Batman: The Brave and the Bold

Batman: The Brave and the Bold is an American animated television series based in part on the DC Comics series The Brave and the Bold which features two or more super heroes coming together to solve a crime or foil a super villain. As the title suggests, the cartoon focuses on Batman's regular "team-ups" with various heroes similar to the most well-known version of the original comic book series. The series premiered on November 14, 2008 on Cartoon Network in the United States, and ended on November 18, 2011.

Overview
Each episode of Batman: The Brave and the Bold features the main character (Batman) teaming up with other characters from the DC Universe to thwart villains or to solve crimes. Most episodes have a cold open with an escapade not related to the remainder of the episode, apart from the regular appearances and reappearances of a villain who will figure prominently in episodes to come. In the first season, the villain was Equinox, who later returned in "Time Out for Vengeance!"; and in the second season, the villain was the alien Starro. During production, the show's creator said that if a character's cold open appearance was deemed successful, then it may warrant exploring the character further in a future episode's main adventure.

The show has no overarching story, instead having most episodes stand alone. The show is lighter in tone than previous Batman series, depicting the Dark Knight as more lighthearted and playful with a "dry, ironic wit." The show features various references to various depictions of Batman in media, including the 1960s Batman TV series.

While the tone is lighter, the series has touched on the subject of death with such examples as retelling the murder of Thomas Wayne and Martha Wayne at the hands of Joe Chill, the death of the Silver Age Blue Beetle, the assassination of Boston Brand, the death of the first Black Canary, the execution of "Gentleman" Jim Craddock, and the self-sacrifice and death of B'wana Beast and the Doom Patrol. The tone of the series was addressed in the episode "Legends of the Dark Mite!", when Bat-Mite broke the fourth wall to read out this missive from one of the show's creators:

"Batman's rich history allows him to be interpreted in a multitude of ways. To be sure, this is a lighter incarnation, but it's certainly no less valid and true to the character's roots than the tortured avenger crying out for mommy and daddy."

Show creators have chosen to go with "lesser known" characters. In many instances, the characters are those that were repeatedly teamed with Batman in the 1970s run of the Brave and the Bold comic book, such as Green Arrow, Wildcat, Plastic Man, and even the Joker; thus, the characters have a look and feel akin to their Silver Age incarnations. While the show has featured major heroes such as the Green Lantern and the Flash, it consistently focuses on the lesser-known individuals to have carried the names, such as Guy Gardner and Jay Garrick, rather than the more popular, better known Hal Jordan or Barry Allen, until Barry appeared in the second season episode "Requiem for a Scarlet Speedster!" (though this episode centers around Kid Flash and Jay Garrick), while Hal appeared in the first season episode "The Eyes of Despero!", as well as the third season episode "The Scorn of Star Sapphire". In the episode "Bat-Mite Presents: Batman's Strangest Cases!", Batman even teamed up with Scooby-Doo and the Mystery, Inc. gang to defeat the Joker and the Penguin in a retelling of the similar crossovers from The New Scooby-Doo Movies.

Additionally, Batman's alter ego of billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne did not appear as an adult during the series in situations where Batman was unmasked. His face was kept hidden until the season 2 episode "Chill of the Night!" when Batman finally confronts Joe Chill. From this episode onwards, whenever Bruce Wayne appears, his face is no longer silhouetted (as in "The Knights of Tomorrow").

It was announced at the San Diego Comic Con 2010 that Batman: The Brave and the Bold would end after season three, which had 13 episodes. Production has begun on a new Batman animated series, set to return the character to a more serious tone.

