The DC Animated Universe (DCAU) is a fan term for a series of popular animated television series and related spin-offs produced by Warner Bros. Animation which share the same continuity. Most of these series are adapted from DC Comics properties. This continuity is also sometimes referred to as the Timmverse (after producer Bruce Timm, the continuity's most consistent creative influence) and in the past, the Diniverse (after writer Paul Dini, who had mostly departed from Warner Bros. Animation when Justice League was in production).
Source: https://www.alltimelines.com/dc-comics-multiverse-chronology/dc-comics-animated-universe/
January 1 to December 31 2022
FIRST EPISODE WATCHED: Buffy the Vampire Slayer S02E01
LAST EPISODE WATCHED:
SHOWS STARTED:
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1992)
How I Met Your Father (2022)
Ghosts (2021)
The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window (2022)
Yellowjackets (2021)
Cobra Kai (2018)
Station Eleven (2021)
Euphoria (2019)
The Cuphead Show (2022)
Pieces of Her (2022)
NCIS (2003)
CSI (2000)
Halo (2022)
Bridgeton (2020)
The Girl From Plainville (2022)
Reign (2013)
Yellowstone (2018)
Blue Bloods (2010)
Moon Knight (2022)
South Park (1997)
Ratched (2020)
The New Batman Adventures (1997)
Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022)
Sea Lab 2021 (2000)
Star Wars The Clone Wars (2008)
The Simpsons (1989)
Seinfeld (1989)
Aqua Teen Hunger Force (2000)
King of the Hill (1997)
Family Guy (1999)
Ms Marvel (2022)
The Sandman (2022)
She-Hulk: Attorney At Law (2022)
Mike Judge's Beavis and Butthead (2022)
Batwoman (2019)
Thundarr the Barbarian (1980)
House of the Dragon (2022)
Lord of the Rings The Rings of Power (2022)
Chucky (2021)
SHOWS FINISHED:
Spiderman (1994)
Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987)
Midnight Mass (2021)
Once Upon a Time (2011)
The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window (2022)
The Book of Boba Fett (2021)
Black-ish (2014)
Batman The Animated Series (1992)
The New Batman Adventures (1997)
Iron Man (1994)
Ms Marvel (2022)
Obi Wan Kenobi (2022)
Fantastic Four (1994)
AP Bio (2018)
Mr Mayor (2021)
She Hulk Attorney at Law (2022)
For Ali. I went a little extra and made a write up explaining my choices, as follows:
Batman (1989) - Tim Burton's OG Batman movie. Not super accurate to the character, but a lot of fun, a moody, gothic vibe, and the first notable big screen appearance for the B-man
Batman Returns (1992) - Tim Burton's Batman sequel that features Danny DeVito as the penguin and the legendary Michell Pfeiffer Catwoman. Again not high cinema, but its another classic Batman and a fun watch
Batman The Animated Series (TAS) - My personal favorite take on Batman, features legendary voice acting by Kevin Conroy & Mark Hamill, borrows the mood of Gotham from Tim Burton's film, but does a great job expanding the world and creating compelling characters
-- S1E03 - Heart of Ice - Mr. Freeze's first appearance in TAS, I've heard that before this he didn't really have a name or story, but the writer here created an excellent story of a scientist trying to save his dying wife that has stuck to the character ever since
-- S1E34 - I Am the Night - An episode with a character notable for his stoicism opening up about the trauma that drives him. Very well written and humanizing for a larger than life character
-- S1E51&52 - Robin's Reckoning - The man responsible for Dick Grayson's (Robin) parents dying is back in Gotham, and these episodes deal with Robin searching for revenge and Batman trying to keep him from crossing a line. It explores Batman's idea of morality, but also does a great job of showing the relationship between Batman and Robin.
-- Batman: Mask of the Phantasm - A movie spun off from TAS, features The Phantasm as a new vigilante in Gotham who is not afraid to kill. This movie really explores Batman's no killing rule and created a great foil to him, and has become a fan favorite.
The New Batman Adventures - Essentially a continuation of TAS, but set in the future, with Dick Grayson's Robin becoming Nightwing, and Tim Drake becoming the new robin
-- S1E06 - Double Talk - Features the villain Scarface, a mentally ill ventriloquist whose puppet persona is a gang leader, trying to avoid crime after being released from Arkham. An episode that focuses less on superhero shenanigans, and more on Batman trying to help a troubled man.
-- S2E05 - Old Wounds - Nightwing tells the new Robin stories about his past, and his disagreements with Batman. A great exploration of the weird Bat-family dynamic.
Batman Beyond - This is a show that has no right to be this good. Its original idea being the desire to make a Batman cartoon, but with Batman in high school to appeal to kids. What results is a cyberpunk-ish story of Terry McGuinness, the Batman of 2039, being trained by an aging Bruce Wayne. It's not technically Batman Batman, but it's a personal favorite.
