Batman was a character whose creation in 1939 fundamentally changed the medium of comic books. But it could be said – perhaps with equal truth – that Batman: The Animated Series transformed cartoons and animation decades later. With its dynamic fluidity, darker colours, and shadowy textures, the animated series looked dramatically different from the likes of Super Friends and the other charming but tacky superhero cartoons of previous decades. Batman: The Animated Series has a monumental fan-following, and its success on the small screen grew strong enough to morph the mainstream world of comics into something greater. Everyone knows that the much-loved Harley Quinn debuted first in the animated series. But there is one character who first appeared in the famous animated universe who has become a fan-favourite. He was so promising a character that his first appearance was in his first TV show! Enter the world of Batman Beyond!
Batman Beyond (vol 1) 1-6 was published from March to August 1999. Written by Hilary J. Bader, with art by Rick Burchett, Terry Beatty, and Joe Staton, it’s a six issue-miniseries that was essentially a trial run for an ongoing title. Reprinted long ago in a collected edition, DC very recently recollected these issues and the first 24 issues of the following ongoing series in a compendium. About time too! Although a miniseries, there isn’t really an ongoing plot or storyline. The first three issues are connected, while the others are standalone stories.
Not On My Watch/I Am Batman --- Written by Hilary J. Bader, with art by Rick Burchett and Terry Beatty
Growing up in the 2000s, I recall watching a few of the earlier episodes of Batman Beyond (or Batman of the Future as it was titled in much of Europe) and the flawless Return of the Joker movie. Although Batman: The Animated Series shone in its adaptive brilliance, Batman Beyond was an original adventure with new characters and a simple but wonderful presence – a Batman in a future of advanced technology and new villains. The spin-off comic book title launched around the same time as the first episode of the series began.
Batman Beyond (vol 1) 1-2 are adaptions of Rebirth, the introductory episodes of the show’s first season. It’s an ideal way of launching this new title, setting the scene and establishing this new world. The opening scene to Batman Beyond is one of the most memorable moments from the show, with an elderly Bruce Wayne continuing to fight crime in an updated and state-of-the-art batsuit. But it’s during an encounter with crime that the aging Batman experiences a heart attack and is forced to threaten a criminal with a gun. It’s this moment which causes Bruce Wayne to retire the mantle of the bat. This great scene is retold here, but with only twenty-or-so pages per issues, it has certainly been slimmed down and lessened in impact. Nevertheless, the scene is Gotham City is the late-2030s – a time that must have seemed so futuristic back in 1999. This is a world of flying cars and bizarre splicing technology, but Gotham is still the same crime-ridden place. Terry McGinnis is the focus, a teenage tearaway but no criminal. His brash attitude gets him into trouble with the Jokerz, a gang who idolise the Dark Knight’s former arch-foe. After a chase, the Jokerz confront Terry outside the gates of Wayne Manor – and it’s here where the elderly 70-something-year old Bruce Wayne intervenes to help Terry defeat the thugs. After helping the exhausted Bruce, he requires Terry’s help to return home, Terry goes walkabouts and finds the Batcave, seconds before the former Dark Knight throws him out of the house! So far, there is barely anything different from the Rebirth episode, and the plotting is exactly the same. The villain is Derek Powers, a billionaire whose business has merged with Wayne Enterprises. Terry’s father, an employee of Powers, discovers some dark information about his boss’s plans. Paranoid, Powers has Terry’s father killed, and that is the tragic origin that Terry McGinnis is given. Batman Beyond shines because Terry McGinnis isn’t a simple Bruce Wayne clone. Socially, he is the opposite of Bruce – an older brother in a home where money is tight and where his two parents live separately. There is none of the idealism or childhood perfection which is often depicted in Bruce’s world before he entered Crime Alley. But upon finding the secret information discovered by his father, Terry has no choice but to return to Wayne Manor…
Batman Beyond (vol 1) 2 continues the adaptation pretty much word-for-word, with Bruce Wayne refusing to don the suit to help Terry, despite the fact that Powers is literally stealing money from Bruce’s company to fund nerve gas and chemical weaponry. These are dark subjects for young readers to explore, but Batman Beyond always succeeded in attracting a more teenaged audience with its more adult elements. Nevertheless, Terry steals the batsuit mainly to avenge his father and to defeat Mr Fixx, Powers’s right-hand man. There is that great moment when Bruce deactivates Terry’s batsuit, crippling him temporarily just as Powers’s men come close to killing him, but not much of the same tension present in the animated version is here. In terms of pacing, Batman Beyond (vol 1) 1-2 are incredibly quick, far quicker than the Rebirth episode. That may be because there is a great deal of story to include in forty pages, but because of this brevity, much of the tension and chills that the animated version provide are missing. That said, some aspects have been changed to add new drama. For example, the final confrontation of the story whereby Terry fights Fixx – concluding with the villain’s death, but not at the new Dark Knight’s hands – becomes the moment where Terry finally proclaims himself to be Batman. And he says it with a smile! Other than that, nearly every other scene is the same as the animated version. There is one scene – specifically the opening pages to the first issue – which is different, and that is a flashback to a younger Bruce Wayne experimenting with new technology, hinting at the changes to come. This is a great bonus addition, and it’s a shame there isn’t more of that in there. Compared to the Rebirth episodes, this feels less dramatic or impactful, but as the plot is nearly identical, I have no complaints. Terry is a great protagonist and it’s helped massively by his differences compared to Bruce Wayne. Derek Powers thankfully gets his comeuppance after his fantastically dark villainous plot is put to an end. Although Batman Beyond (vol 1) 1-2 doesn’t stray much at all from its original source and some its impact is lost, it’s an ideal introduction to a new Gotham City and a new Batman.
