Batman Animated Series

<div style="text-align: right;"><img src="http://i641.photobucket.com/albums/uu140/mrjag/batmansnow.jpg" border="0" /><!--right--></div><strong>Batman: The Animated Series</strong> (often shortened <strong>Batman: TAS</strong>) is an American animated series adaptation of the comic book series starring the famous DC Comics superhero, Batman. The series is noted for being the first to take place in the long-running DC Animated Universe. It was produced by Warner Bros. Animation. <div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i641.photobucket.com/albums/uu140/mrjag/btastitle.gif" border="0" /><!--center--></div> The visual style of the series is based on the artwork of producer Bruce Timm. The original series aired on FOX from September 5, 1992 to September 15, 1995. When the first season of the series aired on weekday afternoons, it lacked an on-screen title but was officially titled Batman: The Animated Series, as evidenced in promotional advertisements for the series. When its timeslot was moved to weekends (on some Fox channels) for the second season, it was re-named The Adventures of Batman & Robin. The original series was partially inspired by the Frank Miller comic Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, the Tim Burton films Batman and Batman Returns and the acclaimed Superman cartoons produced by Fleischer Studios in the 1940s. Timm and Radomski designed the series by closely emulating the Tim Burton films' "otherworldly timelessness," incorporating period features such as black-and-white title cards, police blimps, 40s influenced fashion, 40s influenced car styling and a "vintage" color scheme in a largely film noir-influenced style. The series initially took as its theme a variation of music written by Danny Elfman for the Burton films Batman and Batman Returns; later episodes of the series used a new theme with a similar style by Shirley Walker. The score of the series was influenced by Elfman and Walker's work on Batman and Batman Returns and the music of 40s film noir. <div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i641.photobucket.com/albums/uu140/mrjag/batmangotham.jpg" border="0" /><!--center--></div> The program was much more adult oriented than previous typical superhero cartoon series. In their constant quest to make the show darker, the producers pushed the boundaries of action cartoons: it was the first such cartoon in years to depict firearms being fired instead of laser guns (only one person has ever been actually depicted as shot; Commissioner Gordon in the episode "I Am the Night" was seen to have a gunshot wound after the firefight was finished), Batman actually punching and kicking the antagonists, as well as the existence of blood; in addition, many of the series' backgrounds were painted on black paper. The distinctive visual combination of film noir imagery and Art Deco designs with a very dark color scheme was called "Dark Deco" by the producers. First-time producers Timm and Radomski reportedly encountered resistance from studio executives, but the success of Burton's first film allowed the embryonic series to survive long enough to produce a pilot episode, "On Leather Wings", which according to Timm "got a lot of people off our backs." The Emmy Award-winning series quickly received wide acclaim for its distinctive animation and mature writing, and it instantly became a hit. Fans of a wide age range praised the show's sophisticated, cinematic tone and psychological stories. Voice-actor Kevin Conroy used two distinct voices to portray Bruce Wayne and Batman, as Michael Keaton had done in the films. This series also featured a supporting cast that included major actors performing the voices of the various classic villains, most notably Mark Hamill, who defined a whole new career for himself in animation with his cheerfully deranged portrayal of the Joker. The voice recording sessions were recorded with the actors together in a studio, like a radio play, unlike most animated films, in which the principal voice actors record separately and never meet (various interviews have noted that such an arrangement (having the cast record together) was a benefit to the show as a whole, as the actors were able to 'react' to one another, rather than simply 'reading the words'). <div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i641.photobucket.com/albums/uu140/mrjag/gothams.jpg" border="0" /><!--center--></div> Key to the series' artistic success is that it managed to redefine classic characters, paying homage to their previous portrayals while giving them new dramatic force. The characterisation of villains such as Two-Face and the Riddler and heroes like Robin — who had not appeared in the Burton film series — demonstrate this. The Penguin is based upon his appearance in Batman Returns, which was being released at the same time as the series. The series also gave new life to nearly forgotten characters like the Clock King. An often noted example of dramatic change is Mr. Freeze (whose character in the episode "Heart of Ice" won the show an Emmy for Outstanding Writing in an Animated Program.); Batman: TAS turned him from a clichéd mad scientist with a gimmick for cold, to a tragic figure whose frigid exterior hides a doomed love and a vindictive fury. Part of the tragedy is mimicked later in the plot of Joel Schumacher's infamous movie Batman and Robin, although much of the drama was lost with the resurrection of the pun-quipping mad scientist image. The most famous of the series' innovations is the Joker's hapless assistant/love interest, Harley Quinn, who became so popular that DC Comics later added her to the mainstream Batman comics continuity. This series became a cornerstone of the Warner Bros.' animation department, which became one of the top producers of television animation. For years, Warner Bros. Animation had been known only for doing Looney Tunes and their offshoots such as Tiny Toon Adventures. This was Warner's first attempt at doing a serious animated cartoon and it was an unexpected success for the animation department. It also sparked a large franchise of similar TV adaptations of DC Comics characters. Despite the marketing decision by Warner Bros. of making the series a Saturday morning cartoon, Producer Bruce Timm and the crew were not interested in making a kid's show and they have often stated that this series and others in the DCAU, such as The New Batman Adventures, Batman Beyond and Justice League, are not children's programs but merely include children in their audience. <div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i641.photobucket.com/albums/uu140/mrjag/BatsDCAULegacy1b.jpg" border="0" /><!