Batman Death in the Family (2020)

When the iconic storyline A Death in the Family appeared in Batman comics in 1988 it was controversial and groundbreaking. It allowed readers to decide the fate of one of comics' biggest characters. Would Robin live or die? It all depended on call in votes. Long before the American Idol phenom, DC tried a similar idea. And the story turned out not to be just a gimmick, or at least it produced a legacy beyond the original intent. The story of this Robin's death, and his rebirth, have become some of the most told stories in the Batman oeuvre.

 
Now it's been adapted into animation and in the spirit of the original story, viewer still get to decide. This is an interactive feature (similar to that tried by Netflix with a Black Mirror episode and a Kimmy Schmidt reunion) meaning as you watch it, Death in the Family asks you to make decisions that then influence the outcome of the story. This also allows you to watch it numerous times without following the same story. 

The film makers here have done a good job or giving us some interesting plot threads through the different narratives even if they all remain rather bleak. This was never going to be an optimistic story even if some of the choices lead to more hope than others. It does feel a bit like things will go bad no matter what you decide. But I do think that's part of the point of this story, as it's more about how we respond to the horrors we face than about the horrors themselves. 

Tied into the 2010 animated feature Batman Under the Red Hood, one of DC Animation's strongest films, this film acts as a sort of prequel with the same cast and animation style. And (sort of *spoiler*) if you chose Robin to die the story leads right into that other movie as this is basically the background to it. 

While the film is based on a gimmick, much like the first comic, it's story ends up being much more and very much worth the experiment. 

Batman Death in the Family

Starring: Bruce Greenwood, Vincent Martella, John DiMaggio, Gary Cole, Zehra Fazal

Writer/Director: Brandon Vietti