Batman Beyond: Season 01  (1999)

Theatrical Release Information:
Batman Beyond: Season 01

In the decaying, crime-ridden Gotham City of the future, embittered millionaire Bruce Wayne is persuaded to pass along the mantle (and mask and cowl) of legendary "Caped Crusader" Batman to teenager Terry McGinniss in Season One of the animated series Batman Beyond. The two-part pilot establishes the fact that Terry has been given this honor because he has stumbled onto Wayne's long-buried secret identity, and because the teen wants to avenge the death of his own father by a sinister cartel bent on world domination. The elderly Wayne instructs Terry in the intricacies of his high-tech, gadget-laden Batsuit and shows him how to navigate the new flying Batmobile. Meanwhile, Wayne's business partner Derek Powers, the secret brains behind the conspiracy, works overtime to scuttle Terry McGinniss/Batman's crusade to restore law and order to Gotham City. Also in the opening episode, we are introduced to the Jokerz, a gang of "Clockwork Orange"-like street punks who have enshrined the memory of the "old" Batman's prankish nemesis, the Joker. Other villains whom the new Batman tangles with this season are shapeshifting female saboteur Inque; the Royal Flush Gang, so named because they were card-like costumes and go by the names of King, Queen, Jack, Ten and Ace; Shriek, who can demolish skyscrapers with his high-pitched sound waves; the mesmerindign Spellbinder, Curare, a ninja assassin; Derek Powers' son Paxton, every bit as ruthless and demonic as his dad; and even a revitalized Mr. Freeze--or rather, Mr. Freeze's cryogenically frozen head. Plus: Just as Terry McGinnis had accidentally glommed onto the fact that Bruce Wayne and the earlier Batman were one and the same, so to does his discover in a rather spectacular fashion the fact that the current police commissioner of Gotham City, silver-haired Barbara Gordon, once went by the name of Batgirl. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide