Discover The Adventures of Batman, The First Batman Cartoon!

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When we think of Batman cartoons, many fans immediately reference Batman: The Animated Series (1992). But Batman’s cartoon debut actually happened a whole two decades years earlier! So you must be thinking, wow, then, what year was the first Batman cartoon? Well, The Adventures of Batman came out in September 1968. That means the Dark Knight — plus a few sidekicks and plenty of super-villains — hit the small screen 24 years before the most beloved animated Batman adaptation did.

Learn more about the first ever Batman cartoon, and the animated Batman legacy, below!

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The first Batman cartoon premiered in the year 1968!

The Adventures of Batman, the first Batman cartoon, ran from 1968-1969. Airing on CBS, the show lasted 17 episodes and was eventually rebranded as Batman with Robin the Boy Wonder. Each “episode” was only 12 minutes long — bite-size TV if there ever was some! Plus, each episode was split in half, with two separate stories presented in 6.5 minutes. The segments aired during The Batman/Superman Hour, which included various animated adventures featuring popular DC characters. Batman, Robin, and Batgirl had their 12 minutes in The Adventures of Batman. Then, audiences joined Krypton’s heroes in the shorts The New Adventures of Superman and The Adventures of Superboy.

These cartoons were hugely popular. Additionally, their success helped launch a veritable franchise of cartoons inspired by Detective Comics. Super Friends (which had a few title changes over the years) featured even more members of the Justice League and had a total of 93 episodes — a major upgrade from 17!

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Did you know? Batman was also in Scooby Doo!

Batman appeared in two episodes of Hanna-Barbera’s The New Scooby-Doo Movies season 1. The Dynamic Scooby-Doo Affair and The Caped Crusader Caper both aired in 1972. They featured the Scooby Gang’s team-ups with Batman and Robin. The first episode involved Scooby, Shaggy, Daphne, Velma, and Fred, alongside the Dynamic Duo, thwarting The Joker and Penguin’s plans to steal a special flight suit. The second was a continuation of sorts, pitting our heroes against the same villains. That time, they had to investigate a counterfeit money operation. The episodes definitely leaned more into the detective elements of both properties rather than horror and mystery.

Later, Warner Bros. released Scooby-Doo Meets Batman (2004). This video compilation consisted of those two Scooby-Doo and Batman episodes without the rest of the series. Then, in 2018, Warner Bros. released a full-length animated film inspired by the crossover called Scooby-Doo! & Batman: The Brave and the Bold.

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But the most popular Batman cartoon is Batman: The Animated Series

As mentioned before, we can’t talk about Batman cartoons without tipping our cowls to Batman: The Animated Series. We bet you even have the theme song stuck in your head right now. Influenced heavily by Tim Burton’s Batman movies, the series took visual cues from the director by utilizing vintage, Gothic, Art Deco, and noir styles. The nebulous time period of the title card, the color scheme, and the blocky environment lended itself to the swanky detective feeling imbued in the show. Dubbed “Dark Deco” by producers, it impressed and captivated audiences worldwide.

Batman: The Animated Series had a massive impact on pop culture. Its tragically compelling treatment of the villain Mr. Freeze made DC revive and rewrite his story in the comics. Mark Hamill’s voice acting performance as The Joker is heralded as one of the greatest of all time. Similarly, Kevin Conroy’s Batman is often considered “unbeatable” and inimitable in modern Batman media. While Batman TAS first arrived as almost an animated continuation of live action, it instead carved out its own place and went on to influence every Batman project after it.

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Batman Beyond continued the Batman animated legacy

Batman Beyond (1999-2001) was set in the “futuristic” year 2019. Since we’re well past that year without all the advanced technology and cyberpunk aesthetics, just pick a distant date and pretend this Batman belongs there. In Batman Beyond, Neo-Gotham replaced the hustle and bustle of Gotham City. The megapolis still struggled with class division and high crime rates. To combat that, a new hero emerged: Terry McGinnis. The teenager took on the Batman mantle after Bruce Wayne, in his 50s with failing health, finally admitted he needed a successor. Although Bruce and Terry got off to a rocky start, Bruce eventually agreed to train Terry to protect the city.

Terry gained his own Rogues Gallery, his own allies, and his own avid fanbase. People really loved the show’s take on Bruce Wayne as a grizzled mentor. It was also refreshing to see a new Batman origin story for a new character, rather than a retelling of the classic Wayne tragedy. Batman Beyond ran for 3 seasons, with a total of 52 episodes. Various other DC projects have used the Neo-Gotham setting and Batman Beyond characters during time travel plots in order to revisit Terry and co. long after the series finale.

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And Batman: Caped Crusader is the newest Batman cartoon

“Welcome to Gotham City, where the corrupt outnumber the good, criminals run rampant and law-abiding citizens live in a constant state of fear. Forged in the fire of tragedy, wealthy socialite Bruce Wayne becomes something both more and less than human: The Batman. His one-man crusade for justice attracts unexpected allies within the GCPD and City Hall, but his heroic actions spawn deadly, unforeseen ramifications.” — Prime Video’s Caped Crusader logline

Prime Video’s Batman: Caped Crusader premieres on August 1, 2024. The series already has a 2-season order, with 10 episodes in the first season alone. All of them will be dropped at once — good news for binge-watchers. Maybe it’s bad news for social media users that prefer to pace themselves. Well, we promise that you won’t get any spoilers from us! We’re just here to share all the information we know so far about the 2024 Batman animated series.

Batman: Caped Crusader reimagines the Batman lore while building on the story presented in Batman: The Animated Series. After all, the new 2024 show is executive produced by one of the BTAS co-writers, Bruce Timm. Its stellar lineup of executive producing Batman experts also includes J.J. Abrams, Matt Reeves (director of the 2022 film The Batman), Ed Brubaker, James Tucker, Daniel Pipski, Rachel Rusch Rich, and Sam Register. So get ready to return to Gotham City in style this summer!

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What’s your favorite Batman cartoon? Collect and display Batman action figures based on the best animated series. Then, show off those Batman figures and other awesome, officially licensed Batman collectibles at side.show/geekgroup or in the Sideshow Social Network! And as always, don’t forget to Let Your Geek Sideshow!