Batman: The Brave and the Bold - Season One, Part One

Written by Hombre Divertido

On November 14th 2008, the Cartoon Network returned the Caped Crusader to television in a series well behind its time, and thankfully so. In Batman: The Brave and the Bold, the Dark Knight is back to the Batman of an era long since past. He has a personality, a sense of humor, works well with others, and yet still manages to be the mysterious Batman.

Based on the DC comic book, The Brave and the Bold in which Batman is partnered with other superheroes, Warner Home Video brought the first thirteen episodes of the twenty-six episode first season of Batman: The Brave and the Bold to DVD on August 17th, 2010. The chemistry within the partnerships is reminiscent of the Super Friends cartoons of the seventies. The significant difference being that we get to see some lesser-known stars of the DC universe work with the winged avenger. In the animated series of the seventies Batman was primarily teamed with Superman, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman. Though we do see Aquaman in this series, the characterization is much different than that of the Super Friends. In the new series we get to see Batman work with the Green Arrow, Red, Tornado, Plastic Man, and many more.

Ultimately the series is about relationships. With each episode opening with what is usually the conclusion of an adventure where just enough of the story is delivered to engage the audience, we get a small teaser of Batman working with another superhero. Then the opening credits roll and we pick up a whole new story. For the most part this teaser technique works, but there are a few episodes where there is not enough story to make it worth the time. The relationships within the teasers and main story are enjoyable, but ultimately many of the stories are over written. Keeping it simple in many cases would make the show more enjoyable to watch.

Though the creators and writers of the series may have embraced Batman’s personality of the past, they certainly did not embrace the simple storytelling of the past. “Invasion of the Secret Santa’s” is a perfect example. The opening segment has Batman and the Blue Beetle battling the Sportsmaster (voiced wonderfully by the always fun Thomas F. Wilson) who is trying to rob a bowling tournament. This may be one of the silliest storylines in the series to date. It’s poorly written and poorly executed. The main story has Batman and Red Tornado battling Fun Haus who is out to spoil Christmas. The Christmas storyline tries to be poignant and witty, but fails on many levels. Other episodes such as the two-part “Deep Cover for Batman” (Part one) and “Game Over for Owlman!” (Part Two) are too busy, and end up just being a mess.

Along with the focus of relationships. Batman: The Brave and The Bold also excels in animation and vocal talent. The animation has a sharp look to it that allows the characters to jump off the screen. Diedrich Bader voices the Batman and captures the character better than he has been in years.

There is no bonus material on the new release, and splitting a season into two releases is generally frowned upon by the public.

Recommendation: Fun for the whole family. Enough action for the kids, and character development for the adults, combined with a style of animation that is sure to appeal to all.

Article first published as DVD Review: Batman: The Brave and the Bold - Season One, Part One on Blogcritics.

Batman: The Brave and the Bold - Season One, Part One

Written by Pirata Hermosa

In the many years since his creation in 1939 Batman has been through many changes. In the most recent incarnation that runs on the Cartoon Network, the caped crusader has drifted to a lighter version of his character and has taken a step back from the current hard-hitting, brooding, no-nonsense superhero that has been portrayed through the most recent films and television shows.

While he still remains one of the baddest crime fighters ever to walk Gotham City, the fact that he has a sense of humor, can smile, and even takes joy in friendly competition with his friend Green Arrow makes his overall character more human.

Each episode features Batman teaming up with a different superhero as partners. While Robin is not featured in this set, you get a variety of others, such as Blue Beetle, The Outsiders, Wildcat, Aquaman, Green Arrow, Bronze Tiger, and Green Lantern just to name a few.

There are two particularly entertaining stories that stand out. “Invasion of the Secret Santas,” is a fun Christmassy episode that pairs Batman with the Red Tornado, who is trying to experience the Christmas Spirit, while the two go around smashing evil Santa Claus robots bent on taking over the city. It’s a humorous episode filled with fun.

The other comes in two-parts: “Deep Cover for Batman” and “Game Over for Owlman”. In this storyline Batman finds himself on an alternate Earth. But on this planet, all the good guys are bad and the bad guys are good. So not only do you get an extra set of heroes and villains, but you get to watch him pummel his friends. And when he teams up with the mysterious Red Hood from the second Earth to save both planets, it lifts the story to an entirely different level.

This DVD set includes two discs containing the first 13 episodes of season one. There are no Special Features included.

While the new series is quite enjoyable, not everyone will like the lighter tone it takes. It still deals with the serious issue of Bruce’s parents being killed, but doesn’t dwell on it. Most of the time it does a fairly good job of staying away from being too silly, but sometimes it does dip a little too low. The overly boisterous, loud-mouthed, over-the-top Aquaman is the best example of when it goes too far. But if you really are a Batman fan, it would probably be a nice edition to your collection.

Article first published as DVD Review: Batman: The Brave and the Bold - Season One, Part One on Blogcritics.

The Powerpuff Girls: The Complete Series - 10th Anniversary Collection

Written by Senora Bicho

In celebration of its 10th anniversary, The Powerpuff Girls - The Complete Series has been released on DVD. The 1998 television debut on Cartoon Network was the highest-rated premiere in the channel’s history and it was consistently highly rated during its six-season run. Boomerang began re-running episodes in 2008.

Professor Utonium (Tom Kane) mixed together sugar, spice and everything nice in an effort to create the perfect little girl. In the process, he accidentally added in an extra substance known as Chemical X. This mystery ingredient granted his three new creations super powers such as the ability to fly, super speed, and super strength.

