DC Animation ‘Batman: Caped Crusader’: Animated Series From Bruce Timm, J.J. Abrams, Matt Reeves Greenlit

[BobJM]

Lol at the final scene of the season. They can’t help themselves! But hopefully this means we’ll be getting another season because I really dug this. Even Oswalda Cobblepot.

 

[Gamma Goliath]

Wasn't this already confirmed for season 2?

 

[flickchick85]

Wasn't this already confirmed for season 2?

Yep, S2’s been in production for a bit.

 

[Invader Joker]

I would take those quotes with a huge cup of salt. You are giving Timm way too much credit and authority over this show. He helped develop the show and has some story credits, but he is not a writer or director on this show. Timm is very much an attention ****e and gloryhog who tried to pull a Bob Kane and exclude Paul Dini from credit for Harley Quinn's creation.

The showrunner here is Ed Brubaker and this is very clearly Brubaker's baby. Brubaker is very much a fan of a humanist Batman. Him and Rucka were two of the lead writers on Murderer/Fugitive which is very much a rejection of the excesses of jerk Batman from the later 90s comics and centers around an arc involving Bruce reconnecting with his humanity and compassion.

The showrummer here is Bruce Timm.

 

[kguillou]

Even though i very much would want this to remain its own self contained thing….i wouldnt be opposed to seeing maybe in season 3 a one episode team up with a Max Fleischer style Superman.

 

[Gamma Goliath]

I had the exam same thought while watching this.

 

[DKDetective]

The showrummer here is Bruce Timm.

No, it is not. Brubaker is head writer:
'Batman: Caped Crusader' Animated Show Taps Comics Creator Ed Brubaker as Head Writer
Head writer = showrunner.

 

[Pennywise]

No, it is not. Brubaker is head writer. Head writer = show runner.

Said this in another thread, but it’s a bummer Brubaker isn’t coming back for S2!

His presence will be missed.

 

[DKDetective]

Said this in another thread, but it’s a bummer Brubaker isn’t coming back for S2!

His presence will be missed.

He isn't? That really sucks. I don't have great hopes for season 2 now.

 

[kguillou]

i wonder why Brubaker exited…

 

[Filmfreak]

He's currently the showrunner and creator of the Criminal adaptation based on his work, so maybe that takes a big chunk of his time.

 

[Kane52630]

No, it is not. Brubaker is head writer:
'Batman: Caped Crusader' Animated Show Taps Comics Creator Ed Brubaker as Head Writer
Head writer = showrunner.

Animation showrunners are a little different since they also manage the animation department. Looking at every publication for CC, Timm is labeled as a "showrunner".

 

[Invader Joker]

No, it is not. Brubaker is head writer:
'Batman: Caped Crusader' Animated Show Taps Comics Creator Ed Brubaker as Head Writer
Head writer = showrunner.

Gonna send over the same thing I said on another thread:

That is a bunch of BS lol. In every single interview you can find of the development of the show, and I do mean every single one, they make it extraordinarily clear that this show is Timm's baby through and through and that is what he wanted to do since even before he did TAS. Even going back to the DC Fandome panel announcement they did Matt explicitly stated that his and JJ Abrams purpose on it was to support TImm's vision. The people at WBTV that greenlit the show explicitly stated that this was Timm's vision.


Matt Reeves: To be honest with you the most exciting part is I can't wait to see how it turns
out. I can't wait to see all of this come together. I'm a fan and I just want to see what Bruce does.

Batman: Caped Crusader Is ‘Everything Bruce Timm Wanted to Do’ with Batman: The Animated Series

Executive Vice President of Alternative Programming for Warner Bros. Animation Peter Girardi has revealed Bruce Timm‘s approach to the upcoming Prime Video series Batman: Caped Crusader. What did Peter Girardi say about Bruce Timm & Batman: Caped Crusader? In an Annecy summary article by...

www.yahoo.com

Why ‘Batman: The Animated Series’ Creator Bruce Timm Finally Returned to Gotham City With ‘Caped Crusader’

Batman: Caped Crusader, launching on Prime Video, is a spiritual successor to Batman: The Animated Series and Bruce Timm talks all about it

www.thewrap.com

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Every single show or movie is the result of a village, especially when there are writer's rooms involved as was the case with this, but it was Timm who came up with the show and the primary vision of what it is comes from him (tho in all fairness he did get nudged by Tucker into coming up with it at all, but like stated before there, even that was Tucker going "Yeah yeah but is there something else you want to do?" and Timm responding and them doing that). Even things like Brubaker's involvement you'd have to credit Timm since it was also Timm who hired Brubaker. He's the showrunner, he literally runs the show.

