Subject: Batman: The Animated Newsletter #2 - July 13-25
Date: Sunday, July 12, 1998 10:10 AM
Batman:The Animated Newsletter
Weeks of July 13-18/19, July 20-25/26
Sneek Peek #2
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BRIEF ANIMATED BATMAN HISTORY:
The five-time emmy-winning Batman: The Animated Series (BTAS) debuted in
September of 1992 with the episode "Cat and the Claw" Part One. It ran on
weekdays (and even during prime-time on Sundays for a month or so). 65
episodes (and millions of dollars in merchandise) later, season two began
in 1994; sadly, this season died out with only 15 additional episodes, for
the show was not raking in as much money as it previously was, and deemed
as being "too dark" by parents. Also, in September of 1994, most of the
first season episodes were shelved, and the 15 new ones were aired...only
on Saturdays.
A year later, BTAS was re-introduced to the FOX weekday line-up. All the
original episodes were brought back this time, as well as 5 new episodes
(none of which were spectacular, but still good), leaving the episode count
at 85 in September of 1995. Most thought the series ended right there
without any closure, for the majority of the BTAS staff moved on to work on
the new SUPERMAN cartoon which debuted the following September (1996).
The series was top-notch, and fans were sad that it wouldn't go on. But
the stories that had been told were excellent...much better than most
comics and movies that have veer been produced. It was an excellent run. In
1997, after the WB's five-year contract with the FOX network, BTAS was
pulled from the TV, the last episode airing being "Trail". Was BTAS dead?
We were all proven wrong.
As soon as BTAS left the FOX network, it was teamed up with Superman on
the WB network. Better yet - NEW EPISODES WERE INTRODUCED!
NEW episodes began airing bright and early on the morning of September
13th, 1997. Two years (less two days) after BTAS ceased production, it
was reborn.
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INTRODUCTION:
This newsletter will feature airdate schedules for Batman/Superman.
News and rumors on the show and little tidbits about the comics and
movies.
This is the first newsletter dedicated to Batman:TAS (and OUR first, might
we add), so be gentle (Tee Hee)! So sit back and enjoy...
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WB ANIMATION SCHEDULES:
The New Batman/Superman Adventures currently airs on WB and WB
affiliates. If you want to know the WB affiliates in your area check your
local cable operator or check out TV schedules. Times for these shows vary
from affiliate to affiliate.The New Batman/Superman Adventures airs Monday
to Friday at 4:30pm (eastern) on most affiliates). The weekend KidsWB! airs
on either Saturday or Sunday depending on affiliate. Here is the this weeks
schedule:
Weekday episodes:
JULY 13TH-Superman-MY GIRL (#10)
JULY 14TH-Batman-ROBIN'S RECKONING (Pt. 1) (#32)
JULY 15TH-Batman-ROBIN'S RECKONING (Pt. 2) (#37)
JULY 16TH-Superman-THE WAY OF ALL FLESH (#6)
JULY 17TH-Superman-LIVEWIRE (#18)
Weekend episodes:
JULY 18/19TH-(8:30am)-Superman-FUN AND GAMES (#4)
(9:30am)-Batman-RIDDLER'S REFORM (#79)
(10:00am)-Superman-MONKEY FUN (#26)
JULY 20TH-Batman-HARLEY'S HOLIDAY (#81)
JULY 21ST-Superman-STOLEN MEMORIES (#9)
JULY 22ND-Batman-MUDSLIDE (#52)
JULY 23RD-Superman-THE LATE MR. KENT (#32)
JULY 24TH-Batman-BABY-DOLL (#76)
Weekend episodes:
JULY 25/26TH-(8:30am)-Superman-IDENTITY CRISIS (#20)
(9:30am)-Batman-MEAN SEASONS (#98)
(10:00am)-Superman-HEAVY METAL (#34)
Note: All episodes after #85 of BATMAN are considered THE NEW BATMAN
ADVENTURES while the original 85 are considered BATMAN: THE ANIMATED
SERIES (BTAS) episodes.
