http://www.justpressplay.net/movies/batman...ed-prequel.html

This looks interesting, or at least will be an odd diversion and at the very least a way to get people pumped up about the new Batman movie. It seems that the creator of the original Batman the animated series Bruce Timm has been teamed with a bunch different writers, featuring animation from 3 of the best studios in Japan: Studio 4C, Madhouse, and Production IG.

I also found a rumor that Satoshi Kon (Paranoia Agent) might be involved, I'm not sure if I totally trust it, though Catsuka is usually a good source for information:

http://www.catsuka.com/news_detail.php?id=1187034155 (yes it is in french)...


Of course this whole thing begs the old debate, is this really anime? Is this any more anime than Tekkon Kinkreet, a film written and directed by americans that is in Japanese?

I don't think that should really matter in this case.

I mean even if it doesn't meet the strictest anime criteria doesn't mean that it will be any less awesome. I think in this case we should just kick back and enjoy seeing Batman cartoons with a darker feel and high quality animation.

P.S. I know I make an assumption that it will be awesome and I know what happens when one assumes things. However, I can state with confidence that these will be better than that shitty The Batman cartoon they ran on the WB or CW or whatever they call it these days.

I agree, but I am trying to create discussion ;). This batman thing most likely will rock...


Also am I the only one that likes to think of Jin Roh as being sort of a more grown up version of what it felt like to watch batman when I was little?

I mean both are highly gloomy animated things with a kind of noirish vintage feel, that feel far more dark and intense than most anime(ation) out there...

Finally the early 90s batman the animated series on Fox Kids was way better than the late 90s one they did on Kids WB... at least they saved themselves with Batman Beyond, which wasn't as good as the original, but made up for how sucky the late 90s batman was. :P

Don't get me started on THE Batman.. it doesn't count :P

Ah, God, I loved watching Batman: The Animated Series once I got home from kindergarten...
And let us not forget Batman and Robin's multiple cameos in the Scooby Doo series (plus the '68 cartoon series "The Batman Adventures")...

I'm pretty excited over this animated prelude-- they're really bringing promotions to a new level with Dark Knight. I wish I lived in a major city so I could get in on the fun Joker missions... I hate you Columbus and Cleveland people! Ugh...

I've never seen Jin Roh, so I dunno... I'll have to check that out. Big O had that sort of affect on me, but that's a "no duh" statement. Hahah. Though I think Batman: The Animated Series wasn't really much of a kid's show.

Yeah I heard about the promotions stuff... Chicago is supposed to be one of those cities... though Chicago is also where much of the movie was filmed...

I need to re-watch Batman Returns to figure out if where I work is where they put the CG slum in the movie...

Ditto on kids show comment, Batman is one of the few cartoons I watched growing up that didn't age badly, or relied on nostalgia for me to like them ;) - In fact I like some episodes way more now that I am grown up - thinks of episodes like "Feat of Clay" or the Mr. Fries ones. :)

Finally... Jin Roh Trailer if you would like to make sense out of my kind of vague comparison of the two:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=8oui3kAkUqE

Also if you don't mind spoilers, here is a amv that really captures the feel of the movie:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtL9FktVICo

I don't know: would you call the Batman/Superman movie "anime" since it was directed by Masuda Toshihiko?

It's hard to subscribe to the "anime is animated by Japanese" theory, as more and more anime actually isn't animated by Japanese anymore; Tenjho Tenge and numerous episodes of Angel Heart come readily to mind. And although it might be debatable if Angel Heart is anime, Tenjho Tenge is definitely anime.

And then there's the flipside to that argument with series like Superbook and The Flying House. I don't think anyone would claim that those are anime.

Personally, I wouldn't call this new Batman title anime.

But I'll still watch it.