What better way to celebrate Batman’s 80th Anniversary than to release one of the greatest Batman stories told on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital Media.

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Batman: Hush was was the story that pulled me back into comics. Now I dabbled in an issue here and there during my hiatus, but when Hush came out I dove back in FULL FORCE. It was the combination of the beautiful Jim Lee artwork combined with some great writing from Jeph Loeb. This story put Batman through the wringer and had cameos from just about EVERYONE in the Rouges Gallery and his allies.

Now the animated feature DOES change the story but still gets what the story was trying to tell. Now if you are a comic head like me you put your arms up and say, “HEY! You could have told the story as is and not changed a thing!!” However, in a world of the frame for frame remake is that really what we want? The answer may be split down the middle like Two-Face, but in the end, the Hush animation team gave us a very fun story.

This movie has some BIG character changes from the comics. It is so big I will not even speak on it any further, you will have to watch the movie yourselves!! There is a lot of foul language in this movie making the PG-13 rating on point! This could have gone to an R rating if they let the characters finish off the F-bombs. There are some implied innuendos but was handled with class.

The voice actors were on point as usual in the DC Animated realm. Jason O’Mara continues to impress me as Batman/Bruce Wayne. This film showed growth in his range of playing the character.  Jennifer Morrison plays a more wistful Catwoman which is kind of out of her wheelhouse but she does nail it spot on! The character designs have many nods to Jim Lee’s originals, but let’s face it, to adapt Lee’s art style to animation would cost WAAAAYYY to much! Some of the costume choices were a gamble but in the end, worked out.  My favorite change was to the Joker. I was never a fan of the way Lee portrayed him personally.

Special Features include-

DC Showcase: Sgt. Rock (Animated Short) – Executive producer and director Bruce Timm shows us the first new DC Showcase animated short since 2011’s Catwoman, bringing DC Comics’ gritty World War II hero to animated life in an all-new adventure.

Batman: Love in Time of War (Featurette)– Dangerous. Seductive. Villain. Hero. This is the story of Selina Kyle and the relationship she has forged with the world’s greatest detective. This was honestly my FAVORITE feature!

Audio Commentary – Executive Producer James Tucker, Director Justin Copeland, and screenwriter Ernie Altbacker share their thoughts and insights on the film.

A Sneak Peek at the next DC Universe Movie, Wonder Woman: Bloodlines – An advanced look at the next animated film in the popular DC Universe Movies collection. Which looks pretty cool!

From the DC Vault –The Batman/Superman Hour: “The Underworld Underground Caper” and ”The Batman/Superman Hour: “Partners in Peril”

In the end, this movie like many others from the DC Universe does its job 100%. It’s visually epic, has great action, phenomenal animation, and is a great ride! Definitely go out and pick up a copy. Even with the changes, JQ gives this movie a solid 9.3 out of 10!

Thank you to Warner Brothers Home Entertainment for sending this to us to check out.

By Jason Quaregna

Jason Quaregna (or JQ to the online world) is making his return to the Fanboy Factor after a brief hiatus. JQ is a single father of 2 beautiful girls, a computer teacher by day, and comic book store clerk by night. He is a HUGE Batman fan but does enjoy reading the other members of the Bat-family, X-Men, Spider-Man, Boom Studio's Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and many many others. He is also a big toy collector with Japanese imports being his personal favorite. His personal favorite import line is the S.H. Figuarts Super Sayan (Power Rangers), Star Wars, and MCU collections. JQ is also a Batman Black and White Series statue collector.