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Batman - The Animated Series, Volume One (DC Comics Classic Collection) 
Actors : Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill
Director : Bruce Timm
Studio : Warner Home Video
by Warner Home Video
Brand : Warner Brothers
Release Date : 2004-07-06
Publisher : Warner Home Video
Availability : Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Number of Items : 4
EAN : 9780790789033
UPC : 085393189624
Avg. Customer Rating: (based on 153 reviews)
List Price : $44.98
Our Price : $21.35
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Product Description |
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Studio: Warner Home Video Release Date: 05/24/2005 Run time: 625 minutes Rating: Nr |
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Marketadvisory.com |
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Warner Brothers' Batman: The Animated Series (1992-1995) remains a striking, stylized program that helped to revitalize the familiar comic book hero. Drawing on such diverse influences as Frank Miller's graphic novel The Dark Knight Returns, the Fleischers' Superman cartoons of the early '40s, and contemporary Japanese animation, the filmmakers stress interesting designs and cinematography. The Caped Crusader prowls a sinister, Art Deco-styled world of tall verticals, sharp angles, silhouettes, searchlights, and grid-like shadows cast by window frames. Its visual pizzazz eclipses Filmation's pallid kidvid, The Batman/Superman Hour (CBS, 1968), which ran off and on in various incarnations through 1981. Many of the same artists worked on the Batman animated features (e.g., Mask of the Phantasm (1993), Batman Beyond--The Movie (1999)), which display similar strengths and weaknesses. Ironically, Batman: The Animated Series looks better in stills than it does in motion. The artists fail to stylize the movements of the characters to match the dramatic settings, as Genndy Tartakovsky and his crew did in Samurai Jack. Batman uses sophisticated computers to combat the well-known villains--the Joker, the Penguin, Mr. Freeze, Catwoman--as well as some less celebrated baddies: Manbat, Clayface, The Mad Hatter. The bad guys cram a lot of plotting and scheming into each 22-minute episode, but the violence is kept to a broadcast standards minimum. The Dark Knight's First Knight easily ranks as the most interesting of the extras. Producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski recount the genesis of the series, and show their mini-pilot, which is more violent and more fully animated. If the complete episodes had matched the pilot, the series would have been much more exciting. (Unrated, suitable for ages 8 and older: violence, mild grotesque imagery) --Charles Solomon |
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Batman the animated series vol.1 |
I have watched Batman the animated series volume one and I love it! one of
the episodes,I'm having a hard time connecting to is the forgotten.But,otherwhise most of the episodes are good. |
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Excellent |
This is early Batman, the streets, cars and clothes people wear look very 1950's, except the Batmobile and everything starting with "bat". I personally like the 1960's Adam West batmobile the best of the lot.
I have always liked Batman, and I'm almost to the point where I won't hear a bad word said about him or the associated characters. I'm in Australia and had to buy this via Marketadvisory - it's not available locally (not yet anyway - Nov 2008).
I have to say that the stories are good and varied, no characters are over exposed in this first volume, though the order in which the episodes play seem to be totally out of chronological order. Only one or two have Robin in them, and they're on the 4th disc, and there is no introduction of the character - he's just suddenly there. Although, having said that, a lot of Batmans' own history is shown, as is the history of those he takes on.
I don't know the "correct" version of the history of every character, but I found it to be a good entertaining watch, worthy of my time, when there are so many other options to choose from.
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Amazing |
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Other reviews go into great detail of what these DVD set includes, I'll keep it my review short, but this is the greatest animated series ever made. |
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The Beginnings of a Legend |
I grew up watching Batman: The Animated Series on TV. I would tape every episode, I had all of the action figures, and if there was a new episode on you better not even try to talk to me until it was over. Little did I know the show I enjoyed so much as a kid was being enjoyed by people of all ages, and would go on to be recognized as one of the definitive screen versions of the character. And rewatching these episodes as an adult, I couldn't agree more.