-- S1E01&02 - Rebirth - The introduction to this new character
-- S3E07&08 - The Call - Features the new Batman teaming up with the Justice League of the future. It has old Superman in it and I love it.
-- Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker - Another movie spin off that has the Joker appearing in a future where he was assumed to be long gone. Great story. Another fan favorite.
Justice League - S4E13 - Epilogue - I'm only including one Justice League episode due to it's Batman-central content. It's another great show, but rarely spends much time on any single character. This episode however has Terry McGuinness as a grown man conflicted with his life as the next Batman. It serves as an end to his story on screen, and has some great Batman moments.
Batman: Year One (2011) - An animated take on the first year of Batman's war on crime. Contrasts his story with Jim Gordon's joining the Gotham Police force.
Justice League: Doom (2012) - An adaptation of the legendary "Tower of Babel" comic story, in which a villain steal's Batman's contingency plans to take down the Justice League and uses it against them. Does a great job showing both Batman's stoic lack of trust and policy of preparedness as both an integral part of his character and an obstacle to all his relationships.
Batman: The Killing Joke (2016) - This is an iffy pick. It's based on another legendary comic, but takes some questionable liberties in turning Batgirl and Batman's relationship into a romantic one, in stark, problematic contrast with the mentor relationship they usually have. If you can ignore that, the story is a Batman classic, however.
Batman: Under the Red Hood (2010) - I won't say too much about this to avoid spoiling it, but it pushes Batman's morality and explores his greatest failures to their furthest limits. It's one of the all time great Batman stories.
Batman: The Dark Knight Rises [Pts 1&2] (2012-2013) - Another nearly direct adaptation of perhaps the best Batman comic ever written. It has an old Bruce Wayne deciding to take up the cape after a long retirement, and has so much to say, that trying to summarize its thesis would be a foolish task. Just watch it.
Batman Begins (2005) - The beginning of the great Nolan Trilogy! Its not the best of the trilogy, but it is the start. Its alright. I have mixed feelings about these films, but it's hard to deny their impact.
The Dark Knight (2008) - The one with Heath Ledger as the Joker. This is perhaps the definitive Batman movie. The best of the Nolan trilogy, and a fantastic movie in its own right. There's not much to say that hasn't already been said. It's really good.
The Dark Knight Rises (2012) - The end of the trilogy. This movie is at the very least a fun watch. Its content is the subject of much debate and parody. I personally feel that it falls flat frequently and doesn't live up to its predecessor. That said, ignoring it on any Batman list would be treason. At least its not by Zach Snyder.
Honorable Mentions:
I am personally enamored by the campy Adam West Batman. The silly nature of it both flies in the face of the gothic vibe that Batman is associated with, but when it comes down to it these are comic book characters, not Shakespeare, and I think watching them be as goofy as their concepts are is refreshing for a franchise that has become known for its brooding. It's not everyone's cup of tea though.
I think Zach Snyder is a particularly tone-deaf creator, but I love Batfleck's costume and action sequences. That said, the character was given all the wrong kinds of attention and failed to develop a cohesive balance between the Batman we know and love and the edgier interpretations of people like Frank Miller that Zach reveres so much. It was a big swing and a miss in my book.
The 2019 Joker movie was well done in my opinion. That said, its hard to ignore that its best elements were lifted from Taxi Driver and where Batman usually serves as a foil to the Joker, this movie unabashedly freebases edgy teenage anarchy. Its worth watching if you have the critical ability to see through the edgy bullshit, but only barely.
Starting with the critically aclaimed Batman: The Animated Series, the DC Animated Universe (DCAU) is what made many of us fall in love with DC’s characters.
We have several DC animated universes. This timeline doesn’t cover all of them. But there is one that stands out above the rest. We present the DC Animated Universe, consisting of the Batman/Superman animated series, Justice League, Justice League Unlimited, Batman Beyond, etc. There were tie-in comics to these series that, as of right now, we do not include in the timeline. These tie-in comics are complex, and don’t always line up perfectly with the continuity of the shows they are based on. However, we will hopefully include them in future updates.
Includes:
Superman: The Animated Series takes place simultaneously to The New Batman Adventures
Batman's story line in the DC Animated Universe.
Credits for Batman: https://www.evilcloneproductions.com/blog/2020/9/30/batman-tas-definitive-episode-timeline-2020-edition
Based on a list I found in 2017 that also includes the various DCAU comic series too. Those won't be on here, though.
The following series/movies are not canon and should be skipped if desiring a purely canon DCAU experience:
Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman
Superman: Brainiac Attacks
Batman and Harley Quinn
Justice League vs. The Fatal Five
Teen Titans (whole series)
Young Justice (whole series)
Legion of Superheroes (whole series)
This is a chronological watching order of all movies, series episodes and specials of the DC Animated Universe.
All animated shows based on characters from DC Comics.
Batman: The Animated Series in order
by Geoff