"Batman: Caped Crusader" Season One Talkback (Spoilers)

[b.t.]

We always have legal hoops to jump through whenever we use characters that originated on the Adam West series, so changing his civilian name and never actually calling him ‘King Tut‘ was a good way to by-pass all that drama.

’Fletcher Deming‘ is one of my weird little in-jokes that no one else on the planet is likely to get. Fletcher Flora and Richard Deming were both prolific Mid-Century crime fiction authors, each of whom also ghost-wrote Ellery Queen novels in the 1960s. I thought the combined name sounded reasonably like a ‘Rich Dude’ name.

 

[Frontier]

Episode 6: Night Ride

It's nice to hear Kari Wahlgren in a DC cartoon. Plus, of course the "Gentleman" Ghost would be soft to the lady guard .

I'm glad to see Lucius show up! Seems like he's not just there to help Bruce out of legal jams but also to keep him wealthy and supply enough income for the good old "discretionary fund" (which he knows not to ask too many questions about) even when he's not actively running a company. Plus, he even gets a dig at Bruce's treatment of Alfred! Even if he also calls him Pennyworth .

I like seeing that Lucius has his own business and enterprises outside working with Bruce and in his own time he works to benefit the city and people in need. I think Bruce praising his efforts was completely genuine, at least as genuine as Bruce gets on this show .

Oh hey, Jason Marsden as Harvey's aid! He doesn't get a lot to do in this show, but it's always great to hear him .

If only Harvey knew that getting involved with Rupert Thorne NEVER ends well for him...in any continuity...and it seems like despite how smarmy and quick to try anything to boost up his popularity Harvey is, Harvey genuinely believes he's becoming mayor for the sake of fixing Gotham and making things better. Of course, there's two sides to everything .

Harvey talking about the beating heart of Gotham while said beating heart literally stares at him like they couldn't care less about any of his shallow praise and political talk. They know a phoney when they see him .

We finally get Gentleman Ghost in a Batman cartoon! He was originally pitched as the antagonist for the Zatanna episode of B:TAS before getting replaced by Montague Kane, but now we get to see him fully realized as a spectral highwayman haunting the streets of Gotham. Frankly consiering the fact that Zatanna wasn't even allowed to use real magic in her episode, there was probably a distinct chance Gentelman Ghost would have had to have been altered to do away with him, being, well a literal ghost. I admit for most of the episode I was concerned that they would try to explain him away with science, but thankfully...no, he's just straight up a ghost haunting everyone and Batman has to find some way to beat him! And the episode is all the more better because of it .

I like seeing Bruce interacting with people from his childhood, like Wilma the librarian. the tenderness he shows these people feels real because he knew them back when he still felt like Bruce Wayne. Plus, just seeing Bruce Wayne going to the library (no Batcomputer for him!) is cool. And of course he was into knights and heroes as a kid .

I love how Lucius was willing to throw hands with a ghost if he had too .

Aw, Alfred gave Bruce lockpicks for his 12th birthday! That's how you know he really cares. Even if it seems like even after all his years of service Bruce has probably never acted interested in or cared about Alfred's life before becoming his aide in the War on Crime .

I was kind of expecting Bruce's status as a scion of a distinguished Gotham family would make him "noble," but nice to know Alfred has some pedigree. And hey, at least Batman believes in the American dream of exceptionalism .

Toby Stephens was clearly having a lot of fun as Gentleman Ghost in this episode, carrying that dandy adventurous spirit one would expect from a highwayman while also the posh and entiteld aristocratic air that is also a staple of the character. Though it's also palyed up here as pure elitism of a British noble who refuses to believe anyone can rise above or be worth more than their station and that believing otherwise is an attack on him and his own refusal to accept his mistakes .

I would say design wise they really took to making him look like a proper Colonial-era highwaman ghost, but it's still kind of odd seeing Gentleman Ghost without his monocle and top hat...as well as seeing his eyes .

How do you stop Gentleman Ghost without Nth Metal, the only substance that can actually hurt him? Why, by an exorcism of course! Courtesy of Pappa Midnight (voiced with effective weight, charisma, and eerie supernatural air by Cedric Yarbrough) and also showing Batman that the world even within his corner of Gotham is far bigger and more weird than even he realizes .

I love how there was literally no hesitation on Alfred's part to take the hit for Bruce. Didn't need a single minute to think about it. That's a father protecting his son right there .

Man, Bruce is so caught up in himself that admitting he needs Alfred and cares about him comes off like he's pulling teeth. But still, the sentiment is there, and Alfred understands it .

Episode 7: Moving Target

It's nice to see Babs actually win a case for once, even if it gets on her dad' bad side. That's definitely one thing making her an attorney adds to her dynamic with her dad when his job is putting crooks behind bars and her job is to advocate for them and understand their circumstances. And of course it also lends itself to discussions about the system, how well it works, and how people are meant to be serviced by said system .

That was Floyd Lawton/Deadshot!? I mean, I know Floyd in a suit was his original appearance, and he has the mustache, but it was so...underwhelming. The greatest marksman in the DCU, taken out before he can really shoot anything after straight up running up to what he needed to hit? Um...okay. Though it's kind of funny that this show brought back white Deadshot .

Jim has been commissioner for 30 years!? That's comic book job security .

The Gordon family has got to be one of the most stubborn family in the history of Superheroes, and that's saying something .

