Last issue, we got a big resolution for one of the storylines that has been building for quite some time with Firestorm. That gave the comic the necessary boost it needed to really shine and start standing out. Can the comic continue riding that boost in quality? Is it good?
Spoilers below!
Futures End #30 (DC Comics)
Writers: Brian Azzarello, Keith Giffen, Dan Jurgens, and Jeff Lemire
Artist: Tom Raney
Story
Lois Lane is shocked to find Red Tornado, aka Lois Lane of Earth 2, in the jungle forest on Cadmus Island. But enough about those two and what meeting your own double could mean, Green Arrow and his Outsiders arrive on the island and start fighting their way through the OMACs and the Brother Eye controlled heroes. While they are all fighting each other, Green Arrow takes Red Arrow and Big Barda and they head to find the main building where the Brother Eye A.I. lives.
Spoiler Corner
Deathstroke is about to shoot Green Arrow, angry that he is still alive and now completely working for Brother Eye, when Lana smashes him on the back of his head with a rock. She and Cole Cash rush over to Green Arrow’s team, hoping they can get them off the island. As the two approach them, Deathstroke recovers and is about to shoot all of them with his machine gun (should have taken that gun) when Fury appears with Mister Miracle. Fury rips off Deathstroke’s end, leaving everyone rather surprised.
Big Barda and Mister Miracle make amends, while Red Arrow takes Cole and Lana back to the beach where the Outsiders are still fighting. Green Arrow and the rest storm the main building, searching for where the A.I. is being housed. However, in their search, they run into the A.I. controlled Power Girl.
Everyone struggles with fighting her, but Green Arrow does manage to get around her and shut off the computer where the A.I. is so that everyone under Eye’s control is freed. Well…everyone except for Power Girl, that is. She is completely infected and under the control of Brother Eye, his AI having moved into her and robotizing her from the inside out. Anyhow, having pressed the button early, the island starts exploding…for some reason, and the heroes have to make a run for it. Big Barda stays behind to keep Power Eye from attacking them as they escape.
Lois Lane is forced to leave behind Red Tornado, promising her that she’ll write a story and expose all of Camdus’s lies and operations here. She meets up with the others and everyone escapes, except for Big Barda and Power Eye.
However, as they float away from the island, Red Tornado’s body (still partially alive) can be seen floating in the ocean and a close up of Lois Lane’s phone shows that Brother Eye has escaped into it. This mess isn’t completely over yet.
Thoughts
I’m of two minds on this particular issue. One, I really liked that they wrapped up this Cadmus Island storyline. It has been going on for a while and this one has felt like it has really dragged a lot, going nowhere for a long time. It feels nice to see things get going and still leave some rather interesting story bits that could be exciting to see.
On the other hand, this issue made me scratch my head a lot. A lot of things don’t feel properly explained or explored (like Lois Lane meeting Red Tornado or the island ending the way it did) and some parts just feel incredibly rushed. It didn’t make the island as satisfying as it could be. Plus the artwork… was pretty mediocre. A new artist for this weekly, Tom Raney, did the art and his style really looked off. The body proportions, the facial expressions, the awkward action, and boring layouts… it was ultimately a mess.
Most Memorable Moment
Rock beats Deathstroke.
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