On Apokolips, the Question infiltrates Darkseid's command center and determines that the dark lord plans an attack on Earth. Before he can send Darkseid's scheme to Batman, a parademon attacks him. The hero defeats it, but discovers that Kalibak, Darkseid's son, is waiting for him. The Question flees, defeating the parademons in his way, but finds himself chased to a platform above the firepits. Kalibak closes in and the Question leaps into the flames below rather than let himself be captured. The legend of Batman emerges as he rids the streets of crime, and seeks out a squire, Robin. Robin eventually took on the role of Nightwing and left, and Batman defended Gotham alone. He eventually fought one final battle against the Joker, who fell to his death rather than let the Caped Crusade saved him. With his greatest foe dead, Batman took a wife: Catwoman. They retired, and Bruce Wayne passed on the mantle of the Batman to Dick Grayson, the former Nightwing. Bruce and Selena have a son, Damian, and Bruce vows to train him in case the world needs a Dark Knight. Damian goes through a rigorous training regiment in combat and science. Later, the Waynes attend the opening of the Batman Museum, but Damian resents his father's attempts to map out his future as Batman. When he goes to see an exhibit, Selena warns Bruce that their son needs to find his own way without them pushing him. Explosions shake the museum, and Damian runs back to his parents. The person responsible flies in on a hover podium: JJ Joker, the Joker's Son. The villain takes his father's gag sledge hammer, while Bruce insists that the newcomer is simply an impersonator. He attacks JJ but the aging Bruce is soon overwhelmed. Selena comes to his aid using one of her whips, and Bruce suggests that Damian get some practice in. The boy hesitates, and Bruce insists that JJ won't ruin Batman's legacy. The current Batman, Dick Grayson, arrives. JJ triggers a series of explosions, setting the museum on fire. As Dick fights JJ, the Waynes try to get to safety. Bruce and Selena are caught in the rubble, and Dick and Damian go to their aid. With the fires closing in, Dick gets Damian to safety first. Before he can go back inside, the museum explodes, killing Damian's parents. After burying his parents, Damian goes to the Batcave where Dick is tracking down JJ. The boy blames himself, but Dick insists that there's nothing he could have done. It was tragedy that made first Bruce, and then Dick, the heroes that they became. Dick assures Damian that he needs to believe in himself and training his father gave him, and then drives off into the night. JJ is scrawling graffiti on a giant Batman memorial statue. Dick arrives and attacks him, but JJ triggers a gas cannon in the statue, attached to canisters of Joker Gas. JJ says that they want to destroy the image of Batman and kill the citizens of Gotham... and the Joker arrives in a mobile platform to stun Dick unconscious. The villains tie Dick to the statue, and the Joker explains that he survived his final fate with Batman. JJ is a fan, a nobody that the Joker trained to assume the role. However, all the chemicals he's exposed himself to over the years have left him with six months to live. To get the last laugh, the Joker plans to eliminate Dick, the last Batman. Dick insists that Batman is an idea, not a person, and can't die. The Joker prepares to shoot Dick, but Damian arrives, wearing a Robin costume. Dick tells Damian to keep the Joker and his "son" busy while he frees himself and deals with the gas. Damian battles JJ, saying he was born to the role and his enemy is a fake. As Damian rallies against his opponent, the Joker realizes that Dick is trying to stop the gas. He flies up and fires an electro-blast at Dick, dropping him to the ground. JJ says that they need to leave, but the Joker refuses to leave Dick alive. As Damian knocks out his villainous counterpart, the Joker activates the gas and laughs in triumph. Dick throws an explosive grenade, blasting the head off of the Batman statue. It lands next to Joker and blasts gas directly into his face, killing him once and for all. Damian accepts his role as Robin, and eventually takes on the role of Batman when Dick retires. In the distant future, Damian and his son, the newest Robin, fight crime together. Batman arrives home and discovers Alfred writing one of his fictions. When Batman says that he's off to capture Catwoman, Alfred notes that she might make a good wife some day. The Caped Crusader expresses his skepticism and leaves. Once his master is gone, Alfred puts away his book: "The Knights of Tomorrow."

