''The Batman Adventures'' is a

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

series featuring

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

, set in the universe of Batman: The Animated Series and its successors.

Overview

''The Batman Adventures'' was created to tie-in with the '' Batman: The Animated Series''. As the animated series changed with each successive re-branding and relaunch, so too did ''The Batman Adventures''. It was originally conceived as a miniseries, but eventually got its status as tie-in. The success of ''The Batman Adventures'' has also led to a set of "Adventures" titles mirroring the animated series that followed ''Batman: The Animated Series'', including '' Superman Adventures'' (based on '' Superman: The Animated Series'') and '' Justice League Adventures'' (based on ''

Justice League The Justice League, or Justice League of America (JLA), is a group of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). Writer Gardner Fox conceived the ...

'').

''The Batman Adventures'' (vol. 1, 1992–1995)

Based on '' Batman: The Animated Series'', the first series ran for 36 issues, 2 annuals, and 3 specials (''

Mad Love __NOTOC__ Mad Love may refer to: Books *''Mad Love'' (French ''L'amour fou''), collection of poems by André Breton *'' The Batman Adventures: Mad Love'', an Eisner and Harvey award-winning comic by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm * Mad Love (publisher), ...

'' and ''Holiday Special'', which were both adapted into episodes for ''

The New Batman Adventures ''The New Batman Adventures'' (often shortened as ''TNBA'') is an American animated superhero television series based on the DC Comics superhero Batman, which aired on Kids' WB from September 13, 1997 to January 16, 1999. Produced by Warner Br ...

'', plus an adaptation of the film '' Batman: Mask of the Phantasm''). The first annual introduces Roxy Rocket, who would later appear in ''The New Batman Adventures'' episode "The Ultimate Thrill" and the '' Superman: The Animated Series'' episode "Knight Time". Most of the issues were written by Kelley Puckett, and illustrated by Mike Parobeck and Rick Burchett, though

Ty Templeton Tyrone Templeton is a Canadians, Canadian comic book artist and writer who has drawn a number of mainstream titles, TV-associated titles, and his own series. Career Templeton first received attention for ''Stig's Inferno'' (Vortex Comics), now ...

did the writing and art on a few issues. ''Mad Love'' was written by

Paul Dini Paul McClaran Dini (; born August 7, 1957) is an American writer, animator, and comic book artist. He has served as a producer and writer for several Warner Bros. Animation/DC Comics animated series, most notably ''Batman: The Animated Series' ...

and illustrated by

Bruce Timm Bruce Walter Timm (born February 5, 1961) is an American artist, animator, writer, producer, and director. He is best known for contributing to building the modern DC Comics animated franchise, most notably as the head producer behind '' Batman: ...

, while the holiday special was written and illustrated by a number of creative people who had worked on the animated series, including Paul Dini, Bruce Timm,

Glen Murakami Glen Murakami is an American animator, artist, character designer, director and producer best known for his work on ''Teen Titans'', ''Batman Beyond'', ''Teen Titans Go!'', '' Ben 10: Alien Force'' and '' Ben 10: Ultimate Alien''. Murakami is the ...

, Dan Riba, and Kevin Altieri.

''The Batman and Robin Adventures'' (1995–1997)

Following the re-branding of the animated series as ''The Adventures of Batman and Robin'', the comic series was relaunched. It ran for 25 issues and 2 annuals, as well as 2 specials (an adaptation of '' Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero''; and ''Dark Claw Adventures'', a non-canon

Amalgam Amalgam most commonly refers to: * Amalgam (chemistry), mercury alloy * Amalgam (dentistry), material of silver tooth fillings ** Bonded amalgam, used in dentistry Amalgam may also refer to: * Amalgam Comics, a publisher * Amalgam Digital, an in ...

comic featuring the

Wolverine The wolverine ( , ; ''Gulo gulo''), also called the carcajou or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species, member of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscular carnivore and a solitary animal. The w ...

hybrid). Ty Templeton was the regular writer, with Rick Burchett as the artist. However, according to colorist Rick Taylor, the series was cancelled before many planned stories could be published. Some of them included another

Batgirl Batgirl is the name of several fictional superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, depicted as female counterparts and allies to the superhero Batman. The character Bette Kane, Betty Kane was introduced into publica ...

and Robin team up,

teaching a grieving widower the futility of vengeance, the origin of the Threatening Three and the debut of Anarky.

