I could preface this review by going on a whole video essaylike rant about how much I love comics. Just comics in general. I mainly grew up reading the European Donald Duck ones Marvel Adventures tiein comics for Star Wars and Power Rangers as well as a famous Polish one that remains largely unknown to foreign audiences Tytus Romek i Atomek that is and roughly 70 of my sense of humour comes from rereading the same Garfield strips constantly. And then by the time I was in middle school I would often go to a local bookstore RIP Matras you were the best with my dad which then led to me getting pretty hardcore into manga regardless of whether it was the privilege to pick up a volume or two of FMA or skimming through Spice and Wolf and thinking its like the most hardcore piece of pornography I ever perused careful not to get noticed by one of the store clerks not that I ever saw anybody get in trouble with a clerk there but you know teenage curiosity teenage fears. Point being comics are something I hold dear regardless of their origin but at the same time its so much fun comparing what sort of themes tone and messages will each of them contain as well as what sort of aesthetic will it decide to go with in order to really get them across. Weve come to associate certain tropes and ideas with specific countries popculture so heavily that a bunch of associations come naturally. And thats what makes it so fun when they intersect or when authors from one country try to recreate the charm of another we get to see what one cultural circles impression of another is what they think defines it and so on regardless of whether its meant as a stylish tribute as was the case with KEYMAN: The Hand of Judgment or a hilariously overthetop parody best exemplified by the Ninja Slayer multimedia franchise especially its novels. Same can be said for movies like 2022s Bullet Train. Regardless of their specifics seeing what happens when multiple cultures ideas on whats cool funky visually and thematically interesting blend is just for the lack of a better word FUN. https://files.catbox.moe/7nxhrg.png https://files.catbox.moe/6hk6x0.png And thats exactly what Ninja Batman is FUN. Its unapologetic stylish overthetop nobrakes FUN with a capital F capital U and capital N. Its pretty much got everything youd expect from the title a blend of one cultures iconic often ridiculous cultural icon the ninja with one of the biggest icons of US comics ever Batman himself. Now personally Im far from the stereotypical comic book store nerd Ive barely checked out any Batman media outside of the occasional standalone comics and cartoons as well as Tim Burtons brilliant movies but I get the gist of who and what Batman is and Id assume you are too. Well this movie takes everything you think of when you think Batman and seamlessly mixes it with everything you think of when you think ninja. Its got everything ninja samurai battles between feudal lords of Sengokuera Japan katana shuriken these funky puking fish ornaments on top of roofs sexy kunoichi awesome samurai regalia and so so much more. Hell remember when I mentioned Power Rangers earlier? Well lets just say if youre familiar with the show PR was based on Super Sentai or tokusatsu cinema as a whole you will love what this movie will pander to you specifically with. https://files.catbox.moe/yj6zmn.png The plot is exceedingly basic even reminding me of some of the less favorably reviewed isekai stories out there at times but here specifically its all it needs to be. Especially considering it manages to squeeze in a few interesting nuggets of dilemmas for those of you that enjoy superhero comics for their pondering on the nature of good and evil heroism and villainy and so on. It primarily feels like a demonstration of what can happen when a studio works with the loose concept of Batman but ninja and makes something positively INSANE out of it. Best I could describe what this movie feels like would be a comparison to playing with figurines from different lines as a kid and making up plots to justify them working together. Better yet Id say its like creating a ridiculous Lego minifig from spare parts and coming up with whatever the hell he or she is supposed to be based on loose ideas like its uhhh Batman ninja in uhhh samurai armor and thats a large part of what makes this movie so enjoyable it makes you feel like youre a kid playing with superheroes and supervillains again. Theres a lot of this odd yet strangely familiar childlike joy present with the occasional funedgy flair that really sells it. This things a mech that things a mech duh of course it is because mecha are cool fun and awesome. And this movie takes being cool fun and awesome to heart. https://files.catbox.moe/r1i890.png https://files.catbox.moe/hdbqyu.png Lastly I have to praise the animation music and sheer power of the movies three dominant artstyles. Those of you familiar with the studios previous works will already know what Im talking about Kamikaze Douga already made a lifelong impression on some of us a long time ago regardless of whether it was with the openings of Jojos Bizarre Adventure the sheer musical insanity that was Sturgill Simpsons SoundFury or any of their other miscellanea. https://files.catbox.moe/u2nybc.png Their proficiency within the medium extends to not only beautiful and insanely stylish animation but charming memorable artsy and infinitely awesome character design too not to mention a reasonable amount of silly and cute ones as well as much as Im not a fan of tackedon mascot characters most of the time I have to admit Robins little monkey friend was quite adorable. As far as being adorable goes though the one that won my heart was quite easily Catwoman and not just because itd be hard for me not to like a badass femme fatale with a silly manekineko theme and lets just say easy on the eyes bodysuit and body language. https://files.catbox.moe/urs93b.png https://files.catbox.moe/xte7uh.png Additionally her outfits throughout the movie are clever homages to some different incarnations of hers which I cant help but love for example note how similar her civlian disguise is to the 1960s liveaction take on the character https://files.catbox.moe/uustsk.png https://files.catbox.moe/7lzvdi.png Summarizing while I doubt this will be a lifechanging movie for you well unless youre an artist and the sheer stylishness of it encourages you to embrace the craziness of your own style or even make it even wilder its unquestionably just a fun wild ride with no brakes and one thats sure to please fans of both Japanese and American comics with how unapologetically stylish and awesome it is and one youll appreciate even more if youve ever thought about what really makes a comic what its defining characteristics are and what it is that keeps making you come back to it. Oh and lastly Im only detracting a few points because my favourite Plane Scene character Bane is a onescene wonder and doesnt reappear until the very end. Truly he was too much of A GUY 4 to handle. Had he appeared more I wouldve given this a 100/100 rating easily. https://files.catbox.moe/j4btdh.png