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The DC3kly Presents: “New 52: Futures End” Week 11 – Futures End #10-11 [Review]

By | July 18th, 2014
Posted in Columns | % Comments

The DC3 decided to take on the Herculean task of covering DC’s weekly books! Our coverage will rotate between creator interviews, issue reviews and annotations, and long-form pieces on featured characters. This, friends, is the DC3kly!

The New 52: Futures End #10
Written by Brian Azzarello, Jeff Lemire, Dan Jurgens, and Keith Giffen
Illustrated by Aaron Lopresti

A deep-space distress call gives new hope to Frankenstein and the S.H.A.D.E. team. And what makes Lois Lane question the masked Superman’s true identity?

On the Cover: Terry, Coil, Key, and Plastique look over the digital blueprints for Terrifitech, planning their break-in.

How is the Story Progressing?: The issue picks up with Supermask, as Vince so lovingly names him, investigating the lab for Ethan Boyer, the escaped convict from the previous issue. Lois shows up to tell Supermask that such a rambunctious invasion is unnecessary, as Boyer hasn’t used the lab in years, something she had learned from Superman himself some time previously. While this could just be a mild oversight on Supe’s part, it lends more and more credence to the idea that Clark is not the one under the mask. More on that later.

Next we find the trio of would be burglars discussing their plans in the Wounded Duck, when they are confronted by Terry. Rather than opposing them, Terry offers to help get them into Terrifitech as this works towards his goals as well. When the Key stands to oppose Terry, the Bat-protege uses a technique created by Bruce to incapacitate the Key. This catches the eye of Tim Drake, still masquerading as the Wounded Duck’s bartender, leading to a tense confrontation between the two.

Catching up with the Stormwatch search party, we see the first hints of a possible romantic relationship between Hawkman and Amethyst. The demonstrate some surprisingly strong chemistry, and I actually look forward to this relationship developing further. We also learn that Hawkman’s Nth metal gives him a healing factor on par with Wolverine, so there’s that.

The Cadmus storyline takes an interesting turn for both the reader and Fifty Sue (still such a silly name), as Grifter is attacked by a rogue, invisible O.M.A.C. The attack is more than just the simple baiting by Fifty Sue that we’ve seen previously. One can only wonder if this particular O.M.A.C. has a connection to Kevin Kho, the original character from the short lived but delightful New 52 launch series.

The issue ends with a segment that can only be written by Jeff Lemire. In a soup kitchen in Canada, we find a young girl spying on a very Amazonian-esque female volunteer. When the young girl attempts to pursue her mark, she finds the tables quickly turned. The ensuing confrontation reveals the pursuer to be Emiko, Oliver Queen’s half-sister, and the other to be Barda, exiled New God.

New 52 Debuts: No debuts here, but this is the first time we’ve seen Emiko and Barda in “Futures End,” as well as the first time Barda has appeared on Earth Prime.

Death Toll: No deaths! I’m starting to think this is a happy comic!

Visuals: Aaron Lopresti continues to deliver good, if somewhat uneven artwork. It’s somewhat disappointing however, that his work doesn’t feel quite as strong as it did on “Sword of Sorcery,” especially when “Futures End” sees him returning to Amethyst once more.

Three Big Questions:

1. Just who is the masked Superman?

I’m sure this has been asked before in a previous DC3 article, but new evidence bears revisiting the question. The character is certainly a bit more brash and hot headed than Clark. This fits with a recent theory I came upon following the release of DC’s October solicitations. The cover released for that month’s “Futures End” solicitations show “Supermask” surrounded by energy, with what appears to be a bolt of lighting striking his S-shield. While the lighting and full suit calls to mind the “Superman Blue” of the late 90’s, it also suggests that it might be Billy Batson inside the suit. The personalities certainly line up, and it would also explain why Black Adam was imprisoned in the Phantom Zone.

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Whether this juicy bit of speculation is correct or not, it leads to another question. If Clark isn’t wearing the Superman costume, where is he?

2. Does Bruce know Tim is alive?

When Tim recognizes Terry’s execution of the “deathless” variant of the Tonga Death Strike, he instantly realizes that Terry is a student of Bruce. When he confronts Terry, Tim asks “Has he mentioned me?” Terry’s enigmatic reply of “I wouldn’t know” could mean nearly anything, but I wonder especially about Tim’s question. Does Bruce know that Tim is alive? If so, why hasn’t he sought him out? Had their relationship soured prior to the Earth War, something that occurs in “Batman: Eternal,” perhaps?

3. How did Barda escape after the Earth 2 War?

Last issue revealed a prison camp on Cadmus Island, in which numerous denizens of Earth 2 were contained. While Mr. Miracle, a New God rather than an Earth 2 native, Barda, his wife and companion, was not. How did she escape capture, and moreover, how did Emiko know she even existed?

