‘Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman’ feels like a spiritual successor to ‘Batman: The Animated Series’ and ‘The New Adventures of Batman and Robin’ (both of which are acknowledged in the end credits), and it certainly lives up to that label, giving viewers a deep and engaging mystery that keeps you guessing until the big reveal. It all starts with the emergence of the Batwoman, a much more violent and brutal version of Batman, who is trying to stop the Penguin’s weapon smuggling operation. Bruce Wayne meets three mysterious women, all of whom have the potential to be this new vigilante, and it is up to him (and Robin) to find out who the Batwoman is, what their motives are, and to put a stop to them. Along the way, there are references and appearances of many of Batman’s rogues gallery, including Penguin and Bane. Admittedly, I have never really liked the Penguin, and have only enjoyed the Penguin from ‘Batman Returns’ and ‘Batman: Arkham City’, and unfortunately I wasn’t keen on this one. The costume design was a bit off, and he was too young; he felt too inexperienced to be a master criminal and a genuine threat to Batman. I also feel like Robin was wasted, and was only used for comic relief in the areas that required more attention, which is a shame because the only film in which Robin has been done justice is ‘Under the Red Hood’, and even that was through flashbacks. However, voice acting was good, particularly from the one true Batman, Kevin Conroy, and the story was good enough to keep viewers guessing. 8/10
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