Review by C.J. Bunce
Last year Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League (reviewed here) was the borg best pick for the 2025 Best Superhero Movie, beating out a strong field in a great year of superhero movies. It is the sequel to the 2018 anime twist on the DC Comics universe, Batman Ninja. Not as technologically advanced as its sequel, Batman Ninja sets the stage for one of the best Elseworlds stories on film yet in a more deliberate, traditional Japanese style that makes it a movie Batman and anime fans won’t want to pass up. Its direction by celebreated animators Junpei Mizusaki and Shinji Takagi brings the comic book medium to life like you’ve never seen before, with a mix in animation styles and striking close-up action sequences that will have you rethinking what makes a great comic book adaptation. Batman Ninja is now free for anyone to stream on YouTube.
The realm of Batman Ninja is Batman meets Doctor Who. Sort of. Gorilla Grodd has created a world manipulating time-bending machine called the Quake Engine. Its purpose is to send all of Gotham City’s villains far away so Grodd can run Gotham alone, but Batman’s interference instead sends the key Bat-heroes and Bat-villains back to an unusual point in history for the DC superheroes–feudal Japan. As a concept a mash-up of Batman and samurai merits a chef’s kiss. But it’s not just the idea that works. Batman Ninja is a beautiful animated Batman story, next to only its sequel in its artistry. This is the heroic, action-packed Batman of the comics pages, and shows that handing off key properties to fresh new creators can result in something truly special. This is Batman literally drawn exactly right–the best profiles, the best costume design, the best Bat-transports.
Batman arrives in feudal Japan with Catwoman, and soon encounters Alfred who has been learning and creating an environment to help Batman when he eventually arrives. But its The Joker and Harley Quinn who have used their time wisely, as The Joker is now Lord Joker, a character embracing all the best bits and tropes of Japan classic culture. Some if the ideas aren’t so obvious but somehow fit right in. Damien aka Robin is paired with a monkey who can communicate with him. Villains Poison Ivy, Two-Face, Deathstroke, and Penguin create moving castles–giant robot Transformers–to do battle. Nightwing, Red Robin, and Red Hood, are there, too, but their characters won’t be fleshed out until the next movie. This is not the zany “raining yakuza” story embracing more modern anime trends as seen in the sequel, but closer to both Hayao Miyazaki and Akira Kurosawa in vibe. But it has its zany moments.
Most surprising is how well The Joker fits so many legendary views of the character, both from the Golden Age era of Bob Kane and Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s The Killing Joke. You may even agree it surpasses both 1989’s Batman and The Dark Knight in delivering a Joker as frightening and crazed as the comics (and Cesar Romero’s definitive take).
Watching the movies back to back shows how an inspired production team can grow. Writer Kazuki Nakashima holds back in this first story, only to lean into both Batman legend and Japanese culture more in the sequel. The same level of respect is here as this worldbuilding incorporates sacred Japan myth and legend and the very different but still important and sacred American superhero myth and legend of Batman. It also has one of the best Batman themes, created by composer Yugo Kanno.
Eye-popping special effects, a solid story, and a great cast of voice talent make Batman Ninja a movie not to miss. And best of all it’s streaming free now on YouTube.