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NEW EPISODE(S)
This section will just basically give an insight into what the new
episodes are about and hopefully a synopsis of the episode.This section
will feature both new Superman and new Batman episodes.
'LOVE IS A CROC'
Batman #94
Airdate: Saturday/Sunday, July 11th/12th, 9:30am
The episode features Batman and Batgirl going toe to toe with Killer
Croc and a love struck Baby-Doll. When this episode aired in the UK it
got mixed reviews. There is a bit of Batgirl humor and a lot of action!
Read further below for an in-depth review!
'THE ULTIMATE THRILL'
Batman #??
Original airdate: Tuesday, July 7, 1998 (UK)
This episode premiered at a comics convention in Oakland earlier this year,
and has now been recently aired in the UK. This episode, featuring the
uninteresting Roxy Rockett's debut, is all action and no plot. PLOT DOES
MATTER. We also get to see a preview of Farmer Brown (a future villain) in
this episode, as well as appearances by Batman and the Penguin. The North
American debut date of this episode is still unknown.
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EPISODE OF THE WEEK:
(by the Dynamic Duo)
This section is my favorite. This section lets me tell you about my
favorite rerun airing this week! You are not to miss this episode at all
cost! Tape it if possible! All Batman and Superman episodes which have
already debuted are eligible.
THIS WEEK:
BATMAN
Episode #32
Airdate:Tuesday, July 11th
ROBIN'S RECKONING Part One
Synopsis: Without a doubt the one of the most powerful and best written
episodes of the series. The animation of this episode is just amazing. The
shading is so perfect and it makes it look like we're seeing more then we
actually are. The flashbacks are done great! The scene at Stromwell's
mansion is just amazing! The story revolves around Robin's origin; he finds
out that his parents' killer is still in Gotham and during this both Batman
and Robin remember that fateful night at Haley's circus, nine years in the
past. I can't say much more about this episode because I won't do it
justice! Don't miss it!
(Part Two airs on the 12th, and is also a terrific episode.)
Rating:5/5
NEXT WEEK:
SUPERMAN
Episode #32
Airdate: Wednesday, July 23rd
THE LATE Mr. KENT
Synopsis: This episode is great! One of the best Superman episodes of this
season! This episode is a true classic from the beginning; it starts off
swift and never stops gaining momentum. Clark Kent is dead. Killed by a car
bomb while on the way to clear a man on death row of murder. The reason for
Clark Kent not being able to 'survive' the car crash is a pretty damn good
one. I don't want to spoil this episode but trust me - Kent's true identity
a mystery until the end. (Hint: He's been on the show twice already before
this episode and is a supporting
character). The ending is sort of a let down but it doesn't ruin the
episode at all!
Rating:4/5
THIS WEEK'S EPISODE TO MISS:
Superman-LIVEWIRE (#18)
Airs 7-17-98
It's amazing how the quality of an episode can drop so quickly. The episode
starts off great, but a mere 10 minutes into the episode, bad animation and
bad writing force this story to commit suicide. Miss it!
NEXT WEEK'S EPISODE TO MISS:
Superman-HEAVY METAL (#34)
Airs 7-25-98
A poor introduction to STEEL and Metallo is reduced to a clichéd villain
who spurts one-liner after one-liner and it doesn't give a good reason
how he escaped after the episode ACTION FIGURES.
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EPISODE REVIEW: (SPOILERS!)
(by Bob Evatt)
Mr. Evatt is an experienced reviewer of the new BTAS episodes and has much
of his work shown at the Lazarus Pit website, and is now contributing to
this newsletter! His other reviews can be reached via this link:
http://effect.net.au/allan/lazarus-pit
But THIS week, Bob was unavailable to submit a review so James Harvey is
temporarily filling in for him!
