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Review: Batman Beyond #26

By Philip Schweier
January 2, 2019 - 08:19

The Joker is back, and every bit as crazy as before. He’s got his sights set on two targets. The Jokerz, who have been terrorizing Gotham in his name. One might expect the Joker to be touched (in the head), but he sees them as a bunch of wannabes sullying his stellar reputation for insanity. So instead, immolation is the sincerest form of flattery.

His other target is Batman – any Batman. Bruce Wayne, Terry McGinnis, doesn’t really matter. Whomsoever shall wear the emblem of the Bat shall draw the ire of the Joker. And that goes for Robin, too. As Dick Grayson puts it, it never ends well for a Robin. Crowbar to the skull, bullet to the head, a Robin eventually falls.

But I’m okay with that, cuz the new Robin (Terry’s younger brother Matt) is schway annoying. One might think his youthful enthusiasm endearing, but the kid’s downright drunk on being Robin. He needs some massive head trauma to sober up. Especially when he outs Terry in front of his new girlfriend. Okay, maybe the girl knew Terry was Batman, but Matt didn’t know she knows.

So as this issue draws to a close, we are presented with “Joker Beyond,” which is perhaps too on the nose for my taste. It’s not as if Terry flies around Gotham calling himself Batman Beyond. He’s just Batman. So hopefully Mr. Jurgens & Co. will wrap this up sooner rather than later, defeat the original Joker for good, and maybe a new one will be inspired to take his place.

Rating: 5/10

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12