JUSTICE SERVED #1

Just like I'm doing with Arkham Unhinged, I thought I'd go through each print issue of Batman Beyond Unlimited and give some thoughts or easter eggs concerning the Justice League Beyond portion of the issue. So we'll start with issue #1 and eventually catch up to the current released print issue. Also I'll list the episodes that might tie-in specifically with the story, for those of you that would like to follow along as avid watchers or those new to the show.

To launch Justice League Beyond, Dustin and I wanted to hit the ground running. I think some of the best episodes or movies for the DCAU jump right into the action and then flow out from there. And if we could tie into previous Batman Beyond episodes (as well as Batman:TAS, Superman: TAS, and the two Justice League series), then even better. It would bring some familiarity while also moving the story forward.


PAGE 1

• I thought it would be cool to set up a gang war in Gotham between the Jokerz as well as a gang of Splicers. The Splicers would be remnants of the group that was affiliated with Dr.Able Cuvier, who founded the gene splicing technology. But those that've seen the episode, saw his eventual disappearance or destruction. I figured it wouldn't be long before the remaining people would gather together and start their own gang. That they named themselves the "Animal Kingdom", when there was a similar named group that just appeared in the Batwing comic, was just an odd coincidence (especially since we'd been working on this comic a year before Batwing hit the stands).

Watch List:  Batman Beyond episode "Splicers"

I don't know if Dustin drew the character here intentionally or not, but he does bear a striking resemblance to Howard Groote from Batman Beyond (I probably should've added his glasses, but maybe ol' Groote is using contact lenses here).


PAGE 2

Sorry, no Bonk..."dead"

• Enter the Jokerz. Even though the gang from the movie never was seen mixing with the gang from the show, I always figured the Jokerz are a vast gang in Neo-Gotham. Why wouldn't they all come in contact and work together. So there's a lot of familiar faces here from both groups as well as some new ones that Dustin created. Plus I hope to make a running gag of the Dee Dee twins always with different boyfriends (or in this case, boyfriend) with each appearance. Here they've saddled up next to the Jokerz gang leader.

Watch List:  Batman Beyond "Return Of The Joker" movie


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• Whenever possible, Dustin and I wanted to add new characters. This Jokerz member specifically gets the name of "Punchy". The idea was for some demented Jack-In-The-Box styled clown, that wore a box that would have different weapons and contraptions that could pop out of it. And of course, a pet monkey named "Bobo" that could act as both instigator, cheerleader, and early warning device.


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• Having Dana be at Hamilton Hill H.S. during "Homecoming Week" during an attack of GOLEM robots, was a way to put Terry's girlfriend in danger while also being a nice nod back to the show.

Watch List:  Batman Beyond episode "Golem"

• Who didn't love that new metal Batsuit that Bruce wore when fighting Inque? It was a nice call back to that episode by having it in the batcave.

Watch List:  Batman Beyond episode "Disappearing Inque"


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• I wanted to expand on Bizarro's family. That versions of him could've been created through experiments. Dustin did a nice job designing Bizarra and Kidzarro to look a lot like zombified versions of Supergirl and Superboy.

• Instead of just having the standard Phantom Zone device from the Superman: TAS that put the criminals inside the device, I thought it might be interesting to have an additional way to imprison, collect, and store villains that they caught. The flat plates they'd be contained in, could be moved by one of the League's robots to be stacked and filed away in a secure area. Of course it has a close resemblance to the Phantom Zone from the Donner Superman movies.


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• With Micron gone rogue, it isn't the first time something like this has happened. The League reflects on the earlier incident where Superman was mind controlled by Darkseid, even wearing a new uniform.

Watch List:  Superman TAS episode "Legacy part 1"

• Also the time the whole future League was under control of Starro. Definitely a fitting call back since this was the first appearance of the future League in Batman Beyond.

Watch List:  Batman Beyond episode "The Call part 2"

So yeah, there are quite a lot of nods in the very first issue towards the old shows. And that will continue in future issues, although maybe not as many as we put into this first issue. But it sure was fun to see. That should provide some background on the first issue. And we'll cover more issues in the days and weeks ahead.

Special thanks for screenshots provided by World's Finest Online, a real go-to source for anything and everything animated in the DC universe!