Customer Reviews

Batman: The Animated Series, Volume Three (DC Comics Classic Collection)

5 star:		(70)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This set will introduce Batgirl. Ra's Al Ghul will be in 4 episodes and we'll get to see the villians put Batman on trial at Arkham. Even Alfred Gets a Real Good Battle With Red Claw. Plus Batman fights Bane, Catwoman and more. this is a must have.

Episode list:

557- Shadow of the Bat Pt1
558- Blind as a Bat
559- The Demon's Quest pt1
560- His Silicon soul
561- Shadow of the Bat pt2
562- Fire From Olympus
563- The Demon's Quest pt 2
564- Read my lips
565- The worry Men
566- Sideshow
567- A Bullet for Bullock
568- The Trial
569- Avatar
570- House & Garden
571- The Terrible Trio
572- Harlequinade
573- Time out of Joint
574- Catwalk
575- Bane
576- Baby-Doll
577- The Lion and The Unicorn
578- Showdown
579- Riddlers Reform
580- Second Chance
581- Harleys's Holiday
582- Lock-up
583- Make'em Laugh
584- Deep Freeze
585- Batgirl Returns

Buy now

This is a hard decision, but I have to say that this volume is better than the other two. Barbara Gordon gets introduced as Batgirl for the first time, and we meet new villains! Ra's Al Ghul, Baby-Doll, Scarface, Bane, Lock Up, are Maxie Zeus and introduced in these 29 great episodes. Mr. Freeze, The Riddler, The Penguin, Poison Ivy, Two-Face, The Mad Hatter, Harley Quinn, Killer Croc, The Clock King, and Red Claw return! This is clearly a better volume than the previous because it concludes "Batman: The Animated Series," and has cool extras. Some people, however, think that the extras (special features) are bad because they're mainly commentary. Well, I hope you buy this totally awesome 4-disc set.....packed with 609 minutes of action!!! Some episodes descriptions to get you interested are the following: Ra's Al Ghul needs Batman's help to find his daughter Talia, Batman's villains hold a trial against him, Scarface frames Catwoman, the Joker steals an atomic bomb, Red Claw plans to fire misils at London, a Batman Robot made by H.A.R.D.A.C. causes troble, Two-Face is kidnapped on his day of surgery, and Poson Ivy is blamed for the poisoning of many rich and single men. Buy this volume! If you loved THIS Batman series when you were younger (1992-1997 on Kids WB), this is the 4 disc-set to relive your childhood with a show for all ages! Buy this! You won't regret it! Buy it! Buy it!

Here are the episodes the DVDs include. In parenthesis are the villains who appear in the episodes. However, just because a certain villain appears in a certain episode - that doesn't mean that he or she is the one that causes trouble in that episode and that he or she is the one that Batman ends up fighting!

DISC 1:
* Shadow of a Bat: Part I (Two-Face)
* Shadow of a Bat: Part II (Two-Face)
* Blind as a Bat (The Penguin)
* The Demon's Quest: Part I (Ra's Al Ghul)
* The Demon's Quest: part II (Ra's Al Ghul)
* His Silicon Soul (Batman Robot)
* Fire from Olympus (Maxie Zeus)

DISC 2:
* Read My Lips (Scarface)
* The Worry Men (The Mad Hatter)
* Sideshow (Killer Croc)
* A Bullet for Bullock (Mysterious Person Who's After Bullock)
* Trial (The Joker, Harley Quinn, Two-Face, Scarecrow, Poison Ivy, The Mad Hatter, Scarface, etc.)
* Avatar (Ra's Al Ghul)
* House and Garden (Poison Ivy)

DICS 3:
* The Terrible Trio (Three Troublesome Men)
* Harlequinade (The Joker & Harley Quinn)
* Time Out of Joint (The Clock King)
* Catwalk (Catwoman & Scarface)
* Bane (Rupert Thorne & Bane)
* Baby-Doll (Baby-Doll)
* The Lion and the Unicorn (Red Claw)

