Release Order (Recommended)Recommended
0 / 9 watchedOne item per series in release order. The first five entries are one continuity; everything after is its own universe.
DCAU core continuity
- 1 Batman: The Animated Series 1992 to 1995. 85 episodes.
- 2 Batman: Mask of the Phantasm Theatrical film set during the series run.
- 3 The New Batman Adventures 1997 to 1999. 24 episodes. Direct continuation with new designs.
- 4 Batman Beyond 1999 to 2001. 52 episodes. Terry McGinnis takes over decades later.
- 5 Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker Watch the uncut version. Flashbacks resolve the Joker storyline.
Standalone continuities
- 6 The Batman 2004 to 2008. 65 episodes. Young Batman in his own universe.
- 7 Batman: The Brave and the Bold 2008 to 2011. 65 episodes. Lighter team-up format.
- 8 Beware the Batman 2013 to 2014. 26 episodes. CGI series; pulled from Cartoon Network, finished on Toonami.
- 9 Batman: Caped Crusader Season 1 in 2024, season 2 on July 31, 2026. Period noir take; season 3 unconfirmed.
About Batman
Batman has had six distinct animated incarnations since 1992, and they do not share a timeline. The core is the DC Animated Universe: Batman: The Animated Series, Mask of the Phantasm, The New Batman Adventures, Batman Beyond and Return of the Joker follow one Bruce Wayne from his early years to old age.
Everything from 2004 on reboots the mythos with its own style, from the early-career take of The Batman to the team-up comedy of The Brave and the Bold, the CGI crime stories of Beware the Batman and the 1940s-flavored Caped Crusader. Release order keeps each continuity intact and needs no timeline juggling.
Good to know
The New Batman Adventures is a direct continuation of BTAS with redesigned characters, not a reboot; some box sets file it as BTAS season 4. Batman and Mr. Freeze: SubZero (1998), Mystery of the Batwoman (2003) and The Batman vs. Dracula (2005) are optional side movies for completists. Caped Crusader season 2 premiered July 31, 2026 on Prime Video; showrunner Geoffrey Thorne said at SDCC 2026 that season 3 was not yet greenlit.
