Quote from: thecolorsblend on Yesterday at 19:59But the cartoon's determination to set all (or most?) scenes at night does indicate a desire (on somebody's part) to take Batman in a darker direction.
Were I inclined to put this into some sort of context, my suggestion would be that the TV versions of Batman and Robin had become more active at night because their villains had become more active at night. The Westverse was never going to be very dark. At most, it might become a little poorly lit. But never "dark".
Quote from: The Joker on Today at 01:01This leads one to believe that there might have been some influence from DC Comics with what Batman comics were then-currently depicting at the time. Considering "New Adventures" aired post-Schwartz/O'Neil/Adams collaboration, the night setting could have been a tip of the hat of some form of synergy between the two.
The nocturnal setting does give the series a darker and sometimes spookier look than most other superhero cartoons from the 1970s. I think Joker's right about it being an attempt to reflect the imagery of the contemporary comics. The Galactic Guardians show (which also starred West) was the pre-DCAU series that best reflected the Bronze Age tone, but that was a Hanna-Barbera production. The New Adventures of Batman is certainly the closest Filmation got to the 1970s comics, even though most of their plots and characterisations were still drawn from earlier eras.
Quote from: The Joker on Today at 01:01Makes me want to get acquainted with the show, quite frankly. Especially since, as you state, nothing happens that is egregiously opposed to the '66 Batman show's continuity, and this could be considered something of a 'lost 4th season' of the Adam West show, depending on how you want to view it.
In that sense, The New Adventures of Batman can be compared with Star Trek: The Animated Series. Both 1970s Filmation cartoons brought back the actors from a popular 1960s live action show to voice their characters in a cheaper more kid-friendly format. If each of the three live action seasons of Star Trek represents one year of the Enterprise's five-year mission, then the two animated seasons can be seen as years four and five. Similarly The New Adventures of Batman can be seen as year four of Batman and Robin's crime-fighting careers, and year two of Batgirl's.
The absence of Chief O'Hara, Aunt Harriet and Alfred could be explained by them simply moving away from Gotham. Or maybe they're still there and we just don't see them. The Bat-Computer has clearly undergone an upgrade, as has Batman's arsenal of weapons and vehicles, but there's nothing here that West's ingenious Batman couldn't have constructed. I can't offhand think of any discrepancies between this show and the Batman '66 comics either, so it fits into the canon reasonably well.
Quote from: The Dark Knight on Today at 10:03Good timing with this analysis given the complete series is being released June 25:
https://www.gamespot.com/articles/new-adventures-of-batman-the-complete-collection-blu-ray/1100-6523099/
That is quite a coincidence. I hadn't heard about the Blu-ray release until now.