Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman is the third and final animated feature derived from the Batman animated series of the 1990s. Released direct-to-video in 2003, it actually came out a few years after the series had ended. As such, it uses the same animation style that the series used at the end of its run, after its revamp into The New Batman Adventures. This is a simpler, more “streamlined” design than in the prior Batman series; while I appreciate the redesign of the Penguin to more closely resemble his comic book counterpart, for the most part I’m not as fond of the designs in The New Batman Adventures, and so Mystery of the Batwoman doesn’t quite stack up to the earlier animated Batman films.
Unlike the prior two films, which used the same voice actors as the series for recurring characters, Mystery of the Batwoman uses only some of the same voice actors, and casts new voice actors for some parts. Kevin Conroy returns as Batman, and Bob Hastings as Commissioner Gordon. Efrem Zimbalist Jr. is back as Alfred, Robert Costanzo as Harvey Bullock, and John Vernon reprises his role as Rupert Thorne — incidentally the only appearance of the mob boss in the “new” art style, as he didn’t make any appearances in The New Batman Adventures. But a few of the other regular characters received new voices for their appearances in Mystery of the Batwoman. Continue reading
