Batman Beyond Makes Zero Sense and Needs to Change

Batman Beyond is a fan favorite character, and it’s way too easy to understand why. He’s a different version of Batman from the not-so-far future, wearing one of the best Batsuits ever and taking down crime in his own way that feels at once both very original and classically Batman. Terry McGinnis was first introduced in the Batman Beyond cartoon, but was so beloved that he was eventually brought into DC comic book canon, and as of the “We Are Yesterday” event was brought into the modern-day to fight alongside Bruce Wayne and the rest of the Justice League. I love Batman Beyond and everything Terry does, but as awesome as he is, his existence doesn’t make any sense at all. Terry’s timeline makes absolutely zero sense, and if they want to keep Terry around, something drastic needs to change fast.

The Problems with Batman Beyond

Terry became Batman in the near-dystopian cyberpunk city of Neo-Gotham, which has fallen into crime and squalor after the first Batman retired years earlier. Bruce gave up the cowl after his failing body forced him to threaten a criminal with a gun, going against everything he’s ever stood for. He planned to let the Batman mantle fade into history, but Terry took it up and completely reinvented the identity, bringing hope and justice back to a Neo-Gotham that everyone had given up on. The problem with this origin is that it only works in the context of the TV show universe it was planned for, and cannot happen in the comic books. 

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The largest issue with Terry taking up the mantle like he does is that there are already so many other superheroes that can and have picked up the torch when Bruce dropped it. Gotham City has one of the biggest families of superheroes in the world protecting it, with Bruce having no less than five children, three of whom either have or want to become Batman one day. Even if Bruce is killed or forced to retire because he feels that he broke his vow, it’s not like the rest of Gotham’s protectors would just up and vanish. The idea that there would be nobody to protect Gotham after Bruce finally stops is absurd, because he has trained a veritable army to fight the good fight alongside him, who have literally all shown that they do not need Bruce’s approval or permission to be heroes. All of them would either have to die or become disillusioned with Batman that they forsake Gotham and never look back, but not only is that as close to impossible as you can get with comic books, but also just a stupid idea. The Robins, Batgirls, and extended Bat Family members are beloved and have decades of stories under their belts that show their connection to Bruce, and throwing that away is unthinkably offensive to their fans.

Terry Can’t Be Bruce’s Future The Way He is Now

I love Terry and would love to see a future where he takes up the cowl, but the fact of the matter is that his current origin is incompatible with Batman comics. It leaves Bruce in disgrace and burns the rest of the Family, and that’s a terrible way to have these amazing characters go out. In the DC Animated Universe this is fine, and Terry is fantastic as a potential future, but more and more DC has been pushing the idea that Terry is the definitive future for the Batman identity, even explaining why some characters like Damian can’t inherit the name in Batman Beyond volume six. But these explanations always ring hollow, because they’re forcing themselves to break the characterization of people like Damian to make their existence work.

Batman Beyond is in the present day and fighting alongside another potential future for Bruce, his daughter Helena Wayne. This is the perfect chance to explore how to fully introduce Terry into the main continuity without destroying any canon for the Bat Family. Some parts of Terry’s origin would have to change, and as much as that would be sad to see, it’s necessary if we want Terry to actually become a character that can connect with the grander DC Universe in the way that DC and the fans want him to. Many consider him to be the de facto heir to the Batman mantle, so if we really do want Terry, we have to find a way to make him work in the Batman mythos sandbox, not chuck it all out and start from scratch. I desperately want Terry to fit, but how would you change his origin to make it make sense with the lore we already have in Batman comics? Let us know in the comments below!