Ah yes, Batman...the master of entering offices without any warning to talk to you about cases and then leaving almost as quickly as he came .

I like to think Batman would have gone easier on those Blackgate guards had he not heard them basically admit to beating a prisoner to death .

Sometimes it feels like every Batman cartoon is contracturally obligated to feature at least one Green Arrow villain...and in this instance it's Onomatopoeia (not actually named as such, granted). Not only does he look dapper in a suit but he's got a whole goon squad of men in suits following him. And Toby Stephens really seemed to be having fun with Onomatopoei's sound effects dialogue, which work surprisingly well in animation .

It's still surreal for me to see Barbara Gordon packing heat. Like, in the context of the setting and how she grew up, it makes sense, but will she still use a gun if she becomes Batgirl ?

"Wayne Gardens" - You can't tell me this isn't going to lead to a Poison Ivy episode in season 2 .

Interesting conversation on whether Gotham is worth saving and how you where grew up (and perceived privildege) might effect how you see the city .

Dang, Babs and Corrigan got that ONE goon who won't go down .

I love how Onomatopeia is saying the '66 shows sound effects during his fight with Batman and even got Batman saying a "pow" at the end. Bruce can't deny he's not a bit of a dork !

Ah dang, so he WAS the Corrigan from Gotham Central who was dirty. At least he's off to do hard time before he did something bad to Crispus Allen .

Oh, I guess we're cool with Batman now! I mean, this is the umpteenth time he's saved us .

Babs really believed in her job and in her own brand of enacting justice in the city, but then one of her clients who she did everything for tries to kill her and acts ungrateful...and frankly, proves that some people really DO need to be in prison. And the way Babs walks away makes you really wonder if she's considering if continuing being a lawyer is the right fit for her and her ideals. I mean, I hear vigilantism is getting popular lately .

Episode 8: Nocturne

"Dicki," "Jacey" - Okay, I see what they're doing here. Though it's kind of funny that they pulled the old "Jason Todd started off with red hair" reference, though personality-wise Dick came off more Jason-y to me. Also, where was "Timmie?" ?

Dang it kids, never follow the cute pale goth girl !

Look at Bruce doing a solid for his pal Harvey Dent! Too bad Harvey's got in bad with Boss Thorne and has to grapple with his morals and the price for Thorne financing his campaing .

I thought Bruce was on a date with Selina for a second before I realized it was his OTHER Golden Age love interest, Julie Madison! Their hairstyles look pretty much the same but Julie feels more...made up compared to Selina whose face looked more natural? She doesn't really get a lot of development here but she seems like a nice enough person and has a good throwing arm, though she's probably pretty much just a "beard" for Bruce. But it is kind of amusing to see Grey DeLisle voice a girl romantically attached to Bruce even though she's not voicing Catwoman...and they have the same hair .

It's nice to see Leslie Thompkins, not running a medical clinic but an orphanage, which is still very Leslie. But she's still got the medical background and the family connection to Bruce, and he seems like another person he's genuinely fond of (at least as fond as Bruce gets of people) .

Bruce's biggest weakness in this show...children. He just can't ignore them or abandon them, especially because he was in their position .

It's funny that they had Stephanie Brown in as "Stephie" in the orphanage...I mean, it's nice to see them acknowledge her as a female Robin by including her along with the rest, but she's like the only Robin whose parents are usually both alive yet here she's an orphanage (well, I guess Carrie's are...technically a live in the context of DKR, but still). Would've liked her to have a purple dress though .

It was a small moment but Harvey focused on his campaign and dismissed Leslie, which irritated her, but when he found out kids were actually missing he seemed to genuinely realize he'd screwed up and they needed prioritize saving the kids. I liked that .

Bruce Wayne gets beat up by carnies! I mean, it looked kind of suspicious but man they jumped to violence quick! Also, Waylon Jones AKA Killer Croc! You kind of have to wonder if he'll settle for the Carny life or start a Supervillain career in Gotham. Or maybe he's just a cameo, who can say .

Is that a motherflipping Grey Ghost reference !?

Okay, so you can't tell me it wasn't at least a little personal that Batman immediately went to overpower Croc for answers compared to all the other carnies .

Haley Joel Osment as Anton Night, a comic book name if ever I'd heard one! He kind of brought a lot of humanity to the episode, and to his sister, despite his mad scientist trappings. Shame what happened to him .

You really have to wonder what kind of medical affliction makes you absorb the life essence out of people and give you super strength and burn in the sun...like, how is she not literally a vampire minus the fangs and blood-sucking !?

They even threw in Carrie Kelly! I wonder if that was partially so there were two boy Robins and two girl Robins, but it also felt like Carrie came off the best out of all of them in this episode. She got the most spunk, she got her slingshot, AND She even helped Batman! Not even Dick Grayson, the original Robin, got to do that much here .

They finally do Nocturna (not actually called that!) in a Batman cartoon! Albeit far differently compared to the characters' usual premise or even their original conception of her in B:TAS. It established an interesting dichotomy, on this one hand we have this genuine little girl who can turn from sweet to psychotic predator at the drop of a hat and never seemed to fully recognize the severity of her actions until it cost her the thing she loved most...her brother. I guess it's also indicative of how giving so much power to a child can really warp them mentally. And that some monsters deserve sympathy, which is what Batman is about .