Despite a lack of drama compared to the Rebirth episode, it’s difficult to put the artists at fault for that. Rick Burchett – an experienced artist on the Batman Adventures title – is an ideal artist for the pages of Batman Beyond. He perfectly recreates the Bruce Timm style while also adding his own elements to the visuals. This two-parter makes good use of full-page spreads, a style which corresponds to the writer’s rather scarce use of dialogue. I suppose that does make up for some of the lost excitement, and as the inker, Terry Beatty adds some delightfully shadowy textures which animation would fail to recreate. In terms of the storytelling, it’s very good. The pacing problem is caused by a lack of space, certainly not by the artists.
Never Mix, Never Worry --- Written by Hilary J. Bader, with art by Rick Burchett and Terry Beatty
Batman Beyond (vol 1) 3 is a continuation of the storyline launched in the first two issues., but from here-on-out, Hilary J. Bader is given more reign creatively. After all, issue three onwards are original stories. After a truck containing nuclear chemicals crashes off a highway near Gotham, Derek Powers conjures a plan. In the previous issue (as in the Rebirth episode), Powers was exposed to his own nerve agent and following extensive radioactive therapy, his skin glowed with radiation. Transformed into the villainous Blight – a reimagined version of Doctor Phosphorus – Powers desperately seeks three kinds of radiation so he can manipulate technology and create chaos.
Powers has become so twisted and evil that he simply wants to create chaos for the fun of it. At first, I thought the story would feature Powers looking for a cure to his radioactive state, but that gets forgotten about quickly. Batman (Terry, that is) follows Powers as he attempts to retrieve the chemicals, first from the highway crash site, and then from other locations. Bader crams in loads of plotting and dialogue here. Although she captures the characters brilliantly and the dramatic ending whereby Powers comes close to causing a nuclear apocalypse, the story is over-encumbered. Bruce speaks for a whole two pages about nuclear chemicals and how – thanks to the development of technology – new man-made radioactive sources are available. Some of that may be of interest, but much of it isn’t. And then Bader introduces a whole cast of characters living in the sewers of Gotham who are under threat from Powers. It’s an idea which is introduced far too late into the story, and it isn’t explored enough to make much sense. However, with Powers a solid returning villain for Terry’s Batman, Batman Beyond (vol 1) 3 is a good story that perhaps could have benefited from a second part.
Burchett and Beatty provide more of the same, but it’s in some of the darker scenes in the sewer where Batman Beyond in dark blending suit looks at his most impressive. Meanwhile, Powers in his Blight form naturally illuminates the whole page. Colourist Lee Loughridge helps hugely here.
Magic is Everywhere --- Written by Hilary J. Bader, with art by Joe Staton and Terry Beatty
Batman Beyond may have been a new show, but it can be considered a sequel series to Batman: The Animated Series. Although most episodes focused on the world of Batman, writers made sure to expand outwards and to create the DC Animated Universe which viewers of the likes of Justice League Unlimited would come to love. With Batman Beyond (vol 1) 4, Terry comes face-to-face with a character who Batman has had several run-ins with – Etrigan the Demon. After a nerdy video game-playing teenager accidently summons the soul-taking demon known as Axilano, this devil is set free on the world of man.
Although hesitant to believe in the supernatural (which is slightly strange given that if Superman can exist surely anything can), Terry listens to Bruce’s advice, and he visits Jason Blood. He – and his tech wizard ally Kyle – team up with Batman to conduct a kind of séance whereby Jason Blood’s inner Demon fights against Axilano in order to free the soul trapped inside. What makes this story enjoyable is that Terry’s attitude continues to be different from Bruce’s. He is far less accepting of Jason Blood and cracks a few jokes at the expense of the supernatural. Also, Bader creates new lore by suggesting that Axilano, like Etrigan, was created by Merlin, but the power-mad persona of the former led to the god to favour the latter, thereby setting the scene for Jack Kirby’s original idea for the Demon. In the end, Jason Blood succeeds in banishing Axilano into a computer database and the teenager who summoned him is free. Although the issue can sometimes be bogged down by verbosity, Batman Beyond (vol 1) 4 is a fun adventure that hopefully sets the stage for future tales where Terry McGinnis encounters great titans of the DC Universe…
A seasoned artist in the 1970s and 1980s for the Justice Society and Green Lantern, Joe Staton’s name appearing in a title like this seems surprising. It’s nice to see artists with long careers not scoffing at tie-in titles like this. Plus, with his cartoony style, Staton suits Batman Beyond nicely. His dramatic storytelling and Kirby-esque visuals are stunning and look incredible, especially during those duelling scenes between Etrigan and Axilano. It may be overdramatic in some instances, but it definitely suits the story.
