There are several titles worth mentioning on home video this week, but the only one that demands all of the attention is the long-awaited video release of the classic TV version of Batman. It’s taken years and years (and years) of legal wranglings to get this series to home video, but it’s finally here and Warner Home Video has spruced up the image nicely for HD. True Blood fans can get the final season or the complete series this week, and there are many other complete series sets available just in time for the holidays: Beauty & the Beast, Charmed, Family Ties, Hey Arnold!, Highway to Heaven, Taxi, and Wings among them. More TV releases anticipating the new Star Wars movie this week include Star Wars: The Clone Wars: The Lost Mission and Phineas & Ferb: Star Wars. These titles are more are available November 11, and you can see all of the highlights in our alphabetical shopper’s guide after the jump. Just click on a link to get more information or to make a purchase. Your purchase through our links helps support CliqueClack, and we thank you for that!

It’s been a couple of months since Comic-Con but we’re finally within reach of one of the most anticipated shows of the new television season: Gotham. The series, if you don’t know, tells of the story of a young Jim Gordon and his experiences and rise in the ranks of Gotham’s police force along with origin stories of many Batman villains. (It premieres this Monday on FOX.)

I got the opportunity to sit in at a filled-to-capacity press room with many of the notables in the freshman series.

And when I say filled to capacity, I’m not talkin’ turkey. I was one of the last media members allowed in the room; quite a bit of jostling was needed to accommodate the better part of the last dozen of us who squeezed in. Seating at the tables was tighter than tight — we were practically in each others’ laps. You cozyed up to your seatmate quickly and introduced yourself kindly so you could set up your recording equipment or you were out of luck. Real estate was at a premium.

But it was worth it in the end, even though not all the series’ stars in attendance were able to make each table (stars Ben McKenzie, Donal Logue, Erin Richards and Jada Pinkett Smith as well as executive producers Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon) but our table did host , Camren Bicondova (Selina Kyle), Robin Lord Taylor (Oswald Cobblepot), and David Mazouz (Bruce Wayne) — his video is coming soon.

The nifty thing about the three was the focus and enthusiasm they had for their characters. 13 year old David Mazouz (remember him as the emotionally challenged Jake Bohm from the short lived Touch with Kiefer Sutherland?) was especially articulate and impressive in what he had to say and had some interesting takes on his character:

Camren Bicoondova discusses a few tidbits on her audition for the role of Selina Kyle:

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_aFb1a_5NI

Someone who looked as if he was having a lot of fun — not only with the series but at Comic-Con itself — was Robin Lord Taylor who touched on some of the inter-relationships with others in the series and more:

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqG1PkC9BQA

Having sat down with these three, I couldn’t help but be even more pumped about the show’s premiere. At the time, it was still a long two months before it finally aired.

Now? It’s at the doorstep and we’re ready to be immersed in the fog and intrigue of Gotham.

Heading into the Batman ’66 press conference during the first full day of Comic-Con was a bit eerie.

An elevated stage hosted four bodies — left to right were Burt Ward, Adam West, Julie Newmar all sitting at a table and the conference moderator standing behind a podium. The four of them watched as the media filed in and found seats; it was as if we were on display. The room was uncharacteristically quiet. You couldn’t help but have the feeling of being marched into a room with adults staring you down with laser eyes, sizing you up to consider what sort of punishment to dole out.

The moderator — who never introduced himself, something I absolutely despise — informed everyone why we were there (the Blu-ray release of Batman: The Complete Television Series) and began fumbling with questions for the three personalities but quickly decided it was better to simply let the audience get things underway.

Ward, West and Newmar took on characteristics they wore consistently throughout the hour. Burt Ward was the most serious and articulate of the trio, when he wasn’t crochety Adam West worked the crowd for laughs — continually pumping the coming release of the new Blu-ray set in November — and an air of uncertainty hung in the room whenever Julie Newmar commented in a semi-seductive whisper each time her turn came up.

Far and away, Burt Ward was the most informative of the group in between gushing appreciation for his fellow actors and speaking of his genuine friendship for West.

Ward regaled the crowd with several tales of daring-do while on the Batman set. Most interestingly was his story of being suspended upside down while live tigers paced and growled beneath him in one episode. He’d talked to the animals’ trainers, getting a feel for the cats and discovering (much to his dismay) they were quite capable of leaping at the level he was suspended to take a swipe at him. Since the massive cats were rather lethargic that particular day and to get them to pace and appear more active, hunks of meat were hung above Ward’s head. Ironically, the crew filmed from above him in protective cages.

