2 DC Releases In 2023 Have Already Proved The Batman’s Riskiest Spinoff Will Work

One of the riskier spin-offs of The Batman has already received proof it will work thanks to two under-the-radar DC releases of 2023. Upon the positive critical and commercial reception of Matt Reeves’ Batman reboot, multiple spin-off projects and a sequel were announced. The Batman – Part II‘s story will see the return of Robert Pattinson as the titular Dark Knight with Reeves returning to write and direct. Still, it was the TV-based spin-offs announced that seemed more interesting both in terms of fleshing out The Batman‘s universe and doing something few Batman franchises have before.

One confirmed TV series is centered around The Penguin, Colin Farrell’s character from the film. Another is similar in tone and will focus on the Gotham City Police Department. The third, and perhaps the most risky, is a TV show based entirely within Arkham Asylum, Gotham City’s iconic psychiatric hospital. Centering a show around an ensemble of psychotic villains is certainly bold, yet two DC releases of 2023 have proved the concept can work.

Batman’s Arkham Series Proved (Twice) That The Batman’s Spinoff Will Work

The two DC releases in question are the Batman: Unburied podcasts. In 2023, The Riddler: Secret In The Dark and Harley Quinn & The Joker: Sound Mind were released as part of the series. These story-based podcasts used Arkham Asylum as their primary setting with the hospital’s location, history, and connection to the titular characters being used to extremely impressive effect.

Despite The Batman‘s Arkham spin-off being risky, in that villain ensemble TV shows are somewhat of an anomaly, these two projects prove it can work. It is no secret that Batman podcasts are relatively niche yet a smaller, audio-only project managed to utilize Arkham Asylum perfectly. Considering this, it stands to reason that a big-budget TV show with all the visual tricks of filmmaking can use Arkham Asylum well too, no matter the risks involved with the spin-off’s core premise.

Why More Batman Series Need To Explore Arkham Asylum More

These podcasts bring to light the reality that most live-action Batman projects tend to underutilize Arkham Asylum. The hospital is mentioned at length in most live-action iterations of the Caped Crusader, yet rarely is it used as a predominant location. The most Arkham has been utilized is arguably Batman Begins through the exploration of Scarecrow. As such, it becomes clear that more Batman franchises need to explore Arkham Asylum more closely.

The main reason for this stems from the plot potential of the location. Having a building filled with Batman’s most iconic villains could serve as an incredibly intriguing story, something that Joker: Folie à Deux may even delve into given its central focus on Joker and Harley Quinn. While The Batman‘s Arkham spin-off will explore this idea, it will be the first time a live-action Batman series has focused inherently on the location. As a result, several past Batman iterations have lost out on a setting with excellent plot concepts, the potential for strikingly weird yet beautiful visuals, and some of the Dark Knight’s best comic book stories.