YMMV / Batman: The Animated Series E49 "I Am the Night"

• Harsher in Hindsight:
  • Batman angsts over the possibility of his friends and allies being hurt—including Robin. This is made worse by Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker. (At the time of the episode, Robin is Dick and not Tim, but still).
  • Meta example—Batman laments the fact he's merchandised to death, on t-shirts and action figures, despite his intent. Not only was the cartoon used to sell a toy line, but not long after Warner began a massive ad campaign to push Batman toys, shirts, and other merchandise onto children.
• Wangst: The episode starts with Batman sitting in the Batcave wondering if he makes a difference, before going to put roses on the place where his parents were killed, which get messed up, freaking Batman out. Then, when Gordon gets shot in a bad sting operation, Batman blames himself, points out that Gordon is the same age as his father would be if he had survived, mopes around the cave for three days, and goes into 10-Minute Retirement. It takes pep talks from Robin, Alfred, and Gordon to snap him out of it.

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