--Anticipating upcoming superhero movies and TV shows while reverencing the classics
In the 60's The Batman Superman Hour packaged episodes of Batman and Superman / Superboy into a single programming block, but the heroes themselves never actually met.
The two first met in the 70's when both were members of the Super Friends team.
The pair again teamed up in against partners Lex Luthor and the Joker in the Superman Animated series episodes "Worlds Finest." Later on the series, Superman would team with Robin donning the Batman guise when Bruce Wayne went missing. The two would continue to work together as teammates on The Justice League.
A Batman vs . Superman movie was almost made a few years ago, but was cancelled at the last minute. A visual homage to the canceled project can be spied in I Am Legend.
"The Batman Superman Story" episodes of The Batman series' fifth season, much like in Public Enemies, opened with the two heroes facing off against the kryptonite powered cyborg Metallo.
Tomorrow we will see if this latest team up is worthy of the two heroes, but I imagine this isn't the last we will see of the two DC powerhouses sharing screen time.
Fall of 2010 brought the DC direct to DVD line its very first sequel. Superman Batman: Apocalypse was a follow up to Public Enemies, and an adaptation of the 2nd story arc in the Superman Batman comic, Supergirl. True to the source, Supergirl has a big presence here, but unlike the comic, Batman doesn't.
Although Batman is important to the story, as the movie goes along, he becomes more and more of a supporting character giving Wonder Woman and Supergirl a bit more of the spotlight (along with Superman of course).
Still, Bats did get a couple of good sequences, even standing toe-to-toe with Darkseid before fading away to let Supergirl and Superman finish out the movie.
The movie's brief pre-credits opening summarized the 1980's Death in the Family storyline in which the second Robin, Jason Todd, was brutally murdered by the Joker (as a result of a phone-in campaign in which fans opted for the bratty side-kick to die). Unfortunately, the inclusion of this sequence, though vital to the story, kinda spoils some of the movie's mystery.
Soon enough the masked Red Hood is introduced. This anti-hero's identity is not immediately revealed, but I will just say its the same guy it was in the more recent Under the Hood comic book arc.
Fortunately, the movie gave Red Hood a much improved origin than the comic, opting to include Lazarus pit loving Ra's Al Ghul rather than continuity punching Superboy-Prime (don't ask).
Much of the story focused on Red Hoods quest to take control of crime in Gotham from the gangster Black Mask, an underused and lesser known on screen Bat villain.
Of course, no classic Batman movie would be complete without the Joker, this time played as a real creepy and lethal psycho who gets some comeuppance.
Dick Grayson also appeared in the Nightwing persona.
Throughout the story there were lots of dark moments, making the lighthearted flashbacks featuring a young enthusiastic Jason Todd as Robin (as well as a campy Riddler) all the more tragically heart wrenching.
Fisher Price has gone above and beyond to promote their DC Super Friends line of Imaginext toys by creating an animated short titled The Joker's Playhouse. While Superman and Batman were showcased, Green Lantern, Cyborg, Hawkman, and Flash also did their best to convince kids they were toy worthy. The toys have been around for a couple years, but a new wave looks to be arriving in 2011.
The clip opens with an homage to the old Super Friends show, but Wonder Woman, Aquaman and Robin don't actually appear in the episode- but even Booster Gold got a cameo.
The heroes face off with the Joker in the Hall of Justice along with a couple of other baddies who may end up as toys including Gorilla Grodd, an "ice-sliding" Mr. Freeze, and Solomon Grundy. This is the kind of commercial you just don't mind sitting through.
1960's Live Action
Batman with Robin the Boy Wonder
Batman on Scooby Doo
The New Adventures of Batman
The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians
Batman 1989
Batman: The Animated Series
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
The New Batman Adventures
The New Batman Adventures, Legends of the Dark Knight episode
Static Shock
Gotham Girls web series
Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker
Justice League
Birds of Prey opening sequence
The Batman
The Batman Vs. Dracula
Justice League: The New Frontier cameo
The Dark Knight
Alternate world Red Hood in Batman: The Brave and the Bold
Batman: The Brave and the Bold
Alternate world Jester in Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths
Batman: Under the Red Hood
