marvel and DC have both tried their hand at multi-show animated TV featuring roughly the same number of characters. While you can argue the merits of each individual show on both sides, DC has produced animated shows much more consistently from the 90s to the present. Of the two major superhero franchises, DC has the largest presence when it comes to animation, which is surprising given that Marvel is now owned by the animation titan Disney.
DC animation shows are popular and well-supported that even one DC animated universe (although like the live-action universe it’s kinda confusing as to what’s actually in there and also rebooted a few times). What explains why DC gets so many good animated shows? From Harley Quinn until Batman: the animated serieswhat are the common factors that make this animated universe so good?
Variety of characters
If you look at the DC characters that get movies and TV shows, you can see how they offer very different characters to watch. Shows like young justice and Teen Titans offer the perspective of brave teenage characters. Justice League Dark and the John Constantine-directed films are housed in the dark side of the magic in the DC universe. You have a raunchy comedic satire of superheroes and supervillains in the HBO Max series Harley Quinn. All these shows offer very different things and very different characters.
The MCU has started filling out its live-action TV roster in the same way, adding more and more characters that offer different perspectives on the larger universe. The DCAU is equally wide, even in its team-up series. The two Justice League shows and young justice are often an anthology of different superheroes who all have different identities despite living in the same universe. The universe doesn’t shy away from things that seem crazy, but embraces them. Kite Man is an example in Harley Quinn, but this has been the case from the start. Unlike the movies, which generally give us a very serious and grim look at the Joker, Batman: the animated series embraced his more wacky side while crafting an effective manic and sinister villain. Mark Hamill’s Joker is iconic to this day, with the actor still occasionally reprising the role based on his Batman: the animated series good luck.
Different take on famous characters
The DCAU has several distinctive Batman TV shows. The first was Batman: the animated series, which portrayed Batman in a noir city of gangsters and super villains. Then there was the batter, in which Batman was shown as a younger Bruce Wayne in a more modern city in the early 2000s. Then there was Batman: The Brave and the Bold, which showed a Batman that was more consistent with the Adam West incarnation from the 1960s. Even in other shows, we see different versions of the same character. For example, Harley Quinn pokes fun at Batman and reveals what makes him more ridiculous and funnier. Harley Quinn herself is a different take on the character in the show, as in Batman: the animated series she was probably a sidekick to the Joker, but the Harley Quinn show has done a lot to discover Harley as her own independent person, outside the shadow of the Joker. Poison Ivy goes from a typical femme fatale to a more rounded, antisocial and snarky character in the same two shows.
There are plenty of examples like this one, and the fact that these shows don’t all share a canon actually helps them forge different identities for these characters when they appear on one of the many DCAU TV shows. Sometimes that just means giving a character extra depth, like when young justice expands on Robin as a character like he was in Batman: the animated series. In some cases, the take on the character is something new and interesting, for example in the context of the universe when we see Batman having to act as a team leader in the Justice League.
Each show, beyond its characters, works to eradicate its own distinctive identity. Teen Titans In particular, Batman did not play a leading role and that makes the building stand on its own two feet. While more contemporary DC shows don’t shy away from cameos – for example John Constantine appearing in Harley Quinn – they still feel very different and separated. While there are benefits to writing a universe where all your properties exist, the DC animated TV shows prove that you don’t always have to. Sometimes a show can benefit from a degree of separation from other shows. You don’t have to look Teen Titans to understand Batman: the animated seriesAnd you don’t have to look to understand young justice.
Clear tone and visuals
Another advantage of each show that isn’t necessarily in the same canon is that the visuals can be adapted to the tone and story of each show in question. Batman: the animated series is known for its iconic noir style and use of darkness and color. That visual style changes slightly when Batman de Justice Leaguewhere that show is more colorful and less dark. Batman: The Brave and the Bold goes even further, with a style strongly reminiscent of older comics from the Golden Age or the Silver Age. Teen Titans takes its animation cues from anime, with highly expressive characters capable of triggering dramatic emotions and comedic antics.
There are also excellent DC live-action TV shows, but the reason DC’s animated shows are considered particularly consistently good is that DC has been making shows for so long that they’ve played an important role in defining these characters. Shows like young justice and Harley Quinn can follow their evolution up to Batman: the animated series. Harley Quinn was himself a character created for the animated series, which was then adopted into the Comics universe. According to looperPaul Dini was inspired by Arleen Sorkin in Days of our lives, who dressed up as a jester in one episode. There is a through line from Batman: the animated series to modern DC animation shows, whether it’s Kevin Conroy’s iconic performance as Batman or Gotham’s vibrant image of a dark noir city.