100 episodes done.
If you’ve been following Batman: The Animated Series: Revisited since Part 1, then you’ll know that I’m almost at the end of my journey. But not quite yet.
Time for episode 101…
Animal Act
*Clicks play*
1min 30secs – A nice bit of tension between Batman and Nightwing here. There’s still been no explanation as to why there’s all this tension, but it’s coming! Old Wounds (see below) will provide all the explanation needed.
5mins – Dick Grayson has returned to Hayley’s Circus, last seen in Robin’s Reckoning.
6mins 30secs – Yet more tension between Batman and Nightwing.
7mins – I really like the character development that has been created in the gap between The Adventures of Batman & Robin and The New Batman Adventures. Dick Grayson has become a hero in his own right – and one who has stepped out from the shadow of the Bat.
11mins – Animal Acts is a Mad Hatter episode by the way.
13mins – This episode marks the final time the Mad Hatter appears in Batman: The Animated Series. The character does make one additional appearance in the DC Animated Universe, via the Superman: The Animated Series episode, Knight Time but then that’s it.
19mins – The Mad Hatter is such a fun villain.
*Clicks stop*
Animal Acts is gorgeous episode to look at. Story wise, it’s not the strongest Mad Hatter episode but it works fine and the late, Roddy McDowall is fab.
Old Wounds
*Clicks play*
2mins – Old Wounds takes a look at the relationship between Batman and the original Robin and why it soured.
2mins 50secs – Flashback!
3mins 10secs – Lucius Fox has a non-speaking cameo in this episode. I completely forgot he was in this story.
4mins 30secs – As we’re firmly into flashback territory, we’re now in a time period where Dick and Barbara are an item again. In a few minutes time it’ll become clear as to why they broke up.
5mins 30secs – And as this is a flashback, the Joker’s old goons, Rocco and Henshaw are back! I believe this is their only appearance in The New Batman Adventures.
5mins 50secs – It’s fun to see Dick in his old Robin costume.
8mins 50secs – “Batman, not like this. Not in front of his family.”
9mins – Batman has just roughed up a goon in front of his family. Robin thinks this is a step too far and walks away. This is the beginning of the end for Batman and Robin.
11mins 30secs – Bruce has just confirmed that he knows Barbara is secretly Batgirl.
14mins – And now Dick has just discovered that Barbara is Batgirl.
16mins – The Joker’s pet hyenas, Bud and Lou, are in this episode. I don’t think I’ve mentioned them once during the course of Batman: The Animated Series: Revisited, but these hyenas have been a mainstay of the series.
18mins – Dick confronts Barbara about her secret life as Batgirl, only to discover that Batman knew and chose not to tell him. He’s mad.
18mins 20secs – “You don’t know him like I do, he manipulates, pulls strings, anything to get what he wants.”
18mins 55secs – Dick quits. Batman and Robin are no more.
19mins – End of flashback!
20mins – As the episode draws to a close it is revealed that Bruce Wayne has helped the goon that he once roughed up. The guy now works for Bruce Wayne. See, Batman’s not all bad.
*Clicks stop*
This episode is fantastic to look at, but it’s the story that really sells this tale. The interactions between the Bat-family highlight the divisions amongst the group and explain why Dick felt it necessary to walk away.
Great stuff!
The Demon Within
*Clicks play*
4mins – The Demon Within marks the first appearances of Etrigan, Jason Blood and Klarion in the DC Animated Universe.
5mins – This episode is the second story in the entire run of Batman: The Animated Series to focus on magic. The first was Zatanna – although the magic seen in that episode was very different.
9mins – When The New Batman Adventures originally aired it was paired up with Superman: The Animated Series. As such, because of the fantastical nature of the Superman show, Batman stories began to play up a sci-fi/fantasy slant too. This slight change in direction, plus the inclusion of Superman into the DCAU, paved the way for the creation of Justice League/Justice League Unlimited.
12mins – The Kirby cake company. One of the many, many nods to artist, Jack Kirby which appear throughout the DC Animated Universe.
17mins – I’ve not really talked much about this episode, have I? Er… yeah, it’s alright. Personally, I’m not a huge fan of Etrigan (he does nothing for me), but visually this episode is a treat.
*Clicks stop*
Legends of the Dark Knight
*Clicks play*
1min 20secs – ‘With acknowledgement of the works of Bill Finger, Dick Sprang and Frank Miller’.
1mins 30secs – So, this is a really cool, really interesting episode of The New Batman Adventures which focuses on how Batman has changed over time. The episode showcases three different versions of Batman: A contemporary Batman, a ’50s era Batman and an ’80s era Batman.
3mins – First up is a tale which depicts the Golden Age Batman. It’s campy and brilliant!
4mins – The Joker appears in this segment. Here he is voiced by Michael McKean, while Batman is voiced by Gary Owens. This is the only time the Joker is not voiced by Mark Hamill.
9mins 45secs – As the first segment ends, the episode finds time to make a dig at Batman Forever (1995) and Batman & Robin (1997) director, Joel Schumacher. When this episode aired, Batman & Robin was still fresh in people’s minds and Schumacher was the butt of every joke.
10mins – Personally, I like Batman & Robin but there we go.
10mins 30secs – Segment two and it’s an adaptation of Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns. Not only is this act a faithful recreation of the original comic, it also looks so damn cool!
12mins – The inside of Batman’s Batmobile is bathed in a red glow. This same technique would be reused for the interiors of the Batmobile in Batman Beyond.
13mins 30secs – In this sequence, Batman is voiced by Michael Ironside.
14mins – With this segment the show introduces Carrie Kelley – a female Robin. This is Kelley’s only appearance in The New Batman Adventures.
14mins 50secs – The animation is SO GOOD.
15mins 30secs – And now for the finale sequence, which is a contemporary tale featuring Batman and Firefly.
17mins 45secs – Kevin Conroy is back voicing the Batman (obviously).
*Clicks stop*
Fantastic! Simply fantastic.
Girls’ Night Out
*Clicks play*
1min 30secs – Girls’ Night Out marks the first and only appearance of Livewire in The New Batman Adventures. The character has crossed over from Superman: The Animated Series for this one-off adventure.
1min 40secs – Livewire is voiced by Lori Petty.
2mins 30secs – Batman is barely in this episode, only popping up to explain his absence and to enlist some help for Batgirl.
3mins 30secs – In addition to Livewire, Supergirl also guest stars in this story.
6mins 30secs – As well as Livewire, Supergirl and Batgirl, this episode features Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn.
15mins – This Batgirl/Supergirl team-up is great.
17mins – Once again, I have to note the visuals – this episode looks great and is such a contrast to Superman: The Animated Series.
*Clicks stop*
Girls’ Night Out is a fun tale that gives the female heroes and villains a chance to step into the spotlight. A refreshing change to see Batgirl given the opportunity to do her own thing without Batman.
OK, so that’s 105 episodes down and only four to go. Almost at the end, right?
Almost – but not quite. Tomorrow I aim to finish off the episodes, but there are still another couple of blog posts in the pipeline, so this isn’t the end yet.
Read: Batman: The Animated Series: Revisited – Part 20
Read more:
- Review: Batman: The Animated Series Blu-ray – I will never need to upgrade again
- Batman Beyond is coming to Blu-ray
- Batman (1989) – Did you know?
It's A Stampede! 
Leave a Reply