this little animated feature but other times I just rolled my eyes and wanted it to end prematurely. I know my history with the DC animated movies is peppered at best, but I just really haven't strongly agreed with the way they do things. Now am I saying they can't make something incredibly interesting and entertaining? Of course not. But this is the prime example of what I would call a hot mess. But what's the story for this oddball cartoon? Well Poison Ivy and the Floronic Man are creating a special serum to transform all fleshy creatures into plant hybrids, with Batman and Nightwing getting the help of Harley Quinn for some weird ass reason to stop them. Now the idea of a Batman/Harley Quinn story could be incredibly interesting if used properly, and indeed the character interactions for the most part are handled very well and even the humor hit more than missed, but...whew, when they strike out they strike out. So let's talk about the good stuff first. The cast is actually really damn good, of course we have Kevin Conroy as Batman and gives his stamp of quality, I did give Melissa Rauch some good grief over her voice the first time I heard it but she won me over quick as Harley and din't bother me at all, Paget Brewster I think is one of the best voices of Ivy in the past decade, and Loren Lester is a bit of fun as Nightwing. The animation style is a dream, bringing back The New Batman Adventures sleek and modernized character designs with classic additions from The Animated Series throughout, it was a joy to see that gorgeous car again some 15 years later. And I won't dare even spoil how Harley turns Ivy off this evil plan, but it is so goddang funny I could barely breathe. Again, the character interactions are done well and do still feel like your watching an extension of The Animated Series, and the humor struck more than missed for me. However! On the flip side some of the character interactions wanted me to bleach my eyeballs and bash my head in with a meat tenderizer. And when the humor fails it's almost uncomfortably bad, but I find it only fails when they force a stupid joke instead of it just being humorous dialogue between characters with a history. It's ridiculously short, barely clocking in past one hour so it keeps the momentum and pace incredibly quick and never once does it get dull. It's just such a mixed bag, and a hot mess to boot. I just really hate how they try to shove so much adult stuff in there, like I swear to the celestial beings if I took a shot every time I saw Harley Quinn's ass I'd be pretty hammered. The language isn't that big a problem for me but sometimes it does feel like a lot. I thought the point of animation was to market your product to every age group possible not just "adult" angsty teens who love to hear cuss words. Which is why I'm really super hesitant to watch that animated Harley Quinn series, it's embarassing. We don't watch animated films for sexual situations and adult language, we watch them to see good animation, and really good characters. Now we did get that in this movie but it is bogged down just a teeny tiny little bit with the other stuff. Did I still nerd out over the throwback aesthetic and easter egss, oh hell yeah. Would I probably watch it again, hell no but I walked away with a mostly positive experience anyway. Personally, I would say just watch a few clips of it on YouTube and call it a day. 3 stars, 6.5/10, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be but I still had issues and unfortunately I'm out of tissues. I am also severely dissapointed in you if you thought that was a dirty joke.

Next time, a short lived series that may have something to it.

Batman & Mr. Freeze: Subzero

You know what, this was better than when I watched it as a kid!

Subzero was a direct to video movie released in 1998, and was a personal favorite of mine. I saw this before I saw any episodes of Batman The Animated Series with Mr. Freeze and even before Mask Of The Phantasm if memory serves correctly, and I really loved it as a kid and I daresay I love it even more now knowing the character of Victor Fries and where his story goes in this universe. The story while basic is a very, very good story dealing with Mr. Freeze capturing Barbara Gordon in an organ transplant to save his wife, with Batman and Robin hot on his trail. It may not sound that special but the greatness lies in the details and technicals. Now you may be thinking, "Oh it's a direct to video movie, this is gonna suck. Every direct to video movie nowadays is definition of bottom of the barrel." but I can safely tell you this is far from the truth. The quality is same throughout from jumping to The Animated Series to this and even beyond to The New Batman Adventures and Batman Beyond, all the alumni that worked on the show worked on this movie, all the writers, directors, voice actors so it doesn't feel out of place. Animation is great, but I don't need to tell you that cause you already know. But! This movie combines hand drawn animation with 3D animation, the backgrounds and sometimes entire scenes are computer generated. Now granted they did that in Mask Of The Phantasm but it was used only for the opening titles, this uses it throughout but...they genuinely make it work. When I was a kid I had no idea they did that, it all looked hand drawn and while it is more noticeable now, it does not hurt the movie. Just, everything is so good! Characters are beyond stand out here! And now, comes the part where I gush to you the people, of the glory of Batman and The Animated Series, but as my reviewers always say, if you gotta do it...do it all out. Oh my God, Mr. Freeze. Now remember, this was my introduction to the character, I never saw Heart Of Ice so I never knew his backstory. And yet, this movie made me really like him, his suit is amazing, his ice gun is cool (Don't think about that too much or you might hurt me.), I understood why he was doing what he did and now so many years later, Mr. Freeze is easily in my top 5 Batman rogues gallery ever. Michael Ansara is beyond brilliant, and I miss him dearly. The relationship between Dick and Barbara I felt had much more impact on me now than it did when I was young, there is a genuine love for one another and there's one brief scene with the two of them alone and it is wonderful, I especially also loved the fact they made Dick older, like college student older cause it pays off when you see him as Nightwing so good job guys. Batman, it's Kevin Conroy so I give him 10/10. 10/10. 100/100! Best Batman. BEST BATMAN. Moving on. For a movie that is barely over an hour, it clocks in at an hour and 6 minutes, it is not rushed. The movie knows when to take it's time, and when to kick it into high paced action and the action is really good. I was surprised how much I loved this movie, I always enjoyed watching it when I was younger but now I feel I have fully appreciated it. The art, the story, the characters, just all the elements between them are too good. It's too good. I could go on for...a while, let's just say that, about the character interactions and the importance of the story and the lasting effects it has on the Diniverse that encompasses all the Batman animated shows, Justice League, Batman Beyond, all that. And this was really the last hurrah for the classic Animated Series before The New Batman Adventures premiered with a new art style, new characters, and crossovered with Superman The Animated Series. See, even back then about 20 years ago DC had crossover TV shows. The ending is very bittersweet, and seeing the evolution of Mr. Freeze's character down the road makes it almost heart breaking. No scratch that, it's friggin' heart wrenching! Granted, it is for your Batman fans in life, kids can enjoy it but I think older teenagers can appreciate it. And we got one more, shock of all shocks one I have never seen (Dun dun duuh!) so I am looking forward to that. Have always heard good things about it, gonna finally see it tomorrow, I am on cloud 9, goodnight everybody!

