DC Future State Month One Wraps with the Legion, Lex Luthor and Batman/Superman

Greetings and salutations, friends. We’re headed back to the future (Acknowledge the pun! Acknowledge it!) with three time-tossed tales from Detective Comics Comics. First, Brian Michael Bendis and Riley Rossmo future hard with a vengeance in Legion of Super-Heroes #1. Then, Mark Russell and Steve Pugh do their social-issues schtick in Superman vs. Imperious Lex #1. And finally, Gene Luen Yang returns to the Man of Steel in Batman/Superman #1.

Future State: Legion of Super-Heroes #1

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Riley Rossmo
Colorist: Ivan Plascencia
Letterer: Dave Sharpe

The Legion of Super-Heroes must reunite against one of their own (again) in the breezy, anime-flavored Future State: Legion of Super-Heroes #1.

Written by current LoSH scribe Brian Michael Bendis and provided a sketchy, but consistently kinetic look by Riley Rossmo and Ivan Plascencia, this Future State incarnation of the Legion finds them scattered, picking up the pieces after yet another galactic tragedy. After Element Lad betrayed the team and caused a sort of mass death event throughout the cosmos, the Legion have been fractured, spread thin across the universe and protecting their patches of space from raiders, despots and former Legionaries turned Legion of Super-Villains members under the thumb of Element Lad.

As an idea, this new incarnation has some merit. Like the main title, this “far-future” spin-off finds Bendis pulling from the near limitless bench of heroes and villains the title has to offer. Which characters then receive novel new semi-redesigns at the hands of Rossmo, bolstered by the rich colors of Plascencia, provide this whole endeavor an increased visual intensity and fun that sustains it throughout its very brisk page count. It is also fun seeing various “old-school” Legion members scrapping and surviving throughout a galaxy that hates and fears them (and is arguably justified in doing so as Element Lad’s “correction” came under the banner of the Legion as his version of “heroism”).

But it is that very same brisk page count that causes the Legion inclusion in Future State to feel rather slight. Hamstrung by Bendis’ hyper-verbose style and breezy (on a good day) plotting, the issue moves, moves, moves through a lot of swimmy details about the new future, masquerading exposition as banter and hoping you are too distracted by the fun artwork to notice. Unfortunately, it is kind of hard not to, even with Rossmo and Plascencia’s mood heavy, anime inspired take on the LOSH.

Also the concept of the Legion being betrayed by one of their own and having to reconnect, despite the odds and bad blood, to save the universe isn’t exactly the most groundbreaking of stories at this point so just putting that record back on for Future State reads a bit rote to me, personally. I was hoping that with the wider canvas of the event’s core concept, Bendis would finally start to break out the fun, or at least the driving ideas of other team books that have sung under his stewardship. But, alas, even despite some good artwork, Future State: Legion of Super-Heroes #1 seems stuck in the past for the moment.

Future State: Superman Vs. Imperious Lex #1

Writer: Mark Russell
Artist: Steve Pugh
Colorist: Romulo Fajardo Jr.
Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual

Team The Flintstones reunites to deliver Future State’s first (and possibly only) pitch black comedy in Future State: Superman Vs. Imperious Lex #1.

In the far future, Earth is a fledgling member of the United Planets’ inner council. Representatives from all chartered planets meet and palaver over various infrastructure demands the universe calls forth as well as taking in new business vis-a-vis the continued work of galactic harmony. But a new planet wishes to join the United Planets: a planet run and lorded over by none other than Lex Luthor.

Armed with that dynamite premise, creatives Mark Russell, Steve Pugh and Romulo Fajardo Jr. deliver a devilishly funny and rather pointed exploration of the enmity between Luthor and the Last Son of Krypton, all wrapped in fun, old-school-DC inspired artwork that doesn’t skimp on the emotive qualities of superhero comics. Though I wasn’t expecting Future State to deliver a broad, shockingly mean and even more surprisingly humane superhero comedy, I am truly, truly glad Superman Vs. Imperious Lex is exactly that (and a little bit more).

Though while this opening issue has something to it, I will also say this issue won’t do much to assuage people’s doubts about Russell’s tendency toward wordiness. Packed with dialogue, across the whole cast and ongoing narration from an aged Superman, this opening issue absolutely comes with a lot of verbal shoe leather about the United Planets, Lexor’s economy and the intricate web Luthor has set up throughout the ecosystem of his outer rim haven (which comes complete with its own red sun).

BUT that said, this issue finds the good version of Russell’s acerbic but genuinely affecting style, and that’s totally a boon to the story. Focused mainly on Superman’s experience with the planet (and its cunning oligarch), Russell really dives deeply on the pairing’s constant struggle. Not only that, but Luthor’s canny leadership and ingenuity in how he sets up his planet with a steady diet of fake news, an intergalactic 1% and an army of semi-conscious robots who plunder whole worlds with little remorse.   

