Retrospective Look At 'Batman: The Animated Series'
Image Source: TV Insider
Inspired by Tim Burton’s Batman, the dark, noir art style paired with serious and sometimes goofy stories acted as a perfect blend for audiences of all ages. With the creation of characters as pivotal as Harley Quinn and reworking characters such as Mr. Freeze, the show would cement itself in the mythos for decades to come. Although Batman: The Animated Series premiered back in 1992, it has continued to stand the test of time as one of the most influential aspects of the character’s legacy. Fans tuning in while it aired had no idea how groundbreaking a series was about to unfold.
Growing up in the 2000s, the series had already ended, and The Batman was the new animated series airing, but that didn’t matter to me. BTAS had me in a chokehold. Whenever we were at the store, I’d beg my parents for the toys inspired by the characters in the show, or for a new vhs of episode compilations and the movies that spun off from it. Both of my parents are comicbook fans and avid readers in general. It was important to them that I learned to read at a young age, and comic books helped me piece together stories while I tried to understand the words on the page. Looking back, that is likely the reason I fell head over heels for the series. It was like watching the pages come to life on screen.
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Image Source: DC Kids
While there was controversy over the darker tones of Batman Returns, Bruce Timm was able to take inspiration from the art of that movie and make it family-friendly. The combination of the beautifully detailed Gothic designs of Gotham, with the simplistic yet encapsulating character art, created a dark environment that still felt inviting to younger audiences. When the show rebranded as The New Batman Adventures, the character designs would change. While I am not a fan of the later designs, it was the price to pay for what would become the DC Animated Universe. As Superman: The Animated Series and later Justice League would come into the fold, a more uniform art style was decided upon. The style would change, but the stories would retain their serious tone.
The approach of how BTAS would convey these serious themes and stories would be another major drawing factor for a child. It didn’t feel like the show was pandering to younger audiences. Instead, it showed tales of love, loss, and mental health, making the characters complex instead of one-dimensional versions of their comic counterparts. One notable example would be the changes made to Mr. Freeze. Before his inclusion in the series, he was a fairly simple character often shown as a bumbling, goofy scientist. Instead, he was changed to the definitive version we have now. He became a man driven to crime to fund research to cure his dying wife’s disease. A tortured figure that was trying to do the right thing, the wrong way. This was often a theme given to Batman’s villains throughout the series and allowed the writers to show the empathetic side to the hero who faced an injustice that made him into a beacon for justice. All too often, this side of the character is lost on writers. While he is vengeance, Batman still has a heart.
With such a strong writing team and art direction, the series is tied together by its iconic voice acting. Most notably, that of Kevin Conroy’s Batman and Mark Hamill’s Joker. These are arguably the definitive voices of the character. Although that almost wasn’t the case. Originally, none other than Tim Curry (the original Pennywise) was cast in the role of the Joker and did record work for the series. That was thought to be lost until it was recently uncovered and uploaded online. He would end up with bronchitis and be unable to continue with the role in the time frame needed, but behind the scenes, there were concerns that his take may end up being too scary for younger audiences. Thus, Mark Hamill would be cast in the role and would act alongside Kevin Conroy in numerous projects over the next thirty years until Conroy tragically passed away.
Ask any casual viewer of superhero media who the best Batman is, and you’ll likely get Bale, Keaton, or Pattinson. Ask any big fan and, nine times out of ten, you’ll get Kevin Conroy. Many other fantastic voice actors have played the role, though none have come close to embodying the character as Conroy. The way he performs changes enough to make one feel like three: when he’s Bruce, when he’s Batman, or when he’s alone with those he’s close to. Of course, credit where it’s due, the writers were able to craft the character into that complex figure, but Conroy brings it to life. When he passed, I, like many fans, was shocked and hurt. The Batman of not only my childhood but my whole life up to that point was gone. The voice of some of my favorite games, movies, and the voices I heard in my head while I read the comics was gone.
Image Source: Forbes
A few months before he passed in 2022, Kevin Conroy would write a story for DC’s Pride issue. This was a behind-the-scenes look into his life, and how he navigated his career and the AIDs crisis as a gay man. To hear his struggles with his identity and how it all intertwined with his take on Batman greatly moved me. Growing up and internally struggling with my own sexual identity, I never knew that my favorite actor to play the character had gone through some of the same experiences. It made my affinity for his portrayal deeper, and made me chuckle to think that this series I had turned to for comfort over the years had a deeper meaning to me than I could’ve realized.
Even if you can’t relate to the previous paragraph, I’m sure you have another deep connection to the series. For many Batman fans, this show was their childhood and a springboard into diving deeper into the character as a whole. This show is still widely embraced as one of the best pieces of Batman media, and rightfully so. It isn’t a series that is defined by nostalgia; that’s just icing on the cake. The fact that the show is just as good as you remember it, that you could still show it to your own kids, younger siblings, or cousins, and they would enjoy it, is truly a testament to its quality and timelessness. Batman: The Animated Series takes a character that crossed generations and somehow combined all the best qualities into one perfect adaptation. So if you weren’t already thinking it, here’s your sign to revisit the show.
Batman: The Animated Series is currently streaming on HBO Max.
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Source: CBR, DC, Watchtower Database, WhatCulture
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