"BATMAN AND HARLEY QUINN" Review (Spoiler-Free [Mostly]) | Watchtower Database

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We watched "Batman and Harley Quinn." What did we think of it? Well, that's why we made this video. Duh. Why are you reading this instead of watching it?
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The Watchtower Database is an upcoming fansite collecting all known information on the DC Animated Universe, or DCAU, the 14-year-spanning animated saga produced by Warner Bros. and DC Comics under the creative team of Bruce Timm, Paul Dini, Dwayne McDuffie, and others. WDb's expansive catalog of characters, episodes, imagery, and more will be highlighted by the quarter-turn, full-body images for every single character to have appeared on the shows, as well as many other treats for DCAU fans.
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[@Batmobileize]

I think it's pretty clear: Bruce Timm: Great character designer for the DCAU Paul Dini, Dwayne McDuffie (RIP): Great writers for the DCAU

[@TheNemesis432]

@Carlos Green What about Gods and Monsters?

[@isetmfriendsofire]

Alan Burnett: Great writer for the DCAU 50% of the time, awful the other 50% But yeah, Timm is a great producer, that's for sure, but I'd rather have Dini write a story any day.

[@veagacastro3045]

​@@isetmfriendsofire timm is also a great director and storyboarder. He is a great artist, mas Dini and Burnett were de real writers from all that atuff. He was de Story Editor, but not the writer

[@starrynightsandflights]

The DCAU hates nightwing. I cry everytime.

[@barcyb7911]

I dont care about my username accurate ⬆️😥

[@thehallowheads]

Veronica May B q

[@bigstunna2049]

I dont care about my username he's week in this movie

[@randomthingsyt2158]

I dont care about my username and batman's freakin son

[@AnalyticalMenace]

Agreed. I always felt like the DCAU had no interest in writing compelling stories involving the character. This became especially obvious with the movies; where they'd re-introduce the character, then shove him out of the script as quickly as possible. It's....embarrassing, really.

[@gruwidge]

Bruce Timm has good art, Paul Dinni had good writing, bring them back together, Timm can draw but his writing isn't that great

[@potatoweaver4116]

No joke I thought Batman and Harley Quinn was porn. I saw a scene of it on pornhub and I thought it was a straight to pornhub film.

[@KingOfMadCows]

I would be far more interested in seeing Bruce Timm continue with the Gods and Monsters universe. He actually seems like he has some passion for that continuity since he planned a lot of stuff out for it, including many new shorts and ideas for new heroes. He does not seem to have that much interest in bringing the DCAU back.

[@andrewquick4176]

KingOfMadCows ABSOLUTELY AGREE I LOVE THAT FILM (and especially the shorts)

[@video_watcher9252]

I was extremely saddened that season 2 was cancelled, that shit was great

[@kontrolzee1761]

I strongly disliked this movie. I disliked the unfunny toilet humour, the over sexualization of Harley, the sex between harley and dick, the lack of references to the Joker, the overall plot with floronic man, the cringy "humour", the chase scene that happend for no reason, the two back to back musicals in a row, Malissa Rauch as Harley quinn, and the anti-climactic ending. What i did like was the animation style, Kevin Conroy as batman and Lauren Lester as nightwing. But all that is just my opinion.

[@outcastpov9366]

Kontrol Zee Harley actually mentions Joker once during her fight with nightwing but in an unwanted way. She just refers to him as an "asshat"

[@GuyFromRedBank]

Kontrol Zee You forgot about Swampthing. What was the point of him and why did he look like Bruce Wayne, from Batman Beyond?

[@BATMAN-gh1nf]

Kontrol Zee Thank you. You just saved me time typing, as you stated what I was thinking. I would also add that not enough time was devoted to the crime itself, and too much time was spent on Harley's escapdes. Also, the movie felt as if it just stopped with no true ending. It was not one of those endings with something unresolved, leaving you hoping for a sequel. It just stopped, as if someone said, "Okay, it is __ minutes long, long enough for a straight-to-video release."

[@kontrolzee1761]

Cheers man, I agree with you. I'm down for a new DCAU movie, but only if its done right. I'd like to see some DCAU movies that focus on the individual members of the justice league. I'm getting tired of Batman and his rouges haha. So like a Martian Manhunter movie, or a Flash and Green Lantern movie where they go on a road trip in the flash mobile (Wally actually wanted to to that in one episode haha). I'd like to even see an origin story for Hawkgirl.

[@BATMAN-gh1nf]

Kontrol Zee Batman is and always will be my favorite - I am looking forward to Gotham by Gaslight. I agree with you, though, that it'd be great to see animated movies of other DCAU characters as well.

[@mikeoxhuge423]

What would've been worthy? I believe an adaptation of Batman Beyond 2.0 would've been nice.

[@bigstunna2049]

DARKACES VFA agreed

[@rcbmmines4579]

DARKACES VFA I can’t agree more. A part of me believes that they ARE planning a B.B. series for the future because they stopped making any ongoing series set on Earth 12 in favor of a Batman Beyond series set in the possible future of Earth 0 yet the original Earth 12 universe still exists (as seen in Superman Multiplicity).