EPISODE: "Love is a Croc" (#94)
WRITTEN BY: ???
DIRECTED BY: ???
ANIMATION BY: ???
ORIGINAL AIR DATE: July 11/12, 1998
NEXT AIR DATE: ???
RATING: *** (out of 5)
WHAT A CROC OF....
Wow. I don't know what to say about this episode. I really don't. This
episode can work on about 5 different levels. It can be a love story. A
story of revenge. Or betrayal. Or loyalty. Or a meaningless 'kick the
villain's arse' story. It works in all ways. The story is quite
simple. After Baby Doll, now a hotel manager [go fig.] sees Killer Croc on
the television, she gets a crush on him [just like how 5 year olds get
crushes on teeny-bopper groups like BACKSTREET BOYS]. So she decides to
spring him. She does and you can guess what happens after that.
There was something odd about this episode. During the whole episode it
seemed like something was off. Was it the recorded voices? Was it the fact
they used SUPERMAN:TAS footage? Was it about the sixth 'destroy Gotham'
plot for the series so far?
I don't know.
The new voice of Croc was okay. I liked his other voice better because
it was so... well reptilian like. He sounded so perfect with that voice. Now
he sounds like just someone trying to impersonate Croc and doing a bad
job.
The return of Baby-Doll's original voice was a treat. It brought back the
innocence but on the down side also brung back the annoyance of the
voice. Her look is sorta... differant as well. I sorta like the new look
better becuase her old look didn't fit in at all with the original B:TAS
story. It was too... happy. This new look has a demonic edge to it - better in
my opinion.
Now was it me or were the voices for Batman and Robi...oops Batgirl, a
bit off? Batgirl sounded way older then she usually did and it sounded
like Batman caught a cold in the sewer. It was like Kevin Conroy was
impersonating Kevin Conroy doing Batman. It was odd at times. Batgirl
wasn't any better. She was completely off and bitched her whole way
through the episode (well not the whole way but in the sewer). You'd think
she'd be able to handle it after what she's been through. But no.
On the plus side we see the return of the 'Batman entrance' music. You
know? The music that always played during the original 85 episodes whenever
Batman showed up? It returns. And its welcome.
Now to the animation...well...how can I put this? Its not as bad as SINS
OF THE FATHER's animation. It's not as good as that in MEAN SEASONS or OVER
THE EDGE...its just in between. The fight scenes aren't done
that well either. The motion is slightly off too. Motion in the new
Batman episodes have been done great - but this episode it was a bit off. A
bit choppy at times and at other times... not moving fast enough or slow
enough. I think this was a rushed episode.
Now the rating of the episode? Well I guess I'd be forced to give it a
three out of five stars. Its not a completely terrible episode. The plot
is pretty straight forward and easy to understand. Its one of those
episodes you wouldn't think you'd ever see but now that you have...you're
just glad its over. The appearance of two clips from
the SUPERMAN show didn't help the animation and the voicing was off. It
deserves this three out of five.
If you wanna complain (which wouldn't surprise me) or talk about this
column (which would surprise me) then email me.
signed
JH
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CARTOON NETWORK WB ANIMATION SCHEDULE:
"Yabba Dabba Doom"
Cartoon Network got the rights to air 52 episodes of the original 85
episodes on their network. The episodes air 7 days a week at 6pm and
12:00am eastern time (7:00pm on Sundays and will no longer air on Saturdays starting the 11th of July). The episodes air in numerical order
and not in episode order. If you want the channel ask your local cable or
satellite operator. Here's the schedule for this week:
JULY 12TH: #41 Tyger Tyger
JULY 13TH: #43 Day of the Samurai
JULY 14TH: #39 "If You're So Smart, Why Aren't You Rich?"
JULY 15TH: #45 Terror in the Sky
JULY 16TH: #47 Birds of a Feather
JULY 17TH: #48 What Is Reality?
JULY 19TH: #42 Moon of the Wolf
(Schedules beyond July 19 were not available.)
