History YMMV / BatmanBeyondReturnOfTheJoker

** [[Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker Another movie]] would later have a [[Characters/StarWarsEmperorPalpatine villain]] return via genetic cloning. [[note]] Humorously, both questions of HOW their revivals via genetic science would later be retroactively answered/explained via certain sources, such as WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheBadBatch and [[AllThereInTheManual Secrets of the Sith]], and Justice League Unlimited's Epilogue.[[/note]]

** [[spoiler:Harley as an old lady and a grandmother is open to a lot of interpretation. WordOfGod confirmed that Ivy was not the mother of her children, so that ship is sunk.]] If she went straight, given her smacking the girls and shouting at them, how did her granddaughters fall under the Joker's influence, let alone become Jokerz gang members? Given they call her by her old nickname, how much did she tell them about her former life?

* EnsembleDarkhorse: The Jokerz in this movie[[note]]Bonk, Chucko, Ghoul, Dee Dee, and Woof[[/note]], especially Dee Dee, are all extremely popular among the fandom. This is likely the reason they were included in the BadFuture episode of ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague Unlimited'' and occasional comics.

* UnintentionallySympathetic: While he is a huge {{Jerkass}} and gleeful criminal, Bonk clearly doesn't like to see his friends pushed around by a nasty BadBoss. He also does raise a good point in how the Joker ''refuses'' to divulge his true plan to the gang and [[NeverMyFault constantly berates them for failing to live up to his standards.]] At the very least, he isn't nearly as much a monster as his boss. His subsequent execution would ''almost'' be an AlasPoorVillain moment; his teammates consider it as such, silently begging Joker to spare him with their expressions.

** Terry proclaims that he was never a Robin. While he didn't voice them as Robin, Creator/WillFriedle, Terry's voice actor, voiced Dick (as Nightwing) in the ''WesternAnimation/{{Batman|UnlimitedAnimalInstincts}}'' ''[[WesternAnimation/BatmanUnlimitedMonsterMayhem Unlimited]]'' [[WesternAnimation/BatmanUnlimitedMechsVsMutants movies]] and Tim (as Red Robin) in ''Anime/BatmanNinja''.

* SalvagedStory: The DCAU crew were aware of the negative reception towards the Joker’s design in ''[[WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries The New Batman Adventures]]'', so this film features yet another re-design for the Joker that’s presented in the flashback sequence. It combines elements of both his ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' (general appearance and details) and ''TNBA'' (the color scheme and triangular jawline) designs and adds a darker color scheme to his mouth and sharper teeth. This design was re-used for his chronologically earlier appearances in ''WesternAnimation/StaticShock'' and ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague.''

** [[Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker Another movie]] would later have a [[Characters/StarWarsEmperorPalpatine villain]] return via genetic cloning. [[note]] Humorously, both questions of HOW their revivals via genetic science would later be retroactively answered/explained via certain sources, such as [[WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheBadBatch]] and [[AllThereInTheManual Secrets of the Sith]], and Justice League Unlimited's Epilogue.[[/note]]

* SignatureScene:
** The flashback sequence detailing the Joker's death is easily the most famous and popular part of the movie.
** Also fondly remembered is the climax, especially where Terry BeatThemAtTheirOwnGame and delivers a BreakThemByTalking to the Joker.

* AuthorsSavingThrow: The DCAU crew were aware of the negative reception towards the Joker’s design in ''[[WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries The New Batman Adventures]]'', so this film features yet another re-design for the Joker that’s presented in the flashback sequence. It combines elements of both his ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' (general appearance and details) and ''TNBA'' (the color scheme and triangular jawline) designs and adds a darker color scheme to his mouth and sharper teeth. This design was re-used for his chronologically earlier appearances in ''WesternAnimation/StaticShock'' and ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague.''

* FanPreferredCutContent: There was a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWxf7bca0FE deleted scene]] in which Bruce and Terry go into the abandoned old Arkham Asylum, only to find [[spoiler:the hanging corpse of Joker's old body, smiling down, with the words "I KNOW" painted onto the corpse]]. The scene was deleted because it was seen as being too dark and disturbing for the film. However, many fans wished the scene was kept in, precisely because of how dark and disturbing it is.

