- Title: Batman: The Animated Series – On Leather Wings
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After spending time take a look back at some of Superman‘s television adventures, and in honor of Batman‘s 75th Anniversary, we turn out attention to those of The Dark Knight. Four years before Superman got his own 90s series of animated adventures, DC premiered what still stands as the benchmark for every animated series which came afterwards. Inspired by Tim Burton‘s successful Batman films and the classic Fleischer Superman cartoons, producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski would craft an ambitious series and the first piece of DC Comics’ Timmverse which would continue to produce the best animated super-hero cartoons ever made over the next decade.
The first episode to be produced for Batman: The Animated Series, “On Leather Wings” finds Batman (Kevin Conroy) hunted by a new GCPD task force under Harvey Bullock (Robert Costanzo) after a series of attacks committed by a giant bat. Enlisting the help of some Bat experts at the Gotham Zoo in Kirk Langstrom (Marc Singer), Francine Langstrom (Meredith MacRae), and Francine’s father Dr. March (Rene Auberjonois). After realizing March is covering up the truth about the creature, Batman makes another trip to the zoo and witnesses Kirk Langstrom change into Man-Bat.
Along with introducing the style of the show, its main character, and the first of a slew of Bat-villains, “On Leather Wings” also introduces several supporting characters such as Bullock, Commissioner Gordon (Bob Hastings), Harvey Dent (Richard Moll), and Alfred (Clive Revill). The mystery of Man-Bat also showcases Batman’s detective skills and scientific knowledge while showing off the Batcave, Batmobile, and the Dark Knight’s ability to hold his own with a monstrous enemy. Not only does Batman defeat Man-Bat but he also comes up with the cure to save Kurt Langstrom.