Batman: Caped Crusader Came Out of a Pitch to Revisit Bruce Timm's Classic Animated Series

Batman: Caped Crusader Came Out of a Pitch to Revisit Bruce Timm's Classic Animated Series

www.emmys.com

Here, Timm, who is also serving as showrunner, and Tucker, the show’s coexecutive producer, take part in a Bat-chat about how this new chapter in Batman’s story came to fruition.

Why do you think that is?

Timm: He had an ulterior motive for it. He didn’t tell me at the time, but it was like, “I hear what you’re saying, but if you had a chance to go back, aren’t there things you wanted to do with the show that you couldn’t do back then, either because of broadcast standards and practices, or because the show evolved away from where you originally did it?” And the more we talked about it, it was like, “Yeah, there was a ton of stuff, actually.” My original idea was to make [BTAS] set more deliberately in the 1940s, not just a ‘40s-ish world like Tim Burton did. I’d really love to have seen it with rotary dial phones and no computers and all that stuff. So, the more we started talking about [doing a show more in the vein of BTAS], by the end of that conversation, I was all in on the idea. Then nothing really happened for a while. James was working on a couple of different projects, and I had some direct-to-video movies I was working on. It kind of sat on the backburner for a while.

James Tucker also reiterated on Twitter it was Timm's vision that guided the whole show. If you wanna die on the hill that the show isn't representative of the vision from the dude that came up with the entire pitch, showran it and whom all the other producers credit as the primary vision for the show that's your prerogative but that's a hell of a hill to die on. I'd have to find the source on this too, but I distinctly remember one of the writers (might've even been Brubaker) referring to Caped Crusader's writing room as "Bruce Timm's writing room", but regardless even if I can't find it I think literally every single other statement and report should make it very clear. Hell, Hamish stated that Timm was involved in the recording sessions too.

Timm very obviously loves Brubaker as a writer so he hired him for the show, but make no mistake, Brubaker was very much executing Timm's vision.

 

[flickchick85]

There's a reason Timm has no actual teleplay credit on this show. Dude ain't a real writer. He's an animator/designer. He pitched the concept/setting/designs, but this is still television, and in television, writing is always king.

And once again, @Invader Joker , drop the condescension. Had to say that to you too many times in recent weeks. Won't say it again.

 

[DeadlyWest]

He isn't? That really sucks. I don't have great hopes for season 2 now.

It literally just comes down to scheduling conflicts, so it wouldn't surprise me if Brubaker returns for a possible season 3 or even just steps down for this season to only do one episode. Also Rucka seems to be dipping his toes in the pond as well (he has a writing credit for episode 2, I wanna say?). It's sad, but doesn't spell the end for Season 2 persay. It's not like the show's going in a direction Brubaker disagrees with

Also yeah I've binged 8 episodes and Jesus Christ this is some good ass Batman. It does seem a touch too confined with the 25 minute episode duration, I think around 35 would've been perfect just because the pacing sometimes feels a little rushed. I also just have general preferencetial differences with certain characters (namely Harvey). But overall, as I said, this be some good ass Batman

 

[Kane52630]

 

[Omegabat]

I would take those quotes with a huge cup of salt. You are giving Timm way too much credit and authority over this show. He helped develop the show and has some story credits, but he is not a writer or director on this show. Timm is very much an attention ****e and gloryhog who tried to pull a Bob Kane and exclude Paul Dini from credit for Harley Quinn's creation.

The showrunner here is Ed Brubaker and this is very clearly Brubaker's baby. Brubaker is very much a fan of a humanist Batman. Him and Rucka were two of the lead writers on Murderer/Fugitive which is very much a rejection of the excesses of jerk Batman from the later 90s comics and centers around an arc involving Bruce reconnecting with his humanity and compassion.

I'm not aware of any conflict between Timm and Dini over Harley rights so I can't speak to that.

