As a long time
comic book fan, I must admit that when I heard about DC Comics'
planned relaunch and reboot of their flagship titles, I was a bit
perturbed. To see such venerable titles as Action Comics,
Detective Comics, Superman, and Batman, all with their
long-running numbering system and history of continuous
publication go by the wayside was a true disturbance of the force,
to borrow a metaphor from another franchise. However, curiosity
got the best of me, and I bought the digital version of the new
Justice League series last night. Of the 52 titles DC is
relaunching, Justice League #1 is the first to reach
publication.
As I opened the new
comic on my laptop computer, what before my wondering eyes did
appear, but the colorful cover art of the new Justice League. And,
it appeared, that these familiar heroes looked slightly different
than the old, now discontinued JLA members I recall from my youth
(or even from last year).
The story is by Geoff
Johns, with the illustrations by Jim Lee. DC brought out their big
guns for this relaunch, and they got it right!
NOTE: Spoilers
Ahead:
In this version of the
DC Universe, the heroes we associate with the old Justice League
have not yet met, and the public and the government do not
consider them to be heroes. The story opens with Batman being
hunted down by the Gotham City police as the Dark Knight is
himself hunting down an as yet unknown bad guy. Such is the level
of animosity the authorities have for the Caped Crusader, that
when police commander is informed that Batman is pursuing a super
powered being, the order is given to "bring them both down." Of
course, Bats survives the onslaught, but is surprised at the
appearance of Green Lantern. At this point we realize the heroes
have not met, because upon their first encounter, Green Lantern
blurts out to Batman, "You're real?"
Of course, the heroes
team up to track down the mysterious bad guy, who Green Lantern is
tracking because he is an extraterrestrial. As Green Lantern
explains a bit about himself, Batman seems to have some disbelief
in the Lantern's claim that he is part of a corps of space cops.
While dealing with their elusive alien adversary, they decide to
check out another alien they have heard of to see if there is some
connection with the bad guy.
Using Green Lantern's
ring, this Dysfunctional Duo track down the other alien in
question, Superman, who they know is active in Metropolis. While
Batman advises caution in approaching Superman, who seems to be in
an area indicative of recent super-powered combat, a fearless, and
thus over-confident Green Lantern declares "I'll handle this,"
whereupon he is cannonballed by a blue and red powerhouse. We then
see a Superman with some attitude declaring that "I don't handle
easy." The story ends with a ticked-off-looking Superman facing
down Batman.
What I like about this
new take on these old heroes is that we see the archetypical
personalities and traits we know these characters for (speaking of
Batman and Green Lantern here), in their most basic form. Batman
is the stolid avenger who seeks out and is comforted by the
animosity of society, using it as another cloak to meld into the
shadows with and build his fearful mystique. We see him in
detective mode, as he surmises the means by which Green Lantern
utilizes his ring (that part is really funny!), and we see Batman
as ultimately sneaky and ruthless. Green Lantern, who the mythos
tells us was chosen to wear the ring because he is without fear,
is certainly fearless. And, as a byproduct of that lack of fear
which makes him a powerful Lantern, we see that it, along with the
incredible power of the ring, makes Green Lantern an arrogant,
careless fool who gets "taken" by the other two heroes in their
own unique ways in this tale. GL does not look good in this
version the DC Universe. We do not see enough of Superman in this
issue to truly analyze him, other than to get the feeling that he
has a tad bit of attitude, and may not like other costumed types
in his territory. I liked the characterizations of Bats and the
Lantern in this issue.
I only see two real
negatives in this new Justice League. One, which I already
mentioned, relates to the whole idea of the reboot, at least in
terms of ending the original long-running franchises and starting
the numbering of the comics back at #1. The other negative is that
the plot line of these costumed heroes being fugitives from the
law (as a result of their vigilante work), is stolen (er, I mean
"borrowed" from the Marvel Civil War and the Superhero
Registration Act of a few years ago). Been there, done
that!
Overall, and despite the
negatives just mentioned, if DC is going to reboot things, then
Justice League #1 (2011) is pretty darn good, and worth the read.
Plus, I bet this new League is a setup for the future Justice
League Movie. I hope! Buy this comic. It was fun.
