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Batman The Animated Newsletter #107

Batman The Animated Newsletter #107

Batman: The Animated Newsletter
Weeks of December 23 – January 6, 2001
Volume 4, 7
Rated: PG (as with all other things Batman-related)

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE!
HAPPY HANUKAH TO EVERYONE!
HAPPY ROMODAN TO EVERYONE!
AND SEASONS GREETINGS TO ANYONE WE’VE LEFT OUT!

THIS ISSUE’S SUBLIMINAL MESSAGE: “Putting out a fire in the warehouse district: $3,500. Rebuilding a destroyed wing of Arkham following a massive riot: $2,000,000. Scouring the city for crime on Christmas Eve but all is silent, calm, and bright: Priceless.”

BY THE WAY, this year’s fourth annual GOLDEN OVAL AWARDS ballot is at the bottom of this issue, and all following issues through November and December. Get those votes in and make your voices heard over what you think are the best and worst of Batman in 2001!
____________________________________________________________________
GRINCHES OF GOTHAM
(written in the style of Geoffrey Chaucer’s GENERAL PROLOGUE OF THE CANTERBURY
TALES)

Ev’ry citizen of Gotham liked Christmas a lot,
But deep within Arkham were those who did not.
While Christmas, to most, brought holiday cheer,
Our beloved inmates only received jeer.
A break-out has happened, and promptly in time,
For each of the inmates, speaking in rhyme,
To tell their tragic tale and reason
For absolutely despising the holiday season.

Bane was the first to evade the walls
Of Arkham and enter Gotham, starting up brawls.
Ne’er was there a Christmas since his youthful age
Had he not felt an overwhelming rage.
He lost his father, and mother, and was all alone;
In this cheerful season, he felt like a drone.
A killer, too true, he still had a heart,
And wished for a family of which to be part.

Next, Firefly headed to the record store,
Where he could find music and games galore!
A new album of Cassidy had been released;
Oh, how he hated her now – her life must be ceased!
His desire’s object had hurt him and spurned;
He must retaliate for this third-degree burn!
All alone on Christmas without his dear,
He vowed to destroy this temptress’ career.

With emotions ablaze, Poison Ivy left
For the Christmas tree lot, no intent of theft,
But rather to save her enslaved race
From serving humans as decorations. What a disgrace!
For hundreds of years, plants grown just to be
Cut down and sold about now as a “Christmas Tree”.
It’s bio-ocide on the most horrific scale!
She must save her trees, and she couldn’t fail!

Then on her way, was the smallest of all,
The little brat-girl known as Baby-Doll.
Scorned by a Santa at the mall in her past;
He didn’t fulfill his promises. She was aghast!
He had to pay for the lies he had told –
Lying to a child – his soul has been sold!
What she wouldn’t give for that Barbie and Ken –
She still wants it now, just as she did then.

The Mad Hatter always had a thing to say
About this most upsetting holiday.
Once as a child, there once was a wretch
Dressed in a Santa hat that attacked Jervis Tetch.
That hat he wished he could have controlled,
But as a shy boy, he couldn’t be bold.
From that day forward, he hated this gift-giving season,
Scarring by that incident, his only reason.

“Bah Humbug” the Penguin said from within his club,
Upon doing his books for this criminal hub.
“I’m fifty grand in the hole, that’s no sense to me!
Have Jay, Lark, and Raven been giving to charity?”
They certainly had, to keep Penguin’s legit cover;
Nearly blown once before, they dared not have another!
Without his finances all set into gear,
The Penguin could not rest at this time of the year.

Victor and Nora once shared Christmas Eve
As their wedding night, when their souls did weave.
But now, gone afar, she’s out of his life.
Mr. Freeze could not accept not having his wife.
Though happily married to another man,
This cold-blooded individual had a plan.
He’d stalk his wife to her new house that night,
And with her new husband, ensure she’s all right.

Twelve O’Clock midnight; the alarm didn’t ring
Many years ago for a youthful Clock King.
He set his alarm so he’d catch a view
Of Santa Claus as he crept from the fireplace, through
Into his living room with a bag of gifts.
His clock let him down – for that, he’s quite miffed.
Perhaps if he escapes Arkham in time,
He’ll catch that glimpse finally, after the twelve chimes.

Six hundred Christmasses or more he had seen
During his life thus far. Ra’s Al Ghul wasn’t keen
On such commercially-driven holidays.
There need be some spirituality to interest Ra’s.
“Perhaps when the people lay asleep in their beds,
I’ll hatch my master plan,” said the Demon’s Head.
He’d return the earth to a natural state,
And set December 25th as the date.

“It’s A Wonderful Life” was the name of the movie
that Clayface starred in. It was hardly groovy.
Bashed by the critics and the fans alike,
Calling this remake pointless, silly, and trite.
Every Christmas since, the spurning ate away
At the disintegrating Matt Hagen. Oh, what a display!
Perhaps he could gain the respect of the public once more
With a public display of his talents. He’d have his encore!

Some get a lump of coal – but not Killer Croc.
One Christmas all he received was a rock.
He’d had quite enough as a one-gimmick type villain!
The joke was so old – so who’d he be killin’?
He had a brain too, didn’t they recognize
That you can be smart as well as have immense size?
This Alligator Bag had a bone to pick
With whomever was this prankster Saint Nick.

Why’d Maxie Zeus care, is a question we’re beggin’,
If he obviously is a fully-functional pagan?
He doesn’t celebrate Christmas, or New Year’s, even.
His outward appearance is totally deceivin’.
This is why he is rather upset with this day –
No one any more observes pagan holidays.
To Gotham he’d provide his culture’s background and news –
And they would, in return, all worship Maxie Zeus.

With no one did Catwoman have a bone to pick,
But she’d take this opportunity – and she’d do it quick –
To ransack the city of valuable goods,
Then sneak down chimneys in the slums and hoods,
Delivering wealth to the poor and the poorer.
She would be Gotham’s Christmas Eve warrior.
If she were, by chance, snared by the Batman,
She’d feel no guilt; for once, she was helping her follow man.