Do I expect any of these orphan kids to get adopted by Bruce and raised as Robin? Not really. I genuinely wouldn't be surprised if this is the most "Robin" content we get in this series. I mean, beyond this version of Bruce not being anywhere close to a headspace to take in and raise a kid, let alone train a sidekick, we've already potentially missed out on a foundational and pivotal moment of Bruce adopting Dick...witnessing the Flying Graysons fall .

There's the pivotal moment, the moment Harvey Dent decides to stick to his principals rather than give into the mob (well, beyond taking their campaign money), and the moment that also decides his fate...the fate that leads him to get hit with acid and become...Two-Face .

Episode 9: The Killer Inside Me

It's always the warped dreams that get you Harvey .

Does anyone in the CGPD reaaaallly care about Harvey? But hey, it's their job to solve crimes...so solve crimes, they shall .

It's nice to see Harvey still has his old pal Bruce Wayne by his side to help him work through this difficult period in his life. Though unlike in B:TAS, it's hard to tell if Bruce is genuinely trying to help a friend or using the cover of being Harvey's friend to investigate the case more thoroughly to the point where he doesn't take into account the consequences of putting Harvey out in the world before he's ready. But maybe that's just how Batman processes trying to protect the people he cares about. He can only function if he treats it like he's solving a case .

That poor waitress .

It's an intersting and more subtle take on the split-personality that drives Two-Face (who, in a consistent trend for this show, is never actually called Two-Face). It feels like a valve has been released in Harvey's head that makes him lash out at people and act on all his more violent impulses, and reveal his deepest, darkest, thoughts...all the while maintaining that personable, calm, veneer even as he's murdering people. And yet there's a side of him that rejects that, still has his humanity, and is utterly crushed at the sins he continues to commit. There's even a bit of a mystery...which is Harvey Dent and which is Two-Face? The good side and the bad side? They don't seem to commit one way or another beyond when Harvey talks about their being "the other guy" and we don't get the benefit of Diedrich Bader using the typical Two-Face gravely voice to distinguish the two personalities .

It's also interesting that they went with a more realistic depiction of Harvey's scarring. It's obviously still graphic, but it's also less overt compared to the usual half-normal, half-mutated, face we're used to with the character. Which I guess plays into where the distinction between Harvey and Two-Face is a little more fluid and a little less obvious than usual .

Kari Wahlgren as a mobsters' (ex-)girlfriend, complete with the accent, was perfect .

Wow, Batman does not take well to criticism. Granted he was also probably trying not to admit he screwed up with Harvey, and eventually he did accept that, yeah, maybe he was a little responsible for Harvey going off the deep end as quickly as he did .

I'm kind of glad they incorporated the coin, even if the fact that it doesn't get scarred means they don't really get to use it how it is traditionally used by Two-Face so it's kind of just...there. But I guess it's appreciated that they even acknowledged it because sometimes it feels like they either forget about it or don't even bother including it .

Wow, Two-Face actually killing people in a cartoon! And he utterly hates himself for it .

Say what you will about Rupert Thorne, he does seem to be a genuine family man who cares about his son. He doesn't deserve that boys' loyalty, though. Also, hey, Josh Keaton !

Kind of giving me B:TAS/Long Halloween vibes where Two-Face going on a murderous rampage got closer to taking Thorne down than any of the heroes' efforts up to this point .

My, how the tables have turned! First Harvey was Barbara's rival in court and criticizing her commitment to her clients, and now HE is her client who she's committed too. Does that count as bringing things full circle ?

Episode 10: Savage Night

I feel like there were some really important central themes in this episode. Who is someone, really? The identity they project onto the world or the one they keep hidden? Is Gotham worth saving and fighting for? Is Harvey Dent worth saving and fighting for? Is there a point to fighting what seems to be a futile battle for a city steeped in neverending corruption? Or do you keep fighting because it NEEDS to mean something ?

Barbara Gordon doesn't like Harvey (in fact no one aside from MAYBE Bruce in this episode did), but she's still going to follow her principles and represent him to the best of her ability .

Honestly I think it's pretty telling of how Bruce really felt about Harvey that as Batman he actually talked about how he did once truly uphold justice, implying he genuinely respected him. Harvey just...lost his way. He couldn't overcome Gotham or keep his ideals until the bitter end .

About time Batman gave Barbara his number! I also love how Alfred effects different voices on the line so no noe suspects .

You know, it's nice that Bruce apologized to Harvey and tried to talk him into taking the deal and saying he'd help...though Bruce also had a little impulsive moment of breaking character when Harvey was able to finally see through the Bruce Wayne "act" and call him out on it and Bruce lashes out about him suddenly growing a conscience. Guess that set up how they had become parallels of each other .

I wonder where Babs learned how to unlock handcuffs? Normal lockpicking training? Something her dad taught her? Still, imagine getting handcuffed to Two-Face .

I was wondering if they'd do anything with Harvey needling Bullock about how Flass was alwas leaving him the dirty work and would probably use him as a patsy if it came down to it. Will he turn on Flass and cut a deal to save his own skin ?

Hey, the good guys are now finally all on the same side! We've even got Batman and Gordon at the part of their relationship where Gordon makes sure he doesn't hae to arrest Batman !