[@soundofmadness595]

DARKACES VFA except the part where Bruce actually sleeps with Barbara and gets her pregnant

[@Alejandroigarabide]

Unpopular opinion here: Maybe a small Batman movie about meeting Dead Man and helping him solve his own murder? That adventure was referenced in JLU season 3 but never shown on screen. Or maybe an origin movie for Wally West, John Stewart or Green Arrow? How Batman met Hawk Girl? How the Creeper got recruited into the JLU? How Superman earned the public trust between Legacy and Secret Origins? The near-apocalypse of '09? They were all stories hinted at, but could be a lot more fleshed out. Heck, I would settle for an Almost-Got-Him-style anthology film were some heroes play poker while telling 20-minute short stories about their own origin. As this video says, every DCAU series has indeed had an end or continuation, but some characters could use a more fleshed out beggining.

[@MultiverseAsheville]

I had a ball. Rauch was a great Harley, inasmuch as she wasn’t doing a Sorkin “impression,” which is what Tara Strong goes for. I’m confused when this could “take place;” the tech seems modern and Nightwing is a bit older, but Return of the Joker makes it pretty clear Batman never saw Harley after that, so... hm. The henchman pub was fantastic fan service, but give me Rob Paulsen singing a duet with himself and I’m a happy guy. Yes, it was tonally all over the map. But I chalk it up to the concept of this being similar to that of the ‘66 Animated projects: not really for kids, not explicitly “more of the old continuity,” but a parade of hat-tops to the fan base. Right down to Harley’s closet of themed cosplays of herself. Anyway, keep up the good work, Watchtower folk. Let’s podcast soon! ~ken

[@shinkaiatsuya950]

Batman in the movie: *smells Harley Quinn farts* Its not so bad. Batman in BTAS: Listen, and listen good. You don't touch anything, say anything, or do anything unless I tell you.

[@andrewganus188]

Honestly a dc animated project I want to see make a comeback is batman beyond. They planned on another movie and another season

[@cristianromero2214]

Nah it’ll be ruined without Dwayne 😢

[@fredjones2170]

I think it’d be a C in my book. The good moments were good, and the bad were bad, but they all about even out for an average enough film. Thank you for giving this film a fair shake, regardless of what the internet backlash might have been.

[@xlishere9562]

Why does Harley Quinn have two butt cracks

[@bludj992]

What?!? Where????

[@JRKonungrinn]

Blu Dj When she bends over in front of Nightwing. They fucked up & drew her butt crack inside her panties and then again above her panties.

[@genocyberia619]

I she stupid?

[@FurNessie]

Just sit back, and enjoy the movie. I agree that it can't decide to be for kids or adults, but it's like watching an extended episode with an adult twist. After all the fans who watched 25 yrs ago are grown up enough to enjoy the adult side to it.

[@Dempsey1873]

Cept it wasn't enjoyable lmao

[@planetbumble5060]

@@Dempsey1873 Imagine responding to 6 year old comments just to be a whiney little nerd

[@lilmack2221]

The movie was not bad. It had great easter eggs from BTAS and was pretty funny. People seem to forget that Harley is a clown. Whoopie cushions and fart jokes is something that she eventually does. It reminded me a lot of orginal Harley personality wise. One interesting thing that I have noticed is that everyone is so quick to focus on the one fart joke in the movie, they completely ignore the scene where Harley is showing her humanity and trying to help a scientist go peacefully. That is one thing a lot of people forget when they make Harley. She's so much more than just a sociopath. Every now and then she does show her sanity. Now is this movie the best in the DCAU? No of course not, but the movie is not terrible. In my opinion this movie was aimed at an audience that appreciated BTAS and they gave it a more adult approach. To sum it up stop focussing on the choppy editing and the one fart joke and look at the tiny details that really make this movie pretty fun to watch.

[@hawktalon7890]

If I could like this comment more than once, I would. This definitely wasn't the world's worst movie, and I enjoyed it.

[@Tonyd5736]

If nothing else I thought the movie was fun

[@youdononeetokno]

@@Tonyd5736 this movie almost ruined batman for me for a while.

[@trevturp6891]

The movie is bad.

[@Dempsey1873]

It was horrible and a shit stain on its universe

[@cordellshackelford4037]

Thank you for being fair to this movie. I understand not thinking it was the best thing ever but to say it was terrible would just be lying. It's sad to see how many people have gotten angry at this film.

[@dcauwatchtower]

Cordell Shackelford You'll notice soon that I get pretty frustrated in our Easter egg video, but at the little things. This movie doesn't deserve all the hate, but upon nitpicking there are many things to be irritated at.

[@Dempsey1873]

It was pretty terrible. Disrespectful even

[@Mohamad-m7md]

@@Dempsey1873 Agree to me it gets 5/10 AT BEST

[@finger3306]

​@@Dempsey1873 disrespectful how😂

[@OneAngryDwrf]