Assault On Arkham

This is an excellent stepping stone into the world of the Suicide Squad.

Assault On Arkham is the perfect way to be introduced to the Suicide Squad before the new movie hits this Friday, and I figured it would be great to talk about. So the story of this movie is Amanda Waller, head of the Special Taskforce X better known to us as the Suicide Squad, gathers both veteran members and new members to break into Arkham Asylum and take back government plans stolen by The Riddler. But all is not what it appears to be. I have to say, I have owned this movie for about a year and it is still just a blast to watch, no matter how many times you see it. The animation is great, the voice acting is great, the characters are great, it's just great. Major props to both the script and the music, which are the real highlights of this movie. The script itself is hilarious, action packed, and does a good job building the world even though it is based in the Arkham universe that the succesful video games are set in. I believe this takes place after Arkham Origins but before Arkham Asylum but you really don't need to play the games to appreciate the movie. The music is bombastically badass with almost techno music mixed with a sort of honky tonk rock and roll music, it surprisingly works well. Another great aspect is the fact that the movie is, and I kid you not barely over an hour. An hour and fifteen minutes to be exact. Now surely you can find that kind of time to watch a movie, especially if you want to learn more about the Suicide Squad or are excited for the new movie. Either way, see if you can track it down before Friday, I think you will enjoy it. Until then, pizza party!

The Killing Joke

This really kills me but I did not like The Killing Joke.

Oh, not the graphic novel which is excellent, not the whole movie, but...parts. In advance I'd like to apologize for my rants and anger, but I take issue with this movie. Now this is an R rated movie and I think subject material like The Killing Joke deserves an R rating, so be advised it is not for anybody under the age of at least 17. But that is not the issue, the issue is the first half, or at least I'm pretty damn sure the first half because I didn't time it but whatever, has nothing to do with the graphic novel. It's backstory to make the events of The Killing Joke more impactful and disturbing to view, and in the book no such thing existed and it was for the better! I hate this backstory bullcrap! It kinda pisses on the lore but also is actually part of the lore, so basically Batman and Batgirl are the only superheroes in Gotham, there's no Robin but they fight crime together...but are also in a relationship. I do not hate the idea but the film takes it too far for me, you hear about it in the Batman Beyond series where Barbara talks about dating Bruce for a short period and I rolled with that! But they ruined it for me, I saw so much coming ahead even though I have never seen this material before in this movie, it's so God dang predictable and stock! The backstory didn't need to be this long damn it, it should have been 10 to 15 minutes of pretty much a montage of how good a team Bruce and Babs were together, and that they loved and cared about each other. But instead they drag it out to about 30 minutes of crap, where they bicker, and argue, and fight only to have makeup sex on a fraking rooftop!!! I hate this. I hate it with a passion. It's so contrived and it just feels wrong in so many places. Why did it have to be this long?! Just set up a bit of character arc and move on with the damn story! But once the REAL Killing Joke goes underway, shock of all shocks, it's great! Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill nail it, it may not be their absolute best performances in the Batman universe but damn does it do justice to the story. The animation style is kind of hard to explain, it doesn't look like any other Batman animated movie or series. It looks good but looks a bit too cartoony in some places. The music is very Bernard Hermann-esque with heavy strings and moody and tension filled pieces, so I enjoyed that. There's one scene I absolutely have to mention, that's pretty much like one great big easter egg with Batman in the Batcave and he pulls up the Joker's file which includes several pictures, all of which are taken from the decades of potrayals of the character. You see the comic version from the 1940s, you see Cesar Romero's Joker disguised as Pagliacci just like in the Adam West series, and even Heath Ledger's Joker when he's in the jail cell at GCPD! I friggin' loved that with one tiny issue. The last picture is a picture of a toy factory used as a hideout by the Joker, and it is a straight up screenshot of his hideout in the Batman Beyond movie Return Of The Joker. No difference. How does he have that? Unless it's a repeat hideout for him, I ain't buying it Bruce! That doesn't happen until you're like 80 or something like that. Jesus Christ, I am so torn between this movie. I am borderline schizophrenic over it, the first half is garbage with a few good parts, and the second half is great with a few bad parts. I don't even know if I would buy it. I want you to think about that for a second! Me, the Dark Knight nerd that would, should, and could ever be is seriously considering NOT buying this. I am not even honestly sure if I can recommend it! What is this?? This mess of garbage and greatness, teaming fanfiction a 16 year old would write with Alan fraking Moore!!! I'm gonna need a minute. To tell you the truth, the best part of the entire movie is literally the last scene. You know how sometimes you watch an animated something or other and you say to yourself, "These are people talking in a recording booth." and I cannot ever say that about the last scene. It is perfect. Perfect animation, perfect voice acting, just perfect everything. It is like the characters from the book leaped onto the screen. Sheer perfection. And I would recommend the movie just for that very last scene, but I beg of you please, please do not watch the first half. Skip to the actual Killing Joke segment. I implore you, I beg of you, do not watch that flashback trash because if you see it, it will taint you forever. I made a promise in that theater. Never again. Watch the movie if you like, but I don't think I can go back. Not to this anyway. And it's something I have to live with for the rest of my life. There is no going back, and it drives one to madness.

