(8/10/09)
Night of the Ninja is typical action fare with a tinge of Kurosawa, an episode produced before oriental martial arts became tacky material for action cartoons. It constructs a bland revenge story, but uses this to build on Bruce Wayne’s training history and his relationship with Robin.
Kyodai Ken is a one-dimensional villain who blames Bruce Wayne for being cast out of a dojo back in the days when the two trained together under the same sensei. It is part of a series of flashbacks rendered in surprisingly rich sepia tone. The conflict between Bruce’s righteous desire to become a nobler martial artist and Kyodai Ken’s arrogance is clichéd, but what makes the episode breathe is the music that seems to derive from Japanese wind instruments. It adds an oriental flair that is a notable departure from the series’ usual orchestration.
And so in the present, which lacks the otherworldliness of the flashbacks, Kyodai Ken is a saboteur in a goofy ninja costume. Bruce Wayne treats his opponent with grave anxiety as Robin is cast off to the side. That Robin’s Reckoning came but two episodes before this one makes this subplot, by contrast, look considerably watered down. On the rooftops of Gotham City, Batman in superhero garb and Kyodai Ken the only reminder of the combat-oriented world of the dojo, their skirmishes lack a sense of epic intimacy and come off instead as ordinary fights between Batman and the villain of the week.
But this is a villain that evokes a sense of battle. He carries a weapon and his history with Bruce is rooted in the dojo. Even if he is a one-note adversary, he does promise dynamic fight scenes. And yet Batman: the Animated Series does not suit fast-paced combat, and so the fights lack exhilaration and are instead systematic stare-downs. Dong Yang was assigned to animate this outing, and it lacks the atmospheric touches of the best studios. In an episode where fluidity of movement should be a given, the motion is unfortunately jerky.
The story is poor, but strands of the plot are promising. Perhaps Robin might have been eliminated entirely to flesh out the Summer Gleason segments. In a series dominated by detective-work and showdowns, it is sad that there is not always time enough for exploring important relationships. Sometimes we get a look into Batman’s relationship with the police force, but rarely do we see his relationship to the press. Or conversely, perhaps Gleason might have been done away with so that we could have had a more compelling look at Robin and the extent to which he must be excluded from the affairs of a Batman haunted by his past.
Night of the Ninja is not great. If I had to categorize it, I would place it firmly within the realm of the mediocre. And yet, I see that no episode of the series ends without offering some nuggets of enjoyment. Here I reveled in the expressive green tint of the Gotham sky and the rare moments in which Kevin Altieri's dynamic eye for action manifested itself.
The story is about a mysterious ninja who has begun plaguing Wayne Enterprises with all manner of thievery, and no one knows just what his motives are. Pretty early on into the episode, we see flashbacks of Bruce’s early training in Japan, where he trained under a sensei and alongside a man named Kyodai Ken. It’s pretty obvious from the beginning that Kyodai Ken and the ninja are one and the same, but it doesn’t really matter, because the appeal isn’t in who the ninja is, but in why he’s doing it, and the flashbacks do a fine job of layering that in.
What I find most interesting about this episode is that it’s about Bruce Wayne. Before he was Batman, he trained under a sensei and he was humble in his learning. It’s interesting to watch a Bruce Wayne so subordinate to someone else; whatever cold and intimidating qualities he possesses as Batman, he used to submit to a higher authority, humble and obedient. While it’s not exactly the main point of the episode, I find it to be the most fascinating. It also shows Bruce Wayne abandon his Bat-suit and gadgets to fight solely as man with no modifications. It shows that Batman doesn’t need gadgets to overcome his opponents and even though Batman is often regarded as his true persona, here it is truly Bruce Wayne’s fight. I also think the episode makes good use of Robin, as the personal nature of the fight causes Batman to cast him aside. It works pretty well.
For the most part, however, I’m not a huge fan of the episode. Most of it consists of fight scenes that drag on for long periods of time. The flashbacks, as much as they depict an interesting Bruce Wayne, also tell a pretty clichéd revenge story; Kyodai Ken is the dishonorable thief cast out of the dojo by the honorable, though not as powerful, student. Of course, as soon as the sensei banishes Kyodai from the dojo, he immediately makes an oath for vengeance. It all follows an unexciting pattern, and as much as he’s supposed to be such a personal villain to Bruce, he comes across as awfully one-dimensioal.
The animation isn’t great. This is probably the last time I’ll say this given I say it so frequently, but it’s yet another average job by Dong Yang. While Kevin Altieri usually does wonders with the fight scenes, they didn’t feel as effective this time around, save one great acrobatic leap into the air by Kyodai Ken. The music is average although if I recall correctly the flashbacks had a nice almost oriental sound to them.
Some parts of the episodes are funny (Robin’s mocking Batman), some are actually interesting (seeing more of Summer Gleason and her relationship with Bruce), and as I mentioned earlier, I enjoy the Bruce Wayne of the flashbacks. However, I still feel that the episode is too linear and predictable, featuring a boring villain with a tired motive and a dumb gimmick.
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