Principal cast

 * Diedrich Bader – Batman, Kilowog, Ace, Owlman, Solomon Grundy, Punch, Gorilla Boss, Adult Damian/Future Batman, Lord Death Man, Creepy Usher, Caveman Batman, Pirate Batman, Batmanicus, Robot Batman, Musketeer
 * Corey Burton – Red Tornado, Silver Cyclone, Thomas Wayne (in "Invasion of the Secret Santas"), False-Face, Doctor Mid-Nite, Dr. William Milton Magnus, Mercury, Chancellor Gor-Zonn, General Zahl, Killer Moth, Batman (Bat-Manga version), Joker (Scooby-Doo version), Green Lantern/Alan Scott
 * John DiMaggio – Aquaman, Gorilla Grodd, Tiger Soldier, Typhon, Enemy Ace, Ubu, Faceless Hunter, Black Adam, Black Mask, Tattoo, Pharaoh, Toyman, Vigilante, Hellgrammite, Mr. Freeze, Legionnaire, Captain Boomerang, Owen
 * Will Friedle – Blue Beetle/Jaime Reyes, Scarlet Scarab, Lazy Eye
 * Tom Kenny – Plastic Man, Baby Face, Ray, Deadshot, Mirror Master, 'Mazing Man
 * James Arnold Taylor – Green Arrow, Blue Bowman, Green Lantern/Guy Gardner, Major Disaster, Wotan, Nabu, Mark Desmond, Arges, Leslie "Rocky" Davis, Alpha-Red, G.I. Robot, Jace

Special guest cast
• 3

Additional voices
• 3

Crew

 * Michael Jelenic – Producer, Story Editor
 * Amy McKenna – Line Producer
 * Sam Register – Executive Producer
 * Andrea Romano – Casting and Voice Director
 * James Tucker – Producer

Comic book


In January 2009, the first issue of Batman: the Brave and the Bold was released. The comic book follows the same format as the show, starting off with a brief teaser segment at the start of the book which features Batman teaming up with an additional hero for a short adventure unrelated to the rest of the issue. Several authors have contributed to the comic book series, including Matt Wayne, J. Torres and Landry Walker.

Some of the DC characters appearing in the comic have yet to appear in the show, or cannot appear at all due to legal reasons.

Certain characters such as Superman, Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel Jr., and Mary Marvel made appearances in the comic prior to actually appearing in the show, while other characters, such as Power Girl, Kid Eternity, Brother Power and Angel and the Ape, appeared in the comic without ever actually appearing on the show. In addition, the depictions of several characters in the comic book (notably Katana and Talia al Ghul) do not match up with their television counterparts, something that Brave and the Bold director Ben Jones stated stems from the comic artists not being given character reference sheets from the show's producers.

The Batman: The Brave and the Bold comic series began selling in the UK on March 11, 2010, published by Titan Magazines.

In late 2010, the series was relaunched as The All-New Batman: The Brave and the Bold, with the new creative team of Sholly Fisch and Rick Burchett. In order to devote more pages to the actual story, the teaser segments from the first series were dropped. This incarnation of the title lasted 16 issues. The final issue is a Valentine's-themed story featuring Batman, Batgirl, and Bat-Mite.

Home releases
The series has yet to be released on DVD in full season formats, like previous Batman series. However, a series of DVD volumes, with each containing 4–5 episodes, has been released. A two-disc collection of the first 13 episodes was released on August 17, 2010. Warner Bros. has listed on its website that Season 1, Part 2 was released on March 15, 2011, making the first series available both as separate volumes and two-part sets. Season Two, Part One was released on August 16, 2011. It contained 12 episodes and did not contain "The Siege of Starro!". Warner Home Video has confirmed that Season 2, Part 2 will be released on March 20, 2012. It will contain 14 episodes, including the two-part "The Siege of Starro". It will also contain the unaired on TV episode "The Mask of Matches Malone". The final release, Season 3, Complete, is scheduled for June 19, 2012. A Blu-ray set for the first season has been announced, however it will be released manufacture on demand via Warner Archive.

Video games

 * A video game inspired by the show was released on September 7, 2010, for the Wii and Nintendo DS by WayForward Technologies. The game is a 2D side-scroller for two players. Gentleman Ghost, Mongul, Catman, Gorilla Grodd, and Catwoman are major villains in the game. It also features the Rogues, Two-Face, Clock King, Copperhead, Sinestro, Astaroth, and Starro.


 * On May 6, 2010, DCBeyond.com launched a Unity 3D Batman: The Brave and the Bold game for fans to play for free online.

Soundtrack
In a follow-up to the episode "Mayhem of the Music Meister!", a soundtrack for that episode was released on October 24, 2009.

Track listing
The main theme has also been included on the The Music of DC Comics: 75th Anniversary Collection soundtrack.