1 The Man Who Watched Batman Volume 1 An In Depth Analysis of Batman, The Animated series. Written By Ken Johnson The Following review novel is created under Fair use law’s protection of review. Batman, Batman: the animated Series and all other associated characters, episodes, and trademarked terms and properties are all owned by DC Comics, Warner Bros. animation, Bob Kane and DC animation. Please support the official release. The opinions expressed in this book are strictly that of its author Ken Johnson and do not represent the feelings or beliefs of creators of either Batman: the animated series, any governing or financially backing companies or peoples thereof, or that of any company publishing or representing The man Who Watched Batman or Deadmen Ink Productions in any way 2 This book is dedicated to: Jeff and Linda Johnson Without mom and dad, I can’t even imagine getting this far. Not even close. Scott Greenlee and Travis Steffens I couldn’t ask for better test audiences or better roommates. My friends and family Always there to review, bounce ideas off of, and always my biggest fans. Compass college of Cinematic Arts You guys gave me the tools to succeed and I’m happy to say that I made something with them. I’ll never forget the amazing year I spent with all of you. Batman You have been an inspiration and a hero to me my whole life. You have always helped define my personality, and I have spent more hours than I can count watching your shows, wearing your T-shirts, and arguing whether or not you’d win in a fight against Superman, Aquaman, or any number of fictional characters. It’s been a rough few years for you, but I know that you’ll bounce back. 3 Sara Rule Best Girlfriend (and if all goes according to plan, by the time you read this, my wife) I’ve ever had and one of my book’s biggest fans. I even read it to her before she went to sleep as a bedtime story. At first, I was worried that my writing was putting her to sleep, but she insists that’s not the case. She has been my biggest fan for as long as we’ve been together, and I hope she will be for a long time yet. I love you babe. 4 Special Thanks Dirk Manning, Comfort and Adam, Devin Foether, Travis McIntire, and the Michigan comics collective for all your help getting this book into the shape it’s in today Listed Below are all the amazing Kickstarter Donors that made this book possible. David Conrad Ryan Lohner Ryan J. Smith Dan Fawaz Amy Weiler William D Ian Brandon Bartlett Justin Prine Calvin Tong Tokyo Girl 07 Frances Ahn Joshua Harris Devin Foether Joseph sampson shayan alam amber Gilbert joshua Hinton Lord_ arm andrew Jensen Michael albani nancy Boardman arnton Gray sean hood Brad Deters Chris Bird Cody Wilson Austin Lehrer Joseph Konsouls Travis Mcntire Brian Erickson Julian Higuerey Nunez Anthony 5 Sebastian Ferguson J.R.Blanton John Abell Steven Neeson Tim Berthold Neil Macinnis Joseph Simon Comfort and Adam No Joke, without all of the amazing people listed on these last couple of Pages, none of the amazing things accomplished in this book would be even remotely possible. Heck, we wouldn’t even have a book if it wasn’t for you guys. It may have taken me 4 months or so to write it, but to publish it has taken over a year. It would've been indefinitely longer if I didn’t have the help of all of you. So for that, you have my eternal respect and gratitude. 6 Introduction As cliché as it may sound, there really is not any other way I can start this book other than by answering the big question: Why in the world would I write a book about a children’s superhero show? As a child, I was a huge Batman fan. Most people have a grand memory of the first time they saw their hero. Mine, unfortunately, is not as glamorous. The first time I saw the Caped Crusader was the 1989 Batman… on a tiny little television mounted in the corner of my grandmother’s camper. Even with those poor conditions, I still gained a major fondness for the character and started looking for any source of Batman I could find. That is when I ran into Batman: The Animated series. Now, I was young enough that when I saw ‘89 Batman, I loved the movie, but I had no idea what the heck was going on. I just thought it looked cool. With BTAS, I actually had a shot at learning what it was about, who Batman was, and what he stood for. It became an integral part of my childhood. Of all the nerds in school growing up, I was commonly referred to as the kid who watched a lot of Batman. Eventually I was accepted into Compass College of Cinematic arts. While there, I wanted to find something that would interest me. Something I could watch to both relax and exercise my newfound tools to break down and or appreciate film. When I found out that they were running daytime reruns of BTAS, it seemed like a perfect fit. Watching this show as an adult and as a film school student (alumni at the time of this book’s creation), I was blown away by the level of detail, subtext, character development, and absolute love and care that went into making this series. It was like I was watching a show I had seen a million times, but I had never seen it like this. The amount of impeccable craftsmanship that went into this show, alongside an all-star cast and crew of some of the 7 best writers, directors, and voice actors in the industry, made this show one of the most celebrated animated series in the history of the medium. Winner of numerous daytime Emmy’s, holding the record for the longest multi-show continuity of any animated series, and the winner of Time Magazine’s top 100 animated series of all time. To say that this show has had a large impact is an understatement. This is one of the greatest and most influential shows of all time. In this 4 volume series, I will be analyzing every scene, character, melody, animated sequence, and episode, one by one. I will be your unofficial guide through a journey of animated awesomeness. You ready? Let’s go! 8 The Gotham Night watch This is a super simple guide I have made to guide you through my guide…. Wow that sounds stupid. It is an easy plan, but I find that if you work this book and series into your routine, you are more likely to avoid this book collecting dust (or lost in a digital trash bin). Step 1. Buy Batman: the Animated Series. There are 4 volumes/seasons in total, and each book in this series is based off of one particular volume. Make sure you buy the right one. If you are a big fan, there is a collector’s edition of all 4 volumes put together. Step 2. Each day, pick a time to regularly watch an episode. Whether you prefer to watch it late night movie style, or like an early morning cartoon, just make it a part of your regular daily routine. Step 3. Read the review of the accompanying episode. I recommend watching the episode in the background as you go, and see what else you find. Trust me, these episodes are good enough to watch twice in a row. Well, most of them… Step 4. Rinse and repeat. Step 5. Did you really just Rinse? Man you’re stupid. 9 Batman in the Classroom During the production of this book, I was given the opportunity to teach BTAS to a classroom of students. I was welcomed to class for three days to teach an exploratory panel on storytelling and writing to a group of middle school children. The result was beyond anything I could have possibly imagined. I remember writing and story classes in middle school, and for the most part, did not find myself the least bit entertained. It was only in high school that I gained a real appreciation for story. These kids, however, were not expecting so much to be learned from what was to them, an ancient superhero show. I am going off on a limb, but I am going to guess that most of the people reading this book are either comic book fans or fans of superheroes or Batman in general. In this classroom, about half the class did not know who Batman even was, and at least 75 percent did not know his origin or villains, nor had they ever seen a single Batman TV show, episode, or movie. It was both heartbreaking and eye opening. It was only then that it hit me. I was standing in front of an open canvas. I had an opportunity to introduce these kids to Batman without all of the stigma or oversaturation or vile from the outside world. It was my job to be their first impression of one of the greatest superheroes of all time. It was a responsibility I cannot say I considered myself ready for, but a responsibility I had no intention of letting slip away from me. To a group of Kids hearing it for the first time, the idea of a young boy (just about their age in fact), having his parents tragically killed and vowing to use his family’s fortune and resources to become a vigilante by night, dedicated to protecting a city so corrupt it probably does not deserve redemption, sounds pretty awesome.