The image of an evil future is often found in long-running television shows. They are more common in shows that involve magic, science, or superheroes. The general premise involves one or more of the main characters arriving in a future (or even present) that has been turned into a dystopia where villains are in power.
Sometimes the heroes are the cause of this timeline change, and sometimes it’s out of their control. Despite this, they usually have to team up with alternate reality versions of their friends and loved ones in order to restore the status quo.
10 “Time Heals” - “Ben 10: Alien Force”
Gwen (Ashley Johnson) steals the book from the sorcerer Hex (Hari Peito), which contains a time travel spell. Against the advice of Professor Paradox (David McCallum), she goes back in time to stop Kevin (Greg Cipes) from mutation when ben (Yuri Lowenthal) tried to hack the Omnitrix. She succeeds, but now Hex has taken over the world.
“Time heals” has an interesting message. He preaches that instead of trying to fix the mistakes of the past, you should focus on the present and find a way to fix them in the future. Ironically, Gwen’s decision actually makes matters worse for Kevin, as he has been reduced to a mindless servant of the villains in the new timeline.
9 “Time After Time” - “Clash of Xiaolin”
Master FungMaurice LaMarche) announces to his students that they will go on a quest of their choice to decide on a team leader. Omi (Tara Strong), comes up with the idea to use the Sands of Time to go back in time and stop Chase Young (Jason Marsden), from turning to the side of evil. He freezes himself for eighty years in a failed attempt to talk to his future self, only to find out that his enemy, Jack Spicer (Danny Cooksey) took over the world.
The sight of Omi’s elderly friends and the price he has to pay to go back in time is enough to make Omi freeze in shock. The second episode also leads to an evil gift, as Omi’s plan to keep Chase in good shape has a ripple effect he couldn’t have predicted. Regardless, it has an optimistic message about how to lead others through adversity and that hope can be found even in the darkest moments.
8 “Operation FUTURE” - “Codename: The Kids Next Door”
number 4 (Dee Bradley Baker) his parents send him to an all-girls boarding school as he separated himself from everyone else. He learns that the school is run by a girl named Margie (Candi Milo) that is in contact with its future self. Using the technology of the future, Margie creates a weapon that can turn anyone into a feminine girl.
Reduced to seventy-five years in the future, and the remaining boys are led by the elderly Nambukh 4 in the underground resistance. All seems lost until Granddaughter Numbuha 3 (Lauren Tom), refuses boys because she grew up with stories of boys and girls playing together. Unlike other “boys vs girls” episodes, this episode does not emphasize the superiority of one gender, but shows the importance of treating both equally.
7 “Speed Demon” - “The Powerpuff Girls”
The Powerpuff Girls are excited that after school they will take a vacation outside of Townsville for the weekend. At Dandelion (Elizabeth Daly) sentence, they race home as fast as possible. Unfortunately, they travel so far that they go fifty years into the future, where evil is OH (Tom Kane) captured Townsville.
This is by far the darkest episode of the show. If seeing Townsville in ruins wasn’t enough, beloved characters are either dead or left so traumatized they can’t trust their own judgment. The worst comes when the survivors surround the girls and, in disgusting voices devoid of life, say that they themselves are to blame for everything.
6 “Like It Never Was” - “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”
After being thrown through time and space by Ultimate Draco (Ted Lewis And Mark Thompson), Donatello (Sam Riegel) arrives in 2035. Schroeder (Scotty Ray) has taken over the world, Master Splinter (Darren Dunstan) is dead and the turtles have dispersed. After meeting with April (Veronica Taylor) and her resistance, Donnie tries to come up with a plan to defeat the Shredder.
4Kids Entertainment is mostly known for their hilarious localized dubs of anime, but they didn’t get it right with this cartoon. This episode gets dark, both because of the number of people killed and how it resolves the family drama between the turtles. Leonardo (Michael Sinterniklaas) and Raphael (Greg Abbey) is the worst: they’ve always butted heads in the past, but now Splinter’s death has them at each other’s throats.
5 “Future Tense” - “Gargoyles”
After months of trying to get back to Manhattan Goliath (Keith David), Eliza (Sally Richardson), Angela (Bridget Bako) and the Bronx (Frank Welker) to return to New York forty years after leaving. David XanatosJonathan Frakes) turned it into a totalitarian state and plans to do the same with the rest of the world. The only hope is the resistance led by BrooklynJeff Bennett), consisting of friends and enemies of Goliath.
“Future Tense” is one of the best episodes Gargoyles. Every moment is heaped with tragedy, from watching the war leave scars on beloved characters to watching them die in the final assault to stop Xanatos. The final twist is one of the best in the series and serves as an effective opening for the show’s next main storyline.
4 “How Long Is Forever” - “Teen Titans”
star fire (Hynden Walch) plans to celebrate the Tamaran Feast of Friendship are interrupted by a villain from the future, Warp (Xander Berkeley), trying to steal an antique clock. As he tries to escape, Starfire jumps into his time portal and damages his device. This sends her twenty years into the future, where her friends have gone their separate ways.
It’s heartbreaking to see how the breakup of the team has affected each Titan. Robin (Scott Menville) took the best and still fights crime, but Cyborg (Khary Payton) depressive recluse, beatboy (Greg Cipes) turned himself into an attraction, and Raven (Tara Strong) gone crazy. The warp also presents interesting themes about the future: is it set in stone and unchanging, or is it determined by our actions?
3 “Wild Time” - “Justice Liage”
Back from space, Superman (George Newbern), Green Lantern (Phil Lamarr), Amazing Woman (Susan Isenberg), Flash (Michael Rosenbaum), Martian Manhunter (Carl Lumbly) and Hawk Girl (Maria Canals), discover that the world has changed. It was conquered by a man named Vandal Savage (Phil Morris), using time travel to help the Axis powers win World War II. With the help of Batman from an alternate reality (Kevin Conroy), the Justice League prepares to go back in time.
Wild Time brings an epic conclusion to the first season. The first episode shows a dystopian future filled with fascist imagery and an armored Batman leading an underground rebellion. Once the League goes back in time, they split up and join forces with wartime DC heroes to take down the Germans armed with futuristic weapons.
2 “Ultimate Enemy” - “Danny Phantom”
It’s time for Casper’s high school aptitude test, and Danny (David Kaufman) is nervous that his future will lead nowhere. To make matters worse, he continues to be attacked by mysterious ghosts from the future. They are sent by Clockwork (David Carradine), a ghost who controls time to prevent a future in which Danny grows into the most evil ghost on Earth.
This two-part film uses its dark future to explore the themes of grief, self-worth and high expectations. He does this through incremental choices that inevitably lead to deadly consequences. Then there’s Dark DannyEric Roberts), whose powers and monstrous personality make him one of the series’ most evil villains.
1 “Channel Hunters” - “Magical Parents”
Tired of his parents not paying attention to his evil babysitter VickiGray DeLisle), Timmy (Tara Strong) wishes for a pair of magical remotes that can lead him to television. Unfortunately, Vicki takes one and intends to use it to go to the history channel and become Earth’s dictator. Moreover, Vicki’s henchman from the future (Alec Baldwin) returns in time and chases Timmy.
This made-for-television movie could be the perfect ending for Pretty weird parents. It completed the overarching storyline about Timmy’s relationship with his parents and featured dozens of hilarious parodies of classic and, at the time, contemporary shows. The glimpses of a dark future are brief, but they provide strong stakes, and there’s a nice time traveler twist.
Source: Collider
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