Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Batman - The Complete Animated Series Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman November 8, 2018

In 1989, Tim Burton didn't necessarily reinvent Batman, but he did bring the darker side of The Dark Knight, many of the noir-inspired visuals and themes and character arcs from so many of the comics, into the mainstream. Prior, it was mostly the dedicated comic book readers who really knew the darker side of DC's, and perhaps all of comic's, most popular crime fighter. Mainstream audiences were more aware of the character from the whacky world of the 1960s live action TV show that featured The Dynamic Duo battling familiar villains in a comically bent and colorfully stylized manner. Burton's film changed things and paved the way for not only his own sequel Batman Returns and Joel Schumacher's more curiously hybrid sequels, Batman Forever and Batman & Robin, but also the beautifully dark and instantly compelling Batman: The Animated Series. Indeed, in the middle of all of those cinematic ventures came what was, and arguably remains, the definitive Batman, particularly in the long form (most fans would argue the Christopher Nolan films to be the finest single works the franchise has seen). The animated series didn't just shy away from the 60s TV show and the zany 1970s adaptations (such as Super Friends) or the standard rhythm and flow of toy tie-in cartoons from the 1980s. Rather, it abandoned them entirely. Batman: The Animated Series returned the character to the dark, gritty, violent, and emotionally unstable world of Gotham City. He faced fully defined and motivated villains, battled personal crises, and the show embraced the shadows and savagery that are essential in telling the tales of Batman, his rogue's gallery, and the greater Gotham landscape. Creators Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski took the best of the world's storied history -- a "distillation" as Timm calls it, capturing the "mood, mystery, atmosphere...and superhero action" from the comic's sprawling history -- and crafted a compelling and landscape-changing cartoon that to this day remains a treasure of the Batman, DC, and comics-at-large landscape.

The Dark Knight...Animated.

The Animated Series may be darker and more violent than past iterations or even its animated peers from the time period, but the show is much more than the sum of its noir visuals and mood, the total number of bullets fired or punches thrown, or the occasions when the title character, and a few of his allies, square off against the storied villains, who are so prominent in the show and so deeply explored well beyond their superficial actions and motives that it has been suggested that it is they who are the show's protagonists, with Batman the antagonist standing in the way of their would-be successful criminal ventures. It's a welcome paradigm shift that allows the episodes to more deeply and fundamentally challenge the audience by more fully discovering the villains, revealing their origins stories, and exploring the psychological makeup that makes them who they are. While watching Batman take it to them, make use of his various gadgets, beat up bad guys or chase them down in the Batmobile, and save the day represent the collective stories at their most crude level of approach, it's the show's willingness to explore the rogue's gallery as much as, if not more so than, the title character that really makes the show work, and that exploration comes not out of obligation but rather out of love for their stories. Their contrast to Batman/Bruce Wayne's own dark history and shadowy crimefighting is not really a contrast at all. The Animated Series reveals his opponents as equally wounded, sometimes even weary, individuals who have taken what life has given them but pursued a different outlet for dealing with the darkness. They -- Batman and his foes -- are not as dissimilar as one might believe, which is perhaps exemplified in Batman's relationship with Catwoman, both of whom operate more in a gray area between good and evil, which is sometimes the case for any of the villains portrayed in the show.

Enticing visuals, engaging action, and electric characters mean little for an animated series if they are not voiced with enthusiasm and energy. The Animated Series is blessed with a terrific cast that does more than inhabit the character; it understands them, builds them from the inside, and feels their psychological makeup and the often dark, but real, place from which come their pains and evil ways. Kevin Conroy does not simply gruff up his voice for Batman but rather embodies all of those characteristics. Whether as Batman or Bruce Wayne, the lifetime of hurt, crime fighting, and toeing that line between right and wrong, hero and vigilante, and the increasing physical turmoil and emotional anguish are all embodied in each syllable. Conroy says that the character is Batman, that his approach to the role was not to voice Batman as Bruce Wayne's alter ego but rather Bruce Wayne as Batman's secret identity, that the individual has become the crime fighter, not the billionaire playboy, in his heart. It's an eye-opening and very valid approach that makes for a fun exercise to to put on any Superhero living a double life (think Superman). Mark Hamill's take on The Joker is another brilliant stroke of casting, even if he was a last-minute replacement for Tim Curry. Hamill's ability to take the character's comically sinister façade and blend it with a more significant characterization makes for a brilliant combination, finding an appropriate middle ground between the over-the-top theatrics from the Cesar Romero take on the character and the more brilliantly dark and disturbing take the late Heath Ledger would offer some years later.

