Summary
Neo-Gotham’s dark future is protected byBatman Beyond:the alter ego of Terry McGinnis, who is usually under the watchful eye of Bruce Wayne. However, when Terry traveled back in time to defeat Brother Eye, the AI was already waiting for him in the present, leading to tragedy. Despite doing everything in his power to get out of Batman’s shadow, one surprising character put on the cowl for the sake of the future: Tim Drake.
DC’sFutures Endeventwas a huge crossover of almost every DC book that had been relaunched with the New 52. With both a rogue AI named Brother Eye and Darkseid looking to mold the Earth in their own image, the series was responsible for loopingBatman Beyondinto main DC continuity, as well as bringing back pre-Crisis characters from Earth-2.
Because of how that event altered the DCU,Batman Beyond#1 byDan Jurgens, Bernard Chang, Marcelo Maiolo, and Dave Sharpe gaveTim Drake, a Robin often overshadowed by his peers, the time-traveling adventure of a lifetime, even though he was definitely not looking for one.
[SPOILER] Becomes the Bat-Family’s Most Powerful Member with a Universe-Destroying Weapon
There are many deadly characters in the Bat-Family, but one member just gained a weapon that would let him reshape the entire multiverse.
Tim Drake Became Batman Beyond
Panel fromBatman Beyond#16 by Dan Jurgens, Stephen Thompson, Lisa Jackson, and Dave Sharpe
Futures Endimagined a bleak future for the New 52’s characters. The Teen Titans had been slaughtered, Superman disappeared from Earth to hunt Brainiac, and a Batman-created AI meant to protect the world became self-aware, believing the biggest threat to humanity was humans. To fix his past mistakes, theBruce Wayne ofBatman Beyonddeveloped a time travel device to stop his rogue AI, but Terry McGinnis took the trip instead. Unfortunately, he traveled only 30 years back instead of 35; Brother Eye’s machinations were already in motion, andTerry was killed by a cyborg bearing his mentor’s face.
Tim accepted his fate, donning the futuristic cowl to finish the fight.
Tim Drake, having faked his death when the other Titans died, had retired from superheroics, changing his name and becoming a bartender. However, after Terry’s Batman died in front of him, Tim accepted his fate, donning the futuristic cowl to finish the fight. He and other DC heroes succeeded in defeating Brother Eye, but Tim, in Terry’s suit, was flung 30 years into a new future afterward, andTim wasforced to become Batman in a time he didn’t understand.Due to timeline changes, he was unable to go back to his own past, trapping him in Neo-Gotham forever.
This Former Robin Becomes the Caped Crusader
The New 52 changed Tim Drake’s backstory: he figured out Bruce Wayne was Batman and forced his way into the Bat-Family. He declared himself Red Robin, interested in forging his own path forward. It’s the same reasonhe never wanted to become Batman.Ultimately, Terry hadn’t actually died, but was brainwashed by Brother Eye and Spellbinder. When Tim freed his friend, he explained that he wasn’t Batman, but he was interested in this brave new world and wanted to travel, seeing where he was needed. He handed the cowl back to Terry and drove off into the night. Tim Drake may have moved beyond Batman, but only becauseBatman Beyondwas back.
Tim Drake’s time as Batman Beyond is collected inThe New 52: Future’s End Vol. 3,andBatman Beyond: Brave New Worlds,available now from DC Comics.
