Summary:
Justice League no. 2, released last August, continues right where the action of the previous issue left off. Since the previous issue laid the groundwork, we find the series focusing on our heroes resolving the initial conflicts, while introducing the main conflict. The series continues to lack context concerning the DC world, which is confusing, since Batman alludes to the death of Superman. New readers will most likely become confused by these references and have trouble understanding the effect these events have on Batman. However, this issue is full of promise; the story develops rapidly, setting a pretense for the rest of the series. Still, I wish that issue 1 and 2 would have been combined together. This would solve the problem of the issues’ slow pace.
Story:
Early in the issue, the Green Lanterns, Jessica and Simon, work together in Hong Kong to evacuate citizens while blocking one of the tsunamis with their powers. As they work together, Jessica becomes frustrated with her powers. For one, she is having difficulty creating objects like Simon. “You’re a green lantern now Jessica — you can do this,” he encourages.
I find Jessica’s reluctance as a hero unappealing, while the relationship between the two is also an odd dynamic. All too often, one or the other is feeling reluctant and needs encouragement. While no one likes a perfect hero, no one likes a whiny, reluctant hero either. I’m hesitant to put my faith in the Green Lanterns or even consider them true members of the Justice League. The word “newbie” comes to mind when thinking of these two characters.
As Jessica and Simon continue evacuating the city, the crowd begins to enter a hypnotized state, like the one mentioned in the last issue. Everyone’s eyes begin to glow and they reach out and touch Simon, which causes an electric shock effect around him. Nothing seems to happen from here, nor is this circumstance expounded upon later on.
In Gotham, Batman recruits The Flash to help him clean up the mass of giant, mosquito-like creatures that are plaguing the city. The Flash effortlessly collects the creatures and asks Batman what he plans on doing with these strange beasts. Batman says he intends on running some tests on these creatures. But, his initial observation leads him to believe that they are some biological weapons.
At this point in the story, Cyborg urges all members of the Justice League to return to the Watchtower and our heroes, except for Aquaman (who is left in his own tangent story in Atlantis), are finally reunited. After investigating the cause of the quakes, Cyborg discovers that all the earthquakes were in fact caused by huge, 5 mile wide devices planted under the earth, which are now pulsing and growing stronger. This threatens another large-scale disaster.
In order to prevent any further earthquakes, the league considers how to reach the devices, yet they are all reluctant and unsure if they are able to help. The device’s origin isn’t explained yet, but it is briefly considered by the league.
With so many lives at risk, Batman, under the advice of Wonder Woman, recruits Superman (who is the second Superman, not the original). Batman says, “We need the impossible. We need you to go to the center of the earth.”
Without anymore dialogue, the issue ends abruptly on this perfect cliffhanger. This ending captivated me so much, that I was disappointed to have the issue end.
Final Thoughts:
Clearly, the story for this volume is well on its way, but going slowly. As suspected, no. 2 does what no. 1 should have done in the first place: introduce the readers and then introduce the story. Instead, it took two issues to make this work. Despite this minor setback, the story is now developing by introducing the main conflict and presenting a possible solution to the problem. However, I’d like to get to know the characters at a deeper level.
Despite the rocky start of the first issue, it seems the Justice League is set out on an exciting adventure ahead as they face a threat greater than anything they’ve ever seen.
SCORE BOARD
Art: 5 / 5 Goregous
Entertainment Value: 4 / 5 High
Readability: 4 / 5 Great
Interest in Next Issue: 5/ 5 High
OVERALL SCORE: 90%
Colin is a Game Design major from Raleigh, North Carolina. He is responsible for finding interesting and relevant stories related to news, student activities and local events. When not working on articles for District, he enjoys catching up on the latest DC comics, listening to music, and designing game environments.