First off, you cannot really talk about this version of Batman without mentioning the art style. The characters are very stylized (just look at Batman's impossibly square jaw), and the world they inhabit is straight out of the art deco designs of yesteryear. Yet the art direction is so consistant, and the portrayal of these characters so smart and well executed, you cannot help but instantly believe in it. There is also some really impressive animation to be seen on this set, especially given the typically limited television budget. However, there is also some really poor animation on display, depending on which overseas studio was handling a given episode. The quality wouldn't iron itself out until later in the show's run, and unfortunately some of these early episodes are hard to watch because the animation is so distracting.
Another aspect of this show that was ahead of its time is the writing. Here is a show that was designed from the ground up to air on Saturday mornings, with a target audience of children. Yet the writers insisted on writing mature, thoughtful stories that were often adult in their emotional complexity, rightly assuming that kids would be able to follow the narrative even if they couldn't grasp all the nuances. It was this decision that allows people of all ages to watch and enjoy this show, and is the primary reason the show remains popular to this day. Like any good piece of family entertainment, the writers made something they wanted to watch and just remembered to keep the violence and adult content in check.
However, like the animation, the quality of writing fluxates across this volume. The mature characterizations and adult problems seen in episodes like "Two-Face" and "Feat of Clay" have to share disc space with truly poor episodes like "The Last Laugh" and "I've Got Batman in My Basement." Luckily, the good outweighs the bad, but a few episodes of dubious quality keep this set from getting 5 stars.
Sound wise, the show is also excellent. The voice cast is uniformly great, led by Kevin Conroy's definitive take on Batman. He handles the character's dual personalities with ease, and both halves of the whole are convincing. The recurring characters all have distinctive voices (you could close your eyes and have no trouble knowing who's speaking), and even better they act their roles with depth and maturity, rather than the over the top portrayals Saturday morning cartoons are prey to. This keeps the drama believable, and the actors are helped out by an outstanding musical score by Shirley Walker. Using Danny Elfman's work on the Tim Burton films as a starting point, Walker creates a grand orchestral score able to convey pulse pounding excitement or heartache as needed. She also creates distinct and memorable themes for each of the main villains, and her work is just a treat to listen to.
Finally, you can't really talk about this set without at least mentioning the Emmy-winning and fan favorite episode "Heart of Ice." The episode reinvents the previously comical, gimmick based character of Mr. Freeze as a tragic figure, a reimagining so successful that this version of his origin has been incorporated into the comics. I have to say, although I enjoy the episode immensely, it's almost a victim of its own popularity, as it isn't the end-all-be-all some people would make it out to be. But it is definitely the highlight of this set, and easily one of the series' top 5 episodes.
Anyone hankering for more of the Dark Knight's adventures after the most recent film would do well to check this set out. It provides an adult and thoroughly entertaining take on the character without some of the extreme darkness found in the more recent movies. Parents can watch this with their children and both parties will be enchanted. Definitely recommended. |
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Welcome to Gotham City (Volume 1) |
BOY, they don't make them like they used to. "Batman: The Animated Series" is no doubt one of the finest cartoons ever created. Like Burton's 1989 Batman film, this has lots of emotional and psychological depth. The writing is strong, very mature unlike other cartoons (Spongebob should be ashamed). Plus, all of the distinctive characters are very well done, while the animation itself is fantastic. The look and feel of Gotham City is dark, unpleasant, and somewhat Burtonesque. And the music just shines throughout the series.
This DVD box set contains the first 28 episodes. They're all in production order, and not arranged by airdate. Some episodes are pretty weak, but that's only because they're the first episodes of the first season (we're not getting to that psychological depth just yet).