However this show is clearly Timm's vision guided by Brubaker's writing if that makes sense. It was Timm who developed this series with Tucker, it was Timm who got Brubaker on board and Timm's returning for a second season whereas Brubaker isn't. Timm certainly has his flaws and unlike Dini I don't think his knowledge or understanding of Batman has evolved since BTAS days for example whereas Dini clearly has absorbed and accepted what the mythos is now compared to back then.

I also disagree with your assessment about Brubaker and Rucka rejecting Batjerk or something like that. Their Batman WAS the jerk and it was Grant Morrison who put their status quo to bed when they took over. Prior to Rucka/Brubaker the Batman line was guided by Dennis O'Neil with Chuck Dixon, Alan Grant and Doug Moench executing the writing. Their Batman was acceptable. It was Brubaker and Rucka who went overboard with Batjerk.

 

[DeadlyWest]

It literally just comes down to scheduling conflicts, so it wouldn't surprise me if Brubaker returns for a possible season 3 or even just steps down for this season to only do one episode. Also Rucka seems to be dipping his toes in the pond as well (he has a writing credit for episode 2, I wanna say?). It's sad, but doesn't spell the end for Season 2 persay. It's not like the show's going in a direction Brubaker disagrees with

Also yeah I've binged 8 episodes and Jesus Christ this is some good ass Batman. It does seem a touch too confined with the 25 minute episode duration, I think around 35 would've been perfect just because the pacing sometimes feels a little rushed. I also just have general preferencetial differences with certain characters (namely Harvey). But overall, as I said, this be some good ass Batman

I thought it was 8, but it was actually 7. I just watched Episode 8 and...

yeah this is some of the best Batman I've seen in years

 

[J.Drangal]

So, episode 5, "The Stress of Her Regard".
Pretty good overall.

I like what they've done with Harley. I wondered if this iteration would simply be a "reversed" version of the classic one, but it actually stands on its own even if not perfect.
I like the fact that they're putting her profession as a psychiatrist at the heart of the story, and even if it's reaching a bit, I get how the jester motif has found a new footing with the whole "overthrowing-the-kings" symbolique and overall madness.

Batman's investigation is perhaps a little too "simple": he's immediately on the right track.
I'd have accepted it a bit more if Bruce had been more suspicious of Quinzel in previous episodes.

Also, I think there's a missed opportunity here to really get her into Batman's head.
The concept feel slighty wasted to me. Anyway...

I still found the production getting better and better, but there's still some really rough shots in some places...
Some stunning backgrounds here again though!

------​

Now, halfway through the season, I have to say one thing: I don't find the writing as adult as advertised.
Sure, there's death and corpses, but so far, things seem pretty Manichean to me. I've yet to see characters with nuance or depth like Mr Freeze or even Clayface in BTAS.
This, coupled with some secondary characters design that looks more Hergé than Timm (in proportions and facial features), the series actually feels more childlike to me than its predecessor.
But from what I can gather from other people's reactions, things get darker in the second half, so I'll have to wait and see!

I'm still enjoying the show though!

 

[Invader Joker]

There's a reason Timm has no actual teleplay credit on this show. Dude ain't a real writer. He's an animator/designer. He pitched the concept/setting/designs, but this is still television, and in television, writing is always king.

It is a fact that everyone involved in this show specifically refers to it as Timm's vision. It is a fact he's the showrunner. Even Brubaker himself was guided by what Timm wanted to execute on the show. I can guarantee you there's not a single thing on this show that didn't go through without his approval. Timm is waaaay smarter than he gets credit for so he hired other people that he admires to help him execute that vision, but it is undoubtedly his vision. All those people you saw on the credits? Yeah they were hired by Timm and specifically guided by him.

Also, once again, I'll have to look for the quote but the writers made it very clear he was very much involved in the writing room. Don't know how animation credits work, but you don't really need to look further than the comments of every single person involved in the show. He wasn't credited as "voice director" either but we know from Hamish that he was also involved in that as well.

I get you guys hate him for a couple things he did that you didn't like, but to discredit him that massively against all the evidence to the contrary is just lame as hell.

 

[Invader Joker]

I'm not aware of any conflict between Timm and Dini over Harley rights so I can't speak to that.

