Brave and the Bold - When OMAC Attacks

[Mr. Adventure]

Well, it looks like Brave and the Bold has resumed on Cartoon Network. At least, I'm pretty sure this is a new episode.

I like this series because it's a fun way to "tour" the DC Universe for someone who has only a passing familarity. I know a while back there were "OMAC's" running all around some of the DC titles but this seems to be the Kirby original. I was somewhat surprised that Kirby had that satellite gimmick back in the 70's but with a name like "Brother Eye" I should have known the King was involved somewhere.

Speaking of Kirby, the aliens in the beginning seemed to have a Kirby-esque look as well. I thought Batman's "Alien Nullifier Ray" was a little rich for my tastes though it allowed for a hasty conclusion to the teaser.

Is this Equinox guy unique to the cartoon or has he been around a while?

 

[MeanJoePhaser]

The teaser foreshadowed the episode for once. Never heard of OMAC or the GPA.

Equinox kicked Batman's ass. He appeared in an earlier episode teaser, IIRC. He appears to be based somewhat on the character Libra http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libra_(DC_Comics)

 

[Mr Light]

I'm afraid this episode really disappointed me. I was expecting Max Lord and the OMACs from Infinite Crisis, not the Kirby original I was completely unfamiliar with. Wasn't familiar with the villains, either.

 

[Nerys Myk]

I was trying to place the teaser aliens. Might have been the Okaarans and the Dominators

 

[Mr Light]

I thought they were both from whatever race Katma Tui is? I wasn't looking that close.

 

[Professor Zoom]

I thought it was a fun episode.
It took me awhile, but I recognized the voice of OMAC--he's the voice of Kyle Katarn in the Jedi Outcast games.

 

[Mr Light]

I believe it was Jeff Bennett the voice of the red gargoyle from Gargoyles.

 

[Christopher]

Yes, that was Jeff Glen Bennett as OMAC/Buddy. He also does the Joker on this show. And apparently he's going to do Batman's singing voice in next week's musical episode.

That "Global Peace Agency" was really creepy. Faceless pseudomilitary types who think nothing of using a hapless human being as a mindwiped living weapon (kind of like the Dollhouse only with worse fashion sense), and they claim they're acting in the name of peace? Seems more like fascism to me. Why is Batman working for these people instead of bringing them down?

 

[MeanJoePhaser]

Faceless pseudomilitary types who think nothing of using a hapless human being as a mindwiped living weapon (kind of like the Dollhouse only with worse fashion sense), and they claim they're acting in the name of peace? Seems more like fascism to me. Why is Batman working for these people instead of bringing them down?

Faceless pseudomilitary types have to stick together?

Batman has a freaking armed space craft.

 

[Christopher]

But he's Batman. He understands right and wrong. These guys just seem to want power. Heck, Kafka wasn't really evil, he was just seeking retribution for the way these guys destroyed his village with their heavyhanded tactics. These guys are pretty much the CIA, running roughshod over the rights of foreign nationals, screwing up their lives, and thereby creating new threats to national security through their heavyhanded efforts to protect it.

Overall, this was a remarkably dark episode for this show, courtesy of Stan Berkowitz, one of the main writer-producers for the DCAU shows.

 

[MeanJoePhaser]

I was being a devil advocate. It's a matter of perspective. WE know Batman is a good guy. Certainly, there's less grey area to B&TB Bats than more recent media version, too. But he still answers to no one...no one elected, anyone.

I did wonder who these guys were and why Batman was working with them. They were the HAWK and Batman the DOVE.

 

[TemporalFlux]

I was trying to place the teaser aliens. Might have been the Okaarans and the Dominators

The Dominators are those yellow skinned guys with red circles on their forehead.

The pink skinned aliens in last night's episode were The Controllers; they have the same ancestry as the Green Lantern Corps Guardians, but the Controllers decided to take a more aggressive path to interstellar peace. Basically, if the Guardians are the Vulcans, then the Controllers are the Romulans.

I agree about the green skinned aliens, though; it was the Okaarans in my opinion.

And coincidentally, the current Blackest Night storyline in the comics featured the Controllers going to the planet Okaara in order to seize the source of the orange light of avarice.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Right!!!!

 

[Bad Bishop]

That "Global Peace Agency" was really creepy. Faceless pseudomilitary types who think nothing of using a hapless human being as a mindwiped living weapon (kind of like the Dollhouse only with worse fashion sense), and they claim they're acting in the name of peace? Seems more like fascism to me. Why is Batman working for these people instead of bringing them down?

That's one question. Here's another. Why is Batman traveling through space, acting like a caped and cowled Henry Kissinger who brings warring aliens to the peace table? When did that become his job instead of Superman's or Green Lantern's or Adam Strange's? And where did Batman get a spacecraft that can travel the stars?

OK, ignore that last question. This series has a silly charm all its own, but more often than not the silliness is overwhelming. I will give them points, however, for the imaginative selection of guest-heroes like OMAC.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

^^ That's because this Batman is pretty much the Batman of the Superfriends. The one who defeated a star creature with his bat lightning rod (true!).

The GPA were a part of the Kirby OMAC issues though I admit the way they shoehorned Batman into them was clumsy.

 

[Nerys Myk]

That "Global Peace Agency" was really creepy. Faceless pseudomilitary types who think nothing of using a hapless human being as a mindwiped living weapon (kind of like the Dollhouse only with worse fashion sense), and they claim they're acting in the name of peace? Seems more like fascism to me. Why is Batman working for these people instead of bringing them down?

That's one question. Here's another. Why is Batman traveling through space, acting like a caped and cowled Henry Kissinger who brings warring aliens to the peace table? When did that become his job instead of Superman's or Green Lantern's or Adam Strange's? And where did Batman get a spacecraft that can travel the stars?

OK, ignore that last question. This series has a silly charm all its own, but more often than not the silliness is overwhelming. I will give them points, however, for the imaginative selection of guest-heroes like OMAC.

There was a time when Batman regularly interacted with aliens and monsters. (the 50s and early 60s).

 

[Mr. Adventure]

^^ I was looking for the bat lightning rod I mentioned previously and found this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4uKu3n5noHc.

Doesn't have the bat lightning rod I remembered (different ep maybe?) but does have bat electrical tape. Also, features Batman flying a rocketship armed with anti-matter torpedoes.

I wish I could get Boomerang on my cable system...

 

[Christopher]

^^ That's because this Batman is pretty much the Batman of the Superfriends.

No, he's the Batman of the Silver Age comics. Superfriends was a pale imitation of the later Bronze Age comics.

And it's just a given within the B&tB universe that Batman is the ultimate hero, the go-to guy for any and every crisis anywhere.

 

[MeanJoePhaser]

Batman and Robin turned into two dimensional people!

The only bad epside of Brave and the Bold that I've seen is the one with Babyface and Miss Manface, two villains that would suck if they were in a Dick Tracy strip, and suck even more for being D.C. ones. It made the show seem like a Venture Bros. episode (which is a fun show, but...).

 

[Mr. Adventure]

Batman and Robin turned into two dimensional people!

I liked when that was happening in the classic Batman live action series.

There was some exchange like:

Batgirl: I'm going flat!
Batman: What a pity...