Comments on: Batman - Gotham Knight Review - 77,5/100 http://psgels.blogsome.com/2008/07/05/batman-gotham-knight-review-775100/ An anime blog covering a large variety of series, both popular and underrated. Tue, 10 Nov 2009 04:12:48 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=1.5.1-alpha by: Fernando Arias Z http://psgels.blogsome.com/2008/07/05/batman-gotham-knight-review-775100/#comment-8517 Wed, 09 Jul 2008 21:01:16 +0100 http://psgels.blogsome.com/2008/07/05/batman-gotham-knight-review-775100/#comment-8517 Actually, the first segment was the worst. The art is a crap and the story too. Actually, the first segment was the worst. The art is a crap and the story too.

]]> by: KaminaLives http://psgels.blogsome.com/2008/07/05/batman-gotham-knight-review-775100/#comment-8453 Sat, 05 Jul 2008 19:06:45 +0100 http://psgels.blogsome.com/2008/07/05/batman-gotham-knight-review-775100/#comment-8453 I think my favorite episode of Batman: GK was "Working Through Pain" as it shows Bruce Wayne before he became Batman and part of the training he received to become the dark knight. The character interaction between him and Cassandra is excellent (the theme of being honest to oneself and to others, betrayal of trust plus the student-teacher dynamic), and Cassandra herself is a very deep and complex character in her own right. I'm very glad Studio 4°C decided not to shoehorn any romance between the two (as a lesser studio might have done to add more "drama" to the story) as the dynamic they had was great all by itself. Finally, the message of guns and how Batman is forever fighting to get them off the streets (a gun was used to kill his parents, after all) is particularly haunting and poignant; his inner pain over his losing his parents is nothing compared to his outer pain (the bullet wound) and makes him unable to accept help even when it's offered, driving him further on his quest for vengeance. Plus it sets up the "Deadshot" episode very nicely. Deadshot was my second favorite episode. Very intense action and I liked the cat-and-mouse interplay between Bats and Deadshot (even if the villain was ultimately disappointing; barely a challenge even). I thought the first episode had some interesting storytelling narratives (it reminded me of the Batman: The Animated Series episode where a bunch of kids retell their own versions of him, as they do here) and the disjointed chronology is a nod to "Batman Begins" and "Dark Knight" director Chris Nolan's film "Momento." Though the somewhat distorted and grotesque style of the character designs was a bit off-putting (and I liked Noein but this was a but too much even for me). Crossfire was all flashy visuals and awesome animation (it's Production I.G, after all) but the plot was just meh. The dialogue was kinda stilted too ("He's a vigilante!" "No, he's not!" "He's a vigilante!" "No, he's not!" Who wrote this stuff?). Batman on fire is a nice visual but I don't believe even his suit is that flame retardant. Field Test had some interesting ideas. Why couldn't Lucius Fox have developed a personal magnetic field device, making the wearer essentially bullet-proof? I liked that the device worked too well, and makes Batman scrap the idea and be more willing to accept the risks each time he dons the mask and cape. Making him invincible would have been a bad mistake anyway (he's not Superman; plus being invulnerable = boring character). I just didn't like the fact that Bee Train made Bruce look like he stepped off the set of Death Note with his ultra bishie-pretty boy looks (I had Light flashbacks throughout the episode and kept on expecting Ryuk to pop up). A jetsetting playboy, yes; a bishie, um, no! Darkness Dwells was straight up action and nice animation, but nothing to write home about character or plot-wise. I had been wondering where Scarecrow went after he escaped at the end of "Batman Begins" but he's barely in this episode at all. To sum up, some hit or miss episodes, nice visuals, and a decent complement to the Batman mythos and the upcoming "Dark Knight" movie. At only about an hour for the whole thing, it seems a little short but worth it for any diehard Batman fan. I think my favorite episode of Batman: GK was “Working Through Pain” as it shows Bruce Wayne before he became Batman and part of the training he received to become the dark knight. The character interaction between him and Cassandra is excellent (the theme of being honest to oneself and to others, betrayal of trust plus the student-teacher dynamic), and Cassandra herself is a very deep and complex character in her own right. I’m very glad Studio 4°C decided not to shoehorn any romance between the two (as a lesser studio might have done to add more “drama” to the story) as the dynamic they had was great all by itself. Finally, the message of guns and how Batman is forever fighting to get them off the streets (a gun was used to kill his parents, after all) is particularly haunting and poignant; his inner pain over his losing his parents is nothing compared to his outer pain (the bullet wound) and makes him unable to accept help even when it’s offered, driving him further on his quest for vengeance. Plus it sets up the “Deadshot” episode very nicely.

