Podcast: Episode 8 - Batman & Robin was a SHOCK to leads Chris O'Donnell & Alicia Silverstone (Entertainment Weekly)

A pretty interesting article came out from Entertainment Weekly (link here) recently in which Chris O'Donnell and Alicia Silverstone, while promoting their new projects, looked back at the making and immediate aftermath of Batman & Robin.

Both are pretty honest about their experiences and the film's shortcomings. Silverstone's comments are more to do with the filming and getting in to the costumes. Both of which sound bewildering.

Chris O'Donnell's are more about the critical drubbing the film received. I've got to say as an actor it must be tough when a film is critically panned but you still have to go out and promote it like it's the best thing ever. O'Donnell sounds like he handled it well and has come to accept the film was still "fun to be a part of". I guess he ultimately found his feet in the NCIS: LA TV show and doesn't have to worry about past failures,

But it's sad to hear him say that Joel "was so heartbroken and kind of bummed out about it".

In this podcast episode Drew Griffin goes through the article (and comments) and gives us his thoughts on it all.

News: Hot Toys releases promo photos for Batman & Robin figures

Well, the title says it all. Hot Toys just released these promo shots of the forthcoming Batman & Robin figures. 

Got to say these look pretty perfect. Love that we're getting so many gadgets and interchangeable jaws for Batman. 

Robin feels a microscopic step down from the Forever version. The face just doesn't quite feel right.

Will definitely be getting both of these regardless.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Attack Wing Robin figure from Kenner

Back to the Kenner reviews with Attack Wing Robin. There some heavy Marvel influences on this one.

His helmet looks like Ant-Man. His wings looks like Archangel. And his suit looks like Spider-man. Who knows if that's intentional or not? 

I actually really like the sculpt on this. I vener really noticed until now that although the paint work on the B&R figures is a bit lacklustre, the actually sculpts are really intricately detailed. 

This is definitely a fun one if you can find it.

News: Hot Toys is making Batman & Robin 1/6 scale figures (... no seriously)!

Even though we got those Batman Forever figures from Hot Toys a few years back, I really didn't think they would also do ones for the 1997 follow up Batman & Robin. I assumed the negative reputation that has dogged the film for years would mean that Hot Toys would think they financially unviable.

Turns out I was wrong, these two prototypes were just unveiled today! I've got to say, I'm glad I was wrong.

These are just prototypes at the moment and if you remember those Batman Forever prototypes were shown at toy fairs for at least a year before they hit retail shelves so you probably have some time to save up your pennies.

Looking at the initial designs, I think they look great. Chris' hair looks a little too light brown and I know some people would prefer them to have more of a blue hue but overall, stunning. I wonder if they'll come with add on ice patches like the McFarlane figures.

I imagine they will have similar issues to the Forever figures (ie. the rubber suits crease awkwardly when you bend the arm or legs) but I can live with that.

Here's hoping they consider an Alicia Silverstone Batgirl figure down the line. Seems like a shame to miss her out.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Blade Blast Robin figure from Kenner

I may have finished off all the Batman Forever figures but there's still plenty of Batman & Robin ones to go. 

Here is a fairly standard "peg warmer" called Blade Blast Robin. He sports the same shade of neon orange as Heat Scan Batman so you can make a good pairing with him. I'm surprised Kenner didn't re-release them as a two pack.

The missile he comes with is very cumbersome. There's no way you can stand the figure on its own while holding it. It does have a cool switch that flicks out the yellow blades though.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Robin figure from McFarlane

Third in the McFarlane Batman & Robin wave is Chris O'Donnell's Robin. 

It's a pretty great figure. The likeness isn't as perfect as Poison Ivy but I think it's a solid effort. The pouty lips and big jawline are there.

I love that they added some accessories for this one. There are two ice pieces that can go over his head and arm so you can recreate the part of the movie where Mr Freeze blasts him with his freeze ray. That's a neat touch.

Hopefully if this line sells well, we'll get an Ice Suit Robin in the near future. If not, I'll just have to buy a duplicate and get out the old Chrome paint.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Robin Redbird cycle figure from Kenner

Of all the vehicles in Batman & Robin I think the Redbird cycle was my favourite. It was sleek, it had a little bit of colour and Robin looked cool riding it.

Thankfully Kenner translated the bike to toy form very faithfully. The bike looks great and has the usual extra play features. A missile on the front, trip bars either side and most bizarrely a rocket underneath the bike (surely this should come out the back).

The way Robin rides the bike is the only let down. I shouldn't be surprised - Kenner used this design a lot. The Street Racer Batman bike for Batman Forever worked the same, as did The Shadow movie bike.

Anyway the figure that comes with the bike looks great. It's a rework on the Battle Glacier Robin figure (the one with the snowmobile) painted yellow and black. The colour scheme reminds me of the mid 90s Nightwing costume which was also pretty great.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Talon Strike Robin figure from Kenner

There's a lot of fun Robin figures in Kenner's movie line and this is definitely near the top. For once the Boy Wonder gets a huge backpack in the form of some bird/bat wings.

With his twirling axe and huge wings it's more than a little reminiscent of Hawkman. In fact I had to dig out my JLA Hawkman figure and check it wasn't a retool (it's not).