DISC 4:
* Showdown (Ra's Al Ghul)
* Riddler's Reform (The Riddler)
* Second Chance (Two-Face & ???)
* Harley's Holiday (Harley Quinn ONLY)
* Lock-Up (Lock-Up)
* Make 'Em Laugh (The Joker ONLY)
* Deep Freeze (Mr. Freeze)
* Batgirl Returns (Catwoman)

SPECIAL FEATURES:
* "Gotham's New Knight" -- Show creators talk about Batgirl.
* Audio commentary on "Read My Lips."
* Video commentary on "House and Garden."
* Audio commentary on "Harlequinade."
* Trailers/Previous.
* Spoken Languages: English, French, Spanish.
* Subtitles: English, French, Spanish.

In the final release of Warner's Batman the Animated series we get another 28 episdoes of one of the finest animated shows ever created. I would heartily disagree with John Q. Public's opinion of Anime-style animation and weak voice acting. True the animation was done by Studio Junio and has some Anime influence I would not consider this Anime style at all. John Q. evidently has never seen true Anime before or such a ridiculous statement would never have been made.

Batman was just a great series and far superior to the Batman Beyond and the New Batman series. This is the tough, gritty Batman of Bob Kane although updated for modern times but still great to look at for its art-deco stylings. My favorite episodes on this collection include:

"The Demon's Quest parts 1 & 2" Batman must agree to an uneasy alliance with arch-villian Ras Ah Ghul when his daughter Talia and Robin have been kidnapped under similar circumstances.

"Sideshow" Killer Croc escapes on the way to a prison and takes refuge with a circus band of sideshow freaks who aid Croc when Batman comes to find him.

"The Trial" Batman is capture and taken to Arkham Asylum where he is put on trial by most of his arch-foes including The Joker, Twoface, and Poison Ivy.

"Bane" Batman meets Bane, the chemically enhanced killer who would break Batman's back in the comic book continutiy.

"Harley's Holiday" harley Quinn is released from Arkham and wants to go straight but ends up stealing Bruce Wayne's car resulting in a wild chase through Gotham.

"Deep Freeze" mr. Freeze escapes from Arkham with the help from an old billionaire, intent on bringing about a second ice age in the world.

"Showdown" featuring Ras Ah Ghul and a tale of this past where he encounterd the legendary Jonah Hex.

One note is that the series technically changed to the Adventures of Batman & Robin during the last season. No big deal. I wish there would have been a few more extra but this is still a must-have set for Batman fans.

Even though the description on Amazon says 28, there are 29 episodes total in this set. This completes the 85 total episodes of Batman: The Animated Series which ran from 1992-1995. It was known as The Adventures of Batman & Robin starting from Season 3 onward which included a new opening sequence and theme (which are included on the proper episodes). These episodes are still considered part of BTAS and are included in this set.

This set DOES NOT include the 24 episodes from Batman: Gotham Knights (aka The New Batman Adventures) which ran from 1997-1999 alongside Superman TAS on WB. Hopefully a 4th set that includes these episodes will be released later this year.

The episodes included in this third volume are considered some of the best episodes in the entire series. There are some great commentaries (Read my Lips, House and Garden, Harlequinade) and featurettes (Gotham's New Knight - Batgirl). It also includes a trailer for the new Batman Begins movie. As a long time fan, I wish there were more features since this is the last volume in BTAS. As always, it's a treat listening to Dini and Timm give us insight on the episodes. One note, the commentary for "House and Garden" is a video commentary so you can see the episode with a little box at the bottom that shows the person talking.

