Review: Justice League Dark #2

The magic side of the DCU is my sweet spot, and the first issue of Justice League Dark hit it full force. From showing off what made some of my favorite characters great to introducing a truly terrifying supernatural threat, the first issue of the comic delivered a great story and showed a lot of promise for issues to come. It goes without saying that I was only expecting bigger and better things from issue 2. The solicit mentioned world destruction. The cover promised Zatanna and Constantine burning witches. How could it be anything but awesome?

While Justice League Dark #2 lacked the witch burning featured on the cover, it was still a thoroughly entertaining comic. It looks like we're getting into some of the things Peter Milligan really excels at here- screwed up relationship dynamics, unexpected plot twists, and some really terrific character work. I missed seeing Shade the Changing Man this issue, but characters like Deadman, Dawn Granger, and John Constantine made great use of their increased panel time. In many ways, the conflict between Deadman and Dove was the driving force behind the issue, and there were some big developments for other members of the book's cast. I'm still anxious to see the whole team assembled together, but I don't mind the process being drawn back as long as we keep getting great character moments. Everyone but the yet to be seen Mindwarp has had a chance to shine, and I'm sure he'll get his spotlight soon.

Once again, the art by Mikel Janin is absolutely fantastic. His facial expressions are especially strong- he really helped sell Dawn's hurt, frustration and anger throughout the course of a book, and the little smirk that a bloodied Constantine wore tells readers just what they need to know about the character. The twisted spread near the beginning of the book is incredibly detailed, and I spent a long time looking at the destruction littered across the page. Milligan asks for a lot from Janin here, requiring him both the sweet and the gruesome, and Janin always delivers. Colorist Ulises Arreola adds in some nice little details, like the red glow around Deadman, that really compliment Janin's work.

Milligan promised that this series would be emotionally dark, and it's this issue that's really given an idea of what that will mean. At times, some of the series main characters feel downright unlikable, but their actions still ring true to me. What really makes their behavior work for me is that it feels like a natural result of the situation that they're in, not jerkishness for the sake of angst. Even when they're not facing the incredibly powerful Enchantress, it doesn't look like the Dark crew will have an easy go of it, and I'm looking forward to seeing where Milligan takes some of these characters in the issues to come.

While I've already recommended this title to fans of Vertigo and DC's magic cast of characters, I'd also suggest that Dawn Granger fans give this a try. I think her portrayal here is much stronger than it is in Hawk and Dove, and it looks like she's going to be sticking around for a good long while. Justice League Dark remains a solid supernatural title with beautiful art. It doesn't quite feel like a team book yet, but I'm sure it will soon, and I look forward to seeing the adventures that this motley crew will have. This remains one of my favorite DCnU titles, and I can't wait for issue 3, witch burning or not.

By Marceline with 5 comments

Review: Justice League Dark #1

I've always loved the magic side of the DC universe, and as might be expected, I was pretty excited when Justice League Dark was announced. It didn't hurt that the book's line-up was awesome. Zatanna! Constantine! Shade the Changing Man! But with high levels of excitement come high expectations, and every once in a while, I'd get worried that this book wouldn't live up to the hype. It didn't help that this was one of the last numbers ones to be released, and by the time I had this book in hand, I was feeling pretty nervous. But by the time I was a few pages in, I knew I'd had nothing to worry about.

Writer Peter Milligan does a great job establishing most of the main cast. Even John Constantine, whose appearance in the book was unfortunately brief, was established enough to give readers a feel for his personality and his history with a certain backwards talking girl. Although it's Madame Xanadu's creepy and foreboding narration that guides us through the issue, it was Zatanna who was the standout for me. She comes across as witty, brave, and clever enough to get past Batman himself. Fans of Shade will be happy to know that Milligan still has a strong handle on the character, and seems interested in incorporating elements of his Vertigo series in this new title.

Artist Mikel Janin is a relative newcomer to comics, but he makes it clear that he was the perfect choice for this book. He's able to bring softness and sweetness to characters like Dawn Granger and June Moone, but where he really shines is during the book's more horrifying moments. His Enchantress is twisted and inhuman, and he finds ways to make even simple moments feel a little more terrifying. There's some fantastic background work that really made a few scenes for me, like the little royal guard bear we see when Constantine crash lands into a pile of souvenirs, or the beautiful stained glass window behind Madame Xanadu. Janin's style feels very modern, but Ulises Arreola's colors help give it more of a 90's Vertigo feel that suits the book well.

While I think this title is fairly accessible to new readers, I don't know that they'll appreciate it on the same level long time fans of these characters will. You don't need to know who June Moone or Kathy are to follow the book, but certain scenes will be much more powerful if you do, and there occasionally seems to be an assumption that the reader knows certain details. On the other hand, I was a little annoyed to see Superman seemingly unaware of his weakness to magic, but I think it was an important thing to establish for those less familiar with the DC universe. It highlights the need for the Justice League Dark, and what makes this crew of characters so special.

