After witnessing the likes of Justice League, Batman: The Brave and the Bold and Beware the Batman being granted Blu-ray releases, fans have probably wondered what’s been the holdup when it comes to Batman: The Animated Series getting the same treatment. Granted, those other shows are more recent and require less in the way of remastering, but that doesn’t change the fact that many of us have been waiting impatiently for such a thing to happen.
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Fortunately, San Diego Comic-Con brought us confirmation that the series responsible for first introducing us to Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill’s respective versions of Batman and the Joker will, in fact, be coming to Blu-ray on October 16th.
To start you off, here’s what to expect from the Deluxe Limited Edition that’ll be restricted to 30,000 copies:
- NEW REMASTERS OF ALL EPISODES IN THE SERIES
- REMASTERS of Batman: Mask of the Phantasm and Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero
- NEW Heart of the Batman – featurette (60 min)
- Select Audio Commentaries
- Three Funko Pops
- Deluxe Art Book
In addition to the aforementioned all-new documentary, the following stuff will carry over from the initial DVD sets:
- The Dark Knight’s First Night Pilot Promo: Hosted by Bruce Timm (Featurette) – Witness the 1991 Batman promo reel as producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski discuss the origins of Batman: The Animated Series.
- Batman: The Legacy Continues Retrospective (Featurette) – DC luminaries join BTAS creators as they explore the combination of exquisite design and in-depth storytelling that helped create a once in a generation show.
- Robin Rising: How the Boy Wonder’s Character Evolved (Featurette) – The evolution of Dick Grayson from young ward to crime fighter.
- Gotham’s Guardians: The Stalwart Supporting Characters (Featurette) – Batman is not the only hero safeguarding Gotham City. This documentary focuses on the importance of the Dark Knight’s allies in the Batman mythology.
- Voices of the Knight (Featurette) – Actors Mark Hamill, Kevin Conroy, Adriene Barbeau, Efrem Zimbalist Jr., and Andrea Romano discuss the process of bringing their iconic characters to life.
- Gotham’s New Knight (Featurette) – Barbara Gordon swings into focus in this exciting look at Batman’s trusted ally and equal, Batgirl.
- Video Commentary: “House and Garden” – Watch along as Producer Bruce Timm, Director Boyd Kirkland and writer Paul Dini take viewers behind the scenes of an exciting episode of Batman: The Animated Series.
- In-Movie Experience – Watch along as Producer Bruce Timm, Director Boyd Kirkland and writer Paul Dini take viewers behind the scenes of an exciting episode of Batman: The Animated Series.
- Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight’s Many Foes: Introduction (Featurette) – Bruce Timm, Dan Riba, James Tucker, Paul Dini, Alan Burnett and Andrea Romano discuss Gotham’s most popular rogues.
- Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight’s Many Foes: Clayface (Featurette) – Clayface personnel file revealed by Bruce Timm, Dan Riba and James Tucker.
- Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight’s Many Foes: Harley Quinn (Featurette) – Alan Burnett, Bruce Timm, Eric Radomski, Paul Dini and James Tucker discuss bringing Harley Quinn to life.
- Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight’s Many Foes: The Joker (Featurette) – Alan Burnett, Bruce Timm, Eric Radomski, Paul Dini, Andrea Romano and Dan Riba discuss Mark Hamill’s inimitable Joker.
- Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight’s Many Foes: Mr. Freeze (Featurette) – Bruce Timm, Paul Dini, Andrea Romano and Dan Riba discuss MR. Freeze and the Heart and Ice Origin story.
- Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight’s Many Foes: The Penquin (Featurette) – Bruce Timm, Andrea Romano, Alan Burnett, James Tucker, Dan Riba and Eric Radomski discuss The Penguin.
- Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight’s Many Foes: Poison Ivy (Featurette) – Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, Andrea Romano, Alan Burnett, Dan Riba and Eric Radomski discuss designing Poison Ivy.
- Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight’s Many Foes: Ra’s Al Ghul (Featurette) – Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, Alan Burnett, and Dan Riba discuss why Ra’s Al Ghul is such an exciting villain.
- Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight’s Many Foes: The Riddler (Featurette) – This file discusses The Riddler and how creators differentiated him from the Batman ’66 Riddler with: Bruce Timm, Alan Burnett, Andrea Romano, Eric Radomski and Dan Riba.
- Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight’s Many Foes: Scarecrow (Featurette) – Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, Alan Burnett, Andrea Romano and Dan Riba discuss the various iterations of the Scarecrow.
- Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight’s Many Foes: Two Face (Featurette) – Discussing Batman’s key nemesis are Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, Alan Burnett, James Tucker, and Dan Riba.
- Arkham Asylum: Examine the Top-Secret Case Files of the Dark Knight’s Many Foes: Ventriloquist & Scarface (Featurette) – Lively discussion about one of Batman’s most unique villains with creators Bruce Timm, Alan Burnett, Eric Radomski, Andrea Romano, and Dan Riba.
- “Concepting Harley Quinn” (Featurette) – Producer Paul Dini discusses how Harley Quinn was incorporated into the series.
And if that weren’t enough, here’s the cherry (or cherries) on top:
- Tour of the Batcave – Featurettes:
- Batman
- Utility Belt
- Bat-Vehicles
- Alfred
Audio Commentaries:
- “On Leather Wings” – Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski
- “On Leather Wings” – Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski
- “Heart of Ice” – Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, and Eric Radomski
- “Robin’s Reckoning, Part One” – Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski
- “Heart of Steel, Part Two” – Bruce Timm, Eric Radomski and Kevin Altieri
- “Almost Got ‘Im” – Bruce Timm, Eric Radomski and Paul Dini
- “Harley and Ivy” – Bruce Timm, Eric Radomski and Boyd Kirkland
- “Read My Lips” – Bruce Timm, Paul Dini, Michael Reaves, Boyd Kirkland and Shirley Walker
- “Harlequinade” – Bruce Timm, Paul Dini, Shirley Walker and Eric Radomski
- “Over The Edge” – Bruce Timm, Paul Dini, Glen Murakami, and James Tucker
- “Critters” – Bruce Timm, Paul Dini, Dan Riba, Glen Murakami, and James Tucker
- “Legends of the Dark Knight” – Bruce Timm, Paul Dini, Dan Riba, Glen Murakami, and James Tucker
But if streaming is your thing, know that Batman: The Animated Series‘ first two seasons can soon be viewed in HD thanks to the upcoming DC Universe app. Still, you have to admit the Blu-ray set is hard to pass up.