Remember that one day when you could wake up without an alarm? When you would get your favorite bowl of cereal and sit between the hours of 8 and 12? This is a blog dedicated to the greatest time of our childhood: Saturday mornings. The television programs you watched, the memories attached to them, and maybe introducing you to something you didn't realize existed. Updated every weekend.
Beginning life as a pitch for a potential new Batman series, Justice
League Action came into existence as both a tie-in and marketing for the
then-upcoming Justice
Leaguelive-action film, as well as serve to tide fans over
until a sequel followed. The first new Justice League
show in a decade, the series took a cue from the last incarnation, Justice
League Unlimited, and featured a rotating roster of various DC Comics heroes teaming-up to battle
villains and save cities, countries and the entire world. Out of all of the
featured characters, DC’s trinity of Batman (Kevin Conroy), Superman (Jason J.
Lewis) and Wonder Woman (Rachel Kimsey) were involved in the most episodes.
Stargirl, Blue Beetle and Firestorm join Superman.
Shane Glines served as the
series’ character designer. He was
told that the show was meant to be “fun, not funny”, so he used big and
simple shapes that popped immediately with minimalist color palettes that best
represented each character. He largely had free reign except for the edict that
Superman couldn’t have his traditional trunks in keeping with his appearance in
the new films (Bizarro, however, was free to have them as he was Superman’s
total opposite). Additionally, he had to town down the sexiness in the initial
designs of Zatanna,
namely her bust size, and Star
Sapphire, who had a barely-there costume. Glines posting his various
designs to his Instagram account revealed
that Batgirl had been planned to appear, but never did outside of the set of 8McDonald’s Happy Meal toys.
Joker kidnaps...Mark Hamill!
Justice League Action’s
first episodewas shown at San Diego
Comic Con in 2016, before later making its television debut on Cartoon Network; November 26 in the
United Kingdom and December 16 in North America. The show’s title logo and
initials were inspired by the original Justice League of America logo
used on the comics for the first two
volumes. Each episode was only 11 minutes long, putting greater emphasis on
the humor and action with a quick pace over character development and deep
plots. The majority of them also made their debuts in international markets
before hitting US airwaves. Additionally, 22 shorts running under 3-minutes
were released onto the DC
Kids YouTube channel. One of those shorts, “Missing the Mark”, was a
showcase for Hamill and featured the actor himself interacting with all three
of his Action characters.
Lex Luthor attempts to beat the heroes at their own game.
Unfortunately, the very nature of
the series ended up working against it in the end. The production of the Justice
League movie was troubled. After the negative reception to Batman v Superman,
Warner Bros. was having doubts over
the direction of the DC
Extended Universe (DCEU) and its ability to compete with the Marvel Cinematic Universe. They put Geoff Johns and Jon Berg in charge of
production of the franchise, and Johns would announce that the film would be
more “hopeful and optimistic” than the previous films. Unhappy with how
director Zack Snyder’s work
was shaping up (going so far as to declare it “unwatchable”), the film
underwent numerous rewrites during filming; which rubbed screenwriter Chris Terrio the wrong
way (leading him to unsuccessfully petition to have his name removed from
the final film). When Snyder left
during post-production to deal with the death of his daughter, Joss Whedon was hired to take
over and eventually oversaw two months of reshoots with the intent of bringing
it closer to the highly successful Avengersfilm
he helmed. Additionally, WB refused to delay the film’s release in order to
ensure that executives would receive their cash bonuses before
the merger with AT&T. The result was a
mishmash of the directors’ contrasting styles that left reviewers mixed and
audiences underwhelmed. And the less said about the poor CGI
removal of Superman actor Henry
Cavill’s mustache from his role in Mission: Impossible –
Fallout, the better.
Harley and Ivy, together again.
All of this led to WB quickly
abandoning Justice League Action. The series received little to no
promotion on the network. Episodes were quickly burned through over the next
year, with the last few being held over until the start of summer in 2018.
After that, it disappeared with very little fanfare. Fans of the show, as well
as the
actors themselves, were left in question as to the ultimate fate of the
series. But, with the DCEU in chaos and ratings insufficient, it became
increasingly likely that WB quietly cancelled the series; fittingly ending it
at 52 episodes (not counting the shorts), which tended to be a default number for DC Comics.
“Classic Rock (Shazam Slam: Part 1)” (12/26/16) – Batman
ends up embroiled in the Wizard’s quest to save Billy Batson from Black Adam as
he unleashes the Brothers Djinn from their prison.
“Power Outage (Shazam Slam: Part 2)” (11/26/16 UK, 12/16/16
US) – Djinn Calythos possesses Parasite to steal the Justice League’s powers
and continues his plan to revert Earth back to its primordial state.
