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Review: BATMAN: RETURN OF THE CAPED CRUSADERS

In Batman: Return Of The Caped Crusaders, we see the return of Adam West (Batman) and Burt Ward (Robin) reprise their roles as the dynamic duo. The heroes take on The Joker (Jeff Bergman), Penguin (William Salyers), The Riddler (Wally Wingert), and Catwoman (Julie Newmar) in an epic battle of good vs evil! Will our heroes defeat these dastardly villains? Will Catwoman finally kill Robin? Does Joker finally shave the horrendous mustache? Tune in to find out!

Okay, now that I’m done paint narrator let’s get into the review. The story is simple, our team of villains plot to take down the dynamic duo. They plan to steal a duplicating ray – using this they can double their fortunes. There’s much more to the plot but I’m not spoiling it here.
Return Of The Caped Crusaders is everything you’d want it to be. The film captures the tone of the original television series, and brings in different elements from across the Batman mythos. The jokes mostly land and the animation is excellent. You can tell a lot of time and effort went into making this film. They really take advantage of making this an animated film. They use tons of gadgets that just couldn’t be done on the original show [such as rockets, flying cars, space stations etc]. I also love how they gave Batman a bit of a dark side in this film. He’s not the Bright Knight we’re used to seeing from Adam West. He’s still the Batman we know from the 60’s series, but at times he’s a little more like the Batman we’re accustomed to.

One of the negatives I have with this film is that it’s a bit hard to follow; if you’re not a fan of the TV series. The nods, jokes, and even plot points won’t really work unless you have some knowledge of the show. I will say, if you do love the TV series, you’ll definitely enjoy the film. It has everything you’d expect from an extended episode of the series.
Another negative is the voice acting. While it’s great to have West, Ward, and Newmar back, their dialog falls flat sometimes – especially Newmar. They weren’t terrible, but they just seemed a bit off their game at times.
On the other side we have the villains, and I must say, they did an amazing job. It’s not easy filling the shoes off Romero, Gorshin, and Meredith, but some how they did it.

Overall I say Batman: Return Of The Caped Crusaders is definitely a must watch for any fan of the original series (or even Batman in general). The humor pokes fun at the ’66 series and modern incarnations of the Batman universe. It’s not too goofy, but it’s not dark either. They manage to balance it pretty well. And yes they know Batman ’66 is a meme, and they embrace that. It’s a love letter to the fans, and a solid film that’s a joy to watch.

Batman: Return Of The Caped Crusaders is available now!

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