''The Batman Adventures: The Lost Years'' (1998)

Shortly after ''The New Batman Adventures'' began airing on

Kids' WB Kids' WB (stylized as Kids' WB!) was an American children's programming block that originally aired on The WB from September 9, 1995, to September 16, 2006, and later on The CW from September 23, 2006, to May 17, 2008. Initially launched as a co ...

, DC Comics published a five-issue miniseries titled ''The Batman Adventures: The Lost Years''. This series bridged the gap between the end of ''Batman: The Animated Series'' and the start of ''The New Batman Adventures''. Additionally, the first two issues were adapted from the episode "Old Wounds", and issues #4 and the end of issue #5 were adaptations of the episode "Sins of the Father". Book One: Robin (Dick Grayson) voices his disapproval regarding

's tolerance of the crime-fighting activities of the relatively untrained

and takes it upon himself to stop her. Subsequently, Batman deduces that Batgirl is actually

Barbara Gordon Barbara Joan Gordon is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batman. The character was created by television producer William Dozier, editor Julius Schwartz, writer Ga ...

while watching her play

tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

against Dick – he realizes that she moves just like Batgirl. Batman decides to take Batgirl under his wing and give her the training she needs. Robin is upset by this decision and argues with Batman, but refuses to change his mind. Book Two: Bruce and Dick continue their argument up through Dick's college graduation ceremony. When the Joker unleashes a radar jammer that can cause aircraft to crash, Batman and Batgirl battle him and his gang before Dick, as Robin, intervenes. The Joker is defeated, but Dick is enraged at Batman, punches him, and storms away. He decides to leave

Gotham City Gotham City ( ), or simply Gotham, is a fictional city in the Northeastern United States that serves as the primary city appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. It is best known as the home of the superhero Batman and his List ...

despite the protests of

Alfred Alfred may refer to: Arts and entertainment *''Alfred J. Kwak'', Dutch-German-Japanese anime television series * ''Alfred'' (Arne opera), a 1740 masque by Thomas Arne * ''Alfred'' (Dvořák), an 1870 opera by Antonín Dvořák *"Alfred (Interlu ...

and Barbara. Book Three: Dick breaks up a smuggling operation by

Two-Face Two-Face is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Bob Kane, and first appeared in ''Detective Comics'' #66 (August 1942). He has become one of the superhero Batman's most enduring e ...

and discovers an ancient African tribe, where he learns combat techniques from them, finally taking the first steps out of Batman's shadow. In Africa, Dick develops a new persona for himself:

Nightwing Nightwing is a superhero alias used by multiple characters in American comic books published by DC Comics. The most prominent bearer is Dick Grayson, the original Robin, who adopts the Nightwing identity to assert his independence from Batman. ...

. Book Four: Batman becomes angrier and more driven because of Dick's departure – his new partner, Batgirl, is concerned over his change in personality. One night, while on the trail of

, Batman saves young

Tim Drake Timothy Jackson "Tim" Drake is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Created by Marv Wolfman and Pat Broderick, he first appeared in ''Batman'' #436 (August 19 ...

, son of petty criminal Steve Drake. Shifty was trying to stop Two-Face from holding Gotham City ransom prior to his death, but was killed, and Tim seeks to honor his father's dying wish. Batman trained Tim into Robin to save him from a life of crime. Two-Face was captured and Batman took in Tim as his second ward. Book Five: Dick joins an expedition to find a group of Tibetan monks who have lost an artifact, agreeing to recover the artifact in exchange for their secret of flight (the winged costume). He succeeds in gaining the artifact back from

Ra's al Ghul Ra's al Ghul is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. Created by editor Julius Schwartz, writer Dennis O'Neil, and artist Neal Adams, the character first appeared ...

. Succeeding, he visits Batman and reveals his new identity of Nightwing to him, Alfred, Batgirl, and Robin.

''Batman: Gotham Adventures'' (1998–2003)

A new series based on ''The New Batman Adventures'' titled ''Batman: Gotham Adventures'' ran for 60 issues. This was the longest-running series in the ''Batman Adventures'' line. Early issues were written by Ty Templeton and illustrated by Rick Burchett, while the team of Scott Peterson, Tim Levins, and

Terry Beatty Terry Beatty (born January 11, 1958''Comics Buyer's Guide'' #1650; February 2009; Page 107) is an artist who has worked as a penciler and inker in the American comic book industry, where he is perhaps best known for his co-creation of the female ...

did most of the later issues. Batgirl and Nightwing appeared in most of the later issues. This series received a lot of positive reviews and was praised for its level of characterization.