“Night of the Bat (Shazam Slam: Part 3)” (12/16/16) – Djinn
Uthool possesses Batman to defeat the remaining Leaguers and use the Hall of
Justice’s core to break the Earth’s mantle.
“Abate and Switch (Shazam Slam: Part 4)” (12/16/16) –
Constantine joins the League in stopping the Djinn, but they’ll also have to
defeat with Black Adam as he escapes from his imprisonment.
“Follow That Space Cab!” (11/26/16 UK, 1/21/17 US) –
Superman, Hawkman and Space Cabbie must protect Mister Mind from being handed
over to an intergalactic crime lord by Lobo.
“Nuclear Family Values” (11/27/16 UK, 1/28/17 US) –
Firestorm is alone in attempting to stop the Nuclear Family from destroying a
nuclear power plant.
“Zombie King” (12/3/16 UK, 2/4/17 US) – Batman, Zatanna and
Swamp Thing must stop Solomon Grundy from summoning a zombie army.
“Galaxy Jest” (12/4/16 UK, 2/11/17 US) – As Batman and Flash
deal with Joker’s gas bomb in Gotham City, Super and Wonder Woman must save
Joker from Mongul.
“Time Share” (12/10/16 UK, 2/18/17 US) – Batman and Blue
Beetle go into the past to stop Chronos from killing Batman on his first night
of crime fighting.
“Under a Red Sun” (12/11/16 UK, 2/25/17 US) – Steppenwolf transports
Superman to a planet with a red sun in order to kill him.
“Play Date” (12/17/16 UK, 3/4/17 US) – Cyborg must rescue
Wonder Woman, Superman and Batman from Toyman’s latest trap on the Watchtower.
“Repulse!” (12/18/16 UK, 3/11/17 US) – Wonder Woman and
Hawkman must find a way to save Superman from the deadly nanobots he was
infected with by Lex Luthor.
“Trick or Threat” (12/24/16 UK, 3/18/17 US) – Batman,
Zatanna, Constantine and Dr. Fate must escape from the monster-infested House
of Mystery after Klarion changes them into 10-year-olds.
“Speed Demon” (12/11/16 PL, 3/25/17 US) – Batman needs
Etrigan to help him rescue Zatanna from the Batmobile, which has been turned
into a demon by Brother Night.
“Hat Trick” (12/11/16 PL, 4/8/17 US) – Felix Faust steals
Zatanna’s hat to use to free a massive demon.
“Luthor in Paradise” (12/11/16 PL, 4/29/17 US) – Lex enlists
Circe’s help in getting to an alternate realm to acquire the power of Zeus.
“Plastic Man Saves the World” (1/15/17 UK, 5/6/17 US) – Plastic
Man sneaks onto Brainiac’s ship to destroy his shrink ray and prove himself.
“Field Trip” (1/21/17 UK, 5/13/17 US) – Blue Beetle,
Firestorm and Stargirl must rescue Superman from the Phantom Zone while dealing
with Zod, Faora and Quix-Ul.
“Rage of the Red Lanterns” (2/18/16 PL, 5/20/17 US) – An
unlikely alliance forms between the League and the Red Lanterns to take on a
powered-up Lobo.
“Freezer Burn” (12/18/16 PL, 5/27/17 US) – As Batman deals
with Mr. Freeze, Firestorm must rescue Killer Frost who was forced to power
Freeze’s latest freezing device.
“Inside Job” (3/11/17 FR, 6/3/17 US) – Atom shrinks Batman
and Wonder Woman to enter Superman’s bloodstream and expel Lex’s
solar-absorbing nanobots.
“The Trouble with Truth” (3/11/17 FR, 6/3/17 US) – Athena
shadows Wonder Woman on a mission to see if she’s worthy of assuming the mantle
of the Goddess of Truth on Olympus.
“Double Cross” (3/10/17 CAN, 6/10/17 US) – Plastic Man poses
as Two-Face to lure Deadshot into a trap; unfortunately, the real Two-Face
shows up and ruins the plan.
“Battle for the Bottled City” (1/19/17 UK, 6/17/17 US) –
Superman decides to visit the bottle city of Kandor just as Brainiac raids the
Fortress of Solitude to reclaim it.
“Garden of Evil” (3/11/17 FR, 6/24/17 US) – Swamp Thing’s
blind date turns out to be Poison Ivy, who takes control of him in a bid to
conquer Gotham City with her monstrous plants.
“All Aboard the Space Train” (3/11/17 FR, 7/1/17) – Batman
and Cyborg enlist Space Cabbie and Jonah Hex to stop Kanjar Ro from hijacking a
space train.
“Time Out” (7/8/17) – It’s up to Batman and Booster Gold to
stop the Chronovore from eating up all of time.