Until next time...

The Batman Superman Movie: World's Finest

This was the standard of a Batman and Superman movie for almost 20 years.

I remember watching this as a little kid and I enjoyed it a lot, and all these years later it is still good. Released almost 20 years before the Batman fought the Man Of Tomorrow , this movie takes a different approach to the team up, although it does share some similar factors with the new movie. Batman and Superman have been doing their own things in Metropolis and Gotham, until one day both The Joker and Lex Luthor team up to kill both Batman and Superman. This causes the Dark Knight and the Man Of Steel to team up and stop their plans from, you guessed it taking over the world. The single most best element of this movie is that it takes place in the Animated Series universe or the Diniverse as fans call it, the universe where both Batman The Animated Series and Superman The Animated Series are found. If you were a fan of either of these shows, then you pretty much know the mythos and the voice acting and the animation style. All the original cast of both shows are here, and really that's half the fun of this movie. How would Superman and Batman talk to one another? Would they fight or work together? What would Joker and Lex be working towards and all the stuff that would happen between them? And in this universe, they do it pretty well. You can believe like, this is what would happen if these two met. And that's where the cast shines in this movie. They get to do something that is not what they do on a regular basis. Kevin Conroy and Tim Daly show that despite their different stances, Batman and Superman could work together costumes or not. Mark Hamill is glorious as always and it's just so funny to see him paired up with Clancy Brown's very serious Lex Luthor, you just don't see that anywhere else. If you want a good prelude to the new Batman V. Superman movie this would be a good place to start. And the film's running time is, and I kid you not...one hour. Just one hour. And they do a spectacular job with everything they put into such a short movie. Unfortunately I couldn't really find it anywhere besides in stores but the DVD is only $5 so it's not a waste of money. Whichever Batman and Superman movie you see first, I hope you enjoy both.

Batman Beyond Return Of The Joker

This is both a new and old Batman movie, made in late 2000 but taking place when Batman is in his 80's.

The story follows Terry McGinnis as the new Batman of the future, fighting new enemies and the greatest foe of the original Batman seemingly back from the dead. Where this movie excels greatly is the tone of the plot and the character dynamics between Batman and the Joker. And of course having the original voices for the Joker and Batman, Mark Hamill and Kevin Conroy makes it that much greater. And the best scene in the movie I sadly can't tell you about because it has massive spoilers, and the reason why it is the best scene is because of how personal and how dark and disturbing it gets. It really does push the envelope as to what you can put in a kids movie. Now this movie actually has two versions, a PG and a PG-13 rating and the PG-13 version is the much better version so if you ever want to rent or buy this movie go for that version. One thing I am genuinely surprised at is how much story and very good character development they got in this not even an hour and a half movie. Yeah, this movie is barely over an hour long, so running time is no problem whatsoever. I'm serious I watched this movie right before I had to leave for work. They did a great job with this movie, and one thing I have noticed while watching all these animated Batman movies this week is how timeless they are, you have no real idea of the time frame of these movies and there is no real indication of what year they were made because the animation and voice acting is so outstanding. If I ever get around to composing my top 10 animated Batman movies you will most likely see all of these on it. You guys have got to give these movies a shot even if you are not the hardcore Batman fan like myself. These movies are really good, very well put together, and just give great stories, so of course I am going to recommend them. See if these movies make you more of a Batman fan or less of a Batman fan. I hope you enjoy them.