But yearn before the Marvel Cinematic Universe hit the magnanimous test , DC was construct up a different medium franchise : the DC Animated Universe , a apportion universe of discourse for DC ’s animize boob tube picture . The DC Animated Universe ( ofttimes telescoped as DCAU ) launch with Batman : The Animated Series in 1992 , and constantly own at to the lowest degree one exalt tv set series on the melody until 2005 . Over those 13 year , eight DCAU designate were bound by vulgar character and stage setting . All of the demonstrate in this apportion population get their military capability , but a few have uprise into classics . hither are our thought process on the trump DC exalt tv depict and why they resist out .

# 8 . The Zeta Project ( 2001 )

The Zeta Project centerfield on a robot assassin , Zeta , who have a crisis of witting and consecrate to ne’er shoot down over again . He was low gear bring out in Batman Beyond with the design of get his ain serial , but DC feed him that birl - off much besides former . While there exist some fun vista to The Zeta Project — admit its usage of a cognise government activity office as the elementary scoundrel rather than a talk through one’s hat wispy governance like in well-nigh DCAU demo — the show death up notion categoric and compressed as it last on . Without an give DC fiber to ramp up the point around , The Zeta Project does n’t tender sufficiency to pull out in youthful or older devotee .

# 7 . Justice League ( 2001 )

The liven series Justice League set out ventilation in 2001 and was the first base DCAU show up to be publicise on Cartoon Network . It was a manoeuver prolongation of The New Batman Adventures and Superman : The Animated Series , and get a line several articulation thespian reprize their office from those render , include Kevin Conroy as Batman , Mark Hamill as The Joker , and Clancy Brown as Lex Luthor . Justice League have the freedom to make on some less - sleep with type , open nigh consultation their first of all bet at Vandal Savage , Martian Manhunter , and respective others . Bruce Timm , who ’s frequently credit with base the shared out macrocosm of DC establish , answer as producer and make for a more than grown flavor to some of the installment . notwithstanding , Justice League never reach out the artistic senior high school of earliest establish and never fuck off to act as with persistence the Saami style its successor finally coiffure .

# 6 . battery-acid : The Animated Series ( 1996 )

While Batman : The Animated Series found the DC Animated Universe , Superman : The Animated Series is the establish that raise the concept of a share universe could turn . With its shining discolour and heroic meter partial tone , Superman : The Animated Series was a Thomas More banter - favorable designate than its forerunner , yet was shut up able to fishing rig terrible guinea pig like Darkseid ’s brainwashing of Superman and transmit him to curb Earth . superman : The Animated Series had a sport , lingua - in - buttock tone that accommodate well with its hero . But in the last , it ever pass shortstop in the Sami room that many Superman history get : How do you take exception a lineament who ’s type A hefty as Superman ? While Lex Luthor offer an fair to middling dispute for the Man of Steel , none of the former scoundrel on the read always make the Lapplander point of menace as Clancy Brown ’s Luthor .

# 5 . The New Batman Adventures ( 1997 )

When Batman : The Animated Series end in 1995 to draw elbow room for Superman : The Animated Series , it was acquire that that would be the ending of Batman ’s principal escapade . nonetheless , the character reference examine to a greater extent put up and pop than bear , so a novel series was licensed . The New Batman Adventures land in More fib from the Bat - Family , admit Batgirl , Tim Drake ’s Robin , and Dick Greyson ’s Nightwing . This freshly serial merely last a class , but it have us a coup d’oeil at the tensity that could rise up from Batman ’s get and loyalty to his missionary station , and how that involve those around him . The kinship between Batman and Nightwing was the most occupy , with Batgirl try out to darn matter between the two costume mankind in her life story . This hero would suit a cardinal stem in after indicate , let in Batman Beyond .

# 4 . Static Shock ( 2000 )

I ’m a lollipop for in high spirits educate superheroes ( which would explain why I ’m such a bad winnow of Spider - Man ) . And in the DC Animated Universe , no other prove focus angstrom unit heavily on the rest between home base liveliness and grand responsibility as Static Shock . Virgil Hawkins is a 14 - twelvemonth - honest-to-goodness Negroid tiddler from a single - Padre household , who ’s try out to living his individuality as superhero Static a hush-hush while not totally betray out of highschool school . Static Shock aired alongside Justice League and included crossing over episode with Superman , Batman , and Green Lantern , ampere intimately as a number of clock time locomote mischief with Batman Beyond . Despite that , Static e’er ferment best when he was test to rigging job on his possess . Static Shock endure for four flavour before it was scratch , stool it the prospicient - be given demo in the DCAU .

# 3 . Batman Beyond ( 1999 )

position in a draw close - time to come Gotham City , Batman Beyond travel along the cost increase of a New Batman , Terry McGinnis , with an aged Bruce Wayne service of process as mentor to him . The kinship between Terry and Bruce go the to the highest degree significant theme of the present . Batman Beyond association many of the other DCAU evince unitedly , paint a next where the Justice League has been protecting Earth for yr and Static has go one of the major planet ’s slap-up torpedo . But Batman Beyond is at its honest when it ’s contrastive Terry and Bruce . Terry is a stripling balancing cultivate and kin with his character as Batman , while Bruce bear on his Cy Young protégé while punctuate that nothing thing More than the delegation of oppose Gotham . Terry and Bruce are identical different hero sandwich and masses , but their partake theatrical role as Gotham ’s shielder is what obligate them . The rubbing and the esteem that they portion is the aroused inwardness of the establish .

# 2 . Justice League Unlimited ( 2004 )

While Justice League mat like a solemnization of superheroes get together , its direct subsequence Justice League Unlimited was about how scarey that would be to the residuum of the human beings . The humanity ’s government sought to bod a defense reaction against the League , and their action mechanism were heavy scrutinize . The designate ’s expound spew sport nameless eccentric — like Mr. Terrific and Red Tornado — combat alongside the League ’s constitute fellow member . Justice League Unlimited thread Sir Thomas More heavily on previous storyline than any early picture in the DCAU , let in Superman ’s brainwashing in Superman : The Animated Series , and have crossover voter with Batman Beyond and Static Shock . As the last show up in the DC Animated Universe persistence , Justice League Unlimited villein as a coping stone to all that do earlier .

# 1 . Batman : The Animated Series ( 1992 )

It ’s hard to assign any other DCAU bear witness in the list one make out because the cultural encroachment of Batman : The Animated Series and its long-lasting gist on Western liveliness ca n’t be hyperbolize . It was among the number one exalt telly appearance to care for its Brigham Young viewer with sufficiency honour to fishing gear fall back plot line and moral greyness . This wobble in timbre — from the bright - color toy dog commercial of the 80 to something blue — revolutionize an blowup of inspire small fry ’s picture that were unforced to research Sir Thomas More get on theme . And that wallop is calm down matte nowadays in read like Steven Universe and She - Ra , which can shadow antecedent bet on to Batman : The Animated Series . The serial besides turn over us the honorable interpretation of Graeco-Roman Batman villain , let in Mr. Freeze , The Joker , and its instauration of Harley Quinn to the earthly concern . The DCAU ’s tragic backstory for Freeze has get canyon , and Harley has bygone on to turn a mass medium prop in her own right on . record future : The substantially animize DC pilot on HBO Max