Customer Reviews

Batman: The Animated Series Volume 2

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1 star:		(2)

 

 

Get ready for more dark justice as the Dark Knight prowls the streets and skies of Gotham City for the criminal element which infests it in Batman: The Animated Series - Volume Two. This 4-disc set features 28 episodes of animated bliss which include the first appearances of Ra's Al Ghul ("Tron's" David Warner), and his beautiful daughter Talia ("Supergirl's" Helen Slater) in "Off Balance"; and The Riddler ("Smallville's" John Glover) in "If You're So Smart, Why Aren't You Rich?" The set also includes the Emmy-winning "Robin's Reckoning" with corresponding commentary by Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski. As always, the voice talents never cease to amaze. The brilliant thought and care put into the series' voice casting is a tradition that continued with the later DC Comics superhero shows, Teen Titans and Justice League Unlimited. Here are the contents of this set:

Disc 1:
Eternal Youth
Perchance To Dream
The Cape And Cowl Conspiracy
Robin's Reckoning Part One
Robin's Reckoning Part Two
The Laughing Fish
Night Of The Ninja

Disc 2:
Cat Scratch Fever
The Strange Secret Of Bruce Wayne
Heart Of Steel Part One
Heart Of Steel Part Two
If You're So Smart, Why Aren't You Rich?
Joker's Wild
Tyger, Tyger

Disc 3:
Moon Of The Wolf
Day Of The Samurai
Terror In The Sky
Almost Got 'im
Birds Of A Feather
What Is Reality?
I Am The Night

Disc 4:
Off Balance
The Man Who Killed Batman
Mudslide
Paging The Crime Doctor
Zatanna
The Mechanic
Harley & Ivy

Special Features:
Commentary: "Robin's Reckoning" by Bruce Timm (Producer) and Eric Radomski (Producer)

Commentary: "Heart of Steel" by Bruce Timm (Producer), Eric Radomski (Producer), Kevin Altieri (Director)

Commentary: "Almost Got 'im" by Bruce Timm (Producer), Eric Radomski (Producer), and Paul Dini (Producer)

Commentary: "Harley and Ivy" by Bruce Timm (Producer), Eric Radomski (Producer), and Boyd Kirkland (Producer)

Featurette: "Robin Rising": Detailing the evolution of Robin's character in the series (10:00)

Featurette: "Gotham's Guardians": About the supporting cast of The Batman Animated Series - Includes Commissioner Gordon, Alfred Pennyworth, Selina Kyle (aka Catwoman), Harvey Bullock, Rene Montoya. (10:00)

Featurette: "Voices of the Knight": About the voices behind the characters (10:00)

Well worth the wait, and HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

After years of steadfastly ignoring the ardent wishes of its fan base, Warner Brothers is finally continuing to release its landmark Batman: The Animated Series in quailty DVD complete box sets,instead of dolling the episodes out at a sluggish four or five at a time! The "seasons" are somewhat complicated to explain as the Animated saga is actually comprised of three separate "series" that originally aired from 1992-1995, with some of the episodes being replayed in the upcoming "season," hence the designation of "Volume" rather than "Season" in the DVD box set releases.

As has been noted, this 4-disc set features 28 episodes including the first appearances of Ra's Al Ghul, voiced by David Warner, his daughter Talia, voiced by Helen Slater, in the facinating episode entitled, "Off Balance." The set also includes the Riddler, voiced by John Glover, in, "If You're So Smart, Why Aren't You Rich?" This release also includes the Emmy-winning "Robin's Reckoning," which deals with the murder of Dick Grayson's parents and subsequent emotional trauma when Grayson, who is now Robin learns the identity of the killer. This episode includes corresponding commentary by the equally brilliant Bruce W. Timm and Eric Radomski.

The creators of this Animated classic series set to their task after the first Batman movie and somehow managed to capture the essence of the comic book world of Batman, without the gore of the mainstream comic book titles.

In one of the last hand-painted animation shows ever to have been rendered, Batman: The Animated Series is as flawless a rendition of Bob Kane's mythic creation as ever captured on comic paper or film, both live-action and animation. Time will tell, but I believe the Batman Animated saga is worthy of being crowned the greatest animated Superhero series to have ever been produced. Regardless of its place in history, it changed the animated genre forever as well as, ironically, the comic book and film depictions that spawned it. It is pure magic.

The "Dark Deco" design of Gotham City and all of the characters in the Batman mythos were deftly crafted by many of the modern comic industry's greatest talents including: Alan Burnett, Paul Dini and the aforementioned Bruce W. Timm. Every subtle nuance was anticipated and superbly rendered in serious stories that merged the childhood wonder and excitement of comic books with the adult appreciation for drama, humor and tragedy.

Each half-hour episode feels like a movie, and the voice actors who portrayed the characters were so well matched that theirs are now the ONLY voices I hear when I read the comic. Since I'm 48 and have been reading The Batman since I was a kid, that's saying something.

Credit goes to the voice talents of Kevin Conroy, who pulls off the best Batman and Bruce Wayne voices I have ever heard, along with Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars Trilogy) for literally BECOMING the Joker in his voice portrayal. Other steller voice talents belong to Efrem Zimbalist Jr., for a flawless Alfred Pennyworth, the stalwart Wayne family butler; Adrienne Barbeau as the Catwoman Selina Kyle; and Arlene Sorkin as Harley Quinn (a character created in the Animated Series, which in a cool twist, was then introduced into the mainstream comic book titles.)

The talented Shirley Jackson composed the memorable music, which again blends perfectly with the whole to create a true animated masterpiece.

Because these series feature stories of the Dark Knight, it remains utterly amazing that the bulk of the episodes take place in Gotham City at night, but nonetheless manage to have amazing color and true vitality. This striking visual style was given to each character, too, making them seem more sturdy and larger than life but totally believable.

While the background of the characters is outside of the mainstream comic book continuity, the Animated Series remained true to the core of the characters' personalities and motivations more than ANY other rendition. It is so compelling that you can not only see Gotham, but feel, smell and even taste this "fictitious" city!

To watch these shows is to fall permanently under the spell of The Batman, the great loner detective, who was driven to crimefighting after the senseless murder of his parents that occurred in front of him during a robbery when he was a boy.

This Batman is noble, tragic, funny, brilliant, obsessed, selfless, real and completely heroic, elements that were sadly missing in the many movie portrayls of the character and often missing in today's comic book maintstream depictions that too often rely on violence (rationalized as "action") in lieu of honest storytelling.

If you have never seen this show, whether adult or child, you should. And for those of us who watched with utter amazement and joy during its original run, these are hugely anticipated DVD
releases.

Let us hope that the remaining episodes will be released soon, and that the subsequent series, Batman Beyond, which was a look at the Caped Crusader in the future complete with an aging Bruce Wayne and a new "Batman," will also soon be released in full on DVD.

In Batman - The Animated Series, Vol. 2, we see more of the classic episodes that added to the already large legend and popularity of one of comics' most enduring characters.

DISC 1

Eternal Youth - Seeking vengence for "crimes against nature", Poison Ivy sets up a vacation spa for unsuspecting philantrophists she blames for the ruining of the planet. One of those people, however, is Bruce Wayne/Batman's butler Alfred!

Perchance To Dream - One of The Dark Knight's stranger episodes as he confronts not only The Mad Hatter.....BUT HIMSELF!

The Cape & The Cowl Conspiracy - Batman takes on a thief who steals information and rare items by threating his victims with death traps. This time, this thief wants to steal the mask of Batman.

Robin's Reckoning: Pt. 1 - Robin's past is revealed for the first time. We also see the first signs of conflict between Batman & Robin as both hunt down the murderer of Robin's parents seperately! This conflict was explored more in the re-vamped version of BatMan in later years.

