User blog:ARTaylor/20 Years of Batman Beyond

Today marks the twentieth anniversary of the premiere of Batman Beyond. The series debuted on January 10th, 1999 and lasted until December 18th, 2001 on, running for fifty-two episodes across three seasons as well as featuring a direct-to-video feature. Partially inspired by Marvel's 2099 line, the series served as an epilogue to the wildly popular Batman: The Animated Series and is set in DC's Animated Universe. The series followed young teenager Terry McGinnis, who stumbles across the elderly Bruce Wayne's secret as the retired Batman. He takes up the mantle to continue protecting the city while uncovering the secret of his father's murder.

The announcement of the series was criticized but once it began airing it became extremely popular. It has become one of the most popular depictions of the Dark Knight, with fans praising the darker and more emotional story moments. It was nominated for numerous Emmys and Annie Awards, winning several. The series did spawn its own spin-off in The Zeta Project. Unfortunately, when Justice League was announced, the proposed fourth season was shelved. It did not get a proper series finale until the "Epilogue" episode of Justice League Unlimited. The characters have continued on in comic book form.

The series was written by Paul Dini and Alex Ross, with Dini also producing. It features the talents of Will Friedle as the second Batman Terry McGinnis, Cree Summer as Terry's friend and partner Maxine Gibson, Frank Welker as Bruce's pet dog Ace, Olivia d'Abo as Terry's occasional girlfriend and occasional villain Melanie Walker, Paul Winfield as Gotham district attorney Sam Young, Seth Green as school bully Nelson Nash, Dorian Harewood as villain Armory, Michael Ansara as original Batman villain Mister Freeze, David Warner as original Batman villain Ra's al Ghul, Clancy Brown as villain Big Time, Scott Cleverdon as Royal Flush Gang member Jack, Jeff Bennett as 2-D Man, John Rhys-Davies as the Albino, Xander Berkeley as Dr. Childes, Townsend Coleman as Falseface, Bill Fagerbakke as Payback, Ethan Embry as Terrapin, Kevin Michael Richardson as Fat T, George Takei as Mr. Fixx, Robert Patrick as Richard Armacost, Wendie Malick as Dr. Price, Gregg Berger as the Batcomputer, Marc Worden as Jody, Diedrich Bader as Zeta, Jason Marsden as Donny, Mark Hamill as Carter, Peter Mark Richman as Winchell, Patton Oswalt as Eldon Michaels, Ian Ziering as Mason Forrest, Bumper Robinson as Zack, Betty Jean Ward as a singer, Grey Griffin as a servant girl, Jennifer Hale as Jessie, Rino Romano as a kidnapper,