The Spectrum Animation Studio was an animation studio in Japan, made up of former TMS Entertainment employees. Spectrum animated several episodes of Batman: The Animated Series

Batman: The Animated Series

Batman: The Animated Series is an American animated series based on the DC Comics character Batman. The series featured an ensemble cast of many voice-actors including Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, Efrem Zimbalist, Jr., Arleen Sorkin, and Loren Lester. The series won four Emmy Awards and was nominated...

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On the commentary track for "Heat of Ice" on the Batman: The Animated Series, Volume One DVD, producer Bruce Timm stated that Spectrum was responsible for airbrushing Mr. Freeze's helmet in every frame that featured him. Such attention to detail ultimately drove the studio to bankruptcy.

Frank Paur (director, "Vendetta", Batman: The Animated Series) praised Spectrum's animation. "We wanted to keep the show heavy on the mist, the rain. I wanted reflections, mist, gentle rain to play up the whole motif. I was really worried at first that it would go to a bad studio."

Episode list

The episodes of Batman: The Animated Series that were animated by Spectrum Animation Studio are:

• "On Leather Wings
  On Leather Wings (Batman: The Animated Series episode)
  "On Leather Wings" is the pilot episode of Batman: The Animated Series. It premiered on the Fox Network on September 6, 1992. It was written by Mitch Brian and directed by Kevin Altieri. This was the first episode of the series to feature the villain Man-Bat and was also Man-Bat's first screen...
  
  "
• "P.O.V"
• "The Forgotten"
• "It's Never Too Late"
• "Vendetta"
• "Heat of Ice"
• "Robin's Reckoning
  Robin's Reckoning
  Robin's Reckoning is a two part episode of the critically acclaimed Batman: The Animated Series. The first part aired on February 7, 1993 and was written by Randy Rogel and directed by Dick Sebast; it earned the series an Emmy for Most Outstanding Half Hour or Less Program and is considered to be...
  
  , Part 1"

Awards

Layout services

Spectrum Animation provided layout services for the following episodes of Batman: The Animated Series. However, Dong Yang did the animation for these episodes.

• "Almost Got 'Im"
• "See No Evil"
• "The Laughing Fish"
• "Robin's Reckoning, Part 2"
• "Tyger Tyger"
• "Zatanna"
• "Shadow of the Bat, Part 1"
• "Shadow of the Bat, Part 2"
• "His Silicon Soul"
• "Fire from Olympus"
• "The Worry Men"
• "Sideshow"

Spectrum and Dong Yang both worked on the animation for the feature film Batman: Mask of the Phantasm

Batman: Mask of the Phantasm

Batman: Mask of the Phantasm is a 1993 animated superhero film based on the fictional DC Comics character Batman, and is a spin-off of the Emmy Award-winning Batman: The Animated Series...

. Dong Yang did the animation for Mask of the Phantasm, and Spectrum did the layout services.

Animation style

Unlike other animation studios, Spectrum gave much more attention to little details like reflections and shadows. The episode "Vendetta" is an example; see Batman's reflection in glass surfaces. In the episode "It’s Never too Late", the viewer sees the reflection of church on the glass of the car and a tree's leaves cast shadows.

In "Robin's Reckoning, Part 1", Spectrum Animation was able to show Dick Grayson's loneliness to the audience.