Ward also told of his time on the set without any insurance to his name. Once the bumps and bruises began making their appearances and performance dangers reared their heads, it was the order of the day to get covered, he remarked.

This particular press room was set up conference style with the participants behind their table fielding questions flung out from the media below them. You can well imagine there are some interesting things that get asked. As well, there are also some pretty stupid ones tossed into the mix, some of which can raise the ire of the person being questioned.

One such instance came when Adam West was asked what he thought was so special about the Batman he played, not to mention the show itself, especially in light of all other Batman films which came after it.

Now, it wasn’t so much the question was dumb in and of itself. Far from it. But West took exception to the mention of the other films. His demeanor immediately became cranky — he not only bristled but practically bared his teeth at the question. Not pleased with it, you could see him conjure up vitriol with which to pepper his response:

“Look: You guys are going to write whatever the hell you’re going to write about the show. I don’t give a crap about the other Batmans. We did what we wanted to do … the Batman we wanted to do. We are the luckiest actors in the world with the legacy we’ve left. And you wouldn’t be here right now if what we did wasn’t special. You figure it out.”

I swear I heard a *hrmph* as he sat back in his chair. Mind your Ps and Qs when you’re asking something of West.  That hush that hung in the air when we first came into the room, just prior to the conference beginning? Same quietude here but on an entirely different, very uncomfortable level. You could taste the tang of it in the room.

To be fair, the man has heard every question in the book hundreds of times over in interview after interview, at convention after convention. And, at 85 years of age, you can’t really fault him for the occasional bout of grouchiness. He’s earned it.

Removing the tension from the air suddenly became Burt Ward’s job. He smoothed things over by offering his take on why Batman is still revered today: “It was the happiness the show brought to the kids. The positive outlook and situations. And the innuendo thrown in for adults. The show appealed to every aspect across the board. That’s why it was so popular … and why it continues to be popular.”

Huh. It’s not Batman but Robin, this time, who saves the day.

Julie Newmar? Let’s just say she was the sometimes head-scratching wild card thrown in to keep everyone on their toes. Ms. Newmar is flaunting her 80th year in grand fashion. She looks great, she’s engaging and damned if she still doesn’t have curves going on. But you never know what’s going to come gushing out that snow-maned head of hers. It could be something seductive, perhaps an unexpected revelation or something completely frivolous and meaningless. No matter — she was entertaining to the last.

Asked about her Catwoman outfit, she purred: “It was licorice melted over me,” something she seemed quite proud of. She told the room she loved the sauciness and sexiness of the character and didn’t hold back mention of her conscious effort to make chemistry work between she and West, believing it came through wonderfully and to the delight of the audience. Of the celebrities on the show she worked with, special mention was called out to Burgess Meredith (“The Penguin was the role of his life, he told me”), Tallulah Bankhead’s final role (as Black Widow: “She didn’t get why the producers did what the did on they show”) and how Frank Sinatra was interested in taking on the role of The Joker at one point. At times some of Ms. Newmar’s answers came back just as campily as the television show — I don’t know if she intended them to come across that way but they did. It gave her an air of loopiness. For good or bad? I just don’t know.

One of the most comical moments of the conference came with a question to Burt Ward: “What was your favorite or most memorable ‘Holy (whatever), Batman!’ moment in the show?”

Ward struggled with the question a bit: “I never really had one. There were so many …”

But West and Newmar weren’t going to let him off so easily. With the smoothness of a comedy duo who’s been working for years, the responses came rapid fire:

“Holy Underwear!” Newmar quipped.

“Holy Guacamole!” West countered.

“Holy Bill Of Rights!” Newmar came right back.

“Holy Infatuation!” West gushed. “See? We’re your biggest admirers, Burt …”

The room loved it. If ever there was a question of the Batman legacy being remembered (and, for the record, there’s never been a question in my mind), it was quashed with that exchange.

Batman: The Complete Television Series will be released on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital HD November 11th and is currently available for pre-order.

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As the sun sets on San Diego, the first full day of Comic-Con 2014, too, comes to a close. The first day and a half of SDCC have been full of glamour and glitter, fashion and fame … wait, no, not Jem! (Though if the event continues to be the continuing evolution to a wider base of “Popular Culture,” it wouldn’t surprise me if Jem showed up next year.) Until then, however, CliqueClack will focus on whatever the SDCC planners have in store for us.

