Batman: The Animated Series
Episode 35
Night of the Ninja
One of the first Batman origin episodes we get. It revolves around an old rival of Bruce Wayne’s terrorizing his company. Kyodai Ken blames Wayne for his downfall and plots revenge to destroy him. We learn Wayne received martial arts training in Japan before he became Batman as part of his grand plan to be a vigilante. A nice prequel buildup to Batman: Mask of the Phantasm. Ken kidnaps Bruce Wayne and reporter Summer Gleason. During their captivity Wayne challenges Ken to a Samurai fight. Since Summer is there, Wayne has to throw the match so she doesn’t learn he’s Batman. Robin in his attempt to rescue Wayne sees the him throwing the fight and obstructs Summer Gleason’s vision. At that point Bruce Wayne goes full Batman on Kyodai Ken and totally annihilates him in the battle. Ken fakes his death until we see him again many episodes later.
A truly original Batman episode that goes into his pre Batman years and the steps he took to become the best fighter in the world. It deviates from the comic and in a nice way. A solid backstory the show builds on in later episodes.
Written by
Joseph Ammendolea
Owner/President
“I Like To Play With Toys” Productions®
ILikeToPlayWithToysProductions@Yahoo.com