Overall, I agree with yours, and others, thoughts and feelings on this film. I didn't outright love it, but I didn't hate it either. To me, it felt like Bruce Timm and company wanted to make a return to the dcau, or at best in the vein of the dcau, but went in with the mission statement of "if we're gonna do it, let's do everything we could never have done in the original show". The "rules" you mentioned that the creative team adhered to were imposed by the censors and by fox, to a degree that arguably hindered their creative process. Many of these rules were relaxed when the show returned in the form of the new Batman adventures along with the move to the WB network. Personally, I think many shows thrive under such rules as it requires the writers to be more creative in their navigation of such rules. Futurama's revival on Comedy Central was a prime example of this as the freedom that being on comedy network allowed them to write jokes and content that just felt out of character for the show. It took several episodes to regain its footing and feel like Futurama again. I think this is in part what happened with Batman & Harley. Another aspect of this film that felt off for Batman and Harley was the lack of Paul Dini's influence on the writing. He has always had a knack for balancing character, story, and the occasional lightheartedness that could have gone a long way in defusing some of the forced aspects in the humor. I prefer to look at this film as an opportunity to continue the dcau, and more specifically the Batman TAS universe, as a film series as they've done with the other warner premiere films. I hope this is the case, but the critical and lukewarm reception from fans may spell it's fate. I personally think that the seeds of this project grew out of the previously mentioned (and reviled) killing joke film. If you think about it, the opening section that was added to the story in almost all respects was a continuation story wise of the new batman adventures. I think if they had animated that film in the dcau style it may have gone over with less derision. But that's a discussion for another day. Regards, OAD

[@nriyo3]

I am thinking that this film is from Harley's memory for her parts on screen and the rest of the story without her present, are omnicent point of view that we get as a viewer. For me, this explains why some of the moments are off kilter. Harley is a sociopath and she reconciles events on her terms and this reinforces the theme of a Harley film even more. Why did Batman not have big spray, because Harley remembers the icky bugs and wanted to pin it on the one person that would not have use for excuses, a person of preparedness that was not prepared. That is the best scapegoat Harley could invent for her inner story and dialog.

[@விஷ்ணு_கார்த்திக்]

The fact that Harley is such a fucking amazing fighter in this movie makes me believe in your theory. NO fucking way can she can go around kung fu punching the shit out of everything.

[@Retr0bit]

I hate to be the one to say this, but Dwayne McDuffie brought a magic to the later DCAU productions, and without him, I'm not sure newer content can even try to be of the same quality

[@Zarastro54]

I’d like to see a “Justice League: Beyond” series that would do some adventures from the Beyond era Justice League.

[@kommo1]

I think that this movie is something Harley came up with, while she sat in her flat, waiting for her next depressing shift in the restaurant. I mean, its just like Nightwing says. She itches to get back into the costume hero/villian buisness. She seperated from joker, so she effectivly avoids him in this fantasy. She got sex deprived in the past months, so she gets on with one off the hotties. Batman is basically second to what joker used to be to her (apart from the violence), so she gets his full attention and makes him appear, as if he absolutly needs her. She revisit the henchmen bar, were she propably holds some off the few nice memorys as a villian without the joker(remember, she avoids thinking about him). She misses Ivy, so she reunited with her in the most Harley way possible (the puppy eyes off nuclear cuteness). And she misses the costumes villian/hero buisness, so she gets back into that, including a fun adventure. This is everything Harley dreams about. She is sitting in her flat, grinding down the probation, getting harrased by the customers, boring the living shit out off her, trying to not think about Mr. J and then.... a knight in shining armor (well more black)appears, taking her back into the live she misses so much, without the annoying parts off risking prison or getting abused by joker.

[@jameszetterman4487]

There were some good jokes in this but God the plot was all over the place. The ending... what???

[@mckstellar1005]

3:42 bruce timm wanted to be nightwing in that moment that's why

[@barq6994]

I would like a differnt DCAU hero solo movie like John Stewart solo DCAU film, Hawk and Dove, or maybe Supergirl.

[@SilverSkiver]

Batman was definitely out of character especially when he was happy when he saw swamp thing. It was definitely weird but it was nice to see the old animation style.

[@cordellshackelford4037]

SilverSkiver I don't know considering the world was literally about to come to an end I'm pretty sure he would have been happy to see almost anyone. If you want to talk about an out-of-character moment I would say it's when he doesn't get help from the Justice League because his preferred members aren't there.

[@LadyDarkling666]

Batman and Harley Quinn was specifically meant for Harley Quinn and I really think they nailed it. I've been a huge Harley fan since I was a little kid and had been waiting for her to get her own film for all these years and to see that finally unfold is just so cool.

[@Thejmack115]

what you really want is a good batman series pretty sure thats what we all want but if they were to make another series in the style of the dcau that would be cool because the style of that animation looks better than ever now

[@ClonePilotSwoop]

My biggest issue with Batman and Harley Quinn (finally got around to watching it last night) was that some scenes were stretched out and felt just to make time. This easily could have been cut into a standard 30 minutes episode. When Harley is walking home form Superbabes, it's like 3 minutes (felt like forever) of the background just changing. Just show her showing up at her place and calling out Nightwing. Anyway... That's my one real gripe.

[@dcauwatchtower]

Oh, definitely. The bar music number scenes lasted way too long, too.