The episode breakup over the discs are as follows:

Disc One

1. Shadow of the Bat: Part One
2. Shadow of the Bat: Part Two
3. Blind as a Bat
4. The Demon's Quest: Part One
5. The Demon's Quest: Part Two
6. His Silicon Soul
7. Fire from Olympus

Disc Two

8. Read My Lips
9. The Worry Men
10. Sideshow
11. A Bullet for Bullock
12. Trial
13. Avatar
14. House and Garden

Disc Three

15. The Terrible Trio
16. Harlequinade
17. Time Out of Joint
18. Catwalk
19. Bane
20. Baby-Doll
21. The Lion and the Unicorn

Disc Four

22. Showdown
23. Riddler's Reform
24. Second Chance
25. Harley's Holiday
26. Lock-Up
27. Make 'Em Laugh
28. Deep Freeze
29. Batgirl Returns

All three DVD volumes of this animated series are excellent, and each volume has its share of classics. The first has excellent introductions to many characters in the rogue's gallery (Two-Face, Clay-Face, Mr. Freeze, Scarecrow), while the second has some great individual episodes (Almost Got 'Im, Perchance to Dream, Robin's Reckoning, Joker's Wild). This third volume, however, contains so many good episodes and such a mature level of cartoon-making that it easily trumps the other two. The first and second had just as many forgettable episodes as they did great ones, but this volume truly holds up to the test of time. The voice acting, animation, music, set design, and screen writing are all better than ever before. The best characters this time around are without a doubt Ra's Al Ghul and Harley Quinn. The Joker takes a second seat, as many of his great episodes occured in Volumes One and Two, but his appearences in Harlequinnade and The Trial are excellent. Overall, the best of the bunch are as follows:

Blind as a Bat: Batman must fight the penguin without his eyesight. Overall: B+

The Demon's Quest: Ra's Al Guhl emerges in an amazing two-parter. Overall: A

His Silicon Soul: Batman's robotic twin breaks out of a crate in the conclusion of the Hardac Trilogy. Overall: B+

A Bullet for Bullock: Noir-Style who-dunnit with great saxophone score. Overall: B+

The Trial: The Rogue's Gallery puts Batman on trial in Arkam. Overall: B+

Avatar: An incredible Ra's Al Ghul episode with a clear ode to Indiana Jones. Batman at his most swashbuckling. Overall: A

Harlequinnade: Very funny and entertaining story of Harley Quinn helping Batman find the Joker. Overall: A-

Bane: The back-breaking character from the comics makes his one appearence in the animated series. Excellent final battle. Overall: B+

Second Chance: Two-Face tries to reform through surgery but is kidnapped by a mysterious threat. Overall: B+

Harley's Holiday: Another great Harley Quinn episode, this time about her being declared sane and trying to go straight. Overall: A

Bottom Line--buy this set, as you cannot be dissapointed. There are too many good episodes to count, and while the absence of Joker-centric plots is missed, the quality of this volume is way up.

Volume Three of "Batman--The Animated Series" completes the original arc of the DC/Warner series, originally aired on Fox (switching to the WB) in the early 1990s. In looking at the animated series, it seems to bridge the 1989 Batman movie and Batman Begins. It also goes far in wiping out the memories of Adam West in the 1960s, the animated Batman cells of that same period, and the SuperFriends' Batman.
Being blunt, this was less cartoon and more animated story telling at it's finest; tales told in about 25 minutes with vocal acting that enhanced the story. Credit has to be paid to Paul Dini and the crew that worked on this show--they never let it revert to the campiness of the '60s series, nor did they redo Tim Burton's work in '89 nor 1992. The Animated Series carved a very distinct niche--it was The Batman drawn less for children and more for adults who had followed the character.
Let's face it--if you have watched The Animated Series, the Batman:Gotham Knights episodes, or the Justice League; we know this--Kevin Conroy's voice fits Batman/Bruce Wayne perfectly. Conroy catches the gravel and danger befitting an emotionally scarred vigilante in such a way that--and it can only be said like this--Conroy's voice is the one voice that IS Batman's. Take nothing away from Mark Hamill's Joker or Adrienne Barbeau's Catwoman, but it is Conroy's voice that drives the series and makes the tone and the art of it work.
Volume Three introduces the Barbara Gordon Batgirl, and also introduces Ra's Al-Ghul to those less familiar with the Rogue's Gallery. Also, Bane is brought in--obviously, not as formidable as he was in the "Knightfall" arc.
All three editions of "BTAS" are quality television; again made more for adult viewing than for children. Highly suggested.

