Justice League Incarnate #1 Review

 

Step on a Crack...

Written by: Joshua Williamson and Dennis Culver

Art by: Brandon Peterson, Andrei Berssan, Tom Derenick, Hi-Fi, and Tom Napolitano

Cover Price: $4.99

Release Date: November 30, 2021

Joshua Williamson is back with what should be the next step in the BIG stuff going on at DC Comics right now.  I say "should" because mums the word at DC about most things, which has made this "everything matter" Infinite Frontier more confusing than it should be.  Hopefully, this mini and what comes afterward will start giving us that clear roadmap to a more cohesive and exciting DC Universe.  Also, I'd like a trillion dollars and a family who at least pretend to like me.  Oh well, here comes the review...

While I was worried a recap of the previous mini-series would bog down this first issue, Williamson and Culver get right to it by sending us to Earth-8, the Marvel(ous) world of the Retaliators!  It's a clever little move to show that all hands are on deck, but while this book might be big, it's also willing to have some fun.  We finally get to see the teased Doctor Multiverse just as they are all attacked and the Retaliators Assemble...I mean, rampage.

We then head to Earth-0 where Avery Ho is kicking ass and being scouted by Calvin Ellis and Thomas Wayne.  While Thomas doesn't think Avery has what it takes to be the Flash of their team, Calvin does.  Since he is a President and Superman, he wins, and Avery joins everyone in the House of Heroes.

This is what I've been hoping for in this "Everything Matters" Universe!  Avery is an awesome character, and with Wally leading the man Flash book, I was worried Avery might get lost in the shuffle.  If Joshua Williamson gives Avery her own hero name by the end of this, I will be so happy! a hero name for Avery, I will be so happy!

The book slows down a bit to get Avery and everyone else "up to speed," if you will.  I  love a comic book roll call, though, and some of this is an explanation of what the team has figured in the time since the Infinite Frontier mini ended.  Plus, Dino-Cop of Earth-41 is giving it...Savage!

Now that everyone's on the same page and we establish our mission statement (save Barry Allen and the Multiverse), we head back to the ruins of Earth-8.  There the team finds out that Machinehead's heel turn was by unanimous decision right before fighting the villain, Tartarus, who then fights Darkseid.  Yep, Darkseid is in the house, and while that is never good, it gives Doctor Multiverse the distraction she needs to team up with Avery and send the Multiversal tear to another Earth.  It's not going to win the war, but it at least keeps it away from Darkseid for now.

The issue ends with our heroes disappearing while an ally shows up in the House of Heroes claiming to be everyone's only hope.  We then get a cliffhanger that shows the New Gods ain't nothing to fuck with, and I can't wait to see what happens next!

This is a hell of a start to Infinite Frontier's second phase!  I keep reminding myself that I was pretty fired up at the beginning of the last mini-series only to have it fizzle out a bit by the end, but I'm not going to let that bring me down here.  This feels big, it feels fun, and it feels important.  That's a whole lot of feels there, and that's why I am on the Justice Incarnate trolly right now!

Bits and Pieces:

Justice League Incarnate #1 kicks off the new mini-series with a bang!  Joshua Williamson and Dennis Culver get everyone up to speed and then crank it to eleven.  It's a shame that the multiple artists don't all kick-ass here because, besides uneven art, this is an excellent start to the next step in our Infinite Universe.

9.0/10