Unless your name is George Clooney, it's hard to mess up Batman as a character. It's just in the Batman's nature to be as brash as possible, without any effort whatsoever. When it comes to adaptations of this much-maligned batman, it rarely gets better than Bruce Timm's legendary Batman: The Animated Series, a thoroughly phenomenal comic book adventure that not only captured Tim Burton's gothic cinematic atmosphere but also established itself as one of the best Batman interpretations ever.
Batman: Caped Crusader follows in the footsteps of The Animated Series but in art deco guise, with Matt Reeves and J.J. Abrams on board as co-producers. Like Reeves' film adaptation, we follow Batman's first steps in his thankless vigilante career, where he quickly learns that he can't afford to make any mistakes to keep Gotham safe and it takes several missteps before he realises the importance of the crusade he's started against crime. And he's not alone once he finds allies in the Gordons, some of the few souls in law enforcement who haven't fallen prey to Gotham City's deep-rooted corruption.
The 30s aesthetic is appealing with its fedora hats and machine guns, and the noir atmosphere is dense. In terms of story, however, it falters at first. It is noticeable that the creators of the series find it difficult to re-establish some of the plot points with conviction, as the rogue's gallery, which is usually Batman's strength, feels more routine at this point. Sometimes the animation also felt a little too stiff and the anonymous music cannot compete with, for example, Shirley Walker's pompous composition from The Animated Series. Caped Crusader obviously tries to capture the same twisted darkness of The Animated Series, but the more adult tone is also more imprecise and a bit toothless.
It's only when the show's creators abandon the masquerade party and focus on the mob and the Dent drama that everything suddenly just clicks. After a few half-baked episodes, the show suddenly lights up halfway through and it's hard to tear yourself away from the TV couch. Everything just clicks. The storytelling also becomes more confident, tighter. Hamish Linklater is no Kevin Conroy, but Linklater gives both Wayne and his dark persona a psychological edge in portraying the vengeful playboy billionaire. The stiff animation is forgotten once the leather gloves are wrapped around the viewer's throat.
Towards the final scene of the season, we are reminded why Batman is as popular as he is: Caped Crusader proves once again that Batman is an inexhaustible source of smart crime drama and strong characterisations. Caped Crusader may not be as memorable and colourful as The Animated Series, to which it is inevitably compared, but it is a promising start to a new chapter in the Batman's long life.
