The description could be applied to any episode of Batman: The Animated Series, widely regarded as the best superhero cartoon ever created. However, this description actually comes from the initial trailer for Batman: Caped Crusader, a new animated series focusing on the early days of the Dark Knight’s fight against crime.
The similarities between Caped Crusader and B:TAS are intentional. Both projects are spearheaded by Bruce Timm, the artist responsible for the iconic designs of B:TAS, Superman: The Animated Series, and Justice League. Timm serves as the chief creative for Caped Crusader, with J.J. Abrams and The Batman director Matt Reeves on board as producers.
The influence of the ’90s show is evident throughout the Caped Crusader trailer, with appearances by characters like Harley Quinn and Renee Montoya, who were first introduced in the animated series. Hamish Linklater, the voice of the new animated Batman, channels Kevin Conroy’s iconic growl in his portrayal of the character. The criminal elements threatening the city in the trailer evoke memories of the hoods that Batman dispatched in the opening sequence of the earlier show.
However, the trailer also emphasizes that Caped Crusader is not simply a rehash of The Animated Series. The new cartoon not only showcases a less seasoned Batman, but also delves into the comics of the 1940s, the initial stories about the character since his debut in Detective Comics #27 in 1939. Instead of the robust Batman depicted by Timm in TAS, Caped Crusader presents a leaner hero, with the gloves and broader points from the Bill Finger design by Bob Kane and Jerry Robinson. Villains like Clayface and Catwoman are seen in earlier outfits, with the former sporting eerie makeup rather than being a living mass of mud, and the latter in her fashionable purple attire.
Nonetheless, the most significant difference may lie in the tone of the new series. At the start, an individual being interviewed on the aforementioned program laments that Gotham is descending into chaos, a phrase deemed too severe for broadcast on Fox Kids. The gunshots aimed at Batman possess a more authentic quality compared to the toy weapons wielded by the antagonists in the initial series. Batman encounters two lifeless bodies, their eyes wide open from the fatal explosion, unblinking as a spider traverses an eyeball.
While The Animated Series did have its share of mature moments, both in terms of emotional complexity (e.g., “Heart of Ice”) and content, particularly in the films, such as the bodies left by Joker in Batman: Mask of the Phantasm or the fate of young Tim Drake in the spin-off Batman: The Return of the Joker, it was still intended as a children’s program, meant for early afternoon viewing.
Caped Crusader debuts on a streaming platform in a saturated superhero narrative landscape, alongside series like The Boys. The level of violence no longer elicits the same impact as it did three decades ago, allowing Timm and his team to explore more explicit themes. Drawing from the success of The Animated Series, they are likely to craft more intricate narratives, delivering emotionally resonant tales of the Dark Knight.