Robin's Reckoning: Pt. 2 - The conclusion of Robin's origin as we see him become (briefly) almost as dark as Batman himself as he finally faces off with his parents' killer!

The Laughing Fish - One of the darker Joker episodes as The Joker tries to get a pattened on his grotesque version of fish!

Night Of The Ninja - A part of Bruce Wayne's past is revealed as an old foe returns to seek revenge on him.

BONUS FEATURE: Robin Rising - A unique look at this series' version of Robin. One thing is for sure, he isn't the Adam West version!

DISC 2

Cat Scratch Fever - Despite the threat of returning to jail, Selina Kyle is forced to become Catwoman again to stop a plaque on animals in Gotham but when she becomes infected herself, Batman comes to her aid.

The Strange Secret Of Bruce Wayne - While investigating a blackmail scheme, Bruce Wayne runs across Dr. Hugo Strange whose hypnotherapy machine can actually read and see thoughts!

Heart Of Steel: Pt. 1 - Dr. Carl Rosom, a genius in automatry/robotics, builds HARDAC to replace humankind after the death of his daughter but when he realizes own creation has plans of his own, he tries to stop it but its too late! Now, it is up to Batman to pull the plug on this super-computer before everyone he knows (not to mention the world) is replaced with robot duplicates!

Heart Of Steel: Pt. 2 - The conclusion to this sci-fish but still great two parter!

If You're So Smart, Why Aren't You Rich? - The debut of The Riddler as he seeks revenge on an employer that cheated him out of money for work.

Joker's Wild - The Joker escapes from prison to wreck a casino in his name, not knowing that he's actually being duped in a much larger scheme.

Tyger, Tyger - Catwoman is captured and mutated into a half-woman/half-cat being! Batman must rescue her BUT he must face Tygress, the perfect hybird of human intelligence and cat-like ferocity!

BONUS: Gotham's Guardians - A look at Batman's supporting cast of heroes and villians!

DISC 3

Moon Of The Wolf - A star athlete drinks a steriodial compound that turns him into a werewolf!

Day Of The Samari - Batman returns to Japan to face off with The Ninja! This is pt. 2 (though not officially) from Disc 1's "Night Of The Ninja."

Terror In The Sky - Man-Bat has returned or so it seems! Is Kurt Langstrom becoming this vicious creature again or is someone else taking to the skies?!

Almost Got 'Im - An entertaining look at The Joker, The Penguin, Two-Face, Poision Ivy and Killer Croc's tales of how they almost got BatMan!

Birds Of A Feather - The Penguin tries to go straight for a female who does nothing but use him for her own gain! Now, the jilted bird wants revenge!

What Is Reality? - Batman & Robin fight to save Commissioner Gordon from The Riddler's computer VR game.

I Am The Night - One of the most (if not THE most) emotional episodes as Bruce Wayne nearly gives up being Batman after Commissioner Gordon is nearly killed!

BONUS: Voices Of The Knight - Meet the actors that bring these characters to life!

DISC 4

Off Balance - Batman must team with a mysterious woman to take on Vertigo! This eppy also features the first appearance of Raus Al Gul, one of Batman's greatest enemies!

The Man Who Killed Batman - A bumbling thief seemingly gets lucky and kills Batman! Now, he has all of Gotham (including The Joker) after him!

Mudslide - Continuing the "Feat Of Clay" two parter from Vol. 1, Clayface returns to find a cure at all costs for his condition only to cross paths with Batman.

Paging The Crime Doctor - The brother of gangster Rupert Thorne is forced to perform an illegal operation with the unwilling help of an old collegue.

Zatanna - A woman from Bruce Wayne's past is framed for a crime she didn't do. Batman aids her in finding the real thief!

The Mechanic - The Penguin blackmails Batman's private mechanic into rigging the Batmobile for a trip of doom! I should note that the man voicing Earl The Mechanic in this one is the late, great Paul Winfield!