The third volume of Batman: The Animated Series supplies the same kind of quality storytelling and pumping action that fans of the series or those who enjoyed the first two volumes would expect. In this collection, Batman has his first encounter with the steroid enhanced hired killer Bane, who broke Batman's back in comic continuity. Also, we witness the Joker's right hand woman Harley attempt to leave her past life of crime behind (which doesn't work out well), as well as encounters with the Riddler, Killer Croc, Catwoman, and Mr. Freeze. Ra's Al Ghul is featured in a few episodes here as well, including "Showdown" in which some of Al Ghul's past is revealed, including his encounter with DC Comics icon Jonah Hex. Contrary to a previous reviewer, the animation is not "manga" (the new Batman series, entitled The Batman, is more manga like than this series could ever be) and the voice acting is superb, including the ever perfect Kevin Conroy as the caped crusader. All in all, this is undoubtadly the best animated Batman series ever, and for those who loved the series in it's heyday, definitely consider picking each volume up.

I didn't buy this volume at Amazon but a local store had it for around what they were selling it at so I figured, why not? BOY, I AM GLAD I DID! This volume reminded me of why I loved that old series so much! It was one of, if not THE, greatest animated series ever! While some of the eppy's weren't my favorites, they still are an intrigal part of The BatMan's story. My favorites to watch on this volume are "The Demon's Quest (both parts)", "Avatar" (which is a follow up to Demon's Quest) and "Bane" but I like something about all of them!

Here is a preview of what you'll see on this one:

DISC 1

Shadow Of The Bat, Pt. 1 - This two parter features the origin of Barbara Gordon's alter-ego Batgirl as her father Commissioner James Gordon is framed for crimes he didn't commit!

Shadown Of The Bat, Pt. 2 - The conclusion of this two parter as we discover that not only is one of Batman's strangest enemies is behind Gordon's frame up, but a thought to be ally!

Blind As A Bat - A very popular episode from Season 1 as Batman is forced to take on The Penguin with no vision....LITERALLY!

The Demon's Quest, Pt. 1 - The first full episode featuring Ra's Al Guhl as he recruits Batman on a search for the missing Robin and Ra's own daughter, Talia.

The Demon's Quest, Pt. 2 - Batman discovers Ras' true motives for Robin's "kidnapping" and vows to stop him.

His Silicon Soul - One of my personal favorites and an unofficial pt. 3 to the two part "Heart Of Steel" episode that is on Vol. 2! In this one, Batman investigates whether HARDAC may still be functional when a duplicate of himself shows up!

Fire From Olympus - Maximillion Zeus, a crazed shipping operator, unleashes a machine capable of producing lightning! Its up to Bats to bring this "god" down!

BONUS FEATURE:
Gotham's New Knight - A look behind the introduction and evolution of Batgirl in the series!

Disc 2

Read My Lips - The introduction of Scarface, one of Batman's weirdest enemies! This eppy has alternate commentary!

The Worry Men - When millionares of just throwing away ridiculous sums of cash in unusual ways, Batman discovers that these "Worry Men" that are supposed to keep your worries away may be more than meets the eye!

Sideshow - Batman hunts down Killer Croc in the wilderness and discovers people similiar to Croc except they want to live in peace! They befriend Croc which is a choice they almost live to regret!

A Bullet For Bullock - After several attempts on his life, Harvey Bullock reluctantly enlists Batman's help in finding out who's trying to take him out!

Trial - A new D.A. is determined to bring in Batman for trial but when Joker, Two-Face, Penguin and others kidnap both her and The Dark Knight, she is forced to defend the very man she wants to bring down!

