‘Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League’ Review: DC’s Best Animated Film In Years

With James Gunn and Peter Safran heading DC Studios, there has been a change in the movies and shows that were slated to come out. A few of them were unfortunately cancelled, but there were some to make the cut. DC’s Tomorrowverse ended tragically (critically) with the “Crisis on Infinite Earths” trilogy, and we got the two-part release of a newly animated Watchmen film. In late May 2024, DC announced the sequel to 2018’s Batman Ninja titled Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League. It’s likely that the movie was in development at least more than a year before this, meaning that this movie was in development pre-Gunn-Safran, but there’s also a chance it was greenlit while they were in charge.

Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League is the sequel to 2018’s Batman Ninja and is set just moments after Batman returned from Feudal Japan and thwarted Joker. Batman and his allies quickly discover that the world is not quite the same as they left it. The entire island of Japan no longer exists, and neither do the heroes of the Justice League. But before they can get a handle on what is going on, yakuza literally start raining from the skies.

Animation is a medium that deserves much more respect than it already gets. It’s a craft that can take any form and allows for filmmakers to share their creativity with the world without any limits. Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League has Junpei Mizusaki returning as director, with Shinji Takagi as co-directors and Kazuki Nakashima back again as the screenwriter. These three people are just some of the many people who helped create the best DC animated film that we’ve received in years. Over the last few years, there has been some worry with Warner Bros. and how they’re specifically handling DC.

It was hard to believe that the people behind greenlighting projects and writing and directing were ever fans of the movies or shows they were creating. The Suicide Squad, Peacemaker, The Batman, The Penguin, and Creature Commandos are just some of the recent shows that we can name that feel like they have people behind them who care for the source material but also the fans they’re making these projects for. Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League is another film that can proudly join the list as Kazuki Nakashima pours in his love for these DC characters into this film.

Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League is (no pun intended) leagues better than the 2018 movie. What shined the most was its animation and voice acting, but when it boiled down to the story, it quickly became an anime film that fell under the repetitive tropes of inserting mecha into the midst of it all. This sequel removes unnesscary tropes that don’t add any weight to the movie and instead honours both Japanese anime and western superhero culture.

A major difference between western media and eastern media is that there’s a grand shift in how they handle their superheroes. In Japan, you’ll usually find their heroes working as teams to prevail over the evil, but in western media, it’s the hero working by themselves before eventually teaming up. Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League honours that by not only including the Bat Family as an integral part of the story but by also ensuring Wonder Woman has just as important a role as Batman himself.

Wonder Woman is a character who doesn’t get as much time in the spotlight compared to Batman and Superman, even though she’s part of the DC Trinity. She currently has a comic that’s critically received well, but outside of that, she doesn’t get much attention, and after the cancellation of her game, it was looking all too bright. Wonder Woman fans rejoice! Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League gives Wonder Woman the best characterisation that’s been seen for her character in a while outside of the comics. While it’s a Japanese take on Wonder Woman, Diana still shows herself to compassionate, feminist, strong-willing, and her interactions with Harley Quinn really sell the character more.

The character designs are some of the best elseworld designs that have been seen for some of the characters, and while the Justice League all get new Yakuza designs, there are two that stand out the most. Jessica Cruz and Superman—these two designs transcend any that we’ve seen within the last ten years.

Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League is not just simply the best animated DC film we’ve gotten in years; it’s one of the best DC projects we’ve received in the last few years alongside The Batman and Penguin. It’s a movie that shows how far creativity can take a movie when the filmmakers are not locked behind limitations. It showcases the strengths of using animation to tell your story, breaking the boundaries. A movie that honours both western superheroes and Japanese anime respectfully. There can only be hope that James Gunn greenlights another one so that we can close out the trilogy.

Thanks for reading our review of Batman Ninja vs Yakuza League. If you liked this article make sure to check out more reviews here at Feature First.