Harley & Ivy - The two femme fatales team up to take on Gotham, The Batman & The Joker!

This volume is well worth the money! Add this to Vol. 1 & Vol. 3 (plus get BatMan: Mask Of The Phantasm and Batman/Mr. Freeze: SubZero) and you'll have the original collection of episodes!

I SEE NOW THEY ARE COMING OUT WITH THE RE-VAMPED EPISODES IN DECEMBER! YES, MY PRAYERS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED! THE STORYLINE WILL NOW BE COMPLETE!

Anyway, the product is worth the $30!

this dvd set will be the best ever. i have the episode list!
1. eternal youth
2. perchance to dream
3. the cape and cowl conspiracy
4. robin's reckoning 1
5. the laughing fish
6. night of the ninja
7. cat scratch fever
8. the strange secret of bruce wayne
9. robin's reckoning 2
10. heart of steel 1
11. if your so smart, why aren't you rich?
12. joker's wild
13. tyger, tyger
14. moon of wolf
15. day of samurai
16. heart of steel 2
17. terror in the sky
18. almost got 'im
19. birds of a feather
20. what is reality
21. i am the night
22. the man who killed batman
23. mudslide
24. paging the crime doctor
25. zatanna
26. the mechanic
27. harley and ivy
28. blind as a bat

there is the list of episodes as i know so far. thank you for reading. and i hope you buy it cause it going to be cool.

I'm not exaggerating when I say that I think this was the best animated superhero show ever. From the very first episode the film noir style capture the truest essence of the old-style Batman. The gritty, vengeful Batman...the expert detective and martial arts master. This show featured so much to love from the outstanding animation to the well-written scripts to the fantastic voice talents. This set contains 28 Batman Episodes over the 4 disk set. Here are some of my favorite episodes of this great set:

"Perchance to Dream" Marvelous episode as Bruce wakes up thinking he had only dreamed that his parents died and he became the Batman. But he slowly unveils the truth and now Bruce has to battle his alter-ego, Batman.

"The Strange Secret of Bruce Wayne" - When Judge Vargas, a friend of Bruce Wayne's, is blackmailed by Dr. Hugo Strange, Bruce journeys to Strange's health resort in Yucca Springs to investigate. Strange has a machine that can see people's thoughts and discovers that Bruce is Batman. He then attempts to auction Batman's secret identity to the Joker, Two-Face and the Penguin.

"If You're so Smart Why Aren't you Rich?" - When Edward Nygma, the creator of the computer game, 'Riddle of the Minotaur,' demands his share of profits he is fired. Nygma vows revenge, and years later when his former boss is selling his company Nygma makes his move and becomes the Riddler!

"Joker's Wild" - The Joker breaks out of Arkham Asylum when he learns billionaire developer Cameron Kaiser has built a gambling casino exploiting the evil clown's likeness. Batman is also infuriated, knowing the Joker will destroy the casino and everyone in it to avenge his wounded pride.

"The Laughing Fish" Hilarious episode. The Joker has developed a chemical which induces a 'Joker' smile on fish. He makes a visit to the Gotham copyright offices, demanding a copyright for his Joker fish. When the frightened bureaucrats tell him that such a copyright is impossible, he threatens to kill them one by one until he gets what he wants.

"Harley & Ivy" - After the joker kicks her out of the gang, Harley Quinn forms a partnership with Poison Ivy. The Joker has a fit when he hears of their 'Thelma and Louise'-style crime spree, and sets out to get Harley back.

"Zatanna" - When the glamorous magician Zatanna is framed for a robbery during her act, Batman comes to her defense. The two heroes unite and use the skills her father, Zatara, taught them to expose and combat an evil illusionist.

