Justice League: Futures End #1 (November 2014)

Tags

Captain Atom, Cyborg, Dawnstar, Equinox, Gabriel A. Eltaeb, Grodd, Jed Dougherty, Jeff Lemire, Killer Frost, Martian Manhunter, Mechaneer, Mike McKone, Mongul, New 52 Captain Atom, Stormguard, Taylor Esposito, The Flash, Vostok, Wildfire

“HomeWorld Part 2 of 2”

• Writer:  Jeff Lemire
• Pencils & Inks:  Jed Dougherty
• Colors:  Gabriel A. Eltaeb
• Letters:  Taylor Esposito
• Cover Art:  Gabriel A. Eltaeb & Mike McKone

In the interest of remaining spoiler-free (and because I still haven’t caught up on Futures End), I’m just going to be posting some images from the book for now.  Captain Atom is still out there and still doing the super hero thing (or possibly the super villain thing, depending on your perspective).  I like Jed Dougherty’s Captain Atom, but I’m not super crazy about his Captain Adam.  Weird, I know.

The New 52 Captain Atom (at his most Dr. Manhattan-like) leaves the DCU (again) in a blaze of glory.  We thought he had died in the pages of The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Man, but five years down the road he’s back in Futures End and not taking any crap.

Unable to best his foes (and proving he has lost touch with his own humanity), Cap decides his only option is to destroy himself.

Equinox (or is it Martian Manhunter?) stops Cap in his tracks and saves the day.  She (he?) sets Nathaniel Adam free.

It was Martian Manhunter, of course, using his telepathic powers to give Captain Atom inner peace.  This may be (at last) the end of the New 52 Captain Atom.  The upcoming Convergence series may make the New 52 Captain Atom a thing that never even existed.  Time will tell.

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Crisis on Infinite Earths #6 (September 1985)

Tags

Alexander Luthor, Anti-Monitor, Aquagirl, Aqualad, Aquaman, Azrael, Black Canary, Black Condor, Black Manta, Blok, Blue Beetle, Brainiac, Bronze Age Captain Atom, Captain Atom, Captain Marvel, Captain Marvel Jr., Changeling, Dawnstar, Deathbolt, Doctor Light, Doll Man, Dolphin, Green Lantern, Harbinger, Hawkman, Human Bomb, Johnny Quick, Judomaster, Katana, Kole, Lex Luthor, Lori Lemaris, Martian Manhunter, Mary Marvel, Nightshade, Northwind, Ocean Master, Pariah, Peacemaker, Per Degaton, Phantom Lady, Power Girl, Psycho-Pirate, Star Sapphire, Starfire, Steel, Supergirl, Teen Titans, The Atom, The Flash, The Question, The Ray, Thunderbolt, Uncle Sam, Wildcat, Wonder Woman

“3 Earths! 3 Deaths!”

• Writer: Marv Wolfman
• Pencils: George Pérez
• Inks: Jerry Ordway
• Colors: Anthony Tollin
• Letters: John Costanza

Crisis on Infinite Earths was a 12-part maxi-series and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 to simplify their 50-year-old continuity.  The series was written by Marv Wolfman and illustrated primarily by George Pérez. The series did away with the old “multiverse” in the DC Universe, and featured the deaths of some DC mainstays (like the Barry Allen Flash). It was ambitious, gigantic, and a huge whopping mess that I personally have never been able to fully wrap my head around.

At this point in the story, Azrael, Flash of Earth-2, Blok, Katana, and J’onn J’onzz (Martian Manhunter) materialize on Earth-4 before an anti-matter curtain in the American Midwest.  Captain Atom blasts Azrael, but is not fully in control of himself.

The Blue Beetle and the Question realize that they are being forced to attack the other heroes, but are unable to stop.  Katana, Blok, and J’onn J’onzz end up in a stalemate with the Blue Beetle, Judomaster, and Question.  Harbinger, existing simultaneously in Earths S, X, and 4, suddenly draws their universes away from the anti-matter and pulls them through her focused image.  Back at the lair of the Anti-Monitor, the Psycho Pirate suffers feedback from losing control over the people of those three Earths.  Harbinger manages to link Earths S, X, and 4 with the merging Earths 1 and 2.  Doing so, she ceases to exist as Harbinger, reverting to the identity of Lyla.

Not much to say about this one.  It was epic.  Cap only appeared on one panel of one page.  But I really like the way George Pérez drew him.  He’s the most down-to-Earth “humanistic” looking Captain Atom I’ve seen up to this point.  Because Marv Wolfman’s task was so sweeping and huge, I give an A for story and definitely an A for art.