DC Revives Major Batman Beyond Villain—Only to Squander the Comeback

You know what always gets comic fans buzzing? When a classic villain pops back up for revenge, usually fiercer than ever, and you bite your nails wondering how the heroes will handle it. Well, DC just tried that trick with Batman Beyond, but trust me—if you’re hoping for an epic comeback, this one’s a swing and a miss.

The Setup: A Future Crossover Nobody Asked For

The anticlimactic return in question happens in the last issue of Batman/Static Beyond, a limited series written by Evan Narcisse, with art from Miguel Mendonca. The comic takes place in a sort-of speculative future, mixing the worlds of Static Shock and Batman Beyond—so yes, you get older, alternate DCAU favorites and a mash-up with Milestone’s brightest.

While the story mostly follows Batman (that’s Terry McGinnis, not Bruce Wayne) teaming up with Static to take down a new baddie called Shutdown, things take a turn when the sinister government agency Cadmus sees a golden opportunity to make trouble. Shutdown is attacking a school for young metahumans, the Tomorrow Institute, and Cadmus zooms in to try to snatch the kids for their own not-so-great experiments.

And among the Cadmus goons? Surprise! It’s a deep-cut villain from Batman Beyond making a comeback—one that, honestly, deserved a lot better.

Blight Returns…and Immediately Gets the Boot

Derek Powers, better known as Blight, is your guy here. If you need a refresher: he was the radioactive, glowing skeleton CEO behind all the corporate evil in Batman Beyond’s first season. Powers ran Powers Tech, swallowed up Wayne Enterprises, and turned the merged company into a weapons factory. Irony being what it is, he gets zapped by his own nerve gas invention, survives only after some wild medical procedures, and ends up dangerously radioactive forever. Bruce Wayne’s old nemesis, check. Murdered Terry’s dad, check. Died (or so we thought) at the end of season one, check.

Well, Batman/Static Beyond #6 drops the ‘he’s dead’ angle and reveals that, nope, Blight is still kicking. What he’s been up to all this time isn’t really explained, except for a vague throwaway about government work. Not exactly the jaw-dropping revelation fans might’ve wanted.

But here’s where it gets really weird: Blight is back for, wait for it, about one page. And then he’s wiped out almost instantly by Beacon (the young hero) and Ebon (sometimes hero, sometimes not). They don’t even consider him a real threat. That’s it. End of arc, see you later.

'Blight shows up, the heroes treat him like a minor inconvenience, and he’s out of commission. It’s like he tripped and fell out the window the minute he walked in the room.'

So...Why Bother Bringing Him Back?

• Blight was never DC’s most intimidating villain, but he’s been key in the whole Terry/Bruce Wayne dynamic, and was behind some classic episodes.
• His radioactive abilities have always been a bit gimmicky, but he’s mostly remembered for being the guy who made Batman Beyond interesting from the start (by, you know, ordering a murder).
• Teasing his return, but then having him brushed off by two secondary heroes—without even a direct face-off with Batman—just feels lazy. Not to mention it kind of wastes one of the show’s few memorable original villains.

If you still want to see how it plays out, Batman/Static Beyond #6 is out now in comic shops. But if you ask me, Blight deserved more than to be the comic book equivalent of a jump scare that fizzles. Maybe next revival will stick the landing.