The popular eighties comedy/science fiction film Back to the Future became the quintessential guideline anytime someone traveled through time into the past. Whether it was in comics or other films, the idea of traveling to the past and unintentionally running into your parents became the first warning for any would-be time travelers as something to avoid, rules DC superhero Booster Gold should know better than anyone. In the recent pages of Batman Beyond, Booster and Terry McGinnis travel to the past in order to change something horrible that happens in its future and despite his best efforts, Booster is unable to prevent the future Batman from running into his parents, specifically his father.
In Batman Beyond #48 by Dan Jurgens with art by Paul Pelletier, Terry returns from patrol but his hunger and banter with his brother Matt are cut short by Bruce Wayne’s sudden paranoid and hostile behavior. Deeming both of them as a threat, he commands Bat Tower defense to attack and kill them, lethal attempts that are foiled by the timely arrival of Booster Gold. Helping Terry escape, Booster explains that Bruce’s behavior is due to a telepathic command that planted in the former Batman’s brain decades ago which finally triggered today and that it has also cost him his brother’s life. Angry and grief-stricken, Booster and his robotic sidekick Skeets further explain their purpose in Neo-Gotham with the reveal of their Time Sphere, roping Terry into accompanying them into traveling to the past aka our modern-day world.
Once they’ve arrive in 2020, Booster and Skeets convince Terry that if they are able to stop the supervillain from planting the command in Bruce’s brain, he’d never lose his mind and thus saving Matt in the process. But before Booster can go into further details about what they can and can’t do, they are both distracted by a fierce home fire and the arsonist responsible, the telekinetic Blanque. Booster tries to explain that the original Batman is already on his way and that he and Terry should not meet, but the two cannot resist the calling to help others in need. While Booster tries and fails to take care of the bad guy, Terry tends to the innocent victims, eventually saving a young, red-headed bespectacled boy from his burning home. Terry is shocked to discover that the boy he’s saved is Warren McGinnis, his future father.
The shock on Terry’s face, even with his costume on, bring to mind the same face that Marty McFly had when he realized he was sitting next to his father George in that Hill Valley restaurant. Booster Gold tried to warn Terry about crossing paths with his mentor but it would appear that Booster Gold’s habit of unintentionally creating his own problems that others must contend with is a trait that all of his multiverse counterparts have. Terry is beyond surprised he’s meeting his dad, whose murder was one of the primary motivations that drove him to become Batman, and can’t help drop a few Beyond-isms here and there.
Unfortunately, this family reunion is interrupted by Bruce Wayne, who has no idea who Terry is and possibly believes him to be the villain responsible for the fire. Although Terry’s mother is nowhere in sight, Batman Beyond realizes he’s in trouble and about to find out if he could stand toe to toe with Batman in his prime, even if Booster Gold tries to make another dramatic save. If Back to the Future has taught us anything, it’s that all of these time-travel hijinks and paradoxes always get more complicated before they get better, and it’s already getting pretty heavy as is.
