alt title(s): Dini Verse; The DCAU; DC Animated Universe
Batman The Animated Series was doing well but eventually ended in 1995. As well,
Superman The Animated Series started up in 1996 with a similar but streamlined art design and when
The New Batman Adventures arrived in 1997 (explicitly a continuation of the prior series) a decision was made to simplify many character designs. This was a controversial move, although some characters were arguably improved (the Penguin, in particular, returned to his comic book look rather than the deformed one inspired by
Batman Returns). At the same time, the sophisticated, David Hyde Pierce-ish Riddler was transformed into Jim Carrey's decidedly less subtle version of the character from
Batman Forever.
With a Batman and Superman show airing simultaneously, the inevitable crossover occured with
World's Finest, which teamed Batman and Superman against the Joker and Lex Luthor, and the switch in art style made the cross much easier. A unified artstyle also greatly helped many of the DC Animated Universe shows later, which were either direct spinoffs of existing shows or discreetly and directly tied together.
It's generally accepted that the
DCAU includes:
...as well as the various movies and specials based on these.
The DCAU has ended production with the final episode of
Justice League Unlimited, and at this point no plans are made to do more series in it. However, there are other animated series and movies based on
The DCU that are often mistaken for being part of it.
Ironically,
Freakazoid! was the first animated show to use this art style, yet does not fit into the DCAU for obvious reasons.
Standalone Animated Television Series that use DC characters:
With the success of the
Ultimate Avengers direct to video release and the failure of
Superman: Brainiac Attacks (which featured a seriously derailed Lex Luthor) produced by another team, Bruce Timm's production crew was assigned to produce a number of original D2V films, adapting classic
Story Arcs from
The DCU. So far these films have been praised for aiming the demographic much higher than the TV show universe. The only consistent complaint between them is the short running time of 70 minutes each.
Animated Movies
- Superman: Brainiac Attacks- Uses the exact same art design and most of the same voice actors but intended as a different continuity. Meant as a promotional tie-in with Superman Returns.
- Superman: Doomsday- An adaptation of The Death of Superman. Much like the original comics, a financial success despite mixed reviews.
- Justice League: The New Frontier- An adaptation of the hugely successful comic series, following the artistic style of the original work almost exactly.
- Batman: Gotham Knight- An anthology of Batman stories set between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, some closely linked enough to form a Story Arc. Each one was animated by a different anime production team, resulting in a wildly different Art Shift for each short. Meant as a tie-in for The Dark Knight.
- Wonder Woman- A modern-day origin story for the character, starring Keri Russell in the title role. Uses a more "cinematic" version of the DCAU art style.
- Green Lantern: First Flight - The first adventure of Hal Jordan, putting a "Training Day IN SPACE" spin on the material.
- Superman/Batman: Public Enemies - An adaptation of the comic storyline, using the DCAU's signature voice team (though not its art style or continuity).
- Justice League: Crisis On Two Earths - A forthcoming movie, scheduled for 2010 release, pitting the Justice League against their Mirror Universe counterparts.
- A future Teen Titans movie closely adapting "The Judas Contract" storyline, apparently to be done in the standard DCAU style.
Video Games:
- Batman: Rise of Sun Tzu
- The Adventures of Batman and Robin
- Superman 64
- Superman: Shadows of Apokolips
- Batman: Arkham Asylum- While it doesn't have any direct connections to any prior continuity, it has strong DCAU ties being co-written by Paul Dini and uses the voices of Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill and Arleen Sorkin from Batman The Animated Series.
The DCAU is sometimes referred to as the "Timmverse" (after character designer Bruce Timm) or the "Diniverse" (after writer Paul Dini). Some purists contest "Timmverse" is more appropriate, as Bruce Timm has been the most consistent creative force in the various shows than Paul Dini, who left before the end of it. Rather more to the point, Dini is a writer, not a character designer. Timm, who
is a character designer, is the one responsible for the "standard DCAU art style". On the other hand, the writing of the DCAU is as notable as the art, plus the name is catchier (having
three syllables and all). On the OTHER hand, Paul Dini was just the foremost of several writers and worked for Alan Burnett, who thus technically has more to do with the managing of the DCAU than Dini does.
The debate continues. Though it must be noted that "Diniverse" is a lot more fun to say.
The DCAU has
Nightmare Fuel and
Crowning Moments of Awesome.