Two years ago, the wrestler who would become B'wana Beast battles a masked gorilla in a match but loses. Afterward, the man bathes in a pool filled with toxic wastes and discovers he has the ability to merge and control animals, as well as enhanced strength. After another match, the man defeats the masked gorilla and takes its headpiece, and emerges as... B'wana Beast. Now, B'wana Beast is imprisoned aboard Faceless Hunter's spaceship in orbit above the earth, strapped into an energy-siphoning mechanism. The alien informs the hero that he wants to release his ultimate power, He turns up the power and B'wana Beast screams in pain. On Earth, the Green Lanterns take away the defeated Star Conqueror and remove the now-inert drones from the civilians and heroes. Aquaman and B'wana Beast have both gone missing, and Batman realizes the latter is aboard Faceless Hunter's ship. However, they have to wait to rescue him until they secure the planet. Meanwhile, Vixen looks anxiously to the sky above. Aboard the spaceship, B'wana Beast reminds Faceless Hunter that the alien's world is free now that Starro has been defeated. Faceless Hunter explains that he was an outcast, and his bargain was for Starro to destroy his world. Now he plans to transform B'wana Beast into the most feared force in the universe by channeling his energy. B'wana Beast breaks free but is soon defeated and reimprisoned. Captain Marvel finds Aquaman only to discover that he's still possessed. Batman tries to remove the drone but the possessed Aquaman throws him into the nearby harbor. The other heroes try to subdue Aquaman without success, but Batman recovers and tasers him unconscious. Faceless Hunter claims B'wana Beast is unworthy of his gift, and tortures him into releasing it. Faceless Hunter prepares to use the power to hunt the planets. Once Aquaman is freed, Batman says that it's time to rescue B'wana Beast. The heroes watch that all of the inert drones glow with energy and rise up into the sky. They come together and merge into one gigantic humanoid creature. Batman realizes that Faceless Hunter is using B'wana Beast's power as a weapon. Captain Marvel flies to attack the creature using his mystic lightning. This time, however, his lightning only energizes the creature, and it smashes the hero down with an energy eye-beam. The Starro-creature then smashes its hands together, using nearby radio towers as a giant tuning fork. Batman realizes it plans to set off enough towers to decimate the city. Aboard the spaceship, Faceless Hunter informs B'wana Beast that Earth will soon be shattered and added to his trophy. However, the hero is unable to free himself. The heroes launch attack after attack on the Starro-creature, but it drains of them of their heroic energies and their life forces, leaving them withered husks. Batman realizes what it is doing and warns the others, only too late. It sets off another radio tower, and Skeets warns Batman and Booster Gold that it will soon decimate the Eastern seacoast. Booster Gold suggests that Firestorm attempt to overfeed it again, Firestorm tries but fails and is drained as well. Batman tells Booster Gold that he's needed. Booster Gold and Skeets teleport to the lab of Doc Magnus, creator of the Metal Men. Batman figures that the Metal Men are immune to the power drain. However, when Booster Gold finds Doc Magnus, he discovers that he's been possessed by a Starro drone. The possessed Magnus informs Booster Gold that it has programmed the Metal Men to serve Starro and activates them. Skeets tries to get through to the robots as they attack. The Starro-creature continues its advance, draining anyone that gets in its way... including Batman. However, Booster Gold arrives just in time with the reprogrammed Metal Men, Batman's energies are restored, but he warns Booster Gold that the only way to stop the creature for good is to find B'wana Beast. He summons the Batplane and flies into space. Faceless Hunter continues to drain B'wana Beast's energies and detects Batman's approach. He opens fire on the Batplane, firing through a force shield that Batman is unable to penetrate with his missiles, which are trapped partway through the shield. A barrage of fire finally destroys the Batplane. However, Faceless Hunter that Batman hid himself in one of the missile nosecones. The hero emerges and boards the alien spaceship, only to discover that Faceless Hunter has detected him. The Starro-creature fires a blast at the Metal Men, disabling the attack jet that they've formed and sending it crashing to the ground. The Metal Men reveal their last trick: merging into one giant humanoid robot, Alloy. Despite his best efforts, Batman is stripped of his battle-armor and trapped in a force field. Faceless Hunter prepares to cut off his head and mount it among his Hall of Vanquished Heroes. The Starro-creature finally defeats Alloy, twisting it into a metal tower and using it as its final tuning fork. Batman manages to free himself from the force field, but Faceless Hunter subdues him once more and informs him he can counter any weapon he has. Batman reveals he's stolen one of Faceless Hunter's force field projectors and imprisons the alien. He then confirms that B'wana Beast can control the creature if he gets close enough, and flies the spaceship down. Despite the stress to his body, B'wana Beast makes the supreme effort. On the planet below, the Starro-creature begins to fall apart and a recovered Alloy delivers the final blows, smashing it apart. Screaming in agony, B'wana Beast tells Batman to tell Vixen that he loves her before disappearing in a flash of energy. The heroes recover their energy while the Metal Men revert to their normal forms. Batman lands and Vixen realizes what's happened to her fiancé. Later, B'wana Beast receives a memorial in the cemetery and the heroes gather to honor their fallen comrade.