Puzzles and problems had always intrigued
The Riddler greatly. He was in his own league.
But the mystery of Santa, Jesus, or both the two
Perplexed him to no end. Would could he do
To prove that a fat man could fit down a chimney
Or that Jesus even existed. Oh criminey!
He’d search all through Gotham for concrete proof
That his puzzled mind had not gone aloof.

Calendar Girl felt especially dirty
For the Christmas Eve on which she turned thirty.
During that year her career downturned,
Her agents neglected her, and by critics, spurned.
Her first gift unwrapped was a magnificent sweater –
But two sizes too big – BIGGER WAS NOT BETTER!
As her body continued to sag and age,
She remembered that Christmas, mixed with sadness and rage.

The Ventriloquist remembers that Eve in hiding
Where he and Rhino were quietly biding
Their time, laying low for the holidays.
The warehouse was cold – they lacked fiery blaze.
To keep warm Rhino thought with his little mind
To burn the first thing he could possibly find.
He accidentally used the Scarface puppet, of course –
And Wesker much teach him a lesson, make him show remorse!

As Harley Quinn gleefully leapt over Arkham’s walls,
She parted from the pack, headed for Gotham’s malls,
With one thing on her mind: LAST MINUTE SHOPPING!
But she would be the last one to be dropping.
Once overcharged at a department store,
She sought her credit card’s revenge – and there was more.
To keep all the shoppers from fraud like hers in the past,
She’d gas the mall, stopping fraud at last!

Burglars and thieves scared Scarecrow as a child,
When he lay in bed, dreaming, meek and mild.
Santa was no different, for he broke in, too.
Of course, this was fake, as Scarecrow now knew.
It was now his mission to make children pause
And believe they truly feared Santa Claus.
Destroying the hope of the youths of the season,
With his sick, twisted pleasure as the only reason!

Two-Face’s Christmas feelings depends on the coin –
And this year bad heads has shown up. Oh, such joy.
One year, while on “Good Heads” he accidentally donated
His coin to the Salvation Army – they couldn’t be separated!
If it took all night, he would find it again –
And only then would his mind finally mend.
To find his original coin, evil plans he devises,
All because his new coin forced his heart to shrink two sizes.

Purposely last, and for only one reason,
The Joker, best for last escaped. He thought Christmas was treason!
The smiles on the children chilled him to the bone –
Nothing could make them smile but him alone!
A commercial holiday was standing up his act –
He’d destroy the Christmas spirit, and that was a fact!
The city would only smile when he desired,
And quickly, the Joker had a devil’s plan conspired.

And as all our friends and foes from within the jail
Escape into Gotham, without any bail,
Batman and his crew keep watch over the town.
They’d keep the city safe from anything bad going down.
The peaceful night would remain disturbed
From the downtown core to every suburb.
Nothing could keep Christmas from arriving,
No matter how hard these Arkhamites would be trying.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!
____________________________________________________________________
EAGERLY ANTICIPATING…
New episodes are on the horizon! Here’s what we can expect in the near future…


-PARADISE LOST (2 parts)
These two episodes prominently feature Wonder Woman and her home island of Themiscrya.
Part one: Airs Jan. 21, 2002
Part two: Airs Jan. 28, 2002


-INJUSTICE FOR ALL (2 parts)
The JLA faces off against a handful of their most formidable foes, “The Injustice League”, including the Joker, Lex Luthor, Solomon Grundy, Cheetah, Sinestro, and more!
___________________________________________________________________
NEWS AND RUMORS
(see back issues for older info)

ALL-ENCOMPASSING/OTHER
-The following artists are selling artwork on eBay. The following are their names and Seller ID’s:
Terry Beatty: beatty@machlink.com
Craig Rousseau: cerousseau
Tim Levins: tlevins
Min S. Ku: min3000gt

ANIMATED SERIES (BTAS, STAS, BEYOND, JLA)
-SUPERMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES is moving to the CARTOON NETWORK on January 7th!
-From January 21st to the 25th, Cartoon Network will be holding a week-long event pitting the Dark Knight against the Man of Steel. Each day that week, one hour of Toonami (6:00-7:00pm) will feature episodes of Batman: The Animated Series and Superman. During this hour, viewers will be able to call or go online to vote for their favorite hero: Batman or Superman. Then, on January 26th from 1:00-7:00pm, Cartoon Network will air a six-hour marathon of Batman and Superman episodes, with the final two hours devoted to the winner of the viewer vote. -The following is an entire episode-title listing for the first season of JLA:
#1, 2, 3 Secret Orgins
#4, 5 In Blackest Night
#6, 7 Enemy Below
#8, 9 Injustice For All
#10, 11 Paradise Lost
#12, 13 War World
#14, 15 The Brave & The Bold
#16, 17 Fury
#18, 19 Legends
#20, 21 A Knight Of Shadows
#22, 23 Metamorphis
#24, 25, 26 The Savage Time