I also really like the detailing on the suit too. There's loads of Robin symbols on the hips and gloves. A lot of Batman & Robin figures suffer from having limited paint work but I think this is one of the few that works. The orange and metallic blue are really quite striking.

It actually reminded me a lot of the Night Fighter Robocop figure.

Definitely try and track this down.

Batman Forever Merchandise Review - Robin and Ivy 2 Pack from Kenner

Given all the heroes and villains in Batman & Robin, it should come as no surprise that Kenner made a plethora of two-pack figure sets.

This week I'm looking at Evil Entrapment  Poison Ivy and Night Hunter Robin. 

The Robin is pretty standard. It benefits from a metallic red all over but the accessory is a dud. 

The Poison Ivy figure is great though. Love the green transculent bits and the Little Shop of Horrors-esque Venus fly trap is greaf. I kind of wish they did more Ivy figures - Uma Thurman had 4-5 costume changes throughout the film.

Anyway, this set is worth getting for the Ivy figure. Get it if you can.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Ice Board Robin figure from Kenner

Following on from the Hover Board Batman figure, we have it's counterpart - Ice Board Robin. This is the one Robin figure that does a decent representation of the first costume Chris O'Donnell wears in the film with the dark blue suit and the red bird symbol on his chest. 

He comes with a little hover board that you can stick him on. Not a fan of that but the staff he comes with is pretty neat. You can split it in two and use one bit as a missile while the other spins on Robin's wrist. Very clever little accessory and it quite possible it was inspired by the Tim Drake Robin in the comics who also used a staff weapon.

As I always say if you just want the figures that look like they do in the film this is one of the ones to get.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Deluxe Glacier Battle Robin figure from Kenner

Looking at one of the Deluxe Robin figures this week based on the airboat-thingy that Chris O'Donnell pilots towards the end of the film. 

Like all the Robin costumes this is based on the Nightwing outfit from the comic books. I think the silver and blue lools pretty great and the cloth cape - a rarity for this line - is a nice touch. 

I particularly love that the vehicle has two modes and you can (admittedly awkwardly) put two figures on the vehicle. All in all a pretty great figure.

Batman & Robin Merchandise Review - Razor Skate Robin figure from Kenner

The suit up sequences were key elements of Schumacher's Batman movies so it's no surprise that Kenner made a couple of figures for both Batman Forever and Batman & Robin that allowed kids to dress up their figures.

Interestingly Razor Skate Robin - a companion figure to Battle Gear Bruce Wayne - goes for a very different approach than Batman Forever's Quick Change Dick Grayson. That figure had a colour changing mask while this one opts for a chunky visor that covers most of Dick's face. 

I think on balance this works best. Robin's mask is so tiny it would be too easily lost if it was smaller. What I can't figure out is why Kenner never tried to do a retractable head like the Batman/Bruce Wayne figures had.

Anyway, I like this figure a lot. For me it's a must have from the line. 

Book: Robin Facing the Enemy by Alan Grant

One of the cool (pun not intended) bits of spin off merchandise for Batman & Robin were the two novels Robin: Facing the Enemy and Batgirl: To Dare the Darkness that gave us a glimpse of what happens before and after the movie. 

Robin: Facing the Enemy was written by Scottish writer Alan Grant who was a prolific writer at DC. During the 90s he wrote almost every issue of the Batman: Shadow of the Bat title (which lasted 96 issues!). 

The story picks up shortly after the events of Batman Forever and sees Robin fall out with Batman (*groan* again) and leave Wayne Manor to live in Gotham City. He gets a job at a diner and ends up having to take down a wannabe villain who rather unimaginatively dubs himself " The Enemy". 

It's a fun, brisk story (98 pages) that reminds me of the Nightwing comics of the early 00s. If you want to give it a read, here's a link to a pdf:-

https://archive.org/details/robin-facing-the-enemy

Concept Art: Robin costumes

This week we're looking at concept art of the Robin costume used in the movie. These were designed by Miles Teves and based on the then fairly new Nightwing costume that Dick Grayson wore in the comics. The only change was the addition of a cape and a red bird logo on his chest (rather than the blue in wore in the comics).

I always felt it was a shame that the Robin costume from Forever didn't get reused as it's really only briefly seen in the last 15 minutes of the previous movie. Interestingly the storyboards do depict that costume so the filmmakers must have at least considered that option. 

Magazine Article: Film Review Special #20 - Part 3

Last part of the Film Review Special is a few photos from the premiere and then a long interview with Alfred Gough about his long career.

Magazine Article: Film Review Special #20 - Part 2

Returning to the Film Review Special - we have an interview with Arnold Schwarzenegger about playing Mr Freeze. The other topics covered are his heart surgery that happened almost straight after filming and his thoughts on movie merchandising (spoilers: he loves it, which is probably due to him having a percentage of Batman & Robin's merchandising profits as part of his contract).

Then we have an interview with Joel about making the film. Interesting to note that when a fifth film is mentioned at the end he says he would direct George and Chris and would look to bring back "one or two other characters." I presume he's referring to the idea of bringing back Jack Nicholson as the Joker. The only other character I can think is maybe Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman???

Magazine Article - Empire #97 - July 1997

Next up we've got a big spread of articles and interviews with UK film magazine Empire. Once again Chris O'Donnell gets a big interview to himself.