Batman: Gotham Knight (Part 1)

Story: 9
Action: 7
Acting: 8
FX: 8
Durability: 7
Special Features: 6

Note: I'm splitting this review into two parts because there's a lot cover. This first part will over my introduction and the first 3 segments. The second part will cover the last 3 + my ratings explained.

Gotham Knight is a series of Batman stories that takes place between Batman Begins and Dark Knight. It's written by David Goyer of Batman Begins and Alan Burnett from Batman: The animated Series. Batman is voiced by Kevin Conroy, who voiced pretty much every Batman animation since 1992. In my opinion, he does the Batman/Bruce Wayne voice better than any actor, including Christian Bale. The animation is done by some of the best Anime teams from Japan. So this mini-series is an all-star collaboration.

Have I Got a Story for You
The art in this one is probably the most abstract and stylized of the six. The figures aren't drawn in normal human proportions, but the emphasis was on the fluid animation. The style matches the synopsis because the point of the story was the various interpretations of what the Batman is. Since he operates in the shadows, no one really gets a good look at him. A bunch of kids share stories of their encounters the the Batman and each flashback is completely different, ranging from supernatural to sci-fi.

Crossfire
This segment reveals another view of Batman... this time from the point of view of 2 cops. One is trusting and the other still skeptical. Crossfire had the best artwork in my opinion. The characters were detailed and realistic. The artwork showed some influence from Fist of the North Star. Batman was tall and built, but with feline reflexes. The fight scene at the end was dramatic and action-packed.

Field Test
A bit of a change from the first 2 stories, the 3rd one featured the alter ego, Brue Wayne. The Wayne & Lucious Fox scenes matched the new movies perfectly. The characters were drawn and voiced to sound like Christian Bale and Morgan Freeman. The batsuit was in th style of a futuristic Japanese anime... there was a G-Force influence with the cape and cowl. The storyline was an important piece to how Batman developed his own rules and regulations.

To be continued...