It Begins....

Today is the first day of my career at North Hampton Middle School. Although it's not a full day, this will be my first time actually meeting the team of teachers that I'll be working with, and meeting some of the students at their open house/cookout.  Tomorrow will be the orientation day for new teachers, and I'm pretty excited to finally be doing something career-wise that's in line with my degree. In other news, I recently watched Batman: Under The Red Hood, and here's my review!

Batman: Under The Red Hood (2010)
Voices: Bruce Greenwood (Batman), Jensen Ackles (Red Hood), John Di Maggio (The Joker), Neil Patrick Harris (Nightwing)

Well well well, color me surprised. I'll be upfront, any new animated "Batman" anything is going to be fighting an uphill battle, mainly because DC and Warner Brothers had already achieved perfection with Batman: The Animated Series back in the '90s. To this day, whenever I read anything Batman related, I hear Kevin Conroy's voice as Batman, and the legendary Mark Hamill as The Joker.
BUT, the most recent title from Warner Brother's new animation department has hit, and it's very good. Under The Red Hood is an adaptation of the comic storyline from a few years ago (written by Real World: San Francisco's Judd Winick, no joke!), and it's a very solid adaptation. In fact, I think the big reveal surrounding the Red Hood was pulled off better in this than in the original storyline.
The plot is a standard mystery, as Batman (voiced by Star Trek's Bruce Greenwood) must uncover the identity of the new Red Hood (Jensen Ackles), a vigilante who is killing off many of Gotham City's mob bosses in a bid for power.  As he and Nightwing(Neil Patrick Harris) investigate this new enemy, all signs point to him being Jason Todd, the second Robin who was killed by The Joker (John Di Maggio).
The voice work in this release was really well done, and John Di Maggio in particular really impressed me. Even if you don't know his name, you'll recognize his voice as Futurama's Bender and Adventure Time's Jake the Dog. While no one can top Mark Hamill as the clown prince of crime, Mr. Di Maggio certainly carved out his own niche. His Joker is a lot darker and more sinister, and when the former Luke Skywalker silences his Joker, then I hope that Di Maggio is the first person that Warner Bros. calls. Listen for yourself!
Under The Red Hood is a must see for Batman fans, and is a solid rental for those who are curious. You don't need to know anything about the characters prior to watching it, and it serves as one of the best Warner Bros. animation releases.
3 1/2 Batarangs out of 4