The Dark Knight is one of the biggest releases of this summer, if not the year. How do you prepare yourself for such a monumental picture? By watching previous depictions of Batman in movies, of course. We’re making our way through ten feature length incarnations of the Dark Knight’s stories, from Adam West to animation. We invite you to join us for the ride as we analyze the good, the bad, and the Bat.
(And yes, we’re actually re-watching all of these old flicks rather than just relying on our memory, so we can honestly evaluate each of them in preparation for The Dark Knight).
Day Seven: Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker (2000)
I know that one of primary motivations behind the creation of Batman Beyond was to provide another toy line tied into DC’s biggest provider. Thankfully, in the hands of Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, and Alan Burnett, the series provided an interesting look at an aspect of Batman’s career we had never gotten to look at: the future.
Since most of the future Batman’s villains were variations of the classic rogues gallery, the show tended to be at its best when it found a way to bring back the original baddies and give us an update on how they were still around and how the old Bruce Wayne, no longer the man behind the cowl, felt about it. The series managed to remain elusive about several of the biggest characters in the pantheon, however, most notably Batman’s sidekick, Robin, and his greatest nemesis, Joker. Finally Return of the Joker gives an explanation to both characters’ absence, and it’s a concept so horrifying, the movie had to be toned down after the Columbine tragedy occurred while the animated film was in production.
The overall story isn’t changed that massively if you watch the PG edited version, although the changes were enough to push the unedited version into PG-13 territory. That said, if you’re going to pick between the two, the uncut version is the one to check out, just because it solidifies just how horrific the Joker can be, and how lighthearted he approaches it when he is.
That depiction of the Joker is the same one we talked about a few days ago with Mask of the Phantasm. Mark Hamill is wisely brought back to lend his voice to the animated character, and there’s no doubt as to why. Hamill’s Joker is a monstrosity on par with the rendition of the character Frank Miller offered with The Dark Knight Returns. He’s been described as being just as quick with a gag as with a gun, but here he’ll pull the gun and still view it as a gag.
Thankfully, the Clown Prince of Crime is never unopposed, and here he has two major foes to face. Bruce Wayne may not be Batman, but he’s still around, guiding his latest protégé as best as he can. Throughout the animated series Bruce was always more haunted than ever before, and here we finally find out why. Not only is he still carrying the guilt of his parents death, but he has to add on top of that the guilt of all of those who have been under his wings before. Regardless of whether they went on to better things (Barbara Gordon is the commissioner now, nowhere near as open to vigilante justice as her father was) or whether they barely survived their time as crime fighters, Bruce feels guilt over what he put them through.
The new Batman, Terry McGinnis, never understood Bruce’s guilt before this story. In fact, there were times the stories pushed Bruce into looking overprotective. Once this story was told, Bruce’s personality and actions are crystal clear and Terry understands his mentor a little more. The fact that he chooses to continue carrying the mantle of Batman with that knowledge makes him just as dedicated as his mentor was. That’s where this story’s depth comes from - with an update on the final big names in the Batman world, and a view of a young man choosing to carry on the legacy even though he knows, just as Bruce Wane did, how that choice will devour him in time.
Batman Beyond may have started out as an intended toy seller, but Return of the Joker gives it a solid entry into the legacy of Batman. This is another one of those entries that should be watched just to see how dark the Dark Knight can be.
The Good: The characterizations, which were almost always a strong part of Paul Dini’s stories, are fantastic here. Bruce Wayne is exactly what you’d expect for the future of the character, provided he lives long enough to get that old. As always, Mark Hamill’s Joker is a joy to have around, and is at his most malevolent here.
The Bad: There’s a certain dissatisfaction with the final explanation for how the Joker returns, and is subsequently beaten. I love that we do get a return of the character, and I particularly like how brutal they allowed the Joker to be in the backstory, but by the end of the movie I just didn’t feel satisfied.
The Bat: The future proves to be just as cool for Batman as the present and past. I love the future batsuit, with camouflage and flight capabilities (not to mention it just looks plain cool) and the future batmobile looks schway and ties in visually with Batman’s batwing of the original animated series (plus, after two days of light-up Batmobiles, it was nice to return to something stealthy and focused on purpose instead of aesthetics).
Final Rating:
http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Prepare-For-The-Dark-Knight-Batman-Beyond-Return-of-the-Joker-9514.html
