Review - Batman: Caped Crusader (2024)

       Hey guys, Chuck here. Batman: Caped Crusader is a new animated series, currently streaming on Amazon Prime, based on the character of Batman from DC Comics. The series was developed by Bruce Timm, who famously worked on Batman: The Animated Series, Matt Reeves, director of 2022's The Batman, and J.J. Abrams. 

       Now, of course, the series is focused on Bruce Wayne, a Gotham City socialite who also operates as the masked crime fighter known as Batman. But, the series takes more of a grounded, film noir approach, thus the world of Gotham, and the characters that inhabit it, such as Catwoman, Clayface, Penguin, and Harley Quinn are just as grounded. And, honestly, I like this choice of tone. Especially combining the tone with the animation style, which is very much the animation style we saw in the classic Batman: The Animated Series, this film noir approach really fits the type of story the series is telling, and gives us a Gotham that really stands out from past animated iterations of the Batman series. 

        Also, the design of Gotham in this series is really neat. As opposed to a gothic art deco design, the Gotham architecture is much more subdued and understated. It comes off a lot like a more toned down version of Sin City from the Sin City franchise. And, for the film noir tone the series is going for, that kind of design actually works for the series, as opposed to something more ornate like we saw with the classic Batman TAS back in the '90s. But, this series does take a few design cues from that series, and feels very much akin to it in terms of tone and character design, which makes sense given that Bruce Timm, who was a major player in the production of Batman TAS, was a key creative on this series as well. 

       The characterizations of a number of the major Batman characters was also really good. For instance, Hamish Linklater gives easily one of the best performances as Bruce Wayne/ Batman, and is quite possibly my favorite Batman voice after Kevin Conroy. Also, I really enjoyed the performances of Eric Morgan Stuart as Commissioner Gordon, Krystal Joy Brown as Barbara, Bumper Robinson as Lucius Fox, and Jason Watkins as Alfred. The latter, especially, gives a performance for Alfred very reminiscent of Efrem Zimbalist Jr. Also, the characters of Renee Montoya and Harvey Bullock are given a very large role to play, and both are voiced quite brilliantly by Michelle C. Bonilla and John DiMaggio, respectively. 

       But, it's with a number of the villains that the series stands out. The first major one is the Penguin, who is portrayed as a woman this time, going by the name Oswalda Cobblepot. Minnie Driver, who takes on the role, definitely makes this new spin on the character work. Now, while some online were quick to judge this change, and more than a few chuds opted to blame J.J. Abrams for it, I am one of those who believe that such alterations to major characters (i.e. race or gender flip) can work well as long as the writing for the character can support it. And, the way that this version of the Penguin is written does work, given the world this series is set in. 

        However, my personal favorite villain performance came from Christina Ricci as Selina Kyle/Catwoman. First off, I loved the choice to cast Christina Ricci as Catwoman, and she easily ranks among Grey DeLisle in the Batman: Arkham games and Elizabeth Gillies in the animated movie Catwoman: Hunted as one of my favorite VO portrayals of Catwoman. Also, I like how in this version, Selina Kyle was a wealthy heiress whose father went to prison for tax fraud, and she turned into a cat burglar to cover a few debts. Definitely different, and easily a lot of fun to see. Also, it was cool to see Catwoman driving a cat car similar to one she had in the comics. 

        I also thoroughly enjoyed Diedrich Bader as Harvey Dent/Two-Face. Something I find most humorous is that Diedrich Bader previously voiced Batman in the Cartoon Network series Batman: The Brave and the Bold. Seeing him go from voicing Batman to voicing Two-Face was actually pretty genius, and I think his voice acting for Two-Face is much better than his voice acting for Batman. Other villains that stand out, for me at least, are the likes of Clayface, Gentleman Ghost, Nocturna, Onomatopoeia, and Firebug, with McKenna Grace standing out as Nocturna, and Clayface having a thoroughly chilling redesign. 

       However, one that I must admit to being fairly split on it that of Harley Quinn. First off, I will admit that I enjoyed Jamie Chung's performance as Harley Quinn, and I especially enjoyed that we got to see her actually working as a psychiatrist, especially in the early episodes. However, one thing that is different is that she takes on the persona of Harley Quinn, wearing a green and yellow suit (interesting choice), as a means to intimidate her patients, putting them in very bizarre conditions and having them go through unusual means of rehabilitation. Yeesh. Also, the fact that she turns into Harley Quinn without being affiliated with/manipulated by the Joker, while. certainly different from most portrayals of Harley Quinn, is certainly interesting, but I can understand why most hardcore fans will dislike this take on Harley Quinn. Also, having her ending up in a relationship with police detective Renee Montoya is definitely different, and might also split fans down the middle. 

        Unfortunately, aside from Penguin, Catwoman, and Two-Face, virtually NONE of the iconic Batman villains show up in this series. No Riddler, no Mr. Freeze, no Mad Hatter, no Scarecrow, no Poison Ivy, and no Joker. Hell, Joker only shows up at the very end, and doesn't even do that much. Now, I get that Bruce Timm, Matt Reeves, and J.J. Abrams probably didn't want to get ALL of the most iconic villains out there, but I still think that it's a bit of a bummer that we only got a handful of iconic Batman villains. But, I'm hopeful for a second season, so we can see Batman go up against guys like Joker and Riddler. 

       So, even with my slight issues with a few of the villain characterizations in this series, Batman: Caped Crusader is still a very well done series, and a thoroughly enjoyable entry in the long standing Batman franchise. Now, something to keep in mind is that this is an Elseworlds title, and thus is separate from the DC Universe franchise being produced by James Gunn. Is this the best DC animated series this year? Eh, too soon to tell. After all, the anime Suicide Squad Isekai is, at this time, still ongoing, and the James Gunn produced Creature Commandos is still on the way. Once those shows are out, I think that I'll be able to compare and contrast the three series, and how each one pans out. 

        As for Batman: Caped Crusader, I definitely liked it quite a bit, and I do recommend it for long time Batman fans. I'm giving Batman: Caped Crusader a rating of 4.75/5. Log on to Amazon Prime and check it out. 

      Okay guys, this is Chuck signing out, and I'll see you guys next time.