2016 has been a great year for Batman in movies. Ben Affleck debuted as the DC Extended Universe's Caped Crusader in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and he later cameoed in Suicide Squad. In the direct-to-DVD area, Gotham City's protector appeared in three animated movies, including Batman: The Killing Joke. Before the year is up, Batman will get one final chance to shine, but not as the shadowy, intense vigilante we're all used to. Instead, fans will finally be reunited with the swinging Batman from the infamous 1960s TV series in Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders. We got our first look at the animated movie last week, but today saw the release of the first full trailer. Check it out!
The Batman TV series concluded its three-season run in 1968, but after nearly 50 years, this animated movie proves they haven't missed a beat. Featuring the same campiness and tongue-in-cheek humor from the original show, Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders will see Adam West and Burt Ward reprising Batman and Robin, respectively, in voice form. Just like in the 1966 live action Batman movie, they'll face off against Catwoman (being reprised by Julie Newmar), Joker (sans painted mustache, I'm afraid) Riddler and Penguin in a 1960s setting. This movie has all the trademarks from the beloved TV series, from the the classic sound effects to the bad puns. It's also good to see the Dynamic Duo is practicing safety while fighting crime by chasing after the bad guys using the crosswalk rather than jaywalking.
Along with the trailer, IGN also released the first official synopsis for Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders, which revealed that in order to defeat their four ferocious foes, Batman and Robin will need to travel to space and back, and there will also be some kind of "Replicator Ray" involved. Created during the Silver Age of Comics, the original Batman TV series was the standard for how non-comic book fans looked at the Dark Knight. Even today, that catchy theme music still rings in our ears strongly. Even though Batman nowadays is a more darker figure, there are still plenty of fans who appreciate this hokey version decades later. Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders looks like it will be a fun way to continue capitalizing on that popularity, following the Batman series finally being released on DVD/Blu-ray and these versions of the characters appearing in various comic book series.
Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders will be available on Digital HD starting on October 11, while the Blu-ray and DVD release will follow on November 1.
