The Batman animated show, later changed to Batman and Robin adventures, has been true class. It combines the clean, art-deco lines of Fliescher brothers animation from the old days with the dark, gothic Batman mythos, and scripts that at best are better and indeed more believable and less complicated than the comic has ever been, and at worst better than the comic itself often averages from month to month, with excellent music, most of which I believe was done by Danny Elfman. The show started a comic of the same name (and name change) as the show, with most of the same great features and advantages (minus the music), and of course stories completely different from what's on television. Then we have Superman animated adventures, with the same features as the Batman show but minus the gothicness this time, though with just as much world's fair art deco style. It, too, immediately had its own comic counterpart, which they wisely started at the same time. The comic is, in my opinion, quite good; the issues I have read are all by Scott McCloud (of Zot! and the graphic book Understanding Comics that you all told yourselves couldn't possibly be worth the price and eventually were forced to admit you were wrong (hopefully you know this now, that is)). The Superman show and comic both suffer slightly from the fact that Batman has a rogue's gallery a million times richer and more diverse than Superman's Lex Luthor, but it's working with that problem.
So now the popularity of each of these has created the demand for more of this sort of thing from DC, which they have now done by creating a vehicle wherein any part of their superhero universe (with, the exception, I rather think I hope, of Hitman) can be recreated in anime style and form. So how is it?
Promising. It's really not great as an issue, because they chose the JLA for the first story and then broke the story down into a few too many parts to fit at all comfortably, and then they did not add extra pages, probably in order to keep the price down. But the kickoff of a football game is not exciting because it's a guy kicking a ball, it's because know things have really begun and will start happening.
The visual look works rather well, although now we must all face the painful truth: Peter David's Aquaman simply does not translate into animated adventure form, not by John Delaney and Ron Boyd, anyway, although I must say he looks properly irritated to be participating, as he does in his own book.
Wally West (Flash) and his girlfriend Linda Park, I am happy to report to Mark Waid fans, look just so darn cute. The next issue also features the Flash on his own in the title, with a backup story featuring Catwoman.
The Martian Manhunter also looks great in my opinion. They've been making a big mistake trying to draw him in an unanime style all these years. Those black, liquidy eyes were made for this title. The same goes for Crabface Boy (the current Green Lantern): his costume is much less laughable when he actually looks like he actually is in a cartoon.
Wonder Woman and several other people on the cover look better than usual too, and it's a pleasure to see persons from DC's more magical side in the background: Zatanna, whom DC has never quite known with what to do, Deadman, who looks a bit out of it, a surly looking creature that is probably (I think) Etrigan the Demon, and an unmistakable Phantom Stranger way in the back (yes oh yes). Along with Kid Green Arrow (Connor), canceled comics like Black Lightning, the Ray, Hawkman, and other old Justice League Internationals, the message is either clear or a huge tease: whichever part of the DC superhero community you like to read about, they'll show up in ADCU eventually. I imagine that part of the reason the JLA was chosen for this first story is the nostalgia factor, bringing in those of us who grew up on the Superfriends: they even assigned the Cheetah as Wonder Woman's sparring partner again, Super-Gorilla Grodd to the Flash, and the Scarecrow to Batman. My lovely friends, the spirit of the Legion of Doom is not at all dead yet in our minds, hearts, or comics. We never see what calculating figure is behind the villainy this issue: oh DC, let it turn out to be Brainiac.
Dr. Light was also made for anime-style art, by the way.
Anyway, this first issue was crowded, but exciting for what it portends. The interest in animation is sweeping from Japan into the offices of DC, and this, along with the new Titans all-mangacized annual to arrive soon, is just extra proof (as is the manganess of Impulse and the vague manga feel of the Legion). Go out and pick up this book, not because it shows you what a good writer Steve Vance is (no room to tell), but to see what I mean about this newest look of DC...
Did anyone notice the Wonder Twins working in the bar in Kingdom Come? Cross your fingers. (For which result, you decide.)