The New 52: Futures End #30 Review
By Steve Lam
Writers: Brian Azzarello, Keith Giffen, Dan Jurgens, Jeff Lemire
Artists: Tom Raney, Hi-Fi, Ryan Sook
Futures End #29 Recap
At Columbia University, Ronnie Raymond and Tim Drake, searching for Madison Payne, face off with Cadmus security guards. Jason Rusch confronts Dr. Yamazake, and finds that Madison is already trapped in a teleporter. As Tim holds the guards at bay, Ronnie enters the lab to save Madison. Jason warns Yamazake that the magnetic field matrix is unbalanced. When Ronnie finally enters, both he and Jason know that they must turn into Firestorm. Yamazake initiates the experiment and Ronnie starts to disintegrate. As Ronnie and Jason make amends, the university lab explodes. Madison flies out of the destruction as Firestorm, with Jason being her counterpart. In the rubble of the building, Ronnie dies in Tim’s arms.
Spoiler-Free Reaction
Futures End #30 is another issue that takes place in only one location. Fast-paced with some dramatic deaths, this issue resurrects the storytelling style of initial Futures End plots.
Plot Details and Spoilers and Deaths: Oh My!
Cadmus Island: Lois Lane meets her Earth 2 doppleganger — Earth 2’s Red Tornado. Meanwhile, Green Arrow and his team storm the island. As Green Arrow shoots a special arrow that was designed to take out Brother Eye’s security, Earth 2’s Hawkgirl grabs the arrow in midair and destroys it. As OMAC’s and Brother Eye-controlled Earth 2 heroes attack, Green Arrow tells Big Barda that she’s his plan B — she will manually shut down Brother Eye with brute force.
As Green Arrow and Big Barda run to find a fail-safe, the OMACs start to combine and form a giant OMAC. Little does Green Arrow know, Deathstroke is attempting to snipe him. Grifter quickly intervenes and stops him. As Deathstroke is about to kill Cole, Lana knocks him out with a rock.
Running towards Green Arrow, Lana is knocked out by a blunt arrow from Red Arrow. Suddenly, Deathstroke appears, but Fury surprises him — she uses her bare hands and decapitates Deathstroke.
As Big Barda and Mister Miracle reunite, a slight confrontation ensues between Big Barda and Fury. Mister Miracle quickly stops it. Green Arrow commands the rest of his team back to the boat while he, Big Barda, and Fury follow Mister Miracle.
Entering Brother Eye’s central systems building, Green Arrow has Big Barda tear down a door. At that moment, Power Girl unleashes her heat vision. Big Barda and Fury attempt to hold off Power Girl. Green Arrow takes an arrow equipped with a boxing glove, and shoots it at Brother Eye’s red orb, smashing it. Brother Eye starts to lose control of the Earth 2 heroes, but still has a hold on Power Girl. As Big Barda fights Power Girl, Green Arrow, Mister Miracle, and Fury escape.
Red Tornado implores Lois Lane to leave her, so that she can tell the world about Cadmus Island. Running to the shoreline, Lois meets up with Green Arrow and his team. Back in Brother Eye’s control room, Big Barda has defeated Power Girl. As the team escapes the island, the compound explodes.
As the team makes it back to Green Arrow’s ship, Lois’s cell phone is seen having Brother Eye’s intelligence downloaded into it.
Wrapping It Up
Damn! That’s in reference to the way Deathstroke bit the dust. It was sudden, brutal, and quick. Head torn off by Fury, and that was that. I’m really happy that ever since Futures End #29, we’re seeing the story go back to its original pacing. With Big Barda also sacrificing herself in an attempt to destroy Brother Eye, the deaths in this issue were dramatic and surprising. I was almost sure that Big Barda would find a way out, but the writers really impressed me by not allowing that. I hope Futures End continues this style for the rest of the issues. It’ll be okay if they skipped around to different locations, but they should have a main story where all plot lines converge by the end of each issue. If you’ve been hungry for the type of storytelling seen in the first issues of Futures End, then Futures End #30 is for you.