This latter idea, and some of the grimly funny details of Lexor which are parroted through a pair of hysterical alien newscasters, add a real Black Mirror-nee-Detective Comics Comics vibe to the affair and sets this series instantly apart, at least conceptually, from the rest of the current Future State offerings so far. But while that might sound a little gloomy and overtly mean, Russell makes sure to cut the whole thing with a hefty slice of Superman ethos, driven home by a wonderful final beat between Clark and Lois Lane (Earth’s representative to the UP), both of whom come to realize that Lex has built himself a gilded cage and won’t survive his populace coming to grips with that without their help. It’s an expected turn from the characters (and Russell as a creative), but it doesn’t make it any less powerful as the heady concept of this series is backed with genuine character (which is always appreciated, especially from Detective Comics Comics).

More than that, Superman Vs. Imperious Lex looks fantastic under the steady pencils of Pugh and the muted but still effective colors of Fajardo (a name that is quickly becoming a secret visual weapon of this era of DC). Armed with a very old-school, Space Age pulp tone, Pugh again spins visual gold from Russell’s wordy script, staging the dialogue-heavy scenes in such a way that both the jokes (like a mouthy, free-floating bucket of sand that sits on the UP inner council) are being sold and characters are emoting in order to convey beats and exchanges. 

Sweetening the pot are Pugh’s elegant take on Superman’s movements and Fajardo’s subtle color tones. The higher-profile example moments of this are when Superman is either flying or fighting, but thanks to the deliberate choices of Fajardo, particularly in Clark’s new costume here, and consistently good blocking of Pugh, it ALL looks fantastic in one way or another.

Like I said above, Russell’s comics are absolutely an acquired taste, and I absolutely know they can either read coy and clever or grating and somewhat didactic. But I am happy to report that Future State: Superman vs. Imperious Lex #1 is the former, offering up a juicy premise beyond the event’s core conceit, wonderful classic Superman comics characterization and genuinely funny gags throughout its page count. Coupled with the impressively emotional and restrained artwork from Pugh and Fajardo, you arguably have the best Superman effort of the whole Future State line. For now, at least.

Future State: Batman/Superman #1

Writer: Gene Luen Yang
Artist: Ben Oliver
Colorist: Arif Prianto
Letterer: Tom Napolitano

The original World’s Finest get to some good, old-fashioned superheroing in Future State: Batman/Superman #1!

Written by fan-favorite (and upcoming B/S scribe) Gene Luen Yang and given a sleek, multi-million dollar cinematic look by Ben Oliver and Arif Prianto, this new team-up title finds Clark and Bruce together again…possibly for the last time in this timeline. We open on the “earliest” Future State time to date. Both Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne are still active and The Magistrate’s occupation of Gotham City (and subsequent outlawing of masks) is still in its infancy. 

A new street drug called False Face has swept into Metropolis and Superman is anxious to get to the bottom of it. Naturally, the clues point to Gotham, putting him back into the orbit of the Caped Crusader (pre his “death” in the pages of Dark Detective). But as the pair of heroes dig deeper into the drug’s inception and user base, they are swept into a larger, deadlier game set up by the Magistrate, which has its sights set on the Man of Steel and will do anything to get him. 

As a plot, the opening of Batman/Superman is fun enough, if a bit trite. The idea of a “new designer drug” is somewhat old hat in comics by now, but Gene Luen Yang’s focus on the everyday citizens at the heart of this story and the ramshackle youth swept into Batman and Superman’s investigation shows a level of humane detail that is often left out of “big AAA” superhero comics. 

The fun patter between the two heroes Yang delivers here is also fun to parse through. Scaffolded by a novel dual narration from them both, clearly denoted by letterer Tom Napolitano, Yang’s script never crosses into full on bickering between the heroes, but flints a nice tension between their styles and voices that shows that Yang has a firm handle on how they work together, both as people and heroes.

The icing on this neat little slice of superhero comic cake is absolutely the artwork of Ben Oliver and Arif Pritano. Leaning into the sleek, almost metallic sheen of the “near future”, Oliver lays out the action and banter with a keen, highly cinematic pencil style that highlights the deliberate movements and power of both characters. Pritano’s colors hammer that tone home with muted, almost downscaled color choices, casting a sort of darkened haze over the whole of the issue, even in the opening pages set in the sunny districts of Metropolis. 

Though maybe a touch basic in terms of plot, Future State: Batman/Superman #1 still delivers a rousing, emotionally intelligent example of superhero team-up fun. Graced with a slick look and easy to process script, Batman/Superman #1 finds serviceable entertainment in the old “workhorses” of Detective Comics Comics.