Happy 15th Anniversary,BATMAN : The Animated Series
by James Harvey
Fifteen years ago today, millions of children watched Batman go up against a devious terrorist named Red Claw and tangle with Catwoman. This has been a show that countless people were looking forward to. A new Batman cartoon. And one that looked pretty amazing. At least based on the commercials and the odd article that popped up in magazines here and there. Plus . . . the name. Batman: The Animated Series. What is it about that name that seems so . . . iconic? So definitive? I think that alone made the attraction to the series even stronger. And, like I said, millions of children, and adults, were sitting down to watch this show. It was Saturday morning, and I wasn’t watching.
Posts: 1631 Location: Rockville, IA Joined: 24.06.05
Thank you, Jim. I'll get over to Toonzone and re-post my thoughts under my alternate alias, but for now, this is a nice BTAS 15th Anniversary thread for BYTB.
I remember being just short of 6 years old, not long after the hype of Batman Returns, waiting in anticipation of Batman: The Animated Series. As the fantastic bank robbery intro began, I was busy panicking to get my VCR to record. I taped quite a few episodes, more than any other show and many of which I still have on a single VHS.
When I look back at the cartoons I enjoyed as a kid, BTAS sticks out head and shoulders over the rest as an unbelievably sophisticated series. Even at such a young age, I loved the 1930s stylization and elements of mystery and drama. I would argue that the series was taken so seriously by its creators that it was perhaps too sophisticated at times, to the point where certain episodes could bore a young Bat-fan like myself with its business-suited villains and their technically trying crimes. I'm thankful for this now, as I can honestly say that I understand and probably enjoy many episodes more now than I did as a young boy starting grade school. Batman: The Animated Series has and will definitely stand the test of time as one of the greatest incarnation of the Dark Knight.
RE: Happy 15th Anniversary,BATMAN : The Animated Series -
Posted on 13-09-2007 14:27
Posts: 726 Location: The Shadow Of St Albans Abbey Joined: 28.07.06
As a child, via Adam West, I was seriously into Batman. As I grew up I started buying comics and I was with the Dark Knight through to the early 90s. Despite being in the UK, I made a point of voting on Death In The Family...... Then I sort of moved on. I didnt stop liking Batman and I would periodically read a book, buy a comic or watch a film etc. I also remember listening to the Knightfall saga on BBC Radio 1 whilst the World Cup was in America in 1994. But essentially, throughout the 90s my interest in Batman was based on what had been part of personal past (if that makes sense). Exactly at what point I moved on, I can't say, but I know at the outset of this series, I didnt know of it.
However, even a few years later I was still Dark Knight enough to have and wear a couple of T-shirts, which got spotted by another Batman fan at work, who asked about it. I said I used to be on the scene but really and truly I'd moved on. I was then given a video to watch of BTAS (this would be approx 2000) and I had it for ages before I got round to even taking it home. It was my drawer at work for months. It was only because I felt a bit guilty and thought it would be just too rude to give it back without having looked at it, that I eventually got round to watching it..........
From the opening credits alone my interest in Batman was more or less totally re-ignited. That's not an exaggaration or a cheap big shout out, it''s what actually happened. It was noir, it was Batman as he was supposed to be, it was moody, it was, quite simply EXCELLENT. Those towering, art deco skyscrapers on that dark background - it was evocative beyond belief. I don't know if any part of America ever actually looked like that, if it didnt (& I suspect thats the case), the imagination and creativity that produced the visuals is even more impressive. People (including BTAS production team themselves) regularly compare these to the famous (and wonderful) Fleischer cartoons of the 40s - but that doesnt do them justice. Unquestionably these were partly insired by those, but good lord they took that vibe and ran with it. And ended up in an even better place.
I would now say that this is my favourite version of Batman, in any form. I really do rate it that highly. This, to me, is the definitive Dark Knight. In that statement, I'm including the likes of Kane, Finger, Miller, Nolan, Moore and anyone else. To me, Btas IS Batman.
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