Happy 25th Anniversary BTAS

[THE BAT-MAN]

Yesterday was the 25th Anniversary of Batman: The Animated Series.  In my opinion it is truly the best produced cartoon series ever made and a great classic.  I remember watching the series when it first aired in 1992.  I was just like young Bruce Wayne when he watched the episodes of The Gray Ghost wearing his fedora and cape while holding his beloved action figure.  I wore my 92 Batman cowl and cape while holding my Batman 89 action figure while watching the series.  Great Memories.

[The Dark Knight]

As a continuous series, BTAS is the best and it's not even close. It's consistent in tone and quality, and that also includes the BTAS comic series. Live action films will always be special events. But it's true that TV shows have an advantage due to their ability to stretch out arcs for a longer period of time, and simply give us more content. I loved watching BTAS as a kid and it still holds up. It takes me back to a happy time. Nostalgia is a powerful thing.

But with Batman and Harley Quinn (the new animated movie in the BTAS universe) I think it goes to show BTAS was lightning in a bottle, and try as you might, you can't recapture that. We yearn for the past sometimes, but as Paul McCartney sang, let it be. Cherish the memories, but life goes on. Do something else. It's for the best the Burtonverse stays at two films, and Nolan walked away with a trilogy. Don't mess with it. History is history and you simply can't compete with myths. Because with the passing of time, that's what loved films/bands or whatever it may be become.

[Catwoman]

I honestly think if they tried to pull off a serious attempt at following up BTAS they could do it. Batman and Harley Quinn was supposed to be some silly mindless entertainment. I'd love to see them take a real honest to god shot at it though. No mindless humor, no "pushing the limit for the sake of pushing it," just going back to what worked and seeing, if that was lightning in a bottle, if they can catch it one more time.

The series was and still is so wonderful, I love its look and feel with the '40s meets '80s-90s, like in Tim's movies. The writing and the acting is still amazing even when you're watching an episode for the 600th time. It was just perfect, and that's probably why Mask of the Phantasm is my favorite Batman movie (Batman Returns is, for me, Catwoman's movie lol).

[thecolorsblend]

I see a pretty big disparity in quality between the Fox BTAS and the Kids' WB BTAS. Not just the designs but the overall tone and quality seemed to suffer.

Can they do it again? Well, it looks like the creative forces aren't juggling an entire universe of animated shows anymore. So maybe they could.

But as it is right now, I don't see why they'd want to. There would be pressure to adhere to current ways of making these shows: season-long stories and all that. BTAS had occasional two parters but the majority of episodes told done-in-one stories and that's the approach I'd prefer.

Honestly, I think there's more to lose than to gain by trying to get the band back together. BTAS has a legacy that isn't likely to be surpassed any time soon. I don't consider it to be definitive but it's very close. There's a lot to be said for allowing the legacy to stand rather than jeopardize it by going home again.

[Catwoman]

Technically the Kids WB! show was separate of BTAS. Same timeline or whatever the word is (I forget lol) but it was it's own new show. But yeah I didn't like the way the style changed (except the red skies), that was to save money I think but the stories were worse too. Out of only like 20 something episodes on that style there are only a couple tops (Mad Love and the one where Robin befriends the girl that is an extension of Clayface) that really compare with BTAS' best shows. That's not that they were horrible, most of them were good enough but it was still such a step down that the inferiority to BTAS shows up big time.

[The Laughing Fish]

The series was and still is so wonderful, I love its look and feel with the '40s meets '80s-90s, like in Tim's movies. The writing and the acting is still amazing even when you're watching an episode for the 600th time.

Agreed. It also helps that the show adapted stories that existed in the comics like The Laughing Fish and The Cape and Cowl Conspiracy, to creating fan favourites like Heart of Ice. This show not only took cues from the comics and the Burton films, it helped evolved the mythos and remains a show to be enjoyed for all ages.

If anything's going to be definitive of the character, it's Batman: The Animated Series.

[ObserveCreativeSoul]

I always praised Paul Dini for investing so much of his energy, creativity and time in DC Animated Universe, and for providing us, Batman & DC Comics experts/admirers, with some of the finest and original interpretations of a lot of iconic and memorable characters. One of my favorite DCAU-related DTV's happens to be Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker (2000), but... did you know that there is one MAJOR TWIST (something that has to do with a certain Boy Wonder) in particular, that actually happened IN THE COMICS BEFORE the movie WAS RELEASED?

Ladies & gents, I would like to show you a small compare/contrast video project that ties several pages from a forgotten Batman comic: Detective Comics #623 - 'Death of Innocence' (written by John Ostrander & drawn by Flint Henry & Mike McKone) with the film. Issue 623 was first published in November 1990 — 10 YEARS prior to the unveiling of Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker to the world.

[ObserveCreativeSoul]

I actually received a reply from Mr. Paul Dini himself: