JUSTICE LEAGUE ADVENTURES #1
"Disarmed"
Mildly Recommended (6/10)
|
DC Comics
Writer: Ty Templeton
Pencils: Min S. Ku
Inks: Dan Davis
Colors: John Kalisz & Heroic Age
Letters: Kurt Hathaway
Editor: Dan Raspler
Price: $1.99 US/$3.25 CAN |
Templeton provides a clear introduction to this slightly different spin on the Justice League of America, which seems to combines elements of the team of the 1970s and 80s, the modern Waid/Morrison takes on the group and even some Super Friends elements. It's a light read, perfect for younger readers, but it lacks the strength of Templeton's stories based on the continuity of the various animated Batman cartoons of the 1990s.
A gravity bomb turns up on Earth, and an alien rushes to warn the planet's champions, the Justice League, of the danger it poses. The bomb has not yet been triggered, but the energy of a Green Lantern power ring can do it. As the bomb begins to affect the community outside Metropolis where it landed, Hawkgirl scrambles to find a way to disarm it while her teammates try to evacuate the area.
Though the costumes and powers are familiar, the new cartoon versions of the Justice League are a little different from the ones we've come to know in comics, especially Hawkgirl and Green Lantern. Templeton brings new readers up to speed on these heroic figures, and lets us old fogies know what the new rules are in this new animated continuity. Templeton makes excellent use of Hawkgirl's background to advance the plot, and in the process, he sums the character up nicely.
Ku's captures Bruce Timm's delightful sense of design and action, and John Kalisz's bright colors are very much in keeping with the lighter tone of the book and the cartoon. However, her design for the alien creature struck me as rather ordinary and unimaginative; it really could have used a greater level of detail. Hathaway tries to convey the alien nature of character through the letters as well, but the font he used was a bit hard to read at times.
Templeton did some amazing work on the various comic-book series (such as Batman: Gotham Adventures) based on the Batman cartoons, and that's because he focused on character above all else. We got to know some of the Batman villains better than we have before under his guidance. However, a team book like this one doesn't lend itself to that same character-driven emphasis. Hopefully, Templeton and other writers will be able to overcome this drawback, or at least provide some slightly more complex plots.
Email Don MacPherson comments about this review, or discuss it on the Fourth Rail message board.
|
