Batman: The Animated Series

Forget the camp & cheese of the previous Batman cartoons...this is a masterpiece! The depiction of Batman fighting both the psychos of Gotham City and his inner demons spawned from the murder of his parents years ago is superb. For years Anime had proved that animation need not be just for kids. Batman: The Animated Series solidifies that conclusion.

Kevin Conroy has the perfect voice for both Batman and Bruce Wayne (there is a very obvious distinction). Mark Hamill gives the Joker sadism, sarcasm, and lunacy without resorting to goofiness. Efram Zimblast Jr. makes an excellent Alfred by being loyal, yet openly concerned about his employer's choice of career.

This series is coming to DVD soon - I'm getting in line!

Perhaps the best animated series ever. It provides great accuracy in the stories and characters, while allows innovation and imagination. They "pull no punches" and didn't try to make this a kiddy show. It became the trend setter for "Superman" and "Batman: Beyond", even though neither can compare.

It has been a long hard journey to mainstream media for comic book characters, but finally Batman made it with time to spare in Batman: The Animated Series (later renamed The Adventures of Batman & Robin). Groundbreaking animation, superior voice-over work, and top-notch stories have made this series into a creation too stupendous to call a "cartoon." Each episode was a wondrous, albeit dark, trip through Batman's world, and how he faces each and every obstacle Gotham City gives him. Much like an amalgam of all of Batman's two-dimensional incarnations, this series' Dark Knight is tortured and driven, but not requite enough to give his enemies pithy comebacks and display romantic charms. Definitely, this is the way the Batman should and always be depicted.

We longtime (read "old") fans of Batman have been waiting for a cinematic Batman that reflects the greatness of the comic books. Unfortunately, we have had to put up with the worst attempts to realize this great character. The movie serials were atrocious, the Adam West show, although entertaining, treated the character as a joke. The Filmation cartoons and the Superfriends were watered down. The more recent movies are a mixed bag. Then, along came BTAS, and we were finally satisfied.

Everything, from the look and tone of the animation, to the stories and voicework was first-rate. Batman is the Dark knight Detective. He's not a guy in a rubber suit. He is skilled, intelligent, obsessed, tortured, and dedicated. The villains are evil, psychotic, and just plain loopy. We have Paul Dini's wonderful creation of Harley Quinn, the first inspired and interesting character, since Denny O'Neil created Ra's al Ghul.

The creators took their cue from the legendary Flesicher Bros. version of Superman, with it's Art Deco stylings and darker color palette. It took its story concepts from the work of Bill Finger, Denny O'Neil, Frank Miller, and Steve Engelhart. The music was inspired by the wonderful Danny Elfman music from the Tim Burton film. The voicework featured outstanding actors, with mature direction from Andrea Romano.

The only criticism I can level at the show is that they avoided doing a complete episode revolving around Batman's origin. Granted, the broadcast standards and practices limited how much they could show, but they found a way to present Robin's origin, without sacrificing story. They did present elements, but I would have liked to have seen a complete episode, with his training and "year one" adventures. The Superfriends episode, "The Fear" presented more of the origin than BTAS ever depicted. Still, it didn't detract from the overall effectiveness of the series.

The series even improved on some of the elements of the comics. Personally, I never thought much of Bane, but I enjoyed the BTAS version, complete with the Lucha Libre stylings; Bane as luchador hitman, classic! The Joker was far more interesting here than he had been for some time in the comics. The Riddler came across as deadly, rather than a joke. Alfred provided more than window dressing.

This is the series that set the standard for all other cinematic Batman efforts. Thankfully, it removed the bitter taste of Joel Schumacher.

This program thanks to people like Alan Burnett, Paul Dini, and Bruce W. Timm made this show the most faithful adaption of the Dark Knight ever. This show was brilliant!!!! It had terrific animation, story line, character development, and action sequences. Regardless of weather you're a Batman fan or not this is a show not to be missed.