Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Justice League #1


You know, taken on its own, this thing isn’t bad. If I can put the last 20-some years of comic reading behind me, I can see how a new reader would be really pulled into this relaunch.

Geoff Johns starts off easy, introducing Batman and Green Lantern and giving them most of the issue to chat and bicker. I dug the immediate friction between the two characters, it’s clear early on that these guys have very different outlooks. The parademon/Daemonite who is the erstwhile villain of the book doesn’t get to do much besides puke fire and growl, but there is no denying that this first issue is pretty good at showing us what these heroes can do.

It is almost easier to talk about the art than it is about the story. Not much happens in this premiere issue. But man, is it lushly illustrated. Green Lantern’s constructs look brilliant and vivid. Batman’s suit practically creaks it’s so detailed. I can only imagine how fantastic this art would look digitally. I think I will probably follow a few titles on my tablet just because that format works so well.

I remember a point when I was watching Justice League Unlimited when I realized I liked the show’s universe more than the comics. Maybe, just maybe, this relaunch will give the comics some of that feel. Don’t get me wrong, I can’t take issue after issue of “first” meetings between the heroes and their friends and villains. Nothing would bore me more than seeing Batman realize just how crazy the Joker is all over again. BUT, if the “current” DCnU is filled with more living characters and tighter editorial control? That’s not a bad thing.

As ticked off as I am about the relaunch, it’s almost like One More Day. You can stay mad about the relaunch or you can let the new books sink or swim on their own. I’m going to give them a chance.

Good

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