Warning: Contains spoilers for Batman Beyond: Neo-Gothic #3!
As the future Batman of the Batman Beyond continuity continues to explore the hidden depths below Gotham, the Court of Owls has resurfaced. In a bid to take their “rightful” place as the rulers of Gotham, the Court has created their own version of the Dark Knight with the aid of the Garden that lurks even further beneath the surface.
The Court’s undead Batman is set to battle Terry McGinnis for control of the city’s future — and perhaps turn Terry and his Catboi companion into food for the Garden in the process. In Batman Beyond: Neo-Gothic #3 by Jackson Lanzing, Collin Kelly, Max Dunbar, Sebastian Cheng, and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou, Batman and Kyle the Catboi work their way through the disorienting maze set up by the Court of Owls. After finding themselves in an auditorium, they’re confronted with a monstrous, glowing “Batman” that promises Gotham will be “saved by what it has buried.”
This new “undead” Batman form isn’t exactly a zombie; it’s a monster in the shape of Batman created by the remnants of the Court of Owls — and it seems to be made of mushrooms and fungus. The encounter leaves Terry to fend for both his life and his position as Batman.
The Court of Owls Created Its Own Undead Batman
The Court of Owls has been an insidious undercurrent in Gotham as long as the city has existed. There is no string the Court hasn’t pulled, and there is practically no one it hasn’t made (or attempted to make) into a puppet. In this continuity, Bruce Wayne sealed them into a vault, putting them as far beyond reach as possible — but the mysterious Garden has allowed them to plan for their eventual release. They used that time to create a formidable foe, as their Batman is shown growing to enormous sizes and constantly changing for new attacks. It’s fed information through a mycelium-like network, which grants it knowledge of both Terry and Kyle, and its sole purpose is getting the Court of Owls back to the surface.
This first encounter is fearsome, and Batman and Kyle barely escape by plunging further into the darkness. Meanwhile, the Court is focused on using their Dark Knight to “rise toward the sun” instead. Not only does the Garden allow the Court to make its fungal-like Batman, but it also feeds them memories and knowledge. It knows Terry and holds enough of Bruce Wayne’s memories to make a mockery of Batman’s mission as it proclaims itself as “vengeance” and “the night.” It has yet to be revealed just how the Garden gains that knowledge, but whatever it knows is dispersed through the system that leeches on everything it touches. It has allowed the Court of Owls to keep its finger on the pulse of Gotham, even as it was locked away beneath the city. The Court is prepared to “save” and warp Gothm to their liking with their zombie-like creation.
As Batman and Kyle continue to go further down the labyrinth tucked under Gotham Deep, they’re getting closer to the Garden. That doubtlessly means another encounter with the mushrooms masquerading as the Dark Knight is in their future, as neither Kyle’s magic nor Terry’s strategy has caused it much harm. As long as the Garden grows, everything it touches does the same. There may be answers in the darkness for Batman, but that does not mean anyone will survive finding them.
Batman Beyond: Neo-Gothic #3 is available now from DC Comics!
