Although Batman was largely absent during the course of the movie, it was a wise idea to let the new blood take over, at least for a while. Following Son of Batman--which I didn't care for--and Batman vs Robin, this latest installment of the 'family saga' involves the disappearance of Bruce Wayne/Batman. Nightwing (Dick Grayson) and Damien Wayne (Batman's son) fill in and try to solve the mystery of the Bat's vanishing act, and two new additions also make their appearance, Batwoman (well voiced by Yvonne Strahovski) and Lucius Fox's son, Luke. There's also a very nice cameo appearance at the end by Barbara Gordon (Batgirl) and her outfit is pretty decent. In fact, all of the outfits are solidly drawn and Batwing's armor--shades of Ironman and War Machine--is pretty cool as well.
Capably written and voiced well by the entire cast, the plot of the movie has Batman disappearing at the hands of a villain known as the Heretic. A number of other baddies make their appearance--the Mad Hatter chief among them--and the leader of the gang turns out to be none other than Talia Al-Ghul, daughter of the late (maybe, always hoping for a retcon job) R'as Al-Ghul. It seems they're into mind control, and without giving too much of the plot away, they're out to get their piece of the world and need Batman in order to achieve their goal.
While fans may be disappointed at not having Batman keep the lion's share of screen time, it actually works better having the replacements try to find their way in a Bat-less world. Nightwing has the hardest job of all, keeping the disparate elements together, and to Jay Oliva's (director) credit, he manages to make it all work.
The pluses of the movie are many. Although I miss Kevin Conroy voicing Bats, Jason O'Mara does a solid job. Yvonne Strahovski is excellent as Batwoman, and Sean Maher as Nightwing lends a nice touch to the proceedings. There were no drawbacks in the voice casting from my point of view...fine work all around, and Robin Atkins-Downs as the Mad Hatter is appropriately creepy.
The music was good, the direction by Oliva kept things hopping, and the animation, much like in Batman: Gotham Night, was solid. Maybe not the best ever, but not weak by any means. The only drawback was a certain coldness to it all, a lack of depth in the emotions of the characters. Other than that, this is a movie any Batman fan would be proud to have.
Capably written and voiced well by the entire cast, the plot of the movie has Batman disappearing at the hands of a villain known as the Heretic. A number of other baddies make their appearance--the Mad Hatter chief among them--and the leader of the gang turns out to be none other than Talia Al-Ghul, daughter of the late (maybe, always hoping for a retcon job) R'as Al-Ghul. It seems they're into mind control, and without giving too much of the plot away, they're out to get their piece of the world and need Batman in order to achieve their goal.
While fans may be disappointed at not having Batman keep the lion's share of screen time, it actually works better having the replacements try to find their way in a Bat-less world. Nightwing has the hardest job of all, keeping the disparate elements together, and to Jay Oliva's (director) credit, he manages to make it all work.
The pluses of the movie are many. Although I miss Kevin Conroy voicing Bats, Jason O'Mara does a solid job. Yvonne Strahovski is excellent as Batwoman, and Sean Maher as Nightwing lends a nice touch to the proceedings. There were no drawbacks in the voice casting from my point of view...fine work all around, and Robin Atkins-Downs as the Mad Hatter is appropriately creepy.
The music was good, the direction by Oliva kept things hopping, and the animation, much like in Batman: Gotham Night, was solid. Maybe not the best ever, but not weak by any means. The only drawback was a certain coldness to it all, a lack of depth in the emotions of the characters. Other than that, this is a movie any Batman fan would be proud to have.