| The fourth and final volume of Batman: The Animated Series is a little uneven but still encompasses some great episodes. Start with "Over the Edge," a nightmarish scenario in which Commissioner Gordon dedicates himself to hunting down Batman following the death of his daughter, Batgirl. "Critters" is a tribute to Japanese monster movies, "Mad Love" recounts the origin of Harley Quinn, and "Legends of the Dark Knight" animates both a '50s-styled Batman adventure as well as a scene from Frank Miller's Return of the Dark Knight. This run of 24 episodes has a lot of Batgirl, too little Nightwing, and a lot of the new Robin, Tim Drake, whose origin is explained in "Sins of the Father." Drake gets a mostly solo adventure, Batgirl teams with Supergirl, and there's still a sense of fun, with goofy humor that includes an appearance by the Three Stooges as the Joker's henchmen. Guest voices include Sela Ward as Calendar Girl and Tippi Hedren, and Mark Hamill continues the excellent work as the Joker that created some early rumors about his taking the live-action role in the sequel to Batman Begins. By this time, Batman had become part of the Batman/Superman Hour, so viewers can choose the opening sequence for either that or the original animated series. That, as well as the unbalanced number of episodes in the seasons (e.g., the first season of the animated series was 60 episodes), is why Batman: The Animated Series was released in volumes rather than as single-season sets. --David Horiuchi |
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 From The New Batman Adventures! |
| Review Date: September 16, 2005 |
| Reviewer: Servo, Atlanta, GA USA |
New adventures await you and the Gotham Knights in Batman: The Animated Series, Volume Four - The New Batman Adventures! Revamped from the dark deco days of the original series with a simpler yet stylized new look, the New Batman Adventures featured the Gotham Knights: Batman & Robin, Batgirl and Nightwing in some of their most memorable episodes. Introducing the voices of Mathew Valencia as Tim Drake, the new Robin and Tara Charendoff-Strong (replacing Melissa Gilbert-Brinkman) as Barbara Gordon/Batgirl, this 4-disc (521 min.) set contains all 24 episodes from the series which include classics "You Scratch My Back", "Old Wounds" and fan-favorite "Over the Edge". Other highlights include "Legends of the Dark Knight" which acknowledges the works of Bill Finger, Dick Sprang and Frank Miller. Not to mention "Never Fear" featuring the most horrific version of the Scarecrow (chillingly voiced by Jeffrey Combs) ever animated. The New Batman Adventures not only refined the designs of the characters (a "taste great/less filling" matter of opinion) but also how the stories were presented to viewers. The show's pacing and even balance of mature melodrama and stylized action would serve as a blueprint for the success of future shows Batman Beyond and Justice League Unlimited. Here are the contents of this set:
Disc 1:
Holiday Knights
Sins of the Father
Cold Comfort
Double Talk
You Scratch My Back
Never Fear
Disc 2:
Joker's Millions
Growing Pains
Love Is a Croc
Torch Song
The Ultimate Thrill
Over the Edge
Disc 3:
Mean Seasons
Critters
Cult of the Cat
Animal Act
Old Wounds
The Demon Within
Disc 4:
Legends of the Dark Knight
Girls' Night Out
Mad Love
Chemistry
Beware the Creeper
Judgment Day
Special Features:
Commentary: On "Over the Edge", "Critters" and "Legends of the Dark Knight" by Bruce Timm (Producer), Paul Dini (Producer), Glen Murakami (Art Director), James Tucker (Storyboards), Dan Riba (Director) and Moderator Jason Hillhouse.
Featurette: "Arkham's Finest": Inside Batman's Rogue Gallery.
Worth the wait, and HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! |
Batman Ends
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| Review Date: October 13, 2005 |
| Reviewer: N. Durham, Philadelphia, PA |
| The episodes compiled in this fourth collection of the animated Batman series is from the Kids WB New Batman Adventures, which hit Saturday mornings a while after the classic Batman: The Animated Series was over with. Most of the voice cast was retained (including Kevin Conroy as the Dark Knight), but the animation underwent a complete overhaul, which would be seen on the animated Superman series as well as the current Justice League Unlimited. The animation transformation isn't for everyone, but it works for the most part, and the storytelling is still top notch. In the episodes collected here, we learn why Dick Grayson quit being Robin and became Nightwing, and we also see the origin of the new Robin, Tim Drake. DC character the Creeper makes his animated debut, and there's a delicious new, and horrifying, twist and look to the Scarecrow (voiced by Jeffrey Combs). The "World's Finest" episodes are here as well, which is the first (of many) cross overs with Batman and Superman as they team up to take down the Joker and Lex Luthor. However, this volume does have it's share of low points. The attempted new twist on Two-Face doesn't work, and the re-vamped animation is definitely going to be a downer for some. However, the strikingly mature tone of these episodes (including a nightmare-esque scenario where Batgirl is killed and Commissioner Gordon launches a full scale attack against Batman and co.) makes this set worth owning for longtime Bat-fans, and this is most certainly better than what's being passed off as a Batman cartoon these days. |
It's About Time
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| Review Date: October 5, 2005 |
| Reviewer: Jeremy, Burbank, CA |
It's about time!!! WB has finally gotten off of their butts and finally got these episodes out. Now, if we could just get them to release the soundtracks to these episodes, I'd be in absolute heaven.
