MYTHICITY: *fair*
FRYEAN MYTHOS: *adventure*
CAMPBELLIAN FUNCTION: *psychological, sociological*
Like many fans of the 1990s BATMAN cartoon series, I probably was so impressed with that show's accomplishments that I didn't give this 2004-2008 program a fair shake. I didn't initially find the art style of the latter series, with its strong manga influence, attractive. However, I now think it's a creditable approach. It's true that some characters, like Bruce Wayne, seemed a little too "rounded," though this series does take place when Bruce Wayne is young and has only been Batman for a year or so. In compensation, some of the villains are drawn as less realistic, almost "bigfoot" grotesques, but the sense of their being more "cartoony" had its own attractive aspects.
THE BAT IN THE BELFRY (F)- Not surprisingly, the show led off with the debut of both the New Batman and a more demonic looking version of The Joker. In contrast to BATS, here the two adversaries have never met before, so this is Young Batman's first encounter with both the Clown Prince and his dominant weapon, Joker Venom. It's a fairly straightforward story, though Joker has an interesting observation as to how he and the crusader might be viewed as iterations of the "comedy" and "tragedy" theatrical masks.
CALL OF THE COBBLEPOT (G)-- Though both the 1992 and 2004 cartoons took considerable inspiration from the Tim Burton Penguin, both in terms of his freakish looks and a Dickensian style of attire, I now like the 2004 concept better. In the 1992 cartoon as in the comics, Penguin is generally just a weird-looking fellow with pretenses of social refinement. But the 2004 writers came up a new and valid take: this Oswald Cobblepot actually comes from old British money, so some of his affectations are rooted in family heritage. However, when Bruce Wayne first encounters the pudgy purveyor of perfidy, he finds that his social standing is just a mask for his rudeness and petty larceny-- not long before Batman learns that Penguin believes himself entitled to become a full-time criminal. Alfred provides some strong comedy relief in that his grandfather butled for Penguin's ancestor, and Alfred conveys the opinion that the Cobblepots were all rotters. Since Penguin's tics are so familiar, it's tough to do anything inventive with him, but THE BATMAN's version of the Birdman Bandit may turn out to outrate that of BTAS. An additional improvement is that this Penguin's henchpersons are a couple of identical "kabuki ninja girls."
TRACTION (P)-- The only thing I can say for the debut of Bane-- a hugely overrated Bat-foe in my view-- is that here he's no worse than the one in either the comics or in BTAS. The fight between Bane and the hero is okay, but of course there can be no direct reference to Bane's big moment in the comics: that of breaking Batman's back.
THE CAT AND THE BAT (F)-- This Catwoman-debut is no match for BATS' iteration, "The Cat and the Claw," and the quasi-romantic encounter of hero and villainess is only adequate. I wasn't a big fan of the grey BTAS costume, but I can't stand a Catwoman with huge ears on her cowl, less like those of a cat than a fennec fox. But Selina Kyle in regular clothes is arguably sexier than BTAS Selina.
THE MAN WHO WOULD BE BAT (P)-- It's a new origin for Kirk Langstrom, Man-Bat. In the comics, the scientist foolishly injects himself with his serum in Doctor Jekyll fashion, thinking he'll develop a bat's natural sonar. There's a brief mention of his outdoing Batman, but the 2004 show gives its Langstrom a major case of bat-envy, and the scientist wants to mutate himself into a Man-Bat from the start. His character's not believable and the Man-Bat design is unexceptional.
THE BIG CHILL (F)-- Like Man-Bat, this version of Mister Freeze elides all potential for tragedy, for this Freeze is just a professional thief who gets turned into a cold-dependent freak. Since he's not a scientist, this means the script has to give the villain ice-powers. The only thing that elevates this episode to "fair mythicity" is that Young Batman hasn't grown a hard shell over his emotions, and so he's briefly traumatized at the result of his actions when he inadvertently caused Freeze's mutation.
THE BIG HEAT (F)-- This episode arguably places less emphasis on the debut of a new villain-- the fire-spewing arsonist Firefly-- than on Bruce Wayne's problems with his corporate image. This Wayne is perhaps more concerned than the BTAS version with keeping faith with the heritage left him by his parents, which proves a welcome variation.
Q&A (P)-- I'd like to grade this one higher, given that the script addresses the fact that as a child Bruce Wayne ceased to have any sense of "child's play" in his life, once he'd dedicated himself to a life of crimefighting. However, the villain is jejune and predictable, a guy who obsesses about having lose a TV quiz-show as a child, and so becomes The Cluemaster to take vengeance on those he thinks he cheated him. In the comics, The Cluemaster is just a C-list villain, but he's still better than this conception.
THE BIG DUMMY (F)-- This episode debuts a new version of The Ventriloquist, who commits crimes under the apparent "leadership" of his dummy Scarface, who represents his criminal alter ego. No better or worse than the BTAS version.
TOPSY TURVY (F)-- Joker returns with more chaotic crimes, but the emphasis is more on the two of the cops tasked by their commissioner with bringing in The Batman. Of the two, Ethan Bennett, a friend of Bruce's, is nominally sympathetic to Batman's crimebusting activities, while his new partner Ellen Yin is more a traditional cop, resentful of the hero's vigilantism.
BIRD OF PREY (F)-- Oswald Cobblepot, having fully embraced his supervillain destiny, gets a mad-on for Bruce Wayne, so he and his taloned ninjas show up to loot Wayne Manor. But at the same time Wayne has scheduled an interview with an ambitious news reporter, the first person in the show to suspect a Batman-Wayne connection. Penguin's ego gets full display as he interacts with the reporter and tries to make the news story all about him.
THE RUBBER FACE OF COMEDY/ THE CLAYFACE OF TRAGEDY (F)-- These interlinked episodes come close to being a "villain crossover" between Joker and the new version of Clayface, though I disqualify it on the grounds that the two don't meet in their villain-forms. The commissioner-- just a fool here, rather than a corrupt Gotham cop as in many other versions-- demands that all Gotham cops bring in The Batman. Ethan Bennett gets the commissioner's particular attention, so Bennett seeks to be more pro-active, like his partner Yin. Wayne considers revealing his true identity to his sympathetic buddy, but fortunately does not, for Joker has a new game, involving a putty able to mutate people. As Batman seeks to stop Joker, the two detectives get involved, and ironically, it's the hard-ass Yin who ends up cutting Batman a break for exigent reasons. But in the battle, Bennett is exposed to the putty, and he gets mutated into the shape-changing creature, Clayface. The Clayface of BTAS was only moderately impressive, but I liked Bennett-Clayface better for the way the script captures his confusion at becoming a monster-- giving him the sort of tragic dimension the show elided from Man-Bat and Mister Freeze. As of the end of Season One, Bennett is still a victim of the Clayface curse, though he's cured in a later season. Further, while Bennett loses himself to his monster-self, Yin becomes Batman's unofficial partner.
