Summary
Warning! Spoilers forAbsolute Power: Ground Zero #1 ahead!In the final days before DC Comics' summer eventAbsolute Powerofficially starts,Batman’sultimate creation returns to play a pivotal rolein Amanda Waller’s grand plan. It wasn’t even a month ago that the Dark Knight finally disabled his terrifying creation and now it’s back to terrorize the DC Universe.
InAbsolute Power: Ground Zero #1’sstory “Stage One” by Chip Zdarsky, Mark Waid, and V. Ken Marion, Amanda Waller revives deceased villain Time Commander, aka John Starr, to put his chronal knowledgeto use reviving Failsafe, Batman’s powerful contingency. Starr repairs his hourglass to peek into the future and see what Waller has planned for the robot.
What Starr sees causes him to make an escape attempt. He time travels, but is stuck in a loop that keeps him trapped in Waller’s base. With no other option, Time Commander laborsuntil Failsafe is brought online, ready to serve Amanda Waller.
Failsafe is Back in Time forAbsolute Power
Batman designed Failsafe to stop him in case Bruce ever took a life. The robot was mistakenly activated when Batman was framed for killing Penguin, and it pursued Bruce relentlessly. But as bad as Failsafe was, it got even worse when it became the host body for Zur-En-Arrh. After transferring his consciousness to Failsafe, Zur-En-Arrh attempted to take Gotham under his control. However, Batman laid a trap and had Zur-En-Arrh temporarily kill Red Hood, causing the original Failsafe programming to override Zur-En-Arrh and allowing Batman to disable it. However,both Failsafe and several Amazos Zur-En-Arrh acquired were seized by Waller.
Time Commander has undone Batman’s hard work and brought Failsafe back. Fans who have kept up with the currentBatmanrun know how dangerous this machine is. It’s faster, stronger, and more capable than the real Batman, but it lacks Bruce’s emotions. In other words, it’s the perfect tool for someone like Amanda Waller to use in her campaign to take down the Earth’s metahumans. Amanda briefly considered a team-up back when Zur-En-Arrh was driving the Failsafe body. Now it appears that Zur-En-Arrh isn’t in the picture anymoreand Waller has an asset that will help her win her war.
Amanda Waller Has Batman’s Worst Nightmare on Her Side
Before Zur-En-Arrh even thought about inhabiting Failsafe, this robot took out the entire Justice League at once, including Superman. Now it’s back in prime condition and taking orders from someone who wants metahumans taken down no matter the cost. Waller has a lot of firepower on her side, but Failsafe is most certainly going to be doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Now thatBatman’sultimate contingency is back, the DC Universe is about to get a lot more dangerous.
Batman
One of DC’s most iconic heroes, Batman is the vigilante superhero persona of billionaire Bruce Wayne. Forged by tragedy with the death of his parents, Bruce dedicated his life to becoming the world’s leading martial artist, detective, and tactician. Recruiting an entire family of allies and sidekicks, Bruce wages war on evil as the dark knight of his hometown, Gotham City.
