Eventually those two moved on, and the
Batman franchise fell into other hands, becoming
more and more kid friendly. Two years ago, in fact, the
Dark Knight became almost light-hearted in the direct-to-video
release Mystery of the Batwoman. Still, that 1990
vision cast a long shadow, one that seemed more brooding
(in a good way) than fun.
And brooding doesn't really sell toys.
That's not necessarily a criticism of the
new animated series, The Batman. In today's synergistic
market-driven world, licensing has to be given consideration.
So it makes sense to start from scratch, go back to the
early days of Batman's career to make him more identifiable
to kids and darn it, make it more kid-friendly and hip.
The resulting series drives old-time fans
nuts, partially because the kids really do seem to love
it. Batman and his world have been reduced to broad strokes
and bright colors rather than the shades of grey that Timm
and Dini gave us. Episodes follow a fairly straightforward
formula, the better for kids to latch onto just what the
characters are about.
| |
| This
is not your father's Joker -- or mine... |
Want proof? Watch the three episodes collected
on The Batman: Training For Power. From the first,
"Bat in the Belfry," it's clear that this new series owes
a lot to 60s and 70s storytelling. The Gotham City police
department has no interest in working with this bizarre
vigilante, and assigns two detectives to arrest him. Ironically,
of course, one happens to be Bruce Wayne's college buddy.
So each episode goes. The police are torn
between trying to capture the Batman and/or the freakish
villains that he seems to attract. And of course, at various
intervals Alfred has to signal Bruce Wayne on his Bat-PDA.
Thank heavens that he only dates bimbos; they never notice
the red and yellow bat-shaped light that goes on a little
too long. Allegedly, that signal triggers a response from
the tie-in toys, but I can't prove that until Mattel offers
us those for review. (HINT.)
The
villains are elements of the show that drive old fans crazy,
but make a weird sort of sense. Designed as if they were
making their first appearance in today's world, they reflect
popular culture. On the flip side, they often bear little
resemblance to the villains we've come to know and love.
The
Penguin, actually, still looks close to the way most people
think of him, but with a touch of rich nerd. Perhaps the
most jarring redesign is in The Joker, looking like a literal
loony bin escapee, actually breaking into Arkham
Asylum to use it as a base of operations. Still dangerous,
he seems less homicidal (and thus more kid-friendly) than
the Mark Hamill-voiced version - though Kevin Michael Richardson
doesn't actually sound that much different than Hamill.
| |
| But
this Dracula just wants kids to eat their vegetables... |
Helping
to build future Fanboys, the DVD includes the obligatory trivia
quiz, though the interface acted up on the copy we received.
Though it only underscores that this show is as much about
toys as entertainment, the extra featurette takes a behind-the-scenes
look at how Mattel puts a Batman action figure together. Framed
by the animated Detective Yin trying to find Batman at the
Mattel offices, the designers and sculptors obviously have
a lot of fun with their fifteen minutes of fame. Despite the
goofiness of the set-up, it's also pretty informative.
If
you yearn for the earlier animated series, that's available,
too. But the kids in your house probably would prefer The
Batman. The show has proven popular enough that it will
get a direct-to-video feature this Fall, The Batman vs.
Dracula, which likely isn't adapted from the Elseworlds
story Red Rain.
Still,
it's been over ten years. Let the children have their bat
and those wonderful toys. You can always try to convert
them later.