ANIMATED COMICS
-JUSTICE LEAGUE #4
In “World War of the Sexes,” the Justice League must find out why Wonder Woman’s Amazon sisters have turned against the world, starting with all the men! Can the League stop the female warriors before they conquer the planet?
Cover: http://www.cinescape.com/multimedia/Batman/Comic_Book_Covers/BatmanComic_Book_Covers277252.jpg
-JUSTICE LEAGUE #5
It’s “Starro Wars” when a giant starfish-shaped conqueror from space uses mind-control to defeat the newly formed League. The World’s Greatest Super-Heroes are left helpless and must turn to a mysterious old member of the Green Lantern Corps for help. But what help is there against a single enemy that can break off into thousands?
Cover: http://www.cinescape.com/multimedia/Batman/Comic_Book_Covers/BatmanComic_Book_Covers278599.jpg
-BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVNETURES #45
Arkham Asylum’s in full lockdown, and one of its doctors is missing. It’s up to Batman to find out which of the inmates is in charge, in “Running the Asylum”. Due out on December 26th.
Cover: http://www.toonzone.net/comics/covers/bga/bga45.jpg
-BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES #46
When Scarface and Ventriloquist disagree on how to pull off a job, they become each other’s worst enemies – but they’re also twice as deadly. Batman follows the puppet-master’s trail of trouble in “Saving Face.”
Cover: http://www.comicscontinuum.com:8080/stories/0110/23/BatGA46.jpg
-BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES #47
When the criminal doesn’t match up with the crime, Batman makes the rounds in Gotham’s underworld and learns there may be a crook in the long arm of the law. (And is it just me, or does that look sorta like Lock-Up to you?) In stores Feb 27.
Cover: http://www.cinescape.com/multimedia/Batman/Comic_Book_Covers/BatmanComic_Book_Covers277246.jpg
-BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES #48
As Batman runs a mysterious mission, a tale unfolds within the walls of the Batcave – a tale of a revealing moment from the year young Dick Grayson entered his life. Featuring a non-stop action sequence by guest-artist Rick Burchett.
http://www.cinescape.com/multimedia/Batman/Comic_Book_Covers/BatmanComic_Book_Covers278591.jpg

-For more animated comic updates, go here:
http://www.toonzone.net/worldsfinest/bbeyond/previews.html

OTHER COMICS
-BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHTS #27
Superman returns for another cameo in Gotham!
http://www.cinescape.com/multimedia/Batman/Comic_Book_Covers/BatmanComic_Book_Covers278587.jpg
-Within three days of its debut on December 5, the first issue of THE DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN is already the best-selling comic of 2001 and for the past 5 years, for that matter! It’s already out of stock in the UK, believe it or not! Congrats to Frank Miller and Lynn Varley for achieving this feat!
-Ed Brubaker has confirmed that GOTHAM CENTRAL, a comic series focusing entirely on the GCPD and co-written by Greg Rucka, is going to be happening! Go to this link for the interview:
http://www.sequentialtart.com/brubaker3.shtml
-Robin’s moving back to Gotham City by the end of Chuck Dixon’s run on the
title. Here’s the cover of ROBIN #99: http://www.toonzone.net/comics/covers/2002-02/batman/robin99.gif

MOVIES
-A new BATMAN movie trailer is on the net…sort of. Look under SCOOBY DOO in the trailer section of DARK HORIZONS:

Index Page


-ONSTAR is holding a contest where a winner gets to have a walk-on role in whatever the next Batman movie will be.

*BATMAN: YEAR ONE (BATMAN 5) NEWS:
-Speculation has it that YEAR ONE is still underway, but may not reach screens until 2004, contrary to earlier reports of a 2003 release. The reason for another delay is that the WB is already releasing a lot of high-profile franchise movies that year, such as the two MATRIX sequels and TERMINATOR 3, (is that a WB film???) so they don’t want to add BATMAN to the mix.
-(The following scoop is a few weeks older than the previous scoop.) Work is starting immediately to get YEAR ONE ready for an early 2003 release, though Aronofsky wants the final cut done by Winter 2002. Among the new designs already said to be sketched, there are:
*A very gothic Gotham City
*Several designs for Batman
*Designs for Catwoman
*A few designs for the Joker
*New Batmobile designs
(Now, is it just me, or did the Joker not even APPEAR in YEAR ONE? He was only mentioned in text on the last page! Regardless, thanks to the WORLDS FINEST NEWSPAGE and SCREENWRITERS UTOPIA for the scoop.)

*BATMAN BEYOND: LIVE ACTION NEWS:
-No new news here.

*THE FOURTH ANIMATED BATMAN MOVIE
-No new news here

*CATWOMAN
-Don’t count on this one any time soon.

*WORLD’S FINEST
-No new news here. Don’t expect this movie to happen for quite a while. Development Hell, folks.

LIVE ACTION TELEVISION
-No new news here.

EXCLUSIVE INTERNET ENDEAVOURS:
-Alan J. Porter, editor of the GOTHAM WEEKLY NEWS (another newsletter) has once again published the “entry form” for the 2001 Alfred Awards (his awards for the best of Bat-stuff over the past year). Go to this link to vote:
http://www.geocities.com/gothamajp/alfreds.htm

TOYS, BOOKS, AND OTHER MERCHANDISE
-RELEASE DATES HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED FOR ANIMATED BATMAN DVD’s! The big day is April 23, 2002. On that day, you will get:
*1 – BATMAN BEYOND: RETURN OF THE JOKER, the uncut version! No extras, but it may Be in widescreen and will feature all the original scenes that only the bootleg copies floating around the world feature.
*2 – BATMAN & MR. FREEZE: SUB-ZERO. Also no extras, but if this particular movie sells well, more direct-to-video/DVD Bat-movies can almost surely be produced.
*3 – WORLD’S FINEST (aka, “The Batman/Superman Movie”). Little to no extras, just the three episodes of the first Batman/Superman crossover in their modern animated histories.
*4 – SECRET ORIGINS (aka, “Justice League: The Movie”). Some extras are expected. If this rehash of the three-part episode is successful, expect more JLA story-arcs to jump onto DVD.
*5 – BATMAN: THE LEGEND BEGINS. This will feature the first five episodes of the series, in episode-number order: ON LEATHER WINGS, CHRISTMAS WITH THE JOKER, NOTHING TO FEAR, THE LAST LAUGH, and PRETTY POISON. Intros and featurettes will be included prior to each episode. If this one is successful, expect more DVD collections of BTAS episodes!
-Alex Ross continues his series of painted posters starring the heroes of the DC Universe. Classic DC Silver Age heroines are featured this month, beginning with this portrayal of Gotham City’s own Barbara Gordon, a.k.a. Batgirl. This 22-inch by 34-inch poster is designed to be displayed on its own or be placed side-by-side with others in the set.
Picture: http://www.cinescape.com//multimedia/Batman/Batman_Collectibles/BatmanBatman_Collectibles278600.jpg

