Best DC animated universe animated Batman film ever...

[crazygameguy4ever]

which is the best DCAU animated Batman film ever? Batman & Mr Freeze: Subzero or Batman Mask of Phantasm..

I'll go first.. for me it Batman & Mr Freeze:Subzero.. why? because it continues the sympathetic Mr. Freeze from the amazing Batman TAS and gives a sort of finality to his character's arc (prior to his death in Batman Beyond episode "Meltdown") It allowed this character to finally have some good luck after so many years of bad things happening to him. He was stopped at getting revenge on Ferris Boyle for nearly killing him and his sick wife, he was given false hope of having his wife cured by the nutjob theme park guy Grant Walker and left to die after that episode.. but Mr.Freeze finally gets what he's wanted for years.. his wife restored to good health so she can live a normal life again. i'm not too fond of his head in robot body appearance in the New Batman Adventures afterwards which kind of ruin the finality of the Batman & Mr. Freeze:Subzero film, but ignoring that.. this could be considered a good happy ending for the character which is why it's better then Mask of the Phantasm. As good as that film is, it restores things to status quo by the end, rather then having a lasting impact for a major character... I do love both films and both are great, i just think overall Subzero is better..


So which one does everyone else think is better? There's no right or wrong answer. Just your opinion and why.

 

[Leemaster777]

Gotta go with Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker. Love the music, the action, and the story. Really felt like Terry proved himself as Batman in that movie. And, of course, it was nice to get some classic Mark Hamill in there. Seriously, how can you argue with this?


That's some seriously dark comedy, right there. Speaking of which, this is probably the darkest of ALL the DC animated universe movies. Hell, they actually had to censor it in several places just to air it on TV. (the above scene being one example)

 

[Zontar]

I prefer Mask of the Phantasm. Can't put my finger on it, but I think it might be how different his backstory is in it then, well, everything else we've see. I mean how close was he to not being batman at all?

 

[Kopikatsu]

Dark Knight Returns Part 2 is pretty good. Almost everyone dies.

 

[Scarim Coral]

Out of those two (why limited to the Animated Batman only? There more are out of the animated movies like Batman: Year One, Under The Red Hood and etc), I going with Mask of the Phantasm.
Having watching the Animated series for a long that, watching that film was almost like "oh shit it got real" when those mobsters were getting killed! Also it was cool seeing the proper birth of Batman that is before Batman Begin came out (both of which were inspired from Batman: Year One).

 

[TakerFoxx]

Even though it's not really part of the same continuity as the other two, I'm going with Under the Red Hood. Don't get me wrong, Mask of the Phantasm and Sub Zero are both great films, but to me, Red Hood is just better. Dimaggio had a lot to live up to when it came to voicing the Joker, but damn if he didn't pull it off, and the confrontation at the ending may go down as one of the finest Batman moments, ever.

 

[crazygameguy4ever]

Out of those two (why limited to the Animated Batman only? There more are out of the animated movies like Batman: Year One, Under The Red Hood and etc), I going with Mask of the Phantasm.
Having watching the Animated series for a long that, watching that film was almost like "oh shit it got real" when those mobsters were getting killed! Also it was cool seeing the proper birth of Batman that is before Batman Begin came out (both of which were inspired from Batman: Year One).

I was only going for 2 films set within the DC Animated Universe.. Under the Red hood, Batman Year one aren't part of that.. Batman TAS, New Batman Adventures, Superman TAS, Batman Beyond, Static Shock, Justice League and Justice League Unlimited are what make up DC Animated Universe.. so the films you mentioned wouldn't fit

 

[crazygameguy4ever]

Dark Knight Returns Part 2 is pretty good. Almost everyone dies.

a good film, but it doesn't count.. that film is set within the DC Universe Animated Original Movies line, not the DC Animated Universe created by Bruce Tim and Pal Dini.. Batman Mask of the Phantasm and Batman & Mr.Freeze: Subzero were the choices..