Final Verdict: 8.0 – A solid issue with compelling characterization and a good bit of forward momentum.

The New 52: Futures End #11
Written by Brian Azzarello, Jeff Lemire, Dan Jurgens, and Keith Giffen
Illustrated by Georges Jeanty

The Justice League demands Firestorm answer for Green Arrow’s death.

On the Cover: Roy Harper rages on Ronnie Raymond as the rest of the Justice League looks on.

How is the Story Progressing?:

Although Grifter has been missing for weeks, his partner Justin continues to hold down the fort, keeping an eye on an alien prisoner. That is, until the alien mouths off a few too many times. Justin decides it’s time to cut and run, and goes to meet a woman he desperately hopes is sober. Whether it’s who expected or not, he finds Voodoo.

Frankenstein and his team, sans Ray Palmer, set out to track the Stormwatch signal. Along the way, Amethyst gives some background regarding the fall of Gemworld. Frankenstein, meanwhile, cracks a joke that took him over 200 years to come up with. The signal leads the team to an uncharted planet. There ship loses power upon entering the planet’s atmosphere, and they crash in a metallic valley on the planet’s surface.

Alarmed by the Cyborg brought back from the future by Terry, Mr. Terrific uses his connections and power to bring the future Batman to the attention of the public, branding him as a threat. Meanwhile, an actual threat, the parasite-esque cyborg from a few issues back is found on an abandoned ship, where it has killed the entire crew.

Finally, Ronnie Raymond his brought before the Justice League to answer for his part in the death of Green Arrow. This predictably leads to another altercation between Ronnie and Roy Harper. We learn more about Ronnie’s seemingly selfish motivations, which stem from his inability to save his mothers life during the war, a result of his Justice League obligations. We are once again treated to a dramatic scene in which Ronnie and Jason renounce their role as Firestorm, leaving the League one (or two?) man down.

New 52 Debuts: While he showed up on panel during Green Arrow’s funeral, this issue gives a name for the mysterious flag-bearing member of the Justice League; Stormguard. I believe this is also the first time we’ve seen Voodoo since her series was cancelled over a year ago.

Death Toll: Grifter’s companion Justin shoots an alien, exploding its head. The cyber-parasite monster from a issue #8 kills a lot of people on boats.

Visuals: Georges Jeanty is a welcome addition to the rotating team of “Futures End” artists, one that meshes well with the tone established by Zircher. The artist’s smooth style is aesthetically pleasing, and his grand, wide panels are very good. The sequence in which Frankenstein’s team crashes on an uncharted world is terrific. However, Jeanty’s work does feel a little rushed in places, particularly in the scene with the Justice League. Character’s faces seem oddly rounded and lacking detail. Aquaman and Flash in particular look younger here than they do in the present DCU. Even so, this is a solid effort, and I wouldn’t mind seeing Jeanty contribute more as the series continues.

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Three Big Questions:

1. What has Voodoo been up to?

As far as I know, this is the first time we’ve seen Voodoo since her series ended. While it’s not too surprising to find her in league with fellow Wildstorm alum Grifter, one has to wonder what exactly she’s been up to for the past 5+ years, besides hanging out in Morrison’s comic book limbo.

2. Who conquered Gemworld?

We get a bit more insight into the fall of Gemworld. It seems that the chaos brought on by the Earths War left a golden opportunity for a would be conqueror to rise up and take hold of the magical realm. Still, even with that explanation, a lot of questions remain. Does Gemworld still exist? Has Amethyst considered reclaiming the realm, now that the war is over. As she has not already done so suggests that things are certainly dire. “Futures End” already has a number of spinning plates that are in danger of dropping, but I would certainly like to see this subplot explored more thoroughly.

3. Who’s who in the new Justice League?

This issue marks the first time we’ve seen the full “5 years later” Justice League roster. Interesting additions to the team include Equinox, the new character Jeff Lemire is currently introducing in “Justice League United,” and Stormguard, a complete enigma at this point. The team seems to be a mix of the current Justice League and JLU teams, with Red Arrow taking the place of his fallen predecessor. Notably absent, however, are any members of the Green Lantern Corps, as well as Batman.

Final Verdict: 8.5 – Like issue #10, this issue continues to take the ever growing cast in interesting directions, and Georges Jeanty’s art is particularly enjoyable.

The Series So Far: 7.7 – These two weeks showed an uptick in momentum for “Futures End” as the current surrounding the events of the war between worlds is slowly pulled away. The Frankenstein plot thread continues to be the book’s most interesting draw, but newcomers like the Emiko/Barda team-up show a lot of promise as well.


//TAGS | The DC3

Zach Wilkerson

Zach Wilkerson, part of the DC3 trinity, still writes about comics sometimes. He would probably rather be reading manga or thinking about Kingdom Hearts. For more on those things, follow him on Twitter @TheWilkofZ

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