Michael and I spent the day getting our feet wet, traveling here and there across the San Diego Convention Center and out into the Gaslamp District, attempting to get a feel for everything going on (though, with nearly 30 years of SDCC experience between us – that’s my four years to Michael’s whole-lot-more – we know darn well there’s no way to experience it all). These, however, were some of the highlights:

• The week technically kicks off on Wednesday. I arrived in town early enough to partake in an adult beverage at Kansas City BBQ, where scenes from Top Gun were filmed (“SHOW ME THE WAY HOME!!”)
• Preview night always feels like a little more trouble than it is worth to me. I don’t covet the – admittedly cool – exclusive merchandise available on the floor so I’m in no rush. I did take a couple of minutes to check out the Outlander experience; while these types of things aren’t usually my style, I’m really looking forward to this new Starz show.
• Later, Michael and I stopped by the Enchantment under the SDCC Party thrown by our friends at the SDCC Unofficial Blog. These guys packed Henry’s Pub, creating one of the longest lines (compared to the size of the venue) I’ve ever seen at SDCC. We didn’t stick around long enough to score one of their swag bags, but their sponsors hooked them up!
• Thursday started with the pair of us having breakfast at Ascension Café. Every year Syfy themes out Mary Jane’s restaurant at the Hard Rock (though with Eureka’s departure, CafeDiem is a thing the past). They’ve done a great job with Defiance Café the last two years, but let’s be honest: I was there for the carbohydrates that the large stack of pancakes provided.
• I stopped by NerdHQ for Zachary Levi’s annual kickoff panel (known as Conversations for a Cause, based on the funds each event raises for Operation Smile). Levi has received criticism on several fronts for his crowdfunding campaign for this year’s event — some of it may be deserved, but more on that as I take a longer look at NerdHQ later next week. I will say this: I’m particularly impressed by how diverse the program is this year … as the schedule was first released, I scoffed at some of the decisions. But seeing how different the crowd was for that first panel vs. The Last Ship event I visited later, you can tell the intention was to attract different types of crowds.
• My press room of the day was sitting with the cast and crew of a new show premiering on TNT in late August, Legends. Sean Bean wasn’t able to make it, due to a wedding in the family (no matter how many times that one lady kept asking), but I particularly enjoyed Ali Larter and Tina Majorino’s take on their characters, and how the toll of the job of these types of Federal Agents has on their personal lives.
• Michael sat in with some of the folks involved in the next Toy Story special. While he had a blast talking with Kristen Schaal, he was particular impressed with composer Michael Giacchino (because, really … who wouldn’t be)?
• I’m loving TNT’s newest show, The Last Ship, so I took advantage of the opportunity to both talk to the cast and crew from the show, and watch their panel at NerdHQ – something you should definitely watch online … it wasn’t all people falling all over Adam Baldwin, I promise.
• But seriously, folks: I enjoyed them in both places; particularly with Charles Parnell, who plays Command Master Chief Hugh Jeter, and producers Hank Steinberg and Steve Kane.
• Michael, however, probably attended the event of the day: the press conference supporting the BluRay release of the classic Batman series. I’d heard rumor about some of the stories coming out of the room, but I can promise you he’ll be sharing a heck of a post about his experiences soon.

Tomorrow promises to be even more full than today, as we sit down with folks from The 100, Syfy’s Dominion and others, all while Michael and I try to keep each other out of trouble.

No promises.

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Since the dawn of the age of DVD, or at least since studios realized they could make a bundle of money off of releasing old and current seasons of any and every TV show ever made, the fans have been begging … BEGGING … for the release of the classic Batman TV series. What no one wanted to hear was that it was a near impossibility. But why?

Well, when Batman was produced, DC Comics was not owned by Warner Brothers (that happened a year after the show went off the air). Twentieth Century Fox produced the TV show, and once WB got the rights to the characters the two studios have (allegedly) been locked in a bitter feud over who had the rights to release the show (said feud has been denied by both parties). The fact of the matter is, Warner Brothers owns the characters and Fox owns the film, so there had to be some agreement made as to who got what. But …

There were bigger hurdles than just two studio bank accounts to get over. TVShowsonDVD.com did a lengthy report on why the show was not coming to DVD any time soon back in 2008! Factors included music rights including compositions by Neal Hefti and Nelson Riddle. What residuals would the writers, directors and other behind-the-scenes talent be due, if anything. Cast members from old TV shows have been notoriously shafted in the residual department while the show owners have gotten rich from decades of reruns. Would Adam West, Burt Ward and Yvonne Craig be due any payment, or the estates of any of the other key cast members?

