Tentacle-Free Anime: Batman in Manga & Anime
I know this is pretty late in the game, but last I checked, it's still 2014. And that means it's still the 75th anniversary to the creature of the night we know and love as BATMAN. I've actually been planning this for a couple months now, but was never able to get around to getting all the necessary material together... until now. Well, mostly everything. There are a few stories I wanted to add to this massive article but was unable to retrieve in time. That's okay though... because there's still a lot to talk about in this tribute to Batman for the last 75 years. So let's get on with it, and discuss... Batman in Japan! 75 years of the caped crusader as perceived by another country and culture! This will be a mix of Anime and Manga starring the Dark Knight.
This is an 8-page story. Very short, very Otomo. Thus this review will probably be short as well, but here we go. Let's see what I can milk from it. From the creator that brought you the head-spinner known as AKIRA.
You'd think putting Otomo with Batman would make the story an instant winner, and it is a nice little story to just... read. But I feel as with he could've worked a little harder on this one. That the fact that it's an 8-page story would mean he didn't have to really work very hard on the story. What is it I mean by this? Well, the story is fast-paced and very loose. With a lot of events happening, and time jumping happening in the span of a few pages. He also throws in the idea of Batman letting his split-personality widen to allow for the titular Third Mask to appear, a new personality. But this idea is never really explored as the story ends on a cliffhanger that paints Batman as something wholly different than he'd ever allow himself to willingly be. The set up to his change also isn't very well written. 
He's the Batman.
The villain is pretty 2-D but given more dimension, at least, than Batman is. Which is interesting to me. While we never get a full explanation as to how the villain became the way he is, there are hints of it like the idea of having a split personality. And we do see two sides, perhaps three sides, to his own personality. But like Batman, it's never fully addressed or explored. 
The Batmobile.
If you just want to see one of the most influencial creators from Japan tackle the Dark Knight, then I say check this out. You can find it in full for free online at a few tumblr pages. Otherwise, this is a pretty skippable footnote in the vast expanse of Batman's history. Fun for novelty, but not much else. Final Score: 1.5 Masks out of 5
While technically, this is not a manga, it does feature
the American comic debut of a manga-ka (manga artist) known as Yoshinori
Natsume (whose works include Togari & Kurozakuro), and it
also reads like a manga. Published under DC Comics' now defunct CMX manga line,
Death Mask explores a bit further the idea of the third mask that was
laid out by Katsuhiro Otomo' titular story. While also delving into Bruce
Wayne's duel persona and history.
I really liked the folklore that Natsume creates in this alternate take on the Batman's history, and the Japanese demons' stories that we get to partake in in this adventure. I really dig Natsume's art style as well, it's very dynamic and clean. The action feels very solid and fluid, while the quiet moments are easy on the eyes . He also has a nice attention to detail to his style, his Demon masks are beautiful and his Batman is great to look at. I really enjoy Batman's look in this series. 
A beautiful shot of the world's greatest detective.
One thing that I didn’t enjoy, as mentioned earlier, is the predictability. The overall villain is pretty easy to see but Natsume does do a pretty decent job at hiding the character within the ensemble cast. And I found it fitting that the underlying theme of the “mask” is something that plays throughout everything. It's even better hidden than the villain. Also the character of Aya, who at one point gets to be a badass female character, but is soon done away with on that front. I think she could've been utilized more effectively. 
It always comes back to his parents.
The theme of the Batman/Bruce split persona is not a new concept, it's something that has been explored to death in almost all forms of media that focuses on the Bat. This one introduces the possible demon persona, or the third mask very slightly touched upon by Otomo. I am not sure if this was done on purpose, but the connection is pretty uncanny. This book also focuses on face stealing, another underlying layer to the “mask” theme. It's similar to the works of Professor Pyg from Grant Morrison's Batman & Robin series from the year before, although again I'm sure they're not exactly related. 
Batman versus a demon.
Batman: Death Mask feels like I am watching an anime movie from start to finish. That's pretty cool. Natsume's story isn't perfect or exactly unique, but it is a lot of fun and a worthy experience for any fan of Batman to enjoy. It may not be a “fully fledged” manga, but it's a look at the character from an outside perspective, and what he has to say is damn good. Final Score: 3 Demon Personas out of 5
Speaking of anime movies: Gotham Knight is an impressive piece of animated art. It brings together several high profile animation studios to tell several incredibly good stories. The back of the DVD set boasts them as 6 interlocking stories, but really there's just barely any connection between them. Don't get me wrong, all of them ARE indeed connected, but only barely. With a few bits of passing dialogue here and there in order to say “Hey, look at me, I'm set in the same universe as the last story!”
“Crossfire” - This is where things start getting good. Which is no surprise, given it was done by Production I.G. (Ghost in the Shell, Blood+). This also focuses on more of the legend of Batman, were he isn't the main focus but among a mythos granted to him by the citizen of Gotham. Although the citizens that are focused on in this story is Detectives Crispus Allen who despises the Batman, and Anna Ramirez who looks up to Batman. The animation is superb here, and the story is all around great. One of my favorite segments of the piece. Batman is seen here as a giant, immovable force. Sort of a God in the way of the police who despise his existence. A nice contrasting though between the “lowly” humans of Gotham and the mythological figure that is “Batman.” 
Batman is ready to take on anyone.
