| “ | Did you really expect me to believe you'd ever give me power? That I'd ever have an ounce of control as long as you were alive? You taught me by example, dad: The only way to get power is to seize it. | „ |
| ~ Paxton Powers |
Paxton Powers is a minor antagonist in Batman Beyond. Just like his father, Paxton was a corrupt industrialist bussinessman. His crimes included mass pollution, theft and various unscrupulous bussiness practices, as well as the attempted murder of his own father in order to usurp him as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Wayne-Powers. Thses actions also made Paxton into one of Batman (Terry McGinnis)'s rogues.
He was voiced by Cary Elwes, and later Parker Stevenson.
Biography
Derek Powers did not get along well with his son, for whom Derek displayed a cold attitude towards. Among other things, Derek never went fishing with his son. However, Powers did teach his son how to run a bussiness using objectionable means and tactics. Eventually, during his son's adult years, Derek Powers anticipated that Paxton would betray him and sent Paxton to South America (the fictional country of Verdeza) to handle company affairs in isolation. It was there that Paxton began running the division of Wayne-Powers at the cost of damaging the environment through mass pollution. He had also developed a taste for pre-Colombian art and had arranged the thefts of several atiques, thus amassing a large collection of stollen treasures. Among these items was the fabled Crown of Tikal that had been stolen from a museum in Mexico City.
Ascension
Do to his radiation powers becoming more unstable to control, Derek Powers called Paxton back to Gotham City in order to make him acting Chairman of the Board of Trustees. This decision had surprised Paxton, especially when he learned about his father's condition. But, Derek only wanted for Paxton to act out his new possition in the company in title only as Derek would be supervising Paxton's actions from the shadows. Beleaving that his father would never allow him to gain any true power over the company, Paxton immediately began plotting to remove Derek all together. Paxton had some of his men stage a mock protest during a televized board meeting, wherein Derek revealed himself as Blight to the public. As Blight went into hiding, Paxton schemed with Batman to use a device to weaken Blight and bring him in to cure him. However, in truth Paxton planed to kill his father in order to become the new CEO in the aftermath. Batman and Paxton tracked down Blight's hideout, an abandoned nuclear submarine. Batman refused to kill Blight, since he only ever wanted Blight to be sent to jail for his crimes, which caused Paxton to turn on Batman and attempted to kill him as well. A fight ensued in which Blight was able to break free and began emmiting higher blasts of radiation which caused the submarine to break-down and fall into the harbour. With Blight having been labelled missing, Paxton finally took over his father's position at Wayne-Powers. As he was settling in his new office, Paxton was told by Batman that he would be eventually brought to justice. Before leaving, Batman left Paxton with an ominous warning: because his father's body was never found chances were that Blight would someday return to exact his revenge.
Armory
Among several other unsavory tactics, Paxton fired the head behind Wayne-Powers light weapons manufacturing division, Jim Tate, since he wanted to shut down the weapons manufacturing division, not out of principal against violence, but rather to save money. Unfortunately, as a result of Paxton's actions, Jim Tate, who was struggling financially, went on to become the thief known as Armory, who stole technology from Wayne-Powers in order to construct weapons for terrorist and extremist groups.
Sneak Peek
Paxton was at one time caught by tabloid jurnalist Ian Peek partying at a swimming pool instead of working, thus furthering Paxton's lowsy image.
Batman Beyond #8 (comic book)
Paxton's investments were in trouble because of a vigilante known as Vendetta. Vendetta sabotaged a shipment that carried cases of a binary power cell battery which contained two inert gases that when combined create an energy source but the casting around the battery is flimsy and the gases will be harmful to the consumers if broken. Bruce told Paxton he was allowing potentially dangerous batteries to be sol to Peace Ex Machina Inc which would lead to liability issues for Wayne Powers. Paxton pretended to agree with this, however he still wanted to continue the commissions to transport the batteries. Paxton later discovers that Ms. Winston is Vendetta and that Ms. Winston wanted to destroy him to honor Derek Powers. Winston attacked Paxton as Vendetta after Paxton had his bodyguard Dominic shoot her for interfering. Terry escapes with Paxton as Vendetta breaks a battery and the inert gases combine with flammable gases in the warehouses which causes a huge explosion. Paxton's insurance provider was unable to step in to repair the damages, however Ms. Winston revealed to Paxton that she was responsible for the transfer of ownership order for his insurance provider to make Paxton pay for the damages out of his own pocket and there will be some changes now that she is back.