-Hasbro has not yet made any official announcements on a JLA toy line, but expect to hear something by the time Toy Fair rolls around in February.
-BATMAN: MISSION MASTERS 4!
This action figure line is on sale now! Each of the following figures have special glow-in-the-dark capabilities:
*Lunar Attack Batman
*Midnight Hunter Batman
*Night Fury Robin
*Nightshadow Batman
-A new animated statue is coming June 12! Check out this cool piece of Catwoman memorabilia:
http://www.cinescape.com/multimedia/Batman/Comic_Book_Covers/BatmanComic_Book_Covers277257.jpg

SPECIAL NOTE:
For more BATMAN, SUPERMAN, JUSTICE LEAGUE, BATMAN BEYOND, and related stories and news, check out the WORLD’S FINEST NEWSPAGE at:

http://news.toonzone.net
_____________________________________________________________________
CARTOON NETWORK SCHEDULE

CARTOON NETWORK has announced a schedule change for the month of January. The Friday showing has been dropped in favor of an all “Cartoon Cartoon” night line-up. JUSTICE LEAGUE will now rerun every Saturday at 12:30pm (ET). The network will be taking a different angle with the 12:30pm Saturday showing, though. The Saturday showings will restart from the beginning, with “Secret Origins” beginning January 5th. This means that a new episode, which premieres on Monday, will only repeat once in Sunday widescreen, before the next new episode airs.

BATMAN BEYOND SCHEDULE:

Tue 12-25-01 BEYOND #51 The Call (Pt. 2)

Wed 12-26-01 BEYOND #52 Countdown

Thu 12-27-01 BEYOND #01 Rebirth (Pt. 1)

Fri 12-28-01 BEYOND #02 Rebirth (Pt. 2)

* * * * * *

Mon 12-31-01 BEYOND #03 Black Out

Tue 01-01-02 BEYOND #04 Golem

Wed 01-02-02 BEYOND #05 The Winning Edge

Thu 01-03-02 BEYOND #10 Dead Man’s Hand

Fri 01-04-02 BEYOND #07 Meltdown

* * * * * *

Mon 01-07-02 BEYOND #08 Heroes

Tue 01-08-02 BEYOND #09 Spellbound

Wed 01-09-02 BEYOND #10 Shriek

Thu 01-10-02 BEYOND #11 A Touch of Curare

Fri 01-11-02 BEYOND #12 Disappearing Inque

JUSTICE LEAGUE SCHEDULE:

Dec. 7 7:30 p.m. The Enemy Below Pt. 1 (episode 6)

Dec. 9 8:30 p.m. The Enemy Below Pt. 1 (episode 6)
Dec. 10 9:30 p.m. The Enemy Below Pt. 2 (episode 7)
Dec. 14 7:30 p.m. The Enemy Below Pt. 2 (episode 7)

Dec. 16 8:30 p.m. The Enemy Below Pt. 2 (episode 7)
Dec. 17 9:30 p.m. Secret Origins Pt. 1 (episode 1)
Dec. 21 7:30 p.m. Secret Origins Pt. 1 (episode 1)

Dec. 23 8:30 p.m. Secret Origins Pt. 1 (episode 1)

Dec. 30 8:30 p.m. Secret Origins Pt. 2 (episode 2)
Dec. 31 9:30 p.m. Secret Origins Pt. 3 (episode 3)
Jan. 4 7:30 p.m. Secret Origins Pt. 3 (episode 3)

Jan. 5 Secret Origins (Pt. 1)
Jan. 6 Secret Origins (Pt. 3) (widescreen)
Jan. 7 In Blackest Night (Pt. 1)
Jan. 12 Secret Origins (Pt. 2)
Jan. 13 In Blackest Night (Pt. 1) (widescreen)
Jan. 14 In Blackest Night (Pt. 2)
Jan. 19 Secret Origins (Pt. 3)
Jan. 20 In Blackest Night (Pt. 2) (widescreen)
Jan. 21 Paradise Lost (Pt. 1) 
THE ENEMY BELOW (Pt. 1, 2)
Written by: Kevin Hopps
Directed by: Dan Riba
Aired: December 3rd and 10th, 2001
Ranking: ****1/2 (out of 5 stars)

A nuclear submarine, the U.S.S Defiant, is disabled by the Atlantean navy (led by Aquaman) for disturbing the borders of Atlantis. Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and Superman arrive on the scene to help the sunken submarine. Aquaman allows the crew to be rescued, but insists the sub must stay. After the crew is rescued, Superman urges Aquaman to plead his case before the World Assembly “like a king”.

Aquaman eventually decides to do just that, but his stubbornness clashes with the World Assembly, sabotaging his efforts. To make matters worse, somebody tries to kill Aquaman. Batman is able to save Aquaman, and creates a plan to lure the would-be killer out into the open — a plot which requires the Martian Manhunter to be a decoy. The plan works, and the “hired gun” is captured. This guy doesn’t know who hired him, but when he shows the money that he got, the JLA realizes the mastermind is an Atlantean. Meanwhile, Aquaman has returned to Atlantis — only to discover just who the mastermind behind his death is. The JLA now has to find Aquaman and stop the person who’s trying to kill him — someone who has sinister plans for the “surface-dwellers” involving plutonium stolen from the submarine.

