Now there’s a grabber of a cover from Francis Manapul – I can even forgive the logo being Jack Knight’s rather than Will Payton’s, as the letterer has done such a great job extending it to take in ‘?’ and ‘!’ It’s the little things! As a fan of the Eighties Starman who has enjoyed his recent re-emergence in Justice League, I was delighted by the promise of him at the centre of an issue.
I really should not get my hopes up – Will barely appears and there’s no imminent prospect of death.
He’s in a few other panels, but there’s no progression. He’s in a cosmic coma or something, as useful as early Bronze Age Dream Girl. Hawkgirl shows zero concern, leaving him on the floor as she wanders off with Mera to continue her bad-tempered consideration of the current pickle the Justice League is in.
The Source Wall is broken. The Multiverse is decaying. The supposedly dead Lex Luthor is spreading the Gospel of Doom to help the infinitely powerful Perpetua return to life and eat reality.
Absent League leader J’onn J’onzz is trying to track down Luthor, whom he recently discovered – or ‘discovered’, I’m not necessarily buying it – was a childhood friend. Luthor is said to be making devilish deals with ordinary people.
Tackling the bigger picture are Flash, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, Batman and Superman; they’re at the multiversal House of Heroes where parallel universe Leagues meet to share war stories.
When I saw this was a James Tynion IV-written issue I expected another side story focusing on the Legion of Doom – always entertaining in an overly wordy way, but taking page time away from the actual title characters. Here, though, the bad guys are absent, it’s JLA interaction all the way, as we see how Hawkgirl deals with being forced to step up while J’onn ignores her pleas to get back to the Hall of Justice and take the reins. I can see her being cranky at his abandonment, but surely she’s known him long enough to give him the benefit of the doubt? Instead, she strides through League HQ barking at people who are doing their best to help. Thank goodness Mera offers to take on more responsibility.
The Hall of Heroes scene is my favourite in the issue, as Flash Barry Allen tries to convince Green Lantern John Stewart that he’s not remotely awed by the bonkers Elseworlds Leaguers surrounding him.
As for J’onn using his neglected detective identity of John Jones to follow the trail of Luthor, I was surprised by just how powerful his mental powers are these days, allowing him to ‘drop in’ on randoms across the US. And can he really telepathically download fighting skills into every person on the planet? Regardless of the mechanics, that’s lighting a touchpaper – the would-be mass killer on page one may not need those guns after all…
Speaking of which, that’s a nicely written scene, with Tynion channeling his inner Alan Moore to good effect. Conflating Lex Luthor with the devil at the crossroads in that famous urban legend is a neat touch. Commendations, too, for the slick, witty dialogue between Barry and John, and the business about inter-dimensional vibrations forming a symphony. And having Green Arrow and Plastic Man in the detectives’ room is a useful link to Brian Bendis’ Event Leviathan. The issue is a good read all-round, with pretty decent art from Javier Fernandez – it looks a tad rushed in parts, and the very young-looking John Stewart is terribly off-model, but there’s nothing horribly jarring and the storytelling is good. I must single out the excellent one-panel appearance by Kingdom Come Flash, he looks brilliant. That’s partly due to Hi-Fi, who do a stellar job with the colouring, while Tom Napolitano’s lettering is sharp – I especially like the title treatment.
The big problem with this Justice League run masterminded by regular writer Scott Snyder is that there’s no sense of the massive multiversal danger we’re told is affecting worlds right now – heroes have meetings, brush up on fighting skills, fret about their love lives… surely we should be seeing scenes reminiscent of Crisis on Infinite Earths, with populaces panicked and heroes desperate as worlds are erased.
Perhaps this book’s upcoming reversion to monthly, after a long period of fortnightly, publishing will concentrate some minds and we’ll get to the point a little faster. I hope so, because intriguing and ambitious as this series is, a tighter focus and snappier pace would work wonders.
