Paula Hammond - Features EditorInspired by the iconic 13-issue comic-run by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, Batman:The Long Halloween takes place immediately after Batman: Year One and lays the foundations for much of what would become comic-book lore, with the evolution of the Gotham’s gangland criminals into fully-fledged super-villains.
Praised by fans for its faithful portrayal of the characters, and by critics for its taut writing and intelligent plotting, The Long Halloween is often ranked as one of the Top Five Batman storylines.
A story begins with brutal murder on Halloween which Batman to form a pact with the city’s only two uncorrupt lawmen (Captain Gordon and District Attorney Harvey Dent) to take down the head of the notorious Falcone Crime Family. But when more deaths happen on Thanksgiving Father’s and Mother’s Day, Christmas, Fourth of July, and, of and Christmas, it becomes clear that there’s more going on than crime-family feuds—Gotham has a serial killer on their hands.
DC’s animation not only stays true to the source material but echoes much of Tim Sale’s moody and atmospheric art, to deliver one of their best DC Animated Universe features to date. And that’s big because DCU has consistently punched above its weight—in terms of both budget and ambition—-offering the sort of depth and daring that we’ve rarely seen in their live action outings.
DC originally issued The Long Halloween as a two-part feature. This September’s Deluxe Edition offers a lush collector’s package available in 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and digital, complete with previously unseen content, new cover artwork, trailers and special features.
Lauded for his performance as Red Hood/Jason Todd in 2010’s Batman Under The Red Hood, Jensen Ackles (Supernatural, Smallville) returns to the DC Universe as Batman/Bruce Wayne. The late Naya Rivera (Glee), who sadly passed away in 2020, gives one of her final performances as Catwoman/Selina Kyle. The all-star cast also includes Josh Duhamel (Transformers, Las Vegas) as Harvey Dent, Billy Burke (Twilight, Revolution, Zoo) as James Gordon, and David Dastmalchian (The Suicide Squad) as Calendar Man.
Batman: The Long Halloween is in one of the best DCU features to-date and the new Deluxe Edition 4K transfer and extra runtime make it even better. However, be aware that this new release comes with added ‘mature content’, which will mean different things to different viewers, but this is definitely not kid’s cartoon and the 15 rating is there for a reason.
Extras:
Batman: The Long Halloween – Evolution Of Evil (New Featurette) – A comprehensive look at The Long Halloween with original writer, Jeph Loeb, and filmmakers.
