Mister Miracle (2017 - 2019)

Dated Mar 13, 2023; last modified on Sat, 29 Jul 2023

Mister Miracle Vol. 4 (2017 - 2019). Tom King; Mitch Gerads. www.dc.com . www.hoopladigital.com . dc.fandom.com . Accessed Mar 13, 2023.

There’s something that I’m missing. I don’t get the ending. Is Scott dead?

Snapshots

But though our great hero now occupies a seat of comfort and tranquility… Mister Miracle never forgets that somewhere out there… Darkseid is.

And the teacher says to the whole class, “Draw whatever you want.” When they’re done, the teacher asks them what they’ve drawn. And the children say dinosaurs, hearts, superheroes, anything, doesn’t matter. The one child says, “I drew God!” So the teacher says, “That’s very nice, but no one knows what God looks like.” And the child, without a second’s hesitation, says, “Yeah, until now."

[Mister Miracle] So, I was just thinking, how can I be better? You know, what can’t I escape from? What shouldn’t I escape from? What doesn’t anyone escape from? Death. No one escapes from death. So I killed myself. When I woke up, my lovely wife, Barda, was there. In the hospital. She found me in our apartment, I guess, and she took me to the hospital. And so that’s… uh… That was all it was. [Darkseid is.] [Talk Show Host] Great. Great. Just great. Just amazing stuff. Really. Buuut… Butbutbut – I guess that does leave one question unanswered. It does, doesn’t it? Did you actually, really escape? I mean, death, right? Did you escape death, Mister Miracle?

[Orion] A huge force reported at the Madala Skyline. I need you there now. [Scott] For New Genesis! For New Genesis! [Orion] Invasion forces on the high seas of Cumartra. Approach from the southeast. [Scott] For New Genesis! Yes, Orion, the farsided ridges. For New Genesis! For New Genesis!

[Metron] Do you understand, Scott Free?! You are not to know the face of God! [Scott] Barda, hey Barda… [Barda] Nnnnn [Scott] Barda, Metron’s here. [Barda] Mmm. Oh… Tell him it’s… late. Mmm. We have to… be up… so early… to kill… Granny…

[Granny] This is on Earth. Before Christmas. In the Netherlands. In 1942 or something. When the Germans had it. A little boy, I don’t know, call him whatever. Sven. Sven’s in school, a Christian school, or Catholic. Whatever. With nuns and the whole thing. And it’s right before Christmas, and the teacher’s telling them about Jesus. And she’s talking about Mary and Joseph and the manger. How they couldn’t find anywhere safe to have the baby. And she mentions that Mary and Joseph were Jews. And Sven, the kid, he starts talking. He’s, y’know, five or whatever. And he says, “They could come to our basement!” And the nun who’s teaching stops. Just frozen. Hearing this. Looking at this kid. At Sven. So then later the police came to Sven’s house. They found a family in the basement. Jewish. Y’know, obviously. They took Sven’s father and his older brother out into the trees by his house. And they shot them. Sven and his Mom and his three sisters ended up in a work camp. For a while. One of his sisters died there. Sven got transferred a few more times. East. He didn’t see what happened to his mother. Or the other sisters. Eventually he went to the showers at Buchenwald. After – he was older. It had been a few years. He was seven or something. But the gas didn’t kill him. No. No, he died in the pile, beneath the pile of people trying to get out. When they let the gas in and everybody was climbing. Each other, on each other, making a pile. Sven was at the bottom. Merry Christmas.

[Forager] Six-and-a-half million of my people, The Bugs, have already died in this war. Fighting for your people. Orion ordered their deaths. Purposely ordered them to die before the gods. Now that Granny’s been defeated, Orion wants to lead us to Apokolips. Go on the offensive. Take out Darkseid. Right. And, of course, the bugs will be up front again – cannon fodder for the gods. And that’ll be triple the number we’ve already sacrificed. And what do we get? At some point it’s your victory, our blood. I’m not saying we don’t go after Darkseid. Darkseid is. But there’s a limit to what this population can take right now. And Orion. He doesn’t understand – seem to understand limits.

[Orion] And the laws of the source dictate that in a trial of a god… the Highfather is responsible for appointing the accuser, the defender, the judge. Given these laws… I appoint myself to the positions of accuser, defender and judge.