“The Fatal Fare” (5/28/17 FI, 7/15/17 US) – When Darkseid
ends up being Space Cabbie’s fare, he discovers Superman is being held and
tortured by him and his minions.
“Mixy’s Mix-Up” (7/22/17) – Mister Mxyzptlk decides to have some
fun and swap the brains of the Justice Leaguers between each other just as
Gorilla Grodd threatens the United Nations.
“Supernatural Adventures in Babysitting” (7/29/17) – Klarion
poses as Professor Anderson’s son Timmy in order to obtain the Magdalene
Grimoire on a night when Stargirl is babysitting.
“Booster’s Gold” (8/9/17 PT, 8/12/17 US) – Green Arrow
discovers Booster Gold brought dinosaurs into the present as part of a money-making
scheme.
“Boo-ray for Bizarro” (8/10/17 PT, 8/19/17 US) – After Amazo
duplicates all of the League’s powers, Bizarro becomes their only hope to beat
him.
“Best Day Ever” (8/10/17 PT, 8/26/17 US) – The League is
lead on a chase around the world when Joker springs Lex with a Mother Box.
The Cube Root” (8/14/17 PT, 9/2/17 US) – Calculator crashes
the opening of Mr. Terrific’s Science Center, taking control of his T-Spheres
and capturing Ronnie Raymond.
“Superman’s Pla, Sid Sharp” (8/14/17 PT, 9/9/17 US) –
Parademons mistake struggling Planet reporter Sid Sharp for Superman and
Darkseid uses him as bait to lure Superman into a trap.
“Superman Red vs. Superman Blue” (8/15/17 PT, 9/16/17 US) –
Lex steals a device that can separate anyone into two beings: one passive, one
evil.
“The Ringer” (8/16/17 PT, 9/23/17 US) – Atom is sent inside
Sinestro’s power ring to find out why it’s suddenly more powerful.
“Forget Me Not” (8/16/17 PT, 9/30/17 US) – Firestorm must
retore Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman’s memories so that they can save
Metropolis from Felix Faust.
“The Brain Buster” (10/7/17) – Batman, Mr. Terrific, Lex,
Calculator and Brain are abducted and put into a challenge to see who’s the
smartest.
“E. Nigma, Consulting Detective” (10/14/17) – Wonder Woman
and Green Arrow enlist the aid of Riddler to find Batman, who has been captured
by Joker.
“Harley Goes Ape!” (10/21/17) – It seems as if Harley is the
only one who can disrupt Grodd’s control over Titano.
“Phased and Confused” (8/15/17 PT, 10/28/17 US) – A fragment
of Krypton turns the League into phantoms just as Zod is able to escape from
the Phantom Zone.
“It’ll Take a Miracle” (11/4/17) – Darkseid captures Big
Barda and forces Batman to track down Mr. Miracle and retrieve the Anti-Life
Equation he stole.
“System Error” (11/11/17) – The League must figure out why
they’re suddenly all robots.
“Race Against Crime” (11/18/17) – A charity race between
Superman and Flash is interrupted by Lex and his new speed-manipulation suit.
“Party Animal” (12/2/17) - Green
Arrow's ambitions of throwing the perfect Christmas party are dashed when
Plastic Man brings a tranquilized Solomon Grundy to the party.
“Watchtower Tours” (12/10/17 PL,
5/29/18 US) – Booster Gold’s scheme of giving tours of the Watchtower for cash
become problematic when he lets in Granny Goodness, Joker and Toyman.
“Barehanded” (12/10/17 PL, 5/30/18
US) – Space Cabbie helps Green Lantern track down his missing ring.
“Captain Bamboozle” (12/10/17 PL,
5/31/18 US) – Mister Myxzptlk bestows Shazam’s Uncle Dudley with immense super
powers.
“Keeping Up with the Kryptonians”
(12/17/17 PL, 6/1/18 US) – Booster Gold is the only one who can save the day
when Mister Myxzptlk alters history and wipes out the Justice League.
“Unleashed” (12/17/17 PL, 6/2/18
US) – Plastic Man is left to look after the Watchtower and Krypto while the
others are on a mission.
“She Wore Red Velvet” (12/17/17
PL, 6/3/18 US) – Booster Gold realizes he’s intimately familiar with the new
villainess attacking the League.
Shorts:
“Up and Atom” (6/29/17) – Atom
passes on League membership until a Parademon attacks the Watchtower.
“Beep Beep!” (6/29/17) – Lobo
attempts to capture Superman and Flash, but Flash proves a bit too elusive.
“Chemistry” (6/29/17) – While on a
stakeout together, Firestorm tries to think of something impressive to say to
Stargirl.
“Good Cop, Bat Cop” (7/6/17) –
Superman and Batman interrogate Deadshot to find out who put a hit out on
Batman.
“It’s A Trap!” (7/13/17) – Lex
lures Superman to a warehouse by claiming he kidnapped a young girl.
