Many of them just don't match up to the same standards of B:TAS, such as the overly rushed "Chemistry", where Bruce Wayne (along with most of Gotham's elite) is swept off his feet, the big bugs and cow monsters of "Critters", the single most hated episode of the entire run of the show, and "The Demon Within" and its over-reliance on magic, something that seems sorely out of place in a series like Batman. That's not a patently incorrect interpretation of the Dark Knight, but nothing's shown on-screen to lead up to that sort of dramatic change, so it really doesn't ring true.Īs much of a rabid fan of Batman: The Animated Series as I am, watching these episodes was much more of an effort than the other Batman box sets. Batman himself is a much colder character, showing little of the heart from Batman: The Animated Series and even doing appalling things like mercilessly beating a flunkie in front of his family for information.
It's a odd mix because even though many of the stories seem geared towards a younger audience, the censors have lightened up, so the villains can use words like 'murder' and 'kill' more freely, its female characters (especially Harley Quinn) are less subtle with the sexual innuendo, and there's even a little blood. Batgirl and a new, younger Robin are shoehorned into almost every episode, and that occasionally drags the show down too. Comic book action is generally emphasized over the sorts of stories Batman: The Animated Series used to tell, largely devoid of the depth and tragedy its characters once boasted. Gotham Knights skews younger, unnecessarily zooming in on certain signs and objects, overexplaining things in case the kids watching don't follow, and often sticking to blander and more straightforward stories. Rewatching the box sets Warner has issued over the past year and a half, I find myself as engaged by them now in my mid-twenties as I was when I first saw them half a lifetime ago. One aspect of Batman: The Animated Series that has always impressed me is that even though it was a weekday afternoon cartoon based on a popular comic book character, it didn't pander to a younger audience. One of the more distinctive changes is that the yellow moon on Batman's chest is gone, an alteration that makes it easy to distinguish one of these episodes from the previous animated incarnation. Others didn't fare so well, especially the much blander looking Riddler, and I have mixed feelings about the older, frailer Jim Gordon and the beady-eyed look of the Joker.
Sometimes the changes worked The Scarecrow is a much more ominous, disturbing figure now, and I like the exaggerated, deranged look of The Mad Hatter. This half of The New Batman/Superman Adventures, unofficially nicknamed Gotham Knights, isn't just more of the same, though.Īlthough the general look of Batman: The Animated Series is still in place, many of the character designs have been revamped, making them sharper, more angular, and somewhat stripped down. After Batman: The Animated Series wrapped up its long, successful run on Fox, a revised version of the series - with most of the same talent in tow - popped up as part of the animation block on Kids' WB.