Release Date: August 2016  RRP: $25.99/£22.99 Of all the Batman: The Animated Series characters you'd expect DC Collectibles to release in their highly anticipated yet also highly repeatedly delayed and widely criticised line, Zatanna probably wasn't one of them - until you remember just how much of a fanboy Paul Dini is when it comes to her. What's perhaps stranger though is the fact Zatanna was a single card release, while far more characters and designs would later be shunted off into highly overpriced collectors' sets (looking at you especially B:TAS Mr Freeze and Poison Ivy). Still, one of the main charms of this line has been some of the more left-field choices there's been when it comes to releases, and Zatanna is definitely one of the best among them. Appearing solely in the episode "Zatanna", this version of Zatanna has no apparent magic powers (until her reappearance in Justice League Unlimited that is), but goes back a long way with ...

Release Date: January 2016  RRP: £39.99/$39.99 If there’s one thing DC Collectibles ’ range of Batman: The Animated Series and The New Batman Adventures figures can’t be faulted for, it’s scope. Although the line has suffered severely from QC issues, delays and most recently an insistence on releasing over-priced sets, the line has done a good job of covering these two landmark series – not only featuring the obvious characters but also welcome surprises like Commissioner Gordon, Harvey Bullock, Firefly or Talia Al Ghul. In 1993 Batman: The Animated Series spawned The Mask of the Phantasm – a feature-length film that’s not only earned cult status but widely considered among the best animated films ever. So of course DC Collectibles were going to mark this entry in the line somewhere, releasing a special two-pack including both Batman and Phantasm figures.

In some respects DC Collectibles ’ range of Batman: The Animated Series and The New Batman Adventures figures are the Batman toys fans have always dreamed of. Articulated and accessory-laden cartoon-accurate depictions of one of the most renowned pieces of Batman media – what’s not to love? However at the same time this line has proved to be an absolute nightmare, with multiple figures subject to delays, quality control problems or both. But thanks to the draw of these characters, fans keep coming back for more. Here we look at one of the earliest releases in the line – fan-favourite Mr Freeze , as he appeared in The New Batman Adventures episode “Cold Comfort” .

When Batman: The Animated Series made its transition to The New Batman Adventures , it brought about a lot of changes. The most obvious of these was the somewhat simplified art style, but also a time skip that changed the character dynamics of the Bat Family. Batgirl became a regular, Tim Drake joined the team as the new Robin , and Dick Grayson broke away from Batman’s shadow to establish himself as Nightwing . Despite playing a more limited role in the series, Nightwing was still a big part of it – appearing in the series logo while the more frequent Batgirl was inexplicably absent. Now DC Collectibles have added Nightwing to their new range of figures covering Batman’s main entries into the DC Animated Universe , completing the Bat Family in action figure form.

Although my relationship with DC Collectibles ’ animated Batman figures has been rocky to say the least, there were always some characters I was going to by without question. And perhaps the biggest of those was Batgirl . Whether it’s her tenure as Batgirl (particularly in her utterly fantastic current ongoing) or assisting the Bat family and the Birds of Prey as Oracle , Barbara Gordon is undoubtedly one of my favourite DC Comics characters. So there was some considerable excitement when Batgirl was revealed to be joining the line, with a figure based on her black-costumed appearance in The New Batman Adventures – where she was promoted to main character and full-time member of the Bat family. As well as a new costume, Batgirl received a new voice actress in the form of Tara Strong – taking over from Melissa Gilbert and the late Mary Kay Bergman (who voiced the character in Batman: The Animated Series and Batman & Mr Freeze: Sub Zero respectively).

Although the supposed improvements to the sturdiness of the figures might meet up to everyone’s expectations, to their credit DC Collectibles have really been churning out their line of animated Batman figures from Batman: The Animated Series and The New Batman Adventures lately. After months of nothing, the backlog of previously revealed figures came through one by one with plenty of new ones announced at the same time. Among the more recent releases was the B:TAS version of the Riddler – a character who appearances were few, but pretty notable in the series (by the time TBNA rolled around, he was reduced to near-cameo status and a horrible redesign). This version of Edward Nygma also holds a special significance to me as well, with the original 1992 version being one of the first action figures I ever owned. Will this new release provide a worthy update with a healthy dose of nostalgia added into the mix? Read on to find out!

