Paradise Lost
“I got out…but I think….I think I’d rather be back inside.”
W: Matt Kindt A: Doug Mahnke C: Gabe Eltaeb
The moment is finally here! We finally learn of the fate of the Justice Leagues! Were our heroes truly killed by the Crime Syndicate or were they subjected to a fate worst than death!?
The Ups: So after two long months of waiting and speculating we find out what happened to the Justice Leagues and it definitely was not what I expected to happen. Kindt puts Martian Manhunter and Stargirl in the forefront as they try figure out what happened to them and their fellow heroes after being attacked by the Syndicate. I personally found Stargirl to be an interesting choice as one of the heroes to be focused on in this story arc, as she has barely been used in the series till now she herself makes comments to that as Manhunter leaves her behind while he searches the prison. Unlike Manhunter, who I felt was an obvious choice, Stargirl is someone that can still be built on as a character and gives the spotlight to the least popular and least known character in the JLA. Mahnke and Eltaeb do a pretty solid job on art and color duty with greatly detailed backgrounds that are completely different and distinct from page to page.
The Downs: After all the speculation I had with what actually happened to all the Leagues, I definitely was not expecting this. Finding out were they have all been really threw me off. I also found it weird that none of the Justice League Dark members were anywhere to be found or even mentioned. Overall there was a lot of weird choices I feel Kindt made in finally showing the Leagues. To me he made them all look really weak especially since a weaker hero like Stargirl was able to resist the torture but someone powerful like Simon Baz (who has been shown to revive people from comas) is unable to break free. But its just the first part of the story and there is a lot more story to tell so I’m hoping that there is much more to the Leagues defeat than this.
Overall: This was definitely a different start to the issue everyone was waiting for. I say pick this one up the story definitely is not terrible just different.
Grade 3 of 5
ComicsRefueled 