I, personally, don't get what the thumbs-down reviewers mean by "cheap animation". These episodes were WAY more animated; smoother and swifter. In the previous seasons, you never saw Batman do moves like he does here. Batgirl takes little back-steps to give her some leverage before springing into jumps. Tim Drake (the New Robin) uses his size to give him the edge while taking out huge thugs. Nightwing's combat style is a little more graceful and acrobatic than Batman's. All these little details add to a very realistic animation. These prior reviewers must have been watching this show with their eyes closed.
The story-telling was for a much more mature audience. Just look at the Scarecrow; the guy's got a lynch around his neck! Occasionally, a plotline will take a turn and become almost Hitchcockian. The story-telling stays on the edge throughout, constantly challenging the boundaries of a "normal" animated series.
As far as the visual style, while this version evolved from the previous seasons, WB really showed hesitation in straying at all from (Character Designer) Bruce Timm's rendition of this universe, and with good reason. It works, and it works REALLY well. |
The final set... finally
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| Review Date: September 5, 2005 |
| Reviewer: Jordan Lund, Portland, OR USA |
This is the last collection of the animated Batman shows (unless you count the Batman Beyond, the Justice League show, or the new series simply called "The Batman", none of which have seen boxed set form.)
Jumping ahead a few years from the original "Batman: The Animated Series", this set of episodes also covered the period of time when the show jumped from airing on Fox networks to the WB network. It's often called "The New Batman Adventures" or "Batman: Gotham Knights".
Darker and grittier than previous incarnations, these are the episodes that show a young Dick Grayson growing into the new hero Nightwing. Batgirl becoming a hero in her own right, and Batman gaining a new Robin in the form of Timothy Drake.
[...]
The New Batman Adventures
1. Holiday Knights
2. Sins of the Father
3. Cold Comfort
4. Never Fear
5. You Scratch My Back
6. Double Talk
7. Joker's Millions
8. Growing Pains
9. Mean Seasons
10. The Demon Within
11. Over the Edge
12. Torch Song
13. Love is a Croc
14. The Ultimate Thrill
15. Critters
16. Cult of the Cat
17. Animal Act
18. Old Wounds
19. Legends of the Dark Knight
20. Girl's Night Out
21. Chemistry
22. Judgement Day
23. Beware the Creeper
24. Mad Love
There are 5 additional episodes after "Mad Love", but technically these are part of "Superman: The Animated Series". 3 of these have been released on DVD as "Batman/Superman: World's Finest". The remaining two are "Knight Time" and "The Demon Reborn". |
The Best Volume Yet!!!
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| Review Date: May 8, 2006 |
| Reviewer: , |
These Batman episodes are the last of the series and aired a few years after the episodes from Volumes 1, 2, and 3 aired - but they're perfect! The episodes are written by same writters from the previous volumes, and that's already telling you they're cool stories! The villains are the same and the running time is approximately the same. True, there are some new villains - but that's good because it introduces other characters from the comics, as well as some made-up villains just for the show. The action and suspense is the same, and the only difference is that the animation is slightly different because some characters got new looks and outfits. The changes are noticible and fit the characters. After all, these episodes do take place two years after the ones on Volumes 1, 2, and 3. The only really big change in animation was the Scarecrow's look - he looks completely different, but much better. Some episodes plots are where Bruce Wayne gets married, when Batgirl dies, when Mr. Freeze returns, when Baby-Doll and Killer Croc team-up, when Livewire (a villain from "Superman, the Animated Series") comes to Gotham, when the Joker becomes a millionare, and many more awesome episode plots and ideas. The Special Features are mostly episode commentaries, but that's still cool. Below are the episodes and special features included in this set and the grade I give them.
Disc 1:
1) Holiday Knights = A++
2) Sins Of The Father = A
3) Cold Comfort = A+
4) Double Talk = A+
5) You Scratch My Back = A-
6) Never Fear = A+
SPECIAL FEATURES: "Interactive Arkham Asylum" - Show creators talk about Batman villains.
Disc 2:
7) Joker's Millions = A+
8) Growing Pains = A++
9) Love Is A Croc = A
10) Torch Song = A
11) The Ultimate Thrill = A-
12) Over The Edge = A++
SPECIAL FEATURES: Commentary on "Over The Edge."
Disc 3:
13) Mean Seasons = A
14) Critters = A-
15) Cult Of The Cat = A-
16) Animal Act = A+
17) Old Wounds = A
18) The Demon Within = A-
SPECIAL FEATURES: Commentary on "Critters."
Disc 4:
19) Legends Of The Dark Knight = B+
20) Girls's Night Out = A+
21) Mad Love (Harley's origin episode) = A++
22) Chemistry = A++
23) Beware The Creeper = A-
24) Judgment Day = A++
SPECIAL FEATURES: A) Commentary on "Legends Of The Dark Knight." B) Previous/Trailers
Buy this volume, you'll love. Even though there are fewer episodes than the previous volumes - the stories are incredible! This set also features the "new Robin" - Tim Drake. Unfortunately, the spoken languages are ONLY English and French. The subtitles, however, are English, French, and Spanish. Buy this volume, you'll enjoy it!
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