Too Dangerous For a Girl 2 
Thanks for keeping us up to date on this, Mart. I liked that Flash/GL scene that you showed us, too. One thing that took me out of the scene where everyone gets goodies from the man in the cloak…is that (in America, at least), I just don’t buy that everyone has the word “cloak” right at their fingertips. It’s just not a word we use often in everyday life (superheroes and roleplaying games notwithstanding). I could see someone calling him a man in a hood, or with a cape, or something. Someone’s going to be grasping for words to describe the cloak.
Anyway, that’s me nitpicking an otherwise fine scene.
As for the Starman logo — the 90s one is so distinctive, and since the later issues of that series have shown they’re all connected anyway, I don’t have a problem with them using it either.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s really interesting – in the UK ‘cloak’ is in common usage, likely due to all the films with Dick Turpin and musketeers! I suppose comic fans know it from Cloak and Dagger.
What I found strange about the opening business – utterly forgot to mention it – is that all these people are coming up with/copying the same lie.
And as if Lex’s promise is needed to facilitate someone going postal…
LikeLike
Dear Mart,
Thanks again for a great review (not that you do bad ones!).
If I may go completely off topic, I’ve been looking at yours and Dr Anj’s sites multiple times everyday since the Legion news was released to see your thoughts but no mention. I definitely know you are fans so surprised.
Sorry if bringing being a tad cheeky but I’m on a high after New Zealand’s last over win against South Africa in World Cup
LikeLiked by 1 person
Congrats on the win. And yep, I’d have been all over the Legion news but have been on a cruise with very limited internet/free time. On the way home now, so hang in there!
LikeLike
Sounds like I’m not missing anything to my tastes since I stopped reading this book. I am disappointed to see Tynion is now writing Barry with Wally’s personality too. At least the Wally fans disappointed by Heroes In Crisis can read this title to feel better…
LikeLike
I’ve had a few moans about Barry-as-Wally but allowed the dialogue this issue not to annoy me – as this Flash wasn’t actively stupid, I’m pretending this is Happy Barry of the Silver Age.
LikeLike
I feel like the Bendisverse and the Snyderverse are at war in DC Comics with an incohesive universe being the outcome. This book continues to be gobbledygook to me.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Then I recommend this week’s digital Scooby-Doo Team-Up as a palate cleanser. Is there a DP connection…
LikeLike
Thank you for putting into words something I have been feeling for a while. The Snyderverse v Bendisverse is exactly what it is, and I pray to all the Gods and even to Saint Carmine Infantino, that it is the Bendisverse that ends up winning. But, and this can’t be understated, I think the Johnsverse is also in contention, and I am not opposed to it as much as I am to the rambling mess that Snyder’s mainstream stories are. At least with Bendis, there seems to be a real respect for the history of these characters whereas Snyder just seems intent at throwing all the pasta on the wall and hoping some of it sticks.
LikeLike
The Snyder stuff is like the Kang War back when at Marvel. Kang conquered Earth and no mention of it or the consequences was felt in any other book ever. Snyder’s plot did get Titans canceled and I hear Odyssey’s three readers are getting some tie in but what happens in JL stays in JL.(and I guess there’s Year Of The Villain but I can’t be the only one who’s not gonna touch an issue of hat)
LikeLiked by 1 person
As I understand JL continuity, the Blahs are coming and the Blah Blahs are right behind them.
LikeLike
The House of Heroes stuff was the best thing in this issue for me – I admit to being a sucker for multiversal cameos.
You nailed it, Mart, when you mention wanting to see similar scenes as we did in COIE; every issue we get “The multiverse is collapsing!” and yet we see nothing of it. If it wasn’t mentioned regularly, I think most of us would have forgotten it was happening.
This book plods while Justice League Dark runs . . . and Justice League Odyssey sits on the sidelines wondering when it’s going to be their turn.
LikeLike
Oh, Justice League Dark is such a fun read. Odyssey, I managed one issue, I bought a second by mistake but don’t remember if I read it. Skinny Darkseid my arse!
LikeLike