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Mild Mannered Reviews - Justice League Comics

Justice League #6 Justice League #6

Justice League #6

Scheduled to arrive in stores: February 29, 2012

Cover date: April 2012

"Justice League - Part Six"

Writer: Geoff Johns
Penciller: Jim Lee
Inker: Scott Williams

Ralph Silver Reviewed by: Ralph Silver

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Justice League #6 Justice League #6 A citizen of Metropolis named David is fleeing with his wife and two children from Darkseid's merciless attack. With visions of horrific carnage surrounding them as they run, David urges his family to keep together and to keep their eyes shut. He offers words of comfort, although he is pretty sure they are all about to die horribly. His fear and despair turn to hope when he sees the (as-yet-unnamed) Justice League engage Darkseid in battle.

The heroes valiantly launch an attack against this very powerful foe; each using his own special abilities. All the team members are present, except for Superman, who was kidnapped last issue, and Batman, who left to rescue him. Wonder Woman manages to ensnare Darkseid in her Lasso of Truth, and asks why he is here. Darkseid replies "For her", an answer that is truthful but not very helpful. Darkseid manages to tug hard on the golden lasso, pulling Wonder Woman off balance and into the path of his powerful fist.

Cyborg, aided by his internal computer, intercepts data transmissions and learns about the Mother Boxes and Boom Tubes. He is able to see through the portals, and views Batman on a fiery world (Apokolips). He shares this information with the other heroes.

On Apokolips, Batman secretly listens and watches as Darkseid's minions express pleasure in being able to cut into the flesh of the Kryptonian. Their plan is to transform Superman into a compliant soldier for Darkseid. It is believed that this will aid in the search for the daughter of Darkseid. We see that Superman is under extreme duress, a victim of some sort of sinister force; perhaps dark magic.

Wonder Woman persists in her interrogation of Darkseid. She asks where Superman is. Darkseid replies "He is mine. As is your world"; a very ominous answer. Wonder Woman, perhaps the next most powerful member of the Justice League after Superman, stands her ground against Darkseid, blocking the Omega Beam with her impenetrable bracelet. She pushes her sword into his left eye; attacking the source of his greatest weapon. Aquaman jabs his trident into Darkseid's right eye; completing the maneuver that Wonder Woman started. When Darkseid is still standing at this point, the heroes are wondering what else they can do. Cyborg suggests they send him home using the Mother Boxes; and begins some analysis to determine how he can interface with them.

Cyborg manages to "ping" the Mother Boxes, and sets off a series of explosions both in Metropolis and on Apokolips. This disrupts the attack underway against Superman, freeing him for the moment. But Superman's mind has been flooded with images of genocide and torture of innocent victims, including children; and needs a few moments to recover. Batman urges him to snap out of it quickly and get moving. They need to head back home before the portals close up.

Reunited with the other heroes and facing Darkseid, Batman tells Superman that they need him now, which manages to pull Superman out of his doldrums caused by the mind attack. Suddenly furious at the scenes of torture and destruction he was forced to endure in his mind, Superman lashes into Darkseid with all of his Kryptonian might, landing a two-fisted blow to Darkseid's midsection. Darkseid feels this blow, although it does not take him down.

As Superman and Darkseid continue to square off, the other heroes urge Cyborg to shut down the Boom Tubes. Victor says he cannot due to a computer failure. Batman tells Victor that he needs to do it anyway, and find a way to get past the computer glitch. With a Herculean effort, Cyborg manages to send Darkseid and his minions back to Apokolips, destroying the Mother Boxes in the process. With the Mother Boxes completely fried and inoperable, Darkseid and his minions will not be able to return to Earth anytime soon.

Having achieved this victory against Darkseid, the heroes turn to face the crowd that is gathering around them. The heroes expect the same reaction they have been getting from the populace all along; blame and fear. Instead, they get cheers and words of appreciation for saving mankind from a horrible fate. David and his family are among the cheering crowd, and seem happy and grateful to be alive.

On the steps of the U.S. Capitol, the heroes are honored in a special ceremony. As the President gives a speech of praise and congratulations, he refers to the heroes as "friends" and a "team". The heroes quietly chat amongst themselves; disputing those labels. Two of the heroes, Green Lantern and Aquaman, are especially reluctant to allow the team to persist beyond this one-time occurrence, saying they don't have the time. Others, such as Flash and maybe Superman, are eager to see the team continue.

When the President says that the team is needed again, Flash makes up a name for the team on the spot: "The Super Seven". Nobody is crazy about this name, and Flash agrees they can give it more thought.

David, whose last name is Graves, is a writer. He decides to write a book about the heroes. We jump ahead in time and see the finished product with the title "Justice League, Gods Among Men". On the cover of the book, we see a picture of the Justice League battling Starro.

5Story - 5: This is a fitting conclusion to the first Justice League story arc under the relaunch. In six issues, we have seen these heroes evolve from total strangers, suspicious and sometimes critical of each other, into a team that is beginning to resemble their true destiny. Along the way, we witnessed the origin of Cyborg and the first meeting of several of the heroes. For example, when we started, Green Lantern and Flash thought that Batman was just an urban legend. And Green Lantern had the notion that Superman was no match for him. Much has changed since then.

This issue starts strong as we witness the carnage caused by Darkseid, and focus on one family as they flee. This technique is very effective, because it makes the danger seem personal. We see David and his family running for their lives, surrounded by unspeakable horror. We feel empathy for David, as he tries to reassure his children that they will be safe, even as he fights back tears. When they are afraid, we are afraid for them. It makes the threat seem very real and very frightening. We imagine ourselves in their shoes. As such, we are so relieved when we turn the page and see the Justice League fighting bravely against this powerful foe.

The fight scenes are well done. I like the scene where Wonder Woman uses her magic lasso to interrogate Darkseid. Although the lasso compels its victim to speak the truth, Darkseid is able to partially resist its spell; giving an answer that is truthful but short and vague. He then yanks hard on the lasso, pulling the Amazon off balance. I did not think this was possible when under the lasso's power.

Another powerful scene is when Wonder Woman and Aquaman team up to plunge a sword and a trident into the eyes of Darkseid, cutting off the source of the Omega Beams. This maneuver would stop most any foe; actually any foe but Darkseid, who amazingly keeps coming.

By the way, I want to mention that as a Justice League fan, I tend to follow the team members in their individual books. And I have greatly been enjoying what Geoff Johns, Ivan Reis, and Joe Prado are doing over in Aquaman. If you have not been getting this monthly book, I urge you to take a look. Geoff Johns is making Aquaman cool again.

According to the DC website, next issue we will jump forward in time to the present day. It will be interesting to see how this affects the dynamics of the team; and what, if anything, has changed during that leap in time.

5Art - 5: Jim Lee's artwork is superb. I cannot get enough; which is ironic because he will be taking a short break from Justice League. I have greatly enjoyed his contributions to these first six historic issues, and look forward to his return in issue #9.

Next issue will see a new backup story featuring Shazam, drawn by Gary Frank. Frank is a crowd pleasure. I look forward to seeing his work on this series.

3Cover Art - 3: The heroes have been battered into submission by Darkseid, who stands above them. Only Batman seems ready to rise to his feet and try again. I am not crazy about this rather bleak cover.

5Cover Art (Variant Edition) - 5: Here we have a close-up of Darkseid's snarling face. This cover has a major WOW factor!


Mild Mannered Reviews

2012

Note: Month dates are from the issue covers, not the actual date when the comic went on sale.

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