The New 52: Futures End #7 Review
By Steve Lam
Writers: Brian Azzarello, Jeff Lemire, Dan Jurgens, Keith Giffen
Artist: Patrick Zircher
Futures End #6 Recap
Terry McGinnis, disguised as a homeless man, spies on Key, Coil, and Plastique refining their plan to break into Terrifitech. Plastique particularly piques Terry’s interest due to the fact that the cyborg that followed him through the portal was a future version of Plastique. While Terry is doing his own investigation, Mr. Terrific is also spying on Terry and has found out that Terry and Batman Beyond are one in the same. At S.H.A.D.E. headquarters, Dr. Palmer, Frankenstein, and Amethyst board the Nan-Knight, a microscopic ship. As they go through the Phantom Zone, they are attacked by the imprisoned Black Adam. At Tim Drake’s bar where he’s still known as Cal Corcoran, Lois Lane confronts him with evidence that he’s Red Robin. Lois, forced to leave the bar by a denying Tim, is followed by King Faraday. He’s quickly given a warning by a masked Superman to stop following Lois.
Spoiler-Free Reaction
A good issue that continues the multiple plots we’ve seen so far. The momentum seems to be picking up as the characters find their places in the story arc.
Plot Details and Spoilers and Deaths: Oh My!
In the Phantom Zone, Frankenstein and Amethyst battle with Black Adam. Frankenstein makes Amethyst, to her objection, go back to the Nan-Knight. Black Adam attempts to overpower Frankenstein with a Shazam lightening bolt, but it only strengthens Frankenstein. Incapacitating Black Adam, Frankenstein races to the Phantom Zone’s exit portal. About to reach it, Black Adam comes back to consciousness and grabs Frankenstein’s arm. In a show of immense strength and will-power, Frankenstein escapes by forcefully tearing his own arm off and passing through the portal with the Nan-Knight. Frankenstein, Amethyst, and Dr. Palmer arrive at their destination where they find the floating bodies of Stormwatch.
At the Fast Lane in Metropolis, Lois is visited by Madison Payne inquiring more about Cal Corcoran (Tim Drake) and Red Robin. The visit quickly escalates into an argument when it’s revealed that Madison is the daughter of Maxwell Payne — a man who sold arms and information to the enemy during the war that killed the Teen Titans. Madison is angry at Lois for being the reporter that covered her father’s trial and blames reporters like her for using people’s stories as a path to fame and wealth. The visit ends with Madison storming out.
At Columbia University, Dr. Yamazake is ready to test his new transporter. Needing help to move heavy equipment, he asks Jason where his friend Ronnie is. Jason states that they were never friends to begin with and that he has no idea where Ronnie is. In Pittsburgh, we see that Ronnie is mourning the loss of his mother, Joanna Raymond, at a memorial dedicated to the victims of the war.
On Cadmus island, Slade Wilson trains with practice-opponents. As he fights, the little girl employed by King Faraday objects to Grifter’s joining the team. We find out that the little girl is also able to see Daemonites and she’s jealous that Grifter has been hired as another talent. At Cadmus’s medical facility, Grifter has regained the ability to walk. A bureaucrat-looking gentleman then enters and informs Grifter of his situation. Much to Grifter’s dismay, he is told that he will be teamed up with Slade Wilson. As the gentleman leaves, the little girl appears and introduces herself to Grifter as Fifty Sue.
In New York City, Terry, still disguised as a homeless person, listens in on Key, Plastique, and Coil. Little does he know, Mr. Terrific has been right behind him. As Mr. Terrific reveals himself, Terry transforms into Batman Beyond. The two fight and Mr. Terrific’s uSpheres fire on Batman Beyond. Outnumbered and nowhere to go, Batman Beyond takes flight and flies away leaving behind the cyborg body of the future Plastique. The cyborg is quickly discovered by Mr. Terrific, Coil, Key, and the present Plastique.
Wrapping It Up
From the start, we have some good action. I was actually shocked to find out that there are still bodies left from Stormwatch’s destruction. There’s also a hint at a deeper relationship between Madison and Tim Drake as we find out that Madison’s father was a person who sold information and arms to the enemy during the war that supposedly killed Red Robin. Finally, now that Mr. Terrific has the future cyborg Plastique in his possession, could Futures End be going in the direction of a predestination paradox?