The War between Justice and Doom is nearing its conclusion, and with a renewed sense of power and hope, the Justice League are able to shift the tides against the cosmically powered Lex Luthor.
Although the heroes are successfully staving off Luthor’s army, there is still one powerful threat than the army of Perpetua and that is Lex Luthor himself. Can the League succeed in defeating the divine power of Lex Luthor? Will they succeed in bringing hope back to the universe? And who will die to save their own?
I think it’s safe to state that while this arc has been fantastic, it had its moments where it dragged on at times, but that doesn’t make this arc bad. In fact, for the majority of this Justice/Doom arc, it has been a stellar read. But I feel that after the last issue, Snyder and company are letting loose and giving everything they have into these last two issues, and man does the team on this book deliver. Finally, readers get to see the league go toe to toe, exchanging fisticuffs with the newly power Lex Luthor, and man does he make quick work of many of his foes. It’s interesting thinking about how much Lex Luthor has grown and changed as a character. During Johns’s new 52 run, readers had the opportunity to witness Luthor become one of the best heroes and now, we get to see Luthor on the extreme end, prove himself to be an even more terrifying villain than ever before.
Snyder provides a ton of fast-paced action, and great moments with characters throughout the book (Jarro included) that continues to prove why this might possibly be the best Justice League run thus far. Now admittedly, there are times where the dialogue can be a little cheesy at times, but it doesn’t detract from the plot itself. Despite that minor nitpick, I think Snyder and company did a good job at building up to this huge slugfest between the League and Luthor, making it a fun read from start to finish. This issue is the kind of issue that you could read so fast and not realize it, which is a good sign since the book was well-paced and provided a lot of payoff with everything that Snyder and Tynion built from the beginning.
Jorge Jimenez and Daniel Sempere must have had a heck of a time illustrating this issue because man, you can feel the passion through every page layout and panels. Anytime a character is exchanging punches or moving across the page, it felt like it was made with a labor of love, which is why this issue was fantastic. Jimenez and Sempere, coupled with Albarran’s inks and Sanchez’s colors might be one of the best issues throughout the series. Its vibrant looks astonishing and is iconic enough to leave a strong lasting impression. Napolitano does an excellent job at making the lettering fun to read through, which provides the reader with a reading experience that is enjoyable and not a chore to get through.
It’s safe to say that if you have not read this Justice League series, then it is imperative to get your head checked and go back to reading this run. There hasn’t been a single issue in this series that has been a letdown. It has been consistent in its quality of pacing and storytelling that it would be impossible to not binge through. With one issue left, it is without a doubt one of the best Justice League books in a long while that is worth your time and investment. This is a definite recommendation for new comic book day.
Newsdesk