[Orion] Right now, all you feel is hate. True or false. [Scott] True. [Orion] Hate made you doubt my reign as Highfather. True or false? [Scott] True. [Orion] Hate made you accuse me of treason. True or false? [Scott] True. [Orion] Hate made you doubt everything. True or false? [Scott] True. [Orion] Hate drove you to escape everything. True or false? [Scott] True. [Orion] Hate made you kill yourself. True or false? [Scott] True. [Orion] You are hate. True or false? [Scott] True. [Orion] The anti-life equation is hate. True or false? [Scott] True. [Orion] You are the anti-life equation. True or false?

[Scott] You could ask me, y’know. To stay. I’d fight. I’d kill Orion. Just say “Stay." I go to war. I swear. [Barda] I can’t… Scott. I told you. I can’t be that. I’m not your way out. It’s yours. This life, it’s yours. You choose. If you want to – All I can be is your wife. Now, c’mon, Scott, enough. Tomorrow’s your last day… What do you want to do?

[Scott] But what bothers me is that if that’s true, the word play thing. Then it’s true of all of it, of the first thing. “I think therefore I am.” I mean you’re presuming an “I.” And you’re saying that “I” contains the existence, the thinking. It’s just another tautology. I am therefore I am. So if you throw out God, then you throw out you. You’re back to the doubting, all of the doubting. Without God, I don’t exist. And if I exist, God exists. We look to find ourselves, to see our own face. And we find the face of God.

Warning: You are not allowed here. […] Warning: Acid gas will now melt you. […] Warning: You are now allowed here. Warning: Tidedragon will now consume you. […] Warning: You are not allowed to be here. Warning: Nothing can cross the forever void. Warning: You are not allowed here. Warning: The room will now shrink and crush you.

Fight sequence when restructuring the house. Mister Miracle Vol. 4 #06.

Fight sequence when restructuring the house. Mister Miracle Vol. 4 #06.

[Barda] The blow-up mattress is fine. I want a bedroom off the living room. [Scott] There is a bedroom off the living room. Our bedroom. [Barda] This would be our bedroom. The new one. [Scott] But… So we’re in the living room? Who’s in the new room? [Barda] Next to the new bathroom? [Barda] It’ll be nice. [Scott] W-wait. Who’s in the… new bedroom? [Barda] I promise. […] Scott. So. I’m pregnant. [Scott] I love you. [Barda] I… I believe you, Scott Free.

[Barda] Scott, listen to this! You gotta hear it! Funky, show him the picture! No, the one from before! [Jacob] Dah! [Barda] Did you hear that, Scott?! [Scott] Nnn [Barda] Do it again, show it again! Scott, listen, he does it every time. [Scott] And… [Barda] Every time he sees your face. [Scott] If that Mockingbird won’t sing… [Jacob] Dah! Dah! [Scott] Daddy… [Barda] Scott, can you hear it? [Scott] Daddy’s going to buy you… a goddamn diamond ring. [Barda] Funky, just give me the $%@#ing picture!

Jacob saying dah-dah to Scott for the first time. Mister Miracle Vol. 4 #08.

Jacob saying dah-dah to Scott for the first time. Mister Miracle Vol. 4 #08.

[Kanto] So, the apprentice thinks he’s better than his master. And he challenges this master to a contest. A painting contest. Paint the better painting. They take a whole year to finish them. And then they both show up in front of an audience. They’re outside, right? With a crowd. And the two of them got their paintings. And the apprentice pulls back the curtain on his art. And all it is, after a year of work, is just some grapes. Not even a lot. Like six or fewer. On a plate or something. And the apprentice is, like, standing proud, chest out. And the audience is like, what? Grapes? Nice grapes, yeah. But against the master? He’s cracked or he’s insane or he just couldn’t do it. And the apprentice ignores that and just calmly cool looks up at the sky. And there’s some birds there, right, flying. And they start flying toward the picture. And then these birds start pecking at the picture. Trying to eat the grapes, because they’re so good, they’re so perfect. To the birds, it isn’t art, it’s just what is, and what’s better than what is? And the audience goes nuts. Cheering and huzzah-ing! The apprentice is bowing and smiling. Pointing at the birds. He’s won, he knows he’s won, and he turns to the master, points at the master’s painting. And he says, “All right, not that there’s a need… but let’s see what’s behind your curtain.” And the master says – “What curtain?"

[Kalibak] Darkseid is willing to withdraw all forces. Immediately. Return all prisoners. Further, he would disarm and allow a New Genesis force to inspect Apokolips. Finally, he would… surrender the anti-life equation… [Scott] What? That’s… You said… That wasn’t even on the table. [Kalibak] In return for this… complete capitulation. Darkseid, humbly, asks only one thing. [Scott] What? [Kalibak] He asks for custody of his only grandchild, Jacob Free. He asks that the boy be raised on Apokolips. That he be raised here as the one, true heir to Darkseid.

