The New Batman Adventures
The show moved to the WB and got a new look reminscent of Superman: The Animated Series11. Over The Edge
22. Judgement Day
23. Beware The Creeper
24. Mad Love
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10. The Demon Within 11. Over The Edge 22. Judgement Day 23. Beware The Creeper 24. Mad Love
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Basic Premise: A bratty kid with magic powers steals an item Bruce Wayne won at an auction and with it, the kid gains control of "the demon within."
Featuring: Batman/Bruce Wayne, Robin/Tim Drake, Jason Blood, Klarion(aka Bratty Kid with Magic Powers)
Review: An episode that panders too much to kids... and you thought Yu-Gi-Oh was bad? There is absolutely no origin story and Bruce Wayne's only answer is no answer: "Don't ask." The characters Etrigan and Jason Blood just appear out of thin air. Apparently, Jason Blood had some past with Bruce Wayne. How the heck did Etrigan obtain his powers? I know that part of the fun of watching anime is figuring out what is going on because the shows and movies tend to jump straight to the action, but for this episode, it's just laziness on the writer's part.
11. Over The Edge
Basic Premise: Commissoner Gordon blames Batman for the death of his daughter, Barbara.
Featuring: Batman/Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson/Nightwing, Robin/Tim Drake, Batgirl/Barbara Gordon, Alfred, Commissoner Gordon, Scarecrow, Bane
Review:
The dream angle is ineffective for a number of reasons, the first that it's been done before and better in Perchance to Dream. Any good writer will tell you that finishing the story by having the protagonist wake up is too convenient and too easy a resolution and it is not exactly a surprise ending, since that is how Alice In Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz ends. Barbara's dream even defies the illogical nature of dreams. Since when is it possible to have flashbacks in dreams? Don't you wake up when you're falling, a point made by Perchance to Dream? Anyhow, Barbara embracing her father is very emotional, but by now, the damage is done. 22. Judgement Day
Basic Premise: For political reasons, a judge supports a new vigilante that goes after criminals.
Featuring: Batman, The Judge, Two Face, Croc, Riddler, Penguin, Corcoran
Review: It is passable, reverting to the Batman TAS style that fans have come to know and love. If that's not enough, Robin and Nightwing are missing, which means more screen time for Batman. The premise is good enough and the voice of The Judge is eerie. A crowd pleaser, if nothing too special.
Random Comments:
- Notice that The Judge is speaking to Two-Face from a television screen instead of in person.
23. Beware The Creeper
Basic Premise: The Joker poisons reporter Jack Ryder with laughing gas and pushes him into a vat of chemicals, turning him into the Creeper.
Featuring: Batman/Bruce Wayne, Robin/Tim Drake, Creeper/Jack Ryder The Joker, Harley Quinn
Review: He talks and laughs constantly, sometimes to himself, and leaps. He is the Creeper, whose outlandish behavior outdoes the Joker. Indeed, The Joker ironically cries out, "He's a lunatic!" With the Creeper's personality carrying the show, that was one fun episode.
Random Comments:
- The Creeper does his best Jim Carrey impersonation, taking inspiration from such movies as Ace Ventura and The Mask.
- This episode has a rather high sexual content for a children's cartoon, notably when Harley Quinn emerges from the giant pudding cake, the stuff dripping all over her. At one point, the Creeper nearly rapes Harley Quinn. Certainly, the kind of material that warrants a PG-13 in movies.
Basic Premise: Harley Quinn wants to prove to the Joker that she is capable of capturing Batman by herself.
Featuring: Batman, Harley Quinn, Joker, Commissoner Gordon
Memorable Lines:
Batman: She almost had me, you know. Arms and legs chained, dizzy from the blood rushing to my head. . . I had no way out other than convincing her to call you. I knew your massive ego would never allow anyone else the honor of killing me. Though I have to admit, she came a lot closer than you ever did. . . Puddin'.
Harleen: I finally see that slime for what he is: A murderous, manipulative, irredeemable-
Review: A superb psychological episode that finally tells the story of how a clinical psychologist can fall in love with a homicidal maniac. The dialogue is funny and right on target, and it gives new insight into the villains, The Joker and Harley Quinn. The Joker may be a "hardcore psychotic," but he can be very charming and manipulative. Batman's reasoning is almost infallible and he shows his gifts for close observation of his enemies.
Random Comments:
- This is probably the only episode where Harley Quinn outwits Batman.
- Batman laughs!
- Harley Quinn's mention of making fishies smile by turning Batman upside down reminds me of the time my biology teacher taught the class how to dissect a worm. Flip it a certain way, and it appears to be smiling or frowning, even in death.
- The Joker and Harley Quinn have an abuser-victim relationship. The Joker pushes her out of a window and yet she forgives him when she finds a note from him beside her bed. This is similar to what happens in real life. After punching his girlfriend in the stomach, the guy would then apologize the next day and give her flowers, and instantly she forgives him. It is kind of ironic, considering her background in psychology. She should have recognized from the start that the Joker would be an abusive lover.
Endings, I suppose, do not carry as much weight as the story itself. In Great Expectations, Charles Dickens got away with having two endings and still, his novel is a masterpiece. Unfortunately, this ending of this episode destroyed what would have been an excellent story. Consider the loaded premise for a minute. Barbara falls to her death, and even for a children's cartoon, the camera does not cut away. Commissoner Gordon believing Batman to be responsible orders the police to chase after him and his accomplices, Nightwing and Robin. Both Nightwing and Batman's covers are blown; now the whole world knows that they are Dick Grayson and Bruce Wayne. They are ruined. Meanwhile, Commissioner Gordon has sent Bane to destroy Batman once and for all. Breathless, you, the viewer, can hardly wait to see how this GIGANTIC mess will be solved with what little time there is left. After all, the show is under 30 minutes, without commercials... and then you learn that it's all just a dream. You feel cheated, like watching was just a waste of time.
24. Mad Love
Joker: A joke's not funny if you have to explain it!
She looks beside her bed and sees a rose with a tag reading "Feel better soon - J"
Harleen: -Angel!