Yes, we’re as surprised as you are that this week—which marks the 25th anniversary of one of our absolute favorite shows of all time, Batman: The Animated Series—The Dot and Line isn’t rolling out the Bat Signal and publishing a nauseating number of pieces about what we’d argue is, without question the definitive screen portrayal of the Caped Crusader and his crazy capers, full stop. (Our forthcoming BoJack Week will be worth the omission, we promise.) But that certainly hasn’t left a hole in coverage.
Some of our favorites from that coverage? Well, for one, there’s this piece over at 13th Dimension, in which B:TAS artist Kevin Nowlan shows some of his preliminary drawings of its most famous characters. And they’re stunning. I mean, just his Frank Gorshin–inspired Riddler has this E. Nygma fanboy giggling about puzzles and traps.
And then there’s this big blasting Batboy exposé over at The Hollywood Reporter. Here are some highlights:
Tim Curry, not Mark Hamill, was the first choice for the Joker. He came down with bronchitis (and resurfaced in the Congo), so he was canned. Cruel, maybe, but serendipitous for those of us who think just Hamill’s laugh is enough to cement him as the greatest Clown Prince of all time. (It gave us some great Trump digs, too.)
Kevin Conroy wanted to perform two distinct voices for Batman and Bruce Wayne. So you can thank your lucky stars that showrunner (and recent huge mistake–maker) Bruce Timm was visited in a dream by Doctor Destiny and saw a vision of the Nolanverse’s Christian Bale Batvoice and woke up screaming and drenched in sweat.
Danny Elfman, who scored both of Tim Burton’s Batman films, also scored the Animated Series’ opening titles. The rest of the show’s brilliant score emanated from the brainspace of one Shirley Walker.
Conroy thinks “Perchance to Dream” was the series’ best episode. That’s the season one story in which Bruce Wayne wakes up in a world created by the Mad Hatter, in which his parents had never died and he’s engaged to the woman behind Catwoman’s mask, Selina Kyle.
Voice director Andrea Romano was the show’s real hero. But that’s barely a secret. If you’ve ever read this site before, you knew that already.
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