Batman: The Animated Series

I am vengeance...I am the night...I am Batman! Not too many characters could get away with saying something so outlandish as that, but Batman could. When he said it, you knew that he could back it up with a beat down. Till this day, Batman TAS remains one of the most well crafted and liked animated cartoons of all time. It came on to the scene in 92 and heavily took advantage of the success of Tim Burton's Batman Returns. Although Batman TAS was inspired by Burton's incarnation of the caped crusader, it had an element that the Burton films did not possess. It possessed the ability to completely flesh out the Character and persona of the dark knight. We were given the chance to see a boy, overwhelmed with a life of tragedy, overcome his fears and pain to become the savior of an entire city.


The series also dealt with moral themes and issues that were pertinent in life. One of these key issues dealt with was vengeance. Batman's character, of course, was born out of it. After the deaths of his parents, Bruce promised that he would never let anything like that ever happen again. He would bring justice to those who would be the bearers of injustice. And after years of training is body, mind, and spirit, he became the Batman. This quest however, would not be an easy one. Intertwine with this quest for justice, lay hidden pains and the desire for vengeance. This pain was fuelled, in part, by the fact that he blamed himself for being unable to protect his family. In the episode "Nothing to Fear," Batman comes face to face with that fear.

In this episode, the Scarecrow hits Batman with a dart filled with fear toxin. Batman begins to hallucinate that his dead father is rejecting him as a failure. He struggles with these images, but he manages to overcome this fear. He forces himself to realize that these visions are not real and convinces himself that his father is proud of him. Batman then defeats the Scarecrow's henchmen and overcomes the Scarecrow.

There are two things that , for me , really made the show great:

1. The music--Shirley Walker was the perfect choice. She took Danny Elfman's music from the Burton films and totally expanded upon them and made it her own. In my opinion, her score is just as iconic and just as great as anything that can be found the Elfman scores. It is the best music in in any cartoon series, period.


2. The voice acting--Many people, including myself, find Kevin Conroy's Batman to be the best incarnation of the caped crusader. His voice was perfect not only for the Batman but for Bruce Wayne as well. Another voice actor who really made the show great was Mark Hamill. His Joker was simply fantastic. He was always good for a laugh.

The character of Batman from the series transcended even it's own show. Kevin Conroy's Batman has appeared in several DC animated series including:

• Batman: TAS


• The Adventures of Batman and Robin


• The Batman/Superman Adventures


• The Justice League


• The Justice League unlimited


• Batman Beyond

He has also appeared in several animated movies including:

• Batman: Mask of the Phantasm


• Mystery of the Batwoman


• Batman: Subzero


• Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker

Throughout all of these series, one thing always stayed the same, and that was Batman. The animations may have changed, the Stories and characters may have changed, but Batman was the constant that made these shows worth watching.

One thing I cannot figure out is, how could the guys at Warner make such great animated Batman flicks and yet produce bantha fodder in the live action department? (Batman & Robin, Batman Forever) Luckily, Christopher Nolan came in to same the day. Batman Begins was absolutely fantastic. And The Dark Knight, after seeing the official trailer, appears to be poised to take the Mantle of greatest Batman flick of all time.