As most of us know by now, the DC Universe animated movies are getting retooled in the wake of the upcoming "Justice League: War". One of the movies coming out after that is "Son of Batman", based on Grant Morrison's 2006 story that introduced Damian, the son of Batman and Talia Al Ghul. Morrison, however, was inspired by an earlier story arc for Damian's (re-)introduction. That story was 1987's graphic novel adventure "Batman: Son of the Demon", by writer Mike W. Barr and artist Jerry Bingham.
Summary courtesy of Wiki (spoiler, for those who haven't read it):
"The story centers on the eco-terrorist and head of the League of Assassins, Ra's al Ghul aiding Batman in his quest to solve the murder of Harris Blaine, one of Gotham City's most prominent scientists. Ra's al Ghul and Batman turn out to be searching for the same man, the terrorist known as Qayin. Qayin is a rogue assassin who had murdered Ra's al Ghul's wife Melisande, mother to his favorite daughter and heir-apparent, Talia. Batman has shared a stormy, on-again, off-again romance with Talia for many years, despite his ideological conflict with Ra's. During the course of the storyline, Batman has time to properly romance Talia. When Batman asks if there should have been a marriage ceremony of some sort, Talia replies that there already has been: her father had previously, in a bid to stop Batman from interfering with his plans, performed such a ceremony in the tradition of his own country, where only the consent of the bride was needed to constitute a marriage. Talia soon becomes pregnant, and the prospect of a family has a profound effect on Batman's demeanor, making him more risk-adverse and softening his typically grim outlook. Batman is nearly killed protecting the recently pregnant (and still very dangerous in her own right) Talia from an attack by the assassin's agents. Observing Batman's dangerous and overly protective behavior, Talia resolves that she cannot allow him to continue to act in such a manner, as he will almost certainly be killed. To that end, Talia claims to have miscarried. Crushed by the news, Batman returns to his typically grim disposition, and he and Talia agree to have the marriage dissolved. Batman returns to Gotham, never knowing Talia is still carrying his child.
The child, a boy, is born and left with an orphanage, and soon adopted by a western couple. The only hint of his impressive heritage is a jewel encrusted necklace, a gift Bruce gave to Talia just before Qayin attacked Ra's HQ."
I love this story, ever since I picked it up at a local used book shop a few years ago. I actually think this would've been more ripe for an animated adaptation than the Morrison story, since it actually shows Batman and Talia actually knowing about their kid instead of the drugged Bats that was retconned in back in '06. To that end, I started coming up with how it'd work as an entry in the DCU Original Animated Movies. Like so:
-DVD cover art by Andy Kubert.
-Voice direction by Andrea Romano
-Art/animation styles similar to those used for the Ultimate Avengers films.
-Special featurette comparing this original story to the Morrison version.
And now, what everyone here usually expects of me, the voice cast:
-John Hamm as the voice of Batman/Bruce Wayne
Without a doubt, Hamm has got the best voice befitting a Mike Barr-written Batman. He immediately came to mind when I was planning this cast.
-Armand Assante as the voice of Ra's Al Ghul
It took me a while to figure out who would voice Al Ghul, but then inspiration struck when I saw the NCIS episode Assante guest-starred in. I think he would be right there between David Warner's and Oded Fehr's portrayals of the character.
-Lauren Cohan as the voice of Talia Al Ghul
Another actor I knew who would fit their character like a glove, Cohan I feel has the best voice suited for the only woman Batman's ever truly loved.
-Michael Nouri as the voice of Qayin
Nouri's casting was also inspired by an NCIS guest appearance, where he played Ziva's father, a Mossad agent, in a flashback. Nouri just has the right voice for this beast of a man that is Qayin. I think he could portray his cunning and ferocity with real authenticity.
-David McCallum reprising the voice of Alfred
McCallum did a great job voicing Alfred in "Batman: Gotham Knight", so I felt it would be great to bring him back for this particular movie.
-Paul Michael Glaser as the voice of Comissioner Gordon
There is no doubt the former Starsky would make a great Jim Gordon, I'm sure of it. I just hope the rest of you think so as well.
-Keith Szarabajka as the voice of Ubu
With Keith, he brings a good amount of experience voicing comic characters, and he'd be the latest VA to voice Ra's Al Ghul's loyal bodyguard, following original VA George DiCenzo, John DiMaggio, and Fred Tatasciore.
-Brian George as the voice of General Yossid
You might know him as the restaurant owner from Seinfeld, but he's lent his voice to a lot of comic book-based shows and DCU animated films--fittingly enough, one such featured Ra's Al Ghul, "Batman: Under the Red Hood". George has a great range when it comes to characters, so having him play the tertiary villain was no accident.
Additional Voices
-Phil LaMarr as Harris Blaine, Jr.
-Richard Doyle as Dr. Pearson
-April Winchell as a Demon's Head scientist/a doctor
-Dee Bradley Baker as a Qayin henchman/Al Ghul henchman
-Keith Ferguson as a Qayin henchman/Al Ghul henchman
-Quinton Flynn as the adoptive father
-Grey DeLisle as the adoptive mother
Aaaaaannnnnnd that's a wrap! For taking the time to see this, I leave you now with the musical greatness of Danny Elfman: