The following contains spoilers from Flashpoint Beyond #1, on sale now from DC Comics.
The entire tapestry of the DC Universe was reshaped courtesy of superstar writer Geoff Johns (Green Lantern, Infinite Crisis, Justice League) in 2011's Flashpoint. When The Flash (aka Barry Allen) travels back in time to save his mother from being murdered by his archenemy The Reverse Flash, reality is completely changed. In addition to Barry no longer possessing his powers, this universe saw other sweeping changes as well. Thomas Wayne became the ruthless Flashpoint Batman after witnessing the murder of his son Bruce. Aquaman and Wonder Woman were at war with one another, and the general population had never even heard of Superman.
Johns returns to the world he created in DC's Flashpoint Beyond, this time collaborating with equally prolific and respected writers Jeremy Adams (The Flash, Future State: Suicide Squad) and Tim Sheridan (Infinite Frontier, Shazam!, Teen Titans Academy). The story revolves around the return of Thomas Wayne to the Flashpoint Universe after "Death of the Justice League" and the mystery of how he has returned to a world that was believed to have been destroyed. CBR had the chance to sit down with the team of writers to talk about the first issue of the highly anticipated series and tease the direction of the story.
CBR: A big part of Flashpoint Beyond focuses on Thomas Wayne's Batman returning to the Flashpoint Universe after it was believed to have been destroyed. How is this even possible?
Geoff Johns: That is the mystery that we unravel in the story itself. Why did Thomas Wayne wake up there? He finds that world in disarray and chaos, and he's trying to figure out how to change it back to save his son again. Meanwhile, we see Bruce in the mainstream DC universe up to something that's obviously connected to it all. The question of why that universe is back and how it's back is the core mystery of Flashpoint Beyond.
Jeremy Adams: The excitement of the whole thing for us is putting Thomas back in a situation that he believes was corrected. He feels that this isn't how it's supposed to be, and we get to sort of put the pieces on the board for the story to come.
What do readers need to know going into Flashpoint Beyond?
Johns: They don't really need to know anything. We sum everything up pretty well in Flashpoint Beyond #0 for those who haven't read the original series. I think it would be nice if they read the original Flashpoint series because otherwise, it would be like seeing The Empire Strikes Back without first seeing Star Wars, but other than that, I don't think there's anything you really need to know.
The original Flashpoint had a number of crossovers that told an overarching story. Will Flashpoint Beyond have crossovers as well, or will this be a self-contained series?
Johns: It's a self-contained story that affects a lot of characters moving forward in the DC universe. It's self-contained (like Sinestro Corps was back when I did that) and affects the entire DC Universe. This event specifically affects members of the Justice Society, particularly the ones who are both from the past and the future. Flashpoint Beyond affects time and all things related to time. The story becomes very character-based by the time it comes to an end, and it spills out into several things that we can't talk about just yet.
How does Bruce Wayne connect to the story being told in Flashpoint Beyond?
Johns: One of the most important elements of Flashpoint Beyond is how Bruce Wayne is connected to the story. It was important for us to have this be more than just a continuation of Thomas' story, as it's also a continuation of Bruce's story and relates directly to that. This will start to develop more and more as the series progresses.
Adams: Geoff is really good at looking at the micro versus the macro of it all. He's great at placing those puzzle pieces and making it a much larger story full of so many other things.
Tim Sheridan: Not everybody can walk that line and deliver on telling a real human, emotional story with huge consequences and universe-changing factors. Not to embarrass him or anything, but I think Geoff has proven time and again that he's very comfortable in that kind of space, and we're all better for it.
Johns: I really believe these event stories need to have an emotional backbone. Otherwise, there's no story and no reason to tell it. This is an emotional story that affects everything. Of course, if Batman is going to do something that's really important to him and has challenged him, it's going to echo throughout the DC Universe.
What can you tell us about the role Harvey Dent's son Dexter plays in the series?
Sheridan: There's a great panel in Flashpoint Beyond #2 where Thomas catches a glimpse of Dexter looking out the window, and the moonlight is hitting his face. At the same time, Dexter's shadow is hitting the face of a young Bruce Wayne in a nearby portrait. I think that is where we begin in terms of how Thomas sees Dexter. He sees a kid that, in many ways, reminds him a lot of Bruce, but he doesn't quite understand his relationship with this kid yet. He's still got a lot of things that he's dealing with, but this definitely pushes some buttons for Thomas.
Young Dexter has his own story and agenda. We've all seen the long, great history between Batman and other lost young men. I don't want to give away too much, but I think you can see the ideas that we're playing with and how they tie into the history of Batman's legacy. Let's just leave it at that for now.
Flashpoint Beyond is written by Geoff Johns, Jeremy Adams, and Tim Sheridan, and features art by Xermanico and Mikel Janin. The first issue is available now from DC Comics.