After fending off an incursion from the seas, it’s time for a good old fashioned recruitment drive in “Justice League” #18.
Written by Geoff Johns
Illustrated by Jesus Saiz (Back-Up by Gary Frank)• Cyborg takes center stage as events fall into place for next month’s massive new story arc: “OFF THE GRID”!
• Also, Batman continues to be question the Superman/Wonder Woman alliance and Aquaman’s future with the League.
• Plus: The Shazam backup story reveals the origin of Black Adam—and what it means for Billy Batson’s survival!
Don’t you love misleading solicitations? Unfortunately, this issue isn’t the big Cyborg story we’ve all been waiting for. The character plays an important role, but is ultimately just the mechanism by which Johns keeps the wheels of story progression turning. This mechanism is known as “The Grid,” a database created by and accessible to Cyborg for the monitoring of the DC universes super hero types. We saw Cyborg activate the grid during the ‘Throne of Atlantis’ arc, calling in the cavalry for the overwhelmed Justice League. In the aftermath of that story, the league looks to expand its ranks with some of these you would-be heroes.
Much like issues of Johns “JSA” and later in “Justice Society of America,” a lot of time is devoted to letting the large cast develop and breath. There are a lot of great character moments given to characters like the Flash, the new Goldrush, and Firestorm. It’s also nice to see newly (re)introduced characters like Black Lightning and Blue Devil appearing on such a grand stage. Events in other books like “The Flash,” “Justice League Dark,” and “Batman” make this one of the few New 52 books that feels like a shared universe. All of this isn’t surprising, as Geoff Johns has always had a major penchant for character development and continuity.
While it’s fun to see Johns playing around with these disparate pieces of the New 52, not a lot actually happens here. Sadly, the issue falls back on a typical super hero misunderstanding/brawl that is completely overplayed in mainstream comics. The issue is primarily set up for the mystery that is sure to be the focus of ‘Off the Grid.’
The lackluster nature of this issue is compounded by less than great artwork from artist Jesus Saiz. Saiz is a wonderful artist in his own right, as readers of the back up in “Sword of Sorcery” can attest, but there’s definitely something off about his work in this issue. Saiz’s characters and backgrounds lack detail, and Jeremy Cox’s colors are a little flat. The results in what is sadly a rather bland looking book, a major disappointment considering the high caliber of art “Justice League” has featured in past issues.
While the main feature has its flaws, the “Shazam” back up by Johns and artist Gary Frank continues to impress. In one of the best chapters of the series to date, we find Black Adam terrorizing Fawcett City in search of Billy Batson. Johns returns to Billy’s foster siblings, a wonderful group of characters that have been out of the story for a while now. Gary Frank continues to deliver high quality work, securing his spot as one of the greatest artists in the industry. His designs for Seven Deadly Sins are fantastic, and exactly what you would expect from a Geoff Johns comic. While we don’t learn the origins of Black Adam, as the solicitations tease, the story does take an interesting and climactic turn that should keep interest high as Johns and Frank reach the final chapters of this definitive story.
After the immensely fun and gorgeously drawn ‘Throne of Atlantis,’ Justice League #18 is bit of a let down. However, Johns plants some interesting seeds for the upcoming “Trinity War,” and the introduction of a few fan favorite characters helps make up for some of this issue’s flaws. ‘Off the Grid’ isn’t off to the best start, but hopefully future issues will rectify that.
Final Verdict: 6.5 for “Justice League”, 9.0 for “Shazam.” Browse/Buy accordingly.