Wow! Three episodes of Justice League of America, and all three of them solid episodes, if not outright knock-outs! Bruce Timm and his crew must be geniuses! This episode is probably either tied with “Secret Origins” as the best episode so far, or is right behind it. The storyline is great, and deals with two key themes without being too preachy. The first theme is that of trust. Two of the characters have to learn lessons about trusting others. The main character who has to learn this is Aquaman himself, and his particular lesson is that sometimes people close to him can be more untrustworthy than outsiders. After all, the Justice League proved to be willing to help, while his own brother was only too willing to betray him. Green Lantern also has to learn to trust Aquaman. Related to this theme is that of communication. There are various problems with communication in this episode. Some of them are due to deliberate lying, others are simply due to inflexiblity on one side or the other. Ultimately, the crisis can be resolved only by people putting aside problems with trust and working together (a form of communication) to avert disaster.

The characters are as well-done as usual, beginning with such minor characters as Mera and the hired gun. The hired gun is a gem of characterization, and his scene with the Justice League is priceless. He’s initially saucy even to Batman, which makes his final capitulation (after about a few seconds) hilarious! It takes a criminal with an extremely strong will to resist Batman’s intimidating presence, and I doubted this guy had the will to resist. I was right. As for Mera, she’s loving and courageous. There’s no doubt that she truly loves her husband and her son, and this love gives her the courage to save the Justice League from drowning in an equally great scene –she knocks out the guards just after one puts his money on Wonder Woman (“the girl”) drowning first! Wonder if Hopps is suggesting that there’s a connection between their being sexist and their being villains?

Richard Green did a wonderful job in bringing Orm, Aquaman’s brother, to life. He is ambitious, extremely ruthless, and only too willing to create excuses to justify his actions (such as claiming that he took Aquaman’s baby because the times were dangerous). In some ways, he is a negative double to both Aquaman and Green Lantern — Aquaman because of his attitudes toward the land-dwelling humans, Green Lantern because of his miltarism. In his final scenes, his willingness to prevent the reactor from being shut down automatically, contributes to Aquaman’s refusal to save Orm when the latter is clinging to the edge of an ice bridge. A fitting end for a truly evil man.

Aquaman’s truly noble, and wants to protect Atlantis from the depredations of the humans above the water. He has a point, since humans have been polluting the oceans, among other ecologically destructive actions. However, he focuses too much on the external threats to Atlantis and not enough on any possible internal threats, like Orm and many of the generals. This misjudgment costs him dearly, but he realizes this in time to save himself and his son, and to stop Orm. Hopefully, Aquaman will emerge from this experience with the knowledge that the Justice League is a group he can place full trust in.

However, he is not the only one who has made misjudgments. Green Lantern also misjudges Aquaman. His misjudgment is most likely rooted in his outlook — his hard-arse attitude provides him with genuine integrity, but hinders flexibility, as he can only see Aquaman’s sinking the sub and initially can’t look past that to see that Aquaman’s actions, while excessive, stem from at least somewhat reasonable fears. I believe Green Lantern recognizes his mistake when he tells Aquaman that maybe they all made misjudgments. And while Batman is the one who manually shuts down the reactor, it is Green Lantern’s ring that enables Batman to do just that — perhaps proof that Green Lantern is learning how to work within a team.

The Martian Manhunter has a more visible role in this episode than in “In Blackest Night”. Here, he assumes Aquaman’s shape to lure the would-be assassin out of hiding, and recognizes that the coins the hired gun had came from Atlantis, revealing the true seriousness of the situation. Superman also has a visible role. It is he who encourages Aquaman to negotiate for peace at the World Assembly, after all. He also has a great bit of dialogue with Wonder Woman, which I will refer to in the next paragraph.

Wonder Woman’s back, and I’m thrilled about that! She is the first one to see the hired gun when he makes a second attempt on Aquaman’s life. We see her fighting skills as we did in “Secret Origins”, and we also see her use her magic lasso, though I do wish she could’ve used it to gain the truth out of some people (though not necessarily the hired gun). Finally, she has a great bit of dialogue with Superman after Batman gives the hired gun a word of advice. When the hired gun cracks, she asks Superman, “What did he say?” Superman says, “You don’t want to know.” Hee-hee! Brilliant! But I’m still wating for “Paradise Lost” to see further development of her. At least I don’t have to wait long.

Which leads me finally to Batman. He is perhaps the one Justice Leaguer most responsible for the crisis being averted. He is the one who knows that Aquaman needs to be placed in water with salinity at 3.5% — salt water. He is the one who thinks of the plan that leads to the hired gun’s capture. His intimidating style is directly responsible for the hired gun’s cracking. He recognizes the money the hired gun obtained as being Spanish doubloons. And most of all, he is the one who goes inside the reactor to manually shut it down, though he requires Green Lantern’s ring to shield him. He recognizes this when he says that “we did it” — that he didn’t avert the crisis; he and Green Lantern did it.

I do miss the Flash’s wisecracking a bit, and I would’ve liked to see Hawkgirl in this episode, but those are minor quibbles in a great episode.

Belle Book
____________________________________________________________________
COMIC REVIEWS
(BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES and JUSTICE LEAGUE ADVENTURES by Tim “TWO-FACE”
Leighton)

JUSTICE LEAGUE ADVENTURES
ISSUE: “More Human than Human” (#2)
WRITTEN BY: Paul Storrie
PENCILS: Craig Rousseau
INKS: Wayne Faucher
COLOURIST: John Kalisz
LETTERER: Kurt Hathaway
COVER ART: ??? (I couldn’t find the credits anywhere)
ISSUED: December 12, 2001 (Cover date Feb 2002)
RATING: *1/2

