Batman The Complete Animated Series Blu Ray set (2018)

[Catwoman]

But if you ignore how he was reimagined in TNBA, which I'm not a huge fan either, I thought the film was a fitting conclusion to Victor Fries's story. He spent his criminal career trying to save his wife Nora at all costs, and in the end, he takes comfort knowing Nora is alive and well, and moves on from his troubled past in peace.

I'm kind of to the point that I almost ignore TNBA, or at least look at it as a separate dealio all together. I mean it wasn't a bad show by itself and I did enjoy most of the episodes (Mad Love at the top of the list, of course) but following up BTAS and trying to continue some storylines that were finished up nicely (even though SubZero was released during or after TNBA's run so Freeze's part don't quite count yet, even though the head on a spider thing was a terrible idea anyway), it wasn't too good. We didn't need another episode with Baby Doll, her one show was perfect. Two-Face had a "somewhat" happy ending in the Second Chance episode. Clayface's death in his last BTAS episode should have stayed the same, even though the Growing Pains episode was one of the better ones. None of the redesigns (possibly excepting Ivy and maybe Bruce Wayne) did it for me either.

But you are totally right about that being the perfect send off for Victor.

[The Joker]

Two-Face had a "somewhat" happy ending in the Second Chance episode. Clayface's death in his last BTAS episode should have stayed the same, even though the Growing Pains episode was one of the better ones. None of the redesigns (possibly excepting Ivy and maybe Bruce Wayne) did it for me either.

Yeah, if you were going to leave Two-Face on a more hopeful ending, "Second Chance" would have been a good place to end his story. As is, the subsequent "Judgement Day" episode essentially ends with the notion that Harvey Dent went completely insane with the introduction of his third personality, The Judge. Course it would have been nice if we had got a line or two somewhere in Batman Beyond for absolute confirmation, but that's the way the hand was dealt.

I completely agree about the redesigns that were brought forth with TNBA being less than satisfactory. Course Clayface, Two-Face, Harley Quinn, and some others were basically only streamlined, some of the other one's were just disappointing. Riddler's redesign was awful. Mad Hatter didn't even look like the same person. Personally, I preferred the Devito-inspired Penguin over the TNBA that made him look more like the classic Penguin (though in the comics it's the other way around). Skull headed Mr. Freeze isn't my fav, but I'm more easy on it than others. Bane's bondage/S&M redesign kinda made him more menacing than the original wrestler design, I guess, but it's one of those I can deal with. Same goes for Catwoman's redesign. Wasn't crazy about the black beady eyed Joker with no lips. I actually kinda dug the TNBA Scarecrow redesign since it actually made him look frightening for once. Might be some other's I'm forgetting about I'm sure.

The ultimate fates of these characters in the DCAU has always been something that fascinated me ever since Batman Beyond began. We find out what happened to the Joker, Ra's Al Ghul, Mr. Freeze, Bane, ect. But other's are not addressed at all. Probably Selina Kyle and Dick Grayson being the biggest two that were not fully addressed. We get Batman and Nightwing had a falling out, but not much else. Really nothing on Selina besides a brief mention of her in "Dead Man's Hand". I agree that "Mudslide" would have been a satisfying ending to Clayface if not for his reappearance later on. Kinda like how I wish "What is Reality?" would have concluded the Riddler's arc in the DCAU with his brain being fried. Especially considering he wasn't one of those villains that was used alot anyways, and that horrendous redesign he got.

[Catwoman]

I liked the Riddler's Reform episode though. "You're...adorable." "Adorable, huh?" One of my favorite Batman exchanges with a villain lol. And yes the Scarecrow one was great, forgot about it.

[Silver Nemesis]

Star Trek TNG was assumed to be worth it... except the HD releases didn't exactly break records.

I purchased the complete TNG set about a year ago, and admittedly I bought the standard DVD version over the Blu-ray. With a few exceptions, such as Daredevil, I usually collect TV shows on DVD and reserve Blu-ray purchases for movies with the visual splendour to justify them. But I might put the B:TAS Blu-ray on my Christmas list this year.

I guess my interest in a Lois & Clark Blu-ray is less to do with the picture quality and more to do with the new special features such a release would occasion. It's about time we had some up-to-date retrospectives on the show's place in Superman history.

If anybody has better information, consider this an invitation to correct me.

I'm afraid I'm not terribly well informed on the subject of HD re-mastering. It would be great if Warner Bros could splash out and do all these shows in bulk for their streaming service, but if it's as costly as you say then obviously it won't be practical. There might also be additional difficulties in changing the aspect ratio from 4:3 to 16:9 for an HD release. TPTB at Warner Bros probably wouldn't think it was worth the time and expense.

MOTP cast a very, VERY long shadow, though. About the only animated movie I've seen that peeks out of it is Under the Red Hood.