[@wesstewart2677]

I seriously got a chill when I heard Tia Carrera's I Never Even Told You. I seriously want more stories focusing on Andrea Beaumont

[@Bopperann]

I will keep watching reviews on this movie until I can unsee what was the movie _Batman and Harley._

[@whitezombified]

It's supposed to be in dcau right? But i see batman using a smart phone to contact nightwing instead of using his cowl Also nightwing should have kept his mullet, it was like part of his costume. And i hated the "lol xD remember when YOU had that MULLET??" It would have been done right if Dini ( the master of writing for dcau ) had been on board

[@whitezombified]

Point being Two of the things since taking a break from the dcau they have both done are Dini writing the scripts for arkham asylum and city And timm doing this film and killing joke All I'm sayin, you can tell who was the one doing all the writing back in the day

[@batmanlaserieanimada.]

whitezombified At first, he said something like "don't show it to your kids like it is btas" then at comic con he said it is part of the dcau

[@bigstunna2049]

whitezombified true

[@batmanlaserieanimada.]

Keelan Barron Timm did. first he said it wasn't, then he said it's.

[@batmanlaserieanimada.]

in my mind, this film ain't part of the dcau ;) u.u

[@hughLegaspi]

It was an "Okay" movie but maybe, and this a real guess, what was missing for me was that touch of just right seriousness that Dwayne McDuffie added. Maybe it's just me missing his work and the wonderful movie universe and art of the DTV justice league movies he produced.

[@anabsamatar6679]

Hear me out. A new DC animated universe.

[@hawktalon7890]

I wish.

[@estebangutierrez160]

I give the movie a B+, Paget Brewster is my favorite actress because she's notably on Criminal Minds which is my favorite show, Harley Quinn has always been my favorite character, the bar that the henchmen go to is nice and enjoyable, etc.

[@stevedapirate5]

DC direct to DVD movies tend to try to force the rating so hard. It's like some studio executive said ," Adults have sex we need more out of place distasteful sex in our movies!".

[@video_watcher9252]

I would like to see the next thing, if anything, be set during a show, or be a new IP. Say, a Green Lantern trilogy set between JL and JLU, or a Hush adaptation between BTAS and TNBA. I don't want a *continuation*. No continuation of JLU, no continuation of Batman Beyond, none of that. Because it's all already received amazing endings. A show that continues after Epilogue would just water down Epilogue. Same goes for the JLU finale.

[@FruityTuna]

I watched this movie with a good friend of mine, and we were both in love with the DCAU. While I would have been ecstatic to have a movie that fit in perfectly with the DCAU, maybe with Harley having gone missing after her fall in ROTJ or some mention of her complicitness in the torturing of Tim, I'm happy that this movie exists. I'm okay with it being lighthearted and not taking itself too seriously, I'm okay with the blood and foul language because the audience of the kids shows is all grown up now, I'm okay with the audience not knowing who Alec Holland is when his name is shown at the top of the document because honestly you could just see it as a fun easter egg or you could accept the fact that they expanded on who Alec Holland was and his identity as Swamp Thing later on in the film. Plus no offense but it seems a little bullshit to say that the average viewer can't enjoy the movie fully without knowing a lot of source material and then go off about how it doesn't fit in perfectly with the TV universe, something the average viewer might not know as well. I loved seeing the art style again, I loved seeing all the old henchmen, I LOVED seeing animated Nightwing and being able to hear him be portrayed by Loren Lester, which is something I thought would never happen again. If I had to choose between keeping the DCAU bloodline pure or getting new, slightly less serious material to enjoy then I would choose the latter without a doubt. I really hope there is a DCAU resurgence coming up, because I'll be with it all the way

[@ManuDGraf]

Good review, I don't want this movie to be part of the DCAU (I even preffer the Brainiac Attacks or the Gods and Monsters movies to be part of the Timmverse canon instead of this one)

[@dcauwatchtower]

Understandable. It takes some getting used to. From our perspective, we treat everything even mildly possibly DCAU canon as "innocent until proven guilty" and, as you'll see in our upcoming timeline video regarding this movie, there is nothing major in this that keeps it out of the DCAU in terms of pure factual continuity, which cannot be said of "Brainiac Attacks."

[@dcauwatchtower]

Steve Rodriguez We will be making a video about this movie soon-ish. It has been requested a few times.

[@dcauwatchtower]

I think you are somehow misunderstanding. The "innocent until proven guilty" viewpoint allows this movie to definitely be in the DCAU, as well as anything else that doesn't have contradictory information. For example, "Brainiac Attacks" (for lack of a better comparison) is not DCAU canon, because the producers said it isn't and because of several elements of the movie that do not gel well with established DCAU continuity. This movie, however, is left up to fans to decide its validity by Bruce "The Man" Timm himself, and while it may not "feel" the same as a lot of the rest of the DCAU (though, to be fair, several episodes of every series do present a more comedic or silly tone than their more serious/dramatic brethren) this is not enough justification to prove it "guilty" of the same as "Brainiac." The best we as fans can do is judge the movie's canonicity based on facts and critical analysis alone, not on opinion or rose colored glasses.

