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EPISODE REVIEW: (SPOILERS!)
(by Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton)
All of Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton's reviews
of the new-style BTAS episodes and BATMAN BEYOND can
be found via these links, which link to "Two-Face's Tower of Tranquility
and Terror":
NOTE #1: ALRIGHT! I've been messing up WHO is
writing WHAT for this column for too long now. If you wanna see who's writing
each review, just go to the bottom - they all sign it there. Sorry Zanna and
Justin! I feel so foolish...agh...*HALF OF MY FACE BLUSHES*
NOTE #2: You'll notice that we have the review of
a SUPERMAN episode in this issue. Why? Well,
LEGACY has been anticipated for SO LONG that we just thought we should cave in
and give the
Superman fans here a moment in the sun. Enjoy!
<SUPERMAN>
LEGACY (Pt. 1)
Story by Paul Dini
Written by Rich Fogel
Directed by Curt Geda
Animation by Dong Yang
Original Air Date: February 5, 2000
Rating: **** out of 5
Ep Description: The beginning of the end.
Darkseid's greatest plot unleashes Superman upon the
people of earth in the first of the two-part Superman finale.
Highs: Good plot, wide cast of characters,
provides the premise for a kickass Part 2 ep.
Lows: Animation is not top quality, this ep in
itself isn't as powerful as I had wished (in my
opinion), over a year of waiting!
Overall: A fine episode that lays the foundation
for a truly great ending.
Comments: Ever since it was announced over a year
ago, Legacy has by far been the most eagerly
awaited episode of Superman ever. Even if it was poised to be the end of
the series, the bits
and pieces we heard about it were enough to assure us that the series would go
out with a bang.
Well, after a string of near-excruciating delays, Legacy has finally hit the
air waves. So
does it live up to the hype? The answer is...read on to find out.
The episode opens with hordes of warriors from
Apokalips descending on an alien planet. They're
meeting heavy resistance from the defenders as they progress. When the
invasion force is a
short distance away from the alien castle, they mysteriously stop. The
defending soldiers peer
from their bunkers in confusion. Suddenly, the walls explode, and a masked
figure swoops into
their ranks. Their weapons don't even faze the invader, and in a flash the
last aliens are
defeated. The ruler of this world sadly hands over his scepter as a sign
of surrender and bows
before this mysterious fighter. On Darkseid's ship, the tyrant congratulates
the masked man,
calling him "son". Accepting the gratitude, this warrior removes his
helmet to reveal his
identity: Superman.
And this is the basis for the long awaited finale
of Superman. Brainwashed by Darkseid,
Superman's truth and justice goals have been reversed. Kal-El's new mission:
Conquer Earth in
the name of Apokolips. To Darkseid, this is the ultimate scheme to gain
control of the planet
Earth and destroy Supes at the same time. This makes for an excellent and
pivotal episode in
the series chronology...one that should not be missed.
A grand selection of major and minor characters
appear in Legacy aside from the obvious ones,
including Supergirl, who desperately attempts to cover for Superman's
disappearance from Earth,
Lois Lane, who is probably the only person who can still connect to him, and
Lex Luthor, who
finds a way to exploit even a tragedy of this magnitude for his own benefit.
Among others are a
hardline general, Jimmy Olsen, and even Ma and Pa Kent. Additionally,
watching Darkseid
manipulate Supes shows just how evil he is. Before setting off to take Earth,
the ruler gives
Supes a flag with the "S" symbol on it, intended to make sure the
people of Earth associate him
with evil.
The action is certainly a step up from past
Superman episodes. Watching Supes tear through the
Earth's defenses makes you realize what a killing machine he is, and how lucky
the people of
the planet were to have him as a good guy before. But now, his seemingly
boundless strength is
directed at the people he once protected. Even Supergirl is shown no mercy by
Kal-El when she
dares to oppose him. Only Lois Lane causes Supes to question his actions
briefly, just in time
for Lex Luthor and General Hardcastle to fire a special Kryptonite missile
into him and
Supergirl. The ep ends with both heroes in a comatose state from the
Kryptonite.