Okay, yeah, I'm 98% sure Barbara actually killed people in this episode. I'm really curious how that might inform how she operates as Batgirl. Would she adopt a no kill rule? Then again Batman's seems to be okay with thugs incidentally dying or shooting themselves so it's something you can definitely play around with .

Who was the real Harvey Dent? Was it the violent and raging figure who saw only the bad in everyone and himself? Was it the man who genuinely seemed to care about others and the city, and didn't think his own life was worth saving? Maybe the answer was always in the middle. But, at least here, Harvey Dent died a hero .

I am kind of bummed that they killed him off. Like, it shows that they're willing to kill off major and iconic Batman characters and set up real stakes...but it feels like they really didn't get to explore Harvey as Two-Face enough and really dive deep into the duality of the character and how different it is from past iterations. I'd honestly rather we lose Rupert Thorne, who is ultimately just a typical crime boss, and get to use Two-Face more .

Did you think Batman would really shoot Flass? Seems like the only thing he hates more than losing the people closest to him is losing them to guns. And the way Batman genuinely looked sad at the end...he didn't want to lose Harvey. And Flass got the beatdown and fear of Batman that he deserved .

Were Harvey and Bruce ever really friends? Honestly, I feel like if you ask Bruce I don't think he could give you a solid answer. I think he definitely cared more about Harvey than he was willing to admit, and ultimately saw in Harvey a kindred spirit and how Bruce could be if he let himself be consumed by his dual identity or his desire for vengeance. Which is why Alfred has been there, trying everything he can to bring back the REAL Bruce Wayne he knows is still there under the cowl .

And with that in mind, and coming to accept that he has people in his life he can truly rely on, Bruce finally calls Alfred "Alfred" for the first time in the entire series (actually, is this the first time Alfred's first name had even been uttered in the entire show?) and thanks him. And that wasn't Batman who did it, but Bruce Wayne .

Rupert Thorne may have gotten away with it, but Batman is watching him and letting him know that his time is coming...as they recreate the B:TAS posing in front of lighting maneuver .

Of course, while Batman is focused solely on Ruper Thorne now, in a remote corner of Gotham a bunch of people have been killed and left with a familiar and horrific grin courtesy of a white-faced individual...and if his deep voice and eyes are any indication, next season Batman will have to contend with none other than the Golden Age Joker in all his serious and calculated depravedness, and who has just perfected his Joker Toxin. Just as Batman has come into his own as a crimefighter and as a person, his archenemy is on his way to upset everything .

 

[-batmat-]

"Night Ride"

Look, I love the Nolan films as much as the next guy. But with Matt Reeve's "The Batman" taking a turn back to realism, I applaud this show for doing supernatural stuff. It's part of Batman's universe.

Can't say I particulary know much about Gentleman Ghost though, so I liked having his back story told here, those were some nice illustrations. He was a rich elitist mustache twirling bad guy, and not much else to it.

"Gorman". I know that name from other Batman cartoon... what was it...? Oh yes! From "The Batman", "Riddler's Revenge". And voiced by Jason "Kid Flash" Marsden no less!

The people in the train's disregard of Dent was very funny.

Bruce's voice change to Batman while he's in the car felt jarring. Batman's voice is raspier and softer, but it sounds natural when you just listen to his voice while being Batman. Bruce's voice is fuller and stronger, so it feels to me as if suddenly there's something wrong with his throat, or as if he's putting on the Batman voice instead of the other way around.

Alfred's "I've treated every wound you ever had" makes it sound like Batman has been around for a while, it would feel weird if he'd say that to a "week two" Batman as was mentioned in interviews. Unless those were really rough 2 weeks!

I'm not familiar with Linton Midnite. It seemed he was expecting this, and tricked Batman into giving him what he thought was a spell that would make Craddock pass on to the next life, instead giving him a spell that would make him turn into a cloud and a way to contain him. At least that's what I got!

I'm a big Tintin fan, and I couldn't help to be reminded of "Haddock" by "Craddock" and their big old houses, Craddock's Heritage Hill and Haddock's Marlinspike Hall.

Boy that paper sure takes a long time to burn! Craddock taking Alfred's body was creepy and a great climax fight. Reminded me of Soul of the Dragon when the monk master is also possesed.

A wonderful moment between Bruce and Alfred, with Bruce getting to acknowledge his care for Alfred.

Is Linton Midnite white suit and top hat a reference to Gentleman Ghost's classic look?

Overall, a nice episode but nothing too outstanding. Main positive takeaway is that supernatural stuff is in for this show.

 

[Yojimbo]

Episode 4 The Night of the Hunters

A nice dash of Batman: Year One with the police trying to catch him and taking them on in a building. On one hand, yes!, Jim finally meets Batman and they team up to save the three children and Jim keeps his job. But a Pyrrhic victory in that Flass and Bullock end up getting ahead thanks to their stunt and how the Gazette ran the story with O'Brian's photo. Interesting sets of cameos from Fleischer Superman and Gotham Central. Corrigan! Nods to Firefly and Scarecrow and mentioning Arkham. Brubaker penned a winner with this one.

 

[-batmat-]

"Moving Target"

One of the strongest episodes in the season. I enjoyed Barbara and James' discussion about crime, right and wrong. I think both make strong arguments but for the most part I feel more akin to Barbara, but I liked James line of "in here people know the difference between right and wrong".. not su much the "so when they do wrong they should be punished for it" I think not everything is as black and white as James puts it.

