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Review of Season 1 |
callingcard
Posts: 118
Joined: 15.08.06
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| Posted on 08-10-2006 12:10 |
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Season 1 of Batman:
By far this was the best season of all. Everything was fresh, new, exciting. Every week we would turn on the TV to see what The Dynamic Duo would get into next or what villain they would deal with this week, The Joker, Catwoman, Penguin? From episode 1 "Hi Diddle Riddle" we were all taken on what some call a rollercoaster ride. Indeed it was a wild, crazy ride that we all took for two and a half years........ The Greatest episodes of the season by far would be:
1. Hi Diddle Riddle/Smack in The Middle
2. The Joker is Wild/Batman is Reild
3. The Pur-Fect Crime/Better Luck Next Time
4. The Joker goes to School/He meets his Match The Grisly Ghoul
5. The Penguin goes Straight/Not Yet he Ain't
6. Instant Freeze/Rat's Like Cheese
7. Death in Slow Motion/The Riddler's False Notion
This season will forever be the greatest season to all Bat Fans, though the other two would have some good shows, none of which could climb as high as this first year. From episode one to thirty-four, we were all hooked. A season to be remebered for good. That is all for now-----Til next time: "Same Bat Time, Same Bat Channel"-----
" Take this guy...armed roberry, double homicide. Got a taste for the theatrics like you and leaves a calling card." Gordon BB |
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RE: Review of Season 1 |
DavidG
Posts: 198
Location: Home
Joined: 26.07.06
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| Posted on 08-10-2006 12:24 |
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i think Batman is a great Show, i really did enjoy it alot, i wish they would make a New Live Action Batman Series i think it would be really great if they did it. |
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RE: Review of Season 1 |
Catfan
Posts: 262
Location: Upstate New York
Joined: 23.07.06
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| Posted on 08-10-2006 13:55 |
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"Hi Diddle Riddle"/"Smack In The Middle" ROCK!!!!
Just look at my avatar!!
I loved this episode from the time I first saw this on 12 January 1966. And I am writing this post in the exact same room in which I saw it, too!!
The first season of Batman was truly classic!
Located at http://www.catwomanfan.com
The 1965 FBI Tribute site
MySpace: Batman 1969 |
  
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RE: Review of Season 1 |
BornAgainBatman
Posts: 715
Location: NYC
Joined: 29.12.06
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| Posted on 29-01-2007 22:36 |
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i know i should give this a chance and i do believe you when you say season 1 is the best but man, i cant sit though this show without getting bored
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RE: Review of Season 1 |
spencer1984
Posts: 1271
Location: Upstate NY
Joined: 30.06.05
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| Posted on 30-01-2007 10:28 |
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How did I miss this thread until now? Oh well...
I agree, the first season was great. One thing that a lot of people forget is that the actors actually played their parts pretty seriously. All of the campiness came from the settings and situations, not the characters. Especially watch Adam West's performance: he was a rock solid Batman/Bruce, he just happened to live in the most insane world ever.
The complete history of the Batmobile: BatmobileHistory.com
Scale models of Batmobiles & more: spencer1984.com |
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RE: Review of Season 1 |
Caleson
Posts: 1631
Location: Rockville, IA
Joined: 24.06.05
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| Posted on 30-01-2007 13:22 |
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spencer1984 wrote:
All of the campiness came from the settings and situations, not the characters. Especially watch Adam West's performance: he was a rock solid Batman/Bruce, he just happened to live in the most insane world ever. And get a drink at a club before dancing the Batusi with friends. Nothin' wrong with that.
I know I've said it before, but honestly, you've got to be a pretty young child to take this series seriously. I tried to when I first saw it at the age of five, but it didn't take long to start realizing the density of sheer comedy it features. I understand the childhood nostalgia it offers for older fans (or really anyone that watched it at a very young age), but without that, I can't see how any adult could take it very seriously. It still leaves a ridiculous aftertaste on the general public perception on comic books, and many of them, in effect, don't take my/our strong enthusiasm and interest for Batman seriously.
