Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker (2000)

aka Batman of the Future: Return of the Joker (2000)

The only feature-length outing for Batman Beyond is a great one. It came out between Seasons 02 and 03 of the parent series, so was able to reference Terry McGinnis' life up to that point, including splicing and The Jokerz street gang. [1]

But that's not all, because being a part of TAS continuity meant is could reference Bruce Wayne's life, too, which it does via a split timeline, telling a story that spans decades and involves both the Batman of old Gotham and the Batman of New.

It's no spoiler to say that The Joker (Mark Hamill) appears to have returned, which impacts the lives of both Bruce Wayne (Kevin Conroy) and Terry (Will Friedle). The Clown Prince of Crime's appearance vexes Bruce greatly and is the mystery that drives the narrative in the early part.

There's many dramatic contrasts in the script, explored through characters' feelings and in how they interact with the uncertain world. It's not limited to just Terry and Bruce, but there's an especially pleasing one in the old man's life with regards his role outside of the Batcave. It's pleasing because it's opposite in fortune while being similarly cyclic to the harrowing level of menace in the movie's most controversial scenes.

Because it's a commonly held belief that younger viewers often identify more with characters that are close to their own age in visual media (e.g., the hero's sidekick), I feel it's important to note that many of the scenes involving Joker aren't 'kid-friendly'. In particular, flashback scenes that feature Robin (Mathew Valencia) are more extreme than anything seen in the Batman Beyond TV Series and require a level of experience and maturity to understand fully. Large portions of the dialogue are also thematically dark, with notions of blame and consequence, unforeseen and/or self-made, presented alongside depictions of bitterness and acceptance.

Of the two available versions, the 73 mins 'TV' version is unrated but has cuts made for violence. The 76 mins PG-13 version is uncut and is my preferred version because the violence isn't just there for the sake of it, it's a crucial part of the story and its censoring weakens both the emotional and dramatic impact of what occurs, and by extension a viewer's appreciation of it.

Personally, I rate Return of the Joker second only to Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993) when it comes to Batman related movies. If you want to own the uncut edition, the US Blu-ray is reportedly Region Free, but I can't confirm that first-hand. Alternately, if you're Region B the German Blu-ray, titled Batman of the Future - Der Joker kommt zurück, is a great alternative. It's the one that I own. The artwork and menus are German language, but the movie plays completely in English with no forced subtitles. At time of writing it's cheaper than the US disc.

[1] It was BB's only movie, but it's the third film in the DC Animated Universe; the previous two are Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993) and Batman and Mr. Freeze: SubZero (1998).

- More pathologically threatening than he ever was in the TV Series. -

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