Comic Review: Justice League #33

Justice League #33

DC Comics

Writers: Scott Snyder & James Tynion IV

Artist: Bruno Redondo

It took me thirty-three issues to finally find out what Scott Snyder’s Justice League is.  You see, it’s not only a comic, but it’s also a manga.  Seriously!  Every single event in this series is straight out of a manga.  From the Kaguya-like big-bad of Perpetua to the Voltron-esque transformation of the Ultra Monitor.

I’ve frequently complained about the lack of rules and consequences in this run.  And although it doesn’t excuse it, looking at this series as a manga really puts things into perspective.  Not only do we explore the Justice League, but we also explore every rule, secret, and origin of the universe (or in this case, Multiverse).

And this all leads to the climactic battle between the Justice League and Perpetua.  The entire plot of this arc is the Justice League assembling every hero in existence.  You had me at Justice Society, surprised me at Kamandi, but this issue seriously introduces the Batman Beyond Justice League!  Snyder is going out of his way to include every corner, crevice, and the pocket dimension of the DC Universe.  I’ve never been so fully excited by just seeing a whole bunch of heroes pop up.

If you go into this series expecting a dark, gritty story, you’ll be disappointed.  That’s how I went into this run (considering the whole end of the world thing and all).  But despite the apocalyptic backdrop, this series isn’t trying to be serious, it’s trying to be a comic.  And in the only medium not restricted by budget or practically, Snyder puts the bombastic and outrageous first.  Even though we’re in the year of the villain, this story could not focus more on what it means to be a hero.

In previous issues, I’ve complained about the un-characteristic nature of Sinestro flying a jet-plain.  The book takes serious characters like the master of fear and puts them in goofy situations.  But I’ve realized that is exactly what the book is trying to do.  In this issue, just seeing the Legion of Doom nefariously plot underwater is just amusing.

That’s not to mention all the other great stuff that happens here.  The conversations between Barry and Jay and John and Alan remain some of the highlights of this entire run.  Also in the past is Aquaman his journey to Atlantis.  Meanwhile, in the future the League battles Brainiac One Million (one of the most simultaneously ridiculous and menacing designs I’ve ever seen).

The best advice I can give to someone reading this series is to not take it too seriously.  And this is the issue that finally made me realize that.  But if you stick with it, you’ll find one of the most rewarding and heroic series from DC in a long while (that will also make the continuity nerd in you have a blast).

Justice League #33 is a blast to read and sets up a ton of interesting plot-threads for the finale.

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