However this show is clearly Timm's vision guided by Brubaker's writing if that makes sense. It was Timm who developed this series with Tucker, it was Timm who got Brubaker on board and Timm's returning for a second season whereas Brubaker isn't.

It really isn't that different from how directors have to hire costume designers, cinematographers, etc to execute their vision. Yeah, Matt Reeves didn't personally design the batsuit, that was Glyn Dillon and his partner, but they were still ultimately hired to execute Reeves vision and anything they did had to go through him. It's the same thing here. Timm is the showrunner, the show is his vision, he knows he isn't as good as breaking down story or whatever so he hired people that did and guided them according to what he wanted to accomplish. The argument I'm making isn't that he's the only person responsible for making the show, but that he ran it (again, showrunner) and everything this season did is something he wanted it to do and the show won't move in any way he doesn't want it to.

 

[flickchick85]

It is a fact that everyone involved in this show specifically refers to it as Timm's vision. It is a fact he's the showrunner. Even Brubaker himself was guided by what Timm wanted to execute on the show. I can guarantee you there's not a single thing on this show that didn't go through without his approval. Timm is waaaay smarter than he gets credit for so he hired other people that he admires to help him execute that vision, but it is undoubtedly his vision. All those people you saw on the credits? Yeah they were hired by Timm and specifically guided by him.

Also, once again, I'll have to look for the quote but the writers made it very clear he was very much involved in the writing room. Don't know how animation credits work, but you don't really need to look further than the comments of every single person involved in the show. He wasn't credited as "voice director" either but we know from Hamish that he was also involved in that as well.

I get you guys hate him for a couple things he did that you didn't like, but to discredit him that massively against all the evidence to the contrary is just lame as hell.

You’re free to that opinion, but I’ve been following Bruce Timm since BTAS - his stuff is ONLY good when he hires great writers because he himself does not have a great handle on the basics of character and story and never has, and him being the poster child for this, as he has been for all things he does, doesn’t change that. What you’re describing - the guy who hired everyone to make “his vision” - is the role of an executive producer, which just so happens to be what he’s credited for here. I never said he deserves no credit, but to me the highlight of this show is the actual writing, and that’s what I rightfully credit to other people. The thing I’ll credit him for is having a solid eye for talent.

Him being a rather crappy person on top of that is irrelevant.

 

[Eddie Dean]

Wishlist characters for season two?

I need The Monk, Mr Freeze and Hugo Strange.

 

[Shinobi Shaw]

You’re free to that opinion, but I’ve been following Bruce Timm since BTAS - his stuff is ONLY good when he hires great writers because he himself does not have a great handle on the basics of character and story and never has, and him being the poster child for this, as he has been for all things he does, doesn’t change that. What you’re describing - the guy who hired everyone to make “his vision” - is the role of an executive producer, which just so happens to be what he’s credited for here. I never said he deserves no credit, but to me the highlight of this show is the actual writing, and that’s what I rightfully credit to other people. The thing I’ll credit him for is having a solid eye for talent.

Him being a rather crappy person on top of that is irrelevant.

That being said, I give Brubaker and the Ebo sisters all the credit in the world for their writing of the ladies on this show.

Babs, Selina and Montoya especially made the show for me.

 

[Invader Joker]

You’re free to that opinion, but I’ve been following Bruce Timm since BTAS - his stuff is ONLY good when he hires great writers because he himself does not have a great handle on the basics of character and story and never has, and him being the poster child for this, as he has been for all things he does, doesn’t change that. What you’re describing - the guy who hired everyone to make “his vision” - is the role of an executive producer, which just so happens to be what he’s credited for here.

What I'm describing is the role of the showrunner, which he is. You were comparing his involvement to Matt Reeves and JJ Abrams, who by every account were both extremely hands off with both explicitly saying they were only there to help make Timm's vision a reality. And also the argument that even made this conversation happen on this thread is that I was talking about how I doubt Batman will evolve too far beyond the cold persona shown in this season because one of the reasons this show even exists is because Timm wanted to do that version of Batman. And since he's literally running the show, I hope we can at least agree that the show definitely won't change that too much unless Timm wants it to.

Him being a rather crappy person on top of that is irrelevant.

Unless there's some scandal I don't know about, he really isn't.