“Lasso of Lies” (7/20/17) – Wonder
Woman discovers Plastic Man is posing as her lasso as Booster Gold had
“borrowed” it.
“Quality Time” (7/27/17) – Realizing all they do together is
fight evil, the League tries to find something else they can do with each
other.
“Selfie Help!” (8/3/17) – Booster Gold keeps photobombing
Space Cabbie’s superhero selfies to promote his new soft drink.
“Special Delivery” (8/10/17) – Space Cabbie takes on two
fares: Booster Gold on the run from Granny Goodness, and an alien woman about
to go into labor.
“Justice 1, 2, 3, Go!” (8/17/17) – Accidentally launching
himself in a submarine leads Plastic Man to discover a hidden HIVE base.
“Toymano a Mano” (8/24/17) – Batman must rescue Plastic Man
and Cyborg from Toyman’s mind-control football helmets.
“Mint Condition” (10/13/17) – Toyman takes control of
Cyborg’s action figure collection and attacks the League.
“True Colors” (10/19/17) – Firestorm attempts to turn
Metallo’s Kryptonite into lead, but ends up changing it into different
Kryptonite that has varying effects on Superman.
“Missing the Mark” (10/26/17) – Joker and Trickster abduct
Mark Hamill and plot to ransom him off for his safe return.
“Plastic Man of Steel” (11/2/17) – Plastic Man poses as
Clark Kent to preserve Superman’s secret identity, but ends up having to play
Superman as well when Lex depowers the real one.
“Something in the Hair” (11/9/17) – Plastic Man must rescue Batman
from Poison Ivy’s mind-controlling spores.
“Super Stakeout” (11/16/17) – Plastic Man tries to prove to
Green Arrow that he has the ability to be stealthy.
“Driver’s Ed” (11/23/17) – Space Cabbie attempts to help
Stargirl with her space driving test when Zillus Zox decides to rob a Space
ATM.
“Skyjacked” (11/30/17) – Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn steal
the League’s jet.
“The Goddess Must Be Crazy” (12/7/17) – While Supergirl and
Wonder Woman spar on Themyscira, Felix Faust possesses Supergirl in order to
get onto the island.
“Eezy Freezy” (12/14/17) – Batman finds a way to make
Plastic Man useful in stopping Mr. Freeze.
“Clown Party” (12/21/17) – Evading Batman lands Joker in the
middle of a kid’s birthday party where Billy Batson is in attendance.
Of course you gotta make some time to listen to some tunes.
Teen Titans debuted
on July 19, 2003 on Cartoon Network, with reruns airing on the Kids’ WB! programming block
starting that November. Although it garnered a lot of mixed and negative
reviews, the series had strong ratings and was one of Cartoon Network’s highest-rated
programs at the time. The main theme was composed by Puffy AmiYumi, (for whom Register also
made a cartoon about)
while the series music was composed by Kristopher
Carter, Michael
McCuistion and Lolita
Ritmanis. The show ended up running for a total of five seasons, before it
was cancelled for a variety of unconfirmed reasons (Mattel not having the toy license, ratings
drop after a dark 4th season, no plans for a 6th by the
network, etc.). Following the movie Trouble in Tokyoto officially end the series, it was revisited in 2012 as a series of shorts for the DC Nation programming block, however
those eliminated all dramatic storytelling in favor of pure comedy and
reimagined the characters in chibi form. These shorts eventually led to the
spin-off series Teen Titans Go!
Called simply The Batman, the series focused on a much younger Bruce Wayne (Rino
Romano) who was only into his third year as Batman. His existence was largely an
urban myth when the series began, until he gradually worked his way into the
spotlight as Gotham
City’s
defender. While his Batsuit resembled a modified version of the original one
seen in Batman: The Animated Series(with shorter ears
to make him resemble a boxer, and talons on his gloves), the show had no connection to the previous one or the DCAU. The
series was largely inspired by Batman comics
from the Golden
Age,
although it did take elements from the various incarnations over the years;
particularly the 1960s live-action Batmanseries as
evidenced by the shape of the bat-symbol and the casting of Adam West
as Mayor
Marion Grange (changed from a woman in the comics).
GCPD's finest: Ethan Bennett, Angel Rojas and Ellen Yin.
Batman went up against two types of
antagonists. The first were the GCPD,
headed by Chief Angel Rojas (Edward James Olmos for one episode, Jesse Corti
for the remainder). Rojas viewed Batman as dangerous as any criminal and
assigned two officers to bring him down: Detective Ethan Bennett (whose
appearance was based on his actor, Steve Harris) and his partner,
Metropolis-transplant Detective Ellen Yin (Ming-Na Wen). Bennett largely
regarded Batman as necessary to preserve the peace in Gotham, while Yin took
some time to come around to the idea.
