Things to Come (2016) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Cabal attempts to rescue the downed enemy pilot because he recognizes the humanity beneath the conflict. Despite being at war, his act of saving the opposing pilot demonstrates his belief in compassion and moral complexity, even during wartime violence. This decision foreshadows his later role as a unifier who seeks to end conflict rather than perpetuate it.

Foreshadowing: Earlier in the Christmas scene, Cabal and his friends discuss the dread of impending war, establishing his thoughtful nature before combat begins.

• john cabal
• rescue
• enemy pilot
• royal air force
• compassion
• war

The prolonged war stretches into the 1960s, causing cities to crumble, economies to collapse through hyperinflation, and technological progress to stall completely. The original reasons for the conflict become forgotten as society loses the resources and stability needed to maintain advancement. This creates a feedback loop where destruction prevents recovery.

Foreshadowing: The tense Christmas discussion about impending war establishes that the conflict will be devastating and long-lasting.

• dark age
• technological regression
• war
• hyperinflation
• collapse
• 1960s

The wandering sickness is a devastating plague unleashed through aerial bombing, sending victims into a zombie-like state before ultimately killing them. This pestilence claims half of humanity and leaves little governance intact, compounding the suffering from the ongoing war. The Boss eventually eliminates it through mass executions of the afflicted.

Foreshadowing: The bombing raid that starts the war also introduces this biological weapon, connecting the initial violence to later catastrophe.

• wandering sickness
• plague
• bombing
• pestilence
• boss
• execution

By 1970, Rudolf, known as the 'Boss,' becomes a ruthless warlord who claims dominion over the ruins of Everytown. He consolidates power by executing those afflicted with the wandering sickness and rules through fear. He maintains a collection of pre-war biplanes and wages war against the hill people of Floss Valley to obtain resources for his aircraft.

Foreshadowing: The timeline shows society has collapsed completely by 1970, creating the power vacuum that allows a warlord to rise.

• boss
• rudolf
• warlord
• everytown
• biplanes
• floss valley

With secret help from Gordon, a discontented mechanic, Cabal's organization deploys large flying wing aircraft that release a 'Gas of Peace' over Everytown. The gas knocks everyone unconscious. When they awaken, they discover the Boss has died from a fatal reaction to the gas, ending his tyrannical rule without further violence.

Foreshadowing: Gordon's discontent is hinted at when he assists Cabal secretly, suggesting internal resistance to the Boss's rule.

• wings over world
• gas of peace
• boss
• gordon
• flying wing
• everytown

The Gas of Peace is a chemical weapon developed by Wings Over the World designed to incapacitate rather than kill. While it renders the population unconscious temporarily, it proves fatal only to the Boss, likely due to an unknown reaction specific to him. This allows the organization to remove the tyrant without widespread bloodshed.

Foreshadowing: Cabal's earlier attempt to rescue an enemy pilot demonstrates his preference for peaceful solutions over killing.

• gas of peace
• incapacitate
• boss
• wings over world
• peaceful resolution

Sculptor Theotocopulos incites unrest among the citizens, arguing for a pause in relentless progress, particularly regarding the dangerous first manned flight around the Moon. He represents those who fear that technological advancement comes at too great a human cost and that humanity should appreciate what they've achieved rather than risk destruction for further progress.

Foreshadowing: Theotocopulos appears only in the advanced society of 2036, suggesting his concerns emerge from living in a world already fully rebuilt.

• theotocopulos
• moon mission
• protest
• progress
• oswald cabal
• catherine

Oswald Cabal must expedite the mission because Theotocopulos has stirred the masses to potentially destroy the launch vehicle. Rather than risk losing this historic achievement to opposition, Oswald decides to launch immediately, entrusting the mission to his daughter Catherine and scientist Maurice Passworthy.

Foreshadowing: Theotocopulos's growing influence creates urgency, directly threatening the culmination of decades of human progress.

• oswald cabal
• moon mission
• catherine
• maurice passworthy
• launch
• theotocopulos

In the final exchange, Cabal responds to Passworthy's fear that humanity may never find peace by asserting that humanity must choose between continued progress and existential failure. The quote encapsulates the film's central theme: humanity's survival depends on relentless advancement into the unknown, rejecting complacency and stagnation.

Foreshadowing: This philosophical stance echoes Cabal's entire journey from wartime pilot to civilization's rebuilders.

• universe
• nothingness
• progress
• peace
• oswald cabal
• philosophy
• humanity

Pippa Passworthy serves as the eternal optimist during the Christmas gathering, believing either that war will be avoided entirely or that if war comes, it will lead to remarkable technological advancements. Her hopeful outlook contrasts sharply with the dread expressed by Cabal and Harding, representing the naive optimism that will be shattered by the bombing that same night.

Foreshadowing: Pippa's optimism proves partially justified, while war does occur, it eventually leads to technological renewal through Wings Over the World.

• pippa passworthy
• optimism
• christmas
• war
• technology
• 1940

Under John Cabal's leadership, Wings Over the World mobilizes the last surviving engineers and mechanics to systematically rebuild civilization. They establish modern underground cities including a new Everytown, focusing on peace and scientific advancement. The organization operates across Iraq and beyond, using centralized scientific knowledge to rapidly restore technology and society.

Foreshadowing: Cabal's statement on May Day 1970 about ending the cycle of war and reinstating civilization outlines this exact vision.

• 2036
• civilization
• underground cities
• progress
• science
• wings over world
• iraq