After many delays, the final issue of DC’s Doomsday Clock has been released, revealing the end of the DC/Watchmen crossover event. Superman and Doctor Manhattan, their respective universe’s most powerful beings, come head to head, with Doctor Manhattan making some shocking discoveries about Superman and his effect on the Metaverse and Multiverse. Manhattan is able to see into the future of the Multiverse, revealing some pretty interesting and epic Crisis events and new Earths that could be coming soon!
Doomsday Clock reveals Doctor Manhattan’s actions after the events of the original Watchmen comic. Instead of returning to Mars, Manhattan crosses the multiverse and travels to the main DC Earth and timeline, seeing similarities to his own world yet with a more simplistic context (or so he believes). He alters events in an experiment of curiosity to see what happens when he alters the history and environment of Superman.
In Doomsday Clock #12 by Geoff Johns and Gary Frank, it’s revealed Doctor Manhattan is responsible for much of what went missing or absent after the Flashpoint event and the beginning of the New 52. He erases the JSA of the past and the future Legion of Superheroes from the timeline, leaving Superman with no heroes to look up to while growing up nor any future heroes to look up to him. He also ensures that Superman’s adopted Earth parents are killed prematurely, causing Superman to feel more alienated from the world than he otherwise would have if they had been alive into his adulthood.
Manhattan Looks Into the Past and Present
In the end, Manhattan realizes that no matter what he does to change the metaverse and the subsequent multiverse in regards to the Last Son of Krypton, Superman will always exist as a constant. He says it must be because of the hope Kal-El represents, serving as the multiverse’s north star. He returns the people and events he took away, restoring their effect on the multiverse and more specifically Superman. He then describes the major events of the DC timelines’ past, such as Flashpoint or the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Then he talks about his influence on the present such as the post-Flashpoint New-52 and the Rebirth that has just begun. After that, Manhattan looks forward, and that’s when things get really interesting.
New Crises and Earths Await the DC Multiverse’s Future
Manhattan goes on to describe several different events and crises that will supposedly happen in the future. Firstly, Manhattan describes the soonest event coming next year in 2020. He describes that the metaverse will be warped by the reckless energies of the Old Gods. Going further to 2025, Manhattan alludes to a crisis “unlike anything the metaverse has ever seen.” Referring to it as Time Masters, he says it will result in Superman’s revitalization and the return of his greatest allies (could time travelers Rip Hunter, Adam Strange, or Booster Gold be involved?).
In 2026, Superman will supposedly go on a quest to save Batman’s lost daughter so that she can save Batman’s son. Could this be Helena Wayne, Huntress, from Earth-2? One of the most shocking future Crises mentioned will come in 2030, where Superman will fight Thor himself in a Secret Crisis. A Green Behemoth stronger than Doomsday will die protecting Clark from invaders. This Green Behemoth must be the Hulk, indicating a future crossover between the DC and Marvel universes.
Lastly, Manhattan continues to show the constant in the multiverse that is Superman. In 2038 and 2045, “A rocket falls. A child is loved. Superman is made.” While there may be subtle differences in the context, those core beats never fail.
Will This Revealed Future Come To Pass?
The question has to be asked: will these Crisis events and future moments come to pass down the line? It’s hard to say. It wouldn’t be hard to believe that the closer the event is to the real present, such as the Old Gods or the Time Master will come to pass in 2020 and 2025 could actually happen. It’s harder to say for something like the Marvel/DC Secret Crisis supposedly happening 2030. That’s 10 years down the line. While it certainly could happen (it’s happened before), it could simply be a fun Easter Egg on Johns’ part.
In any case, regardless of how you feel about the ending of Doomsday Clock, this moment from the last issues was certainly interesting and generates a lot of questions for the future of DC Comics. Was Doomsday Clock worth the wait? Let us know in the comments below!
The final issue of Doomsday Clock is on comic book store shelves now.
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