Well, guess this "Deadshot" is not as quick and precise as we're used to! Shouting "Gordon!" was probably not a good idea either , haha.

Again agree with Barbara about James being stubborn and selfish, but one can't judge too harshly on someone with a hit on their back.

Batman appearing to Barbara was great. One simply does not get tired of that!

As mentioned by others, this show doesn't focus on Batman that much, sharing the spotlight with the Gordons and Montoya. I wish they'd focus a bit more on Batman, specially that "I've been asking questions" shot, I would have loved to see that scene!

Batman's interrogations at Black Gate and Onomatopeia's arrival to Gotham... *chef's kiss* He was a great villain for the episode. Loved his gimick and how intimidating he felt regardless of the sillyness of it.

So I guess Fox is still calling his project after the Wayne family.. interesting! I think the contruction site for Wayne Gardens made for a great backdrop for the final part of the episode.

Does the henchmen who says "Those morons, they were only supposed to follow not engage" sounds like Mark Hamill to anyone else? A bit lower pitched but I thought that was funny.

I feel Montoya snapping at Barbara was uncalled for, but again, hard to keep your cool at moments like this.

The shooting and fighting in this scene was probably the most intense in the season, specially Batman vs Onomatopeia and Barbara and Corrigan against the big henchmen.

Uhm... pickles! Looks like there was some food after all! I was waiting for the joke on that haha.

Great twist, didn't see it coming, and changes the whole meaning of the episode regarding the Gordons' discussion in it. Corrigan getting his comeuppance by doing the worst mistake villains do. As The Incredibles would say it... "he starts monologuing!"

I found the ending a bit depressing, with Barbara coming to terms that maybe his dad wasn't that wrong after all, while losing more faith in the system and Gotham and it's people.

"Nocturne"

I want to address the Robins thing. Look, is it a cool reference? Yes. Does it kinda ruin it for the show if they eventually want to add a Robin to the show? I guess they could still make one of them the actual Robin, but it feels weird. My friend and I would laugh about how Bruce would just go to the orphanage every time he'd need a new Robin. Also, I guess if they do a Robin, it could still be Tim Drake. A bit early for Damian (thankfully)

I do wanna shoutout to Mckenna Grace for doing a great job with Natalia. She was creppy, seductive, deceptive and heartbreaking when she needed to be and nailed it all. Great casting. Great villain for the episode, when she sucked energy out of people it was creppy! I enjoyed how she was deceptive with the kids instead of just grabbing them. She took her time and got them to go with her willingly (mostly). That's just so evil!

"Lois" gets a speaking role but no mention in the credits... dang!

So is Leslie Thompkins the worst person in the world to take care of her children? She loses Dickie the night before and goes to the carnival with the rest of the kids like nothing happens. Later on Jason dissapears and she doesn't seem to notice either. Only notices when Stephanie goes missing. Ouch.

Loved the carnival theme and the whole mad scientist experiments gadgets. Fits the show perfectly.

Great way to get Waylon Jones to cameo. Wonder if we'll see more of him.

Little Carrie was so cute. She's always been one of favorite Robins so I enjoyed that she had some action here. When she grabbed Batman's cape at the end I couldn't help but to go "awww"

The darker woods looked really good, very creepy, and once the sun went up it was all colored beautifully.

Batman saving Natalia is the Batman I like.

I wonder what was the point of making Harvey Dent so sleazy and corrupt throughout the series only for him to start growing a backbone once he has to start doing favors for Thorne. He could have been "good" but not completely, hence why he'd resolve to Thorne to win the election. Heck, maybe make him good and give him a reason why he can't lose the election, making him desperate and going to Thorne. I'd guess him being a morally gray character makes it easier for the flip to Two-Face. I need to revisit the last 2 episodes but I remember not being entirely sold on the whole thing on first watch. We'll see.

 

[M.O.D.O.K.]

I've seen the whole season, but I'll review the episodes separately as I go. I REALLY hope Amazon switches to a weekly release schedule for this show.

In Treacherous Waters

It's a solid start of the series. Every major player is introduced, as well as most of the important dynamics. The Gordons are older than I expected for an early Batman story, but I feel adult Barbara is refreshing enough. She's had a variety of careers and interests, and while I prefer her being a librarian, her being a public defender works for me. It creates a unique dynamic with both her father and slimy DA Harvey Dent, and it keeps her involved in various plots. Batman is rather cold to Alfred, which caught me off-guard, but it also fits considering this is the earlier incarnations of the characters.

I admittedly am not attached to Penguin as a character, so I didn't find the gender swap as a blasphemy. I didn't even take much offense to Oswalda as a flipped name. It's so amusingly absurd, I had some humor with it. Minnie Driver was a hoot and I liked how menacing she was at times. I especially liked the Iceberg Lounge as a ship. It's a shame she basically disappears from the series since most of the villains have a "special guest" structure to them.

"Dicki," "Jacey" - Okay, I see what they're doing here. Though it's kind of funny that they pulled the old "Jason Todd started off with red hair" reference, though personality-wise Dick came off more Jason-y to me. Also, where was "Timmie?" ?

Most likely with his wealthy family.