''Batman Adventures'' (vol. 2, 2003–2004)

In 2003, DC Comics launched ''Batman Adventures'', shortly after the cancellation of ''Batman: Gotham Adventures''. The first issue was made available through regular purchases and

Free Comic Book Day Free Comic Book Day (FCBD) is an annual promotional effort by the North American comic book industry to attract new readers to independent comic book stores. It usually takes place on the first Saturday of May and has historically been cross ...

(May 3, 2003). It ran for 17 issues before being canceled to make way for '' The Batman Strikes!'', a new title based on '' The Batman''. Every issue had two stories, one by

Dan Slott Daniel "Dan" Slott (born July 3, 1967) is an American comic book writer, known for his work on Marvel Comics books such as ''The Amazing Spider-Man'', as well as ''The Superior Spider-Man'', ''She-Hulk'', ''Silver Surfer (comic book), Silver Surfe ...

and

, while the other was by Templeton and Rick Burchett. The running plot in the series is that the

Penguin Penguins are a group of aquatic flightless birds from the family Spheniscidae () of the order Sphenisciformes (). They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere. Only one species, the Galápagos penguin, is equatorial, with a sm ...

has managed to be elected Mayor of Gotham and has ordered the police led by a reluctant Jim Gordon to pursue and arrest Batman. Batman for his part refuses to believe the election of Penguin was legitimate and amid his other crime fighting efforts pursues evidence to de legitimize Penguin’s mayoralty. Issue #15, written by Jason Hall, bridges the gap between

Mr. Freeze Mr. Freeze is the name of two supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Dave Wood and artists Sheldon Moldoff and Bob Kane, the character initially debuted in ''Batman'' #121 (February 1959) as Mr. ...

's appearances in ''Batman: The Animated Series'' and ''

Batman Beyond ''Batman Beyond'' (also known as ''Batman of the Future'' in Europe) is an American superhero animated television series based on the DC Comics superhero Batman, and serving as the sequel to both '' Batman: The Animated Series'' and '' The New Ba ...

''. Issue #17 ends the series with Batman confronting

Joe Chill Joe Chill is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of ...

, the man who murdered his parents, although he is unaware of Chill's true identity.

Original plan for ''Batman Adventures'' #15

The issue would have been a prequel to the ''Batman Beyond'' episode "Meltdown", explaining how Derek Powers acquired Mr. Freeze's disembodied head. Warren Powers, Derek's father, would have acquired Freeze's head and placed it inside his vault. The issue would also have shown the Mr. Freeze robot killing Ferris Boyle (from the ''Batman: The Animated Series'' episode "Heart of Ice") and Grant Walker (from the episode "Deep Freeze"). Other differences include Nora Fries' visit with Koonak (from '' Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero'') happening earlier in the issue, as well as focus on the deterioration of Nightwing and Batgirl's relationship.

The Red Hood

The

Red Hood Ra's al Ghul Nyssa Raatko Rag Doll Rag Doll is the name of several supervillains appearing in American comic book, American comic books published by DC Comics. The first, Peter Merkel, is a villain of the Flash (Jay Garrick), original Flash, ...

appears at the end of ''Batman Adventures'' #8. The creative team behind the story (

and

) had hoped for a chance to resolve the subplot, but then the series was canceled. This version of Red Hood was supposed to be someone crucial to the

DC Animated Universe The DC Animated Universe (DCAU, also referred to as the Timmverse or Diniverse by fans) is a Shared universe, shared fictional universe based on DC Comics properties and media franchise produced by Warner Bros. Animation. It began with ''Batman ...

. Slott revealed that

Andrea Beaumont Andrea Beaumont, also known as the Phantasm, is a supervillain and antihero created by Alan Burnett and Paul Dini, and designed by Bruce Timm. Beaumont first appeared as the main antagonist in the 1993 DC Animated Universe, DC Animated Universe (D ...

's mother had faked her death. He also mentioned that the background of the character would tie into subplots concerning Lucius Fox, the Valestra crime family from '' Batman: Mask of the Phantasm'', and the Powers family, including a young Derek Powers. Several years later, the 2020 miniseries ''The Batman Adventures Continue'', drawn by Templeton, introduced the

Jason Todd Jason Peter Todd is a character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. First appearing in ''Batman (comic book), Batman'' #357 in March 1983, he was created to succeed Dick Grayson as Robin (character), Robin, Batman's partner ...

incarnation of The Red Hood into the DCAU continuity.