Dear JUSTICE LEAGUE,
I still haven’t been able to watch a single episode of the TV series, much to my dismay. Perhaps this is a problem, for I know very little about the JLA members aside from Bats and Supes; regardless, I have to admit that I didn’t enjoy this issue much at all.
It wasn’t necessarily Paul Storrie’s fault – it’s the format of the series that ultimately causes its failure. Bruce Timm realized his constraints when producing the TV series, concluding the only way to give the Justice League…uh…justice…was to expand the stories to span two or three episodes. Why don’t the animated books do this? Is there some unwritten rule that a story must be self-contained in one issue? The last time I can remember a two-part story in an animated book was the Two-Face two-parter in BATMAN AND ROBIN ADVENTURES in 1995! I know they’ve appeared in BATMAN BEYOND occasionally, and probably in SUPERMAN ADVENTURES (though I don’t read it, so I don’t know for sure), but the bulk of the stories are single issue tales. If a story can be done justly in one issue, fine. JUSTICE LEAGUE stories are told on such a great scale, however, that to give all seven league members their time, they need more space.
That brings me to the villains. More generic space mutants or whatnot. This sort of thing gets really tiring unless written well. If they had more time to be developed, possibly it would work with better results.
There were still some good moments in this issue; Martian Manhunter was about the only character I didn’t have any complaints about. His feelings towards humanity and fitting in were handled well. He is almost a hybrid of the World’s Finest team: the loner-aspects of Batman, and the foreign (or alien, of course) aspects of Superman. Like I said earlier, I know little about his background, but I appreciate his character.
Even though action is the name of this series’ game, do the stories justice and don’t rush telling them in just one issue! I think the series can only improve if such measures are taken.

;-Y
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COMIC SCHEDULES & COVERING THE BASICS

This section gives a little bit more in-depth look into each monthly issue of BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES and BATMAN BEYOND. Below each comic listing is a link to the cover of that comic. TALK ABOUT SERVICE! The price for any of these issues, unless otherwise posted, is $1.99 in the US and…grrrrr…a whopping $3.25 (or higher) in Canada. (Both our editors and many subscribers are Canadian, hence the well-deserved “grrr”.)

If we are unsure of the exact date of when an issue is being released, just
check out “DIRECT CURRENTS” for details:
http://www.dccomics.com/directcurrents/

-BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES #45
December 26th
Arkham Asylum’s in full lockdown, and one of its doctors is missing. It’s up to Batman to find out which of the inmates is in charge, in “Running the Asylum”. Cover: http://www.toonzone.net/comics/covers/bga/bga45.jpg

FOLLOWING MONTH:
-When Scarface and Ventriloquist disagree on how to pull off a job, they become each other’s worst enemies – but they’re also twice as deadly. Batman follows the puppet-master’s trail of trouble in “Saving Face.”
Cover: http://www.comicscontinuum.com:8080/stories/0110/23/BatGA46.jpg

-JUSTICE LEAGUE ADVENTURES #3
January 9th
The Justice League saves four space travelers from an unknown planet named Daxam. Are these weary refugees exiled freedom fighters or escaped convicts? And what happens when they discover the gift of…a yellow sun? Has the League found brand new friends, or brand new foes?
Written by Fabian Nicieza
Cover: Unavailable

FOLLOWING MONTH: Issue #4
February 14th
In “World War of the Sexes,” the Justice League must find out why Wonder Woman’s Amazon sisters have turned against the world, starting with all the men! Can the League stop the female warriors before they conquer the planet?
Cover: http://www.cinescape.com/multimedia/Batman/Comic_Book_Covers/BatmanComic_Book_Covers277252.jpg
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Due to demand by some of our subscribers, we’ve decided to give a “Letters to the Editor” section a shot. Feel free to submit something you’d like to say to us, and each issue we’ll choose one to post and then reply to. (NOTE: It can be completely uncensored, positive OR negative, though any coarse language will be bleeped out. We want this to be a no-holds-barred column!)

* * * * * *

Merry Christmas, Big Bad Harv!

* * * * * *

TWO-FACE’S SIDE OF THE COIN

MeRrY cHrIsTmAs To YoU tOo, HaRv…YoU bIg SpInElEsS, gUtLeSs wUsS, yOu.

;-Y
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BATMAN: THE ANIMATED TRIVIA
(by Tim “TWO-FACE” Leighton)

This is one of my favourite sections, where I get to boggle the minds of all our readers! (Mwuhahaha!) This trivia is all animated-related in some form, and can deal with ANY aspect of the show or comics based on the show. Remember, answer the questions WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF THE ANIMATED CONTINUITY. Now have fun – let’s see how well you do! Answers are provided below.

HOLIDAYS
As this is the holiday season (which apparently runs from the US Thanksgiving to New Years now – 6 weeks of non-denominational fun!), it’s only fitting for us to ask you a series of questions about the holidays pertaining to BTAS. Enjoy – and Merry Christmas!

681. One issue of the animated Bat-comics featured a burning Christmas tree. What villain appeared on this cover?

682. If you look carefully, the episode, A BULLET FOR BULLOCK, is set during the holiday season. Who wrote the comic issue in which this story can originally be found?

683. As a villain that seems to have a passion for egg-like explosives, who would be a prime candidate for an Easter-themed BTAS episode, if one were ever made?

684. What was the name of the episode set on April Fool’s Day?

685. Someone close to Batman fell victim to the Joker’s mischief in that episode. Who was it?

686. In one episode, before promptly gassing Batman, who utters, “Trick or Treat?”

687. What character(s) in the animated continuity were married on Christmas Eve?

688. The episode HOLIDAY KNIGHTS is taken directly from a special one-shot that came out originally in what year?

689. Name the three people the Joker kidnapped on Christmas Eve so he would have a family of his own to spend time with during the holidays.

690. What is the name of the movie Bruce Wayne absolutely ABHORS watching prior to Christmas?
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AND THESE ARE OUR FINAL ANSWERS (to the trivia)

Answer to #681: The Riddler
Answer to #682: Chuck Dixon
Answer to #683: Calendar Girl (what? Egghead? Get outa the 60’s, man!)
Answer to #684: THE LAST LAUGH
Answer to #685: Alfred (and, arguably, “Captain Clown”. Heh.)
Answer to #686: Poison Ivy
Answer to #687: Victor and Nora Fries
Answer to #688: 1995
Answer to #689: Commissioner Gordon, Harvey Bullock, Summer Gleeson
Answer to #690: IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE
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LITTLE FACTS AND BLOOPERS
(by Tim “TWO-FACE” Leighton)

Here is a section that just points out various little facts and bloopers that we have noticed while watching BTAS, STAS and BEYOND countless times. If you have anything to contribute, feel free to do so! Enjoy!

