Connect with us
Is It Good? Justice League of America #1 Review

Comic Books

Is It Good? Justice League of America #1 Review

Bryan Hitch is writing and drawing this new direction from the JLA which could mean we’re getting the most epic of widescreen panel after panel extravaganza ever! Is it good?


Justice League of America #1 (DC Comics)


Is It Good? Justice League of America #1 Review

Listen to the latest episode of our weekly comics podcast!

To say this issue wants to set up a story of epic proportions is an understatement. It’s made clear in the opening pages the world is going to end and quite literally break apart. We see some sort of dream of Superman’s as the world ends and an unknown character tries to calm him down via narration. From there the book kicks off establishing Clark still working at the Daily Planet and, apparently, Lois hasn’t outed him as Superman yet as we’ve seen over in his own book. He gets an invitation for a meeting with the Infinity Corporation (which happens to be June 17th) and makes a visit. What he finds there is shocking.

Is It Good? Justice League of America #1 Review
That can’t be a good sign.

Bryan Hitch writes a solidly paced story here with some nice action between Parasite and the JLA. I can’t say the script is the most originally enticing story, but it serves its purpose to get the characters fighting and establishes a sense of confusion for the team. It does seem a bit boneheaded for the characters to arrive at a destination simply because they were called there via a notecard invitation with no rhyme or reason as to why, but you gotta roll with it I guess. This issue runs 44 or so pages long of story and I can’t quite say it needs it. Many pages feel like filler, or characters go on and on about the same old same old, like how the world is going to end and we need to be selfless. Essentially the issue feels as though it’s padded out to justify the price of 6 dollars. There’s truly nothing in this issue aside from a shocking moment Superman is privy to and a decent action sequence.

It’s hard for me believe how gullible the heroes are in this issue. Sure, Batman hides in the shadows calling out Wonder Woman, Green Lantern and Flash for being stupid enough to rush onto a scene they know nothing about, but even he rushes down to help them only to be crushed himself. Meanwhile Superman somehow believes a guy who has a whole lot of bloody dead bodies around. Never trust a guy who doesn’t clean up his dead body storage! On top of this, isn’t Superman supposed to be able to tell if you’re lying? I guess not here, probably to serve the plot.

It’s also a bit frustrating to read considering the summary tells you more than the comic does. The characters stupidly walk into a trap, Superman is easily duped and after an extremely difficult time beating a villain they’ve fought many times before, and we get a reveal that’s so obtuse it means relatively nothing. The imagery is a bit iconic, as if the coming force is God himself, but it tells us nothing.

Is It Good? Justice League of America #1 Review
Wait…I thought she outed you?

The art is solid throughout however, as most Hitch works are. Everything is nicely detailed and of course the splash pages look gorgeous too. The talking in circles sequences do kill the art in that we see boring rooms for countless panels or establishing shots to tell us where a mystery box is headed. Again, it seems to be filled with filler. Thankfully Hitch knows how to pace an action scene. So well in fact you’ll feel the tension even though we’ve seen this team take on Parasite 400 times before.

Is It Good? Justice League of America #1 Review
Run you fools!

Is It Good?

A decent setup issue filled with bungling moves by the heroes that should know better. The price tag seems especially hefty considering so much of it feels like filler.

Join the AIPT Patreon

Want to take our relationship to the next level? Become a patron today to gain access to exclusive perks, such as:

  • ❌ Remove all ads on the website
  • 💬 Join our Discord community, where we chat about the latest news and releases from everything we cover on AIPT
  • 📗 Access to our monthly book club
  • 📦 Get a physical trade paperback shipped to you every month
  • 💥 And more!
Sign up today
Comments

In Case You Missed It

Full June 2024 Marvel Comics solicitations: Ultimates #1 and more Blood Hunt Full June 2024 Marvel Comics solicitations: Ultimates #1 and more Blood Hunt

Full June 2024 Marvel Comics solicitations: Ultimates #1 and more Blood Hunt

Comic Books

Marvel reveals Rachel Summers and Betsy Braddock to get X-Men series Marvel reveals Rachel Summers and Betsy Braddock to get X-Men series

Marvel reveals Rachel Summers and Betsy Braddock to get X-Men series

Comic Books

AEW Rampage preview, full card: March 20, 2024 AEW Rampage preview, full card: March 20, 2024

AEW Rampage preview, full card: March 20, 2024

Pro Wrestling

Marvel reveals Ultimate Gwen Stacy coming in 'Ultimate Spider-Man' #4 Marvel reveals Ultimate Gwen Stacy coming in 'Ultimate Spider-Man' #4

Marvel reveals Ultimate Gwen Stacy coming in ‘Ultimate Spider-Man’ #4

Comic Books

Connect
Newsletter Signup