NOTE: Most of the episodes airing now on the CARTOON NETWORK won't be
airing on KidsWB until next season! If you want to complete your
collection then get as many as these episodes on tape as possible! Just
some friendly advice.
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EDITORIAL
(by Laura Hysert, aka "Phoenix")
(Laura was unavailable to submit any material this week so, once again,
James Harvey took over for her temporarily.)
"'Superman' - one of the best but most underrated shows on TV"
I wasn't there when Superman: TAS premiered September 6th at 8pm eastern
time with a 90 minute prime-time movie. I wasn't there when the follow-up
episode aired Sept 7th and got critical acclaim for its portrayal of
the TOYMAN. I wasn't there until about November or December. I stumbled
upon this show by accident. I was channel surfing on an otherwise boring
Saturday morning (SPIDER-MAN and X-MEN on FOX sucked real bad). I found it
and I was pleasantly surprised. I remember it was an episode called THE WAY
OF ALL FLESH and it spotlighted and introduced METALLO. This episode was
just amazing.
I was an instant fan from the beginning. I was hooked on it from there. I
couldn't wait until next morning to see what was gonna be on next. I kept thinkin' to myself: 'This is from the same group who did B:TAS? But its so
cheery and happy. The villains are complete screwballs and the sky is
actually blue at day-time!' I loved it. I got my hands on every
episode I could.
Then I watched THE LAST SON OF KRYPTON.
Whoa....
This is how all series should start. I mean this thoroughly explained
the Man Of Steel's origin so perfectly. It introduced Lex Luthor as the
perfect villian and it had the classic line from Lois Lane:
"Nice 'S'!"
(No, not "ass", but "S"! Though coming from Lois' mouth, it could be
either!)
This series portrayed the cast of SUPERMAN as it should be now:
Lois Lane is competitive, but not a bitch. Hell she gave Clark the cold
shoulder not even 5 minutes after they first met.
Jimmy Olsen is just trying to get approval (and a byline) from Perry
White (which he achieves in LITTLE GIRL LOST).
Perry White's character is just perfect. He's not some hillbilly freak
like in LOIS & CLARK:THE NEW ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN.
and of course...
Clark Kent/Superman. I like how the dual identity is portrayed here.
Clark is portrayed as a real journalist who doesn't use the fact that
he's Superman to get news. Example? I believe it was SUPERMAN ADVENTURES
#18 where he worked hard and checked out so many sources to get one
story. If you haven't picked up this series go now!
Superman isn't just this man in tights. He also has that mysterious edge
to him. He doesn't usually hang around after fights and talks to the
police. Once he's done he's gone. It keeps an angle of mystery. Also I like
how he has certain abilities. He can't breathe underwater for more
then two minutes. He also can't survive prolonged Space travel. Giving
Supes some limits to his powers is a welcome idea.
This show is also very revolutionary in a way. Where else is a
supporting character a murderer and another supporting character is
wiped off the face of the earth? And another blown up? You would definitely
not see this on ABC or NBC or CBS or even the now kiddie channel FOX or the
new UPN - only on WB. Have no clue what I'm talking about? OK, this'll
explain:
- Detective Bowman 'killed Clark Kent' and some chick and framed someone
else. He's now dead (he was sent to the gas chamber).
- Mannheim became Darkseid's patsy and was killed with a whim in the
episode APOKOLIPS NOW Part One. He was killed by a nuclear explosion. If
this was a Marvel show he's become some radioactive villian probably.
- Dan Turpin (appeared in almost every episode) was killed by Darkseid at
the conclusion of APOKOLIPS NOW Part Two. They even had a funeral and a
tribute to Jack Kirby, whom Turpin was based upon. If you look in
the funeral scene you will see about 10-20 real life people there
disguised as mourners. This episode won acclaim from fans and critics.
