DC Database
Don't have an account?
Register
DC Database
Advertisement
Register
DC Database
DC Database
130,211
pages
in: Dick Giordano/Executive Editor, Paul Johnson/Cover Artist, Neil Gaiman/Writer,
and 114 more

The Books of Magic Vol 1 4

Sign in to edit

"The Road To Nowhere": Despite Constantine's reservations, Mister E transports himself and Timothy forward through multiple generations of time, so Timothy may understand what the future of the Earth - and the wider Universe - holds for magic. This technique of "walking forward" is one which E's

Quote1 All I need to do is believe. Quote2
— Tim Hunter

The Books of Magic #4 is an issue of the series The Books of Magic (Volume 1) with a cover date of March, 1991.

Synopsis for "The Road To Nowhere"

Despite Constantine's reservations, Mister E transports himself and Timothy forward through multiple generations of time, so Timothy may understand what the future of the Earth - and the wider Universe - holds for magic. This technique of "walking forward" is one which E's fellow mystics can neither understand nor use, leaving Timothy's safety entirely in E's hands; at E's demand, even Yo-Yo is left behind.

While easily the most abrasive and judgmental of Timothy's educators, E imparts his lessons well, emphasizing that the future holds periods of both flux and stability. To illustrate both, he presents a magical Armageddon that takes place some fifteen years in the future, an all-out war between good- and evil-aligned creatures of magic. Though this battle is near-certain, its participants are not; in the instance E has chosen, Timothy has embraced evil, but other timelines feature him as neutral, or a champion of light.

Regardless, the sight of his future self killing his newly-made friends (including Constantine) horrifies Timothy. At his request, E takes them further into the future, through the thirtieth century, where magic's re-flourishing inadvertently unleashes a creature called the Archmage; past the 64th century, where human civilization has become a barely-comprehensible synthesis of magic and technology; and toward the exhaustion of the sun, millions of years later, where mankind has devolved to hunting sea-spiders for sustenance.

In present-day, E's companions grow suspicious, and bid Yo-Yo to protect Timothy by magically strengthening the bird's spiritual bond with his master. Following the bond, Yo-Yo eventually finds E and Timothy witnessing the expiration of the Universe itself, with E - satisfied this time contains nothing that could stop him - pursuing his initial desire to kill his "student". Without hesitation, Yo-Yo intercepts E's attack, giving his own life but buying Timothy enough time to be rescued by the Universe's last two inhabitants: Death and Destiny.

After claiming Destiny, Death assures E that Timothy will die at another's hands, and sends Timothy back to his proper time (E is made to return "the long way", under his own power). On returning, Timothy thanks the remaining mystics for their efforts, but decides magic is too dangerous and declines further studies. When the mystics disappear, Timothy instantly recants, but soon realizes he has given up nothing; the moment he accepted the Stranger's initial offer, he had chosen magic - magic enough to resurrect Yo-Yo, and magic that may yet leave him the world's greatest mage.

Appearing in "The Road To Nowhere"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

Other Characters:

Locations:

Items:

Vehicles:

Events:

Concepts:

Notes

  • Final issue.
  • Mister E's story continues in Mister E (Volume 1) which shows the return of E to the present day; Tim Hunter's story chronologically continues in Mister E #4 and, then, his story is continued in The Children's Crusade crossover.
  • John Constantine's story chronologically continues in Hellblazer #41.
  • The events from the Final Magical Conflict are explored from Future Constantine's point of view in The Sandman Universe Presents: Hellblazer #1.
    • The real circumstances behind the future Constantine's injury and his ultimate fate are also revealed in that issue.
  • The possible future, where the unnamed servant becomes Doctor Fate, is set between the 30th Century and the 64th Century.
  • Abra Kadabra's future is mistakenly mentioned to be set in the 60th Century instead of the 64th Century.
  • Mister E references the "Atomic Knights' future" which is actually Earth-86 that was originally believed to have been destroyed during the Crisis. E being able to glimpse this reality while in the Timestream suggests that it exists somewhere in the (then unnamed) Hypertime.

Trivia

  • Death jokes about having an appointment in Samara with Mister E. This is obviously a reference to John O'Hara's novel, Appointment in Samarra, where the concept of Death is central to its plot.
  • The song that Mr. E sings when he and Timothy witness the "Blue Shift" is the legendary jazz standard Mood Indigo.


See Also


Links and References
Superboy Vol 4 69
This page is missing characters!
 This page is missing one or more character, location or item appearances. If you find any characters that appear in this issue, episode, movie, game or book but are not included on the page, please add them to the Appearances list of the template.
Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.
More Fandoms
Advertisement