Maybe I just didn't watch the series enough at a young age to love it like everyone else. So when it comes down to it, I have a reasonable interest in the production and creation of the show as well as the public's fascination with it (not to mention enjoy collecting 1966 merchandise), and I can get a pretty good laugh out of simply reading quotes from it. But Batman never was designed as a joke to begin with, and when the cold reality kicks in that this was the show that set the mainstream standard of superheroes, I guess I can only enjoy it so much.
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RE: Review of Season 1 |
BornAgainBatman
Posts: 715
Location: NYC
Joined: 29.12.06
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| Posted on 30-01-2007 14:48 |
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^^^^
I counldn't say it any better C |
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RE: Review of Season 1 |
spencer1984
Posts: 1271
Location: Upstate NY
Joined: 30.06.05
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| Posted on 30-01-2007 14:52 |
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That's a perfect example, though: yes, apparently his world was screwed up enough where there really wasn't anything wrong with that. But if you actually watch Adam's performance, he takes it dead seriously.
It's like Leslie Nielsen in Airplane!...it worked great because he was the straight man in an insane world. Wrongfully Accused was just as bad as Airplane! was good because he was trying to play it as a comedy. To me, Adam's performance was great because he didn't try to fit in to the insanity going on around him.
You could even consider it the perfect metaphor for Batman: he's the only sane one left in a world of go-go dancers and psychedelic decorations.
The complete history of the Batmobile: BatmobileHistory.com
Scale models of Batmobiles & more: spencer1984.com |
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RE: Review of Season 1 |
Caleson
Posts: 1631
Location: Rockville, IA
Joined: 24.06.05
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| Posted on 30-01-2007 15:42 |
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spencer1984 wrote:
It's like Leslie Nielsen in Airplane!...it worked great because he was the straight man in an insane world. Wrongfully Accused was just as bad as Airplane! was good because he was trying to play it as a comedy. To me, Adam's performance was great because he didn't try to fit in to the insanity going on around him. That's absolutely right. Nielsen is hilarious in all his films because of that. But is the Dark Knight supposed to be hilarious? In all fairness, it seems kind of odd to compare Batman with the star of The Naked Gun 33 1/3. That's an all-out comedy while Batman, in contrast, is a comic book crimefighter.
It is difficult to make one concrete view on the 1966 series or sum it up within a single statement. Its humor can be quite entertaining; heck, I love making parodies of my favorite characters. But to have actually defined the character in the public eye as essentially a joke seems wrong. I've seen some pretty hilarious, fan-made Flash cartoons lampooning Star Wars, but I wouldn't want 20th Century Fox to produce a comedy series that makes a mockery out of the entire saga.
If they simply made a Saturday morning live-action series for children that fit the somewhat campy themes of the era - perhaps more like Super Friends - I wouldn't see much of a problem. But considering how they went out of their way for adult attention, with the heavy use of comedy and sexual innuedos, it offered on a less innoccent and overall ridiculous definition of Batman.
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RE: Review of Season 1 |
spencer1984
Posts: 1271
Location: Upstate NY
Joined: 30.06.05
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| Posted on 30-01-2007 17:38 |
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I can definitely see what you mean. Too many people still associate Batman with "Bam" "Pow" "Biff," and fail to see the more important aspects to the character. At the same time, what would comics and comic media be like today without the meteoric popularity brought on by the TV series?
Caleson wrote:
In all fairness, it seems kind of odd to compare Batman with the star of The Naked Gun 33 1/3. That's an all-out comedy while Batman, in contrast, is a comic book crimefighter.
Consider this, though: Nielsen was only cast in his early comedic roles because he was such a good, serious actor. Same deal with Peter Graves and Lloyd Bridges. Our remembering them as "those guys from Airplane!" is little different from other people remembering Batman as "that funny TV show."
