Beware The Batman: Joker-Free

[ARNie]

Beware the Batman will join the DC Nation block on Cartoon Network next year, and producers Glen Murakami and Mitch Watson said it will be fresh take on the popular superhero. IGN talked to the pair before the DC Nation panel at Comic-Con about what to expect.

They duo told us they really want to get back to Batman’s detective roots. Watson says this series will be different in three prominent ways: “One: it’s the first CGI Batman show which is a huge part of it. Two: we’re taking Batman far back into his roots of being a detective. At its core, the show is a procedural. Even though Batman has his gadgets and his gear and his cars, at his core, it’s about a guy looking at clues and figuring things out and putting the pieces together so that ultimately he can solve the crime with his brain as opposed to just with his fists. And the third biggest difference is that you’re not going to see any villains that have ever been shown before in any animated show. There’s no Joker, Penguin, or Riddler. It’s all new villains pulled from the DC universe who are either well known or not known at all. All of those things give the show a completely different feel than shows in the past.”

Since the regular rogue's gallery is out of the picture, you can expect to see Pig and Toad, Anarchy, Metamorpho, Humpty Dumpty, and Magpie among others. Another departure from the typical Batman is his choice of partner. Murakami says she is not a sidekick. “There’s a reason Katana was brought in; there’s a connection with Alfred… She never really becomes a sidekick, she has a past.” He confirmed the Soultaker storyline will play a part. Regarding Katana, he also said, “I don’t think we’re changing it just to change it. I think we’re trying to find new takes on the character, and we want a different dynamic.” Also, Katana is an inspiration for Barbara Gordon in the series. Murakami said, “When she sees Katana in action, it’s her first inkling that girls can do that kind of stuff.”

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How does this make you feel?

[disguiseartist1]

I actually like the idea, to be honest. Anarky was always a pretty cool villain so I'm happy he and the lesser-regarded villains are getting a chance to shine. Besides, I doubt the no-Joker rule will last forever. Brave and the Bold had a similar rule at the beginning but they brought in Joker for the first season finale and then afterwards started using the top tier villains again.

Also if Barbara Gordon is a computer expert and not Batgirl I hope this means we'll get Oracle. My only real gripe is that if they want to use lesser known characters and wanted to give Batman a young Asian woman as a sidekick (I'm going to assume at least partially for diversity), I don't understand why they didn't use Cassandra Cain instead of Katana. But who knows, maybe they can use her down the line.

[laura silverman]

So basically its Batman:CSI. Ya know, that actually sounds pretty cool.