Since the 1966 Batman series is not yet (and may never be) legally availabe, I can't bring myself to buy a bootleg, and I've seen the feature film version so many times that I'm starting to like it, I scratched the itch by getting Filmation's recently released set of Batman cartoons. Even thnough I was taking my first whack at college at the time, I did watch it in '77 because of Adam and Burt, and because I enjoyed the first Filmation series in 1968. I was surprised that my impressions hadn't changed much: I like it a lot for what it is, in spite of its obvious limitations.
The show is essentially an animated version of the 1966 series (note the presence of my beloved Bat-poles) aimed strictly at a kiddie audience, with all of the restrictions of Saturday morning TV in 1977. Those restrictions explain why the show is more comedic than the 1968 cartoon. The primary concern in 1977 was violence, so rule number one was no hitting or punching. This of course also means no POW! or ZAP! Writers had to find unique ways for our Dynamic Duo to catch the bad guys. This usually translated into an abundance of batarangs being thrown about, being lassoed from the Batcopter, or being drenched in a sticky or slimy substance. The main objection of most Bat-fans over the age of eight was the presence of Bat-Mite, a holdover character from the comics of the Fifties and Sixties. However, by the later episodes the writers were finding more ways to use him than just slaptick humor and repeating the annoying mantra, "I was only trying to help!" He is more enertaining than Melendy Britt's Batgirl and far preferable to his Super Friends counterparts Marvin and Wendy. While the villians were the strength of the live action show, in the cartoon they are mostly played for laughs.
The strength of the series is the chemistry between Adam and Burt. The writers use this to great effect by having Bruce and Dick compete against each other at various games when they are not chasing crooks and tossing batarangs around. The writing was generally very strong. DEAD RINGERS featured Clayface framing Batman and Robin and infiltrating the Batcave to face an amnesiac Batman. Pretty great stuff for a kiddie cartoon.
The animation used Filmation's stock shot system in order to economize. The limited animation is very noticeable on the DVD because the shows weren't meant to be consumed eight in a sitting. The most detracting element for me is Robin's inverted black on yellow insignia. The only bonus feature is a piece called THE DARK KNIGHT REVISITED is a great look at how the lighter side of Batman fits into the hero's history. Overall, if you really were a fanatic for the live action series you'll probably find something to appreciate here. This version has the same spirit of fun. On a satisfaction grading scale of A to F, The New Adventures of Batman gets: B-