[@enzmondo]

I thought it was vile not because I'm a purist fanboy. But because it really was not a good film. I was so afraid this would happen. Ever since Bruce Timm never left DC animated movies blah blah, I have been cautious with every movie that he's put out. Yes there are good movies, and there are more definitely bad ones. I always thought that without Paul Dini, Bruce Will have a hard time recreating a similar feel to the DCAU. To be honest, I think of the DCAU as a joint venture and not a creation of one man. Paul Dini contributed to this world just as much as Bruce Timm. And now that Bruce was out of a good Batman writer, he couldn't properly bring back the DCAU. Going back to the topic at hand, this movie wasn't good because of how it was written and what was actually written. You know a film has reached rock bottom when they resort to using shit jokes and shit noise. Harley Quinn singing is not unheard of. Harlequinade had Harley perform in an underground casino and it was good. But having Harley sing rock seemed wrong. If you want to bring back the DCAU feel, especially the BTAS feel, then you have to know that the point that BTAS is set in world if the world got stuck in the 1920 era and continued to advance from there. Harley wouldn't sing rock. She would sing classics or blues or a song like the duet that the twins sang in the same movie. Not rock. I don't think this is a return to the DCAU. It doesn't even feel remotely like Justice League or Unlimited, only the part with Booster Gold.

[@AnalyticalMenace]

What did I think? Honestly, I wanted to like this movie a lot more than I did. Instead, the humor felt awkward and cringe worthy, they made too many character changes for change's sake, and the story was honestly the weakest story in the DCAU so far. The action scenes were nice enough, sure. I love that Batman is still voiced by Kevin Conroy here. But really, this one makes "The Killing Joke" look badass. Solid C+ for this one.

[@murder101storytime]

I LOVED this movie. I'm a huge Harley fan and a huge fan of the DCAU so this was right up my ally. I loved Rauch as Harley outside of the singing bit and the only part of the plot I didn't like was Swamp Thing showing up and doing nothing and not getting to see them actually light Woodrue on fire and beat him.

[@AWPWN1]

Weren't most of the musical cues from this film borrowed from other DC animated films and shows (i.e. Batman: The Brave and the Bold)?

[@arkham6656]

Haven't seen it yet, but after listening to that clip where someone farts and Batman says "smells like justice". Hmmmmmm it makes me want to die

[@tahlialysse]

It really felt like a farewell to BTAS. I don't think it really works as a standalone film, but for very different reasons than you listed. The callbacks and Easter eggs aren't going to make it unwatchable to someone who isn't familiar, even if they won't pick up on them. I mean, it's okay to cringe at fan service, but at the end of the day if your fan service doesn't actually detract from understanding the work, eh who cares? I actually think the things you go into with "they just did it bc they wanted to" are generally the elements that don't work outside of knowing BTAS. Not because they are truthful to BTAS, but because they are a response to the series. Batman in BTAS is kinda a huge dick. Not that he isn't in other media, but when you combine the sentiments of the time (it was more acceptable for men to do dickish behavior, etc) with elements of Batman as a character that lend themselves to assholery (wealthy, brooding, expects to be the smartest person in the room, etc...), it resulted in quite the entitled jerk. I don't think that's a critique of the show; I actually think it's a feature. This film took him to task about it. If you step back to look at the meta-narrative, you can read it as a dialogue between Timm's two biggest creations from BTAS: Batman (well, his version of Batman, obvs) and Harley. Both of them are assholes, both of them are held to task about it (somewhat), and both of them are partially right about how to approach the problem. Insert moral about coming together, etc... The problem I have is that all of that stuff which is the real juice of the film is lost unless you are familiar enough with their characters from BTAS. Even if you are familiar with them, it may not really be clear. The subtext is way to sub and not near enough text. Funnily enough, if you use this lens to understand it, that kinda makes Nightwing the authorial insert here, which puts the sleeping with Harley bit in a very...uh...oof kind of light.

[@goldreaper4209]

I personally didn't enjoy the finale of JLU. It might just be me, but I think that it needed a final part and needed more of a struggle between the League and Darkseid, not to mention the first five to ten minutes are just spent with the JL playing catch up and Darkseid taking back Apokalypse. Maybe there could have been an episode where Darkseid takes his armies back by force interspersed with Lex and his Secret Society gathering and bolstering Earth's defenses, only for them to be shattered by Darkseid's first wave towards the end with many cities, including Gotham and Metropolis, totally decimated (similar to Flashpoint, the episode, not the comic). Then we can have more action in the final episode which could still have all of the best moments the real one did (Batman dodging the Omega Beams, Superman cutting loose, Lex gaining the Anti-Life equation and granting it to Darkseid, the return of J'onn, etc.), just without the catch up.

[@KB-zq9ny]

Without the awesome writing of the original, the movie suffered seriously. There are only two are three episodes of BTAS that focused almost exclusively on Harley Quinn, and capturing her original essence would have been all the movie should have done. The jokes could have even remained more or less the same but the method of delivery could have been changed to keep the characters more like themselves. What we got with Batman and Harley Quinn felt very much like a lazy parody of the original.

[@jokertdk]

Personally, I can't say I was anything but underwhelmed by this movie. Like alot of other people commenting here, I am a big fan of the DCAU and after watching this, I am left with the feeling that this is either a low point in the DCAU continuity, or to be nice, a presentation that's mediocre at best. Either way you cut it, 'Batman & Harley' failed to really deliver anything worthwhile after such a long hiatus, and has solidified my lowering expectations even further for any potential future DCAU entries in the future. Fart jokes, song numbers, and Nightwing sleeping with Harley.... Amateurish, and creepy. It's evident Bruce Timm is just winging it now, and this film should have been handled better, and with actual care for the material, the continuity, and the characters. The late Dwayne McDuffie is sorely missed. Especially when it comes to the DCAU. I'm sure atleast he would have put actual effort into it.

