The Batman: The Complete Series

Disclaimer: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment provided us with a free copy of this Blu-ray/DVD that we reviewed in this blog post. The opinions we share are our own.

“Witness the rise of The Batman! Can a young Batman battle the darkness of Gotham City? In this reimagined animated series, Bruce Wayne finds his way as a protector, defender and Caped Crusader. The balance is delicate between his public persona of a billionaire bachelor and the Dark Knight as he hones his skills and develops his modus operandi to take his war on crime to the next level. On this journey, he’ll meet the DC Universe’s A-list allies: Robin, Superman and Batgirl. He’ll also take on a rogues’ gallery of enemies like Joker, Penguin, Catwoman, Riddler and Mr. Freeze – but only a few will shape the world of the would-be vigilante. Soar through the complete series of The Batman and watch as the urban myth rises to Super Hero status!”

It’s a great time to be a fan of the DC Animated Universe, with new features continuously being released, as well as older content onto High Definition for a new generation to appreciate. I myself grew up during the height of Batman: The Animated Series in the early/mid ‘90s. Other than Superman, Batman was one of the only other comic book heroes to find major success in film and television, and that success was quickly growing after the Tim Burton films. It was a great introduction to other allies and villains in that universe, as someone who didn’t read comics, and continues to be one of the most respected animated iterations of the characters and world.

Then, in the mid-2000’s, The Batman was released, first airing on Kids’ WB and later on Cartoon Network, running five seasons in all. While I never watched these during their initial run, it was a lot of fun going through this set and seeing the differences between this and what I grew up with, because like Batman: The Animated Series, The Batman is geared more toward kids while exploring the world of Gotham, Bruce Wayne and his alter ego, Batman.

What’s most interesting about this animated series that you won’t see in any of the darker, more adult themed animated films, is focus on Bruce Wayne’s life and his relationships, specifically with Alfred, or other friends of his past. We’re given a much tamer look at the tragedies that has taken place in Bruce’s life, though they still define a lot of what he does. Alfred plays a vital role in the series as a mentor of sorts, always trying to steer him in the right direction as he initially tries to balance the secret life of Batman with his billionaire persona.  The animation is pretty unique, which can be a lot of fun, especially seeing some of the villains if you’re like me and only familiar with The Animated Series and a handful of animated films. The Joker specifically has a pretty different look when first introduced, and its these differences that become fun to watch and give it a fresh feel from all the other iterations of the story you may have seen before.

Spanning six discs, here’s an episode breakdown of the set along with what extras you’ll see:

Disc 1:

1. The Bat in the Belfry
2. Call of the Cobblepot
3. Traction
4. The Cat and the Bat
5. The Man Who Would Be Bat
6. The Big Chill
7. The Big Heat
8. Q & A
9. The Big Dummy
10. Topsy Turvy
11. Bird of Prey

Special Feature:

• New Featurette: The Dark Dynasty Continues: Explore the relationship between The Batman and his allies as he evolves from mysterious vigilante to the World’s Greatest Detective.

Disc 2:

12. The Rubberface of Comedy
13. The Clayface of Tragedy
14. The Cat, the Bat and the Ugly
15. Riddled
16. Fire and Ice
17. The Laughing Bat
18. Swamped
19. Pets
20. Meltdown
21. JTV
22. Ragdolls to Riches

Disc 3:

23. The Butler Did It
24. Grundy’s Night
25. Strange Minds
26. Night and the City
27. Batgirl Begins, Pt. 1
28. Batgirl Begins, Pt. 2
29. A Dark Knight to Remember
30. A Fistful of Felt
31. RPM
32. Brawn
33. The Laughing Cats

Special Features:

• The Batman: Season 3 Unmasked: Duane Capizzi talks about his animated series.
• Joining Forces: The Batman’s Legendary Team-Ups: How series producers adapted the DC “team-up-tales” approach from the comic books to the screen.

Disc 4:

34. Fleurs de Mal
35. Cash for Toys
36. Thunder
37. The Apprentice
38. The Icy Depths
39. Gotham’s Ultimate Criminal Mastermind
40. A Matter of Family
41. Team Penguin
42. Clayfaces
43. The Everywhere Man
44. The Breakout

Special Features:

• The Batman: Season 4 Unmasked: A behind-the-scenes look into the making of Season 4.
• The Batman Junior Detective Challenge: Alfred tests your detective skills with The Batman
• The Batman Junior Detective Exam – Level 2: Pass The Batman test of knowledge with the level-2 exam.
• Building The Batman: Detective Ellen Yun investigates The Batman’s true identity.

Disc 5:

45. Strange New World
46. Artifacts
47. Seconds
48. Riddler’s Revenge
49. Two of a Kind
50. Rumors
51. The Joining, Pt. 1
52. The Joining, Pt. 2
53. The Batman/Superman Story, Pt. 1
54. The Batman/Superman Story, Pt. 2
55. Vertigo

Disc 6:

56. White Heat
57. A Mirror Darkly
58. Joker Express
59. Ring-Toss
60. The Metal Face of Comedy
61. Attack of the Terrible Trio
62. The End of The Batman
63. What Goes Up…
64. Lost Heroes, Pt. 1
65. Lost Heroes, Pt. 2

Special Features:

• Gotham PD Case Files: Highly confidential profiles of The Batman’s most dastardly foes.
• New Look, New Direction, New Knight: Go behind the scenes to explore the development of The Batman

Video

The Batman: The Complete Series is presented in 1080p High-Definition Widescreen 1.78:1. The animation is excellent, and colors coming through very bright and vivid. The dark lines of the animation are well-defined. The series has a wide array of vibrant colors and scenes, and the deep blacks look great on this Blu-ray disc and is consistent throughout the entire five seasons. This is going to look better than you ever saw it on television fifteen years ago or more.

Audio

The audio is presented in DTS-Master Audio 2.0. Probably the most disappointing part about the series, but for a kid’s cartoon I don’t blame them for not providing a surround mix. It’s going to sound just like it did on release, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. No issues of note, and levels are consistently good throughout the series, with clear and concise dialogue mixed with score and effects.

The Batman: The Complete Series was a bit after my time consuming Saturday morning cartoons, but for those who did grow up on this, or even want to introduce their young children to The Caped Crusader without having to worry about violence and language, this series is absolutely perfect for that. WB has continued to show great support for their DC Animation property, with this being the latest example. This one is out now!