This set also includes two previously released Batman animated films. Please click through the links below for full feature, video, audio, and supplementary content reviews.

• Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
• Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero

Batman - The Complete Animated Series Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Batman: The Complete Animated Series makes its long-anticipated Blu-ray debut in 1080p high definition, framed at its original 1.33:1 (4x3) aspect ratio which preserves the broadcast specifications and presentation parameters as were standard at the time of the show's initial airing. The resultant image, with vertical "black bars" on either side of the 1.78:1 panel, look marvelous, generally, with a few caveats to keep in mind. First, the bad. Speckling and debris are not uncommon. The opening sequence is particularly troublesome in this area, but episodes do reveal a fairly steady, albeit generally light, infestation. Most of the time, though, such do not prove distracting. A little more serious is background banding and compression artifacts. Almost never is this issue more prominent than it is right out of the gate in episode one, beginning with a scene featuring a security guard speaking into a tape recorder only minutes in. Such occurrences can be found in many places, but but not always to the same level of distracting severity. Finally, a few obviously lower resolution shots and scenes are interspersed throughout. They are rare but do make a negative visual impact, particularly if they extend for any length of time. Take a look at the episode "Riddler's Reform." Around the 7- and 9-minute marks are rather extended sequences where the lower resolution is obvious (though still obviously encoded in 1080p), featuring jagged lines, false colors, softer elements, and a more limited color range.

The transfer's good qualities far outweigh the bad. Clarity is tremendous. The animated imagery translates exceptionally well to Blu-ray. The picture is crisp, firm, finely detailed, and richly colored. The clarity and visibility of small details in the animation -- such as costume details, environments, even smudges and signs of wear that reveal the animators' careful, detailed renderings -- come to life on Blu-ray like never before. Character definition is particularly stout, with organic movement and stability to match. Static backgrounds are a joy beyond the occasional banding and macroblcoking elements, revealing richly layered and complex renderings with ease. Colors are a standout. The show defaults to a noir-inspired darkness favoring plenty of black and shades of gray and blue (Batman's costume most prominently beyond less dynamically colored Gotham environments and nighttime interiors and exteriors), but colorful costumes worn by characters such as Robin, Joker, Riddler, and Harley Quinn are bold and true, if not a bit lacking in nuance by nature. Brighter scenes additionally handle other colors pleasantly and brightly. Blacks are deep and dense and do border on crush at times, but for the show's style that's preferable to seeing them lifted to gray. The image is not without its issues, but Warner Brothers has done a very good job overall bringing this to Blu-ray.

Batman - The Complete Animated Series Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Batman: The Complete Animated Series features a two-channel DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack. Though the track obviously lacks center, surround, and subwoofer components, the active front right and left channels handle duties admirably. The track images to the middle as necessary with dialogue and central sound effects while spreading along to the far edges for music, action, and wider environmental supports. Music clarity is very good, with obvious distinction of elements and a fair sense of depth, even without the aid of the subwoofer. Action scenes are as dynamic as one can wish for under the channel limitations, and essential clarity of core elements always impresses. Support sounds, like police radio chatter and natural environmental effects such as falling rain, set the scene as well as they can under, again, the track's inherent channel limitations. Dialogue is clear and well prioritized and positioned firmly in a seamlessly imaged center position, allowing fans to enjoy the precise vocal work that, as much as any other component, brings the show to life.

