B:TAS reviews: Avatar

To the average viewer, Avatar represents the lowest point in Ras Al Ghul’s animated career, as it compromises a sacred standard of realism in Batman: the Animated Series, which so many fans embrace as dogma.  But it isn’t simply a physical realism but a narrative one as well.  The entire diegesis is plagued by an almost hyperbolic melodrama as well as fantastical physical happenings that seem to defile the gritty beauty of Batman’s world.

But this mode of thinking is not only hypocritical, given that things far more bizarre than ancient Egyptian resurrected queens make appearances al throughout the remainder of the DC Animated Universe, but also slightly inconsistent.  There is a lack of realism whenever the show draws on cartoon conventions, a recognizable example being whenever Batman dodges machinegun bullets, and yet it is an acceptable instance of belief suspension, given that so much can be chalked up either to chance, coincidence, or Batman’s seemingly godlike powers.

I don’t have this double standard.  In fact, I prefer charting new mythological territory to leaps in logic that lead to contentious rationalizations.  Avatar is a condensed Spielberg-style adventure yarn, similar in style to The Demon’s Quest in its grandiosity, and yet far more tongue-in-cheek.  I find The Demon’s Quest slightly more pretentious, though I did admittedly refer to it as a masterpiece.  It is an ambitious attempt at epic storytelling and for that I laud it.  But as I also explained, embracing wholeheartedly the romance and melodrama that accompany adventure epics can lead to moments of eye-roll.

Avatar is so self-aware that I cannot regard it as anything other than either parody or homage.  Like Mudslide, a counterpart of sorts, it does not compromise the integrity of its characters.  Even as I grin slyly at Bruce’s hammy profession of his feelings for Talia, I find myself utterly engaged by Ras’s unrelenting narcissism.  I chuckle when Bruce tells Ras that he sounds like a bad afternoon serial, but then I find myself genuinely affected when Talia forces herself to betray Batman and return to her father’s side.  Because it works on multiple layers, it can achieve the rare quality of being both parodic and tributary.

Like The Demon’s Quest, it is embellished with all manner of artistic flourishes.  I find greater care taken with establishing shots, primarily the meticulous coloration of the extreme long shot of the Moroccan streets.  At the same time, Cairo is sandy and takes on an earthy set of colors, nicely reflected in the way the blue that usually highlights Batman’s costume vanishes.  The climactic action is directed with more noticeable cinematic sensibilities, juxtaposing shots of the same action from different angles while keeping in tune with the frantic pace.