Batman Beyond

Batman Beyond is an animated series set in the future, 2039 to be exact, where a new Batman is needed to defend Gotham from crime. An eldery Bruce Wayne mentors young Terry McGillis, a former troublemaking teenager who, like Wayne, had his father murdered. He must juggle the responsibility of carrying the Batman legacy and protecting Gotham with being an average teenager and keeping his secret identity from his girlfriend Dana Tan. The show has a dark tone for a children's show, and there is a great focus on the character's development and personal life that is intertwined with the action. The Gotham of the future, Neo-Gotham as it is referred to in the show, is a far cry from the noir style setting of Batman: The Animated Series. The technology of the future makes the evildoers of Gotham more powerful than ever before. Batman must fight a new rogue's gallery of villains, including Blight, the man who ordered Terry's father to be killed, and Inque, as well as reincarnations of classic Batman villains such as Freeze and the Jokerz, a gang that idolizes Batman's nemesis the Joker. Luckily, this new Batman has the tools to fight back, from a new flying Batmobile to a next-generation Batsuit that improves Batman's strength, is connected to Bruce Wayne in the Batcave, and can turn invisible. The Batman Beyond character extended past the show, as he appeared on Justice League Unlimited after being recruited by Superman. Batman Beyond also spawned the direct-to-DVD movie Return of the Joker. MORE