the batman has spread its wings and success to HBO Max, opening the film to another segment of the general audience. The film was a critical and commercial success, although the streaming platform has plenty of other solid Batman content available. In many ways, the cartoons of the early to mid ’90s Batman: The Animated Series (BTAS) Set the gold standard for how high the brooding superhero should aim in any on-screen project.

BTAS perfectly balances the inherently whimsical nature of comics with a thought-provoking noir undertone. These episodes of the animated seriesand by extension its sequel series, The New Adventures of Batman (TNBA)are some of the best Dark Knight tales fans will find available.

Heart of Ice – BTAS

Longtime fans of the DC Comics superhero and the show will surely tell you that Ice heart It is the definitive Mr. Freeze story as well as being a great Batman story. His legacy is palpable, as the popular iteration of the likeable villain that fans now know in comics, video games, and other media is the version that Batman: The Animated Series put together.

Before Paul Dini and Bruce Timm reinvented the character, Mr. Freeze was a running gag villain from the Silver Age of Comics. Ice heart turns Victor Fries into an imposing force and a tragic character who is a monstrous product of corporate greed. The origin story of him becoming what he is after a tragic accident that occurs while he attempts to save his terminally ill wife has easily become the most recognizable piece of Mr. Freeze lore.

Crazy love – TNBA

The New Batman Adventures brought to the screen a classic story of Batman, Joker and Harley Quinn that remains an iconic part of the characters’ mythos today. Crazy Love is an adaptation of Paul Dini’s one-shot comic of the same name, and explores the psychologically complex and toxic dynamic between them in an immensely entertaining way.

Although Crazy Love is primarily a Harley story, perfectly highlighting the most defining traits of all of these characters by showing Joker’s unbridled narcissism, Harley’s obsessive and abused psyche, and Batman’s signature way of pushing the villain’s mental buttons to escape even from the most improbable life or death. situations

Maybe dream – BTAS

Arguably the most psychologically mind-blowing episode of BTAS, maybe dream takes fans on a mind-blowing journey through the traumatized mind of Bruce Wayne. It’s one of the most tragic, compelling, and fundamentally “Batman” stories ever told, as fans get a glimpse into how the hero thinks when he’s at his most emotionally vulnerable, and there’s a gripping mystery at the center of the plot.

Bruce wakes up to find that his parents are alive and well, he has a great life, and is about to marry Selina Kyle. However, something feels wrong and he begins to doubt that his life can be so happy and he gradually becomes more and more paranoid.

Beware of the gray ghost – BTAS

Beware of the gray ghost is a touching episode that connects Batman’s past to his present in a meta way. The days of the cheesy Adam West Batman are long gone, but the Kevin Conroy era pays homage to him in a fun and moving mystery surrounding a serial attacker who commits crimes that mirror a former actor’s “Grey Ghost” character. .

Batman joins the struggling actor to find the attacker, with the latter donning the character of Gray Ghost. The Gray Ghost is voiced by none other than Adam West, and the story’s resolution serves as a sentimental nod to the actor’s legacy as the “Shining Knight.”

Joker Millions – TNBA

There are several classic Joker-themed episodes in Batman’s adventures in the DC Animated Universe, and TNBA’s joker million finds Mark Hamill at his best in the title role. Tonal balance is something these shows balance masterfully, and this episode has just the right amount of comic relief to suit this incarnation of the Clown Prince of Crime’s exploits.

The Joker had a bitter rivalry with a deceased mobster named Edward Barlowe, and the former finds himself inheriting his $250 million. However, after getting carried away with a spending spree, he discovers that all the bills were fake. The late Barlowe took this opportunity as a bitter parting shot from beyond.

The Laughing Fish – BTAS

The legacy that the original The laughing fish The story of Steve Englehart and Marshall Rogers being left behind is impressive in its own right, as the Joker’s scheme in this episode is exactly what it sounds like. The villain tries to sell a genetically modified fish to the public, although there is always an ulterior motive with the Clown Prince of Crime.

Joker has mixed these fish with a toxin so he can infect anyone who eats them, trying to contaminate Gotham’s supermarkets to execute this large-scale plan. The laughing fish has been mentioned in several pieces of Batman media, including a much more sinister version by writer Geoff Johns and artist Jason Fabok. three jokers mini series.

Double talk – TNBA

The New Batman Adventures episode double talk It’s a great entry because of how great a Gotham City success story it is. Ventriloquist and Scarface are, or are, one of the darker “villains” in Batman’s dense rogues gallery, and this interpretation of him in the DC Animated Universe makes him a great likable character who has earned his arc. redemption. Arnold Wesker developed dissociative identity disorder after seeing his mother murdered by the mob and projected it onto the “Scarface” doll.

double talk shows Arnold finally taking steps toward being released from Arkham and starting a new life after Bruce Wayne offers him a job at Wayne Enterprises and an apartment. However, his old gang attempts to manipulate his personality to bring him out of retirement, leading the Dark Knight to stop them and give Wesker the happy ending he deserves. This episode is also an exceptional showcase of Batman’s belief in redemption.

Old wounds – TNBA

The dynamic duo of Batman and Robin have occasionally had a tumultuous partnership, and the episode old wounds explores the unstable father/son relationship through the lens of Dick Grayson, now Nightwing. The two didn’t end on a good note when Dick decided to go off on his own to forge his own identity, and he resented Bruce to a certain extent for what went wrong between them.

Dick initially left after discovering that Bruce kept Barbara Gordon’s identity as Batgirl a secret from him, considering him insensitive for this and how he operates as a superhero. In the present, however, he notices the wallet of a man he saved from Joker’s gang. More importantly, he shows that he himself had been a former member whom Batman helped rehabilitate and establish with a job at Wayne Enterprises. The episode highlights the stubbornness of both characters, as well as their character growth over the years.

Test – BTAS

Test Presentado the animated series with an inventive premise as it offers a direct rebuttal to the argument that Batman is responsible for all the villains in his rogues gallery. The episode introduces the new district attorney, who is vehemently anti-Batman, believing that his vigilantism is the reason the Joker, Riddler, Two-Face, Poison Ivy, Mad Hatter and more are wreaking havoc on the perpetually oppressed Gotham city.

The twist comes when she finds herself caught in the middle of an escape from Arkham Asylum, where Batman is her only lifeline. The villains then hold a staged trial to sentence the Caped Crusader, and the district attorney is forced to defend the superhero. She discovers, one by one, that these villains and their heinous crimes against humanity were born from their own twisted decisions.

Two Faces Part I and II – BTAS

Although it is somewhat misleading, Two Faces Part I y Yo They form an excellent tragedy in two parts that are impossible to separate. There have been multiple gripping two-faced stories in the Batman mythos, including acclaimed writer Jeph Loeb and artist Tim Sale. the long halloween Christopher Nolan comic and landmark The Dark Knight.

Two Faces Part I y Yo also uses Harvey Dent’s tragic fall from grace and his grim evolution into a ruthless mobster as its central premise. It’s a heartbreaking story, as seeing Harvey’s tortured psyche crumble through his and Bruce’s eyes makes for a powerful watch.

You can find these episodes and more Batman: The Animated Series on HBO Max.

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