UPDATE: This has been completed. To jump ahead and see it, click here.

I had a lot of fun creating a mock-up DVD case for next years eventual Blu-Ray release for Transformers: The Movie. I decided to make one for another property I enjoy: Batman The Animated Series. This is a work-in-progress, one I’ll eventually finish in the next few days.

While Batman The Animated Series (BTAS) doesn’t celebrate any milestone until 2012, marking the 20th anniversary of the show’s debut, the show is due for a Blu-Ray release. In the past several years, Warner Bros. Home Video has done a solid job releasing the series on DVD, albeit a little low on the extras side. Here are their previous efforts:

These box sets were released in 2004-2005. I think the packaging has a lot of great art, and truly says “comic book”. The extras were a bit skimpy, with the producers and cast doing the commentary track for the odd episode, and a few galleries here and there. Ultimately, these boxes are a bit on the cheap side, with the sleeves often getting a lot of wear and tear.

Then Warner Bros released this monster in 2008:

An additional art book makes for a great collector’s edition. I didn’t buy this, because I already have the box sets. Also, it wouldn’t really be worth it; it looks like the exact same discs from the box sets, meaning no new extras. The case would have been more durable, but in my experience, those DVD cases which are the size of a small game board (think Monopoly), never really seem to fit into a library.

So I am designing a Blu-Ray case which is a canister all the Blu-Ray discs would be packed into. On top of the canister is the Batmobile, which in the show parked on a revolving cylinder in the Batcave. Here is a work-in-progress look at it. The car is 75% done, the canister hasn’t really been started on yet. It will have a nice black matte finish.

The canister would have trays that would swivel out from a hinge to access the Blu-Ray discs. Each tray would be labeled to identify the disc. The platform on top of the canister would revolve as well, and the Batmobile would have some LED lights in the front and back - though that would mean this package would need batteries!

Also if it were up to me, this package would include a lot more bonus materials, such as:

- Interviews with Mark Burnett, Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, Andrea Romano, Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, and the rest of the gang.

- The movies: Mask of the Phantasm, Sub Zero, Mystery of the Batwoman, and Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker.

- The Gotham Girls web series.

- Batman’s appearances in Superman The Animated Series and Static Shock.