"Mudslide" - Clayface is falling apart- literally. His clay like body is virtually disintegrating. Fortunately, a woman scientist he knew from his movie star days is working on a remedy. However, Hagen is forced to steal money to pay for the expensive components of the remedy.

"Off Balance" - While following Count Vertigo's trail, Batman encounters a Lady In Black and learns that she is Talia, daughter of the head of the Society of Shadows who was sent by her father to prevent the capture of a sonic drill that the Count stole. But after his identity is mistakenly revealed to Talia, Batman remains off-balance as to where her true loyalties lie.

The outstanding writing in the series should come as no surprise as the shows were written by many long-time comic writers including len Wein, Paul Dini, etc. These guys really know Batman and capture him so close to Bob Kane's original vision. Obviously the violence is toned down from the comics but that doesn't mean there's any lack of action.

If I have one minor complaint its that the episodes are NOT in chronological order. Not sure why Warners did it this way. The set comes with commentary on several episodes and a few short featurettes which were really good.

Now maybe if they can put together a Justice League package just like this one, I can die happy!

Volume three of this series will have the following episodes (these are not in the precise order):
1.His Silicon Soul
2. Blind as a Bat
3.The Demons Quest
4. The Demons Quest II
5. Read My Lips
6. Fire From Olympis
7. Shadow of the Bat
8. Shadow of the Bat II
9. The Worry Men
10. House and Garden
11. Sideshow
12. Avatar
13. Trial
14. Harlquinade
15. Bane
16. Second Chance
17. Riddlers Reform
18. Baby Doll
19. Time Out of Joint
20. Harley's Holiday
21. Make Em' Laugh
22. Batgirl Returns
23. Lock-Up
24. Deep Freeze
25. The Terrible Trio
26. Showdown
27. Catwalk
28. A Bullet for Bullock
29. The Lion and the Unicorn

As for this box set it was wonderful, i loved it so much, my favorite episodes were Harley and Ivy, Almost Got Em', Off Balance, The Laughing Fish, Eternal Youth, Tyger Tyger, Cat Scratch Fever, The Strange Secret of Bruce Wayne. Here are some reviews of these:

Harley and Ivy:
When the Joker (Mark Hamil) fires Harley Quinn; she has to find a new accomplis in crime, and she just so happens to run into Poison Ivy in a robbery, they become the best of friends and partners in crime!

Almost Got Em':
The Joker, Killer Croc, Two Face, The Penguin, and Poison Ivy; are all playing a game of poker telling stories about almost catching the Caped Crusader, but The Joker's story gets a little out of hand when he kidnaps Catwoman and is going to make her Kitty Chow at a factory.

Tyger Tyger:
This episode features Selina Kyle getting kidnapped and taken to an island where a strange doctor turs her into a cat, litterally.

The Strange secret of Bruce Wayne:
In this episode a Doctor Hugo Strange has Batman fighting to keep his secret identity, for Dr. Strange is going to auction it off to Two-Face, The Joker, and The Penguin!

I was disappointed with the First Season of THE BATMAN (I hear Season Two is much better!), so I bought this. And boy, am I glad I did! This Volume contains some of the best BATMAN stories ever! Here's a list of the episodes:

DISK ONE: This disk is great because it contains single-handedly THE best Batman Episode EVER: PERCHANCE TO DREAM. Also on this disk is THE LAUGHING FISH, Which is simply THE best Joker episode EVER! Also included are NIGHT OF THE NINGA, which is a pretty cool episode; ROBIN'S RECKONING PART 1 & 2 are very well done; and THE CAPE AND COWL CONSPIRACY, although lackluster, was still very well done. ETERNAL YOUTH is pretty poor, however.

DISK TWO: CAT SCRATCH FEVER has an excellent line: "You're hot," "Now you notice." HEART OF STEAL PART 1 & 2 is an EXCELLENT two-episode story, and features the first appearances of Barbera Gordon and Whoopie the Teddy. IF YOU'RE SO SMART, WHY AREN'T YOU RICH is a GREAT introduction to the Riddler, and THE STRANGE SECRET OF BRUCE WAYNE is a pretty good story. TYGER, TYGER is weird, but still pretty good. However, JOKER'S WILD is a pretty poor episode.

