Future State: Batman/Superman #1

This book can be easily enjoyed by any Batman fan or Superman fan, regardless of how interested you are in the Future State event. Read Full Review

I enjoyed this title a lot and it is definitely one of the better Future State titles. Read Full Review

Ultimately, Future State: Batman/Superman #1 is gorgeous and captivating. With this issue, Gene Luen Yang has crafted an enthralling story centered thematically on the notion of identity. Yang's excellent work on Superman's character is on full display in this book. Unfortunately, Bruce's characterization feels a bit off. Regardless of Yang's work with characterization, Oliver and Prianto's artwork are worth the price of admission alone. Read Full Review

Readers will leave this issue of FUTURE STATE: BATMAN/ SUPERMAN with the best of both worlds. Theyll get their classic heroes while also feeling apart of the FUTURE STATE landscape. The story moves quickly, has perfectly placed pockets of action, nails the character dynamic between the leads masterfully, and provides a clear and decisive anecdote for hardcore DC COMIC fans who may be perturbed that this pause even needs to occur since the ending of DARK NIGHTS: DEATH METAL. Read Full Review

If this is a preview of what Yang has planned for the characters in the main series, count me in as sold. Read Full Review

Future State: Superman/Batman #1 is a quality outing for the World's Finest, a traditional 22-page book with an engaging hook and character work that underlines the issue's central theme. It knows what it is and executes it perfectly. No complaints here. Read Full Review

You're on Comic-watch.com, which means you're in the top 10% of all comic fans. You know a good book when you see it, so I'm certain you're gonna pick this one up! It's worth both your time and money! Read Full Review

Ben Oliver does some great work with the art in the issue. There is a classic look and feel to the imagery that is refreshing and fun. Read Full Review

Future State: Batman/Superman #1 successfully combines Batman's detective skills and Superman's brawn to work out a growing conspiracy, using the Magistrate as a catalyst rather than the main plot point. The art is excellent, and I especially like the interaction between Batman and Superman as less friendly and more like colleagues with a tension between them because of the difference in their operating styles. They respect each other, but there's a clear sense of turf and different methods that work well here. Read Full Review

Artist Ben Oliver gets a lot to play with as well but its his ability to make the two characters maintain their iconic styles throughout that makes this one really work. Read Full Review

Still a good read overall. And the art alone probably makes it worth perusing. Read Full Review

I've criticized aspects of this book, and while I think some of these points should be considered by creators and readers alike, I still recommend this one. Once I look past some of these flaws, an entertaining story emerges. You will find nothing shocking or groundbreaking here as this is all pretty much meat and potatoes, save for the current status quo in Gotham, but sometimes that's enough. Enjoy! Read Full Review

Of the Future State books, this is one that feels like its played the safest like Yang is using this as a dress rehearsal for his subsequent run. Thats not a bad strategy though and it promises the Infinite Frontier version of the title will feature some fun personality clashes and unique scenarios. Read Full Review

Future State: Batman/Superman #1 has a rather flimsy plot, but features amazing artwork and perfectly captures the dynamic between the World's Finest. Fans of the duo's dynamic or the general track record of DC Future State will probably enjoy it the most, though I wish there was a stronger hook for "the last Batman/Superman team-up." Read Full Review

The “last” Batman/Superman team-up is a fun adventure, despite its faults. Read Full Review

Future State: Batman/Superman #1 is a mixed bag. Aesthetically, this book is fun and interesting, however, Yang's script is a bit of a dud. When DC announced that Yang was taking over Batman/Superman,I was excited, as he's a capable, creative writer. I have my suspicions that once “Future State” ends, this title will improve. Yang's work suffered when he wrote Action Comicsdue to editorial constraints, so let's hope that, once the shackles are off, Yang will be able to deliver. Read Full Review

Overall, I thought Future State: Batman Superman #1 was interesting; it decently expressed the dynamic between the two superheroes and sets the stage for the rest of the story. I enjoyed the little details that were included, such as the Superman key chain attached to Batman's USB drive, and I'm curious as to how things will develop next. Read Full Review

I Review Comics

Feb 19, 2021

So far I've reviewed several Future State comics. Most of which has been covering the events in Gotham city. The stories have had varying degrees of success. The main problem across the Future State line of titles is the feeling that we've been dropped into the middle of an existing storyline with no preamble or recap. Batman/Superman #1 acts as a prequel and is tasked with filling in the gaps left by Dark Detective #1, The Next Batman #1, and Harley Quinn #1. In this issue, Gotham has not fallen completely into a fascist state but the writing is on the wall. We get to see Bruce before his fall and Clark before his exile within the Future State landscape. Bruce mentions the magistrates but they appear to be an emerging threat as op posed to the all-encompassing force we've seen in the other series that have dropped so far. The story begins with Superman investigating a new drug that allows the user to take the appearance of an animal. Unfortunately, the drug has the side effect of permanently altering the user's physical appearance. The investigation leads Superman to Gotham and Batman who knows about the drug but already has his hands full dealing with the Magistrate. There are several solid elements in this issue. I absolutely loved Gene's depiction of Superman. Clark feels like an updated version of Christopher Reeve's portrayal. The depiction caught me off guard because I've been reading so many depressed and damaged heroes lately I forgot what a traditional take on heroism looked like. Superman is contrasted nicely against Batman who is clearly distressed throughout the issue. He eventually puts his own mission on hold to assist Clark. The two are good together and it's a great setup issue considering what has happened across Future State. I feel like a couple of series like Batman/Superman should have been set up Future State a bit better but better late than never. The art direction from Ben Oliver and Arif Prianto also looks great throughout the issue. Superman is the highlight for me as well but the issue is also layered with some nice action, splash pages, bright colors, and seeing humanoid penguins are always cool. There is a massive cliffhanger at the end of the issue and it looks pretty bleak for our heroes. This isn't a shock considering how the issue opens. I appreciate what Gene has done here. Future State Batman/Superman #1 provides some much-needed context for the event and by extension makes all of the Bat-Family tie-ins much stronger. Rating: 9./10 more

