“Batman: The Brave and the Bold Season Two Part One”
Directed by: Michael Goguen, Brandon Vietti, Michael Chang, and Ben Jones
Starring: Diedrich Bader, Will Friedle, Kevin Conroy, Michael Dorn, R. Lee Ermey, Michael Rosenbaum
Studio: Warner Bros Home Entertainment
Release Date: August 16, 2011
Not Rated
Warner Bros has released the second season of its hit Cartoon Network show “Batman: The Brave and the Bold” on DVD. The show is one of the more popular prime-time animated series and continues to thrill watchers as it enters its third and final season. “Batman: The Brave and the Bold Season Two Part One” collects the first 12 episodes of the show’s sophomore run.
“Batman: The Brave and the Bold Season Two Part One” is based on the comic book series that has super heroes teaming up together to fight common evil and save the world. Obviously, this series focuses on Batman joining forces with one or more other super heroes on a weekly basis. This time around, we get team-ups with the likes of Aquaman, Plastic Man, Blue Beetle, Red Tornado, Green Arrow, Wildcat, Deadman, Bronze Tiger, and Atom. They all partner with Batman to fight mad dictators both intergalactic and Earthly who want to rule over the universe and the human race.
Just like any TV series out there, “Batman: The Brave and the Bold Season Two Part One” includes some episodes that miss the mark. However, more do deliver. Memorable episodes that come to mind are “Aquaman’s Outrageous Adventure,” which concentrates more on everyone’s favorite fishy super friend than the Dark Night. Bored on a family trip on land, Aquaman is constantly going behind his family’s back to help his super buddies fight crime and get back in time as to not incite suspicion from his wife. Another great one is “The Golden Age of Justice!,” which has Batman teaming up with the original members of the Justice Society of America to battle one of their old enemies.
The voice cast of “Batman: The Brave and the Bold Season Two Part One” is excellently put together. It features Diedrich Bader, Will Friedle, Kevin Conroy, Michael Dorn, R. Lee Ermey, Michael Rosenbaum, and many more talented voice actors. You can tell that every actor that has taken on a role for the show is having a great time through the inflection and energy that is reflected in their voices.
Visually, “Batman: The Brave and the Bold Season Two Part One” delivers in a crisp clean digital format. It looks great in all its anamorphic widescreen beauty. The colors are all lush and pop out from the screen. It really should come as no surprise that it does look this superb, since it was obviously made for HD televisions in the first place.
The audio for “Batman: The Brave and the Bold Season Two Part One” is a Dolby Surround Stereo mix. It sounds great, although it could have been better had it been given the 5.1 treatment. However, there’s really nothing to complaint about. All the voicing, music, and sound effects ring out quite nicely.
The real disappointment of “Batman: The Brave and the Bold Season Two Part One” is its lack of special features. There’s nothing here for fans. Couldn’t there have been even one or two episodes with commentary from the supervising director or actor Diedrich Bader? I know that guy would be game to give some audio commentary on voicing Batman. There are no “making of” documentaries or anything included.
This series is designed to be a fun and kid-friendly version of the Caped Crusader. It’s definitely not based in the grim world of Christopher Nolan’s Dark Night tales. It’s more likely to remind viewers of the 1960’s “Batman” TV series than anything. If you’re looking for the dark brooding version of the Batman then this was not made for you.
For more articles by Eric Shirey, check out:
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