Things We Want To Hear In The Batman: The Animated Series Audio Drama

"Batman: The Animated Series" ranks among the most influential animated adaptions of a comic book character ever produced, having elevated the medium from 1992 – 1995 with high quality stories, mature themes, top-notch visuals, Hollywood-level voice acting, and a memorable cinematic score. Decades later, it remains an enduring part of Batman's legacy — as evidenced by Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill, who made their debuts in the series as Batman and the Joker and continue to voice those same roles in other Batman projects including live action and video games — and is fondly remembered by fans all over the world.

In celebration of the show's 30th anniversary, a new revival of the classic animated series is on its way, but not on the small screen. Instead, series producer Alan Burnett — who also contributed 11 stories to the original series — and voice actors Conroy and John Glover (who played the Riddler) jointly announced at the recent Los Angeles Comic Con that they would be taking part in an all new audio drama continuing the adventures of Batman from the original animated series.

Beyond Batman and The Riddler, there's very little else that fans know about the upcoming audio drama series. What sort of new stories might we see? Which returning characters or new villains could we encounter in these audio adventures? Here are some ideas for what fans would like to see in the "Batman: The Animated Series" audio drama.

In the middle of the first season of "Batman: The Animated Series," viewers were introduced to Bruce Wayne's ward Dick Grayson and his superhero sidekick alter ego Robin. It's one of the most famous pairings in pop culture and was a highlight of the series, but by the second season nearly every episode saw the dynamic duo fighting crime side by side. In "The New Batman Adventures" they added Batgirl to the team full time, and in the two "Justice League" series' Batman fought alongside dozens of other heroes. It's been nearly three decades since this version of Batman has been shown flying solo, on his own fighting villains in Gotham City. While everybody loves Batman's "bat-family," it's high time the Dark Knight got back to being a loner, fighting a one-man war on the criminal underworld.

It might be tough given audio limitations, because not being able to see what he's doing, having a sidekick makes it easier to verbalize what's happening. But with some clever writing and strong monologuing, there's little reason Batman can't return to solo crimefighting. This would surely make for a more tension-filled set of stories, as Batman would have to rely solely on his own wits and fortitude.

After decades of new Batman comics, there are countless new stories to pull from or adapt. From Batman replacement Azrael, to Bruce Wayne's son and current Robin Damian Wayne, to several new Batgirls, and new villains like Knightfall and Merrymaker, there are any number of more recent stories and new characters that could be introduced into the new audio drama.

If fans want to see their old favorites (or new versions) of Batman's comic book rogue's gallery, entirely new characters are a must as well. Some might cringe at the thought of Burnett and company fashioning entirely new characters when the comics have such a wealth of incredible heroes and villains to mine, but never forget that the creators of the original series were responsible for the existence of characters like Harley Quinn, Renee Montoya, and Roland Daggett, all characters who would make there way into comic books and movies like "The Suicide Squad," "Batwoman," and "The Dark Knight Rises." With original series writer Burnett involved as series producer, new characters have the potential to be compelling and long-lived.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, "Batman: The Animated Series" was famous for having some pretty heavy themes, especially for a kids show in the early 1990s. It addressed real social issues, darker stories, and the impact of big city crime. Kids found it action-packed and entertaining, while teenage and adult audiences could appreciate the serious plots and compelling characters facing real issues. The best stories had a true emotional core that carried real weight with audiences.

But one theme seemed to rise above the rest, playing a key role in some of the best episodes of the series. That's why there needs to be more stories that express Bruce Wayne's existential struggle as the Dark Knight, questioning his role as a crime fighter, and what it means to be Batman. From the classic episodes "I Am The Night" and "Appointment in Crime Alley," right up to one of the highest rated episodes of the entire series, "Trial," it's a theme that popped up again and again, but was lost when the series transitioned to more colorful adventures in subsequent iterations. A return to these kinds of introspective stories could help return the spirit of the original series in the audio drama.

One of the strengths of "Batman: the Animated Series" was how it combined and simplified the complex Batman mythos, distilling it both in story and visuals. Even the more modern villain, Bane, was reimagined as a steroid-pumping mafia enforcer, his extreme '90s look streamlined into something that fit the classic look and feel of the animated series. Likewise, the audio drama should do the same, keeping complex stories simple, fast-paced, and nimble. There's no need for complicated mysteries, deep mythologies, or complex backstories to new or returning characters, as one of the series' best attributes was how it cut out the fat and got right to the heart of the story, quickly and efficiently.

The series should also retain its timeless quality, as one hallmark of the original series was its nebulous, unquantifiable setting, with computers next to black and white televisions, 1940's cars driven by goons with 1990s beepers. New stories should continue that trend, resisting any temptation to bring the show too far into the 21st century. Keep it simple, keep it classic.

Even though "Batman: The Animated Series" and its follow-up "The New Batman Adventures" ran for only three seasons, it covered a lot of ground, from his origin to the then-recently introduced villain called Bane. Viewers met Dick Grayson (witnessing his evolution from orphan to Robin to Nightwing), Barbara Gordon (who went from Batgirl, part time vigilante to Batgirl, full time Batman team member) to Penguin (going from supervillain to legitimate businessman and owner of an upstanding Gotham nightclub) to Batwoman (in a follow-up direct-to-DVD feature). The series ran through decades of stories in Batman's universe in impressive time.

But one member of the bat-family conspicuously absent was Jason Todd, the angry, bitter street punk who would become Batman's second Robin in the comics, only to be killed by the Joker. Elements from his stories did make their way into the animated series, with Tim Drake's cartoon origin and eventual fate sharing some commonalities, but Jason Todd himself was never glimpsed. If an audio drama series were to delve into the period of time after Grayson left Batman's side and before the arrival of Tim Drake, introducing Jason Todd as the "missing" Robin feels like a must.