With ennui setting in around the lackluster series of the DCAU, and the announcement that the most recent Batman film will see a return to the IP’s noir roots, many fans of the Caped Crusader have been wondering if they’ll soon get a reboot of one of the most famous Batman narratives of all time: Batman: The Animated Series.
Though it only ran for a handful of seasons beginning in 1992, the series is widely considered to be the best imagining of the Dark Knight ever created. There are many reasons to suggest that continuing the series would be a good idea, but should its legacy be potentially tarnished when a new series could be developed instead?
Reboot: It’s Iconic
With its art deco style and neo-noir aesthetic, the series was firmly entrenched in the late ’30s when Batman comics first debuted, yet managed to retain a modern flair thanks to inspiration from Tim Burton’s Batman. Its look became iconic when viewed alongside the many different series that have sprung forth since.
With its sharp silhouettes, long-hooded roadsters prowling the streets of Gotham, double-breasted suit-wearing villains, and slinky femme fatales, it has an appeal that is unique yet timeless.
New Series: Batman Has A Different Storyline Now
Batman, as well as the villains in his rogues’ gallery, have gone in completely different directions since Batman: The Animated Series came out. The latest Batman comics are almost unrecognizable from the storyline that was popular in the ’90s and based off of Tim Burton’s 1989 film.
Harley Quinn, who made her first ever appearance on the series, has her own show now that’s far darker and more mature than anything she was in before. In the realm of comics, she’s recently married to Poison Ivy, having left the Joker long ago, while Batman himself has had to rebuild Gotham City anew after Bane’s takeover. With such new directions for the characters, it’s hard to see how BTAS could incorporate them.
Reboot: It Was Cancelled Too Soon
Despite the fact that it had a healthy audience and beloved characters, the series only ran for four seasons from 1992 until 1995 when it was abruptly cancelled. Fans have longed lamented that it didn’t last longer, especially given everything it introduced to Batman canon.
Kevin Conroy has said that, “They didn’t stop making the shows because the audience wasn’t there or the actors weren’t there, they stopped, really, because the creators ran out of ideas for stories.” Silly or repetitive stories might have comprised the show’s integrity, but in the more than two decades since its release, there have been even more Batman comics released from which to salvage ideas.
New Series: Fewer Expectations
In many ways, a reboot of Batman: The Animated Series might seem redundant considering any new Batman series released already gets compared to it anyway. Even with the same team of writers and the same voice actors assembled, it might not be able to live up to fans’ expectations.
A reboot would have to weather a fair amount of criticism even from the most stalwart of Batman fans, so a new series perhaps inspired by some of the concepts introduced in BTAS would be better than trying to recapture its magic.
Reboot: Kevin Conroy Would Like To Return
Kevin Conroy has provided the smoldering baritone for Batman ever since the series premiered in 1992, and reprised it in the vast majority of animated Batman series since (including the Arkham Asylum video games). At the 2018 MCM Comic Con in London he expressed his desire to appear in a reboot of the series that made him a household name to Batman fans.
“I’d love to play Batman again if they develop a new series,” he told a crowd of fans, but quickly added that creators like to “re-imagine the characters” and that he didn’t know if there would still be room for his version of Gotham’s Dark Knight. But he has said in the past that if he returned, so would Mark Hamill as the Joker.
New Series: Possibly Based On One Of The Batman Animated Films
One of the most popular animated Batman films in the last decade has been Batman: Under The Red Hood, in which the Caped Crusader contended with a similar crime fighter to himself but with a drastically different moral code, which ended up being none other than his former protégé, Jason Todd.
The film boasts an all-star cast including Jensen Ackles as Jason Todd, Bruce Greenwood as Batman, Neil Patrick Harris as Dick Grayson, and Jason Isaacs as Ra’s al Ghul. Some fans believe a new series based on that storyline with the same cast would be much more well received.
Reboot: Darker And More Mature Themes
Fans have been complaining that in the time since BTAS went off the air the new superhero series involving the Caped Crusader have all been aimed at children and teenagers, with no material capturing the gritty, dark noir themes of the ’90s hit.
Shows like Batman: The Brave And The Bold were campy and light-hearted, and fans have been anxious to have a return to a more serious and mature tone. A reboot of BTAS could be just the thing to kickstart a darker Batverse.
New Series: To Improve On Beware The Batman
The most recent in a long line of Batman animated series, Beware the Batman featured the Caped Crusader taking on much lesser-known members of his rogues’ gallery, from Professor Pyg to Anarky, with the help of his ex-MI6 partner, Alfred Pennyworth.
Fans were miffed they didn’t see their favorite villains, as antagonists are arguably one of the best things about the Batman comics. Beware the Batman also featured an animated style in a CGI format that was highly exaggerated and angular, which viewers didn’t warm up to. Many fans want a new series that would maintain the same serious tone but incorporate a different art style and better villains.
Reboot: The Adventures Continue
Since the successful release of The Adventures Continue in April, a brand new comic series that continues where Batman: The Animated Series left off, fans have shown that they’re very much interested in new adventures set in that world.
With all new stories and new characters from the DCAU (including Jason Todd, who never appeared in the original BTAS), there’s plenty to adapt. There are dozens of Batman’s comic book adventures that could make for exciting television.
New Series: Could Coincide With The Batman
BTAS took the world Tim Burton created for Batman in 1989 and turned it into an animated series. This could also be done with The Batman, the next Batman film starring Robert Pattinson as the new Dark Knight.
The film is said to have a much darker tone than previous Batman incarnations, with an emphasis on the superhero’s detective skills. A new series capturing this style and aesthetic could create a similar lightning-in-a-bottle moment to BTAS.