Batman - The Complete Animated Series Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This limited edition release of Batman: The Complete Animated Series ships in an individually numbered outer box and contains several items of note. First are three miniature Funko Pop figures of Batman, Harley Quinn, and The Joker. Only Joker's figure would stand consistently on its own. Batman would fall over most of the time and Harley Quinn cannot stand at all, at least considering the examples included with this review set; others may have better luck. They are simply too top-heavy. An envelope contains seven holographic cards featuring characters and scenes from the show. The 12-disc set comes in a handsome hardbound book that opens with introductory text by Alan Burnett. Each disc slips into a secure slot at the top of every right-hand page. They fit securely but do require touching disc's edge to remove. Two pages are dedicated to each disc; they feature character artwork, episode listings, and a breakdown of supplementary content. This book ships inside a matching slip box. See the "Screenshots" tab above and scroll to the bottom for a few photographs.

Batman: The Complete Animated Series' special features selection is comprehensive but not quite as voluminous as some other recent full series releases of vintage television shows, like Fraggle Rock. Nevertheless, it's a consistently absorbing and in-depth study of the show: its construction, it style, its stories, its sounds, its voices. This set also includes the films Batman: Mask of the Phantasm and Batman and Mr. Freeze: SubZero. Phantasm only includes a trailer (1080p, 1:05). SubZero features several extras; please click here for coverage. A digital copy code for the animated series is included with purchase.

Season One, Disc One:

• Introductions by Bruce Timm (480i): Timm shares a few insights for the first five episodes, with focus on the villains who appear therein. Included are "On Leather Wings" (1:49) "Christmas with the Joker" (1:41), "Nothing to Fear" (2:47), "The Last Laugh" (1:14), and "Pretty Poison" (3:07). These do not play ahead of the episode; they must be selected from the "Episodes" tab of the main menu, followed by scrolling over to the clapboard icon. The episodes do play automatically after viewing the corresponding interview snippet.
• Audio Commentary: For "On Leather Wings:" Producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski.
• The Dark Knight's First Night Pilot Promo: Hosted by Bruce Timm (480i, 5:03): Producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski look back on initial concept art and development, story and scene pitches, and the creation of an animated promo reel they created ahead of the show. The piece ends with the promo reel in its entirety. Original audio has been lost and has been replaced by the show's main theme.

Season One, Disc Two:

• Batman: The Legacy Continues Retrospective (480i, 18:03): A solidly produced catch-all discussion of the show's "timeless" look, its comic-inspired origins, tonal presentation for the TV format (making the show a series of "mini movies" and the show's "Dark Deco" appearance), the absence of titles and beginning with the Warner Brothers logo, Batman's rogue's gallery (including an interesting discussion of one of the series' best episodes, "Heart of Ice"), voice casting and work, score, animation and design, and the show's legacy.
• Audio Commentary: For "Heart of Ice:" Writer Paul Dini and Producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski.
• Tour of the Batcave (480i): Not exactly a "tour" but rather show clip collages highlighting a particular character or element. Included are Batman (0:48), Utility Belt (0:40), Bat-Vehicles (0:39), and Alfred (0:40).

Season One, Disc Three:

• Audio Commentaries: For "Robin's Reckoning Part One:" Producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski. For "Heart of Steel Part Two:" Producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski and Director Kevin Altieri.
• Robin Rising: How the Boy Wonder's Character Evolved (480i, 8:24): A quality discussion about the character's comic origins as a kid-friendly entry point, Dick Grayson's intermittent appearances and making the character an older college student, the character's costume, the character's evolution to Nightwing and the character in The New Batman Adventures, Robin's utility against Batman, and more.
• Gotham's Guardians: The Stalwart Supporting Characters (480i, 10:15): A discussion of the roles several secondary characters play in the show, including Alfred, Jim Gordon, Harvey Bullock, Renee Montoya (who was created for this show), Leslie Thompkins, and the gray-area Catwoman/Selina Kyle.

Season One, Disc Four:

• Audio Commentary: For "Almost Got 'Im:" Producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski and Writer Paul Dini.
• Voices of the Knight (480i, 8:08): A too-quick run-through of the voice talent that brings vocal life to the characters. It also explores the importance of ensemble voice recording, individual processes, casting individuals who have "voices with character," and more.

