Animal Man: Deus Ex Machina #[nn]

In "A New Science of Life," Buddy Baker confronts a haunting vision of the original Animal Man from Strange Adventures, a version of himself long gone, questioning his place in the world. When the vision ends, he returns home to face the weight of his deepest loss, where the past and present collide in ways he never expected.

In the wake of unimaginable loss, Buddy stands at the edge of despair—until a cryptic phone call cuts through the silence. Meanwhile, deep within a shadowy government facility, Mr. Lennox witnesses the unveiling of a weapon that blurs the line between power and control.

In "Crisis," Animal Man finds himself caught between timelines, debating fate and free will with the Phantom Stranger, Immortal Man, and Jason Blood in a past he’s altered. Back in the present, Psycho Pirate’s reckless resurrection of old and new characters sends shockwaves through reality—until the aliens and James Hightower call Animal Man back to confront the consequences of a creation too dangerous to remain.

In "Purification Day," Animal Man confronts the unsettling truth of his existence when he realizes he’s a character in a comic book, prompting a desperate plan with James Highwater to send all fictional beings back into limbo. As the aliens return him to his world, Animal Man is left grappling with a haunting question: who, or what, is truly behind his suffering?

In "Monkey Puzzles," Animal Man journeys to a graveyard of forgotten characters, where he learns the dying monkey who writes stories out of limbo is running out of time. Following a cryptic script handed down from the creature, Animal Man sets out to save him—only to find himself years later, back at his own doorstep. The trail leads him to Grant Morrison’s home, where the line between creator and creation blurs.