-Episode 1.1, On Leather Wings: This pilot episode has us starting to see that this Batman adaptation is going to be serious business. It's dark, suspenseful, and almost operatic. (5/5)
-Episode 1.2., Christmas with the Joker: Alot of people don't like this episode because of its silly action sequences and unecessary puns. I still watch it because it's good entertainment. And plus, Mark Hamill's voice makes the Joker all the more intriguing. (3/5)
-Episode 1.3, Nothing to Fear: This contains the debut of Scarecrow. He doesn't look frightening enough, but his insane scheme to spread fear all around the Gotham University is scary. (4/5)
-Episode 1.4, The Last Laugh: Another campy Joker episode. This looks too much like the Adam West TV series. The overall silliness makes this a failure. (1.5/5)
-Episode 1.5, Pretty Poison: The debut of Poison Ivy. She looks so darn attractive, but her motive against Harvey Dent doesn't seem to work. P.S., is that Kevin Conroy as the French waiter? (3.5/5)
-Episode 1.6, The Underdwellers: This is one of the weakest episodes in the entire series. The Sewer King is not a believable villain, and the freakishly dark tone in this episode may be even a bit to much. (1.5/5)
-Episode 1.7, P.O.V.: Slightly better than the Underdwellers. But it won't catch alot of people's interest. (2.5/5)
-Episode 1.8, The Forgotten: This may not be interesting to some, but I enjoyed it not only because of the issue of homelessness, but because Alfred rides the Batwing! (3/5)
-Episode 1.9, Be a Clown: We're not getting to the full potential of the Joker just yet. (3/5)
-Episode 10 and 11, Two-Face: Well, now we're getting somewhere! The birth of Two-Face is so powerful and so psychological, that it's sure to give even adults some shivers. Richard Moll is perfectly cast as the main villain. (5/5)
-Episode 12, It's Never Too Late: This is also one of the more realistic episodes that doesn't involve any supervillain. The Mafia plot is a bold move; the cast and crew have done a wonderful job here. (4.5/5)
-Episode 13, I've Got Batman in my Basement: The debut of the Penguin. Here, they went with the Burtonesque appearance that's found in "Batman Returns". But here the villain has a much cleaner appearance. The episode itself, however, leaves a lot to be desired. This is more for kids than adults. (3/5)
-Episode 14, Heart of Ice: The debut of Mr. Freeze. This is everyone's personal favorite not only because of the redesign of the main villain, but for its emotional power. (5/5)
-Episode 15 and 16, The Cat and the Claw: The debut of Catwoman. Not a fascinating episode, but it still gives alot of action. (3/5)
-Episode 17, See No Evil: Invisibility is a scary thing, you know. (4/5)
-Episode 18, Beware the Grey Ghost: This is the perfect reflection of how the 60's West show gave us the driving force to create a more darker Batman. Adam West himself guest stars as Simon Trent, who has trouble finding work due to his being typecast. (5/5)
-Episode 19, Prophecy of Doom: Crap, crap, crap. (1/5)
-Episode 20 and 21, Feat of Clay: The debut of Clayface. This ranks with Two-Face and Mr. Freeze as a tragic story. But here, Clayface seems more arrogant than others, and he may have deserved his transformation. But nonetheless, he is a tragic character, and Roland Dagget should have been punished. (5/5)
-Episode 22, Joker's Favor: This is actually the debut episode of the Joker (when it comes to airdate), and his introduction sure feels like the first episode with the Clown Prince of Crime. This is also the debut of Harley Quinn, an original creation from the BTAS crew. This is one of my favorite episodes, though the ending may not bode well with Joker fans.(5/5)
-Episode 23, Vendetta: The debut of Killer Croc. Croc doesn't look threatening enough, but maybe it's because of fear of censorship. (2/5)
-Episode 24, Fear of Victory: Scarecrow returns with a more menacing look. The plot, though, doesn't seem much to give this episode praise. (4/5)
-Episode 25, The Clock King: The debut of, or course, The Clock King. The villain relies on time to fend off Batman and Mayor Hill. He may be a bit dull to some, but I like this guy because he's doesn't have superpowers. (5/5)
-Episode 26, Appointment in Crime Alley: An important episode that deals with Batman and the place where his parents were killed. (4/5)
-Episode 27, Mad as a Hatter: The debut of the Mad Hatter. This is one of my favorite Batman villains, alongside Scarecrow and Joker and Penguin. He's more human than he really is. (5/5)
-Episode 28, Dreams in Darkness: Batman's nightmares are what make this episode. The rest don't work. (3.5/5) |
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