[Scott] You were raised on Apokolips. [Barda] Yes? [Scott] And I was raised there. Like you. And we’re happy. [Barda] We were prisoners. Granny tortured us. We weren’t happy. [Scott] Yeah, then. I know. But now. We spent all that time here. And now, it came out okay. We’re doing well. [Barda] Are we? Is that why I had to find you bleeding out by the toilet? Because of how well we’re doing? [Scott] That was… That’s not fair. I’m trying! [Barda] Great. Good for you, Scott. Keep on trying. [Scott] It’s not fair. I was in a bad place. Oberon had died, and I… I had done so much, everything I ever wanted, and it didn’t… I just had to escape. [Barda] Yeah, and what did I have to do? I had to scrape you off the floor. Cry with strangers in an E.R. I made &%$#@ life work, while you were too… whatever you were to do anything! When do I get to escape, Scott?! [Scott] I don’t want to talk about this. This is supposed to be about the war. We have to talk about the war. [Barda] And what were you escaping from exactly? Me? [Scott] No… It wasn’t… [Barda] You’re dying to get away from me. And I… I should run from you. For that. And instead… I have to… All I can do is take care of you. You selfish &%$@%&# bastard. Did you ever, for a second, just think? Can you think? [Scott] It wasn’t… I’m not… Trying to… hurt anything. [Barda] Well, good for you! Aren’t you the @&%#@ godhero of New Genesis! All praise Scott @%#&#$@ Free! So you’re all $%&@# up. And I’m still with you. So that makes me all #$&@# up. And you want to give that to our kid! So we can win some &%#@ war! What is wrong with you? [Scott] We… got through it. [Barda] No, we didn’t. We are it. And he isn’t.

[Scott] One thing I’ve learned in all my years as a god on earth. Never underestimate the power of a good veggie tray. Mister Miracle Vol. 4 #11.

[Scott] One thing I’ve learned in all my years as a god on earth. Never underestimate the power of a good veggie tray. Mister Miracle Vol. 4 #11.

[Metron] You challenged the unchallenged. You dared the trap of death. And you escaped. And now it is time, my son. Time to look into the face of God. And hear your cheers. And take your bow. Where you is not where you should be, Scott Free. There is another world.

And the son asked, “What is the fourth world?” And the father said, “The first world is the old world. The world of my parents. From which they fled. The second world is the new world which they sought, which they found, where I came to be. The third world is our world as it is now, in the making, the future being born. And the fourth world, my child, that is my world. The world I see when I close my eyes…” Child, “And try to escape."

References

  1. Mister Miracle Vol 4 #01. Tom King; Mitch Gerads. dc.fandom.com . Aug 9, 2017. Accessed Mar 13, 2023.
  2. Mister Miracle Vol 4 #02. Tom King; Mitch Gerads. dc.fandom.com . Sep 13, 2017. Accessed Mar 13, 2023.
  3. Mister Miracle Vol 4 #03. Tom King; Mitch Gerads. dc.fandom.com . Oct 11, 2017. Accessed Mar 13, 2023.
  4. Mister Miracle Vol 4 #04. Tom King; Mitch Gerads. dc.fandom.com . Nov 8, 2017. Accessed Mar 13, 2023.
  5. Mister Miracle Vol 4 #05. Tom King; Mitch Gerads. dc.fandom.com . Dec 13, 2017. Accessed Mar 13, 2023.
  6. Mister Miracle Vol 4 #06. Tom King; Mitch Gerads. dc.fandom.com . Jan 18, 2018. Accessed Mar 13, 2023.
  7. Mister Miracle Vol 4 #08. Tom King; Mitch Gerads. dc.fandom.com . Aug 9, 2018. Accessed Mar 13, 2023.
  8. Mister Miracle Vol 4 #09. Tom King; Mitch Gerads. dc.fandom.com . Jun 13, 2018. Accessed Mar 13, 2023.
  9. Mister Miracle Vol 4 #10. Tom King; Mitch Gerads. dc.fandom.com . Aug 1, 2018. Accessed Mar 13, 2023.
  10. Mister Miracle Vol 4 #11. Tom King; Mitch Gerads. dc.fandom.com . Sep 18, 2017. Accessed Mar 13, 2023.
  11. Mister Miracle Vol 4 #12. Tom King; Mitch Gerads. dc.fandom.com . Nov 14, 2018. Accessed Mar 13, 2023.