[@jokertdk]

Who said? Bruce Timm. Are you not familiar with his comments concerning the film? It's no coincidence that this is the first DC animated movie in years to directly call back to the animated series, circa The New Batman Adventures. Hence the hyper-critical reviews.

[@joaquinjfernandez1528]

it sucked

[@louisb.6149]

I want to see more Batman the animated series video games. Honestly those things were incredible. I loved the Arkham games, but playing as animated Batman didn’t feel like enough tbh, all the villains were still normal looking, and it looked wore out pretty fast. Loved having the voice actors! But it felt incomplete, as well as trying to remain happy for as much as we typically did receive

[@afonsolucas2219]

DCAU should come back from time to time with a good story that builds upon the universe! You should only do a show about the DCAU about a hero that hasn't been on the spotlight so much or a fifth season of Batman Beyond, it had a conclusion, but they where planning a couple more seasons, so yeah, that's that. I don't want it back if it's crappy. But I do want it back.

[@BlythePennyBicycle21]

The movie probably would have gotten less flack if it wasn't advertised as a return to the DCAU. Then people would have been more lenient on the movie. Though even if this was a standalone movie, its still not that good since it doesn't really you get to know these characters and care for them. If Bruce Timm let Jim Krieg help out more, it could have been great. mobile.twitter.com/jim_krieg/status/901683023116091392

[@TJUC123]

I admire Paul Dini way more.

[@lumpy_skull2836]

Was strange days meant to be in continuity? I thought it was a short done in Bruce Timm's Style.

[@bludj992]

Didn't everyone???? Every time a new animated film or short comes out, people automatically assume that it's part of a universe and not a one shot and try to put it into a timeline. I wonder how they did with DC Showcase. How does *_that_* fit into the _Timmverse????_

[@jamesfranco1997]

Can you do reviews for the other 3 B:TAS movies?? Especially Subzero and Mystery of the Batwoman, because you clearly love Mask of the Phantasm

[@dcauwatchtower]

We have many other videos of "higher priority" in the works, but we'll add these to our list. Thanks for the suggestion!

[@jamesfranco1997]

no problem

[@almondtofumilktea5366]

As someone who is really new to DC, I actually enjoy this show a lot. Maybe its because I don't have the knowledge/nostalgia of watching the other DCAU series before seeing this film. This was my first dcau movie and I had such a great laugh and I honestly think I'll go back to it. Was the movie perfect? No, there were some scenes that didn't feel 100% right lol. But the movie itself felt like a fun joyride. I also saw a comment about how this movie was told in Harley's perspective, which actually makes a lot of sense considering the goofy nature of the show lol. Overall, this is a fun show for me.

[@Galvatronover]

great you've started on a low bar the rest of the DCAU will blow your expectation's high if you ever decide to watch them

[@almondtofumilktea5366]

@@Galvatronover Im starting to watch JLU, its really good so far !!

[@darthbaldi4375]

Bruce Timm reminds me of Frank Miller. He created a masterpiece that no one expected would be as successful as it is, became a legend in the community, then now in modern times attempts to revisit the glory days completely off his rocker. First he has Batman and Batgirl have sex in the killing joke and now has Nightwing and Harley also have sex in this movie. Like why? Is he doing it because he wants to appeal to older audiences who grew up with these shows? Because let me tell you I'm not after a raunchy and adult DCAU, I liked the glory days where good story telling was key. Or is he finally free to let loose and do an adult take on these characters? Again Bruce Timm is an incredibly talented man who shaped not only our childhoods but created the staple dc animated world that all others must try to live up to. Weird creative decisions like these make me just lose some respect in what his artistic vision has become.

[@dcauwatchtower]

Just a note: Bruce Timm didn’t write “The Killing Joke,” so the blame may not be on him for that scene. Overall, I’m sure it’s a challenge to recreate that childhood feeling of the DCAU, and Timm has gone on record a few times saying he doesn’t like returning to it because it’s so difficult to get right again and please everyone. But, he does it anyway. I personally don’t find B&HQ THAT appalling...and the Fatal Five movie coming up looks great.

[@Dempsey1873]

He fell off

[@ParanormalEncyclopedia]

I wanted this movie to be better then it was. It’s to random the plot doesn’t connect well together. The perfect example imo was swamp things cameo all that build up and what? A weird monologue and he’s gone it just derailed a problematic plot.

[@kevinperales7899]

I liked the movie. With a title and the look you'd expect a funny little movie with great writing. I feel the title is a bit misleading. Like we were getting the Tara strong Harley or assault on arkham harley. But I feel this Harley is a new chapter for the evolution if the character. Melissa (whom I know plays Dr. Brunedette Rostenkowski Wallowitz from the big band theory) brings a edge to a more stand up and side of Harley we never seen before. The accent is noticeable but I saw it as she not a bubbly blonde that's a butt of the joke or pushed around. She has a great singing voice and though some jokes are lame other were genuinely funny. The highlight for me is The henchman hide out. And when Batman, Nightwing and Harley are enjoying a small moment in the batmobile. Not an epic story by anyneans. More of an excuse to do thing but I'm greatful they did some of these things. The look, the music, and Harleys development made it worth a watch for me. Thus is a move not to take too seriously. If you wanted great story this isn't for you. But if your new and wanr to start somewhere or really like anything Harley maybe give this a watch but know not to let hype cloud your judgment. It's fun film Ill be bat dancing at the seedy side of town, now and again.

[@seanewing204]

Just watched the movie, then your "Will it Canon" video. Before watching this, I give it a C-/D+. Immature humor and uneven characterization, with two classic voices and fun scenes.

[@bobspeigel9455]

The stupid abrupt ending was absolutely ruinous to this movie, it gets a big fat F(ail) just for that!

[@Curttehmurt]

Honestly this review reflects my feelings exactly. Well except I didn't mind the fart joke and I personally would rank Batman and Harley Quinn above Mystery of the Batwoman. It's been like a decade since I've seen Mystery of the Batwoman but I remember disliking it a lot more than this film

[@EternityinOurHearts316]

Totally agree! BaHQ was just... okay. In the end, not really worth the revisit to the dcau.

[@LunaTheNeko3]

I kinda felt like its a Batman movie...written by Harley. Like shes imagining the whole adventure

[@barcyb7911]

I haven't seen the full movie (heck I'm not waisting $20 on a movie with Harley Quinn singing in a bar and having sex with Nightwing and with fart jokes) TBH I like the idea of the team up. Melisa as Harley from the clips I've seen is actually good. DC keeps on screwing up Nightwing... I can only pray that they don't screw him up in the live action show 🤔

[@brandonjones2041]

I liked it. Maybe I just didn't pay much mind to the marketing but I never saw it as a revival. The featurette made it pretty clear it was it's own thing and not for kids. There was some humor that didn't land but over all I laughed and enjoyed it. Probably helps to not think of it in a continuation or revival.

[@scottreacher]

Batman: Return of the Phantasm. Eh...never mind.

[@RagefulRhino]

I would have been fine with this movie if they hadn't marketed it as a return to the DCAU, because that was just insulting. Honestly it was passible for me until that ending, weird but passible. That ending felt like a big screw you, I was irritated that I payed $8 to see it in theatres.

[@davidmeiers2230]

I think they were trying to "Deadpool-up" the humor. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. The scene in the goon bar, for instance, could have been trimmed down a alot.

[@mikechicago6200]

Paget does a decent Ivy...and gotta say better then Mellisa as Harley

[@graric]

While it may not have been intentional- the reference by the Argus agent to Batman's help against the League of Assassin's at Nanda Parbat felt to me like it could be taken as a reference to Ra's Al Ghul and the near apocalypse of 09 that was referenced in Batman Beyond and Epilogue. (Making me think timeline wise this film could be set after JLU- but before the Return of the Joker flashbacks....Nightwing's hair also suggests it is set after his split second cameo in JLU.)

[@bigstunna2049]

8:32 this song made me fall in love with mask off the Phantasm

[@KaoticIndustrial]

Simply put it's a Harley Quinn movie with Batman and Nightwing as side characters

[@scotthallgv]

Honestly, the only good things about the movie was Harleys waitress outfit and Nightwing NOT having a mullet, past that, this was not very good at all.

[@goonerOZZ]

After watching it, I honestly believed this is an homage to 66' Batman. I really think that someone came to Bruce Timm and just said, "can you make a 66' Batman in your style?" If you look at it as a Adam West Batman, it actually makes more sense.

[@basedman110]

This channel is great i really hope they do well in th ne near future

[@superlol178]

It was bad for sure...The tone was all over the place, the Jokes were not landing, 2 freaking musical numbers with no action, Harley Quinn farting, Batman forgot that fire was a thing... It wasn't terrible(maybe because of the nostalgia element)...but it was bad for sure...

[@mysticblue0222]

I haven't seen this yet but I'm happy that we got a DC animated batman movie with out Damien.... I wish they wrote him less like a Mary Sue. But I'm ready for a Damien break.

[@ternvall]

I like to think of the rogues as mentally ill. Nightwing threatening and provoking a mentally unstable woman into fighting and later triggering her destructive behaviour that is a clown-outfit. That was the worst part for me. Putting himself before the people that he want to help.

[@hawktalon7890]

A lot of Batman's rogues seem to be mentally ill; I feel like that point could be easily argued.

[@DigitalJediMaster]

Don't Pull Your Love Out on this movie.

[@cozydudew4730]

i really love this movie but the only problem i have is that batman does not feel like batman he feels out of character at some points but at other points batman srsly feels like the batman animated series atman

[@isetmfriendsofire]

I suppose for a new DCAU movie they could have done a movie based on another character from JL, particularly Superman, who I always thought deserved his own.

[@NIDELLANEUM]

The one thing that made me dislike this movie is the ending, because : : : : : : : : : : In the end, Harley just says "hey, it's a plant, so Let's burn it down". That was the first time something related to the DCAU made me feel like I just wasted my time. Thankfully, Justice League VS The Fatal Five was much better and truly brought the DCAU back.

[@ShrekWallBee]

ive only seen the scene of harley singing Blondies "Hanging on the Telephone" which i thought was seriously funny :)

[@NeiyonSpyder]

So I watched it right after watching this and I gotta say...I liked it. The DC animated movies have had their fair share of duds, but this isn't one of them (I also like Suicide Squad despite all of its problems, so maybe I'm weird). The fart joke was cringe, but not as long or as bad as some made it out to be. The HarleyxNightwing scene was weird, but not the worst thing. That outro scene with Bats, Nightwing and Harley is def gonna create some Rule 34 tho. And even tho this review was mostly about the movie, 10:32-10:40.....YES PLEASE. MORE ZETA. I NEED IT!!!

