Batman Beyond follows the story of Terry McGinnis, who during a skirmish with the "Joker Gang" in the future, stumbles upon the abode of none other than an old Bruce Wayne. This later becomes important when Terry's father is killed by a strange virus manufactured by the new conglomerate company in Gotham: Wayne/Powers, which is ran by the latter in the name after a buyout of Wayne's company in the past of the series. After learning of his father's death, and the connections it has to Wayne/Powers, McGinnis goes to Wayne in order to become Batman and avenge his father's death, and stop Power's plan of complete and utter destruction.

Batman Beyond continues to go strong. It currently is the number one rated show on the Kids' WB, surpassing such gems as Pokemon, Sylvester and Tweety, and the Cat and Birdie Warner Roonie Pinky Brainy Big Cartoonie Show (phew). The series definitely deserves all the praise which it has received so far. It's a fresh take on the legend of Batman, and proves to be a new jumping on point for those who maybe weren't into Batman before. Warner Brothers is so confident of the series success, that before even half-way through the season, they announced a Batman Beyond animated movie that hit the shelves this past summer.

The reason why Batman Beyond has proved to be so popular is because of its strong characterizations, news villains, and of course it's animation, which has been causing jaws to drop since the original Batman series. The addition of the Empire-like company ran by Powers adds an apocalyptic future overtone, which spawns different types of villains, such as the infamous Inque. Since the series does take place in the future, allusions to the past are sometimes made, but not that often. One of these allusions is to Mr. Freeze, who actually returned in an episode new and more powerful, only to be "destroyed" in the end once and for all (I do have a feeling he'll be back in a future episode though. It always works that way). Besides Freeze, there haven't really been many allusions to the past, except for brief mentionings of Dick Grayson, former Robin and Nightwing, and the Joker Gang, who all, strangely enough, look a bit like the Joker of the past. These allusions might take a larger part in future episodes of the series, especially the once concerning Grayson. The way it has been treated is as a subplot, since Terry is a bit like Grayson was so many years ago.

Finally, if you haven't seen Batman Beyond and haven't been hooked by it yet, then you must practically be brain dead. If you're not into "cartoons", then you're really missing out on a masterpiece. I've always believed animation is just another form of film, and I've always considered it for adults, as well as children. Batman Beyond is no exception, as it brings to the table stories adults can enjoy without losing the children all together.