Justice League Unlimited (TV Series)

Epilogue (2005)

Will Friedle: Future Batman, Terry McGinnis

Photos 

Quotes 

• Bruce Wayne : You're a stubborn piece of work, you know that.

  Terry McGinnis : [sotto]  Just like my old man.

• Amanda Waller : As you know, I was in charge of Project Cadmus. Over the years I came to respect Batman, even trust him.

  Terry McGinnis : 'Guess the law of averages means somebody'd have to.

  Amanda Waller : Did you know I was the government liaison with the Justice League for a while? I met some extraordinary people in that job, but none of them were the equal of Batman.

  Terry McGinnis : [sarcastically]  Right, who could be?

  Amanda Waller : Not my point! I saw him save the day dozens of times with nothing but his wits, body and will. But I saw something else as the years passed. He was getting older, slower. Soon he would have to retire or, more likely, someone would finally manage to kill him. The thought of a world without Batman was unacceptable. So I decided to make a new one. I used my old Cadmus connections to gather the technology necessary for Project Batman Beyond.

• Terry McGinnis : My dad wasn't a superhero. He didn't save the world from the near-Apocalypse of '09, he never went toe to toe with Mr. Freeze, but he was a good man just the same. Even after he and Mom got divorced, he always tried to do the right thing. My brother and I were always provided for, when Mom couldn't quite make the bills he always helped out. He tried to teach me right from wrong. What have too if I'd ever listen to him. He never laid a hand on me, although Lord knows I was asking for it.

  Bruce Wayne : What's your point?

  Terry McGinnis : [Incredulously]  What's my point? My point is I never once doubted he loved me with all his heart! My point is all those warm feelings I had for my dad were just another lie! Another in a long list of things you've stolen from me! My point is I just found out Warren McGinnis isn't my father!... You are.

  Bruce Wayne : ...What do you want from me?

  Terry McGinnis : I wanna know the whole truth.

  Bruce Wayne : Sounds like you already do.

  Terry McGinnis : Guess I didn't wanna believe you were so incredibly arrogant that you thought the world couldn't go on without you.

  Bruce Wayne : Or someone like me. It's not arrogance, it's fact.

  Terry McGinnis : You set the whole thing up!

  Bruce Wayne : How? You were already a teenager when I first met your mother.

  Terry McGinnis : I don't know. Maybe you dug up some of that old Cadmus nanotech, used it to have my genes rewritten to match yours.

  Bruce Wayne : That technology's been illegal for over 40 years.

  Terry McGinnis : Didn't stop the Joker from using it on Tim Drake!

  [Bruce's eyes widen in shock over the comment] 

  Terry McGinnis : [Remorseful]  All right, low blow.

• Bruce Wayne : The mantle of Batman is a honor, Terry.

  Terry McGinnis : You know what, old man. All those years it turns out everyone was right. You are insane. Being Batman's no honor... it's a curse.

• Amanda Waller : He sat with her until her time came. That's the Bruce Wayne I came to know over the years.

  Terry McGinnis : You think he showed mercy? Maybe. But more likely he'd somehow already deduced that Ace really wasn't going to hurt anyone.

  Amanda Waller : He always was two steps ahead of everybody.

  Terry McGinnis : That's right. Even when it looks like your call, it isn't. Think about it. Bruce wanted a successor, another Batman. He planned it all from the beginning. I never had a chance.

  Amanda Waller : Honey, Bruce didn't overwrite your DNA with his. I did.

  Terry McGinnis : How? Why?

  Amanda Waller : Because the world needs a Batman. Not that I always thought so, mind you.

• Bruce Wayne : You're in my chair.

  Terry McGinnis : Yeah, I guess I am.

  Bruce Wayne : Where the devil have you been?

  Terry McGinnis : I had some stuff to take care of.

  Bruce Wayne : Enigma's overrated, especially at 3 AM. You could've called. I made you some soup, but it's cold.

  Terry McGinnis : Sorry. Don't mean to worry you.

  Bruce Wayne : I was worried about Gotham. If Batman's not around...

  Terry McGinnis : I've got it covered. Always.

• Terry McGinnis : How could you do it to me, Bruce?

  Bruce Wayne : The only thing that matters is the mission. You know that.

  Terry McGinnis : What about people, Bruce? Dick, Barbara, Tim, Selena... they all loved you, but eventually every single one of them left you. Ever wonder why?

  Bruce Wayne : Not for an instant. They quit because when it came down to it, they didn't have the heart for the mission. Are you about to quit too? It doesn't really surprise me.

