Rating summary
| Movie |  | 4.0 |
| Video | | 4.0 |
| Audio |  | 3.5 |
| Extras |  | 0.0 |
| Overall |  | 3.0 |
Beware the Batman: Season 1 Part 2: Dark Justice Blu-ray Movie Review
Out-Gothaming Gotham...
Reviewed by Kenneth Brown November 23, 2014
For all the press and fandom chatter Fox's Gotham has been drumming up since its premiere, it's Beware the Batman that's suddenly doing all the heavy Elseworlds-lifting. After a shaky, altogether problematic 13 episodes, the second half of Beware's first -- now only -- season is stronger and more absorbing. The heroes are more compelling, the villains more menacing (with a nice mix of familiar and more obscure rogues), the storylines more effective, the writing sharper and the animation... well, the animation's still lacking. That said, four outta five? I can live with it. Not every episode of Dark Justice is on point, mind you, and not every fresh take on Gotham City's iconic characters works. (Harvey Dent is especially disappointing.) But so many elements in the series' final 13 episodes delivers that the show's cancellation is beginning to sting. After the first half of the season, I had all but written the series off. And now here I am, eight months later, a bit sad to see it go. That's quite a turn around.
Another night falls in Gotham City and the ever-vigilant Dark Knight (Anthony Ruivivar) watches over his city and its citizens. With the help of GCPD Lieutenant James Gordon (Kurtwood Smith), ex-secret agent butler Alfred (JB Blanc), and sword-wielding assassin Katana (Sumalee Montano), the Batman wages a tireless war against Gotham's twisted criminal underworld. Ride along as Batman battles the evil machinations of Ra's al Ghul (Lance Reddick) and The League of Assassins, crusading anti-vigilante DA Harvey Dent (Christopher McDonald), Killer Croc (Wade Williams), Deathstroke (Robin Atkin Downes), Professor Pyg (Brian George), Magpie (Grey DeLisle), Mister Toad (Udo Kier), Humpty Dumpty (Matt Jones), Dr. Anotyl Mykros (Bruce Thomas), and criminal mastermind Anarky (Wallace Langham). It's a crime-fighting collection of hidden clues, cool tech and detective thrills as Batman prowls in the shadows, ready to deliver action-packed excitement and justice.
Beware the Batman: Season 1 Part 2: Dark Justice Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality
Banding and aliasing are once again the villains of Beware the Batman's 1080p/AVC-encoded adventure. Each one traces back to the source animation, sure. But distractions are distractions, and with all the dark, noir-cast blues and purples that hang heavy over Gotham, every distraction, however minor, is that much easier to spot. Fortunately, any criticism ends there. Colors are subdued but faithfully saturated, contrast is consistent, black levels are nice and inky, and detail is excellent all around, with crisp edge definition and well-resolved textures. (Not that the series has many textures to offer in its world of plasticized action figures.) Macroblocking, noise, shimmering and other anomalies are nowhere to be found either, making Dark Justice as capably encoded and presented as Shadows of Gotham.
Beware the Batman: Season 1 Part 2: Dark Justice Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality
Like Shadows of Gotham, the Blu-ray release of Season 1, Part 2: Dark Justice features a decidedly decent DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo track that, at best, delivers to the fullest of its capabilities and, at worst, won't warrant much praise for what's essentially a somewhat unremarkable two-channel mix. Dialogue is clean and clear at all times and punches, explosions and other action-oriented sound effects are smartly prioritized, with plenty of room to breathe. Frederik Wiedmann's score doesn't crowd the proceedings either, and the track accomplishes everything it aims to accomplish very well. The lack of LFE support and 5.1 surround is a detriment, of course, with Batman leaping into an all too flat, all too front-heavy fight, but so it goes.
Beware the Batman: Season 1 Part 2: Dark Justice Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras
The Warner Archive Collection release of Beware the Batman doesn't include any special features.
Beware the Batman: Season 1 Part 2: Dark Justice Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation
Beware the Batman joins a growing list of cancelled DCU animated series. But while outcries over this particular DCU show's cancellation may forever be in short supply (blame its very rocky opening 13-episode stretch), Beware managed to pull off at least one all too rare TV trick. Rather than lay down and die, the Batman-series-that-might-have-been goes out swinging with 13 episodes that are not only better than the 13 that precede them, but are good enough to have saved the series... if anyone had still been paying attention. Viewers had already migrated elsewhere, though. Regardless of how dramatic its improvements, the second half of Beware the Batman's first and only season was all but doomed from the get-go. That doesn't mean it can't be enjoyed on Blu-ray. Just know its three-part season finale clearly wasn't constructed as a series finale. Cliffhangers come in waves and the series ends in nebulous disappointment. Thankfully, the Warner Archive Collection Blu-ray release is solid, with a strong video presentation and decidedly decent DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. There aren't any supplements, but you could certainly do worse.