“Field Test” - Animated by Bee Train (.hack//Sign, Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle), this is my least favorite segment of the movie. The story, in my opinion, just isn't that great. Featuring Batman utilizing a new force field that protects from small-caliber guns in long distance or short-range firing fields. But the biggest setback from this segment is the animation which could be miles better, given the studio behind it, but instead all the characters look awkwardly bishounen (and not in a good way), and Batman himself looks like a strange hawk-creature instead the bat-inspired being that he is. It's all very distracting and I came away not really enjoying this segment. “In Darkness Dwells” - Animated by my love affair studio Madhouse (Redline, Tokyo Godfathers) In Darkness Dwells is another high point for the movie. While some of the animation is hard to deal with, like that of the looks of Batman himself kind of looking like an old man with ridiculously enormous abs, and the detectives all looking kind of awful. The animation for Scarecrow and Killer Croc for this are pretty great. I love their looks, although Croc is very underutilized in the story which drags it down a bit. It focuses so heavily on Croc in the beginning only to give him one actual scene of screen time and then pressing onwards to Scarecrow. I did however like how Croc and Scarecrow's stories are mixed together though. “Working Through Pain” - Once again animated by Studio 4*C, this story has the second best animation in the movie. The style is very different than what the Studio shows off in the first segment, humanizing its characters and focusing more on Bruce Wayne the character, than Batman the God. The writing in this story is rather strong, showing Bruce as he travels to another country in order to seek a way to deal with the pain of his parents death. And also the pain that he endures as Batman in this story. The ending to this story is rather melancholy, but fitting. And thus ends up being one of my favorite segments of the movie. “Deadshot” - The second segment animated by Madhouse, this one I thought had the greatest animation of the bunch. And being the last segment it had a lot to accomplish in being a pleasing finale to the whole shebang. Story-wise and animation-wise Deadshot does not disappoint. Except in one area, and that's the very rushed and rather anti-climactic ending to Gotham Knight. The action is great though, and the inclusion of Deadshot the character is a rather intriguing one. But a welcome one. Overall I liked the finale segment to the movie, but the ending does leave a lot to be desired. 
Deadshot was a welcome addition.
Gotham Knight the movie is pretty great. And a wonderful piece to have in any Batman collection. The stories are strange but each one is rooted in some sort of realism. Which is unsurprising given it's brought to you by the people who brought us the most successful, down to Earth, Batman movie trilogy seen in a long time. It's also worth noting that Kevin Conroy returns to the role of Batman in this movie. He's best known as the voice of Batman in almost all animated forms of the character since the 90s animated series. I love Gotham Knight. It has its flaws, but it's still pretty solid entertainment. There's just a little bit of something for everyone in this. Final Score: 4 Different Versions of Batman out of 5
And here it is, the coup de grace. Technically, Golden Batman is a S. Korean Animated Film, but I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to share it with the world and discuss it here. Another hidden gem from the eras of old-as-shit anime, I wouldn't classify this as a gem really... but more like a stain clutching to that gem really tightly.
The story is quite hilarious, though it has a lot of really dark moments in it. There is a moment where Golden Batman chops off Black Star's arm and all he does is laugh about it. In fact, up until the final scene of the movie that's all Batman does. He laughs. This Batman laughs during every dangerous encounter, as he brings a true end to all his enemies. That's.... pretty insightful to be honest. I really wouldn't want to meet this Batman in a dark alleyway, especially since he'd probably stand out and that just makes everything seem worse for some reason. You don't WANT to see your killer coming. 
Golden Batman don't mess around...punk.
The movie focuses mostly on the kids though, and Batman doesn't actually appear in his own movie very much. I have no idea what the kids’ names are, but they travel around with a talking dog that looks more like a kangaroo and even has boxing gloves on. It's quite surreal. They don't do much except get into shenanigans and I kept sitting there thinking “Do something you little twerps!” Although the main guy character can apparently impersonate any animal with incredible precision. The noises don't sound anything like real animals, but here we are. In a movie where Golden Batman can shoot effing lasers out of his fingers. 
The "kids".
The villain of Black Star is obviously the 1-D “I must rule all of the universe!” type of guy. He has an interesting look with small, red demon horns protruding from his mask, a white/blue/black color scheme, and a black star insignia on his chest. His sword can shoot lasers too, so there is plenty of laser action in this movie. The animation is not good. Like at all. Everything is pretty awful to stare at, like proportions just weren't a thing known to mankind at the time. Like most old cartoons it seems. Though a lot of the characters looked pretty similar so it was a fun game to try and figure out who exactly Golden Batman is. You do find out at the end, but I won't tell. That'd be giving away the surprise. Golden Batman is a pure frustration to watch seriously, but an incredibly glorious thing to experience if you just make fun of everything and watch it out of pure spectacle. It's also worth seeing if you're a noted Batman fan who loves to see all they can about the caped crusader. This was the 70s, and Korea was taking as many liberties as it could with the character. Probably because they didn't have permission to do this. I know very little about the movie outside of what I saw, like the studio behind the movie or any of that nonsense. It exists though. And you can see it, but I warn you, this is not the Batman you're looking for. Final Score: 1 Little Golden Bat out of 5 Happy 75th Anniversary, Batman! Here's to another 75 years of allowing other countries to take a swing at you and all your glorious pew-pew finger laser blast abilities! 
Told ya.
Whew! That was quite a read. Have you read or seen these Batman manga and anime? What is missing from this list? Let us know in the comments! Tagged: Tentacle-Free Anime, comics. 
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