Beware the Batman started off much like I anticipated, with Batman stopping a thug from commiting a crime. You could tell by him fighting that this is set in the first year-ish of Bruce Wayne being Batman, even though he seemingly has already established himself as the bat. While fighting the street thug he was somewhat sloppy, injuring his shoulder during the apprehension showing that he still has some maturing to do.

What caught my eye was the animation. The CGI was based from the Green Lantern series that occupied the same time slot, and designed from Bruce Timm’s Batman: The Animated Series from 1992.

There were a lot of aspect of the show that were expected, but what was unexpected were some of the character changes, in particular, Alfred. The well-mannered, lovable butler Alfred Pennyworth is no longer your rich neighbor’s vintage butler. This version of Alfred is more than a butler. He’s more Bruce Wayne’s bodyguard and Batman’s trainer. You get the impression that Alfred was an ex-KGB agent because of his demeanor and aggressive nature, but speaks to Bruce more as his teacher than his confidant. By their interaction you can see that Alfred is responsible for more than making breakfast. Alfred is Bruce’s protector and wants to see him do nothing but succeed as Batman and will do whatever it takes for Bruce to get better everyday. Even if it means taking a swing at him with a baseball bat while he’s sleeping.

There were a few indications that Batman will have a new team around him. This won’t be the traditional “Batman and Robin” team up, but will introduce new heroes that will help the bat in his mission to eliminate Gotham’s underworld and make the streets of Gotham safe once again.

The excite aspect of this new series is that this will feature a lot of the villains that aren’t mainstream like the Penguin and Joker, but giving some of the lower-level bad guys like Anarchy and the introductory villains Professor Pyg and Mr. Toad.

This show debut as definitely one that’s not too bad for kids and not too “cartoony” for adults. For the Batman fan in all of us this one was one to enjoy. I can’t wait for the next episode. For us who will follow the show and what goes on, the questions going into next week is “Who is Katana?” and “What’s her business with Alfred?” Until next week.