One of the biggest sticking points are the guest stars and cameo appearances from the “wall climb” segments. Celebrities and characters from other shows popped up during the wall climbing, including Colonel Klink from Hogan’s Heroes, Lurch from The Addams Family, The Green Hornet and Kato, and stars like Jerry Lewis, Dick Clark and Sammy Davis Jr. The character rights in particular are probably the hardest parts of the monetary negotiations. Add to that all of the Guest Villains. Julie Newmar is rumored to be particularly difficult to deal with, although there was a Catwoman bobblehead released recently that bears a striking resemblance to her so maybe she’s finally given in. Besides Newmar, it’s difficult to think of any other villains who are still with us besides Zsa Zsa Gabor (yes, she’s still alive somewhere, we think), John Astin (who filled The Riddlers tights briefly), Joan Collins, and the other Catwoman, Lee Meriwether. Negotiations have to be made with the owners of the characters, and possibly the living actors and the estates of the deceased.

Besides these issues, the estate of the producer sued Fox claiming that they had not been properly compensated by the studio. Nothing could move forward while that case was active. The designer of the Batmobile is said to be due compensation because of the unique design of the car, and other props may be unique enough to warrant some kind of compensation. These specific props and gadgets were all settled on recently with a deal that saw the release of toys and collectibles — as well as the Batman ’66 comic — so that was another hurdle that led many to believe the TV show was only a few steps away from becoming a reality on DVD. It should be noted that several episodes have also been left out of TV syndication packages, so whatever rights prevented them from being aired will have to have been resolved as well.

But with today’s news, broken by Conan O’Brien in a tweet seen ’round the world …

and corroborated by email sent to CliqueClack from Gary Miereanu at Warner Bros. Home Entertainment/Publicity, Warners and Fox and everyone else involved have settled their differences and Batman will indeed be coming to home video as a complete series collection later in 2014 (think: just in time for the holidays). But what can we expect from the release?

DVDs are certain, but Batman is a show that begs for Blu-ray with its highly saturated color palette (and being shot on film, the quality would be optimal for HD). Adam West has hinted for a couple of years now that he and Ward have been involved in recording audio commentaries for the eventuality of a home video release. With them being the only lead cast members still alive, it is important to have their input. It would be nice to have commentary from anyone else who is still alive, from the guests mentioned above to any behind-the-scenes talent. Are outtakes in existence? Bloopers? Hopefully there will be tons of archival footage to send the fans into Bat-nirvana. A bare bones release will be a huge letdown. So now all we can do is wait. This was a major announcement that many TV on DVD and Batman fans have longed for, so we will sit back, happy with that knowledge that the show is coming, and hope Warner Brothers does right in the end by treating the show with respect.

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Failed! Of course, failure is a relative term — the movie has already made over a billion dollars worldwide. But it’s not so simple — adjusted for inflation, the movie made less than The Dark Knight or even the first modern Batman movie (via BoxOfficeMojo). Additionally, the movie hasn’t recieved anything close to the same level of enthusiasm or critical favor the previous two Nolan movies received. And although most people leave the movie with a feeling of “that was fun,” the previous movie was more along the lines of “that was awesome.”

A bit of a difference.

So with that in mind, how could the movie have exceeded its expectations and truly succeeded past the seemingly insurmountable shadow of its predecessor? A few ways. As you might imagine, there are extreme levels of SPOILERS to follow.

Why did The Dark Knight succeed and The Dark Knight Rises fail? Four reasons:

1) Stakes

It may seem silly to talk about stakes when in TDKR an entire city was in danger of being blown to bits, leading to terrible upheaval in the world. But we all knew that wasn’t going to happen. The other problem was the lack of consequences for anyone we cared about — all of the main characters survived. Imagine how much more the movie would have hit home about sacrifice and futility if Lucius Fox or Commissioner Gordon either died performing a vital role in saving the city, or died despite trying to save the city. Imagine Alfred dying due to Bruce ignoring his surrogate father’s advice — leaving him truly without family.

