SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains major spoilers for Mister Miracle #11, by Tom King, Mitch Gerads and Clayton Cowles, on sale now.
Ever since Issue #1 of Tom King and Mitch Gerads’ 12-part Mister Miracle limited series, readers have been questioning just how much of the story is “real” and how much of it is all in Scott Free’s head. After all, for every character-redefining change in the lives of Scott and Big Barda, there’s a “Darkseid Is” or a panel of distorted artwork within a nine-panel grid to make us second guess if what we’re seeing is anything more than a façade.
However, in Mister Miracle #11, King and Gerads drop a major bombshell that might just shine a light on the reason behind Scott’s existential crisis (and yes, it does appear to be a crisis of multiple Earths).
RELATED: Mister Miracle Team Drew Inspiration from Their Marriages for Scott/Barda Dynamic
The previous issue ended with Scott telling Barda that he would take Darkseid up on his offer to end the war between New Genesis and Apokolips by giving the despot custody of the pair’s son Jacob. Instead of handing him over willingly, though, Scott would use that opportunity to kill his adopted father, which is exactly what he and Barda attempt to do. Unfortunately, their plan quickly runs off the rails.
Even after tricking him into forfeiting use of the Anti-Life Equation and blasting him with a gun powered by the Miracle Machine, Darkseid still manages to overpower the two super-parents, beating them both to bloody pulps. Unbeknownst to Darkseid, though, the master escape artist has one more trick up his sleeve. Grabbing a concealed fahren-knife forged from the flesh of Orion, Scott stabs Darkseid to death, thereby fulfilling the prophecy stating that only his son can kill him.
Or so it would seem…
RELATED: Mister Miracle’s Obscurity Allowed Mitch Gerads to Create His ‘Weird’ Style
After their apparent triumph, Scott and Barda learn that the cloaked figure they believed was DeSaad is actually Metron, with the implication being that everything we’ve seen Scott go through in the past 11 issues was some sort of challenge he had orchestrated. What’s more, it would seem that Metron might have used the dimension-hopping abilities of the Mobius Chair to do so.
“Where you are is not where you should be, Scott Free,” Metron says. “There is another world.”
Then, for the first time since the start of the miniseries, Gerads deviates from the nine-panel grid layout with a double-page spread depicting a number of heroes from the post-Rebirth DC Universe, including those such as Orion and Highfather, who both died in earlier issues.
RELATED: Mister Miracle: Tom King Teases What’s Coming In the Series Finale
So, does this mean Scott Free has simply been caught in the most elaborate trap he’s ever faced this entire time? And if so, how much of what’s transpired in this false reality (such as the birth of his son) will carry over when he returns home?
The only thing that’s certain is whatever happens in King and Gerads’ curtain call will leave Mister Miracle forever changed.