Batman: The Dark Knight Returns (film) arrested. Injured, Batman returns to the Batcave with Kelley, and allows her to become his protégée in spite of protests from his butler, Alfred Pennyworth. Batman has Kelley disguise herself as a Mutant, and she lures the gang to a sewer outlet at the West River. At the Gotham City Police Department, the Mutant leader murders the mayor during negotiations. Commissioner Gordon deliberately releases the leader, providing an escape from the building, which leads to the sewer outlet. Before the amassed Mutants, Batman fights the leader in a mud pit; the mud slows the leader, removing his physical advantage, and
Batman: The Animated Series of the greatest animated television shows of all time (again after "The Simpsons"). TV Guide ranked "Batman: The Animated Series" the seventh Greatest Cartoon of All Time (out of 60). Due to the success of "Batman: The Animated Series", many crew members went on to design and produce "" for The WB Network. During this time they created "The New Batman Adventures", which featured the same streamlined animation style as "Superman: The Animated Series", as well as numerous character re-designs from the original series despite taking place in the same continuity. In 1999, a futuristic spin-off series titled "Batman Beyond"