Inescapable Love

At face value, New Gods Big Barda and Mister Miracle seem about as unlikely a couple as Gorilla Grodd and The Flash - or are they?

Big Barda was born in the nightmare world of Apokolips, home of the despot Darkseid. Mister Miracle (Scott Free) is the son of the High Father, ruler of New Genesis. Scott was born in New Genesis but was part of a peace deal brokered between Darkseid and High Father, who exchanged sons to ensure peace between their two planets. Darkseid received Scott Free in exchange for his son, Orion.

Scott Free grew up on Apokolips in one of Granny Goodness’s orphanages, never knowing his true origins on New Genesis. He also refused to allow his tortuous upbringing to break his spirits, constantly rebelling against Darkseid and his rule.

Big Barda also grew up in Granny’s orphanage, where she was trained to lead the Female Furies, Darkseid’s elite team of female warriors and personal guard. During one of her raids to crush any insurrection against Darkseid, she met Scott Free and the two fell in love.

Big Barda helped Scott escape to Earth where he met Thaddeus Brow,  an escape artist who went by the name Mister Miracle. Scott befriended his assistant Oberon, and when Thaddeus was later killed, Scott took up the mantle of Mister Miracle with Oberon as his manager.

Eventually, Big Barda also escaped Apokolips and went to Earth to join Scott. The two were married with the blessing of High Father.

Both Scott and Barda have been members of the Justice League at one time or another. Barda even joined Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman on their mission to Apokolips to rescue Supergirl, who was kidnapped by Darkseid. As a result, she was forced to fight her former team of Female Furies.

The identity of Mister Miracle has been assumed by one other person - Shilo Norman. Shilo was the ward of the original Mister Miracle, Thaddeus Brown. When Brown was killed, Shiloh trained to become an escape artist himself under Scott Free's supervision. When Shiloh became the new Mister Miracle, he did so mostly for the money and the fame. You can read about Shilo’s Mister Miracle in the miniseries Mister Miracle: The Source of Freedom.

In the maxi-series Mister Miracle by Tom King, Big Barda and Scott Free are married and have a child together named Jacob Free. Orion becomes the new High Father, and both Barda and Scott have to battle on Apokolips while dealing with a newborn baby. In a cruel and ironic twist of fate, Jacob becomes part of a new peace deal between New Genesis and Apokolips. Scott and Barda just have to give their newborn child to Darkseid to have peace between the two warring worlds again.

What will they do next?