As superheroes go, there are few as well known and as popular as Batman. It’s his enduring popularity that has made him a favorite not only for comics fans, but for television and movie fans as well with the Caped Crusader getting numerous movies and shows over the years, such as Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy and even the more Batman-adjacent HBO series The Penguin. But even among the wealth of Batman entertainment out there, there are a few underappreciated projects—and one of the best and overlooked ones just landed on Netflix.
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The second season of HBO Max’s animated Batman series Batwheels just arrived on Netflix. The arrival, which joins Season 1 in streaming on the platform, comes just a few days ahead of new episodes dropping on HBO Max on May 22nd. The series, which stars Ethan Hawke as the voice of Bruce Wayne/Batman, is unique when it comes to Batman entertainment in that it centers around the Bat-Family vehicles, but it’s also a gem of a show every Batman fan should check out.
Batwheels Is the Perfect, Family-Friendly Superhero Series Everyone Will Love
In Batwheels, the Bat-Family vehicles are brought to life by the Batcomputer, giving them sentience and letting them hit the streets as superpowered crime-fighters, helping in the fight to defend Gotham City. The Batwheels are led into action by the Batmobile, also known as Bam with the whole team comprised of Redbird/Red, Batgirl Cycle/Bibi, Bat Truck/Buff, Batwing/Wing and of course Batcomputer/BC, and Mobile Operation Expert, aka M.O.E. (think Alfred, but for cars.) And the Batwheels aren’t alone. The familiar heroes are there as well, including Hawke’s Batman, Duke Thomas/Robin, Cassandra Cain/Batgirl, Oliver Queen/Green Arrow, and Dick Grayson/Nightwing.
It’s the combination of the superpowered vehicles and the familiar heroes that make Batwheels such a gem of a series that is perfect for all ages. While Batwheels is geared towards a preschool-aged audience and thus, the adventures not necessarily groundbreaking entertainment for adults, there’s something really charming about the mix between kid-friendly cars and familiar hero characters. Hawke’s Batman in particular is a delight, and the lessons in the series are pretty universal, frequently leaning into concepts of teamwork and friendship. There’s also plenty of action that even the grownups will enjoy. This may not be a grim, dark Gotham, but there’s plenty of crime to fight and the brightly coloreds animation is a fantastic watch. There’s also some clever humor in the series as well, making the show so good that you might just find yourself watching it without the kids. And, at just 15-minutes per episode, they make for a good quick superhero break.
The first two seasons of Batwheels is now streaming on Netflix. New episodes of the series land on HBO Max May 22nd.
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