Whenever a new DC animated movie is released on Blu-ray or DVD, the bonus feature I look forward to seeing most is the sneak peek that offers insight into the next film on the slate. In this case, the home video release for Teen Titans: The Judas Contract brings our first look at Batman and Harley Quinn.
To many, a project like this seems like a no-brainer. After all, Batman is arguably WB’s greatest cash cow and Harley Quinn has been on a meteoric rise in recent years, no doubt having received an even bigger boost by the Suicide Squad feature film and all the merchandise that came along with. Add to that the knowledge that one of her co-creators, Bruce Timm, is one of the minds behind the project, and you have a potential hit on your hands.
Given that Timm is working on this, it shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise that it has a flavor very similar to that of Batman: The Animated Series, but from what’s heard in the featurette, this movie may very well be its own thing, much as we speculated not long ago. I guess we’ll just have to see the film for ourselves and be the judge, but it’s not a total loss when you consider that character designs and such were lifted from The New Batman Adventures, or “the revamp episodes” as they’ve often been referred to.
Continuing on that note, we get to see the recently confirmed cast in the studio recording their lines. Returning favorites such as Kevin Conroy (Batman) and Loren Lester (Nightwing) should delight fans, and, personally, I like how the latter has a little more gravel in his voice these days, effectively making Dick Grayson truly sound like he’s aged beyond his time as Robin.
As for Melissa Rauch, she does seem like a good fit for Harley Quinn. She’s retained the Brooklyn accent, but doesn’t sound like an Arleen Sorkin clone, a trapping that even some of the best voice actresses have fallen into. Still, when she shouts in character, I can’t help but notice that she sounds like her Big Bang Theory counterpart, Bernadette, whenever she does an impression of Howard’s mother.
Right now, Batman and Harley Quinn lacks a release date, but late July or early August would be our best bet given Warner Home Video’s release habits of the past few years.