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MERCHANDISING: WHERE THE REAL BAT-CASH IS MADE
(by anyone that wants to contribute)

No one had any words of wisdom regarding merchandising for this issue of the newsletter. It's only a matter of time until someone finds something to write about...patience is a virtue.
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COMIC REVIEWS
(GOTHAM ADVENTURES by Tim "TWO-FACE" Leighton)
(BATMAN BEYOND by Tim Wan)

Welcome a new member to the newsletter staff, everyone! Tim Wan (many will know him for his great BATMAN BEYOND site - check out the links section for more) has hopped aboard to help me with the comic-reviewing duties. I will still be covering GOTHAM ADVENTURES, but the OTHER Tim will be covering all issues of the ongoing BATMAN BEYOND 
series. Let's put our hands together and welcome him to the newsletter!

BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES
ISSUE: "Minute Differences" (#22)
WRITTEN BY: Scott Peterson
PENCILLED BY: Tim Levins
INKED BY: Terry Beatty
ISSUED: January 5, 2000
RATING (out of 5): ****

The first animated story of the millenium. So?

Number 22. Ahh, my favourite number. I feel very close to this number, and it's not very difficult to pinpoint why. That said, I expect a lot from an issue bearing such a number. (Nice segue, huh?)

I was originally disappointed to discover that Peterson had stopped the tradition of using Two-Face (my namesake) in  of either series. It's a very minor complaint, to be sure. Why? Well - even though my day would've been made had the tradition continued, what WAS used was a terrific story, nonetheless.

Family. The whole issue was about family - for both the heroes and the villains. Even though Commissioner Gordon and Batgirl are regulars in the Bat-stories, we rarely see them working together - or even standing side by side, for that matter. This was a rare treat, and leaves much to be explored in future issues - or episodes of the animated series, should it continue in the future.

The villains, virtually nameless, are intriguing, too. They break out of jail, not commit crimes, but to visit their terminally ill mother. This is very touching; what's even more fantastic is Gordon's response to them, saying that if they hadn't caused the deaths of many people themselves, they would have been able to spend years with her. That's pretty deep, actually. It surprised me. I loved it.

I also made a rather interesting discovery - does Batgirl have a scar? It would seem that in the majority of the panels throughout the issue, Levins has added an extra line underneath Barbara's right eye. I originally thought it was just a fold in her skin, to show her winking or something of that sort, but even when she's holding a completely straight face, it's there. Where'd this come from? Every scar has a story to tell, does it not?

Great issue. I recommend it to all of you out there!

;-Y
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COMIC SCHEDULES & COVERING THE BASICS

This section gives a little bit more indepth look into each monthly issue of BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES and SUPERMAN ADVENTURES. Below each comic listing is a link to the cover of that comic. TALK ABOUT SERVICE!

The price is $1.99 in the US and...grrrrr...a whopping $3.25 in Canada. (Both our editors and many subscribers are Canadian, hence the "grrr".)

If we are unsure of the exact date of when an issue is being released, just check out "DIRECT CURRENTS" at http://www.dccomics.com  for details.

BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES #23
February 2nd?
Synopsis: Northern Canada is the backdrop, the kidnapping of oil is the crime, and Ra's Al Ghul is the villain.
Cover: http://www.comicscontinuum.com/stories/9911/16/bmga23th.jpg 

NEXT MONTH:
Synopsis: Batman and Batgirl must track down the missing Nightwing and Robin, who are being held by a villain who has outwitted them both. Batman can track the heroes down, but will he follow their footsteps right into a trap? This issue also features Killer Croc.
Cover: Unavailable

BATMAN BEYOND #6 (ongoing)
January 26th
Synopsis: Leaping from the TV screen: the sound-manipulating villain called Shriek! Deafened and imprisoned after his defeat by Batman, Dr. Shreeve has escaped! Now he's developed a device that uses sound waves to disrupt and disintegrate Batman's equipment... and he's a decibel away from destroying the Bat-suit and the man underneath
Cover: http://www.dccomics.com/directcurrents/comics/covers/bmb5.jpg 

FOLLOWING MONTH: Issue #6.
Synopsis: The Stalker returns.
Cover: Unavailable

SUPERMAN ADVENTURES #41
January 12th
Synopsis: Twenty-two single-page stories in a single issue! 
Featuring art by an array of artists that includes Ty Templeton, Rick Burchett, Philip Bond, Joe Staton, Craig Rousseau, Aluir Amancio, Neil Vokes, Bret Blevins, Cameron Stewart, Mike Manley, Darwyn Cooke, and more, the stories focus on theMan of Steel, his supporting cast and several of his deadliest enemies, including Luthor, Metallo and Mr. Mxyzptlk! 
Cover: http://www.dccomics.com/directcurrents/comics/covers/sma41.jpg 

NEXT MONTH:
Synopsis: Unavailable
Cover: Unavailable
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NEWS AND RUMORS

ALL-ENCOMPASSING/OTHER
-THE NO MAN'S LAND NOVELIZATION HAS HIT BOOK SHELVES AND NEWSSTANDS! 
Greg Rucka's Batman adaption of the mega-successful NO MAN'S LAND crossover has finally been released as a hardcover novel. Prices vary from location to location. 
Editor's note: GO PICK IT UP! IT ROCKS! 
-THE BATMAN BEYOND INFO PAGE will be holding a contest. 
The prize and rules of the contest are posted up at the site:
http://www.rogue-spear.com/BB 
-Check out the VERY FIRST Batman Beyond chat room at this URL:
http://mercury.beseen.com/chat/rooms/p/10496 
*Note: You must register a handle before chatting, which you can do 
at the above URL given*
-KIDS'WB! is expected to make their mid-season announcemnt soon, as well as their fall 2000- 2001 season announcement in the next six weeks. It's still unsure if (or how many times) BATMAN/SUPERMAN will return, due to the fact that KIDS'WB! has about 4 to 5 new series on the way.
-Terry Beatty has been and will be selling Gotham Adventures and Batman Beyond original art on ebay. His Seller ID is: 
wlee@muscanet.com  
Do yourself a favor and check out some great art! 