Nihilist

Jan 26, 2021

Gene Luen Yang managed to make me fall in love with Superman all over again in his Superman Smashes the Klan book. It was fantastic for pletora of reasons, but the one that matters in this case is his understanding of Supes as a character. He just gets him, the same way Sean Murphy gets Harley, Geoff Johns gets Hal Jordan and Christopher Priest gets Deathstroke. His take not only feels right, but manages to be surprising, fresh, fun and complex. That said, I'm very, very happy he gets a chance to write more stories with him, and I won't lie, my expectations for this comic were pretty damn high. And Gene sure delivered. The plot may not be the most original, but what makes it really work are the characters - that goes to both the two titu lar superheroes, but also animal headed citizens they encounter. Each of them has some backstory, no matter how little and irrelevant, giving them proper purpose and anchoring them in the universe. It's little touches like these that make a big difference in the end. Overall I highly recommend this comic. Sure, you may argue it's one of the closest things to the usual DC status quo setting wise, so much so it could as well be set in the main present day continuity, but it's still an incredibly fun ride, and features everything a Batman/Superman comic should feature. And then some more. more

DiRT

May 13, 2021

Unlike other Future State comics that have been set in the far future where things are radically different, Batman/Superman is set at the beginning of the massive upheaval that changes the DC Universe. On the one hand, it’s a sad moment of the last gasps of a DC Universe that doesn’t completely suck, but on the other hand, it’s great to see the real Batman and Superman working together again even if it might be for the last time. Mixing in a few beats from the Future State stories swirling around the DCU, Gene Luen Yang gives us a story of a new face-changing drug making its way to Metropolis from Gotham City. Arriving in Gotham, he finds that The Magistrate has moved in and the drones with facial recognition technology are in use, putting Batman in greater peril. Superman provides some muscle while Batman searches for information on the new drug and the two get separated, leading to the cliffhanger event which might or might not lead to Superman’s disappearance in those Future State comics. Yang isn’t one of DC Entertainment’s writers brought in to shape the future of the comic book line, he’s an actual comic book writer, and it shows with his ability to craft an honest-to-goodness comic book narrative that feels like it might as well be the current issue of the ongoing series. If this issue had arrived with my weekly pulls, I’d be a bit confused about the Magistrate stuff, but I’d otherwise be fine with the story and just assume it’s a story beat that will get explained later. Ben Oliver lends his talents to the art and Arif Prianto gives us the colors, and these two together make one of the best teams DC Comics has. Each page is dynamic, each panel looks stunning, and each character stands out as a unique individual. If these two team up again for another book and are given a decent writer and character to work with, I’ll certainly give it a try. In the midst of all the turmoil and problems at DC, it’s nice to see a gem like this slip through and make it to the stands where it can be appreciated for simply being a good super-hero comic book. There’s no agenda, no checklist, no forced groupthink… Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne get to be heroes and put their lives on the line to save others, and it’s done in a well-crafted story with good looking artwork. It doesn’t get much better than this. http://ThePopC.Net http://dirtmound.com more

davepete

Jan 26, 2021

Nice little story. My favorite Future State book so far. Gene Luen Yang needs to always write Superman. Also, Ben Oliver's false faces are magnificently drawn.

Psycamorean

Jan 29, 2021

This one is pretty good, which means it's better than most of future state.

mrDovydas

Feb 21, 2021

There's a few thing I could pick on, but damn does Yang write a good Superman.

EDiakota

Jan 29, 2021

" Clark acts like he's never had to hide a day in his life. But i know he has. Maybe he just never wants to hide ever again." - BATMAN

TheKize

Jan 28, 2021

I came in expecting Gene Luen Yang to turn in one of the best Future State stories, but this one is mediocre. Taking place prior to all the other Future State titles, it features a Batman and Superman who mostly resemble their main continuity status quo. As such, Batman/Superman feels far less innovative than some of this week's better DC releases (Aquaman, Dark Detective). More than once in this issue, Superman actually comes across as a little dumb.

RKS

Jan 28, 2021

This book isn't the worst Future State title, probably because it is the most unaltered story of the arc. This story could have been told with or without being included in Future State. The art is well done and the story progresses nicely. The only thing that hurts this book is the ending. Superman is written in a way that makes it an unbelievable cliff hanger. Superman should have been able to detect what happens is what I'm getting at, so for me the ending of the book significantly damaged the story.

C.V.R. The Bard

Jan 31, 2021

Not a bad story, short to tne point, and peels back more of the layers to the overall story of Batman creating his own problems with the Magistrate. I didn't like Superman being made to look uncouth in this issue. Since I place him at the top of the Trinity, when people write him as gullible, that never sits well with me. - cvrthebard.tumblr.com

F.T. Wolf

Feb 24, 2021

This book is meh. Interesting to see a story set so early in the future of Future State, but the big problem I have with it is that's just not interesting. The False Face society doesn't scream 'interesting' or even 'a worthy opponent for these two' to me. Beyond that, I find that the interaction between Bruce & Clark could be better. It's alright, but it doesn't 'pop' if you will. Something I think is important when you have these two together. Art is fine. Not my cup of tea but nothing bad either. All in all, I'd read this book at your own risk.

pizzamain

Feb 10, 2021

ah yes eyeball rats and a furry issue. about time batman and superman tackled some real problems