It’s fascinating to me that it JUST occurred to DC & Marvel that comic books should be fun (look at the interviews and press releases for the upcoming Brightest Day and Heroic Age, respectively.) Don’t get me wrong, I adore more mature fare and think that the industry should still try to experiment with known characters and ideas but not to the exclusion of the joy and fun that brought most people into comic books in the first place.  Two amazing examples of fun, joyful and even wonder-filled properties both come from DC and they both share the same name: The Brave and the Bold.



The comic book first appeared in 1955 and was primarily a showcase for experimentation and the appearance of new characters (Metamorpho first appeared in this title and Neal Adam’s version of Batman first appeared here.) Eventually, the most popular character of the time took over the title and it became a “team-up” book. That character was Batman. The Caped Crusader would eventually team up with every single character in the DCU regards of time and space. The ole portal that whisks our hero away to another world/time and then miraculously shows up on the last page to restore the status quo got a lot of work back then.

Though the title became sporadic, in the late 90s the title started being used for special mini-series. Green Arrow, The Question and the Butcher teamed up under the pen of Mike Grell. Mark Waid would write a great mini-series about the (then dead) Barry Allen / Flash and Hal Jordan / Green Lantern team and explored their friendship both in and out of costume.

Finally, in 2007, Mark Waid and George (“I have drawn EVERYONE”) Perez teamed-up on their own and brought back the Brave and the Bold as an on-going title. The first storyline involved Batman, Green Lantern, Supergirl, Lobo, Blue Beetle and one of my favorite pairings, Batman and the Legion of Superheroes.

The series continues today and is a fun, exciting read for fans of the DCU. With a nice nod to continuity, but never beholden to it, Brave and the Bold brings the back the wonder of costumed adventurers doing what they do best… adventuring!

There are some great trades of the original series, but I really recommend the rollicking tour of the DCU that was the first storyline of the Waid/Perez-run from 2007. BIG ideas, great characters and a wonderful use of the DC props and sets.

Now, on your local HD-screen comes the Batman: The Brave and the Bold cartoon series! Debuting in 2008 on the Cartoon Network, this animated team-up show features Batman and an incredible array of masked comrades and villains. At first, I was leery of this new show because I was such a fan of the Batman: the Animated Series, with it’s deep, dark tones in style and writing.

This show is a perfect companion to The Dark Knight. The Christopher Nolan-helmed film is a masterpiece of film; a dark story of sacrifice, loss and altruism. It’s an incredible film for me. I’m over 35. I’ve been collecting comics (especially Batman) for the past thirty years! The character, and his portrayal, grew with me. I loved Adam West, and then I hated the Michael Keaton run, but the Animated Series and the Frank Miller books all came at the same time as my personal tastes in media changed. I was lucky. That all being said, it is time for Batman: The Brave and The Bold.

The Batman in this series is a lot more fun than the Grim Avenger we’ve seen over the past twenty years. He makes puns, he has a ton of gadgets. He’s the Batplane, the Batmobile, the Batcycle and all that. Probably the biggest difference is that there’s NO BRUCE WAYNE! No Jim Gordon, no mansion, no sidekick*. There is no baggage to this Batman. While the series is insanely fun (Mongul forces all the villains and heroes to DRAG-RACE) it’s not dumb and not just for kids. It’s a fun, and pretty funny, show. Batman regularly teams up with Green Arrow, Wildcat, Plastic Man, Red Tornado, Aquaman and even his ex=partner, Robin (who’s wearing his pre-crisis Earth-2 costume!)

Here’s a great example of the fun they’re having with this show. The episode, “Mayhem of the Music Meister” begins with Black Manta, Gorilla Grodd and Clock King about to steal a UN communications satellite. They’re stopped by Black Canary, Green Arrow, and Aquaman. Suddenly, Batman appears and the good guys are about to win when the Music Meister appears and uses his “musical” powers to force ALL of them (except Batman… he’s in the air in a freakin’ whirlybat!) to sing and dance. No, you didn’t misread that… Gorilla Grodd, Green Arrow, Black Manta, Black Canary, Clock King and Aquaman did a musical number. All of that was in the first 10 minutes.

The entire episode is full of character-based song and dance, with Batman (Diedrich Bader) more than ably joining in.  Even though the series is only in its third season, Batman has fought Per Degaton, Kiteman, Enemy Ace, Gentleman Ghost and teamed up with the Metal Men, the Green Lantern Corps, Dr. Fate, the Question and more. For an old school DC fan like me, it’s a great, delightful treat to visit these characters once again.  The first season is available on DVD.

Batman: the Brave and the Bold is definitely for kids and is loaded with lessons and morals. But what’s wrong with that? Obviously, Marvel and DC both agree.