Last week, for possibly the first time, Futures End actually outshined Batman Eternal in my eyes. The amount of good writing, interesting directions with the story, actual plot development, and an improvement in the artwork elevated the book. Can it keep it up this week?
Spoilers below!
Futures End #33 (DC Comics)
Writers: Brian Azzarello, Keith Giffen, Dan Jurgens, and Jeff Lemire
Artists: Aaron Lopresti and Stephen Thompson
Story
Father Time threatens the returning heroes to turn over the Engineer (due to her being previously controlled by Brainiac) or else. The heroes plus Black Adam choose ‘else’ and start attacking him, the S.H.A.D.E. guards, and the place’s monsters. As they all rumble, the Atom enters inside of Father Time and discovers some parasitic creature that is wrapped around the brain. The creature reveals that it is the true Father Time.
Spoiler Corner
After Fifty Sue captures a man named Ethan Boyer and sends him to Faraday and his boss (he used to work for Cadmus and they need him again after their base went kaboom), she leaves the motel he was staying at. Out in the parking lot, she overhears Cash Cole’s old buddy talking to him on a cellphone, yelling that he didn’t call him back sooner. Fifty Sue gut punches the guy with Deathstroke’s helmet and tells Cole over the phone he should have called her first.
Batman Beyond and Plastique are chatting with each other on a rooftop. Despite hearing about how Brother Eye was destroyed, Terry knows that isn’t true and knows the AI is still out there. However, he can’t seem to track it. Speaking of that A.I., Brother Eye escapes from Lois Lane’s cellphone, travels throughout the entire city and ends up in TerrificTech.
Firestorm Madison heads back to the Dr. Yamazake’s lab at Jason’s request (catching Cal’s attention as they fly overhead). Once there, Jason wants to see if they can find Yamazake’s recordings to see if they can find something to free each other from one another. However, they are both attacked by Dr. Yamazake, still crazy as ever.
Thoughts
After the past couple of issues, this one in particular was surprisingly light on storyline developments. Sure, there were two good moments that really stood out and really have my attention, but the others were light in progression. It was a shame too, since things have been really heating up in almost every story for a while now. Regardless, the writing and characterization are still good.
The artwork had two people on it and it definitely shows. You can tell when the comic switches between artists easily, making things rather distracting at points.
Most Memorable Moment
Ah, cosmic coincidences. Aren’t they just grand?
Join the AIPT Patreon
Want to take our relationship to the next level? Become a patron today to gain access to exclusive perks, such as:
- ❌ Remove all ads on the website
- 💬 Join our Discord community, where we chat about the latest news and releases from everything we cover on AIPT
- 📗 Access to our monthly book club
- 📦 Get a physical trade paperback shipped to you every month
- 💥 And more!
