Batman/ Static: Beyond re-teams Batman Beyond with Static Shock in an adventure set in the future.
The comic is a six-issue limited series launching this fall under its DC Elseworlds imprint. Evan Narcisse will write, while artist Nikolas Draper-Ivey will draw.
The Differences Between Static and Batman Beyond
We first seen Terry McGinnis and Virgil Hawkins teamed-up in an episode of Static Shock, as well as Justice League Unlimited. But that fandom carried over to an amazing team-up story between the two future heroes by Draper-Ivey in Milestone 30th Anniversary Special. Now Draper-Ivey is joined by Narcisse, who also shares his enthusiasm for these heroes.
“I loved the dynamic Nik set up between Static and Batman in the Milestone 30th Anniversary Special where these characters first teamed up with each other. and the most exciting part of this new project has been exploring how different Terry and Virgil are from each other.”
“Static is a former teen hero who grew up to take on even more responsibility for his city and the larger world, while Terry is still figuring out how to do those things in his own way. Terry’s still a high school student but he’s also got the weight of the Batman mantle and the expectations that come with it as key parts of his life now. As an adult member of the Justice League, Virgil’s at a different part of his journey. But he’s driven by an adolescence where systemic injustice changed what it meant to live in his hometown of Dakota. Their approaches to making the world a safer, more just place are extremely different. That difference energizes the big question they have to deal with: can they learn to work together during a critical moment when everything they’ve taken for granted has fallen apart? The whole creative team is going to try and answer that question in Batman/Static: Beyond with a story where deep emotions collide against the backdrop of an uncertain future.”
The Dangers of Over-Reliance on Technology
Draper-Ivey delves into the thematic intricacies of the story. It’s a cautionary tale about our obsession and apathy due to tech. This theme is highly relevant in our now AI-drive world.
“This story is intended to be a commentary on our overreliance on technology and the imminent dangers becoming complacent and too comfortable using AI to substitute our own imagination and human ingenuity. We now use our watches to find our phones, we use our phones to connect to everything else. We don’t rely on our own memories. We rely on technology to remember for us. That deeply concerns me. I worry that we are getting to a point where if all these things were to be suddenly taken away from us in an instant—at the rate we’re going now, humanity will be at a huge disadvantage.”
This over-reliance on technology will seemingly plays a factor in Terry’ feelings about the high tech Bat-suit. At some point in the story, Terry may or may not be forced to wear an alternate suit that has less tech in it.
‘Shutdown ‘Costume Designs by Nikolas Draper-Ivey
What causes Terry to switch to a different suit? Will it be a permanent fixture for him or just for this adventure?
Beyond #1 will feature a main cover by Nikolas Draper-Ivey and variant covers by Dustin Nguyen, Rahzzah, and a 1:25 incentive variant by Denys Cowan and Ho Che Anderson. DC is also releasing Nguyen’s cover as a foil variant.
Batman/ Static: Beyond hits comic book shops on November 12, 2025.
Source: DC.com
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