King's Ransom
As the new chairman of Wayne-Powers, Paxton issued several policies that prohibitted negotiations with terrorists and kidnappers.
Paxton hired the Royal Flush Gang (who were experiencing financial problems and lost their member Ten, who left the group) to steal art for him the Jaguar of the Verdeza from the Gotham City Museum of Art. However, do to their in-fighting the robbery was broken up by Batman and the statue was lightly damaged, it's left ear being chipped off. Despite Jack being arrested, the remaining gang members, King, Queen and Ace escape with the Jaguar of Verdeza. As King presents the statue for his reward, Paxton notices the statue was damaged and refused to pay and accept the artefact. Enraged, King tired to slice Paxton with his sword, but was stopped by Paxton's assistant and bodyguard, Sable Thorp. As an act of mocking ridicule Paxton throws a meagre sum of money at King and takes the Jaguar with him anyway.
In order to make up the lost money, as well as stop his wife from haraguing him about his faillers as leader of the gang, King kidnapped Paxton and held him for ransom for a sum of 20 million credits (future money). The plan failled on two occasions. Firstly, Paxton reveald that he could not pay-off his own ransom because he does not have any money since his assets were tied in investments, his lavish lifestyle was the result of company perkcs. Secondly and ironically, do to Paxton's no bargaining with kidnappers policy, as well as Bruce Wayne's disdain towards Paxton, the ransom is also denied. King points his sword at Paxton's neck in order to get him to reveal his secret stash, which happened to be his collection of stollen art work. Paxton offeres to pay the ransom with the Crown of Tikal, worth 40 million credits. Realising that Wayne would expose him for art theft to the police, Paxton bargained with his captors to kill Wayne, thus Paxton would become the sole owner of Wayne-Powers, a position which would allow him to reward the Royal Flush Gang even further. Despite Queen's dislike of the plan, King agrees. Wayne meets the gang at a park to handover the crown, but this was merely part of his Batman's ambush. Ace is destroyed, Queen is caught, but King escapes with crown. Back at the Royal Flush Gang's hideout, King reveals that he had been having an affair with Sable Thorp. Together they planned to steal Paxton's collection and then run off with it. Paxton could not reveal that it had been stollen since that would compromise him. Their plan is however ruined with the sudden appearance of both Queen, who is out to kill King for betraying the family, and Batman, who ultimatelly stops KIng and Thorp.
Paxton was ultimatelly arrested for the attempted murder of Bruce Wayne, and sent to jail by Commissioner Barbara Gordon. With Paxton in jail, all of the Powers family lost control of Wayne-Powers's corporate assets and shareholders along with everything they owned. Paxton's forced resignation led to Bruce Wayne taking back control of Wayne-Powers, as a result the company was renamed Wayne Enterprise.
One time, Derek Powers was able to arrange for Paxton to be released from prison and got Paxton a penthouse in the Gentrified Industrial Area. Batman confronted Paxton since he figured Paxton was the one responsible for financially sabotaging Wayne Enterprises and that Paxton was employing Glen Godfrey who orchestrated the termination of the renewed union contract for Wayne-Powers' employees. Batman followed Paxton to a warehouse and Paxton informed Batman that his benefactor wanted to meet him there. Bruce deduced it was a set up and told Terry to get himself and Paxton out of there. The warehouse exploded, however Batman was able to escape with Paxton and he was placed in protective custody while Blight was being dealt with.
Trivia
- Paxton and Diana Clay were very similar:
- Both were the offsrping of one of Batman's most deadly enemies. Paxton was the son of Blight, while Diana was the daughter of Inque.
- Both were called upon by their respective parents to help them. Blight needed Paxton to replace him as chairman of the Board of Directors, while Inque had Diana steal for her mutagens that would save her life from bodily deterioration.
- Both Paxton and Diana had betrayed their parents and attempted to murder them in order to gain their wealth. Both Paxton and Diana succeded in taking their parents' money, but Batman warned them that their parents were likely alive and plotting their revenge since their bodies had went missing: Blight was never found and Inque's remains had dissapeared from CSI holding.
- Derek Powers once hired Inque to perform corporate sabotage for him. They got along very well, with Derek praising Inque's skill and Inque admired Derek's charisma and planning.