Deadshot was my second favorite episode. Very intense action and I liked the cat-and-mouse interplay between Bats and Deadshot (even if the villain was ultimately disappointing; barely a challenge even).

I thought the first episode had some interesting storytelling narratives (it reminded me of the Batman: The Animated Series episode where a bunch of kids retell their own versions of him, as they do here) and the disjointed chronology is a nod to “Batman Begins” and “Dark Knight” director Chris Nolan’s film “Momento.” Though the somewhat distorted and grotesque style of the character designs was a bit off-putting (and I liked Noein but this was a but too much even for me).

Crossfire was all flashy visuals and awesome animation (it’s Production I.G, after all) but the plot was just meh. The dialogue was kinda stilted too (”He’s a vigilante!” “No, he’s not!” “He’s a vigilante!” “No, he’s not!” Who wrote this stuff?). Batman on fire is a nice visual but I don’t believe even his suit is that flame retardant.

Field Test had some interesting ideas. Why couldn’t Lucius Fox have developed a personal magnetic field device, making the wearer essentially bullet-proof? I liked that the device worked too well, and makes Batman scrap the idea and be more willing to accept the risks each time he dons the mask and cape. Making him invincible would have been a bad mistake anyway (he’s not Superman; plus being invulnerable = boring character). I just didn’t like the fact that Bee Train made Bruce look like he stepped off the set of Death Note with his ultra bishie-pretty boy looks (I had Light flashbacks throughout the episode and kept on expecting Ryuk to pop up). A jetsetting playboy, yes; a bishie, um, no!

Darkness Dwells was straight up action and nice animation, but nothing to write home about character or plot-wise. I had been wondering where Scarecrow went after he escaped at the end of “Batman Begins” but he’s barely in this episode at all.

To sum up, some hit or miss episodes, nice visuals, and a decent complement to the Batman mythos and the upcoming “Dark Knight” movie. At only about an hour for the whole thing, it seems a little short but worth it for any diehard Batman fan.

]]> by: karry http://psgels.blogsome.com/2008/07/05/batman-gotham-knight-review-775100/#comment-8451 Sat, 05 Jul 2008 16:58:26 +0100 http://psgels.blogsome.com/2008/07/05/batman-gotham-knight-review-775100/#comment-8451 Wasnt it supposed to be released on 8th of July ? Wasnt it supposed to be released on 8th of July ?

]]> by: Denizen http://psgels.blogsome.com/2008/07/05/batman-gotham-knight-review-775100/#comment-8450 Sat, 05 Jul 2008 15:41:39 +0100 http://psgels.blogsome.com/2008/07/05/batman-gotham-knight-review-775100/#comment-8450 What's interesting to note is Otaking's comments on "waahh not enough shading" are practically torn apart by this OVA. The thing I liked most about this OVA was the shading, as well as the good animation. Delicious art. Yeah, really good, definitely met my expectations. I hope there are many more Anime companions for films in the future. What’s interesting to note is Otaking’s comments on “waahh not enough shading” are practically torn apart by this OVA.
The thing I liked most about this OVA was the shading, as well as the good animation. Delicious art.

Yeah, really good, definitely met my expectations. I hope there are many more Anime companions for films in the future.

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