There’s a lot going on in this movie. The beginning of the film is gripping, and the assault on Jason Todd/Robin is brutal. Watching it with my twelve year old was a little hard because I didn’t expect that level of intensity. The Joker was played as perverse and evil, and he stayed that way through the film. I love how he turned the tables on Blackmask.
The art is rendered beautifully. Loved the explosive action, the detail, and the cityscape. The world depicted here really felt like Gotham in all its glory and grime.
I found the ending a little disappointing, though. Plenty of questions were raised, and everybody got a look at the heroes’ moral compasses, but the main question concerning Batman’s relationship with Jason Todd wasn’t satisfactorily answered. Batman makes a choice at the end, but where does he stand after he makes it?
I know part of this story is still ongoing in the DC Universe, so the movie is an excellent lure to pull readers into the six-part Red Hood story now being published. But in these direct-to-DVD adventures, I’d really appreciate a whole story. This one ends almost where it starts, and we still don’t know the true outcome.
This Blu-ray disc comes with lots of extras, including two episodes of the original Batman The Animated Series. These episodes recount the origin of Dick Grayson/Robin, so they’re a special treat. There’s also a lot of material (interviews and comic content) depicting Jason Todd’s history, and there’s sneak peek of the next DC Comics direct-to-DVD movie, Superman and Batman: Apocalypse. The best part, though, is the Jonah Hex short feature written by Joe R. Lansdale.
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