It’s been a good stretch of Futures End issues, the plot continues to evolve and we’ve been treated to exciting action. From Black Adam holding back an army of Brainiac drones by himself apparently, to Superman, Superbeard as I like to call him, getting his hands dirty, there’s not a lot to be upset about in terms of direction. The latest issue of Futures End doesn’t have the same wow factor from last week’s issue, which had another huge plot twist in the form of the “Batman/Joker” robot. Instead #24 focuses a lot of the different relationships scattered throughout the Futures End timeline. If you have a soft spot for the relationship side of superheroes, then this issue is great for you. Unfortunately this stalls the plot development just a tad.
Positives
One of the bright spots for this issue was Mr. Miracle and Fury freeing themselves from Brainiac’s control. Due to faulty implants installed in them by Brainiac they were forced to fight each other, with Fury giving Mr. Miracle most of the business. Miracle figures out a way though to remove both implants from them and together they hatch a plan to try to bring down Brother Eye. It’s very encouraging to see at least two of the imprisoned Earth 2 heroes break free from their prison cells and attempt to go on the offensive. There’s also some hints of the romance between the two so that will be interesting to watch, the further we read on.
It will great to see once the Green Arrow-lead heroes attack the island as well because I’m sure we’d be in store for some interesting Mr. Miracle and Big Barda dialogue.
Although I’m not a fan of Dr. Yamzake I can’t help but think that his paranoid doctor personality is going to put us in line for some great action down the road. Because there’s no way this invention will work out alright. To go from a mannequin to a human being is a surefire way to do some damage, but do you think a genius like Dr. Yamzake would understand that? Of course not, that would make way too much sense and be too easy. I just can’t wait for Jason to be standing right there and sporting the “I told you so” look.
Negatives
I’m so over Constantine’s “Whoa is me” attitude. Come on he’s just going to sit there as two people are attacked by that weird robot machine? Not a fan of that at all. Superbeard showing up to throw down certainly took some of the edge away but I am incapable of getting that sobbing Constantine out of my head.
Finally Madison jumping from Tim/Cal to the just as mysterious Ronnie Raymond makes no sense to me and now I hope Tim can get over this girl because clearly she still has some stuff to figure out. It was all too teen angsty for me, pass.
Verdict
Futures End #24 fails to capture the drama from last week’s issue and it is a slight speed bump in an otherwise great stretch of Futures End issues. There is enough material in this issue though to capture someone’s attention for a duration of time so not all is lost. The big thing we’re all collectively waiting on though is the moment Terry and “Batman/Joker” come face to face. Now that will be fun to watch.
Rating
