Batman: The Brave and The Bold v 2.0

[BentonGrey]

Benton, you are without a doubt, the most crotchity old superhero fan ever. I could just see you on your porch in a rocking chair.

Benton- "You kids and your Woovereens! Why, in my day we had real heroes."
Kids- "like who old man? Nobody can beat Wolverine."
Benton- "Like who? Aquaman, for one. He could take that panzy Woovereen any time. You see, he is a king that lives under the water. He has slightly above super strength, can swim really fast and has telepathy with fish."
Kids- blank stares followed by "BWAAAAHAHAHAHAHHAAAA!!!! He's got the powers of a 100 fish? BWAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!!"
Benton- "Ungrateful little.... HEY, YOU KIDS GET OFF MY LAWN!!!!"

'Nah, I love GOOD superhero stories, but stupidity bothers me.  I love Wolverine too...well...you know, I love how he was before Marvel made me tired of him.

[GrizzlyBearTalon]

Benton, you are without a doubt, the most crotchity old superhero fan ever. I could just see you on your porch in a rocking chair.

Benton- "You kids and your Woovereens! Why, in my day we had real heroes."
Kids- "like who old man? Nobody can beat Wolverine."
Benton- "Like who? Aquaman, for one. He could take that panzy Woovereen any time. You see, he is a king that lives under the water. He has slightly above super strength, can swim really fast and has telepathy with fish."
Kids- blank stares followed by "BWAAAAHAHAHAHAHHAAAA!!!! He's got the powers of a 100 fish? BWAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!!"
Benton- "Ungrateful little.... HEY, YOU KIDS GET OFF MY LAWN!!!!"

This bolded line had me laughing, it reminds of why I often just stop my self before explaining anything related to fantasy or comics when people ask me. Just to sort of sound it out and normalize it as much as possible without sounding too crazy.

"You see, he is a king that lives under the sea..."

"DOES HE KNOW SPONGE BOB???"

"What?"

"Spongebob, you know yellow & porous is he, lives in a pineapple under the sea?"

"Aquaman does not know him you see, but golden and scaly with green leggings is he!
Ohhhh... who lives in kingdom under the sea? Aquaman spiffy tights!
King of the Sea and exciting he be! Aquaman spiffy tights!
Now jump in the water get telepathic talkin' with some fish! Aquaman spiffy tights!
If nautical adventures and fantasy fighting you wish! Aquaman spiffy tights!
Aquaman SPIFFFY TTIIIGGHTTS! Yar har har!"

[thanoson]

Lol. You get 2 points. Heh, I sometimes have to check myself when describing wrestling storylines to those that are not in the know.

[Midnite]

Batman: The Brave And The Bold Episode Details For June 2009

"Duel of the Double Crossers!"

Batman has a danger room. 

[Midnite]

The Last Bat on Earth!

[detourne_me]

Mister Miracle and Kamandi?!?!?!  Righteous!

[Silver Shocker]

Has the show gone into reruns in the US, or have people just stopped talking about it? Because Canada's been getting the new episodes (Tornado Tyrant, Duel of the Double Crossers, Last Bat on Earth) and I wanted to see what people thought of them, but no comments in this thread.

If anyone's interested, here are my thoughts:

Rise of the Tornado Tyrant: This is probably my favorite episode of the show ever. A very touching episode with more thought-provoking material than this show probably has any right to have.  It helps that I really like this show's take on Red Tornado (his voice and personality). However I was a little disappointed that

Spoiler

They had Tornado Champion become a bad guy, both because the moral ambiguity of the story dimmed out at that point and because his design looked ridiculous. It reminded me of a 90's Liefeld-esque design.

In the end it was still a very strong story.

Duel of the Double Crossers: This one I wasn't too keen on. I barely paid attention to it so I really couldn't tell you much of the plot but it involved War World, Mongul and Jonah Hex. I didn't like the inclusion of Mongal, especially with a male voice.

Last Bat on Earth: This is another one I wasn't a big fan on and didn't pay too much attention to. Then again, I'm not fond of the Kamandi concept so that definitely hurt the episode for me. I don't particularly like this show's version of Grodd as much as the JLU version. Here he seems more like a dumb brute as opposed to a calm calculated mastermind. (though the comics are guilty of this too)

[docdelorean88]

This was one of the last episodes aired in the states. There hasn't been any new ones recently.

[Glitch Girl]

Some voice casting news...

Henry Rollins as Doom Patrol's Robotman

Neil Patrick Harris as Music Meister (includes song clip from episode)

Julie Newmar as Martha Wayne and someone else? (plus episode tidbits)

[Silver Shocker]

Oh the Music Meister episode just aired this Sunday in Canada. I thought it was pretty fun. Since NPH had done Dr. Horrible before I already knew he'd be great in a singing role but in general the whole thing was pretty good.

[Trelau]

correct me if i'm wrong, but i think the season 1 was never aired entirely. in the us the last 3 episode were not shown, and in canada they aired only 2 of the 3 missing and in the wrong order.
in my collection i've got episode 1 to 22 in us, then 23 and 25 in canada tv and no episode 24.