Blossom (Cathy Cavadini), dresses in pink with long red hair, is the self-proclaimed leader and tends to be the most levelheaded and analytical one of the group. Bubbles (Tara Strong) is the cutest, wears a blue outfit and has blond pigtails. She acts younger than the other girls while being the most playful, considerate, loving, and at times naive. Buttercup (Elizabeth Daily) makes up for Bubbles’ gentle demeanor by being the toughest of the group with the shortest temper. Her short black hair and green outfit fits with her tomboy attitude. Together, these three make up The Powerpuff Girls dedicated to protecting the city of Townsville from its worst villains.

Over the years there were several recurring villains to mance the girls. The most well known and my personal favorite is Mojo Jojo (Roger L. Jackson), a brilliant yet mad scientist/chimp. Mojo Jojo was Professor Utonium’s assistant. When Chemical X was added to the mixture that created The Powerpuff Girls, the explosion also enlarged his brain. He felt left out once the Professor had the company of the girls, so he was ventured out on his own and became committed to destroying the girls who stole his home and the Professor’s affection. He even created an evil trio of little boys, The Rowdyruff Boys, by using snips, snails, a puppydog tail, and his own version of Chemical X to compete with the girls. Fuzzy Lumpkins (Jim Cummings) is a hillbilly bear-like monster who lives in the woods outside of Townsville. Him (Tom Kane) is a devil-like creature who feeds off of negative emotions and disguises himself to create catastrophes. Princess Morbucks (Jennifer Hale) is a spoiled little rich girl who turns to evil after the girls don’t allow her to join their group.

The DVD collection is chalk full of great extras. The original short films created by Craig McCracken entitled “The Whoop*ass Girls” are included to provide a glimpse at the origins of the crime-fighting trio. Music videos, interviews, live-action shorts, and short cartoons used through the years to promote the show are spread out on all of the discs. The most creative and entertaining extras include a Mayor blooper real on the Season Four disc and on the Season Two disc, there are audio commentaries by Mojo Jojo and the Mayor, both of which are hysterical. Two bonus episodes are also included, a holiday special “Twas the Flight Before Christmas” and “Powerpuff Girls Rule!!” the 2009 special in commemoration of the 10th anniversary. Each season has its own disc with an insert that offers the contents on one side and on the other side all of the inserts can be put together for a poster.

The only negatives are the discs contain episodes on both sides, requiring extra caution, and the 79th episode "See Me, Feel Me, Gnomey," which didn’t air in the U.S. is not included.

I hadn’t watched an episode of The Powerpuff Girls in a long time but used to watch it on a semi-regular basis years back and always really enjoyed it. This show is well written, clever and funny. It has the unique ability to appeal to children and adults alike with its simple yet witty action adventures. Highlights include the many Fab Four references in “Meet the Beat-Alls,” “Buttercrush” where Buttercup falls Ace of the Gangreen Gang, the Rashomon-influenced “The Bare Facts,” and the girls get the “Silent Treatment” and lose their powers when they enter a silent cartoon to save the Professor.

Now you have the chance to add all 78 episodes to your collection along with lots of fun extras or it will make a perfect Christmas gift for any long-time fans.

Jonny Quest: The Real Adventures - Season One, Volume One

Written by Hombre Divertido

In September of 1964 animation innovators and pioneers William Hanna and Joseph Barbara again broke all molds by bringing an animated action series to prime-time television. Though the adventures of 11-year-old Johnny Quest, his best friend Hadji, dog Bandit, father Dr. Benton Quest, and Roger “Race” Bannon would only run in primetime on ABC for one year, it would become a cult classic on Saturday mornings as the original 26 episodes would have a run on each of the three networks (ABC, CBS, NBC) over the next fifteen years.

In 1986 the series was re-tooled for a 13-episode run in syndication. The new effort included the original cast, plus Jesse Bradshaw, an independent, eighties teenage girl, and (heavy sigh) Hardrock, a subterranean warrior who was made of stone. This outing had some of the good qualities of the original series, but ultimately not enough.

In 1996 the Cartoon Network would bring the latest incarnation of Jonny Quest to television in the form of The Real Adventures. On February 17th, 2009 Warner Home Video released Volume One (13 episodes) of the first season in a two-disc set.

In The Real Adventures Jonny and Hadji are now teenagers and are joined by a young teenage girl, who in this case is Jesse Bannon, daughter of Race, who also participates in the team’s adventures along with Jonny’s father Dr. Benton Quest. Bandit appears in some of the episodes but is certainly not as prevalent as he was in the original series. Alas, Hardrock does not appear in this series.

The Quest Team continues to travel the world assisting others and solving mysteries. These new stories look and sound great on DVD, though, in certain cases the animation looks more like a computer game than an animated television show.

Generally it is the writing that let’s this new series down. The writers fail to appreciate the group dynamics that made the original series so popular, and many of the stories simply try too hard to be more than they should. The relationships between the team members were instrumental in the success of the original series, and are all but lost here, as the group is constantly split up and Hadji is under utilized.

A computer-generated world titled Questworld plays a key role in too many of the episodes as it simply serves to give children something to look at, but serves little purpose and often distracts from what should have been entertaining stories as in episode two “Escape to Questworld.”

The vocal talents are adequate in the show, though adults may find the extremely recognizable voice of George Segal to be distracting as Dr. Benton Quest. Robert Patrick as Race Bannon is also recognizable, but is overshadowed by his inconsistent performance that includes a southern drawl that seems to disappear and reappear from scene to scene.

The sole special feature in this release is the short documentary: “Jonny Quest Returns: Modernizing a Classic for a New Generation of Fans.” It is informative and entertaining as the various people involved in this project convey their respective goals in bringing Jonny Quest back to television, but it would have been more realistic had they given a more even perspective and conveyed the areas in which they failed.

Recommendation: Children may enjoy the look of the series, but adults will be annoyed with some of the ridiculous and convoluted storylines. Fans of the original series will be disappointed with what has been done to the classic ensemble chemistry that was Jonny Quest of the sixties.