With Future State, DC Comics is giving readers a chance to see one of the many possible futures of the DC Universe across a two-month event. And while some aspects of this future where Jon Kent is the Superman of Metropolis, Tim Fox is the new Batman, and the Flash Family has been cut off from the Speed Force will find their way into the present-day comics once Future State is over, it's a safe bet that Clark Kent will still be Superman, Bruce Wayne will still be Batman, and Flash will still have superspeed.

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But that doesn't make Future State any less fun. Seeing where the heroes and villains of the DC Universe may end up is a tried and true way to tell stories about these characters that can give the creators a chance to do things that would never be accepted in the in-continuity stories. That's why DC has done it so many times.

10 Armageddon 2001

Monarch manipulating heroes in DC Comics' Armageddon 2001

One of the best-known versions of this style of storytelling in the DCU is Armageddon 2001, a 1991 crossover event that ran through that year's annuals. In the story, readers saw a near future - 2030 - where the world is ruled over by an evil tyrant named Monarch. To stop Monarch, a scientist named Matthew Ryder - who would become Waverider - built a time machine so he could go back and discover which of the DC heroes was destined to become the vile ruler.

Across the annuals, Waverider interacted with every DC hero to see their futures, letting us all get a look at the possibilities. Some heroes, like Blue Beetle, had just one future, while others, like Superman and Batman, had a number of possible paths.

9 Legion of Super-Heroes

The longest-running look at the future of the DC Universe, the Legion of Super-Heroes made their debut in 1958 and have been showing what the universe will look like a thousand years from now ever since. As a variety of reboots and Crisis events have changed the course of the DC Universe, the Legion of Super-Heroes has changed with it, but the premise of the team has always been rock solid.

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In the latest incarnation, the Legion has brought Jon Kent, the current day Superboy, to their time to show him how his and his father's actions helped set up a better tomorrow.

8 Titans Tomorrow

After traveling one thousand years into the future to help the Legion of Super-Heroes, the Teen Titans headed back to their own time but accidentally ended up ten years into their own future where they met the adult versions of themselves, the Titans of Tomorrow.

The Teen Titans were shocked to find that these older versions of Superboy, Robin, Wonder Girl, and the rest were far more violent and fascistic than they would have expected. Not only that, but many of the great heroes had died in a Crisis and the United States had broken into two factions. When the Teen Titans finally made it back to their own time, they swore to make sure the future they saw would never come to pass.

7 The Living Legends of Superman

To celebrate Superman #400, some of the top writers and artists of the day came together to create "The Living Legends of Superman" an eight-part story that comes to an end with Jim Steranko's "The Exile at The Edge of Eternity". Across the eight chapters, readers see the effects Superman has on the universe both in the past a present, ending with the revelation that some millions of years after Superman came to Earth, the Man of Steel has died but his bloodline lives on through all of mankind, turning humans into a super race that can travel the stars. The story ends with A'dam'mkent+477SPMN, the last human to be alive after the rest of mankind sacrifices themselves to close a hole in space.

6 DC One Million

DC One Million event.

In the 853rd century, Superman still lives, but he has exiled himself into his Fortress of Solitude - located in the heart of the sun - for the last fifteen thousand years. When Superman announces that he will soon return to Earth, the Justice Legion A, a team of heroes based on the ideal of the Justice League and Legion of Super-Heroes, decide to travel to the 20th century and bring Superman's friends to their time to join in the celebrations.

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Crafted by Grant Morrison, DC One Million - set a million months from the release of Action Comics #1, ran through every DC series, giving every book a special issue #1,000,000.

5 The Dark Knight Returns

Batman from The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller

The most well-known story about the future of the DC Universe, Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns sees a world where almost all the heroes, including Batman, have retired, leading to an Earth that is in much worse shape. Years after giving up his crime-fighting identity, Bruce Wayne finds himself feeling the need to save his city once again, this time from a gang called The Mutants. The Caped Crusader's actions lead to a return of his greatest foe the Joker, and a standoff between the Dark Knight and Superman in the streets of Gotham City.

4 Flash: The Return of Abra Kadabra

The last time Wally West - the third Flash - saw Abra Kadabra, the rogue was hit by a burning truck and exploded. But like any good magician, Kadabra had only tricked Flash into thinking he was dead. When he came back for revenge against Flash, Kadabra didn't come alone - this time he was being hunted by hunters from the 64th century - the time that Kadabra is from. Flash and Kadabra travel to the 64th century where Wally learns that his foe is actually an icon to rebels who battle against a fascist government run by a supercomputer.

3 Kingdom Come

Kingdom Come

Mark Waid and Alex Ross' look into the not too distant future of the DC Universe, Kingdom Come has become a seminal classic that serves as a reminder of why heroes like Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern matter. In a future where the iconic heroes have retired and been replaced by a younger generation that prefers to use their powers to have fun instead of saving lives, Kingdom Come sees the greats return - and break into separate factions - as they try to save the world after Kansas is destroyed in a nuclear accident.

2 Batman in Bethlehem

Batman 666

In a story told by Grant Morrison and Andy Kubert, Batman #666, "Batman in Bethlehem" shows a future where Damian Wayne has grown up to become Batman. The world is in constant turmoil thanks to Climate Change and never-ending wars, and to protect Gotham City, Damian has done something unheard of - he has sold his soul to Satan who in return gave him the power to keep his city safe.

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At the same time, Michael Lane - the Third Batman - returns to Gotham claiming to be the Anti-Christ. As the Third Batman works to bring about armageddon, Damian sets up his plan to stop it, which includes breaking a promise he made to his father.

1 Future's End

cyborg earth featuring wonder woman

Created during the New 52 era of DC, Future's End was a 48-issue weekly series set five years into the future of the DCU. In the series, which also had 41 one-shots that focused on specific characters, Terry McGinnis - better known as Batman Beyond - travels back in time to help the heroes stop an oncoming apocalypse that spawns out of a war that was fought across the Multiverse.

While the series mainly followed McGinnis, Frankenstein, and Firestorm as they work to stop the end of all things, it also gave readers a chance to see a possible future for the heroes of the DCU.

NEXT: Future State: 10 Ways The DC Universe Is About To Change