Batman: Caped Crusader Review 2024 Tv Show Series Cast Crew Online
This show is in many ways faithful to the original and much beloved Batman: The Animated Series. It sets itself even more firmly in the 1930s/40s and establishes a noir atmosphere that suits it very well.
Now, if you’re worried about whether the show imposes modern political views (that is, it expresses values summed up in a “w” word that rhymes with “joke”) on the audience, well, until episode four, I’d say not to worry. Yes, you’ll notice certain female characters are now oddly overweight, and some other characters have…changed. But the show remains story-focused. However, in that fourth episode, ideologies and quotas come heavily to the fore and overshadow the show’s story. Female characters begin to dominate so much that Batman/Bruce almost seems to become secondary.
Besides that, there’s another element of this show that I’ve found bothersome: the dialogue, particularly for the female characters, seems too modern. Notice a couple of lines from Barbara Gordon in episode 7: “We’re doing THIS again?”; “Jesus, dad, haven’t you ever heard of mitigating circumstances?” Even if you argued that these expressions might have been used in the 1940s, the voice actress’ tone and cadence is absolutely modern and out of place. Dr. Quinzel and Montoya have the same problem. All three characters speak with a strong valley-girl influence and the occasional vocal fry, which would not become prominent in speech for decades after the show is set. It always immediately takes me out of the period-accurate mood that the show has so painstakingly created in its animation style.
This would be such an easy problem to fix; just a matter of studying a few movies from the era and the way people spoke. Even better, some of the voice actresses could adopt the beautiful transatlantic accent in their performances. It was very common in noir films of the age and would be much more befitting of the show’s world and atmosphere.
Overall, this show had great potential. The noir atmosphere is seductive, and Batman’s design and characterization are good. But it seems to me — and I have no political affiliation — that the show is not free to simply tell good stories; it also has to promote certain sociopolitical messages regarding weight, sex, color, and so forth. Also, the show needs to commit to its 1940s setting, in animation, script, and delivery. No, there’s no need to depict injustices with complete accuracy, such as the racial inequities of the time. But it should be more responsible and subtle in how it differs from the realities of the period. As it is, the show tries to balance a 1940s aesthetic against modern speech and sensibilities. This detracts from what are otherwise very good stories and weakens the series. How sad.