 

[Millicay]

I want to address the Robins thing. Look, is it a cool reference? Yes. Does it kinda ruin it for the show if they eventually want to add a Robin to the show? I guess they could still make one of them the actual Robin, but it feels weird. My friend and I would laugh about how Bruce would just go to the orphanage every time he'd need a new Robin. Also, I guess if they do a Robin, it could still be Tim Drake. A bit early for Damian (thankfully)

After finishing the first season and seeing Batman's personal growth I could see him as someone who eventually gets a Robin way down the line but I just gotta say, the idea of Batman being the only costumed crime fighter is much more appealing to me at the moment.

I like the concept of this noir world in which the few good cops are always in a losing battle against every criminal, corrupt cop and monster the city throws at them, but then this freak dressed like a bat shows up and somehow that's what finally tips the scales in their favor for the very first time.

Once you introduce Robin it feels like the genre automatically changes from pulpy noir to superhero, which is not necessarily worse, but the story does lose some of what makes it stand out from the rest of Batman adaptations.

But now that you mention Damian, you know who WOULD be perfect for a reimagining in this pulpy noir world with supernatural elements and femme fatales? Ra's Al Ghul and Talia. Hopefully we get to see them down the line.

 

[21C]

But now that you mention Damian, you know who WOULD be perfect for a reimagining in this pulpy noir world with supernatural elements and femme fatales? Ra's Al Ghul and Talia. Hopefully we get to see them down the line.

I just hope that if they do Talia they don't do the whole Grant Morrison version where she's extremely evil and genocidal or whatever. Not only are the racial implications of that really whack and tend to be orientalist as hell but it's been done to death recently. The recent animated movies did it, the comics do it, it's tired. I know they already did the Denny O'Neil take on TAS so I'm just hoping that whatever they do here isn't them actively trying to take the opposite route and ending up with the Morrison take again. If I have one active fanwish for Timm and co. is to not do that as I think enough damage has been done to that character already; I don't expect CC to do anything in an hyper traditional manner either but whatever they do just please not that.

 

[-batmat-]

After finishing the first season and seeing Batman's personal growth I could see him as someone who eventually gets a Robin way down the line but I just gotta say, the idea of Batman being the only costumed crime fighter is much more appealing to me at the moment.

I like the concept of this noir world in which the few good cops are always in a losing battle against every criminal, corrupt cop and monster the city throws at them, but then this freak dressed like a bat shows up and somehow that's what finally tips the scales in their favor for the very first time.

Once you introduce Robin it feels like the genre automatically changes from pulpy noir to superhero, which is not necessarily worse, but the story does lose some of what makes it stand out from the rest of Batman adaptations.

But now that you mention Damian, you know who WOULD be perfect for a reimagining in this pulpy noir world with supernatural elements and femme fatales? Ra's Al Ghul and Talia. Hopefully we get to see them down the line.

Oh, I agree, and I'd even assume to say that they did the whole Robin cameos because they decided this Batman wouldn't get a Robin somewhere down the line. But I was thinking, what if this show goes long? Say 4, 5 seasons? I guess you could bring in other heroes, but I wonder if they'll regret this choice down the line. But hey, I'm talking about a theoretical situation in which this show gets to 4 or 5 seasons. That's a win already!

"The Killer Inside Me" / "Savage Night"

I wonder if it was intentional to also start this episode with a dream sequence, after BTAS did the same with their Two-Face two parter. I would have thought these episodes would have had many more "split" visuals, but that day and night painting in Harvey's place was all I saw.

"Harvey turning into Two-Face" stories are always hard for me. BTAS did it best (Two-Face Pt 1 is my favorite episode) and I don't think anything has come close yet. Specially since this one also features Dent trying to get revenge on Thorne.

Despite Harvey being reasonably disturbed and angry, he still turns on the murderer mood a bit too out of nowhere for my taste. I do have to give Diedrich Bader points for his performance here. His back and forth from Harvey to Big Bad Harv (to give him a name...) is just amazing. I found it really funny how "nice" he is when getting information from Tony Zito's girlfriend.

Bruce taking Harvey in public only to get information from him, resulting in tipping him over the edge which in turn results into Bruce learning his lesson finally about being more compassionate and human, is what I hope to be the last of the "cold and distant" Bruce Wayne/Batman moments we get. He's learned his lesson, I hope we can move to the compassionate Batman now.

I wonder if this is a coincidence, but there were many moments that reminded me of The Dark Knight trilogy. Dent snapping and screaming "SAY IT!" moments before we see his scarred face for the first time. Dent going for someone for information at a bar. Bruce/Batman throwing a gun in the river in disgust.

Was the "handing second chances to people like you" speech a reference to Catwoman? And how Harvey resented doing things like that.

This may be a wild theory thats completely off , but I got the feeling that Harvey's scarred side represented the good in him and his unscarred side represented the evil one. When he's about to kill Tony and says "the other guy may not want to kill you but I sure as hell do" you only see his unscarred side. I got that feeling several times, like when he's talking to Barbara in Arkham, his scarred side is mostly facing the camera when he's calm, but when he loses it , he turns and his unscarred side is more prominent... he cools down and apologizes to Barbara with his scarred side taking most of the shot... hmm... Also, this could explain why they put the scarred side on the "wrong" side this time....

When Dent mentions Flass is the one calling the shots in his partnership with Bullock, I hadn't noticed it. But on my rewatch, it IS like that for the whole show. Nice attention to detail.

The docks and fog. Is there a better setting for a Batman finale? I don't think so!