Mummy, oh! And Juliet --- Written by Hilary J. Bader, with art by Rick Burchett and Terry Beatty
Out of all the six issues of this miniseries, Batman Beyond (vol 1) 5 is the least-like any episode of the animated series. A typical episode of Batman Beyond would entail Terry fighting a new supervillain or gang while Bruce provides his usual knowledge and guidance. But here, Bader effectively pens a love story. As part of a school trip, Terry heads to a museum and learns about Prince Tetlecteloti, an Egyptian prince who died only a few days before his marriage to a princess. With the prince’s mummified remains on show in the museum, the mummy suddenly comes to life upon touch. Back from the dead after sucking the life blood of the living, Prince Tetlecteloti wants to find his love Princess Danethlytica. A plot of this type is somewhat different to what you’d usually get from a Batman Beyond tale. But one similarity from the animated series is Terry’s relationship with Dana. His long-time girlfriend, she is somewhat similar to Lois Lane in that she becomes increasingly annoyed with Terry when he vanishes – she remains unaware that Terry is Batman. Her relationship with Terry is going through a bad patch, and that is when another man appears on the scene. Appearing youthful, Prince Tetlecteloti believes that Dana is his long-lost wife. After she is kidnapped, it’s down to her Dark Knight boyfriend to rescue her. All it really takes is a duel against Batman for the confused prince to realise that Dana is not the princess he is looking for. Instead, with Princess Danethlytica in the same museum building, Batman and Dana reunite the couple and they slide peacefully back into death, together. It’s a happy ending to a somewhat sweet story, but it does make you think that Prince Tetlecteloti really isn’t the smartest of guys as the person he is looking for is in the same building. Nevertheless, it’s good that Bader gives more exposure to Terry’s personal life and how it clashes with his antics as the Dark Knight, an aspect of life all too familiar to Superman…
Burchett is back! His art is fairly melodramatic here, perhaps a fitting mood considering the ‘woe is me’ attitude of the prince. Also, Burchett depicts the creepiness and decaying texture of a mummy back from the dead, appearing to look more than a simple cartoon zombie.
Permanent Inque Stains --- Written by Hilary J. Bader, with art by Joe Staton and Terry Beatty
For the miniseries’s final issue, who should Batman face? Out of all the villains created for Batman Beyond, Inque is definitely one who stands out. Effectively an ink variant of Clayface, Inque is a mysterious but common foe for the futuristic Dark Knight, appearing four times in the show’s three-year run. But in Batman Beyond (vol 1) 6, she isn’t the main villain. Breaking into a secret complex to steal data from a computer Inque is in constant communication with a mysterious scientist conducting tests on animals. This professor is more than an employer however – he is Inque’s enforced master. She must do his bidding, or she’ll be punished and killed. It takes time for Batman and Bruce to discover this, but by collecting a sample of Inque’s tissue which appears on whatever surface she touches, they are able to track her as she goes around Gotham doing her master’s bidding. In the final pages, Batman discovers Inque and the scientist, but we aren’t told much about him. Aside from his lack of morals and total cruelty, he seems to have little grand plan or any great threat to his name. Aside from bringing a formidable villain to her knees, there is nothing to be said about this forgettable scientist. In the end, Batman beats the scientist by working with Inque, who escapes from the drama and will obviously strike one day in the future. Including Inque as a feature character is a good move, and it is a decent twist that she actually isn’t the villain, but it would have been better if the real foe was someone distinctive or interesting. Bader does write a very televisual story here, but it probably needed more development.
Staton’s cartoony style strangely suits the shapeless and creative Clayface-like positions that Inque morphs into. He also creates the appearance that she is dripping with ink, and almost-always in constant liquid form which is great.
VERDICT
Overall, the 1999 Batman Beyond miniseries has its great strengths and moments, but it admittedly does feel odd. There is no ongoing storyline to weave the six issues together – this miniseries was definitely a taster of the ongoing series that was always to follow. It is something of a shame because with more time and space, Bader could have expanded on many of the underdeveloped ideas here. The re-telling of Rebirth is good, but it does lack some of the original drama due to its pacing. Issue three featuring Derek Powers is a good story, as is the adventure featuring the Demon. The final two issues are most probably the weakest of the lot, with the latter seeming too undercooked. Overall, it feels like Batman Beyond hasn’t quite found its feet yet, but the potential is definitely there and was certainly located in the ongoing series which was to last twenty-four issues…
Next Week: Starman: Sins of the Child (Starman (vol 2) 12-19). Written by James Robinson, with art by Tony Harris, Wade Von Grawbadger, Tommy Lee Edwards, Stuart Immonen, Chris Sprouse, Andrew Robinson, Gary Erskine, Amanda Conner, and John Watkiss.
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