An unexpected version of Batman Beyond just joined a recently formed superhero team in Justice League Unlimited.
DC Comics’ Justice League Unlimited launched last November. The latest issue of the series, Justice League Unlimited #12, comes from writer Mark Waid, artist Dan Mora, colorist Tamra Bonvillain, and letterer Ariana Maher.
Following the events of the We Are Yesterday crossover event, Justice League Unlimited #12 sees Mister Terrific assembling a team of superheroes to help evacuate the planet as DC K.O. rages on. This task is easier said than done, however, as “an uber-demon named Neron made deals with Earth’s villains to amp [their powers] in a failed exchange for their souls.”
Essentially, this means that even low-tier villains like Polka Dot Man are capable of nearly killing Atom and Batgirl, which happens at the beginning of the issue.
Who is the new Batman Beyond?
Given that most DC heroes are caught up in the DC K.O. event, Mister Terrific brings together nine heroes who were displaced in time during We Are Yesterday. One of these heroes is Batman Beyond; however, rather than Terry McGinnis donning the cape and cowl, it’s Tim Drake — Batman’s third Robin in the main DC Universe — wearing the mask.
Mister Terrific explains to the time-displaced heroes regarding how this is possible, “The League thought it was Gorilla Grodd messing with time that was causing temporal chaos [in We Are Yesterday]. We’ve since learned it’s bigger than that. The past and the future are both eroding due to additional circumstances. That’s what Superman — modern-day Superman, excuse me — and the others have gone off to reverse, and for now, we choose to believe they can. Meanwhile, the breakdown in the time stream has stabilized. Heroes like you nine are stuck here with us. No past or future to return home to.
“…Each of you represents a single, standalone second haphazardly extracted without consequence from your lifetime. You’re not who you think you are. You’re a…a quantum ghost existing apart from the hero you represent. If our champions are successful and Darkseid’s damage is reversed…the timeline will stabilize. Randomly, you’ll cease to exist while your ‘source self’ continues on, never missing you.”
This means that, upon the conclusion of the DC K.O. event, the Tim Drake version of Batman Beyond will likely disappear; however, he appears to be willing to help out for the time being, as the end of the issue sees him and the others heading straight into Hell.
Featuring cover art by Mora and variant covers by Nathan Szerdy, Derrick Chew, Jeff Spokes, and Kevin Wada, Justice League Unlimited is now on sale wherever comic books are sold.
Source: DC Comics
