Batman Beyond: The Movie

In the past, Bruce Wayne, as Batman, attempts to stop a gang who is holding a woman for ransom, but after suffering heart issues during the fight, which nearly leads him to use a gun, one of the things he swore against using, Bruce hangs up the new Batsuit he wore, swearing never again to wear it. 20 years later, Gotham City is now a futuristic city, with one Derek Powers running it, as the GCPD (with Barbara Gordon, who was once Batgirl, as commissioner) are in his pocket while criminal gangs like The Jokerz run free to terrorize innocents. Terry McGinnis, a troubled teenager, meets Bruce after having an argument with his father, and kicked out when he discovers the Batcave, he returns home to discover his father was killed by what looked like The Jokerz. After failing to get Bruce to help, and the disc he found at the scene of the crime being sought out of Derek Powers himself, as it has info revealing he is making illegal chemical weapons, Terry steals the Batsuit Bruce last wore to exact justice.

This movie combines the two part series premiere "Rebirth" into a almost hour-long film, this is a good start. Right off the bat, the series does not waste time getting into dark territory, as this future Gotham still has the crime problem (and even goes as far as to have characters killed), which continues the trend of Batman: The Animated Series (and its sequel series, The New Batman Adventures). As Kids' WB was less strict than Fox Kids was, this cartoon was allowed to do certain things its predecessor was never allowed to. Kevin Conroy reprises his role as Bruce Wayne, while the series introduces new characters like Terry (voiced by Will Friedle), The Jokerz (who appear throughout the series), and Derek Powers (voiced by Sherman Howard), who would become Terry's archnemesis. This is a good start to a sequel series that, despite being flawed, has gained a cult following, with the characters even appearing in other DCAU shows like Static Shock and Justice League.

It's always fun to watch somebody inherit a famous superheroes mantle and the result is always fresh and exciting.

Terry McGinnis is the new Batman and a very interesting character. It's also interesting watching an elderly and cynical Bruce Wayne act as mentor to Terry. Boy, hasn't Bruce become miserable in his old age?

The new Batman is fresh, young and raring to go and he honestly believes that he can change things. Terry has had some great adventures fighting the criminals of the future especially the Jokerz. This is an intelligent cartoon and very dark just like it's predecessor. This is an awesome cartoon with several years ahead of it. It actually came out in 1999 but I only actually watched this movie and subsequent episodes at the end of 2001. I now catch the episodes whenever they are on.

All in all, a great series but I do have one question; Is Superman still around in the future?

The series is good so the first few episodes are good too. What else would you expect. This film is simply the first two episodes of the series and has a run time of ~50 minutes. It is often erroneously listed as a 2 hour film because the typical dvd bundle includes a few additional episodes. The other episodes are fine too but it is not a complete story.

It's 30 years in the future, Bruce Wayne is in his mid seventies, and realizes he can't continue as Batman anymore, enter 16 year old Terry Mcginnis, a troubled youth who seems to have no fear of anything and always seems to have a nack for adventure. Batman got an upgrade. Great animation, and a great story line, cool action, and a great soundtrack. Kevin Conroy is great has the voice of Bruce Wayne. Will Friedle(best known from Boy Meets World) is also great has the voice of Terry Mcginnis. I hope they make a live action Batman Beyond movie.

I don't know about you, but I like my superheroes to be a bit dark, and my animated programs to be more than kiddie fare. This 2-part intro to the Batman Beyond series excels on both counts.

The animation won't win any awards, but it is consistently stylish and interesting. There is plenty of action and humour. But what really makes the show great is the real human drama it portrays. The show introduces us to Terry McGinnis, the new Batman, a headstrong teenager of the near future who takes up the cowl after a personal tragedy.

But the real focus of this episode is the original Batman, Bruce Wayne, now a lonely old man. For those of us who are fans of the Batman (especially those of us who loved The Dark Knight Returns, which should be animated into a nifty movie), this makes beautiful sense. The characters are well realised and, even better, well acted.

If you're afraid of anything that isn't classic Batman, I still urge you to check out this show. It has an engaging story, believable characters, and enough face-kicking to keep everybody happy.