** [[FilmTheRiseOfSkywalker Another movie]] would later have a [[Characters/StarWarsEmperorPalpatine villain]] return via genetic cloning. [[note]] Humorously, both questions of HOW their revivals via genetic science would later be retroactively answered/explained via certain sources, such as [[WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheBadBatch]] and [[AllThereInTheManual Secrets of the Sith]], and Justice League Unlimited's Epilogue.[[/note]]

* FoeYay: One of the biggest examples of Batman/Joker. To put it bluntly, [[spoiler:Joker kidnapped one of Batman's "sons" with the intention of molding him into his ''own'' "son".]]

** Due to the redesigns the Joker received throughout the run of the DCAU, his skin went from chalk-white to having a slight bluish tint here, making him somewhat resemble ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' villain Dr. Drakken, who would end up facing Creator/WillFriedle again, as Ron Stoppable. Even better, Drakken’s voice actor Creator/JohnDiMaggio would go on to voice the Joker himself in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanUnderTheRedHood''.

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation:

* FunnyAneurysmMoment: Joker claiming that Terry isn't Batman served as a metaphor to the fandom's reaction of Creator/ZackSnyder's take on Batman for the Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse, where he took down everyone ''with a gun occasionally''. (Even worse, Zack probably confirmed that Batman ''kills'' the goons)

* TheWoobie: Poor, poor Tim Drake.

*** Then again, [[TooBleakStoppedCaring others think such a twist would have made the story too depressing]].

** Similarly, Kristopher Carter's score is ''incredible'', blending the metal/techno-tinged world of ''Beyond'' effortlessly with an orchestra for a greater emotional scope.

** Did Bruce know or figure out at this juncture that [[spoiler:he was Terry's biological father thanks to Amanda Waller's project]]? Assuming not, then on the surface he was reassuring Terry that he had made the world safer by avenging Warren [=McGinnis=]. If so, that lends weight to when he tells Terry he should stop being Batman for a while because he's done the legacy proud and has avenged his father. Taken with the "Epilogue" reveal in light, Bruce is saying, [[spoiler:"I'm proud to have you as my son."]]

** [[spoiler:Harley as an old lady and a grandmother is open to a lot of interpretation. WordOfGod confirmed that Ivy was not the mother of her children, so that ship is sunk]]. If she went straight, given her smacking the girls and shouting at them, how did her granddaughters fall under the Joker's influence, let alone become Jokerz gang members? Given they call her by her old nickname, how much did she tell them about her former life?

** Just how evil is this branch of the Jokerz gang? Yes, they do some pretty rotten things with smirks on their faces and were members of the gang in the first place, but Joker is explicitly seen making it clear to them that ResignationsNotAccepted, keeping them LockedOutOfTheLoop about what he plans to do with the technology they're stealing, and it sounds like he tracked them down rather than vice versa, raising the question of how much choice they have about being his henchmen. In the ''Justice League Unlimited'' BadFuture, Chucko becomes TheMole helping Terry while [[spoiler: the [=DeeDee=] twins murder him]].

** Did Bruce know or figure out at this juncture that [[spoiler:he was Terry's biological father thanks to Amanda Waller's project]]? Assuming not, then on the surface he was reassuring Terry that he had made the world safer by avenging Warren [=McGinnis=]. If so, that lends weight to when he tells Terry he should stop being Batman for a while because he's done the legacy proud and has avenged his father. Taken with the "Epilogue" reveal in light, Bruce is saying, [[spoiler:"I'm proud to have you as my son"]].

** Seeing [[spoiler: The Joker finally die, especially after seeing his latest atrocity. Made even better by how he is [[KarmicDeath killed by the very person he tortured and brainwashed.]]]]

* CompleteMonster: [[Characters/DCAUJoker The Joker]]. See Monster/DCAnimation.

* FoeYay: One of the biggest examples of Batman/Joker. To put it bluntly, [[spoiler: Joker kidnapped one of Batman's "sons" with the intention of molding him into his ''own'' "son".]]

** [[spoiler: What Tim goes through here in the flashback, given that the backstory for ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamKnight'' has Jason Todd go through the same thing and end up assisting the Scarecrow in, what is for all intents and purposes, a terrorist attack on Gotham.]]