This show is great but there is a sad part to it. I think its sad that
only with the Batman returning and pairing with Superman on WB did his
ratings climb. This was a great show that not a lot of people watched. Its
a sad fact that this needed help.
But in a way I'm glad. Now about 50 % more people can enjoy the great
episodes of Superman (and Batman) and bitch and complain about the bad
ones, and glorify the good ones.
This show is a strong showing and I think can easily compare to BTAS'
first season. Sure, Superman had 13 episodes in the first season while
Batman had 65, but these shows are so equal on so many levels. Like Batman
(MOON OF THE WOLF, CAT SCRATCH FEVER), Superman had its share of
bad shows (MAIN MAN two-parter, WARRIOR PRINCESS). But like Batman (HEART
OF ICE, OVER THE EDGE, ROBIN'S RECKONING two-parter, TWO-FACE two-parter)
this show had its great shows (APOKOLIPS...NOW! two parter, THE LATE MR.
KENT, FUN AND GAMES).
I can't wait for the third season. There are so many surprises, and I can't
wait to see what hell Darkseid puts Superman through!
Also if you want to see more on Superman:TAS check out this website:
SUPERMAN:TAS
http://www.rain.org/~stas
you won't regret it.
If you wanna bitch or praise about this column then email me!
signed
JH
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BATMAN:THE ANIMATED TRIVIA
This section tests your knowledge of (Before and during WB) Batman
episodes. (Remember:The new episodes that air on WB are still in the same
continuity). The questions can be anything from the littlest thing
mentioned by someone or what happened to who in which episode and
how. The majority of these questions will be multiple choice. So start rackin' yer brain!Here goes!
2. What was the last of the original 85 BTAS episodes to be aired?
A: "BANE"
B: "BATGIRL RETURNS"
C: "CATWALK"
D: "THE LION AND THE UNICORN"
E: "THE TERRIBLE TRIO"
Answer under the 'SITE WORTH CHECKING OUT' section.
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BATMAN:GOTHAM ADVENTURES
DC recently ended their long running BATMAN ADVENTURES/BATMAN & ROBIN
ADVENTURES comic series to produce a 5 issue mini-series dealing with
the lost time between SUBZERO and SINS OF THE FATHER (which takes place
before HOLIDAY KNIGHTS). They then spun off a new animated Batman comic
based on the new series airing only on KidsWB! The new animated Batman
comic is based on the designs of THE NEW BATMAN ADVENTURES! Here's the
newest issue which hit the stands on July 1, 1998:
BATMAN:GOTHAM ADVENTURES #4
Standard format
32 pages
$1.99/2.85 can
Letter column contest
Synopsis:What's the secret behind Catwoman's new look? Catwoman's new
look in TNBA is related to a tragedy...and Batman must stop this from
every happening..but can he? Find out in the 'Lost Years'-ish tale! Look
for the introduction of a new character!
NEXT MONTH'S ISSUE: Mr. Freeze returns (no, not Arnold Schwarzenegger
thank
God!) and decides its time ot finish what he's started in the episode COLD
COMFORT. But the return of a supporting character last
introduced and seen in episode DEEP FREEZE may cause some problems! All
of this and more in BATMAN:GOTHAM ADVENTURES #5, in stores in early August.
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COVERING THE BASICS....
This section will help you figure out what to look for on the comic
racks! The links below will take you to the cover of the comic
indicated.I hope to expand this section as the newsletter continues!
BATMAN:GOTHAM ADVENTURES #4
http://www.dccomics.com/directcurrents/comics/covers/download/dbmga4.jpg
BATMAN:GOTHAM ADVENTURES #5
http://www.dccomics.com/directcurrents/comics/covers/download/dbmga5.jpg
SUPERMAN ADVENTURES #23
http://www.dccomics.com/directcurrents/comics/covers/download/dsma23.jpg
SUPERMAN ADVENTURES #24
http://www.dccomics.com/directcurrents/comics/covers/download/dsma24.jpg
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