Agreed. Mask of the Phantasm and Under the Red Hood are my two favourite animated Batman films. Mask of the Phantasm is the only Batman movie, live action or animated, that I'd rate a perfect 10/10. Under the Red Hood narrowly edges out Return of the Joker for second place on my animated DC movie list. Two things MotP and UtRH have in common:

1)   They're both better than the comic stories from which they're adapted (Batman: Year Two and Under the Hood).

2)   They're arguably the two saddest Batman films ever made.

Considering the declining quality of the most recent animated Batman movies, I'm not sure we'll see another film as good as those two. At least not for a while.

[Travesty]

Question: will an XBOX 360 or XBOX One play Blu Ray? Or will I have to buy a dedicated Blu Ray Player too?

Sony owns the Blu-Ray format, only their game systems have it. You'll have to buy a Blu-Ray player.

An Xbox One has a Blu-ray player, but the 360 doesn't. So if you have an Xbox One, you have a Blu-ray player. Also, if you have an Xbox One S and X, you also have a 4K player.

[Catwoman]

MOTP cast a very, VERY long shadow, though. About the only animated movie I've seen that peeks out of it is Under the Red Hood.

Agreed. Mask of the Phantasm and Under the Red Hood are my two favourite animated Batman films. Mask of the Phantasm is the only Batman movie, live action or animated, that I'd rate a perfect 10/10. Under the Red Hood narrowly edges out Return of the Joker for second place on my animated DC movie list. Two things MotP and UtRH have in common:

1)   They're both better than the comic stories from which they're adapted (Batman: Year Two and Under the Hood).

2)   They're arguably the two saddest Batman films ever made.

Considering the declining quality of the most recent animated Batman movies, I'm not sure we'll see another film as good as those two. At least not for a while.

Haven't considered your point two but you are right. Neither of those play very nice with Bruce's emotions. Red Hood in particular was brutal to him. It was good that it had its levity in other parts (like with Black Mask lol) because it would have been a tough watch otherwise.

I'm hoping one of the upcoming movies can measure up or at least stand out from what has come out recently, but it seems like their purpose lately is more invested in seeing what all they can get away with and trying to be "edgy" and "adult." That really annoys me.

Question: will an XBOX 360 or XBOX One play Blu Ray? Or will I have to buy a dedicated Blu Ray Player too?

Sony owns the Blu-Ray format, only their game systems have it. You'll have to buy a Blu-Ray player.

An Xbox One has a Blu-ray player, but the 360 doesn't. So if you have an Xbox One, you have a Blu-ray player. Also, if you have an Xbox One S and X, you also have a 4K player.

The plot thickens....crap. lol. I didn't need it to thicken. I do have a One, haven't got any games for it or anything but I have the system itself, second hand. May have to get a game or two too. Too bad the recent NASCAR games suck ass. I might could get the Telltale games or the Return to Arkham dealio. That would be great to play again.

[The Dark Knight]

Very torn. I love the goodies that come with it (including the two movies like you said) but that is a hell of an investment at least for someone like me. Considering the DC Universe thing will have the series in HD when it launches (and maybe Phantasm and SubZero too), I may have to skip on the set in favor of the subscription.

I have the complete series on DVD, and I don't feel the need for an upgrade. I'm curious to see how much of a visual upgrade the Blu-ray offers, though.

[GBglide]

An Xbox One has a Blu-ray player, but the 360 doesn't. So if you have an Xbox One, you have a Blu-ray player. Also, if you have an Xbox One S and X, you also have a 4K player.

I didn't know that, I'm surprised that Sony would help a rival company like that. They must have charged Microsoft at ton for it.

[Azrael]

If there's the option to get them cheaper as HD video files, better refrain from buying standard HD (1080p) blurays. It won't be too long before everything is re-re-re-released again in UltraHD 4K Bluray (2160p). Unless someone really needs to buy the packaging. But then, fans are collectors.

[thecolorsblend]

Very torn. I love the goodies that come with it (including the two movies like you said) but that is a hell of an investment at least for someone like me. Considering the DC Universe thing will have the series in HD when it launches (and maybe Phantasm and SubZero too), I may have to skip on the set in favor of the subscription.

I have the complete series on DVD, and I don't feel the need for an upgrade. I'm curious to see how much of a visual upgrade the Blu-ray offers, though.

That's pretty much where I am too. I have the DVD's and those are good enough for me. And since we're talking about animation which was designed to be seen at something akin to DVD quality, I don't really see what benefits those extra lines of resolution will bring to the table.

Maybe there is some tangible advantage to HD animation... but even if there is, I don't see how it could be substantial enough to justify the cost.

Slightly off-topic but I'm nearing the end of a rewatch of Batman Beyond. Strange too. Thought I'd seen all the episodes before. Turns out, I somehow overlooked about half of them.

Some episodes are better than others. But on a per-episode basis, the quality is actually pretty high. Some things haven't aged all that well but in the main Batman Beyond really does hold up.