Season One, Disc Five:

• Audio Commentaries: For "Harley and Ivy:" Producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski, Writer Paul Dini, and Director Boyd Kirkland. For "Read My Lips:" Producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski, Writer Michael Reaves, and Composer Shirley Walker.
• Gotham's New Knight (480i, 7:40): An insightful look into bringing Barbara Gordon's Batgirl into the show: the character's history, the design used for the show, her costume, battles against male villains and political corruption, her romantic relationship with Batman, and more.

Season Two, Disc One:

• Audio Commentary: For "Harlequinade:" Producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski, Composer Shirley Walker, and Writer Paul Dini.
• Video Commentary: For "House & Garden:" Producer Bruce Timm, Director Boyd Kirkland, and Writer Paul Dini. The trio appear in a small, angled window on the bottom-right hand side of the screen. For the commentary, the show is presented at a resolution of 480i and at a 1.78:1 aspect ratio. Audio is Dolby Digital 2.0. The episode minus the commentary of course plays, like all the others, at 1080p/4x3/DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0.

Season Three, Disc One (The New Batman Adventures):

• Audio Commentary: For "Over the Edge:" Producer Bruce Timm, Writer Paul Dini, Art Director Glen Murakami, and Producer James Tucker.
• Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight's Many Foes (480i, 27:41): An interesting discussion of Batman's villains who, like The Caped Crusader, have no real "superpowers." Various individuals discuss the villains' psychology and how they might be considered "protagonists" with Batman the "antagonist" standing in their way. After about 150 seconds, the piece transitions to offer more detailed examinations of several villains, including Clayface, Harley Quinn, The Joker, Mr. Freeze, The Penguin, Poison Ivy, Ra's al Ghul, The Riddler, Scarecrow, Two-Face, and Scarface.

Season Three, Disc Two (The New Batman Adventures):

• Audio Commentaries: For "Critters:" Producer Bruce Timm, Story Editor/Producer Paul Dini, Director Dan Riba, Art Director Glen Murakami, and Producer James Tucker. For "Legends of the Dark Knight:" Producer Bruce Timm, Story Editor/Producer Paul Dini, Director Dan Riba, Art Director Glen Murakami, and Storyboard Artist James Tucker.

Bonus Disc:

• The Heart of Batman (1080p): A three-part feature.
  
  
  • Batman: Season of Darkness (36:11): A terrific look at the show's tone and visual style, the production's early stages, the contrast in style to the 1960s show, and the darker Batman stories that were told in the 1980s contrasted to the lighter Saturday morning animation throughout the decade. The piece also includes a fascinating discussion of animation standards at the time, a new generation of animators who worked on Tiny Toon Adventures, the 1989 Tim Burton film and its influence beyond the Batman world, and the evolution of the animated series. The piece further explores Bruce Timm's and Eric Radomski's visions and contributions, their roles as producers, and more.
  • Batman: Musical Interlude (1080p, 2:12): A piece from Composer Shirley Walker's score set to art from the show.
  • Batman: Season of Light (1080p, 1:00:03): The piece begins with a comparison of the Batman animated series to Max Fleisher's Superman. Discussions also include drawing the animation on black paper, the show's dark tone and predominant nighttime setting, influences of darkly contrasted Noir films, creating the show's opening sequence, character designs, the "Heart of Ice" episode, humanizing the villains, crafting a character-driven animated show for an adult audience, the creators' collaborations and freedoms, assembling the voice cast and the contributions the performers brought to the show and the characters, the benefits of ensemble voice recording, music and sound effects, the show's success and legacy, and more.
• Concepting Harley Quinn (1080p, 1:28): Writer Paul Dini discusses crafting the character's personality.

Batman - The Complete Animated Series Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Batman: The Complete Animated Series is crafted with passion and presented with authenticity to the source material. The episodes are exciting, thought provoking, gorgeously animated, and brilliantly voiced. It's a top-tier show that has now received an A-list Blu-ray release that is one of the year's finest. Warner Brothers' AV presentation is very strong (though not without flaw) and the set is packed with terrific extra content. This is a must-own for Batman, DC, animation, and Superhero fans. Very highly recommend.