So, this is Batman Beyond issue 1. The cover looks decent, and captures the whole DCAU (DC Animated Universe) Batman Beyond universe feel. For those who don't know what Batman Beyond is, it's basically a retired Bruce Wayne and new comer, Terry McGinnis fighting crime in the year 2039 in Neo-Gotham. Terry takes on the role of Batman, while Bruce acts as his mentor and guides Terry during missons.This mini-series is supposed to take place in between the end of the show, and before the Justice League Unlimited episode, "Epilogue".
Review
Writing
Adam Beechen, who wrote Countdown to Adventure, Batgirl mini-series, and co-wrote Countdown, also wrote this! While I'm not really sure how well he writes (since this is the only thing by him that I read) I managed to like this a lot! The story was well planned and nicely integrated the DCAU and the DCU together, which was pretty neat. Some parts of the issue referenced certain episodes of the TV show, but I think that the story goes more deep into the DC Universe. Throughout the issue, many old foes of the original Batman are referenced and some are seen. It's interesting to note that none of them appeared or mentioned (I think) in the TV show. Their importance isn't all that great at first, but they all eventually share the same spotlight, which manages to get Bruce thinking. Beechen manages to portray the elderly Bruce as faithfully as he can to the original animated one. Bruce is shown to be strict, grumpy, and a no nonsense kind of guy. Terry aka the new Batman, is just as I remembered him. He's somewhat cocky, arrogant, and talks a lot when it comes to fighting. There are some parts of the story when Terry says some lame, cheesy joke, which in a way killed the mood for me. Also, the main antagonist is nicely introduced at the end with a good pun that basically tells you who it is.
Basically, the story is well written and manages to capture the essence of the TV show, while integrating the DC Universe. However, there are some parts that sound cheesy and ruin the mood. Thankfully however, I think that is only two to three lines.
Art
The art was great and captured the essence of the entire Batman Beyond universe. The only problem i had was how Batman was drawn. If you look at the cover, Terry looks 50 and over weight. Also, I didn't like how they drew Terry's face, as Batman and as himself. At times, Batman looks constipated, and Terry's nose is like the size of Mount Rushmore! Aside from those aforementioned oddities, Batman Beyond is well drawn, and there are times when he looks very epic. Bruce looks pretty decent with only minor oddities, but that's probably due to his lack of face time. The other characters are well drawn to and certain characters are exceptionally well drawn.
Generally, the art is well done and Batman looks very badass in certain pages. However, Terry's oddly shaped nose and Batman looking like he needs to go to the toilet kind of ruins the mood, but at that same time provides some humor (unintentionally) to a rather serious story.
The Good
Basically, the writing and overall plot was impressive. The first issue usually sets the whole series up, if the first issue has poor reviews and sales, you know that the series is doomed for. In this case however, I think that this issue just sold me the entire series. The art was decent and captured the whole Batman Beyond theme (Yes, I know I said that about 100 times now) Being a fan of the TV show, I can say that I'm impressed.
The Bad
As with anything good, there has to be something bad to it. The story could have lived without the cheesy jokes, but again, this doesn't really hinder the experience.The monstrous sized nose of Terry (Okay, it's not that bad) and the weird looking Batman kind of ruins the mood, however it's not really something you should heavily contemplate if you're not sure if you want to pick this up.
Overall Rating: 8.5/10
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