Batman Ninja 4K Review (Warner Bros.)

Batman Ninja is a 2018 anime film directed by Junpei Mizusaki (Sound and Fury, Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League, and Zoo). Takashi Okazaki, the creator of Afro Samurai is the character designer for the film. Development for this project was started in 2014. It was released direct to video in America and it got a theatrical release in Japan. In 2025, they made a sequel “Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League”. Both the English and Japanese versions of the film are completely different. Batman (played by: Roger Craig Smith from Batman Unlimited, Justice League Action, Transformers: Robots in Disguise, and Sonic Boom) takes a journey across the ages as Gorilla Grodd’s (played by: Fred Tatasciore from The Death of Superman, DC Super Hero Girls, and Justice League Action) time displacement machine transports various villains of The Dark Knight which include The Joker (played by: Tony Hale from Arrested Development, Yoga Hosers, Veep, Chuck, and American Ultra), Harley Quinn (played by: Tara Strong from Batman Ninja, Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay, and Batman: The Killing Joke), Poison Ivy (played by: Tara Strong from Batman: Gotham by Gaslight, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, New Teen Titans, Beware the Batman, and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns), Two-Face (played by: Eric Bauza from Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: The Flash, DC Nation’s Farm League, Black Dynamite, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and G.I. Joe: Resolute), Penguin (played by: Tom Kenny from SpongeBob SquarePants, DC Super Hero Girls, Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: The Flash, and Green Lantern: The Animated Series), Deathstroke (played by: Fred Tatasciore from Justice League Dark, Son of Batman, and Batman Unlimited: Monster Mayhem), and Bane (played by: Kenta Miyake from Overlord, Pokémon, and Power Rangers Lost Galaxy) to feudal Japan. Batman is joined by allies Catwoman (played by: Grey Griffin from Batman: Gotham by Gaslight, Lego DC Super Hero Girls: Brain Drain, DC Super Hero Girls: Intergalactic Games, and Justice League: Gods and Monsters), Nightwing (played by: Adam Croasdell from Preacher, Reign, and Hatchet Hour), Robin (played by: Yuri Lowenthal from Batman Unlimited, Batman: Gotham by Gaslight, and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns), Red Hood (played by: Yuri Lowenthal from Young Justice and Night Watch), and Red Robin (played by: Will Friedle from Boy Meets World, Batman Beyond, Justice League Unlimited, Batman: Gotham Knight, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Batman Unlimited: Mechs vs. Mutants, and Green Arrow) there to fight off their rivals. Alfred Pennyworth (played by: Adam Croasdell from Bond, James Bond) has built a Batcave where they have been sent. The villains take over the forms of the feudal lords that rule the divided land. The Joker takes the lead with his high-tech weaponry. Gorilla Grodd has other plans to take over the throne from him. Eian (played by: Matthew Yang King from Justice League: Throne of Atlantis, Species III, G.I. Joe: Renegades, Numb3rs, and 24) the leader of the Bat Clan of Hida offers his assistance to the superheroes against the threat of his homeland. Batman and his allies must use their skills to go against these evil powers battling to control everything around. The heroes want to restore order and return to present day Gotham City!!!! The Japanese voice talents include: Kôichi Yamadera (Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust), Wataru Takagi (Naruto: Shippûden), Ai Kakuma (Aldnoah.Zero), Rie Kugimiya (Gintama), Atsuko Tanaka (Ghost in the Shell), Daisuke Ono (Attack on Titan), Hôchû Ôtsuka (Ajin), Takehito Koyasu (Gintama), Toshiyuki Morikawa (Resident Evil: Damnation), and many others. Batman Ninja is nothing like anything DC Comics has produced before when it comes to animation. The Anime and Japanese style is adapted for this feature. It looks CRAZY, I love how these original films take Batman and the DC universe places they would never go! Each known character has a completely different style to them here. This is a truly unique vision when it comes to your favorite heroes and villains of Gotham. It’s a breathe of fresh air compared to the more typical story lines and atmospheres in most versions when it comes to these type of presentations. It’s something that could get more people into this franchise with the Samurai and Ninja additions to it. It’s also basically a double feature because both versions on here are nothing alike in tone. The English one is more over the top and the Japanese version is very serious. I really enjoyed the differences between the two. I think it’s great to have an alternate option every time for this. Expect more action and entertainment going into this rather than story. DC Comics and Warner Bros have done some amazing work on this. They continue to evolve all these characters in different situations every time!!!! Let’s talk about the high definition presentation from Warner Bros. This 2160p (1.78:1) transfer looks fantastic upgraded to 4K! It’s so colorful and it just pops out of the screen. The style really grabs your attention and you don’t want to look away once it starts. You get 2 different audio options which include English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, and Japanese: Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks on the UHD. Like I mentioned above both the English and Japanese versions have completely different tones. If you want a more silly over the top vibe, go with the English. If you want something more serious, go with the Japanese. It also includes English SDH subtitles. Let’s talk about the special features on this release from DC Comics. As I mentioned above, the “original Japanese version” is very different from the English version. It listed as an extra on here. “East/West Batman” is a 17 minute featurette that includes various production and crew members discussing Batman adapting to the Japanese culture in this feature. They chat about the some of the differences between America and Japan. They bring up some confrontations have a video game final boss fight vibe. They talk about various other things from the production. “Batman: Made in Japan” is a 14 minute featurette includes various production and crew members talking about this had to be Anime and how it worked so well with this feature. They bring up the influences of Frank Miller and Afro Samurai. They discuss the changes made to the characters especially Robin. They mention this story would never been made in live action. They chat about it being more action based than dialogue. They talk about the technology used in this. They cover various other things from the production. “New York Comic Con Presents Batman Ninja” is a 49 minute panel with Screenwriter Kazuki Nakashima, Screenwriter Leo Chu, Screenwriter Eric Garcia, Character Designer Takashi Okazaki, and Director Junpei Mizusaki moderated by the awesome Gary Miereanu! This was made way before the film was released so they couldn’t really give out much details about the project. They discuss about the origin of Batman Ninja.They talk about how popular The Dark Knight is in Japan. They give the basic plot for the film without spoiling anything for the crowd. They talk about the screenplay and how the characters are still similar to what they are in America. They bring up about mixing everyone up and having them sharing scenes together. They mention their favorite characters in this. They go into details about the fight scenes in this. They do a Q and A with the crowd. They discuss all kinds of other stuff during the event. It’s available everywhere right now including MovieZyng.com, so check it out. This was lots of fun and much more entertaining than expected so it comes HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!