Great action sequence overall, and I found Harvey and Barbara's moments to be sweet.

I actually thought Batman might shoot Flass. Guess that's good writting.

"Thanks Alfred" I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship! Alfred's smile says it all.

Batman's final moment threatening Thorne was just the icing on the cake. Beautiful sequence. Music really shines here. It's too bad because music doesn't seem to stand out most of the time, possibly due to the sound mix burying the score.

I like that they're bringing in Joker. Despite how overused he might be by this point, he's still Batman's archnemesis and he should be in a Batman series. Him practicing on people his toxin reminded me of The Man Who Laughs. I've always wanted that adapted but it's too short for a movie, so I think it would work great as an introduction episode for him here. His voice sounds deep, reminds me of Kevin Michael Richardson. Interested in how this Joker's gonna be. He's not credited, so I wonder if it's been kept a secret and he's cast already, or if this was a one off while they cast him for Season 2.

----

Overall thoughts

I agree with @Revelator 's great post. This is a great show, but I didn't feel much suspense or "edge of the seat" excitement as he says. Someone else mentioned that everything feels subdued. Everything's... great, but it never gets pass that and becomes outstanding and truly remarkable. But this is only the start. I hope the creative team will see what worked and what didn't and make season 2 even better. As I write this I'm listening the soundtrack on Spotify and it sounds awesome. I feel music has to be given a more prominent role in the sound mix.

As much as I don't want to compare, there's too many elements of this that are similar to BTAS but aren't quite as good. The music, the backgrounds, the animation. Everything's still great but doesn't reach the level of BTAS. Which is why I think the writting for season 2 needs to step up and knock it out of the park to make up for that.

How lucky are we to be comparing something to BTAS though? That's a merit to the show.

Thank you B.T. and everyone else in the creative team for bringing back a serious 2D animated Batman series. It was about time! Here's for the show to be succesful and have many more seasons.

 

[Millicay]

Doing a rewatch and just noticed, in Night Ride, when Bruce is investigating the Gentleman Ghost in the library, one of the books has a Moldoff coat of arms, pretty sure that's a reference to Sheldon Moldoff, one of Bob Kane's ghost (heh) artists from the Golden Age Batman era.

EDIT: Something I haven't seen mentioned yet... just what secret is Alfred keeping from Bruce? First thing that comes to mind is the good ol' "your parents actually did some pretty messed up stuff", done in the Telltale series and more recently in the Pattinson movie, but as I said it's been done, so if not that... then what? Guess we'll have to wait for Season 2 to find out.

 

[Yojimbo]

In "...And Be A Villain" - anyone figure these references out?

-Yvonne's 4235 address

-When Montoya first meets Basil, across the hall was a Dwayne Freed.

-When Montoya talks to the secretary (Ramona?), there is a movie poster Return From The Grave. I think it's a nod to Black Friday?

-The last movie Basil did with Yvonne was Tower of Fear. I think that's a nod to Tower of Terror, as the studio is Monoscope Pictures, likely named after Monogram Pictures which made Tower of Terror.

(also funny Basil would quote As You Like It, which most people find mid when it comes to all of Shakespeare's works)

 

[Otaku-sempai]

EDIT: Something I haven't seen mentioned yet... just what secret is Alfred keeping from Bruce? First thing that comes to mind is the good ol' "your parents actually did some pretty messed up stuff", done in the Telltale series and more recently in the Pattinson movie, but as I said it's been done, so if not that... then what? Guess we'll have to wait for Season 2 to find out.

It would be a kick if Alfred's secret harkens back to Andrew Vachss' novel Batman: The Ultimate Evil where Bruce's mother is revealed to be a crime-fighter in her own right, investigating the child sex industry. It the book, the murder of the Waynes was a response to Martha Wayne's investigations.

 

[b.t.]

batmat:
Your ‘wild theory‘ about the scarred half of Harvey’s face representing his ‘good side’ is 100% correct.

Yojimbo:
Dwayne Freed is this world’s Dwight Frye. There are analogues of other Classic Horror supporting players on the other stars but they’re so small I can’t see them and I don’t remember what they are.

’Tower of Fear’ is a fictional lost Karloff/Lugosi movie in Ramsey Campbell’s novel ANCIENT IMAGES.

‘Return From The Grave’ is just a generic title with no significance (for once).

Yvonne’s address is likewise meaningless. But she IS wearing one of Zita Johann’s stylish outfits from THE MUMMY when she’s abducted by Karlo

 

[Yojimbo]

Dwayne Freed is this world’s Dwight Frye. There are analogues of other Classic Horror supporting players on the other stars but they’re so small I can’t see them and I don’t remember what they are.

Ah, can't believe I didn't see that. Maybe I should have said "Dwayne Freed" out loud a couple times and I woulda thought of Renfield. Thanks for the answers and bonus trivia!

Love that Mummy reference. A comparison shot if anyone's interested:

 

[RoyalRubble]

I misunderstood the scene with possessed Alfred in "Night Ride" that he was trying to keep a secret from Gentleman Ghost (like Batman's secret identity). The implications that he's hiding something from Bruce are more interesting though.

 

[b.t.]

Finding a name we could use for the movie studio in ‘…And Be A Villain’ was one of the toughest naming challenges we had on the show. The first fifty or so names we tried had already been used by real movie studios. We finally came up with a name that didn’t pop up when we googled it, ‘Monochrome Pictures’ but then the Legal Dept. found a studio with that name from the ‘20s IIRC. I think Ed or Jase finally came up with ‘Monoscope’.