Riddler, Bane, Poison Ivy, a Riddleman, Black Mask, Man-Bat, Mr. Freeze, Temblor, Spellbinder, Firefly, Ragdoll, Killer Croc, Joker, Harley Quinn, a henchman, Penguin, the Kabuki Twins and Cluemaster.
The other type was the standard
assortment of villains. Character designer Jeff Matsuda
took a great many liberties with the appearance of the classic villains, and
many of their stories were heavily revamped for the series. Of the ones
featured in the previous Batman series
was mobster Rupert
Thorne (Victor
Brandt), depicted as younger and sporting 1970s-style
clothing; Joker
(Kevin Michael
Richardson), who was more physical and almost ape-like, sporting
dreadlocks and a straightjacket with bare feet initially before adopting
something closer to his traditional purple suit; Penguin
(Tom Kenny),
depicted as more athletic and capable fighter (inspired by heavyset characters
in martial arts movies), and often accompanied by his silent bodyguards, the Kabuki Twins;
Catwoman
(Gina Gershon),
given a more exaggerated version of the costume appearing at the comics at that
time; Mr.
Freeze (Clancy
Brown), reimagined as a diamond thief who got trapped in a
cryonic freezer that gave him a freezing touch; Firefly
(Jason Marsden),
a professional arsonist who transforms into the unrelated villain Phosphorus
after overexposure to the isotope; Ventriloquist
and Scarface (Dan Castellaneta),
with the murderous puppet redesigned with an outfit reminiscent of Al Pacino
in Scarface;
Man-Bat
(Peter MacNicol), who
developed his formula because of an obsession to want to be like Batman; Bane
(Joaquim de Almeida,
Ron Perlman
& Brown), a South American mercenary whose usage of Venom for extra strength
not only increased his muscle mass, but also turned his skin red; Riddler
(Robert Englund),
a disgraced inventor who turned to crime, adopting an almost goth-like visage; Killer
Croc
(Perlman), given a Cajun accent, he was designed to look like a humanoid
crocodile in a vest; Spellbinder
(Michael Massee),
a mystic who achieved the power of the “third eye” allowing him to create
illusions and hypnotize; Hugo
Strange (Frank
Gorshin until his death, then Richard Green),
the head of Arkham
Asylum who was more interested in learning how the criminal
mind worked than curing them; Poison
Ivy
(Piera Coppola),
a teenaged eco-rights activist who ended up exposed to a powerful plant growth
compound, giving her powers; Maxie
Zeus
(Phil LaMarr),
an eccentric billionaire obsessed with Greek mythology who sought revenge
against Gotham in a specialized suit of armor after losing the mayoral election;
Tony
Zucco (Mark
Hamill), upgraded from a thug to a Mafia don and former
circus performer that accidentally killed his own father; Killer
Moth
(Bennett), Penguin’s gofer that ended up transformed into a moth creature; Harley
Quinn (Hynden
Walch), a disgraced television psychologist whom the Joker takes a liking
to; The
Wrath (Christopher
Gorham) and Scorn
(Daryl Sabara),
an anti-Batman and Robin who wanted to make sure hard-working criminals could
stay free; and the Terrible Trio
(David
Faustino, Grey
DeLisle and Googy Gress),
university students who get ahold of Langstrom’s formula and become aspects of
their namesakes. Because Christopher
Nolan had begun development what would become his Dark Knight Trilogy, the characters of Scarecrow,
Two-Face
and Ra’s
al Ghul were prohibited for use on the series (Bane escaped
this restriction since his film was not yet in consideration). Joker was only
allowed due to his strong connection to the franchise.
Cluemaster, the biggest thing on TV.
Newly adapted for animation was Cluemaster
(Glenn Shadix,
Kath Soucie
as a kid), changed from a failed game show host to an overweight former
contestant on a child’s game show who believed he was cheated out of a victory;
the triple-jointed Ragdoll
(Bennett), who could bend himself to fit into impossible spaces; Gearhead
(Will Friedle),
a crook who could hijack any vehicle via cybernetic implants in his arms; and Black
Mask
(James Remar),
the ruthless head of a criminal organization whose face was always covered by
(what else?) a black skull-like mask (Back Mask was set to make an appearance
on the revival version of the previous show but was never worked into a story).
The Toymaker.
Villains newly created for the show
included Toymaker
(Patton Oswalt),
the former CEO of a toy manufacturer whose dangerous toys led Bruce Wayne to
campaign for their closure; Prank
(Michael Reisz),
a university student who became the Joker’s sidekick; Temblor
(Jim Cummings),
a mercenary that used shockwave-generating gauntlets; D.A.V.E.