The complete history of the Batmobile: BatmobileHistory.com
Scale models of Batmobiles & more: spencer1984.com |
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RE: Review of Season 1 |
Caleson
Posts: 1631
Location: Rockville, IA
Joined: 24.06.05
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| Posted on 30-01-2007 19:08 |
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spencer1984 wrote:
Nielsen was only cast in his early comedic roles because he was such a good, serious actor. Same deal with Peter Graves and Lloyd Bridges. Our remembering them as "those guys from Airplane!" is little different from other people remembering Batman as "that funny TV show." Yeah, you're absolutely right that it's a close comparison. They were known for their serious acting abilities which also worked wonderfully in the right comedy setting. I guess what I'm saying, though, is that when I take a step back and think about that comparison between Batman and the work of Nielsen, Graves, and the like, it's bothersome. They're serious actors being placed in comedy, while on the other hand, you have not just any mild mannered personality; you've got Batman for Pete's sake - an individual, well-established character being placed in a zany, comedy environment. While I think it's great for actors to cover different genres in their career, should a specific fiction character be interchangable with different genres? Should Darth Vader be placed in a comedy situation (outside of Stormtroopers hitting their heads on the door of course)?
By the way, I hope I don't come off sounding like a discriminative Generation Y kid that can't respect anything before "my time." And I acknowledge that the era of the 1960s played a big part in the nature of the Batman series. I just find it a complex issue and like to address it beyond "That scene with the Shark Repellent is so funny! LOL." Maybe I'll just write one big shoot essay on this and unload all my thoughts at once, but it is nice to read other people's perspectives before making a final stance.
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RE: Review of Season 1 |
spencer1984
Posts: 1271
Location: Upstate NY
Joined: 30.06.05
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| Posted on 30-01-2007 19:58 |
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Actually, I appreciate your take on it - if I didn't want to hear someone else's opinion, I'd just talk to the toys on my desk. They never argue. 
Besides, I agree with a lot of what you're saying. At least, I think I do. As I understand it, you basically just want respect for the character. If people in general recognized Batman as a full character, the "campy" '60s could be accepted as easily as the "detective" of the '70s or "hardedge" '80s. But since people so often pigeonhole the character into that mindset of silly sight gags and a gadget for every occasion, it exaggerates the "camp" factor and diminishes his other aspects. In turn, we all as fans end up having to justify why we like a character that drives around with a guy in pixie shoes to people that have never heard of Neal Adams, Alan Grant, Dennis O'Neil, or Frank Miller.
The complete history of the Batmobile: BatmobileHistory.com
Scale models of Batmobiles & more: spencer1984.com |
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RE: Review of Season 1 |
Catfan
Posts: 262
Location: Upstate New York
Joined: 23.07.06
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| Posted on 04-02-2007 18:36 |
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Caleson wrote:
spencer1984 wrote:
All of the campiness came from the settings and situations, not the characters. Especially watch Adam West's performance: he was a rock solid Batman/Bruce, he just happened to live in the most insane world ever. And get a drink at a club before dancing the Batusi with friends. Nothin' wrong with that.
I know I've said it before, but honestly, you've got to be a pretty young child to take this series seriously. I tried to when I first saw it at the age of five, but it didn't take long to start realizing the density of sheer comedy it features. I understand the childhood nostalgia it offers for older fans (or really anyone that watched it at a very young age), but without that, I can't see how any adult could take it very seriously. It still leaves a ridiculous aftertaste on the general public perception on comic books, and many of them, in effect, don't take my/our strong enthusiasm and interest for Batman seriously.
Maybe I just didn't watch the series enough at a young age to love it like everyone else. So when it comes down to it, I have a reasonable interest in the production and creation of the show as well as the public's fascination with it (not to mention enjoy collecting 1966 merchandise), and I can get a pretty good laugh out of simply reading quotes from it. But Batman never was designed as a joke to begin with, and when the cold reality kicks in that this was the show that set the mainstream standard of superheroes, I guess I can only enjoy it so much.
I was 6? years old when this show debuted in January 1966. We just did not have the cable TV available that exists now, and most shows did not have the sense of colour that they have today. Indeed, this show was a special treat.
But I also know this show did not do justice to the comic, and I detested the turn toward the camp the show took in late 1966. I tuned out by the end of 1967, instead watching The Avengers.
Located at http://www.catwomanfan.com
The 1965 FBI Tribute site
MySpace: Batman 1969 |
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