After watching the new Brave and the Bold episode, the chill of the night, I wanted to express my opinion on the latest installment of the series. I have probably been the greatest critic of the show on the podcast, but I have also ensured the show receives praise from me when they've impressed me. Which has been on a couple of occasions during the first season with Bat- Mite, the Music Meister and The Color of Revenge episode.
I sometimes feel harsh criticizing the show because I'm fully aware it is aimed at young children and the producers are generally not considering myself when designing the show. I fully respect that this show is for another audience and I'm glad that there are other interpretations of Batman out there. Just like the 60's show, Tim Burton's Batman and Nolan's Batman, this is a character that can be adapted to fit anywhere. So naturally when viewing the show I expect to not be really drawn into the story and am expecting the same stuff every time. The second season has had some fun moments amongst a few dull episodes but nothing outstanding…until now!
Now when I first heard about this episode from Dustin and Apple at San Diego Comic-Con with the comments that even the actors involved were making about this episode made it sound like a biggie! The incredible all-star additional casting whetted my appetite even further. Now no plot points will be revealed here (even though I'm sure you can guess a bit about what's going on from the title) but the sheer quality of writing, acting, animation and direction were superb. This episode felt more like the awesome BTAS from the nineties with plenty for Batman to deal with, no sidekicks to get in the way and the focus devoted to the story and some real character development. Some dark moments existed in a show that I never saw portraying Batman in this light and Batman's morals and psychology are brought into question. How far will he go when it gets personal? For those of you out there that have been overlooking the series, check this episode out and you won't be disappointed.
My next question is where does the show go next? Well the next listed episode is Gorillas In Our Midst, where Gorilla Grodd tries to turn the population into gorillas. Why oh why? Now I'm not saying that the show would make me happier being a clone of BTAS, but sticking with Batman and his family/villains, fighting the criminal underworld of Gotham gangsters and dealing with his own deep rooted problems would be much more satisfying. It worked for my generation when we were younger, why can't they transfer that to this show more regularly? Surely this episode showed us what the Brave and the Bold is capable of and I'd love them to stay there rather than revert to the cosmic, immature antics of the last year and a half.
In conclusion, at least this episode has got me caring about the show again and proved to me the talent working on this project. As long as they do a couple of high quality episodes a year I'm going to keep watching. So I'm going to selfishly finish by saying FORGET THE KIDS! MORE OF THIS PLEASE!
Posted by Nick
In the 1970's Saturday morning cartoons changed. Some would say for the better some would say for the worse. I am one of those people that think it was a bad turn. There were more cartoons being produced and very little had a significant storyline. Many of the cartoons were the same exact outline every time with a different villain or character. The originality of cartoons had left. More people wanted to see adventure stories that humor. The animation department cut corners to save money. This was a strange time for cartoons.
After saying all of that, I want you to read through the list of the shows on this set and see how many you actually remember: Hair Bear Bunch, The New Adventures of Gilligan (that's right, there was a cartoon), Sealab 2020, The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan, Shazzan, Yogi's Gang, The Bugs Bunny Road Runner Show, Valley of the Dinosaurs, Tom & Jerry Grape Ape Show, The Banana Splits Adventure Hour, Inch High Private Eye, and The New Adventures of Batman.
What in the world were they thinking with The Banana Splits Adventure Hour? If you have no idea what I'm talking about, watch this (oh, and listen for a familiar Winnie-the-Pooh character's voice):
One of the things that makes up for the issues is that they took all of our favorite animals from the 1960's and put them on one show, Yogi's Gang. The only issue I had is the laugh track. It seems that they were trying to make cartoons more like sitcoms. That is probably true since they started to have shows that featured Bob Denver and Charlie Chan.
Now before you say to yourself that I forgot to talk about Batman, I am just about to. The New Adventures of Batman was a very weird interpretation of Batman. Robin was there along with Batgirl, but Bat-Mite was also on the show. The villain featured in the episode in this set was Sweet Tooth. Yea, I know. I never heard of him either. Adam West and Burt Ward reprise their roles only in voice form this time. Hearing West's voice in a cartoon reminds me too much of Mayor West from Family Guy. I have nothing good to say about this portrayal of Batman.
The one special feature talks about how Shazzan was created. One interesting Batman note is that Paul Dini makes an appearance and criticizes the show.
Overall, I was not very impressed. I don't think of myself as a old-timer, especially since I am only in my twenties, but this was well beyond what I would have like as a child. If you grew up with these shows, leave a comment below letting me know why you liked them.
Saturday Morning Cartoons 1970s Volume 2:
You can buy this set on Amazon here. The set was released earlier this week. Check out this video from Valley of the Dinosaurs.
Posted by Dustin
A continuation of the scan posted yesterday. Turns out Batgirl and Supergirl were replaced by Mxy and Batmite who disguised themselves as other criminals who disguised themselves as Supergirl and Batgirl. Ain’t the Silver Age grand?
Posted by Josh
So another week has past and we move into the very last week of September. We know that October will not only bring cold weather, but also a ton of new Batman books. But today isn’t October, so let’s see what September ends with.
Batman: The Black Glove
$17.99
Last year when this story was released in the main Batman series, I started to question what Morrison’s intent really was. A lot of this was off the wall and most didn’t flow correctly. When the story ended, we were left with more questions than we started with. Why were there three Batmen? Why was Bat-mite suddenly making appearances? Why are there so many references to the Silver Age stories? One thing I did enjoy was the Club of Heroes. Even though it was a reference to a bunch of characters that had not appeared in some time, it was a breath of fresh air. Looking back on that issue, I compare it to what Morrison is doing in Batman and Robin. The major downfall was revisiting Joe Chill. I don’t think it is worth buying, but if you have not read it, go ahead and READ IT.
Batman: The Widening Gyre #2
$2.99
Issue #1 was nothing to be excited for. The issue was littered with references that Kevin Smith makes in all of his comics. The art, although has become better since Batman: Cacophony, still is not very good. I am looking forward to seeing who makes some guest appearances, and judging by the first issue we will see plenty of them. There are a lot of Bruce Wayne as Batman fans out there that need their fix. To them I say here it is. But honestly nothing to be proud about. READ IT
Gotham City Sirens #4
$2.99
Paul Dini finally found his groove in Batman: Streets of Gotham this month. Could this series make the needed change as well? I don’t think the art will suddenly change significantly, but by the looks of the preview, we will see the Joker. Dini knows how to write Harley Quinn. Think about it. He created her after all. If the Joker can play a good role in this series and bring it out of the rut that it has been in, this series might still have a chance. Now if we could only get past the continuity issues with Hush. BUY IT
Superman/Batman Vol. 1: Public Enemies-New Printing
$14.99
This was a excellent way to launch a new series. Great story. Perfect art. I will warn you though. If you have not read this before and you plan on picking it up because you just watched the film, don’t. The film took a lot of liberties changing things around. The comics were much better. If you want to know more about what I mean, check out my review of the film. So if you want to see a better story than the movie, than this is the one for you. BUY IT
That wraps up this week’s comics. What does the rest of the DC Universe have in store for us this week? Well, there are a couple that I believe are worth at least a read. If you have been following Blackest Night, Blackest Night: Titans #2 and Green Lantern #46 are out this week. Batman: The Brave and the Bold has a new issue for those of you with children. Teen Titans has a new writer starting with this issue and it looks to feature a number of Titans from past and present. Justice League of America 80-Page Giant also sounds to be a classic as well. So get out there and read some comics. Be sure to save up your money though because next month is going to be a expensive month for Bat-fans. ‘Til next time, keep reading.
Posted by Dustin