(Digitally Advanced Villain Emulator, voiced by Bennett), an AI created by Hugo
Strange whose storage of a combination of insane intellects led him to believe
he was a human trapped in a machine (based on H.A.R.D.A.C.
from the previous series); Rumor
(Perlman), a former bodyguard who decided to kill all of Gotham’s criminals
after he failed to protect his client from the Joker; and Everywhere Man
(Brandon Routh),
a wealthy scientist that accidentally created an evil duplicate of himself.
Straddling the line between new and
classic villain was their interpretation of Clayface. Initially, Clayface was
Bennett after he had been captured and tortured by the Joker, and exposure to
the fumes from Joker’s “putty” gave him the ability to reshape himself; similar
to the Silver
AgeMatt
Hagen version. As Clayface, he did take the form of the
powerful zombie Solomon
Grundy (Kevin
Grevioux) for the episode “Grundy’s Night”. He was eventually
cured in order to make room for the Basil
Karlo version (Wallace Langham
& Lex
Lang).
Karlo was still a poorly-reviewed actor, but this time he stole a formula from Waynetech
that was designed to cure Bennett in order to give himself the right look to
get the work he wanted. After Bennett’s change, Yin’s new partner became Cash Tankinson
(Patrick Warburton).
During the third season, a
direct-to-TV film was shown on Cartoon Network called The Batman vs. Dracula. Written by Capizzi, the film involved Batman going up against the real Dracula
(Peter Stormare)
after he’s accidentally resurrected by Joker and Penguin as they escaped
Arkham. While it may seem an odd pairing, Batman has gone up against several
vampires—including Dracula—in comics, both in canon (such as Detective
Comics #455, 1976) and in alternate
tales (Batman
& Dracula: Red Rain). The film also introduced The Batman’s version of reporter Vicki
Vale
(Tara Strong).
The series departed from the established
mythos further by introducing Batgirl (Danielle Judovits) before Robin (Evan
Sabara). Robin was unavailable until the fourth season due to his being used on
Teen Titans, so a younger
Batgirl was brought in the third season along with her father, Commissioner
James Gordon (Mitch Pileggi), who became a series regular after two previous appearances.
Batman, however, was reluctant to take her on and resisted formally making her
a sidekick until Robin’s debut. The younger heroes developed a sibling-like
rivalry between them. Robin’s origin remained mostly unchanged, with former
Joker Mark Hamill voicing Tony Zucco, the man who killed his parents during a
trapeze act at the circus, and former Batman Kevin Conroy voicing his father.
Batgirl’s costume utilized the original 1960s coloring scheme but looked like a
long dress. Robin’s design remained relatively close to his Titans appearance, however with the
colors of his “R” symbol reversed like in The New Adventures of Batman. Season four would
end up being Matsuda’s last, but before he left, he redesigned Batman to be
more angular; increasing his resemblance to the previous show’s incarnation.
Despite the show’s long run, it
never quite caught on with diehard fans and was criticized with being designed
just to sell toys. The toyetic nature of the series was evident in how many of
the variants in the action
figure line by Mattel
appeared on the show, and how some of the figures could interact with the
Batwave; the computer system Batman used to detect criminal activity and control
a lot of his gear. The show did manage to win its fair share of awards and
nominations. It was nominated for three Annie
Awards between 2005 and 2006, though it didn’t win any of
them. It was nominated for 12 Daytime Emmy Awards,
of which it won 6. It was also nominated for three Golden Reel Awards,
winning one in 2008.
The Batman Strikes! #1.
DC Comics
published a comic based on the show under its Johnny DC
young-readers imprint, which primarily published comics based on cartoons from
Kids’ WB and Cartoon Network. The
Batman Strikes!ran
for 50 issues between 2004 and 2008. It introduced characters not seen on the
show—such as Perry
White, Bruno Manheim,
Cat Grant
and Etrigan—as
well as expanded on the ones that had been. Three collected editions were
released; the first two in 2005, with the third delayed until 2007, collecting
the first 18 issues (excluding #15).
A fourth was planned but never published. The first issue was reprinted in 2004
as a Burger King
giveaway and in 2005 for Free
Comic Book Day. In 2006, Post released a limited-edition chocolate
and marshmallow cereal
to promote the show.
“The
Bat in the Belfry” (9/11/04) – Detectives Ethan Bennett and Ellen Yin are
tasked with capturing the Batman, who is on the trail of the Joker after he
freed inmates from Arkham.
“Call
of the Cobblepot” (9/18/04) – A series of thefts involving birds leads the
Batman to the Penguin, who takes Alfred as a hostage to avoid capture.
“Traction”
(9/25/04) – Three mob bosses hire Bane to deal with the Batman, leaving him
critically injured after their confrontation and Bane free to terrorize the
city.
“The
Man Who Would Be Bat” (10/2/04) – Kirk Langstrom claims to be working on a cure
for the deaf, but secretly works on a project to make himself a true Batman.
