I’ve been looking forward to “Batman: Caped Crusader” for a very long time. We're talking several years of waiting at this point. But we're now just days away from its premiere on Prime Video, and very positive early reviews are starting to trickle out.
Pitched as something of a spiritual successor to “Batman: The Animated Series” (a personal favorite of mine), “Caped Crusader” sees the co-creator of that classic cartoon, Bruce Timm, return to Gotham City alongside J.J. Abrams and Matt Reeves (director of 2022's “The Batman") for a new spin on The Dark Knight.
While the inspiration from the beloved ‘90s animated “Batman” series is clear from the pre-release trailers, “Caped Crusader” is still forging its own path. For starters, it’s set in a 1940s version of Gotham and includes new spins on classic foes such as Harley Quinn and The Penguin. It's shaping up to be the perfect blend of familiar and fresh for Batman fans.
My anticipation for “Batman: Caped Crusader” was already high, but now that critics are free to post their first impressions my hype is reaching new levels, as the initial slate of reviews is extremely encouraging. Here’s what critics are saying right now…
‘Batman: Caped Crusader’ reviews — this show is bat-tastic
At the time of writing, “Batman: Caped Crusader” holds a perfect 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes. Impressions are still going live, but this highly impressive rating comes from 24 individual reviews, which is not an insignificant sample size.
Ross McIndoe of Slant Magazine suggests that “the series concocts a hard-edged crime tale within the boundaries of a kid-friendly show”. This write-up is particularly exciting as one of the best aspects of “Batman: The Animated Series” was its ability to tackle grown-up themes within the veneer of a Saturday morning cartoon, and it appears that “Caped Crusader” follows suit.
Speaking of comparisons to the iconic ‘90s series, Empire Magazine’s Kambole Campbell said, “This is a return to the very foundations of Bruce Timm and Paul Dini’s character-defining Batman: The Animated Series — a show that feels like a renewal rather than a retread” in their positive review of "Caped Crusader". They also called it “familiar yet different”.
Jarrod Jones of AV Club was also a fan, saying “‘Caped Crusader’ promises a moody, noirish thrill ride through a tough, bleak, and forbidding Gotham City via its mostly silent protagonist.” Meanwhile, Angie Han of the Hollywood Reporter praised the show’s “sleek, simple style and consistently moody vibe” but also felt it “rarely soars to the level of spectacular”.
Here’s when you can watch ‘Batman: Caped Crusader” on Prime Video
I suspect the sneak peek trailer linked above, and the universally positive reviews have you eager to watch “Batman: Caped Crusader” for yourself. Fortunately, you won’t have to wait long as all 10 episodes debut on Prime Video on Thursday, August 1.
After several years of waiting (the show was first announced back in May 2021), it feels a little surreal to only be a few days from finally getting to stream “Batman: Caped Crusader”. Doubly so when you factor in that the show was originally supposed to land on HBO Max (now called simply Max) before being dropped by the streamer. It was Amazon Prime Video that stepped in to save the series from cancelation, and based on the early reception that looks to have paid off.
While the clock ticks towards the premiere date, I’ll be binge-watching my favorite episodes of “Batman: The Animated Series” to get myself in the mood for “Caped Crusader”. But if you need something to keep you busy, check out this underrated “Batman” movie on Netflix.
