Batman: Caped Crusader sees Bruce Timm returning to the franchise with a new take on the character for Amazon Prime. Season One is premiering on August 1st with 10 episodes, and by the time the credits were rolling on the finale I was in love with it. A slow-burn introduction, new twists on familiar villains, and a shocking amount of blood and death make this my favorite Batman cartoon since The Animated Series.
Close to Year One Batman
Batman: Caped Crusader is a new story for the character, carrying nothing over from previous shows or movies. This Gotham looks similar to the gothic architecture from The Animated Series with a dash of 3D mixed in to give things a smoother look in motion. This Batman is an angry prick who seems to have little issue using people to get what he wants and doesn’t respect those who care about him until it’s almost too late. Season one is 10 episodes long with most having a 24-minute or so runtime.
Hamish Linklater does an excellent job as Bruce Wayne/Batman. He gives a subdued performance that lands below the epic gravitas of the late Kevin Conroy. This Bruce Wayne is as broken and angry as ever, with a startling lack of empathy. This carries over into Batman who doesn’t always think of the damage he is causing while carrying out his vigilante justice. Both Bruce and Batman grow enough by the end of the season to give us that glimmer of the master detective who realizes he can’t do it all on his own.
The Rogue Gallery
I don’t want to spoil the rogue gallery too much, though I’ve already seen the ridiculous takes about some of the gender or race-bent characters. The Penguin is a woman in the show, voiced well by Minnie Driver. It’s a fun mix of sultry (she’s got quite the figure) and terrifying. The show doesn’t mind delving into the supernatural, a constant in Batman lore and after the initial shock of seeing actual magic in this otherwise realism-focused Gotham, I ended up digging it.
Harvey Dent as the District Attorney, Barbara Gordon as a public defender, Jim Gordon as the commissioner, and Lt. Montoya are there on the side of justice. Alfred Pennyworth is of course both Bruce and Batman’s main source of support, and he is treated like shit. The show is not afraid to show what a broken mess Bruce Wayne is, and Alfred’s dedication to helping the man he raised shines through in his VO’s performance.
The Look & Sound
The Animation of Caped Crusader looks like a heavy mix of 2D and 3D that I got used to a few episodes in. It’s a similar style to The Animated Series though far higher quality in movement due to the use of 3D whenever the camera or large objects like cars need to move. Normally I’d hate 3D/CGI work in something like this but the characters and environments always maintain a look that matches when they’re drawn. The city looks great, though it feels empty far too often. I know Batman is operating in the dead of night, but a city that large would have far more of a nightlife. Streets are empty during most chase scenes and it was my main issue with the show. Gotham is enormous and full of people yet it never felt that way, even during the day.
Character designs are mostly spot-on, though I found this show’s version of Harley Quinn to look too goofy in her full outfit. I loved the take on the character, the outfit simply didn’t match the seriousness of her story. The short runtimes on episodes lead to quick story conclusions most of the time. The positive side of that is the animation quality of the fight scenes. The show can be brutal and while early on it feels like a “no one really dies” thing it doesn’t stay that way. A lot of people get murdered on camera, with blood being spilled.
Music wise it’s all good, just not nearly as memorable when it comes to the opening credits. It’s a tall ask to match The Animated Series, instead, we get a more mysterious and subdued track that vibed well enough with the themes of this show. I don’t think there was a single poor voice performance that really stood out to me. They got a lot of big names in the cast and they fit well for the roles they were cast.
Wrapping Things Up
It was a random chance to get this show early for review, and I’m happy I did. Batman: Caped Crusader is a violent, mature show that finds its rhythm by the end of its first season. As a child of the 90s, it was kinda crazy to see the body county by the end of things, and I cannot wait to see where they take the show with season two.
Really surprised to see this on Amazon instead of their own services or even Hulu.
Like with Batgirl DC cancelled it and sold it off the Amazon, because they’re morons.