Last year I tackled Batman: The Animated Series and with Gotham's first season now completed, my attention is now going to be focused on The New Batman Adventures for the next few weeks.
Episode 1: Holiday Knights
Let's get one thing out of the way - this was a continuation of The Animated Series, airing two years later after that show finished up and it mostly had all of the characters going through an overhaul look wise. This opening episode on the other hand, is largely set during the Christmas season with four villains vying to make things difficult for our heroes. Harley and Ivy teamed up to put Bruce under a love spell and get a shopping spree while trying to kill Batman, then Barbara, Bullock and Renee had to deal with Clayface during a mall scene and then Batman and Robin (the Tim Drake version) try and stop the Joker going on a killing spree before the New Year kicks in. It's a wonderfully festive and bonkers opening episode. 9/10
Episode 2: Sins Of The Father
This is a weird one. In the first episode, we saw Tim Drake's Robin fighting alongside Batman against the Joker, but this is the episode that gives him a back story (deadbeat father involved over his head in crime) that ended up being connected to Two Face - one of the few villains (along with Harley) that wasn't radically altered as well. It's a solid episode, even if Tim is a little bit too much of a smart arse in parts. The end scene though where Dick showed up to watch the newly established gang of Batman, Robin and Batgirl was nice though. 7/10
Episode 3: Cold Comfort
He had two episodes on The Animated Series and got a movie but it seems like Mr Freeze turned out to be too good a character to stay away from and here was a solid if not an amazing episode for him. In this one, we learned that Nora was cured, rejected him and remarried and Victor spiralled back into crime by kidnapping scientists and attempting to kill Bruce Wayne's loved ones. It's not exactly a Heart Of Ice in terms of doing anything innovative but I do like the new dynamic with Batman and Batgirl in this one and Freeze's new abilities are interesting. 7/10
Episode 4: Never Fear
Keeping with the returns, this time around a rather bulked up version of the Scarecrow resurfaced and like with Mr Freeze, it wasn't his best one. However, I do find his new look pretty intimidating and his fear toxin this time around managed to bring out a slightly homicidal version of Batman with Robin being forced to step in to save his friend from crossing the line. Out of the first few episodes, this was probably the best one for Tim's version of the Boy Wonder. 7/10
Next blog will cover You Scratch My Back, Double Talk, Joker's Millions and Growing Pains
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