There’s a sequence in Batman/Static: Beyond #2 that’s bound to make some comic fans very happy, particularly if they know anything about Milestone comics or watched the Static Shock series. It reveals that Raquel Ervin, better known as Rocket, has become the mayor of Dakota City, while Virgil Hawkins’s best friend, Richie Foley, is helping him to create cutting-edge technologies. It’s just one of many shoutouts to the world of Static Shock, as well as Batman Beyond, that make this an Elseworlds worth reading.
Batman/Static: Beyond #2 isn’t just a showcase for great superhero animated cartoons, though. It’s also dedicated to the origin of a new villain: Shutdown, aka Melvin Kim, Terry McGinnis’s classmate. In the first issue, Melvin was exposed to “Q-Juice”, the substance that gave Static and other “Bang Babies” their metahuman powers. As a result, he’s gained the ability to shut down technology, though it causes him great pain.
Here’s where I stop to congratulate Evan Narcisse on how well he balances all the plot threads running through Batman/Static: Beyond #2. Not only does he slowly build up Melvin’s transformation into Shutdown, but he also shows Terry hitting the streets as Batman to track down his friend. Narcisse also establishes a thorny dynamic between Terry and Virgil, with Virgil cracking down hard on Terry and Terry thinking Virgil’s a jerk. It’s probably not what fans were expecting, but it makes the story that much more interesting.
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Melvin also gets a great deal of focus, as he deals with his budding powers and comes to the conclusion that he needs to shut down the Q-Juice generators Virgil was developing to try to save others. It’s a mission that readers can sympathize with, as Melvin suffered a traumatic event and clearly isn’t thinking clearly. It also sets up the series’ main thrust, since his powers can affect not only Virgil’s electromagnetic abilities but also shut down the tech in Terry’s Batman suit. Stripping both of these characters down to human level is a tried but true trope and I’m intrigued to see where it goes.
I also want to see more of Nikolas Draper-Ivey’s designs, as his work blends the futuristic and the superheroic. The issue opens with Batman soaring through the air, his wings cutting a crimson path through the air. It looks and truly feels like a scene from Batman Beyond. Other characters get a redesign, especially Richie’s Gear suit, which has evolved from “tricked out rollerblading gear” to “an armored suit that would make Iron Man jealous.”
The standouts are Shutdown and a new hero, Beacon, especially as the latter has inherited Rocket’s kinetic absorption belt. Shutdown looks like he was ripped from a cyberpunk novel, bearing a flowing black cape and a helmet with a power sign, while Beacon’s sporting a sleek hoodie and visor. Their conflict is also visually arresting, thanks to Wil Quintana giving Beacon’s abilities a neon red glow while Shutdown’s is a more violent-looking, erratic yellow.
Batman/Static: Beyond #2 acts as both a world-building exercise and a supervillain origin, as Terry McGinnis and Virgil Hawkins grapple with the fallout from the first issue. I can’t wait to see what future issues bring, especially with the crazy cliffhanger in this one.
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