When DC Collectibles first announced their range of screen accurate Batman: The Animated Series and The New Batman Adventures figures, it seems to fair to say that Harley Quinn was one of the most anticipated. Not only is she arguably the DC Animated Universe’s biggest export, but thanks to the likes of the recent Arkham series video games, the forthcoming Suicide Squad movie and her own ongoing comic series her popularity is at an even bigger high right now. But right now we’re looking back at where it all began – the 1992 B:TAS episode J oker’s Favor and the iconic red and black jester costume that still remains her definitive look even to this day.

DC Collectibles line of animated Batman figures had a rather interesting year in 2015. After the hotly anticipated figures burst onto the scene at the end of 2014, they quickly received criticism for their fragility – leading the designers to take a step back and look at the how they could improve the builds for future figures. This led to delay after delay for the majority of the line planned throughout 2015, until they all seemed to hit in rapid succession towards the years’ end. Among these delayed figures was the subject of this review – The New Batman Adventures ’ iteration of the boy wonder himself, Robin . Taking place after Dick Grayson had moved on to take up the mantle of Nightwing, this version of Robin is instead Tim Drake – considerably younger looking than his predecessor and sporting a rather different origin to his comics counterpart.

Joining the Joker as part of wave two of DC Collectibles new range of figures based on Batman: The Animated Series and The New Batman Adventures is the Boy Wonder himself, Robin ! More specifically, the original Dick Grayson variety. Although Robin made regular appearances in the first half of B:TAS , he really came into his own in the later half - at which point the show became titled The Adventures of Batman & Robin . Just how much of the show falls under this banner is up for debate - production wise there are only two seasons (with the second using this name) but the DVD releases split it up into three, with only the third using that name. Either way it doesn't really make a whole lot of difference, because this line isn't acknowledging the name or logo change anyway. I can kind of understand since it isn't a major difference like the huge change between Batman: The Animated Series and The New Batman Adventures, but it would have been nice to get it acknowledg...

There have been many different popular interpretations of the Joker in television and film over the years - Caesar Romero in the Adam West Batman series, Jack Nicholson in Tim Burton's 1989 movie, Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight , and a variety of different animated versions voiced by different actors. But when asked which of all of these versions is the best, it's fair to say that most fans will agree on the DC Animated Universe version voiced by Mark Hamill. Appearing in Batman: The Animated Series and The New Batman Adventures all the way up into Batman Beyond and  Justice League , Hamill's Joker has even reached a new audience in the form of the Arkham series video games. So when DC Collectibles revealed they would be doing a new line of animated series figures based on Bruce Timm's iconic designs, it's unsurprising that the Joker was quickly among the planned lineup. However not being in the first wave of figures seems to have worked to the Joker's...

Arguably  Batman: The Animated Series and it's follow up The New Batman Adventures owe a lot of their success to the brilliance of how it handled the Caped Crusader's rogues gallery. Whether it's Mark Hamill's portrayal of the Joker, Paul Dini's incredible reimagining of Mr. Freeze or the creation of the one and only Harley Quinn - many of Batman's most famous villains received some of their finest moments in these cartoons. So to kick off DC Collectibles new range of animated Batman figures, the first villain to follow Batman himself is none other than Two-Face , the criminal persona of former Gotham district attorney Harvey Dent . Though many of Two-Face's strongest episodes appeared in the original animated series, he also played a significant part in The New Batman Adventures - having close ties to the second Robin's origin as well as having his split personality fragment even more. As such, the toyline has turned to these appearances to craft a...

Batman: The Animated Series is widely considered to be one of the greatest cartoons of all time, but despite this has never received any toys outside those that were released during it's original run (and those were actual toys rather than collectibles). But with the recent 75th anniversary of the Dark Knight, DC Collectibles have revisited the iconic show for a brand new range of high-end figures. Aiming to be as accurate to Bruce Timm 's original designs as possible, this line not only features designs from B:TAS, but also the follow-up series The New Batman Adventures - which simplified the art-style somewhat to bring it more in line with Superman: The Animated Series and subsequently the rest of the DC Animated Universe . So to kick off the line is of course Batman, based on his 1997 New Batman Adventures look.