ANIMATED SERIES (BTAS, STAS, BEYOND)
-It looks like KIDS'WB! won't be airing LEGACY in January as originally predicted, but could air during Febuary sweeps. We'll keep ya posted!

ANIMATED COMICS
-Last week, we reported that after Mark Millar leaves SUPERMAN ADVENTUERS, long-time fan-favourite Ty Templeton (GOTHAM ADVENTUERS) will jump one board for a few issues; Ty himself has confirmed that, at this point in time, this is NOT true - but does leave the door open to the possibility SOMEDAY. (Note: He's really busy already.) 
Sorry for the crossed lines there, fans.
-GOTHAM ADVENTURES # 4: Batman and Batgirl must track down the missing Nightwing and Robin, who are being held by a villain who has outwitted them both. Batman can track the heroes down, but will he follow their footsteps right into a trap? This issue alsofeatures Killer Croc. Ships on March 1.
-The Terrific Trio story slated for BATAMN BEYOND #3 might still be published, and could be published befpore the first 12 issues are complete.
-Terry Beatty will be penciling an upcoming issue of GOTHAM ADVENTURES.

OTHER COMICS
-Talia will be appearing in DETECTIVE COMICS somewhere around 0.

MOVIES
-AIN'T IT COOL NEWS has a hole trove of info regarding the future of all BATMAN film and TV franchises. Check out the following link for the scoop!
http://www.aint-it-cool-news.com/display.cgi?id=4946
-The BATMAN: DEFENDER OF GOTHAM website has aquired a whole load of information about the pilot to the proposed BRUCE WAYNE series. 
There are some spoilers so be careful. It's a great run-through at this URL:
http://www.fandom.com/batman/editorial.asp?action=page&obj_id=50702
-The BATMAN BEYOND movie will be animated by TMS. (Good move, WB. Excellent.)
-Paul Dini, who wrote the script for Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, 
says that the voice recording for the BEYOND movie has been completed. 
He then said: "One bit of guest-star news I can give you is that among 
the many new villains introduced in the film are twin hit-girls both named Dee-Dee," Dini said. "They are played by everyone's favorite teen witch, Melissa Joan Hart." Hart, the star of ABC's Sabrina, The Teenage Witch, has worked with the Bat-crew before. She did the voice of Saturn Girl in an episode of Superman. Look for more details on 
-Batman 5: Ben Affleck is apparently close to signing onboard the fifth 

Batman project for an estimated $15 million, though he has set a rather strange condition. A WB source revealed to the The Sunday Mirror that "Ben has told studio executives he'd love to be the fourth Batman, but he really wants Gwyneth to play Catwoman alongside him...Ben thinks they would have brilliant on-screen chemistry together, and has promised he will work on her to get her on board". Paltrow is apparently a huge fan of Michelle Pfieffer's version of the role in 1992's "Batman Returns", and helping to cement the possibility is that she and Affleck, whose highly reported relationship ended around a year ago, appear to be becoming a hot item again. Can it be pulled off? Unsure. Personally I can see Affleck as the Bat, but Paltrow as Catwoman just doesn't click - she just doesn't convey that "unsure if she is good or bad" sense the character needs and which Michelle did so well.
-Then again, in a post on his affleck.com messageboard, the 27-year-old star slammed shut the door on the gossip saying "As I'm sure most of you might infer, this story is absurd. 
There is no Batman script, no movie being planned, they have not called me or my agent and Gwyneth is much more the "Electra" (daredevil reference) type...I really have no idea where they get this stuff. It is as if someone sits in a room and quite literally invents it". If that doesn't clear things up, who knows what will, and to read the specific post in question click here.

TOYS, BOOKS, AND OTHER MERCHANDISE
-A 9" BATMAN BEYOND figure with a cloth costume will be released later this year.
-Starting January 3, Burger King & Batman Beyond teamed up for four weeks of action figures and kids meals. Once BK is done with Pokemon toys, they will start a four month promotional Batman Beyond Kids' Meal pack. These will include all-new action figures made spefically for the fast food franchise. Go to http://www.burgerking.com  for details.
-THE BATMAN BEYOND BOARD ( http://www.insidetheweb.com/mbs.cgi/mb163084 ) 
has gotten picutres of the 8 toys to be released by BURGER KING 
beginning January 3rd! The link for the post is here:
http://www.insidetheweb.com/messageboard/mbs.cgi?acct=mb163115
&MyNum=946238506&P=No&TL=946238506 

-With anticipation of the novel BATMAN: NO MAN'S LAND being released in January, DC Comics online has given NML it's own section. It includes information on both the hardcover novel, and the Youger Readers version, as well as excerpts. Follow the URL given:
http://www.dccomics.com/features/nmlbk/nmlbk.htm 
-The SUPERMAN video game for Playstation will be out in the first 
quarter of 2000.
-The first issue of the Sega Dreamcast magazine says a Batman Beyond 
video game is due out in 2000.