In March 2013, cartoonist Bruce Timm stepped down from his 
role as a supervising producer for the DC Animated Universe to “develop his own projects.” He is being replaced by James Tucker, a veteran animation director and producer of many DCAU properties.
Timm’s departure is very sad news for many DCAU fans, but especially for me. While he didn’t do it alone, his version and vision of the animated DC characters is the one that I liked the most. And it wasn’t just limited to the drawing of the characters, because their voices also came from Timm’s imagination. The voice of Batman will always by Kevin Conroy (to me) and anyone else is an “almost.”
Below is a short list of the TV shows/movies Timm co-created and/or produced:
- Batman: The Animated Series
- Superman: The Animated Series
- The New Batman Adventures
- The New Batman/Superman Adventures
- Batman Beyond
- Justice League
- Justice League Unlimited
- Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
- Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker
- Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman
- Green Lantern: The Animated Series
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns (Parts I+II)
- Superman vs. The Elite
- Justice League: Doom
Among the shortlist of characters Timm co-created and/or produced for the DCAU are:
- Ebon (Static Shock)
- The Gray Ghost (B:TAS) (voiced by Adam West)
- Harley Quinn (B:TAS)
- Mercy Graves (Superman: The Animated Series)
But it was his co-creation of Warhawk (Batman Beyond – The Call) that ultimately opened up a world of fan fiction to me. The Call showed a Justice League of the future and eventually led to the Justice League animated TV series.
Timm was responsible for de-coupling Hawkgirl from Hawkman’s shadow and establishing her as a hero in her right. And then, he used a Green Lantern who was NOT Hal Jordan, or for that matter even white. He used John Stewart, an architect from Detroit, and re-created the Stewart back-story giving DC’s only Black Green Lantern a military background. Finally, he (and the late Dwayne McDuffie) created a love story for those two characters that rivaled Romeo and Juliet, ultimately leading to the birth of their son and future Justice Leaguer, Warhawk.
While I’m sure James Tucker will do a more than adequate job for Warner Brothers (Tucker’s latest Superman Unbound is proof of that), Bruce Timm’s contribution, influence and impact will be sorely missed. He made me a DCAU fan and for that, I’m very grateful.