“The
Big Chill” (10/30/04) – Batman realizes a cold-seeking jewel thief named Mr.
Freeze is a crook he chased into a cryogenic chamber some time ago.
“The
Cat and the Bat” (11/6/04) – Catwoman gets the upper hand on Batman when she
steals his utility belt to use a batarang for a theft.
“The
Big Heat” (11/13/04) – Batman discovers a connection between his competition
for the children’s hospital and Firefly’s rash of break-ins at various tech
firms.
“Q&A”
(11/20/04) – Cluemaster abducts two people who once humiliated him on a quiz
show in order to enact his revenge.
“The
Big Dummy” (11/27/04) – Scarface and the Ventriloquist plot to rob the gold
reserves from Gotham Bank while Alfred uses online dating to find a girl for
Bruce.
“Topsy
Turvy” (2/5/05) – After Joke escapes Arkham Asylum, he goes after all the
people who locked him away.
“Bird
of Prey” (2/12/05) – Unable to get revenge on Batman, Penguin decides to rob
Bruce Wayne and takes Alfred hostage in the process.
“The
Rubberface of Comedy (Part 1)” (4/30/05) – Joker returns with a putty that can
morph anything into a springing substance and captures Ethan.
“The
Clayface of Tragedy (Part 2)” (5/7/05) – Joker’s putty turns Ethan into
Clayface bringing Yin and Batman together to try and stop him from going after
Rojas.
Season 2:
“The
Cat, the Bat and the Very Ugly” (5/14/05) – Penguin and Catwoman join forces
for a robbery, but a double-cross forces Catwoman to work with Batman to stop
Penguin.
“Riddled”
(5/21/05) – Riddler terrorizes the city by combining his puzzles with bombs in
various locations around the city.
“Fire
& Ice” (5/28/05) – Firefly and Mr. Freeze join forces to steal all the
parts Freeze needs to permanently freeze the city.
“The
Laughing Bat” (6/4/05) – Joker decides to become Batman and injects the real
one with a Joker Venom to make him his arch-rival.
“Swamped”
(6/11/05) – Killer Croc steals what he needs to flood the city’s lower
districts in order to have free reign to plunder them.
“Pets”
(6/18/05) – Penguin steals a device in order to control a rare bird but ends up
attracting Man-Bat instead.
“Meltdown”
(6/25/05) – Clayface’s probation is put in jeopardy when the urge to get
revenge on the Joker becomes irresistible.
“JTV”
(7/9/05) – Joker launches a pirate TV channel and takes the Mayor and Yin’s new
partner hostage, but it’s all part of a much larger plan.
“Ragdolls
to Riches” (7/16/05) – Ragdoll moves in on Gotham City, stealing Catwoman’s
targets before her and giving Batman a new headache to face.
“The
Butler Did It” (8/20/05) – Spellbinder hypnotizes the wealthy’s butlers into
stealing for him, but plans to use their masters for a much larger score.
“Grundy’s
Night” (8/27/05) – Solomon Grundy is resurrected on Halloween and goes after
the descendants of the city’s founders.
“Strange
Minds” (9/4/05) – Batman enters Joker’s mind in order to learn the whereabouts
of the kidnapped Yin.
“Night
and the City” (9/10/05) – Joker, Penguin and Riddler decide to compete in
capturing Batman while Yin’s support of him is discovered by Rojas.
Season 3:
“Batgirl
Begins, Part One” (9/17/05) – Barbara Gordon and Pamela Isley become endangered
when Temblor seeks payment for attacks against polluting companies organized by
Pamela.
“Batgirl
Begins, Part Two” (9/24/05) – Pamela is mutated into Poison Ivy and forces
Barbara to become Batgirl when she captures Batman and Commissioner Gordon.
“A
Dark Knight to Remember” (10/1/05) – Bruce loses his memory, and when Batgirl
tries to stop Penguin’s crime spree herself she ends up captured.
“A
Fistful of Felt” (10/8/05) – Hugo Strange separates Scarface from Ventriloquist
allowing him to be freed from Arkham in service of Strange’s larger plans for
him.
“RPM”
(11/5/05) – Gearhead steals the prize for a charity race and destroys the
Batmobile, inspiring Batman to build a better one to take the villain down.
“Brawn”
(11/12/05) – Joker steals Bane’s Venom and uses it to become a major threat.
“The
Laughing Cats” (11/19/05) – Batman, Batgirl and Catwoman investigate the theft
of a rare leopard only to be lured into a death maze by Joker.
“Fleurs
du Mal” (11/26/05) – With the passing and enforcement of bizarre new laws
causes Batman and Batgirl to investigate, they learn Poison Ivy replaced city
officials with plant clones.
