The problem with doing Batman as a show for children has always been the fact that most of his bad guys are, when done right, just plain disturbing. Think about it - what other superhero has so many members of his rogues' gallery who are outright psychotic? Most other costumes' bad guys are evil, but relatively sane, to the point where having one who is crazy is used as a trump card to spice things up a bit. "This guy's not like my usual run of villains - he's out of his mind!"
With Batman, though, mental illness is part and parcel of the experience. Hell, Batman himself is only questionably in touch with reality, and his villains are the biggest pack of sociopathic, sadistic, psychotic freaks to be found in a mainstream comics mythos. That kind of thing is a huge challenge to present to a young audience (with a network looking over your shoulder) without taking the balls out of it. Even the team that made BTAS didn't always succeed.
This isn't to say that I don't agree with your central point - I do. The bad guys on The Batman are often markedly inferior to the versions from the Old Days. I don't agree with your individual assessments across the board - I rather like Catwoman as an unrepentant thief who's in it for kicks. She's certainly more fun that way than the whole hackneyed "tormented whore out for revenge" riff they're doing in the comics lately. (Can't anybody in comics just be in it for fun and money any more?) But, by and large, I think you're right.
I don't think, however, that that factor dooms The Batman to lameness. As I've said before, I find myself respecting it for not trying to be BTAS Again. It's got a lot of visual style, which people like to sneer at these days, but which I enjoy; it's got some fun character stuff going on, especially the relationship between Bruce Wayne and Alfred. I like young, half-assed Bruce, still in the process of trying to figure out just what the Batman gig is supposed to be. I even, God help me, like the riceboi Batmobile.
I guess I just don't expect as much as I should from Saturday morning cartoons...
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Date: 2005-06-15 08:49 am (UTC)With Batman, though, mental illness is part and parcel of the experience. Hell, Batman himself is only questionably in touch with reality, and his villains are the biggest pack of sociopathic, sadistic, psychotic freaks to be found in a mainstream comics mythos. That kind of thing is a huge challenge to present to a young audience (with a network looking over your shoulder) without taking the balls out of it. Even the team that made BTAS didn't always succeed.
This isn't to say that I don't agree with your central point - I do. The bad guys on The Batman are often markedly inferior to the versions from the Old Days. I don't agree with your individual assessments across the board - I rather like Catwoman as an unrepentant thief who's in it for kicks. She's certainly more fun that way than the whole hackneyed "tormented whore out for revenge" riff they're doing in the comics lately. (Can't anybody in comics just be in it for fun and money any more?) But, by and large, I think you're right.
I don't think, however, that that factor dooms The Batman to lameness. As I've said before, I find myself respecting it for not trying to be BTAS Again. It's got a lot of visual style, which people like to sneer at these days, but which I enjoy; it's got some fun character stuff going on, especially the relationship between Bruce Wayne and Alfred. I like young, half-assed Bruce, still in the process of trying to figure out just what the Batman gig is supposed to be. I even, God help me, like the riceboi Batmobile.
I guess I just don't expect as much as I should from Saturday morning cartoons...