--center--></div> - Feature Films: * Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993) - based on the animated series, the film started production as a direct-to-video release, but was changed to be a theatrical release near the end of production. * Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero (1998) - a direct-to-video release, also based on the series, which was initially completed as a tie-in to 1997's Batman and Robin, but due to the poor reception of that movie, its release was delayed a year. <div style="text-align: right;"><img src="http://i641.photobucket.com/albums/uu140/mrjag/btgirlclayface.jpg" border="0" /><!--right--></div><strong>The New Batman Adventures</strong> (often shortened <strong>TNBA</strong>) was the successor to the Batman: The Animated Series. Although bearing different names and animation, both shows take place in the same universe, with TNBA set a few years after the original series. According to the book Batman Animated, series writer Paul Dini originally wanted the new show to be titled Batman: Gotham Knights, but it was rejected by the producers. To better adhere with the prior DVD sets of the original series, the DVD release of this show is titled Batman: The Animated Series Volume 4 (from The New Batman Adventures). <div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i641.photobucket.com/albums/uu140/mrjag/nbalogo.gif" border="0" /><!--center--></div> The New Batman Adventures was produced for The WB and started almost three years after Batman: The Animated Series had stopped production. The animation style was changed significantly from Batman: TAS due to budgetary issues and to have the show more compatible with the smoother Superman: The Animated Series which TNBA would eventually air in tandem with as part of <em>The New Batman/Superman Adventures</em>, then later return to its own series again. The show had a significant change in focus from the original series with episodes focusing less on Batman and more on the many characters that inhabited Gotham City. The art was more streamlined, giving Batman a more sleek, buffed appearance and his classic plain black chest emblem, though the bat emblem's yellow elipse would also be removed from the comics in later years, perhaps due to the popularity of the series; it remains so as of the present day. Nearly every character design was darkened with the animation change. <div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i641.photobucket.com/albums/uu140/mrjag/batmansurprise.jpg" border="0" /><!--center--></div> The appearances of villains from his rogues gallery were also changed. For example, The Joker was made pale blue with green-highlighted black hair, and black eyes with white pupils, as well as being depicted as much smaller. He no longer had the ruby lips from the earlier animated series. His appearance would be changed yet again, in the spin-off series, which combined his appearance from the original series and the new series. Additionally, the Penguin was redesigned to match his classic counterpart rather than resemble the animal-like appearance of Danny DeVito's Penguin from 1992's Batman Returns, and Mr. Freeze's eyes where made red (instead of the red lensed googles he wore in Batman: TAS) plus changing his Sub-Zero suit's color to black replacing the sky blue and navy blue suit. Notably, Harley Quinn was the only character to not receive any drastic change in appearance or color alterations. Her popularity also became more evident, as she appears in 6 episodes. Most characters were given a more ghoulish appearance. One of the most apparent was the Scarecrow's new design which became a dark, corpse-like figure with a hangman's noose around his neck. The tone of the show shifted between "light and charming" to "dark and serious", with some of the darkest episodes ever seen in a cartoon ("Over the Edge" featured the death of Batgirl, albeit as a dream), as well as wacky, lighthearted fare. ("Critters", for example, is one of the least popular episodes amongst some fans for its tone, but actually one of producer Bruce Timm's favorites and has commentary on the DVD release of the TNBA episodes.) Many of these changes and contrasts were somewhat similar to the regular comics post-KnightSaga. Stories in this series tend to involve Batman's supporting cast, which include fellow crimefighters Robin, Nightwing and Batgirl, among others. The show also features guest stars such as Supergirl, Etrigan and The Creeper; characters who would later appear with Batman in Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. The series takes place around the same time as Superman: The Animated Series. <div style="text-align: right;"><img src="http://i641.photobucket.com/albums/uu140/mrjag/batmancatwoman.jpg" border="0" /><!--right--></div> - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batman:_The_Animated_Series" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batman:_The_Animated_Series</a> - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_Batman_Adventures" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_Batman_Adventures</a> <img src="http://i641.photobucket.com/albums/uu140/mrjag/batgirlsupergirl.jpg" border="0" /> <div style="text-align: center;"><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://youtube.com/v/m-u07UEDT5I&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/m-u07UEDT5I&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object> <object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://youtube.com/v/FuSyFmXLHM0&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FuSyFmXLHM0&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><!--center--></div>