• Terry McGinnis : I've got some questions I need you to answer.

  Amanda Waller : Of course you do, boy. Why else go to all the trouble of breaking into the lair of the great and powerful Amanda Waller? You want some green tea? I do.

• Terry McGinnis : You know why I can't marry you. If...

  Dana Tan : "If the bad guys ever found out I was Batman, they'd try to get to me by hurting you," blah blah blah.

  Terry McGinnis : It's nothing to joke about.

  Dana Tan : [Sarcastically]  You're right! There could be supervillains hiding in the tall grass!

• Dana Tan : What time is it?

  Terry McGinnis : It's just after 3:00.

  Dana Tan : Oh, baby, I have to be up at 5:00. What's wrong?

  Terry McGinnis : I just wanted to know if we were still on for this weekend.

  Dana Tan : Yeah. Why, did something come up again?

  Terry McGinnis : [taking out a box and opening it, revealing an engagement ring]  No. I just wanna ask you something.

  Dana Tan : So, ask.

  Terry McGinnis : No, not until I see you.

• Terry McGinnis : Don't pretend you're some dotty old lady who can't remember anything. I've got questions, and you're the only one left with the answers.

  Amanda Waller : Besides Bruce, you mean.

  Terry McGinnis : Bruce can't be trusted. I should have realized what he was capable of. Once he settles on a course of action, he won't stop at anything.

  Amanda Waller : If you think that, you don't know him at all.

• Terry McGinnis : I was 16 years old when you started training me, Bruce. A punk kid with a smart mouth and potential I didn't even suspect. I may have pretended otherwise, but I looked up to you, worshipped you.

  Bruce Wayne : What you wanted from me, I couldn't give to anyone.

  Terry McGinnis : Tell me something I don't know.

• Terry McGinnis : I'm poison, Dana. Cursed.

  Dana Tan : You're silly, McGinnis.

  Terry McGinnis : It's not silly for me to wanna keep you safe. Every moment we're together, you're risking your life.

  Dana Tan : I've told you a hundred times, that's a risk I'm willing to take.

  Terry McGinnis : I'm taking the choice out of your hands.

  Dana Tan : What are you saying?

  Terry McGinnis : I'm saying we're done.

• Bruce Wayne : Kent called. Nothing apocalyptic; he just wants your opinion on a case he's working. Said you could meet him at the Metro Tower.

  Terry McGinnis : Right. Better suit up.

  Bruce Wayne : You should eat something first, keep up your strength.

  Terry McGinnis : When I get back.

• Green Lantern : Good of you to drop in, considering that three-quarters of the Iniquity Collective are from your rogues' gallery.

  Future Batman : Well, it's the last time. I'm not working with you guys anymore.

  Dr. Light : What?

  Green Lantern : You can't quit. The Justice League needs Batman.

  Future Batman : Forget it. Batman is dead.

• Amanda Waller : I found a young neo-Gotham couple with psychological profiles nearly identical to those of Bruce's parents. Your father thought he was getting a flu shot. Actually, it was a nanotech solution programmed to rewrite his reproductive material to an exact copy of Bruce Wayne's. A little over a year later, your mother gave birth to you, a child sharing half her genetic material and half Bruce's. But when you're making a Batman, genetics is only part of the story. The rest is tragedy. Stop me if you've heard it before. You're eight years old. Your parents have just taken you to a rousing adventure film. A grand time is had by all. But unknown to you, a mysterious figure hides in the shadows.

  [in flashback, Terry and his parents are followed by the Phantasm] 

  Amanda Waller : My plan was simple. The killer would leap out at you and kill your family. The trauma would put you on the path to becoming Batman. One problem: my assassin wouldn't pull the trigger. I argued with her, but deep down, I knew she was right. People say Batman's obsessive, that he'd do anything to achieve his goals, but he'd never resort to murder. So if I was to honor all he stood for, neither could I.

  Terry McGinnis : And yet my dad wound up murdered anyway. Don't you get it? No matter what you did or didn't do, I was gonna end up being Bruce's carbon copy. It was fate.

  Amanda Waller : You know, the Lord's been a great comfort to me all these years. Try not to look so surprised. Yeah, I've got a lot to answer for when I meet Him, but I'd like to believe that for all the harm I've caused, I've also done some good. Maybe the angels need a sharp sword, too. Like the good book says, He moves in mysterious ways. His plan is a mystery, but here's what isn't: He gave us free will. We choose our own fate, for good or ill.