I would like to see.....

[bw38]

After watching a couple of episodes of Batman Beyond, I was reminded how awesome that show was. The concept of a Batman in the future is hard enough for most fans to take in but I think this worked perfectly because of the supporting cast of characters. One major distinction between Batman and Batman Beyond (or rather Bruce Wayne and Terry McGinis) is that of age. Like Spiderman who got special abilities while in high school, Terry was given the opportunity to help others to make up for his past mistakes. I think there's a lot of factor in what makes Terry a great Batman that honestly just wouldn't fit with any other character in Batman's history.
First off, the issue of age. You can't have someone like Tim becoming Batman Beyond because the age he'd pick up the mantle you wouldn't be able to reproduce the same teen drama Terry goes through. Needless to say Dick Grayson or Jason Todd not apply.
Secondly, Terry like a young Peter Parker, symbolizes the everyday man (in a distant future of course). He has to carry the weight of being Batman and also being a high school student, with a girlfriend who tires of him always being late, jocks who don't like him, a little brother he's supposed to be a role model to, etc. It makes Batman Beyond seem a bit more in touch with reality whereas with Bruce Wayne there was that level of humanity still in place but because of his affluence its harder for the everyday man to connect with him.

Lastly, the supporting cast in Batman Beyond was great. You have a confidant in Maxine. The loyal girl in Dana. A mentor in Bruce (and it isn't the first time he's mentored a young kid). Some alliances with the GCPD. And a new batch of villains making use of the technology in the future. In fact because of the technological advances everything has a new twist to it.

The reason I write this is because I really wish they would come out with a Batman Beyond comic book set in another Earth if needed (the DCAU-Earth?). Am I just being naive in thinking that maybe some day we'll see Batman Beyond again starring in his own comic book? I don't collect issues weekly, or monthly like most fans. I'm mainly into TPBs, but I remember years ago when Batman Beyond had its own comic book line I would always go to the comic book shop and pick up whatever new issue they had. And the way the show ended (even with the epilogue episode in JLU) I still don't feel it did the show justice.

[Chiroptera]

Batman Beyond had such mixed reviews and opinions, I don't know if we'll ever see a return to it in comics.
Maybe they'll reinstate the DCAU comic someday but I wouldn't count on it.
Alot of Bat fans view Bruce Wayne as the only Batman and anyone else as just a poser. This is what cause the show it's issues, it got alot of nay saying just because "Batman" was an old geezer and some new Robin was running around calling himself Batman. People didn't like it, and that hurt the show.

It's hard to see past the things you don't like to see all the good in something.
Heck, I know it first hand. I hated Batman Beyond, not because Bruce was old, not because Terry was a new Batman; I hated it just for all the teen angst and drama issues, I got enough of that from Spider-man and X-men I didn't want it in my Batman stuff too. Only years later, after the show is long gone, have I been able to go back re-watch it and go "This was actually a pretty good show."

[Choppa]

I thought the whole concept was pretty lame.

I don't think that having a kid replace Bruce is at all a good or original idea. The characteristics that you listed of Terry are the same as any teenage "everyman." Taking Batman and turning him into a teenager with issues strips him of his uniqueness and turns him into just another spiderman knock off. Terry didn't really face any dilemnas or have any aspects of his personality that were any different from the typical teenage hero. Bruce's affluence and personality are what make Batman an interesting character.

Terry's cast of characters was pretty generic as well. There was no one like Gordon or Bullock and the villians were really lame knock offs of the originals. I remember reading about how they creators weren't going to use any of the original villians, but ended up doing so probably because the ones they created were lame.

I really hope that the whole idea is left in limbo and not given it's own universe. The whole thing was just weak, especially the ending where you find out that he's some kind of clone of Bruce's. That kind of far fetched sci-fi storytelling doesn't really fit the Batman. There probably won't be any continuation of the character and I'm fine with that.

[rZi]

Terry didn't make a great batman, i always felt if someone has to take the mantle...it has to be either dick or another robin