DC continues to pump out their animated features with BATMAN: BAD BLOOD. Here we get to see an animated take on the 'Battle for the Cowl' storyline. The short version of this story, in the comics, Batman is 'killed' by Darkseid and Dick Grayson is forced to take on the mantle of Batman. In Bad Blood, Batman is also 'killed' by a villain known as the Heretic. In his absence, Dick Grayson is forced to become Batman in order to prevent an uprising of criminal activity while also discovering the truth behind Batman’s disappearance.
The movie starts off with a fun introduction of Batwoman fighting criminals alongside Batman. In fact, Batwoman is one of the shining aspects of BAD BLOOD. The movie does Batwoman’s character justice by keeping her sexuality and background intact. She also has very little interest being part of Batman’s crew. She’s a loner. She has that in common with Batman. The differences between them are stark though; she uses guns and she isn’t afraid to kill people. Neither is BATMAN: BAD BLOOD.
The movie is very violent. There’s a great deal of blood and death in the movie. Not all of it is caused by our heroes, but it definitely doesn’t shy away from giving its characters violent endings. Even the action is visceral. The fights between the characters are fun and definitely worthy of being part of the Batman universe. They come with the weight and speed you’d expect.
The idea of Nightwing becoming Batman for a bit has always been a fascinating one. Nightwing has forever been dealing with being within Bruce Wayne's shadow. Now that he’s finally gotten his chance, he has no choice but to become Batman himself. It’s a great character arc that isn’t fully explored, unfortunately.
'Isn’t fully explored' is a phrase I could use for most of this movie. The Heretic isn’t around for nearly as long as you would expect from the all the marketing. Subplots are rushed and somewhat truncated. It’s understandable considering the seventy-four-minute running time. But then the movie should either have been longer, or things should have been stripped out. The movie is too stuffed with ideas that deserve more time than they're given.
The rest of the bat cast, sans Batwing, are given ample screen time to continue their character development. There are even mentions, although brief, of previous animated movies to show that there is some continuity between them. These are nice touches that show these all aren’t standalone films.
The same though cannot be said for the villains. Most of them are nameless C-listers that have no bearing on the story. Firefly contributes to a few good action scenes, but otherwise the rest are forgettable. The mystery of the Heretic is ultimately pointless, despite early evidence to the contrary. The introduction of Talia Al Ghul only complicates things, distracting from what could be an interesting conflict or mystery.
In fact, the entire point of the movie is upended about halfway through. It’s unfortunate because the plot continues to rely on the idea that the people involved in Batman’s life cannot survive without him. There’s no escaping Batman’s shadow for Nightwing; and Damien will always be the son of Batman instead of his own person. The film teases the possibility of character growth only to go back on its ideals the moment Batman reappears in the movie.
Overall, BATMAN: BAD BLOOD is full of failed potential. What started out as an interesting concept turned out to be as trite and cliché as possible. Refusal to try new things and bogging down the story with unneeded subplots make this movie an unworthy addition to the animated universe.
Written by Peter Freeman, TV & Animation Beat Writer - Click here to see Peter's work.
