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I draw stuff from time to time, so I'll post my Batman related stuff here.

I loved Bane's TNBA outfit, so I drew that incarnation BTAS style:

Honestly, I have no idea why they cancelled Batman: The Animated Series. By the time The New Batman Adventures premiered, Batman Beyond was right around the corner, and so was Justice League. I'd be fine with the series ending... but it seems like it was left unfinished.

Some characters were given satisfying conclusions (Joker, Bane, The Ventriloquist), but some were not... in fact many didn't even get an episode! Take the Riddler for example: after getting his design completely overhauled, he didn't do anything in the series. Aside from a brief fight with Superman/Robin (technically a part of the Superman Animated Series), getting crushed by a huge book, and appearing on a talk show (if you've seen Over the Edge, you'd know this doesn't count). Two-Face was also left with a cliff-hanger at the end of the series' final episode.

Finally, there seem to be many unused ideas/designs. We could have had the Clock King, Lock-Up, Black Mask, the Gray Ghost, the Phantasm, and Man-Bat appear. Instead, the series just kind of dropped off unexpectedly.

Whenever a new Batman series is started, it was always an important factor to decide how to introduce Batman. Personally, I think Batman: The Movie did it perfectly. They waste no time in showing an example of Batman's heroics at night in Gotham. Sure enough, we're then introduced to the man behind the mask, Bruce Wayne, and much later, we're given a brief flashback of what inspired Batman's origin.

Sure enough, that's quite similar to Batman's origin in the comics (Detective Comics #27). Batman is on the scene of just another crime case in Gotham. Meanwhile, Bruce Wayne is introduced, and it's only by the end of that issue that we are told they're the same. A few issues later, Batman's origin is given through a brief flashback. Amazingly, it is very similar to how it's portrayed in the movie.

The Animated Series is also similar in that it doesn't waste time trying to explain the specifics of his backstory. In fact, even less is given here (only vague mentions).

In conclusion, I tend to prefer this method over the approach that Batman Begins took, which was just to show everything from the beginning. Batman is a character shrouded in shadows. Less is more when it comes to the Dark Knight.

The Batman Chronicles rock. Every Batman comic ever written on chronological order? I'm sold. The colors and quality are great, it's a great series to have. The only problem is that they are getting a little hard to find lately, does anyone know a spot that sells Vol. 2 at a decent price? The clowns on Amazon thought it would be funny to price it over $100, but the best I could find online was in the $20 price range, which is still a bit high.

I got bored and made this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDDBIKn1-bQ&list=UU_W72lXRtb8j4X8goosKTPg&index=1

Bane was the mastermind behind the events of Batman & Robin all along.

It's no secret that Tim Burton is big on the classic monster movies, so it's no surprise that some references made their way into his films. I've only noticed a few, but there's bound to be more out there.

- In Batman Returns, I've heard that when Penguin bumps into a tombstone, almost making it fall over, is a reference to the films of Ed Wood.
- Also in Returns, the concept of a hideous monster seeking acceptance is used with the Penguin. This one's a little more vague, but I think it could be a Frankenstein reference.
- One definate Frankenstein reference is when Catwoman and Penguin are circling around the parakeet's cage. The camera work is identical to that of Frankenstein's when the monster and its creator confront each other in the mill.
- Penguin's makeup seems to be inspired by Lon Chaney's character in "London After Midnight," take a look.

The tophat, the long, frizzy hair, the darkened eye sockets, and the sharpened teeth give it away.

Any other you guys have noticed?

Batman Forever isn't bad. I said it. It seems like people like to clump it with Batman and Robin without fairly judging it, and dwell on the negative aspects. To me, this movie is a classic in its own right, and does the best it can with the theme given.

Gotham City was given a futuristic overhaul. It's not like the hellish gothic New York style seen in Burton's films, but fits the theme of the movie. The CGI opens it up and makes it seem more vast (having a smaller set was a drawback with 'Returns'). Speaking of which the film uses a lot of early CGI being in '95, but it has aged gracefully. It may stand out a little, but it wasn't overused and doesn't distrupt the film.

Val Kilmer is a great Batman. I think he comes in right behind Keaton, he's got a great bat-voice, and a good build. There's a lot of action sequences, and he puts up an impressive fight. Along with some cool new gadgets, the Batsuit is changed again. This time, it seems to be more influenced on the '89 suit (which is a good thing) but sleaker. Personality-wise, we get to see more of the billionaire-lifestyle of Bruce. I agree with Bob Kane that he was a good casting decision.

The supporting cast was solid as well. The character arc of Riddler was nice as well, he seemed to be the main focus. Meanwhile, Robin is played in a more realistic manner. He is the one who wants vengeance, while Batman isn't ready for a partner. And we see more of Gordon and Alfred, which is good.

The nitpicks are mainly Two-Face. While he does have the split-personality down, he sort of appears out of nowhere, and tends to overact. The rebuilt Batmobile also isn't as sweet as the original, but I can live with it. That's pretty much why I love Batman Forever in a nutshell.

Some people may defend the Joker in TDK looking nothing like his comic counterpart by saying the original Joker wasn't... but I'm not quite sure that's the case. In his very first appearance, he's never seen without his clown appearance, except for one scene where he's disguised... but he's most likely put makeup on to cover up his skin. His next appearance, he's seen without his shirt on, and he's entirely white, so it's not makeup like in Dark Knight. It's hard tracking down the old issues, so does anyone have any other things to note in the comic? When was his official backstory revealed? Thanks.

