While I enjoy remembering watching Batman: The Animated Series with my brother as much as the next '90s kid, I'm also pretty swayed by my memories of all the awesome toys that went along with it. Yes, a grown woman pushing 30 can reminisce about carefully crafted pieces of plastic that went along with her favorite childhood TV show. And while I'm all for the gritty Batman of the Christopher Nolan's imagining, there's something so endearing about the cartoon caped crusader. And there's something especially endearing about the Batman Happy Meal toys that came out in the '90s to celebrate Bruce Wayne and his cohorts.
Sure, they never lost the smell of the french fry grease they lived near for every minute up until we opened our cardboard happy meal boxes. And sure, you had to eat a lot of cheeseburgers if you wanted to catch them all. But it was so worth it. From Catwoman with her accessory — not a purse or some girlish nonsense, but a freaking panther — to the Joker's baffling ineffecting ramming mechanism on his aubergine automobile, these toys were a kid's dream.
And while my parents were utterly baffled at how entertained I could be by toys that came with my meal, rather than the toy aisle at Target, I think any Batman fan knows why walking down memory lane with these plastic pals is a nostalgia-rama. Here they are, ranked by awesomeness.
First: The Gang's All Here
8. Two-Face's Two-Faced Auto
The whole, the-front-of-my-car-flips-over! bit isn't quite enough for me.
7. Robin's Speed Racer
You go fast. We get it. It's cute.
6. The Motionless Riddler
The Riddler has a pretty snazzy jacket. The end.
5. Batgirl (Not) In Motion
She gets points above The Riddler because she's got that cool cape. And also clothing that seems appropriate for either side of the superhero-villain game. Spandex > Men's Warehouse suit.
4. Batman. Just Batman.
He only gets to be higher up than the other motionless folks because he's Batman. Typical Bruce, always scamming his way to the top.
3. The Joker's Face Car
His bumper is a menace... if you get close enough for him to bump you. Still, points for creativity and adherence to the Joker's self-obsession.
2. Poison Ivy's Venus Fly Trap Car
So, you'd have to be pretty small to get stuck in that Venus Fly Trap, but it looks pretty cool.
1. Catwoman & Co.
Did I mention that she comes with a freaking pet panther? Winner, hands down.
