It’s time to continue on with the second part of Darkseid War. The first issue to this big storyline had everything go to complete and utter crap for the heroes, getting their butts handed to them majorly. Will our heroes stand a chance in the face of not only this villain, but the other two big bads? Is it good?
Justice League #42 (DC Comics)
In the latest issue of Justice League, the story made a few steps forward. It’s continuing to set the stage for what will be happening in this event while building off of the cliffhangers from last issue, from what happened to Superman and Lex Luthor to Mister Miracle meeting Myrina Black. Almost everything from before is addressed, shown, or brought up in this issue, which keeps things eventful and prevents the reader from forgetting what happened before. However, with the comic trying to do everything, it leads to all of the plotlines only being touched upon here and not much advancement happening. That point about Superman and Lex Luthor? Only relevant for two whole pages and not mentioned again. The only exception to that thinness was the surprising ending, which could be pretty good and amusing depending on how Geoff Johns plays out this subplot.
Johns’ writing is good, with some small flaws here and there. In particular, the issue felt lacking in characterization. The previous issue had a lot of good, but small scenes or bits with the characters that gave them each personality and the comic itself some humanity. This issue didn’t have much of that, outside of a scene with Myrina where we get insight into what she is planning or with Wonder Woman. The dialogue and narration are both good and nothing about either of them sounds awkward or bad. The only exception may be Grail, whose dialogue sounds at points a tad unusual considering her upbringing. The pacing is fast here, jumping and moving around a lot through the various scenes and keeping story in motion. There’s not a single scene wasted in the book, so nothing ever comes across as padding. The story structure is fine as well, so even if the story is fast moving, you never feel lost or find that things become hard to follow. All in all, not a bad outing for the writing.
Jason Fabok’s artwork just continues to look amazing. The locations and landscapes look extraordinary, such as shots of Apokolips early on or the destroyed neighborhood that the League was fighting in. The characters look great like usual and I do like the new character design on the last page. It’s almost the same as the previous design, but with a few small details. The layouts are put together very well and I especially like how certain scenes and moments flow from panel to panel, like with Wonder Woman vs. the Anti-Monitor. Alongside some vibrant and vivid looking colors, the comic comes out fantastic. As much as I like Manapul’s artwork, I’m going to miss Fabok’s style on this title come this October.
Is It Good?
Justice League #42 is a good issue, but one that comes across as lacking in some respects. The plot, while still very enjoyable, is stretched a bit too thin with how much it is trying to accomplish, and the comic feels rather light in the character department. It’s disappointing to a certain degree, but I would be lying if I didn’t say I had a good time.
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