Batman: The Adventures Continue — Season Two

You can’t keep a good revival down, and that’s why we’ve been graced with a second “season” of this series from co-writers Paul Dini and Alan Burnett.  As the first season saw the integration of characters like the Red Hood and Deathstroke into the “Batman:  The Animated Series” continuity and style, this time The Court of Owls is given the same treatment.  From there, we get stories that see Batgirl and Huntress at odds over the fate of a hired killer, the introduction of a new mob enforcer known as The Muscle, and a three-part story that sees the return of former Gotham mayor, Emerson Mayfield, to the city.  He and Batman clashed early on in the vigilante’s career, but Mayfield eventually resigned and left town after the Caped Crusader made him an offer he couldn’t refuse.  Now he’s back and looking to run for mayor again.  Batman knows he’s up to no good, but there’s a bigger question at hand:  Why isn’t he worried about Batman anymore?

One of the things I liked about “Season One” was that it actually built towards something with its use of the Red Hood.  That’s not the case here as the stories are all stand-alone and have to work on their own merits.  They fare a little better in that regard this time around as the plotting feels a little more complex on a story-by-story basis here, leaving me to feel that they’re all better-than-average “Batman:  The Animated Series” tales, particularly the three-part “Mayor Mayhem” storyline.  That’s about all they are, however, as none of them have anything significant to say about the characters involved, and I’ll admit to being disappointed that the Court of Owls is depicted in a fashion that reduces them to a villain-of-the-week.  I don’t think this is a bad follow-up to “Season One,” but I can’t say I’m completely gung-ho about the idea of a potential “Season Three” at this point.