CONTRIBUTED BY STAFF:
Forgive us. We’ve been out shopping.

CONTRIBUTED BY OTHERS:
So have you. Hurry up! Only two more days to go!
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FIGURE THIS OUT!
(by Marc Rosenzweig)

Happy Holidays and welcome back to Gotham City’s very own toy info centre and another addition of FIGURE THIS OUT!

After taking the opportunity to get some holiday shopping done, I had to whip out my laptop and get this down on “paper”! Toys R Us has just received their HASBRO shipment & OOH my GAWWD!

Another version of the standard Batcave has been released but with a twist! The good people at Hasbro felt thought, “What good is a Wayne Manor/Batcave without a butler to help take care of it?” This latest version of the Batcave (titled a SHADOWCAST BATCAVE) comes with the elusive Alfred figure. Until now, this has only been available as a Toys R us EXCLUSIVE earlier last year in a 4 pack set just like the Commissioner Gordon figure!

The cave is made from the same standard molds used by Hasbro since 1992 when it was first released. The colors have been changed as to separate this year’s model from those manufactured previously and the Bat-computer screen stickers have been redone in the new animated style. If you do not already own one of the six different versions of this cave already, now is the time to go out and buy one just so you can get your hands on the ALFRED figure! At a retail price of just $49.99 it’s a steal!

They have been offered on eBay for the last few weeks and were selling as high as $80! Save your money and save your time…these will be available through the holiday shopping season. So add this to your want list so Santa or Hanukkah Harry can put this little ditty under your tree or in front of your menorah!

http://www.geocities.com/twofacetower5/NewBatCave.jpg

Staying in line with the limited edition figures, Hasbro has also released an ANIMATED SUPERMAN 4 pack that I have only seen at Toys R Us. I haven’t had time to visit my local TARGET yet so I don’t know who else might have these. You may want to check K-Marts and Wal-Marts as well. The special edition figure in this package is that nosey report…LOIS LANE!

http://www.geocities.com/twofacetower5/Lois4Pack.jpg

Sculpted in the animated style, Lois sports a Red skirt with a matching blazer. 
She comes with her own pad and pen so she can take notes while on assignment.

Also included in this box set is a re-painted Superman figure, Lex Luthor and Brainiac.

Nothing special about the three accompanying figures, but I wouldn’t pass this one up!

I don’t know how long these will be in stores as the Alfred figure was so hard to get originally, don’t expect Hasbro to ever release a Daily Planet Play set, so don’t take a chance and don’t miss out. At a retail price of $19.99 you can’t afford not to buy this one yourself, don’t bother waiting for it to be a present under your tree!

Until next we meet!

GOD BLESS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ONE AND ALL!

Marc Rosenzweig
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FEATURED BATMAN INTERNET ENDEAVOURS FOR THIS ISSUE
(feel free to submit something for our consideration)

This space for rent.
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TWO-FACE’S TRADING POST

For the next few issues, we here at BATMAN: THE ANIMATED NEWSLETTER will be providing this space for all you subscribers for trading, buying, selling, and whatnot, just in time for Christmas (and beyond). So, without further adieu, here is what we have in store:

WANTED:
1) LOOKING FOR BTAS EPISODES:
Over the Edge, Love is a Croc, The Ultimate Thrill, Cult of the Cat, Old Wounds, Knight Time, Girls Night Out, Judgement Day, Beware the Creeper, Mad Love
Contact cagq64@hotmail.com if you can or would like to help.

2) LOOKING FOR BTAS EPISODES:
I live in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. I am looking for anyone who can help me out with obtaining episodes of any Batman/Superman cartoon – live action shows. By obtaining I mean dubs. If you think you can help me out please e-mail me at imasuperfan@hotmail.com

3) LOOKING FOR EPISODES:
JLA episodes, particularly the upcoming INJUSTICE FOR ALL two-parter. E-mail this address if you can or would like to help: cointoss@hotmail.com

4) LOOKING FOR EPISODES:
All TNBA episodes and all Justice League episodes (Non-wide screen format only)
Contact dennisc@dcsi.net.au if you can or would like to help.

FOR SALE:
Nothing as of yet.

NOTE: Batman: The Animated Newsletter has takes no responsibility in business transactions. We’re working on the honour system here, people, so PLAY NICE! ;-Y
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ANIMATED BATMAN/SUPERMAN SITES:

Wow, our links section has grown so big that we’ve had to eliminate it from the newsletter! Fear not, you can still find all these links at the WORLD’S FINEST NEWSPAGE, if you follow this link…that’s hypocracy for ya!

http://www.toonzone.net/worldsfinest/worldsfinestpage/linkpage.htm

NEWSGROUPS
—–
news:alt.comics.batman
news:alt.animation.batman
news:alt.comics.superman
news:rec.arts.sf.superman
news:alt.tv.cartoon-network
news:rec.arts.animation
news:alt.animation.warner-bros
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QUESTIONS, SUBMISSIONS, AND FAN-MAIL

If you have any questions, problems, links do not work, or anything else, then please e-mail this address with your problems and we’ll try to fix them as soon as possible. Also if you’d like to send any fan-mail then please send it to this address:

juno@dccnet.com

As for submissions, feel free to submit an article or opinion on anything pertaining to BTAS. Keep in mind that as the editors, we have the right to edit your submissions if we deem it necessary. Such instances would include problems with length, grammar, and language. If we do feel we must edit something, however, we will do our utmost to ensure that the opinion and the basic message of the submission does not change, as that is the most important part of any article, and everyone is entitled to it. And if you do submit something, please don’t just submit a basic review of an episode or a comic or something (because we have people writing for those purposes already) – write about an issue you’d like to discuss.
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BATMAN: THE ANIMATED ARCHIVES

The very kind people at TOONZONE were nice enough to give us our own little section of their huge and diverse website. The archive contains past newsletters and is semi-regularly updated with the latest one. To check it out go here:

TOONZONE’s BATMAN: THE ANIMATED NEWSLETTER ARCHIVES
http://www.toonzone.net/news/btan
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LIKE WHAT YA SEE? WANNA SUBSCRIBE? HERE’S HOW!!!