And when Lew Valentine is chewing out his Casting Director over the phone, he mentions renting ‘Mad Scientist gizmos’ from someone named ’McFadden’, which is a Legal Clearance-approved nod to the famous Kenneth Strickfaden whose dazzling electrical devices graced many, many Classic Horror Films including ‘Bride of Frankenstein’ and ‘Mask of Fu Manchu’.

 

[Karkull]

This may be a wild theory thats completely off , but I got the feeling that Harvey's scarred side represented the good in him and his unscarred side represented the evil one. When he's about to kill Tony and says "the other guy may not want to kill you but I sure as hell do" you only see his unscarred side. I got that feeling several times, like when he's talking to Barbara in Arkham, his scarred side is mostly facing the camera when he's calm, but when he loses it , he turns and his unscarred side is more prominent... he cools down and apologizes to Barbara with his scarred side taking most of the shot... hmm... Also, this could explain why they put the scarred side on the "wrong" side this time....

Good eye. I picked up on that too. You can tell whether "good Harvey" or "bad Harvey" is calling the shots by which side of his face is facing the camera.

Also, did anyone else notice that the faces on Harvey's coin are inverted? One side looks like this:

...And the other side looks like this:

Dumb question, but did this ever happen with U.S. currency? I can't help but wonder if this is a reference to a specific printing error with a coin at the U.S. Mint.

 

[b.t.]

Karkull:
It’s a trick coin. Heads on both sides. Pretty sure the U.S. mint doesn’t make them

Good on you and batmat for picking up on Harvey’s ‘good half face’ being the scarred one. I’ve mentioned it in multiple interviews over the past month or so, but I think it always gets cut.

My daughter and I were talking one day and she happened to mention an article she’d read, about disfigured people almost always being presented as freaks and monsters in movies and TV shows, and how unfair and cruel that is to real people who have facial scarring or other disfigurements. It gave me the idea to flip Harvey’s two halves.

Basically, he’s spent most of his life as a handsome, charming, entitled schnook. After being disfigured, for the first time in his life he knows what it’s like to be feared and loathed by people for something that’s beyond his control, and gains a level of empathy for others that he never had before. In a weird way, his facial scarring doesn’t make him a monster, it actually makes him a better person — well, half of him, anyway.

In our pitch bible, I said that it would take some really skilled writing to make it work and I think Ed and Jase totally nailed it.

Trying to keep the camera on the ‘correct’ side throughout the two-parter was a real struggle, and we weren’t 100% successful, but I think we did it in enough ‘key’ scenes that the idea does come across.

We even foreshadowed the concept in ‘…And Be A Villain’. When Harvey says to Montoya, ‘You’ll want to be on my good side, Renee’, notice which side of his face he turns toward her

Millicay and RoyalRubble:
I don’t think I had any ‘precious secret in particular’ in mind when I put those words in Possessed Alfred’s mouth, beyond a vague notion that Alfred might still be feeling Survivor’s Guilt over that night in Crime Alley, or maybe feeling bad that he was never able to deter Little Bruce from his obsession with ‘making them pay’, and in fact enabled him in his chosen path.

We may come up with a more explosive ‘bombshell’ type secret for Alfred to be keeping from Batman later on. Or we may not…

 

[Stu]

Beyond my sheer glee at seeing a new Batman show premiere again, I’ve got to say this is one of the most enjoyable binges I’ve had in a good long time. None of the episodes ever dragged, there was enough surprises to keep ones full attention and the moody atmosphere and 40s settings allowed it a freshness so that familiarity never breaded treading over the same old ground. Even the villain of the week affair does not feel like a generic formula and there are still so many big and small time villains to be included in hopefully many, many later seasons.

Cheerfully surprising is that even with Reeves’ involvement, it does not feel like a pale imitation of his The Batman and allowed for drastically different versions of some of that movies central characters. Even the gender swapped Penguin feels accurate seconds into the debut episode

Bravo to all involved. Utterly stellar work

And holy hell, that Batman #1 inspired Joker is such a brilliant tease for the second season.

 

[-batmat-]

My daughter and I were talking one day and she happened to mention an article she’d read, about disfigured people almost always being presented as freaks and monsters in movies and TV shows, and how unfair and cruel that is to real people who have facial scarring or other disfigurements. It gave me the idea to flip Harvey’s two halves.

I like that most of the "controversial" changes done in this series (female Pengiun, "serious" Harley, flipped Two-Face) were done with a reason in mind and mostly work really great. It's not just done for shock value.

Penguin works from the "mama" angle and it wouldn't have been quite as efective as a man.

Harley was refreshing but I still feel she was so competent as a psychiatrist that her villanous side feels a bit unjustified.

Harvey Dent before the acid was a sleazy politician only concerned on himself and becoming mayor, going as far as making a deal with the biggest mob boss in town. Only after starting to regret this, and realizing he's gone too far, the acid in the face and disfigurment basically means "this it what you get for trying to be good" which makes sense given that the scarred side represents his good side. Only thing I didn't buy entirely was "Bad Harvey" going for a murderous rampage. Felt that was a bit much, but he does lose his mind a bit over the accident and is driven over the edge accidentally.