[@damotoneko1500]

I admit i chuckle at the car scene. Because i picture Batman trying to keep up his image and resist the foulness. The movie i felt strayed too far. I didnt want that scene with Harley and Nightwing and the whole end credit scene just didnt work.

[@Emohawk707]

I thought it was funny... I was taken aback by the random swearing, sex jokes and gore but I didn’t think they were inherently bad, just weird. I’m not the biggest Harley Quinn fan, in fact I am a little biased against her, so her addition in this made me feel like I wanted to skip it. Eventually I checked it out and I thought it was funny, not hilarious, but funny. It’s not my version of an Adult take on the DCAU, for me they nailed that 10 years ago with the game Batman Arkham Asylum. But yeah it’s kinda fun, I give it 7/10.

[@TheVetoSkreeemer]

I would love another Batman animated series.But properly done. Perhaps by other creators , Bruce Timm made great material, but has declined.

[@MannyMensah94]

The film overall was Ok.

[@sicksadworld765]

So this movie happened one year after Tim Drake killed the Joker in Return of the Joker?

[@dcauwatchtower]

Nope! kzbin.info/www/bejne/e6XCcmOAfdVmZqM

[@sicksadworld765]

@@dcauwatchtower ok thx

[@sicksadworld765]

@@dcauwatchtower we really need a movie about what happened to Harley after return of the joker. I mean it was kinda lazy in the movie

[@Awestefeld6612]

I enjoyed Batman Harley Quinn. It was just a fun movie, something I can veg out on with popcorn. Sometimes that's all you need from a movie. Kinda like why I enjoyed Birds of Prey in theaters. it doesn't need a faboulous story to have something a person can enjoy.

[@Suntansupaman100]

Why is new dcau stuff all batman who had two shows and many amazing movies but what about heroes who have little content like green lantern flash or hell even just nightwing

[@TJUC123]

I will say this. Paul Dini and Bruce Timm are BOTH needed for these movies to be good. Paul Dini (in my opinion) is what REALLY made the DCAU incredible. Bruce Timm also being very important to the mix, but Paul being the true master. He literally wrote Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham City. Two VERY tonally accurate stories to the DCAU and BTAS. So if you want more DCAU, BRING IN PAUL DINI!!!!!! Please. No more Harley Quinn shaking her boobs while singing and REALLY good musical number. And no more overly sexual shit. Just bring back the adultish yet still PG DC Animated Universe.

[@antony3877]

I hope we get DCAU movies based off certain Justice League U members. I personally just wanna see a Question and Huntress movie.

[@kardowalker]

I never thought I'd see fart jokes in a animated Batman movie....

[@JurassicRod]

If this were a 20 minute episode of the show it'd be average at best. It really wasn't deserving of being movie length, especially as our first visit to the DCAU in a decade.

[@captainbear666]

Awesome Review and fantastic Video!!!

[@nicpay3851]

My view is this was an adult-themed nostalgic romp for those of us who have been watching since the 90s and grew up loving it. It took all the great bits from across the Batman timeline that were fun, stuffed them all together and threw in some saucy moments to make it great. It's non-continuity, but so what? That's what made it fun, making us go "hey!" every three seconds on all the 140-ish easter eggs. For the stuffed shirts who are saying "oh, but so-and-so didn't voice it, so I guess it's okay" give me a break. Sorry, Adam West died? Come on, people move on. The Nightwing/Harley thing was a bit forced and maybe squikky (I mean seriously - would you really want to go where the Joker's already been? Ugh!) but otherwise the snarky humor and pokes at everything that is the Batman World were great fun, and should not be expected to be a part of the DC timeline anymore than Gods and Monsters is. Speaking of which - hey! DC! Give us another Gods and Monsters movie! That one was really something to talk about!

[@dcauwatchtower]

Another “Gods and Monsters” movie would be fantastic.

[@terriblegamerstory531]

for me I enjoyed the movie but only when I head cannon that this is all from Harley perspective. that makes goofy Batman make more sense and the silliness of everything that seemed out of character make more sense to me.

[@jturner2577]

10:32 Pretty much the only DC Animated shows from 1992-2006 that didn't were Teen Titans, The Zeta Project and Legion of Superheroes kind of.

[@danthemanbardo]

I have not seen it just yet. But with what I've seen. With clips and things. The relationship between batman nightwing and Harley. Just don't work for me. I don't think the characters would act that way.

[@michaelbell6894]

A Batman DCAU comedy would have been o.k. with me, but one that wasn't literally causing me to yell "What!?" at some of the most bizarre creative decisions. One where they didn't feel the need to have Dick and Harley have sex to make it more "mature". Actually they had Dick being defeated by Harley.. ugh. I would love for them to get Nightwing right someday. Oh and endless filling throughout the movie to needlessly fill out the run time, from Harley chasing for several minutes an old prom date, to two terrible song numbers where they get to recycle the same dance animations over and over (oh, and where Harley shakes her tits at the audience). And aren't farts so funny?

[@chancedavis5740]

Hated the ending.