The ending of the film was subject to much change, even though it was always similar. It always ended with Batman and Joker's final confrontation at the top of the cathedral, but the outcome was always different. An early ending was that Batman was so weak, he couldn't do anything. The Joker easily saw his identity, but then Batman used a bomb on his utility belt to blow up Joker's escape helicopter.

Another variation is actually pretty interesting. Batman doesn't fight Joker's goons, but he goes right in to fight the Joker. Joker actually surprises him, and gets a few cheap shots in, and actually gives Batman a fair beating (I always wanted to see a more lengthly fight between the two). Joker tries to leave, and in a blind leap, actually grabs onto the bottom bar of the rope ladder. Batman prevents him from getting away by using a device that makes all the bats in the cathedral go wild, and flutter around the Joker, then he falls (the idea was reused in Returns). I actually like that ending, but the difference is that Batman intentionally kills Joker here (he still had the intention in the final, though).

The final ending was pretty spectacular on its own, so I can't argue with what we got.

I've searched, and it doesn't appear this series of commercials were discussed here. I guess I'll be the first to start the conversation. Basically, in the early 2000s, OnStar was looking for an effective way to advertise their new car safety features. So someone had a great idea; what about Batman? So six commercials in all were created, using various props, and possibly sets from the 1989-1997 film series (even the legendary actor Michael Gough returned as Alfred). They turned out great, looking like any other big-budget Batman movie, and the ad campagne was successful.

If you haven't seen the commercials, here they are on YouTube.

Personally, I was blown away by the quality of these; who knew a series of TV ads could do justice to Batman? The acting was great, and action was great, and props really made it fit in with the current Batman movies. In addition to myself, I'm sure many other fans were pleased to see the Burton Batmobile ripping up the streets again. The suit looked pretty good as well; it's based off the Batman & Robin suit, but they added modifications to make it look more classic (also making it look more like the first Keaton suit). Bruce Thomas was also a great Batman, and he was rewarded by reprising his role in the Birds of Prey pilot. The villains were also straight out of the comics, Joker's exaggerated makeup made him look accurate as ever, the Penguin looked like he did in Batman Returns, and the Riddler looked like he did in Batman Forever, but with a bit more comic influence. All-in-all, thank you, OnStar, for giving us a kickass series of Batman commercials.

I took a long time giving my review of this elusive boxset, but my internet went out and it was lost. I really don't feel like writing it again, so here's my review from another forum.

Okay, so just about everyone here should know about the groundbreaking Batman: The Animated Series, assuming everyone has lived in the 90's. Of course, there's a couple options for DVD releases: buying each individual season, or getting the complete box set. Well, the price is a bit much (more like a lot), but I'll choose convenience over price this time.

Before I get into the review, here's my personal predicament; these sets are fairly rare, and very expensive, so I got a relatively cheap new one. Now, I know that you can expect anything from "like new," but this was described as "new," which is generally agreed to describe an item that has never been used or removed from the package. But this definately has. There's bends, creases and rips all over the place, which it might've been crushed or dropped during shipping, but discs don't scratch themselves.

Anyways, the outer box looks nice, with glossy engravings of classic Batman and a fancy slipcase, but the cardboar is so weak that the corners already split and broke. Although it looks nice and all, how the hell and I supposed to fit this on a shelf? It just looks weird to have this huge rectangular box just hogging all your shelfspace on the DVD shelf.

Now for the inside: two more cases full of DVDs. The cases are that quality you'd come to expect from something you payed nearly $200 for; cardboard and scotch tape. The actual disc holders are made of very cheap and brittle plastic, which many tabs that hold the discs broke off just during shipping. I can't imagine what normal use would do to it.

The discs themselves the redeeming factor, every episode of Batman: The Animated Series. The color is good, but some episodes are unwatchable due to the scratches. Could be bad quality control, or the sly dog who sold it to me, but either way, it's not gonna fly.

So for paying much more than the standalone seasons, what's the perk? First, there's the individual bonus features on the discs. They're pretty meager, it ranges from a short creator's commentary to an irrelevant trailer for some other DVD or video game.

Next is the Bonus Disc... err... Bunus Oisc? At least I think that's the Bonus Disc. Just shows more of that dedication that they put into this, which clearly shows that the person making the titles had a poor understanding of the english language. But it's the content that matters, so let's check it out. The only think that's really appealing is a commentary about the evolution of the animated Batman. The rest is trailers and stuff. Oh, there's also a languages option, so you can now enjoy the DVDs in the language that the man who made the set speaks.
Bottom line: they were running out of ideas, and this could've easily been incorporated into one of the other discs, minus the unnecessary content.

Finally, the "Collector's Booklet." I don't really know what's so collectable about it... it tells you what's on each disc, I don't really see that as an option, they kinda have to say that. It has some artwork, too but nothing's really in-depth, and it certainly doesn't justify the cost.


Overall, if you're looking to watch Batman: The Animated Series at home, save yourself the time/money/effort/frustrations and just buy the individual seasons.

Basically, it's better off avoided. It looks like DC is better about releasing DVD sets, as the Superman and Justice League sets looked promising.

I heard that the Joker's reign in Gotham was mentioned at one point during the movie, but I can't find where. Anyone else pick it up?

Most of the people who argue that Batman doesn't kill are probably just people who aren't even aware of the Dark Knight's origins. But there are still those who are aware and deny it anyways, like this dude.

I just don't get that argument, why isn't Burton allowed to have Batman kill like he originally did? Obviously, there's a law against using the '39 comics as inspiration.