“Cash
for Toys” (2/4/06) – A disgruntled toymaker decides to get revenge on Bruce
Wayne with his dangerous toys, leading to Detective Cash being assigned as his
bodyguard.
“Thunder”
(2/18/06) – On the verge of losing the mayoral race, Maximillian Zeus decides
to take over the city by force.
“The
Apprentice” (2/11/06) – After Batman takes on Batgirl as his sidekick, Joker
decides to get one of his own and turns Barbara’s classmate into Prank.
“The
Icy Depths” (5/6/06) – Alfred’s old friend visits and invites him on a treasure
hunt, unaware that Penguin and Mr. Freeze are after the same treasure.
“Gotham’s
Ultimate Criminal Mastermind” (5/13/06) – Strange programs an AI called DAVE
with the minds of Gotham’s greatest criminals and lets it free to commit
crimes.
Season 4:
“A
Matter of Family” (9/23/06) – Bruce adopts an orphaned Dick Grayson and brings
his family’s killer to justice.
“Team
Penguin” (9/30/06) – Penguin forms a team of villains to take Batman down while
Batman reveals his identity to Batgirl and they learn how to work together with
Robin.
“Clayfaces”
(10/7/06) – Ethan tries to prove himself to Batman by foiling Joker’s plans,
but washed-up actor Basil Karlo steals some of Joker’s putty and becomes the
new Clayface.
“The
Everywhere Man” (11/4/06) – When the replicating Everywhere Man frames one of
Bruce’s friends, Batman tries to prove his innocence.
“The
Breakout” (11/11/06) – Black Mask is freed from prison and captures Batman,
leaving Batgirl and Robin to thwart his plans alone.
“Strange
New World” (11/18/06) – Batman and Robin have to save the city from Strange’s
virus that turns them into zombies.
“Artifacts”
(2/3/07) – A thousand years in the future, the citizenry of Gotham have to
learn about Batman’s history in order to stop the new Mr. Freeze.
“Seconds”
(2/10/07) – Batman and his partners go up against a foe that seems to know
their every move.
“Riddler’s
Revenge” (2/17/07) – When Riddler and Batman are sealed in a crate and sunken
into the harbor, Riddler reveals his origin.
“Two
of a Kind” (2/24/07) – Joker decides to make disgraced TV host Harleen Quinzell
into his new partner.
“Rumors”
(3/3/07) – Batman and Robin have to save the city’s villains from the
mysterious Rumor before he executes them.
“The
Joining, Part One” (4/28/07) – Bruce learns that Wayne Industries has been
distributing alien technology around the world and an alien race is coming to
conquer Earth.
“The
Joining, Part Two” (5/5/07) – Batman and Martian Manhunter attempt to use Wayne
Industries satellites to stop The Joining.
Season 5:
“The
Batman/Superman Story, Part One” (9/22/07) – Lex Luthor opens up shop in Gotham
and recruits its villains in his efforts to destroy Superman.
“The
Batman/Superman Story, Part Two” (9/29/07) – Batman and Robin take on a
Lex-controlled Superman while Lex plots to use robots to take over the world’s
armies.
“Vertigo”
(10/6/07) – Batman teams-up with Green Arrow to take down Count Vertigo.
“White
Heat” (10/13/07) – Trying to upgrade himself leads Firefly to becoming the even
more dangerous Phosphorus.
“A
Mirror Darkly” (11/3/07) – Mirror Master plans to trap everyone in their own
image, but Batman, Robin and Flash set out to stop him.
“Joker
Express” (11/10/07) – Joker makes it so that the citizens of Gotham
hysterically dump stolen loot into the river.
“Ring
Toss” (12/8/07) – Green Lantern seeks Batman’s help to find Sinestro, but the
encounter leaves Penguin with a power ring.
“The
Metal Face of Comedy” (12/15/07) – Joker has a hacker put his mind into
WayneTech nanobots that build him an improved body in his quest to destroy
Batman.
“Attack
of the Terrible Trio” (2/2/08) – A group of college misfits use Langstrom’s
formula to turn themselves into animals to get revenge on those that have
wronged them.
“The
End of the Batman” (2/9/08) – Wrath and Scorn aid the villains of Gotham City.
“What
Goes Up…” (2/16/08) – Black Mask hires the Shadow Thief to break him out of
prison, leading to Batman teaming-up with Hawkman.
“Lost
Heroes, Part One” (3/8/08) – Batman and Green Arrow investigate the
disappearance of the rest of the Justice League.
“Lost
Heroes, Part Two” (3/8/08) – The Joining plans a new attack on Earth while the
Justice League fight robotic counterparts to get their powers back.
Movie:
“The
Batman vs. Dracula” (10/18/05) – Batman has to deal with Joker and Penguin, as
well as keep Dracula from turning the city into vampires.
