After a long while, I decided to go back and watch the Batman TAS franchise. There's something that bothers me about the episode from Batman Beyond - Out of the Past, specifically about Ra's and Talia. Keep in mind this is the Batman TAS/DCAU interpretation of Talia, who is arguably different from her comic book and live action counterpart, and is portrayed as a morally gray anti-hero rather than a clear cut villain.

From what I understand, Ra's started the Near Apocalypse of '09, nearly destroying the world (mentioned in "Out of the Past"). It could be assumed that the Near Apocalypse of '09 is a result of Ra's trying to execute his plan of flooding the world with Lazarus chemicals (mentioned in Batman TAS - "The Demon's Quest"). Talia betrayed Ra's and helped Batman stop Ra's. Ra's was mortally wounded to the point where he couldn't be healed even by the Lazarus Pit. Ra's mentions that he (and I quote) "called upon Talia to undertake the ultimate act of loyalty", which is a very vague and open ended statement, leaving much to interpretation. Using such a vague statement to describe a character's final moments bothers me since it ignores character development. "Calling upon" someone doesn't mean they are a willing participant, nor does it mean they have full knowledge of what they are being "called upon" for. Personally, I seriously doubt she would have knowingly and willingly sacrificed herself to Ra's, and here's why.

1) Talia is portrayed as equally loyal to Batman as well as Ra's depending on the situation. She sided with Batman against Ra's during the Near Apocalypse, resulting in Ra's being mortally wounded. If the Lazarus Pit couldn't heal Ra's, then it's obvious that he didn't have long to live, perhaps hours if not minutes. It seems unlikely that Talia would suddenly give herself up to Ra's mere moments after he nearly killed everyone and destroyed the world.

2) Talia and Batman legitimately cared for and loved each other. She also knows that Batman and Ra's are enemies. It doesn't seem logical that Talia would willingly allow Ra's to kill her and possess her body, knowing full well that Ra's might eventually try to kill Batman once again and attempt another apocalypse.

3) In Batman TAS, Talia isn't a hero or villain, she's more of an anti-hero. Depending on her disposition, she could be interpreted as either lawful neutral or chaotic neutral. It seems she picks between Batman and Ra's whenever it benefits her most. That said, there is no benefit for her to side with Ra's when he is near death after having sided with Batman.

Like her father, Talia wanted to better the world, but didn't agree with Ra's al Ghul's method, which was to destroy everything. She was also a romantic interest to Bruce, and cared enough about Bruce to prevent Ra's from killing him. If she willingly gave herself to Ra's, knowing full well that she would die, then that means she valued her father's life over Bruce, as well as her own wishes for a better world. If she was forced or tricked into donating her body to Ra's, then that helps to reinforce how sincere the relationship between Talia and Bruce was (which was more sincere in TAS/DCAU than in any other incarnation), and how much she cared about bettering the world in her own way. Something like this is pivotal to character development, helps to deepen the story, and brings in a more human element to the characters. It was the final defining moment of her character, which was never explained or portrayed. The lack of closure on the subject bothers me, because as it stands, it doesn't confirm Talia's intents or wishes either which way. What it does disclose, however, is that Ra's al Ghul cares more about himself than the well being of his offspring, which deepens his character as a villain.

All that said, I sincerely believe that Talia was either tricked or forced into sacrificing herself so Ra's could live. Granted, without any sort of episode or movie that covers the Near Apocalypse of '09, there's a lot of things that could be taken heavily out of context. It seems to me that the writers of "Out of the Past" was desperate to include Ra's and Talia in Batman Beyond, but didn't want it to be another simple "oh look, Ra's is still alive" type scenario. Regardless, I'd be interested in hearing everyone else's opinions on the matter. Do you ladies and gents think Talia willingly sacrificed herself, or do you think she was tricked/forced into it?