My love of comics is actually a fairly recent development. I read X-Men back in high school, but it wasn't until my second year at college that I really started diving into the DC Universe as a whole.
Even so, I was always fascinated by superheroes. I was into Power Rangers, but it was the superhero cartoons that really got me interested in these fantastic adventures. Marvel had its fair share of awesome cartoons with both Spider-Man and X-Men, but it was the DC Universe that really gripped me.
What is now referred to as the DCAU all started here.
The show is highly regarded by comic fans and non-comic fans alike. It won awards and revolutionized how people viewed cartoons, even if it was just for a short while. The writers took the material seriously and didn't talk down to the audience. They made a show that kids could enjoy, but would still be able to entertain older viewers.
In addition, the show took all of these long running characters, who have gone through several different incarnations, and distilled them down to their essence. It took all the things that worked about the characters and tossed aside what didn't work, creating what many believe to be the quintessential versions of these characters.
In addition to the strong writing, the show also benefitted from great voice actors. While the performances were strong all around, special mention goes to Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill, who voiced Batman and The Joker respectively. To this day, many fans still hear those voices in their head when reading those two characters, whether it be comic or in prose.
The aforementioned actors are the prime examples, but special mention goes to others like Michael Ansara as Mr. Freeze, David Warner as Ra's al Ghul, Adrienne Barbeau as Catwoman, and Roddy McDowall as The Mad Hatter.
The show was so popular that it actually had an impact on the mainstream DC Universe. Harley Quinn was an original creation for the show who later made it into canon. Renee Montoya was also created for the show, but made it into comics before her animated debut.
The animation was a bit stiff at points, but all in all, it was very well done. The character designs worked perfectly.
The score, done by Shirley Walker was also superb. They took some cues from Elfman, but only used that as a jumping point to create a score that added atmosphere to the series.
Unfortunately, executive meddling kicked in and the show was revamped for its final season. It had some perks, Tim Drake was brought in as the new Robin and Dick was upgraded to Nightwing, but the show lost focus and spent more time on Batgirl than on the title character. Due to lower budgets, the animation had to be downgraded and, suffice it to say, it didn't work that well.
The faults are minor, and all in all, this is a gem that still holds up. Even after several "sequel" series, this stands up as one of the best of the bunch. You could argue that it is the best, but that's a matter of opinion.
The show's almost 20 years old, but it is still awesome.
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