For those of you who are seeing this at the WBC HOMEPAGE BTAN ARCHIVES section and want to subscribe, just follow these simple instructions:

To subscribe email juno@dccnet.com, put SUBSCRIBE in the subject line, and put the e-mail address you’d like the newsletter to be sent to in the body of the message.

We have also set up another back-up e-mail subscription address, here:
batmannewsletter@yahoo.com

For more information about the newsletter just email either of the previous e-mail addresses – preferably the prior.

Thank you for your time, and thanks for reading! Tell your friends!

-Tim TWO-FACE Leighton and Dick Grayson, editors
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TO ALL GOOD THINGS…
…there must be an end. We would like to thank the endless amount of contributors for contributing their editorials, columns, news, reviews and other articles. We hope you’ve all enjoyed it as much as we’ve enjoyed making it! Thank you for reading! See ya next time!

CREDITS FOR BATMAN: THE ANIMATED NEWSLETTER

EDITOR AT COLLEGE, & WORKING, TOO!: Tim “TWO-FACE” Leighton
CO-EDITOR AT COLLEGE, ALSO WORKIN’: “Dick Grayson”
AIR DATE SCHEDULES: Toonzone, Cartoon Network, and YTV
EPISODE REVIEWS: “Belle Book”
EDITORIAL: Help Wanted!!!
COMIC REVIEWS: Tim “TWO-FACE” Leighton, Dick Grayson
‘RETURN OF THE JOKER’ GIVEAWAY: Tim “TWO-FACE” Leighton
FIGURE THIS OUT: Marc Rosenzweig
“BTAN ARCHIVES” MODERATOR: Eileen Delgadillo
TRIVIA: Tim “TWO-FACE” Leighton
PROMOTIONS, JUST GETTIN’ THE WORD OUT: Dick Grayson, Eileen Delgadillo, Brian Cruz, Brian Davis
THOSE WHO FILL IN FOR OTHERS WHEN THEY FOUL UP:-Y Tim “TWO-FACE” Leighton
DELIVERY: Tim “TWO-FACE” Leighton
E-MAIL RECEPTION HANDLING: Tim “TWO-FACE” Leighton
THE CREATION OF THIS NEWSLETTER INSPIRED BY: Alan J. Porter
BATMAN CREATED BY: Bob Kane & Bill Finger (who else?)

Batman and all related indicia are trademarks of DC Comics, Copyright c 2001.
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2001 “GOLDEN OVAL AWARDS” POLL FORM

After last year’s rather…dismal turn-out we’ve decided to do away with many of our categories and just stick to the basics. Below are 32 questions dealing with the animated universe and the mainstream comic universe. We’ve also included a section focusing on this newsletter so, if you wish, you can write to us and tell us what you like or don’t like so we can adjust the newsletter to better serve you. Sound fun?

Alright! Fill this out and e-mail it right back to juno@dccnet.com if you’d like to be included in our poll for the best and worst of 2001! We must receive entries by December 29, 2001, as results will be posted in our issue delivered on January 5, 2001.

ANNNNND you can only vote once!

NOTE: No episodes of BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES are eligible, and only BATMAN BEYOND episodes that came out in 2001 (was that ONLY “UNMASKED”?). JUSTICE LEAGUE episodes are eligible too, of course.

As for the comic series’, all issues of BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES from #34-45 are eligible, and all issues of BATMAN BEYOND from #16-24 are eligible. JUSTICE LEAGUE ADVENTURES #1 and #2 are eligible. For the BTAN section, Issues #83-110 (or whatever we have by the end of the year) are eligible. (Long live the archives!)

THE REALMS OF THE ANIMATED UNIVERSE
#1. BEST EPISODE
#2. WORST EPISODE
#3. BEST DESIGN
#4. WORST DESIGN
#5. BEST VOICE
#6. WORST VOICE
#7. BEST ‘GOOD GUY’
#8. BEST VILLAIN
#9. BEST WRITER
#10. BEST DIRECTER
#11. BEST “ANIMATED” COMIC
#12. WORST “ANIMATED” COMIC
#13. BEST “ANIMATED” COMIC COVER
#14. BEST PIECE OF MERCHANDISE

THE MAINSTREAM COMIC BOOKS
#15. BEST HERO
#16. BEST VILLAIN
#17. BEST SUPPORTING CHARACTER (“Good” or “Bad” or neither)
#18. BEST STORY-ARC
#19. BEST SINGLE-ISSUE STORY
#20. BEST MINI-SERIES
#21. BEST WRITER
#22. BEST ARTIST
#23. FAVOURITE MOMENT OF 2001

BATMAN: THE ANIMATED NEWSLETTER
#24. BEST ONGOING ARTICLE/SECTION
#25. WORST ONGOING ARTICLE/SECTION
#26. WHAT YOU LOOK FORWARD TO THE MOST IN EACH ISSUE
#27. WHAT YOU LOATHE THE MOST IN EACH ISSUE
#28. WHAT DO YOU FIND MOST HELPFUL?
#29. WHAT STILL NEEDS SOME TWEAKING?
#30. ANY SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE ISSUES?
#31. SHOULD WE HAVE MORE CONTESTS?
#32. BEST “BTAN” ISSUE
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TO EVERYONE FROM THE STAFF OF BATMAN: THE ANIMATED NEWSLETTER:

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!

Batman The Animated Newsletter #107

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