Justice League #1

 This review was originally posted on my Wordpress.  Click HERE if you don't believe me!  But seriously, do...

It is a officially here, ladies and gentleman. Call it a re-boot, a re-launch, a travesty or a blessing, but DC's "New 52" has finally arrived. It's difficult, even for me who fancies himself an impartial reviewer, to disconnect this singular issue from the gravity that it holds. This one issue is perhaps the most important thing DC has put out in years- saddled with the impossible task of coloring readers' expectations for the entirety of the new DC Universe.

It was impossible for Justice League #1 to meet everyone's expectations. Yet against all odds, even with a whole lot of cynicism on my part, I came out of Justice League #1 with hope and with renewed enthusiasm.

• THE GOOD

JL #1 starts off with a bang, and only lets up to exposit the smallest level of development or narrative. While others may disagree, THIS is how I want a #1 to be. #1 issues need to grab the reader. They need to shake things up and give people a reason to come back and continue reading the series. Geoff Johns does well here to make the action completely coherent and focusing his dialog on emphasizing character traits. This Justice League takes place "5 Years Ago", and as such we get heroes that aren't QUITE themselves at this point which (when it works) is one of the funner aspects of the characters featured. I especially praise the development given to Cyborg's early days. It seems his transformation into a hero is going to be a central story-arc for the formation of the Justice League and Vic's involvement in the book is one of the biggest factors in bringing me back to the book next month.

Of course there's also great artwork here by Jim Lee. What is there to say? The action is dynamic and the new character designs look surprisingly good. I genuinely had a "SHIT GOT REAL" Bad Boys II moment when I saw Lee's splash page of Batman- the only true moment where the whole gravitas of what this issue meant actually got to me.

• THE BAD

Green Lantern. Goodness, Green Lantern sucks in this. I'm no GL fan as it is, but you'd hardly know that Geoff Johns IS with the way he wrote Hal "Douchebag" Jordan in this. Yes, I get that he's supposed to be young and brash and inexperienced here (ALL of the Justice League is supposed to), but if this is meant to set expectations for Hal in the New 52 as well as expose the character to new readers, this is a pretty poor first impression. I also stated how this first issue only puts forward the smallest hints of a greater narrative going forward. That doesn't bother me, but I'm reiterating it here simply because people will unreasonably expect Justice League #1 to "EXPLAIN EVERYTHING". It doesn't. Get over it.

• THE VERDICT

I've still great apprehensions of what the New 52 will be. I still do not agree with many of the changes and, like many, look sullenly at old titles and wonder if they even matter anymore. But that doesn't mean Justice League #1 is a bad comic- it is far from it. This is a great start to what should prove an exciting (if not interesting) drive into the heart of a brand new horizon for DC. It isn't perfect, sure, and there is room for growth and improvement. But in the end, is not this a #1? Those things are to be expected. Unless you're the most cynical of cynics or most die-hard opponent of change, you NEED Justice League #1. It's a solid issue in its own right, and you'll be glad to know where this brave new world began.