[Trelau]

Wow! i just saw the Music Meister episode, and as far as musical episode go, this one was pretty good. Neil Patrick Harris did a terrific job (by far the most convincing perfomance) and the goofy take on the show was actually fun. I'd have to rewatch it to see all the reference (all the villain in arkham singing, the different costumes of the meister) but i think there's a lot of nice touch in it, like the opening/closing of the curtain between each sequence.
I'm not awareof a second season...but i sure hope there'll be one.
Also, am I the only one who thinks Neil Patrick Harris would do a terrific Riddler?

[Midnite]

Batman: Brave and the Bold - "The Golden Age of Justice" clip 1
Batman: Brave and the Bold - "The Golden Age of Justice" clip 2

The Golden Age of Justice images

[JeyNyce]

So is this season 2 or 3? And what time does it airs now?

[Midnite]

Season 2, The Golden Age of Justice is like the 5th episode in, I think.
Friday 8:30pm on CN.

[Trelau]

Damn! I missed it! I followed season 1 week after week and didn't even notice it started again

[JeyNyce]

Same here.  Thanks Mid!

[BentonGrey]

Man...I really am beginning to hate this show...not because it is necessarily terrible, but because I see stuff that makes me say, "Cool!" and then I actually go out of my way to watch it, and am met with the same lukewarm, mediocre, fluff.  That episode with the JSA looks awesome, but despite appearances, I imagine there won't be anything to it.  Did anyone see the Aquaman centric episode a little while ago?  It was based on a pretty goofy concept, Aquaman and family taking a cross-country road trip, but despite that, there were several great elements in evidence (and even that kind of goofy concept could totally have worked).  In the very beginning of it, who should show up but The Fisherman, an Aquaman villain not seen on screen since his cartoon from the 60's!  How cool is that, another of Aquaman's rogue's gallery making it onto the screen....but, instead of doing anything interesting with him, they played him up in pure Silver Age fashion, goofy and over the top.  All in all the episode was somewhat entertaining, and there were a few cool moments (the fight with Planet Master was actually pretty neat, but I found myself wondering who this guy was, and why he was attacking a mine....).  Still, as always with this show, it is enough to whet the appetite, but not enough to satisfy.

[Trelau]

I think you expect too much of this show Benton. It's first and foremost a kid's show; and a good one at that. And about the goofy stuff...well i enjoy it. the first comic books i read were silver age books, mainly superman and the big 7. It was goofy as hell, but it was fun like no other book. the Brave and the Bold is trying to stay true to it's original material's spirit; and they have a lot of reference to that period of comic book history. My nephew is 5 years old and i get every episode for him, and he loves it. In 3-4 years, when he's "mature" enough, i'll show him some of the timmverse cartoon; but for now it's exactly what he wants to see, and exactly what he needs to be introduce to this world. I leave Batman TAS and the more sophisticated stuff for later

[BentonGrey]

Trelau, you say that I expect too much of it?  I say that you expect too little of it.  I've argued this point several times already, so I'll be brief.  We settle too easily when it comes to our entertainment.  Just because it's a "kid's show" doesn't mean that they can't do something more compelling than slapstick.  When I was a kid I LOVED Batman:TAS, and I appreciate it even more now that I can see all of the depth and complexity.  However, watching a show that didn't pitch itself down to the lowest common denominator actually encouraged me, as a child, to rise up and engage its stories at a higher level.  This show could do the same thing, or could at least do more than it does.  They have told the occasionally interesting story, but mostly they take the easy way out. 

For example, even though I enjoyed "Aquaman's Outrageous Adventure" overall, I remember half a dozen spots where I thought, "what a wasted opportunity!"  They had The Bug-Eyed Bandit fighting The Atom in one split second scene, and I was utterly floored when I realized that this incredibly obscure Atom villain had shown up on TV.  However, instead of doing something interesting with this guy, he's just scenery.  Now, I understand that it was a montage-type episode, but even those focused on a single character don't offer anything approaching development.  I just wish that this show was better.

[daglob]

Not all 1960s comics were campy and over the top, Benton; I know, I was there.

Then main thing is; this show is the decendent of the Batman TV show from the '60s (Check out the Green Arrow team up and the villains escaping from jail, and there ther is False Face).

I aggree that there are a lot of things that could be done with ANY Batman show, but I can't get mad at them for being less creative than I am.

Just so long as they don't team up Batman and Prez, I'll give it some slack.

[Midnite]

Episode #32 - Sidekicks Assemble!

Images
Clip 1
Clip 2
Clip 3

[bat1987]

Ra`s voice is pretty cool.

[JKCarrier]

Just because it's a "kid's show" doesn't mean that they can't do something more compelling than slapstick.  When I was a kid I LOVED Batman:TAS, and I appreciate it even more now that I can see all of the depth and complexity.  However, watching a show that didn't pitch itself down to the lowest common denominator actually encouraged me, as a child, to rise up and engage its stories at a higher level.  This show could do the same thing, or could at least do more than it does.  They have told the occasionally interesting story, but mostly they take the easy way out.

