An absurd revelation sours the entire series.
What a damn shame. Not that this limited foray to Batman Beyond has been anything special up to this point but it was at least enjoyable. So much for that.
In this issue, we see Terry McGinnis pay a visit to Dick Grayson while the new Hush kills a few more of the original Batman's older villains off page and then has a fight with the new Catwoman. In remains in line with the quality of the series thus far. Somewhat entertaining but drab and misguided. This one brings those problems to a head and really accentuates what is wrong with the series.
Last issue, Terry cut off his comms with Bruce after they had it out with each other. But he still began looking into old acquaintances of Batman for info and potential suspects. Tim Drake suggested speaking to Dick Grayson but also told him not to expect to be welcomed with open arms as Dick and Bruce had a major falling out. We get that story here, told by Grayson. It is fitting for why their relationship would fall apart but it does not fit with continuity which unfortunately this series was supposed to be part of. More on the latter part of that later. Some things like Inc. not succeeding, Bruce and Dick having a falling out and Dick returning to the role of Nightwing are believable. What is not is them deciding to work together again after such happenings and after Batman has been out of the game, as well as that itself (Bruce Wayne will never stop) and him being so poor that he makes the type of mistake he does here and Dick being so poor that he allows it to happen and Bruce being so cold as he is to Dick and Dick becoming so bitter. Yeah, when you think about it, it is just silly. But that is not even the strongest testament to Adam Beechen's laughably messy writing. I'll get to that soon.
The new Catwoman is pretty cool and the fight was somewhat entertaining as well as humorous when one of Bruce's Bat Bots gets involved but then glitches out. Somehow it ends with the new Hush surviving the explosion of the robot. Fine. Much more ridiculous things have happened in comics. But then we get to the ending...
Oh gods of the illogical, why hath you plagued this book?! First off, before the reveal, the new Hush has a little soliloquy where he says something tot the extent of 'It figures the media would call me Hush and it is actually kind of fitting'. Yeah? Maybe it is because he looks exactly like fucking Hush and is obsessed with the original Batman! It was just such a ridiculous statement that you cannot help but laugh. What was Beechen thinking? Well, chances are he was not. Not clearly at least. Because, it turns out the new Hush is indeed...
Bad enough the story did not fit but this... my goodness! If you are up to date on Batman, you know how nonsensical this is. And it is supposed to be canon?! Wow, DC. How can something like this even be approved editorially?!
That is tip of an ugly iceberg. Where is Damian? How could Bruce Wayne become such a pathetic figure? The questions could go on and on and that does not even include how this can possibly relate to the rest of the DCU. Having this as canon would simply be an abysmal choice.
Now, there is the possibility that...
But if that is the case, it just reinforces all the other problems with the series. It is a sloppy misguided narrative with poor direction and no purpose. It is too desperately attached to the old Batman instead of building a Gotham of the future and giving Terry a rogue gallery of his own. It tries to be darker and deeper but instead comes off as over the top and unnecessary. It is deeply canonically flawed even for a superhero comic. (sigh) At least, the art is kind of nice.
I really dislike writing negative reviews but felt I needed to with this. All I know is I feel cheated. Batman fans, avoid this mistake and hope the ongoing series does not stem from it.
