Beware The Batman

***Beware the Batman*** is an American computer-animated television series based on the DC Comics superhero Batman. The series premiered in the United Stateson Cartoon Network on July 13, 2013,[1] as part of their DC Nation block, replacing *Batman: The Brave and the Bold*.[2] The series was produced by Warner Bros. Animation[3] with animation produced by Xentrix Studios in India.[4]

The series ran on Cartoon Network until it was pulled from the schedule months after its premiere, without official explanation. After the series was put on hiatus, the remaining episodes of the season began to air on Adult Swim's Toonami block, from July 27 to September 28, 2014.

## Synopsis

The series is set during Bruce Wayne's early years as the Batman, following his initial period of battling organized crime. Over the course of the season, he hones his skills with the assistance of his butler, Alfred Pennyworth. Bruce is introduced to Alfred's goddaughter Tatsu Yamashiro. Tatsu is a martial arts swordsmaster hired to act as Bruce's bodyguard, but also recruited to act as a superhero partner to Batman.

## Cast

* Batman/Bruce Wayne (voiced by Anthony Ruivivar) - The title character of the series. Mitch Watson, co-producer of *Beware the Batman*, explained how the crew behind the series approached Batman for the show the way they did, stating "In the way we approached Batman for this show, he's at the beginning of his career, he's probably been doing it for about five to six years, he's in his early 30s. And character-wise, we broke him into three parts. There's the public Bruce Wayne, who we modeled slightly after Richard Branson. We wanted to make Bruce Wayne more of an altruistic guy and the company's (Wayne Enterprise) trying to do good. So, that's the public Bruce. The private Bruce is more introspective guy who really only deals with Alfred, and Alfred at the beginning of the series is really the only person who sees that side of Bruce Wayne. He's quiet; he's a little bit obsessive about particular things."[1] Developers expressed that the series would be a departure from previous Batman animated series in their choice to focus on the character's nature as a detective and focusing on his intellect. Crime fighting in the series would put emphasis on procedural aspects of mystery solving. Batman would also be more subject to external threats of injury. "He gets hurt. There are several episodes where he really. Gets *damaged*", emphasized Mitch Watson.[2]

* Alfred Pennyworth (voiced by J.B. Blanc) - Alfred Pennyworth is a former MI6 agent and Bruce Wayne's butler. Following initial promotion of the series, critics were concerned with what they interpreted to be the re-characterization of Alfred Pennyworth as a fellow crime fighter. Producer Glen Murakami explained that initial promotion posters that had been issued to the press were not originally intended for release, and that they did not give an accurate display of Alfred's role in the show. However, Murakami referred to Alfred's canonical backstory, which cast Alfred as a former MI6 agent, and said that this would be Alfred's portrayal in the show. "I think people are really going to like him", series writer Mitch Watson said. "He's Sean Connery from *The Untouchables*. The characterization of Alfred would be that of a man who was once in a physical condition on par with Batman, who was now in his 60s and past his prime, but still able to provide advice to Batman and be an ally when necessary. This characterization was pitched to DC comics, who responded that the company was coincidentally also taking Alfred in that direction. Series developers originally intended to give Alfred a greater role in the series, but Murakami advised that they scale back his activities, over concern that he could outshine Batman.[3]

* Katana/Tatsu Yamashiro (voiced by Sumalee Montano) - A martial arts swordmaster in hiding from the League of Assassins who was hired to act as Bruce Wayne's bodyguard by her godfather Alfred Pennyworth. She revealed to Alfred that she was undercover in the League of Assassins to steal the Soultaker Sword from them before it can be used for their own evils.

* James Gordon (voiced by Kurtwood Smith) - A police lieutenant who works at the Gotham City Police Department. Although he disapproved of Batman's crime-fighting, he slowly became an ally of Batman. He is later promoted to police commissioner during the second half of the first season after Commissioner Correa was killed by two League of Assassins ninjas.