 

[Asita]

Seconding Return of the Joker. It probably has my favorite use of the Joker and treated the character very much like the black comedy he probably should always have been. What you see him do in the movie is terrible and the comic element added to the acts served more to heighten his depravity than it did to mitigate it. And much like Beyond itself did, the movie further showed just what Bruce's double life did to those around him and showcased the resentment his former partners felt towards him for it and their part in it, and even gave some context for it.

 

[Ieyke]

This is really tough.
- Mask Of The Phantasm is pretty damn...grand. Super depressing and foundational to the main character. A good twist, and even hints of the Joker's origins. But it's reeeally slowly paced (as was pretty standard for earlier Batman TAS episodes).

- Sub-Zero is crucial to Mr. Freeze, whose overall story throughout the DCAU is probably the most substantial and meaningful story of all.

- Return Of The Joker is awesome because in some ways Batman Beyond is actually better than Batman TAS, and the Joker is awesome. So getting to see Terry face off with Bruce's old archnemesis is just awesome. Seeing him truly triumph over the Joker in a way that Bruce never could was a crowning moment of badassdom.
Also, god damn is that movie fucked up.

- Mystery Of The Batwoman was meh, whatever.

Hmmmm.....
Taken alongside Heart Of Ice, Deep Freeze, Cold Comfort, and Meltdown, I'd say Sub-Zero is certainly the best.

But just on its own.....I think I'd have to say Return Of The Joker is the best, and then Phantasm.

.

.

Of the non-DCAU Batman movies, I'd have to say Under The Red Hood is EASILY the best, but there also isn't that much to choose from.

 

[stroopwafel]

Without a doubt the Dark Knight Returns part 1 and 2. I absolutely love those cartoons. They are true to the classic graphic novels but I think they are even a bit better. I'd go so far to say these are probably my favorite cartoons of all time. The story, the music, the action, the atmosphere; everything just blends so extremely well. It's just so well-written and directed. It's like a satisfying 'ending' to the Batman mythos of sorts.

I also really liked Year One. Frank Miller's books translate really well to a cartoon(probably b/c he already has a very 'visual' style of storytelling). Wasn't too fond of the others. They were a bit too unapologetically 'cartoony' for my taste. Though Mask of the Phantasm was quite good espescially for its time.

 

[Ieyke]

Without a doubt the Dark Knight Returns part 1 and 2. I absolutely love those cartoons. They are true to the classic graphic novels but I think they are even a bit better. I'd go so far to say these are probably my favorite cartoons of all time. The story, the music, the action, the atmosphere; everything just blends so extremely well. It's just so well-written and directed. It's like a satisfying 'ending' to the Batman mythos of sorts.

I also really liked Year One. Frank Miller's books translate really well to a cartoon(probably b/c he already has a very 'visual' style of storytelling). Wasn't too fond of the others. They were a bit too unapologetically 'cartoony' for my taste. Though Mask of the Phantasm was quite good espescially for its time.

Dark Knight Returns and Year One are not part of the DCAU.

There are only 4 DCAU Batman movies -
Batman:Mask Of The Phantasm
Batman & Mr. Freeze:Sub-Zero
Batman:Mystery Of The Batwoman
Batman Beyond:Return Of The Joker

In fact, I think those are all the DCAU movies outright.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

Mask of the Phantasm is pretty fucking depressing for a kid's film. But that's why I like it. It also has one of my favorite origin stories for Batman. Bruce Wayne had one shot at a happy, normal life, that was cruelly ripped away from him at the last minute. So by donning the cowl, he symbolically gives up his humanity and fully embraces his role as The Dark Knight.

It also plays with the Joker's origin, and how both he and Batman became intertwined through their mutual acquaintance with Andrea Beaumont. As an aside, Andrea's cameo in the Justice League episode "Epilogue" made me jump out of my seat with excitement.

Plus, the music is some of Shirley Walker's best that she ever did for the DCAU. It's fantastic in both its scope and tone.

 

[Lost In The Void]

Gotta add a vote to Return of the Joker, especially the 14A cut. It really let the writers go in an even further direction than the Animated universe of Batman or even Batman Beyond.

"I'd laugh if it wasn't so pathetic...aw what the heck I'll laugh anyways."