A complaint with this ep are that the animation is
not of the best quality. I saw some
choppiness here and there as frames would seeming skip while the scene pans
about. I would've
liked such a major event to have some better production values. Also, this ep
alone is not the
powerhouse of the two parts in my opinion, although that's expected. What it
does do however,
is lay the groundwork for a major conclusion.
We can all see the merits of this episode...but
again, this is not the one we're all waiting
for. Lets keep our fingers crossed that Part 2 will take this up another
level.
-Justin Chen, aka The Overseer
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EDITORIAL
(by Kelly Tindall)
No, No, NO!
Or, Batman Beyond: The Movie????
Well, my tender lumplings, your loving uncle Kelly
has heard some rather bizarre rumblings from
his associates in Hollywood. Apparently, they want to make a Batman
Beyond live-action film,
starring our favorite blankman, Keanu "Whoa" Reeves. As Libby
Gelman-Waxner pointed out in her
review of The Matrix last year: "When nobody is talking to Keanu, he goes
hopelessly, glorious
dead, like somebody forgot to turn on his screensaver."
Sigh.
Y'know, Todd McFarlane did the same thing with his
Spawn franchise. Granted, he makes
millions, but he certainly could have made more if more than just disaffected
teenagers and FX
geeks saw his movie. He's quick to point out that it made fifty million
dollars...most in its
first week, and little since. That's pretty embarrassing, I'd say.
I mean, not bad for a
comics translation, but pretty weak next to established characters.
Making Batman Beyond into a movie is precisely why
I can hardly read the Bat-books anymore...
too much. They are taking a legimately great character, Batman, and
distilling him with lame-
duck characters like Azrael: Agent of the Bat, or a new Batgirl, or The Birds
of Prey, yadda
yadda.
The trick is, Batman Beyond is GOOD...
...but only kids watch it. Their parents,
for the most part, do not.
Do YOU want to watch another Bat-movie for kids
alone?
Me, neither.
I don't think it's a good idea at all. I
can't see it making a lot of money unless they chuck
into a June/July primo spot...Accck, the whole thing stinks. I don't
want to see them wreck
Batman by throwing the whole franchise into the future, and I don't want to
see them wreck Year
One, and I know for a fact that they'll screw up Dark Knight Returns.
Aiiieeeeee...what can we
DO? What can we DOOOO???
Well, I guess we can enjoy the CARTOONS. At
least they don't stink.
I'm outta here...this is bat country!
__________________________
AND THAT'S THE FACTS
(by "Reliable Source")
And yet another week rolls by with no sign of our
RELIABLE source. RELIABLE. RELIABLE. Grrrrr.
;-Y
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BATMAN: THE ANIMATED TRIVIA
(by Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton)
This is one of my favourite sections, where
I get to boggle the minds of all our readers!
*EVIL LAUGH* This trivia is all animated-related in some form, and can deal
with ANY aspect of
the show or comics based on the show. Remember, answer the questions WITHIN
THE CONTEXT OF THE
ANIMATED CONTINUITY. Now have fun - let's see how well you do! Answers are
provided below.
Valentine's Day is fast approaching...and I felt
that this would be the perfect time to do a Valentine's Day-related quiz.
Knock yaself out!
261. What is the first name of the man that had a
crush on Inque?
A: Aaron
B: Burt
C: Chris
D: Derek
E: Emmanuel
262. What BATMAN episode aired on KidsWB on the
first Valentine's Day since BTAS moved from FOX to the WB?
A: HEART OF ICE
B: MUDSLIDE
C: HARLEQUINADE
D: MAD LOVE
E: LOVE IS A CROC
263. Which of the following people has Poison Ivy
NOT kissed?
A: Bruce Wayne
B: Harvey Dent
C: Harleen Quinzelle
D: Oswald Cobblepot
E: Barbara Gordon
264. Whose "ALMOST GOT 'IM" tale
involved nearly getting Batman via a kiss?
A: Poison Ivy
B: Talia
C: Harley Quinn
D: Catwoman
E: Bane
265. Tygrus LOVES his "father", as a son
should. What is his father's name?
Answer: _________
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AND THESE ARE OUR FINAL ANSWERS (to the trivia)
Answer to #261: A
Answer to #262: C
Answer to #263: D, E
Answer to #264: C
Answer to #265: Emile