''DC Classics: The Batman Adventures'' (2020)

To coincide with '' Batman: The Adventures Continue'' series (see below), DC published an ongoing monthly all-ages reprint series titled ''DC Classics: The Batman Adventures'' starting with the reprinting of ''The Batman Adventures'' (vol. 1) issue #1, until the series ended with issue #7 (collecting ''The Batman Adventures'' (vol. 1) issue #7). Each issue had a US $1.99 cover price. The series ran from June 2020 to December 2020 (cover dated Aug. 2020 - Feb. 2021). *DC Classics: The Batman Adventures #1 (2020-06-09): Reprint of ''The Batman Adventures'' #1 (Penguin's Big Score). *DC Classics: The Batman Adventures #2 (2020-07-07): Reprint of ''The Batman Adventures'' #2 (Catwoman's Killer Caper).

''Batman: The Adventures Continue'' (2020)

''Batman: The Adventures Continue'' is a continuation of '' Batman: The Animated Series'' and its follow-up ''

''. The book is co-written by

and

Alan Burnett Alan Burnett (; born February 17, 1950 in Cleveland, Ohio) is an American television writer-producer particularly associated with Warner Bros. Animation, Hanna-Barbera Productions, DC Comics, and Walt Disney television animation. He has had a h ...

, producers of the original animated television series, and illustrated by

, who also worked on ''The Batman Adventures''. The limited series was initially released as a "digital first" comic, beginning in April 2020. The miniseries lasted eight issues. In March 2021, DC announced ''Season II'' of the series, with the first issue published in June 2021. As of June 2021, DC has planned seven issues for ''Season II''.

Additional characters

While there were many characters who never appeared in ''Batman: The Animated Series'', the ''Batman Adventures'' series would occasionally introduce and feature characters who never appeared on screen in the DC Animated Universe.

Heroes and others

* Alec Holland ** ''Batman Adventures'' #16 (September 2004) *

Julie Madison Julie Madison is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batman. The character first appeared in ''Detective Comics'' #31 (September 1939) and was created by Gardner ...

** ''Batman Adventures'' #1–2, 5 (June–July, October 2003) *

Phantom Stranger The Phantom Stranger is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, of unspecified paranormal origins, who battles mysterious and occult forces, sometimes under their Vertigo (DC Comics), Vertigo imprint. The character ...

** ''Batman: Gotham Adventures'' #33 (February 2001) * Eel O'Brian ** ''Batman Adventures'' #6 (November 2003)

Villains

* Anarky ** ''The Batman Adventures'' #31 (April 1995) * Black Mask ** ''Batman Adventures'' #5–8 (October 2003 – January 2004) * Black Spider ** ''Batman Adventures'' #5–8 (October 2003 – January 2004) *

Bronze Tiger Bronze Tiger (Benjamin "Ben" Turner) is a character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Dennis O'Neil, Leopoldo Durañona, and Jim Berry, he first appeared in ''Richard Dragon, Kung Fu Fighter'' #1 (May 1975) durin ...

** ''Batman Adventures'' #5–8 (October 2003 – January 2004) *

Cavalier The term ''Cavalier'' () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of Charles I of England and his son Charles II of England, Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum (England), Int ...

** ''Batman Adventures'' #1 (June 2003) * Gorilla Boss ** ''Batman Adventures'' #5–8 (October 2003 – January 2004) *

Killer Moth Killer Moth (Drury Walker) is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, usually as an adversary and dedicated original foil personality of Batman (prior to the creations of Wrath, Prometheus, and Hush). Like Batman, he ha ...

** ''Batman Adventures'' #12 (May 2004) *

** ''Batman Adventures'' #8 (January 2004) *

Sportsmaster The Sportsmaster is the name of different supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the character; Lawrence "Crusher" Crock, is usually depicted as a criminal who uses sports-themed weapons and ga ...

** ''Batman Adventures'' #5–8 (October 2003 – January 2004)

Collected editions

English version by DC Comics

English/Spanish version by Berlitz Publishing

The Learn Spanish with Batman series includes relettered speech bubbles, with over 300 Spanish words and phrases in red replacing the original text. Outside the comic panels frame, the replaced Spanish and the correspoding English texts are printed at the page border, but the English texts do not necessarily matching the ones in original publications. The Aprende Ingles Con Batman versions are in English text.