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In Justice League: Last Ride, an unlikely Justice Leaguer finally killed Darkseid, but it dramatically changed his DC Universe timeline.
WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Justice League: Last Ride #5, on sale now from DC Comics.
The final fate of Darkseid during the Justice League’s final mission in the world of Justice League: Last Ride has been answered. He had struck on two fronts, attacking both Earth and Oa, forcing the Justice League to divide into two groups to stop him. Darkseid went to Oa personally, intending to siphon the power of the Central Battery into himself.
However, Hal Jordan ensured that Darkseid’s insatiable lust for power would be his undoing by detonating the battery, killing Darkseid and setting up the current status quo for the Green Lanterns in Justice League: Last Ride#5 by Chip Zdarsky, Miguel Mendonica, Enrica Angiolini and AndWorld Design.
Sometime after Darkseid’s death, it was made clear that the Green Lantern Corps was in shambles. They had lost most of their jurisdiction thanks to the United Planets, something happening concurrently in the main DCU. But it was also clear that the Corps had seen better days. Their numbers were severely depleted and Oa was ruined. In fact, Hal was using the Justice League’s mission to prove that Earth could become the new Oa. The whole universe’s faith in the Corps had clearly been shaken so badly that the governing body of most of the universe had refused to rebuild them some time after the fact. But how this all came to pass was a mystery — until now.
Darkseid had managed to kill his way to the Central Battery, even with powerhouses like Superman and Green Lantern standing in his way. But when Martian Manhunter planned to sacrifice himself to shut down Apokolips and save Earth, Superman left the battlefield to go save his friend, leaving Hal to battle Darkseid alone. This left Hal in the impossible position of having to defeat Darkseid before he seized control of one of the most powerful artifacts in the universe.
It wasn’t a fair fight. Hal tried to stop Darkseid from absorbing the battery, warning him that he didn’t understand the power he was trying to harness. Darkseid could never resist his desire for more power, whereas the battery was composed of willpower, the ability to resist temptation — an antithesis to Darkseid’s weakness. When Darkseid began draining the battery, Hal saw no other choice than to detonate it above Darkseid, killing him in the process, but also triggering a massive explosion.
That decision ruined Oa and was undoubtedly the cause for the drop in the Green Lanterns’ numbers. Without the Central Battery, only a few of them could operate. But it still made Hal Jordan the man who took down Darkseid, which is actually a remarkable turnaround from the last time the two went toe to toe.
They had previously battled in the New 52 storyline “Origins” which detailed the Justice League’s initial formation in that continuity. Darkseid invaded Earth and Hal, cocky and impatient, rushed headlong into the fray. But Hal was at the beginning of his career and only succeeded in getting a broken arm for his efforts. Even now, he is still no match for Darkseid one on one, but he learned to fight smarter, not harder.
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