Now, I get why Bruce Wayne survived — in my interpretation of the movie, the point is that Bruce learned that a fear of death was holding him in place, in a sort of sociopathic holding pattern that kept Batman a part of him. He truly feared to be alive, to be happy. The arc of the trilogy, compressed aspects perhaps in this last one, was about Bruce’s realization that although Batman might be necessary, he didn’t need to die as Batman.

But there was a lack of tension in TDKR — conclusions seemed forgone, and only bad guys and extras died. In TDK, there was a real possibility that a group of people might murder another group — there was an odd personal connection there. Here, it’s just random people we barely care about.

2) Escalation

The Dark Knight kept getting crazier as the movie went on, with layers upon layers as the Joker kept getting away with more. Every plan of the Joker had a chance to fail, and he had many chances to “win” — but despite it all, he kept going until the final moments. And although the Joker didn’t win completely, he still won.

In TDKR, the escalation goes like this: brazen attack on the stock exchange, the stadium and city is attacked, months of nothing important, finale. The aspects of Batman that get escalated are bat-cycle to bat-plane to bat-man. Not exactly that exciting — the movie builds in a slow, dramatic manner, which is fine in some ways, but we don’t get increasingly invested as the movie continues, wondering what will happen next.

We know Batman will confront Bane, we know he will eventually escape. Even the parts in Gotham that focus on Blake and Gordon seem truncated and dry at times — their investigations start to heat up, then it’s already over.

3) Real loss

Part of this is sadly tied to the real world death of Heath Ledger — people wanted to see one of the last roles he’d ever play, especially with the ridiculous level of hype associated with the movie. His acting was some of the finest work of a villain in film history, and certainly the best among the superhero movies. I’m not about to suggest that that studio killed him to stimulate box office numbers, nor would I suggest that they should’ve tried it for the third movie. It would’ve seemed too obvious in that case, certainly.

But there’s also a big aspect of The Dark Knight that something has been lost or changed forever. Important characters have died, representing vital parts of Gotham and Bruce himself. In TDKR, nothing has been lost at all.

4) Hope

After the second movie ended, audiences could only speculate madly about what might go next — so many possible choices. But after this one, it seems kind of obvious. Blake becomes the next hero — whatever he calls himself — and Bruce disappears. But in some ways, that’s a failure too.

And then there are the specific issues with The Dark Knight Rises that seem like they could have been easily fixed. I think the storyline itself is fine, and I like most of the characters. But….

• Selina Kyle seems like she’s in a different comic book movie. More acrobatic than is realistic. I would’ve preferred to see a harder, more brutal style of combat that I think would also make more sense for someone of her background and build. I thought the little scene in the men’s prison was amusing, but the manner in which she broke the groping man’s hands made no sense. That could’ve been easily changed to something more realistic and still been funny and true to her character. I mean… she leaped backwards out a window!
• Deputy Commissioner Foley’s arc is totally flat and boring. His change from cowardly bureaucrat to dead “hero” was uninspired and pointless. An unnecessary character that doesn’t get the proper sort of consequences — I would’ve preferred to see him die in the sewers.
• The football scene was ruined by marketing. It was the first teaser released, and it ruined the tension of the scene. From speaking to people who didn’t see the first teaser, they appreciate the scene a great deal more than most.
• Blake’s explanation of how he knew Bruce Wayne was Batman didn’t really make sense. He “saw it in his eyes”? Come on. I actually would’ve preferred to see Blake slowly realizing it over the course of the first act. “How could I have missed it?” Etc.
• The bomb should’ve been explained a bit better. There were a few references to it being a “neutron bomb”, which theoretically wouldn’t have fallout or radiation, just a big kaboom. But that aspect wasn’t addressed at all, which makes it seem like the bomb would have some pretty serious problems down the road. Something that could’ve been easily talked about but would’ve prevented scoffing at the “plot hole”.
• Talia’s death was a bit ludicrous. Nothing against Marion Cotillard’s acting, which I thought was fantastic overall, but her death scene seemed like a fake death scene. Either it was intentionally bad (in which case, they should’ve returned to see her gone immediately after Batman files away) or it wasn’t (in which case it was just done badly).
• “Robin” – you know, I was actually okay with this. What a lot of people don’t understand is that most people don’t know Robin’s real name. Sure, you may know about Dick or Tim or Samantha or whoever — but most people don’t. But everyone’s heard of Robin.
• And I know I may get some disagreement for this one:The city should’ve been partially destroyed. Nothing against a feel good ending, but Gotham didn’t deserve it, even if Bruce Wayne did.

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