The new comics are in today. TODAY.
I did a brief (by necessity) Twitter review, but I’ll say just a little more about the new Batman: Gotham Knights DVD
. I thought it was okay, not as good as the previous DC direct-to-DVD animated efforts, but certainly better than some of Marvel’s recent cartoons. Even at only an hour and fifteen minutes, it still felt a bit draggy in parts…I thought that bit with detectives Allen and Ramirez in the car went on for, what, an hour? Two? The action was nicely done, though, when Batman was actually on screen doing something. It’s certainly pretty to look at.
My favorite segments were the first, with the group of kids each telling each other stories about meeting Batman…we’ve seen this on the Animated Series before, but it still works here, even if the ending is telegraphed a mile away; and the last segment, with Batman versus Deadshot…probably the most like the “traditional” Batman from the comics, unlike, say, “Super Anime Bruce” from one of the middle segments.
Despite that, I’m not down at all on the various visual interpretations of Batman in the film. I may have had a hard time buying that anime Bruce in the “Field Test” story, but the design of Batman in that segment was nice and creepy. Like I said…visually, it’s a treat, but the pacing felt off to me. Maybe I’ll give it another go, and see if it holds together a little better for me a second time.
I also forgot this was supposed to be set in the Batman Begins/The Dark Knight “universe” until the film version of Lucius Fox turns up. And, that guy at the far left in the still up there…did that look a bit like the Creeper to anyone else, or was it just me?
And hearing Batman’s primary animation voice from the last few years, Kevin Conroy, coming out of those different versions of the character was a little disconcerting at first. Just had a hard time matching that up with my memories of the TV cartoons. But that counts as a “Mike problem,” not a “DVD movie problem.”
In other news:
- Thanks for all the comments and suggestions on my post about what pal Andy called “Peanuts Futurism.” This Achewood strip Max pointed out will depress you immensely.
- Once again they’re trying to make an Elfquest movie. Well, it’s not my bag, but I know people dig this elf thing, and, the Pinis were nice when I met them, so hopefully this time will be the charm.
“ASHTON KUTCHER IS ‘CUTTER’ IN ELFQUEST: THE MOVIE…COMING THIS SUMMER FROM MICHAEL BAY.”
- More to do with comics than comic books: thanks to a tip from Customer Glenn, I found that Amazon.com has the full George Carlin album Carlin on Campus
Anyway, I thought that was a great deal, and I have no idea how long it’ll last, so I wanted to pass it along to you folks, if you were interested.
