DC just announced an epic crossover, particularly for fans who came of age in the ‘90s. A new miniseries will bring together the world of Batman Beyond and Static in a futuristic superhero mash up. This fall, get ready for Batman/Static: Beyond.
The miniseries hails from DC Comics and comes from writer Evan Narcisse and artist Nikolas Draper-Ivey. We’ve got several variant covers from the first issue to check out below. These are both characters that became very popular in the late ‘90s, largely thanks to animated shows. Static Shock was a very popular cartoon based on the Static comics. So much so that the “shock” has stuck as part of the name for many fans. Batman Beyond was a futuristic successor to Batman: The Animated Series, one that introduced the young Terry McGinnis as Bruce Wayne’s new protege. Now, Terry is teaming up with Virgil Hawkins to face a new threat.
Here is the synopsis for Batman/Static: Beyond.
“In the debut issue, Terry McGinnis patrols the neon-lit streets of Neo-Gotham while Virgil Hawkins pioneers atechnological revolution with the launch of the Q-Wave Energy Grid. As Earth prepares to join a powerful interplanetary alliance called the Cooperative, the Justice League Beyond stands ready to usher in a new era of peace. But when a mysterious villain triggers a global blackout, the planet’s future hangs in the balance. With technology crippled and chaosrising, Static and Batman Beyond must forge an unlikely alliance and take a grounded approach to saving the world before it’s too late.”
“I loved the dynamic Nik set up between Static and Batman in the Milestone 30th Anniversary Special where these characters first teamed up with each other,” said Narcisse, “and the most exciting part of this new project has been exploring how different Terry and Virgil are from each other.”
Both of these characters remain popular. Both of them have also largely been sitting on the sidelines in other media for some time. Warner Bros. has tried to make a Batman Beyond movie several times over the years. None have made it across the finish line. DC also recently brought back the Milestone imprint which helped revive Static. However, despite online chatter, no movie or new TV shows have materialized. Be that as it may, this crossover brings both characters back to their comic book roots. Nikolas Draper-Ivey had this to say about it.
“This story is intended to be a commentary on our overreliance on technology and the imminent dangers becoming complacent and too comfortable using AI to substitute our own imagination and human ingenuity. We now use our watches to find our phones, we use our phones to connect to everything else. We don’t rely on our own memories. We rely on technology to remember for us. That deeply concerns me. I worry that we are getting to a point where if all these things were to be suddenly taken away from us in an instant—at the rate we’re going now, humanity will be at a huge disadvantage.”
“Static is a former teen hero who grew up to take on even more responsibility for his city and the larger world, while Terry is still figuring out how to do those things in his own way,” added Narcisse. “Terry’s still a high school student but he’s also got the weight of the Batman mantle and the expectations that come with it as key parts of his life now. As an adult member of the Justice League, Virgil’s at a different part of his journey. But he’s driven by an adolescence where systemic injustice changed what it meant to live in his hometown of Dakota. Their approaches to making the world a safer, more just place are extremely different. That difference energizes the big question they have to deal with: can they learn to work together during a critical moment when everything they’ve taken for granted has fallen apart?”
Batman/Static: Beyond #1 hits shelves on November 12.
What do you think? Are you excited about the crossover? Would you like to see a Batman Beyond or a Static movie? Join in on the conversation over on Facebook or Twitter!