** See the cameo bit on the Trivia page? Considering all that's happened between Tim Drake and Stephanie Brown since this film was made, [[note]]Her "[[ComicBookDeath dying]]", a rocky ending, and [[Comicbook/BatmanEternal only recently coming back]]...[[/note]] it's nice to see that there's at least one version where the two of them settled down together with their own life.

** A former BigBad who seemingly died has come back to life through [[spoiler: nanotechnology attached to another character]]. Are we talking about the resurrection of The Joker or [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots Liquid Snake/Ocelot?]]
** [[spoiler:Harley Quinn, of all people,]] became a mother and eventually even a ''grandmother''? At least in [[ComicBook/InjusticeGodsAmongUs an alternate universe/franchise]] it looks like.

* InferredHolocaust: On two occasions, Joker uses a gigantic military orbital laser to carve a swathe of destruction through Gotham. Civilian casualties are never mentioned on either occasion, but it's a ''giant military laser'' carving through a ''major city'', often going right through buildings. One can only imagine the death toll. The commentary track notes that the laser [[ConvenientlyEmptyBuilding miraculously avoided hitting a single person.]]

** The movie gives the Clown Prince of Crime a rather infamous line-crossing moment: [[spoiler: he kidnapped then-Robin Tim Drake, [[ColdBloodedTorture tortured]] and {{mind rape}}d him for three weeks, mutilated him, "fixed" him up as Joker Jr., implanted a microchip doctored with the Joker's DNA into his body, and invited Batman over to see his work in detail (which included a home video of the boy's torture labeled as "Our Family Memories"). He then reveals that he's learned Batman's secret identity, ''mocks him'' for it (and for not having the balls to kill him after all this), and knifes him before he tosses "J.J." a spear gun to finish him off with.]] Also worth mentioning that this particular MEH crossing is the first and only instance where [[BatmanGrabsAGun Batman tries to kill the Clown Prince of Crime]] with his bare hands, and that Creator/MarkHamill, who had been voicing the Joker for years at this point, felt uneasy with the role this time.
** Even for the Joker, the events of ''Return of the Joker'' were extreme. Not even Harley Quinn gets a pass after helping with that. In fact, Paul Dini as he recounts in the DVD commentary argued against her dying, even drawing a picture of himself crying about it, while Bruce Timm believed that it had to show her chance at redemption was over and the Bat-family trying to help her was futile. [[spoiler: Although she survives anyways, thanks to her quasi-superpowered vitality after Poison Ivy made her nervous system immune to all poisons back in ''Batman: The Animated Series''.]]
** Jordan Pryce crosses it by [[spoiler:working with the Jokerz to sabotage Bruce's return to his company and showing NoSympathy about Bruce dying in a "home accident"]]. Fortunately, karma hits him in the end.

** A somewhat meta example, but [[spoiler: Harley is revealed to still be alive at the end,]] which is about three decades after [[spoiler: the Tim Drake incident]]. Even though there's enough material here for a whole miniseries or the like, It's ''never been detailed or brought up again.''
* UnintentionallySympathetic: While he is a huge {{Jerkass}} and gleeful criminal, Bonk clearly doesn't like to see his friends pushed around by a nasty BadBoss. He also does raise a good point in how the Joker ''refuses'' to divulge his true plan to the gang and [[NeverMyFault constantly berates them for failing to live up to his standards.]] At the very least, he isn't nearly as much a monster as his boss. His subsequent execution would ''almost'' be an AlasPoorVillain moment; his teammates consider it as such, silently begging Joker to spare him with their expressions.

* SpiritualAdaptation: In an AdaptationDistillation kind of way, the flashback sequence is a grat ComicBook/ADeathInTheFamily, since it hits the major beats of the Joker horribly disfiguring and traumatizing a Robin, pushing Batman to become darker and more isolated, while avoiding the story's less well-remembered parts.

* WinTheCrowd: A lot of people will point to this movie as the one that sold them on Batman Beyond as a concept, in large part because the movie fills in a lot of unanswered questions about what happened to the previous main cast, and because Terry's TheReasonYouSuckSpeech and defeat of the Joker involves using his ContrastingSequelProtagonist nature to his advantage.