So why did Timm adopt such an angular style?
I know he said it helped the models stay on point, but the vast majority of the final season of BTAS, everything looks great. It's pretty jarring going from Vol 3 to Vol 4.
>Vol. 3 to Vol. 4
Please just say "after the art shift" so people who don't have the DVDs know what the fuck you're talking about.
Anyway, it was because there were now two Timm-produced shows, Superman and Batman, and they were probably worried that the extra episode orders would mean more misses than hits if they didn't simplify the designs. Also, for whatever reason they felt the angular style suited Superman more - Alex Toth was working with them at that point, and IIRC he got royally pissed that they went with that style over the softer, more Fleischer-influenced look they'd used on BTAS' first two seasons.
>>81521120
I'm only saying Vol 3 to 4 cause I've been rewatching everything on amazon prime.
Did they stop animating on black paper too? TNBA in general just looks lighter. That would make sense given how they were making things concurrently with STAS and the blood red skies.
Don't forget to take into consideration the fact that BTAS went from Fox Kids to Kids WB with the art shift, and they may have wanted to do something to distinguish it as "their" version of the show, even though they still aired repeats of the earlier episodes. Speaking of reruns, keep in mind that BTAS didn't air any new episodes between winter of '94 and fall of '97, so it may just be that in the intervening years Timm's artistic sensibilities changed. Also, early BTAS had other character designers too - Dan Riba designed the Riddler IIRC, and Mike Mignola himself drew up the iconic Mr. Freeze (he has those signature red goggles and old-timey pulp-tech that Mignola loves), whereas I'm pretty sure later on the "Timmverse" became entirely designed by him, which is why by JLU everyone's suffering from samebody.
>>81521305
>TNBA in general just looks lighter. That would make sense given how they were making things concurrently with STAS and the blood red skies.
For TAS, the pre-production was done in the US (story boards, layouts, background paintings, etc.) while only the animation was outsourced to Japan.
For TNBA, to save money, everything except scripting was outsourced to Japan; that includes storyboarding and layouts and timing and all that stuff. The scripts were sent straight to Japan and they did all the work.
Its one of the reasons why TNBA looks so drastically different from TAS beyond just the updated character designs (which were done in the US, admittedly).
>>81521544
I consider them more or less two different shows. The earlier work being it's own continuity and the reboot being more in line with Superman and later Justice League.
In any case, I don't know the reason but I highly suspect the reason was money and the loss of talent during hiatus.
>>81522240
>I consider them more or less two different shows.
That's the best way to go about it really. BtAS is more of a pulpy self-enclosed show. TNBA was made to connect with Superman and JL.
>>81521544
>Mike Mignola himself drew up the iconic Mr. Freeze (he has those signature red goggles and old-timey pulp-tech that Mignola loves)
>>81522811
Found bigger image.
>>81522240
>TNBA is clearly set after BTAS
>direct references in the former to the later
>even JLU has characters like Milo show up
>BTAS is its own continuity
thats some great autism you've got, anon
>>81522965
I love the Mignola Freeze, but I also really liked the TNBA streamlined suit. I only hated the head design (way too gaunt and inhuman, with the dead, lifeless eyes, and missing the awesome goggles), and the fact that his neck would be way too long if he had one (makes you wonder why Batman didn't realize he was just a head until he showed him... didn't he wonder about the neck himself?)
Some other designs were great. Poison Ivy and Scarecrow improved, so did The Penguin.
Some went downhill, like Mad Hatter becoming a bit too literally inspired by his namesake (the best part about BTAS having a quite large Hatter, instead of a dwarf, is that it kind of added to his warped perception of himself and the delusional sadness of his character that he's this kind of lumbering guy whose self image of himself is a small person), Killer Croc, Riddler, and oh god what did they do to The Joker.
I'm kind of torn between BTAS and TNBA style. I like the really fluid watercolor-esque-ness of B:TAS, but also the angular deco and cleaned up designs of TNBA.
>>81523467
>Some went downhill, like Mad Hatter
Oh goddamn, I'd completely forgotten how he'd gone from awkward, homely electronic engineer Jervis Tetch into a freakish goblin-leprechaun that would made DeVito Penguin wretch on sight.
And speaking of the "new" Penguin, I'm surprised Kraft didn't sue.
>>81523467
They were forced to make the Riddler look like the Jim Carrey costume..
>>81522975
Yeah, you're right. I guess aesthetics and tone really don't matter when I can make references.