Avatar - A follow up to "The Demon's Quest" as Batman discovers Ras Al Guhl is still alive!

House & Garden - Batman and Robin investigates a strange plant creature that's been making robberies and suspect Poision Ivy who is now married and has kids! This eppy has alternate commentary!

Disc 3

The Terrible Trio - Three rich young punks form a gang to rob from their own and take down The Dynamic Duo!

Harlequinade - Batman reluctantly recruits Harley Quinn to help him track down The Joker in order to stop him from using an atomic bomb to blow up Gotham City! This eppy has alternate commentary!

Time Out Of Joint - The Clock King returns and this time, he has a special surprise for Mayor Hill as well as Batman and Robin!

Catwalk - Solo Batman adventure where he crosses paths again with Catwoman.

Bane - The first episode featuring the man who broke The Batman in the comics! This episode also features Robin!

Baby-Doll - Baby Doll's first appearance in the series!

The Lion & The Unicorn - Red Claw returns after previously being defeated in "The Cat & The Claw" in Vol. 1! This time, she kidnaps Alfred, who reveals a secret of his own in order to stop her from destroying London!

Disc 4

Showdown - As Batman and Robin duel with Ras Al Guhl again, they discover a story from his past. Guest starts in flashback Jonha Hex!

Riddler's Reform - The Riddler, seemingly reformed, starts his own line of puzzles and games but is still determined to defeat Batman despite his new success.

Second Chance - Batman attempts to save Two-Face from himself as Harvey's duel personalities fight each other for supremecy! Guest starring Robin!

Harley's Holiday - Harley, in an attempt to go straight, finds people's prejudices over her past too much to overcome and she becomes Harley Quinn again!

Lock-Up - A psychotic guardsman, blaming the system for his downfall, takes many of Gotham's officials prisoner and its up to Batman and Robin to free them and put Lock-Up in a cell of his own!

Make 'Em Laugh - Bitter over being rejected from a comedy contest years ago, The Joker seeks a sick revenge!

Deep Freeze - A follow up to "Heart Of Ice" on Vol. 1, Mr. Freeze is solicited by a crazed millionare to make him like he is in exchange for his thought to be dead wife, Nora Freeze! This is also a prequel to the feature "Batman/Mr. Freeze: SubZero."

Batgirl Returns - The final episode of the orignal Batman: The Animated Series! Batgirl along with Robin track down who stoled the "Jaded Cat" and all roads lead to Catwoman but it turns to another player long thought to be gone!

All in all this should round out the Batman collection until this December when they come out with Vol. 4! Worth your money!

Don't panic this set does have 29 episodes.19 episodes are from BATMAN THE ANIMATED SERIES.The other 10 are THE ADVENTURES OF BATMAN AND ROBIN.These are episodes 17,19,20,23-29.These 10 have a different theme song and title sequence. However there's no need for concern. The same high quality animation,stories,and voice work is consistent through all 29 episodes. Bonus features include a Batgirl retrospective,2 audio commentaries, 1 video commentary,and trailers which includes a BATMAN BEGINS teaser/trailer. GET THIS AND VOLUMES 1 AND 2 if you don't have them already. See other reviews for more detailed descriptions.I hope this was helpful. As for the customers that didn't get the animation cel. Most stores have a 30 day exchange policy.You can tell them you are dissatisfied with the product.Some will exchange without question. Some won't.Tell them it's missing the cel.

In order to have this complete the initial run of Batman the Animated series, this DVD set should have 29 episodes, NOT 28 (although TV ads would suggest otherwise). Its simple Math. 85 original episodes. set 1 had 28, set 2 had 28, so set 3 should have 29, unless the "last episode" is a hidden bonus, or would be on a 4th set containing all of the "Gotham Knights" episodes, we can only hope all the ads were in error, and there are actually 29 episodes in this set.