The story Milligan is spinning here feels really ambitious, and I can't wait to see it come together. There are elements of things like Morrison's Doom Patrol and Swamp Thing here, and I'm excited to see where some of the weirder concepts in this book go. He seems to be bursting with ideas, from cows birthing meat slicers to envelopes that can compress time. The descriptions in Madame Xanadu's narrations are both creative and unsettling, and really set the tone for this book. In the line of titles like Justice League and Demon Knights, this is a "building the team" book, but there's enough going on in this issue that the book doesn't feel overly compressed. The issue's conclusion is fairly dramatic, and is going to make it hard to wait a month for the next issue.

I'd recommend this to Vertigo readers, fans of magic based characters, and to anyone looking for a less conventional team book. There are some very funny moments, but I'd advise against this one if you're looking for a more lighthearted read. There's some pretty disturbing imagery, and Milligan seems to be holding true to his promise of keeping the book emotionally dark. There was the occasional clunky moment, but overall, this is an intriguing first issue, and I think it's only going to get better once the set-up is out of the way. There's a vast selection of magical characters to use in this title, and Milligan clearly has the imagination to create compelling new ones. I'm looking forward to seeing what his twisted mind comes up with next.

By Marceline with 3 comments

Review: Red Lanterns #1

Depending on how you look at it, one of the great things about the DC relaunch is the basic lack of change in the Green Lantern corner of the universe. Perhaps the most interesting thing about the series are the Lanterns of focus. Following the war of Light, Blackest Night, and Brightest Day, the popularity of the different lanterns is clearly what spawned this title. The real question is, what makes the Red Lanterns of Rage more deserving of their own title than any other color? Personally, I would have wagered that the Yellow Lanterns would be more likely candidates, since Sinestro’s current status as their leader is questionable. However, the Red Lanterns have been fairly prominent throughout the GL universe, with Atrocious appearing in Green Lantern and Bleez in Emerald Knights, so it’s not entirely without logic.

The issue opens up in Space Sector 666. This sector is the home of Atrocious, the Red Lantern battery, and in the pre-relaunch universe, one of the few space sectors without a Green Lantern. Whether or not that is still the case remains so far unknown. We’re shown a group of aliens torturing a different, frailer looking alien. They are then attacked by Red Lantern fan favorite Dex-Starr, who if you are unaware, was once a kitty cat, and is now a lava spewing violence incarnate space kitty cat. This isn’t your heroic Green Lantern save, which Dex-Starr illustrates by scalping the first of the sadists he encounters.

The other aliens get the upper hand briefly before the ‘main’ Red Lantern Atrocious shows up with the single best line of the issue.

The two most interesting parts about this sequence (aside from a feral space cat @#)*$ing some guys up) is that Dex-Starr is given at least rudimentary thought via caption bubbles, and we get our first look at Atrocious’ state of mind, which looks to be a driving force in the series. Aside from Atrocious, none of the Red Lanterns have previously had much to say aside from rabid growling and rage filled yells. As an ongoing series, this pretty much has to change to make sure one Red Lantern is distinguishable from another.

What we learn is that Atrocious is losing his rage and is concerned about what this means for his future and the future of his corp. This leads to a somewhat unneeded ‘insubordination’ from Bleez (the bone winged Red Lantern from Emerald Warriors) which is clearly a setup for her leaving to be a part of Green Lantern: New Guardians. I say unneeded because up to this point, the Red Lanterns have basically been just a force of nature that Atrocious points at the universe and says ‘vomit lava and kill.’

Turns out Atrocious is losing his rage because he didn’t get to kill Krona, the Guardian responsible for his sector being wiped out. We then get a flashback of the destruction of Atrocious’ home, the death of his family, and the birth of his rage. This is about where the issue goes off the rails for me. Atrocious invokes a blood vision from the blood of Krona and sees ‘so much suffering, so much brutality’ in the universe that it reignites his rage and shows him his new mission (at which no time will he run into Hal Jordan and attack him for killing Krona). My problem here is that the montage of suffering and brutality that Atrocious sees is all on Earth. Really, that’s the extent of what the imagination of an alien, surrounded by thousands of other aliens will see? Also the other Red Lanterns are maybe mounting mutiny, for some reason? It’s hard to tell with the rage yelling.

On the plus side Ed Benes art really fits within the Lantern universe we’ve come to know the past couple of years. His detail is great and does a great job of integrating the otherworldly nature of the majority of the characters with the few human appearances we see. His layouts and action scenes clearly show the action that is occurring in interesting and exciting shots, while still being clear on what is happening. There’s also a healthy level of violence shown without being overly unsettling (i.e. still okay for most kids).

This works great for the comic, especially in the Lantern universe but it would be nice for the art to take a darker, more Vertigo turn down the line considering the theme here is rage. All in all though, the art team is working great with the story.

The major question that I have for Red Lanterns is whether or not there is enough characterization and premise to sustain an ongoing title. Considering the team involved I’m willing to bet on it, but only time will tell.

By Kephus with No comments