DISK THREE: MOON OF THE WOLF is a pretty cool episode! DAY OF THE SAMAURI is a great followup to NIGHT OF THE NINJA! Also, this disk has some very good Man-Bat, Riddler, AND Penguin episodes! Not only that, but my second favorite episode ever, ALMOST GOT 'IM, is on this disk, as is my fourth favorite, I AM THE NIGHT!

DISK FOUR: All the episodes on this disk ROCK, most notably ZATANNA and HARLEY AND IVY!

All in all, VERY GOOD!
Well, what are you just sittin' there for? Buy this! You won't regret it!

Ok, guys and gals, let's talk Batman Tas. If you buy this set individualy, you'll get quite a few excelent episodes. A terrific multipart episode in which the origin of Robin is revealed. Heart of Steel, another great two-parter in which Hardac, an AI, atempts to replace all of humankind with robots starting with Gothum city. Mudslide, which is a type of epilogue to Feet of Clay(see Volume One) because Clayface doesn't appear again until the New Batman Adventures(see volume Four.) Well he might make a cameo before then, but remember, you're reading a blind guy's review! hahhah! This set also includes Terror in the Sky in which Manbat returns. Well, can you call it manbat in this case. Don't want to say anymore in case you haven't seen that one. Moon of the Wolf in which Batman goes up against... Well, the title says it all, doesn't it? The episode titled I Am the Night, which is one of my favs! Very dramatic and emotional! Didn't much like it when I was a kid because I was all about action back in those days, but I love it now! This set also marks the first appearance of Ra's al Ghul, a powerful eco-terrorist, and his daughter Talia. David Warner, who provides the voice of Ra's is one of my favorite voice actors.
Ok, so I'm done ranting. Buy the set! You'll have plenty of sleepless nights if you don't. In the words of Palpatine,"Do it!"

The episodes collected in the first volume of Batman: The Animated Series on DVD were great in their own right, but the episodes collected in this newly released second volume of the series is something really special. Here, the viewer is introduced to Ra's Al Ghul and his seductive daughter in a glorius two parter. The first appearance of the Riddler is here as well, and the Emmy winning "Robin's Reckoning" two parter; in which the origin of Robin is revealed as the Boy Wonder is on the road to revenge. "Tyger, Tyger" is a standout as well as Catwoman is kidnapped by a very mad scientist, and the Dark Knight is pushed to his limits to save her on an island very similar to that of the Island of Dr. Moreau. "The Cape & Cowl Conspiracy" is outstanding, and the darkly funny "The Man Who Killed Batman", in which a bumbling wanna-be hood finds himself suddenly popular after he seemingly off's Batman. The writing and voice talents are what make the cartoon so great, with Kevin Conroy his usual excellent self as Batman, and Mark Hamil is perfect is the Joker. David Warner and John Glover are perfectly cast as well as Ra's and the Riddler respectively, while the writing allows the detective apects of Batman's character to overshadow the "super hero" status he gained in the feature films. All in all, Batman: The Animated Series is easily the best super hero cartoon ever produced, and if you missed out on it years ago, now is the time to give it a look.

Hi. Im 13 years old,and unfortunately I didnt grow up on this show,but I caught a glimpse of it on cartoon network in 12:00 am. It was fabulous. Parents are usually ignoring some of the stupid things on TV. I cant blame them. I hate the stupid programming on television. They treat us like we are stupid.Just like the people who make a day care for 12 year olds. Now this show rocks. Great storylines,excellent animation,and awesome action.My mom ignored this show thinking it would be a kiddie fare,but she sat and watched it,and being a mystery fan, she loved it. Watch this show or superman.GOOD STUFF.