Creator – Bill Finger (Batwoman, Titans)
Starring – Rino Romano (The Batman vs. Dracula, Spider-Man), Alastair Duncan (Wizards, Stillwater), and Evan Sabara (Dinosaur, Malcolm in the Middle)
Release Date – 2004
Rating – 4/5
Blu Release – 4/5
When I was in middle and high school I was an avid Nickelodeon fan. Even up until adulthood I found myself still watching Nick. I grew up during their Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Aaahh! Real Monsters, and All That years but during my teenage years I was still watching shows like Danny Phantom, The Fairly Odd Parents, and Avatar: The Last Air Bender. It’s because I was so dedicated to Nick that I often missed out on the DC and Marvel shows because they aired on other networks.
I didn’t get to watch shows about Batman, Superman, Spider-Man, and so on during those years which is something I’ve come to regret. Not too long ago I received The Batman: The Complete Series on blu to review. This show originally aired when I was in high school in 2004 and ended in 2008. I knew of it but never took the time to check it out. Sadly, after watching it now I have to admit I feel like a fucking fool for sleeping on it. It was a lot of fun.
**Spoiler Alert** The series begins one year after Bruce Wayne (Romano) takes to the night to fight crime as Batman. Bruce learns to work as billionaire philanthropist during the day and crime fighter at night while stopping villains like Scarface, Joker, Firefly, and Mr. Freeze. **Spoiler Alert**
The Batman was a lot more entertaining than I thought it was going to be. The episodes don’t overstay their welcome and the characters they give us are awesome new renditions of the classic characters we’ve grown to love. It’s a lot of fun and only gets better with each episode.
The voice acting in this one is one of the only aspects of the show that I didn’t care for. Honestly, this isn’t my first outing with Romano as Bruce Wayne but he just doesn’t feel right in this show. I know it’s meant to depict a younger Wayne in his infancy as Batman but his voice just doesn’t feel right to me. He’s not bad but his voice just doesn’t fit as the caped crusader. With that being said, I was a fan of the rest of the voice acting and the cameos the show saw. We get some great work from legends like Clancy Brown, Udo Kear, Mitch Pileggi, and Adam West just to name a few. Such a fantastic ensemble.
The story for this show doesn’t really deviate too far from the source material. Most of the characters do get a more modern adaptation that I think works especially if you have lived through all the films and newer shows that try to capture them like they are in the comics. Seeing the newer looks does give the viewer something different to enjoy. With that being said, each episode is a lot of fun and even the later seasons are still very much enjoyable. This animated series doesn’t lose any steam.
Finally, it took me a few episodes to warm up to the animation but once I did I actually found myself enjoying it. It is exactly as you would expect from an animated series in the early 2000s. It has amazing colors and the detail on the characters are great. Overall, The Batman is a fantastic series that I feel a lot of fans slept on it when it originally aired. I had a lot of fun with it and if my son ever takes a moment to slow down and actually watch television I will show him this one. I highly recommend it.
Special Features:
The Dark Dynasty Continues (New Featurette)
Joining Forces: The Batman’s Legendary Team-Ups (Featurette)
The Batman Junior Detective Challenge (Quiz)
The Batman Junior Detective Exam: Level 2 (Quiz)
Building Batman (Featurette)
Gotham PD Case Files (Featurette)
New Look, New Direction, New Knight (Featurette)
The Batman: Season 3 Unmasked (Featurette)
The Batman: Season 4 Unmasked (Featurette)
