I suppose I should be up front in saying that I’m more of a Marvel fan. It’s not that DC is bad, far from it. Marvel characters just wound up having larger representation on television. I wasn’t much for Superhero comics in general, even, because I never really had the pocket-money to get into them, and when I did, I had to choose whether to save it up for something bigger, or spend it on comics. You can probably guess which option I took. But the one thing I did consume, regularly, were the animated adaptations. They tended to boil everything down to the very best those characters had to offer. Sure they had to deal with network censors and the like, but I feel that what they actually accomplished through that adversity is all the sweeter for it. And despite my Marvel leanings, when it comes to the animated superhero programs of my youth, Batman: The Animated Series definitely tops the list.
Now I live under a rock, so I was, in fact, completely caught by surprise by Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles. It’s a series directed by Bruce Timm and written by Alan Burnett. Their credentials in the DC Animated Universe are indisputable (they were, after all, responsible for B:TAS. A real dynamic duo). And this time, things are a little bit more… twisted.
Much like with average comic alternate universe shenanigans, they’re taking a different approach towards characters. Batman is not Bruce Wayne; he is Kirk Langstrom (voiced by Michael C. Hall), and the more Bat-savvy among us might be able to guess at what that means. The short above features Harley Quinn (voiced by Tara Strong), and boy, is she unhinged. The fridge is… full, and the usual whimsical Joker background elements are more depraved. This is because they are allowed to go pretty much as far as they want with these tie-in shorts. There are very few things that are completely off the table, and those are likely obvious. The short definitely lives up to its title.
Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles can be found on Machinima’s YouTube channel, with new shorts uploaded all throughout the week (June 8-June 12) in promotion of the upcoming movie Justice League: Gods and Monsters. Or you can check out the latest episode below. I absolutely recommend checking it out and let us know what you think in the comments section.
Final Thoughts:
- Grape Soder.
- That Jack-in-the-Box.
- Bruce Timm is the man.
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