Meh, not everything has to be super-serious and "deep". Brave and Bold is meant to be a lighthearted comedy, and does that supremely well. There's plenty of room in the world for both Dostoevsky and The Three Stooges.

[JeyNyce]

Episode #32 - Sidekicks Assemble!

Images
Clip 1
Clip 2
Clip 3

So is this the new Robin or this is a flashback episode?  I'm guessing flashback because they were all shown grown up in season 1

[BentonGrey]

Not all 1960s comics were campy and over the top, Benton; I know, I was there.

Then main thing is; this show is the decendent of the Batman TV show from the '60s (Check out the Green Arrow team up and the villains escaping from jail, and there ther is False Face).

I aggree that there are a lot of things that could be done with ANY Batman show, but I can't get mad at them for being less creative than I am.

Just so long as they don't team up Batman and Prez, I'll give it some slack.

I don't think I made the claim that all 60's comics were "campy and over the top," Daglob, but if what identified comics from the 80's was "grim and gritty," what identified comics from the 60's was camp.  Batman went from detective to alien fighter, after all.  It's a generalization that hold ture in general.    I may not have lived through the decade, but I have read most of the big books from that time.  Even the great ones (like Avengers) are still somewhat over the top in presentation, although there are, of course, some rather excellent exceptions.  I also was a big fan of the Batman TV show (but a much BIGGER fan of TAS, which illustrates something) from the 60's (in reruns, of course), so I recognize those elements.  I may not enjoy the constant appeals to "intentional camp," but I can understand them.  I just wish that they would err a bit more in the opposite direction.  

Meh, not everything has to be super-serious and "deep". Brave and Bold is meant to be a lighthearted comedy, and does that supremely well. There's plenty of room in the world for both Dostoevsky and The Three Stooges.

I think you've squashed my argument into something as one dimensional as this show usually is, JKC.  Do I want this show to be JLU?  Well...yeah, I do, because I'd have been much happier for JLU to simply continue forever.  Yet, I don't hold it against this show that it ISN'T part of the Timmverse.  No, this show has enough strikes against it on its own to create my ambivalence.  I don't want all of my entertainment to be "super-serious," nor do I expect everything to have the depth of Dostoyevsky.  I like my light-hearted fare.  I love Looney Toons, and I appreciate the need for light entertainment.  What I would like to see though, are shows that have the potential to do something worthwhile actually take advantage of that.  Does every episode of B&B need to have the cinematic weight of, say the "Cadmus" arc of JLU?  No, but I would at least like them to be like "Flash and Substance," fun adventure and some wackiness with at least a bit of actual character development and significance to it.  Forgive the use of JLU as a descriptor, but it's all I have to illustrate my point.  Though, come to think of it, B&B itself has provided another example of what I'm talking about.

The latest episode with the Teen Titans, Robin, Speedy, and Aqualad, was actually the best example I've seen from B&B yet of what I'm looking for.  I enjoyed it wholeheartedly.  It was some light adventure fare, while actually making a few overtures to character development.  The relationships between Robin and Batman, Speedy and GA, and Aqualad and Aquaman all came through, not with incredible depth, but present none the less.  It was a huge thrill for me to see Aqualad animated for the first time since Aquaman's 60's 'toon, and what's more, they actually gave him some personality instead of A) using him as moving scenery (Bug Eyed Bandit), or B) playing him one note and over the top (Fisherman).  The episode was action packed, and even the ridiculous elements were handled well enough that they weren't too jarring (the flying island, cholrocanon), perhaps because they weren't too far off from what we've seen R'as do before.  The minor bit of drama at the end and the introduction of a character that I despise (Nightwing) were actually handled somewhere in the ballpark of tolerably.  Although, Speedy's "Gee Whiz" vocabulary annoyed my wife to no end.

I will say this, many of this shows flaws can be placed squarely at the feet of the voice actors and director.  The voice work (and choice of voice actors) for this show is unbearably bad.  I still hate Batman's voice (it grates on me more each time he opens his mouth, he just sounds so goofy), and the rest of the cast sounds like they're voiced by the same two people.  I know that is the factual case for many animated shows, but it is one that isn't an issue when the cast is actually talented at producing differing voices for different characters.  I'd like some more verbal subtlety from this show...but I imagine that is a forlorn hope.  Anyway, the point is that I do enjoy a lot of elements of the show, but I really want to see these guys up their game.  

Ohh, and I did see that JSA epsidoe.  It was mostly pretty good.  I would really have loved to see Degaton as the more tormented character I've always seen him as, but at least they made him formidable and down-right creepy at times.  It was a pretty solid episode with a telegraphed but not unpleasant bit of characterization.  It was pretty awesome to see Hawkman and Hourman kicking backside.  Too bad we didn't get Sandman too.

[Midnite]

Clash of the Metal Men! Preview

[BentonGrey]

Gas gang?  Starroed Atlantis!

[Midnite]

A Bat Divided! Preview

[BentonGrey]

Bah for lack of classic Firestorm! 

The Gas Gang one was pretty weak.  The animation was cool, and the use of their powers was dynamic, but "eh."  The Starroed Atlantian bit was pretty awesome.  I'm interested to see that develop the same way Equinox did.