Justice League #62
The Justice League battles Brutus, but there's something worse awaiting them in Justice League #62, by writer Brian Michael Bendis, artist David Marquez, colorist Ivan Plascencia, and letterer Josh Reed. In the backup, by writer Ram V, artist Xermanico, colorist Romulo Fajardo Jr., and letterer Rob Leigh, Merlin finds what he's looking for as the JLD scrambles to catch up. Both stories build their respective plots well, with the main story ending on a nice cliffhanger and the backup set up some fun for the future.
The issue starts with Hippolyta going to the Hall of Justice, where she meets up with the Flash. They talk about her problems with how she looks at the world when the Flash realizes that he made a mistake with his math when he sent the Justice League away. Meanwhile, Brutus gets the advantage over Superman, and Black Adam and Aquaman wake up in a family's house and get answers to some of his questions. Meanwhile, the League battle it out with Brutus, with Black Canary's enhanced sonic scream evening things up and Aquaman arriving in a tank given to him by the family. Things get desperate before Hippolyta and Flash show up to retrieve everyone, taking down Brutus, only for a new threat to step up. In the backup, Merlin goes out to sea to find what he's looking for as the JLD keep investigating the Library. Ragman makes a discovery about Zatanna, and they figure out a way to get the Man of the Book to help them. At sea, Merlin uncovers the ruins of the original Atlantis.
To be blunt, Bendis, especially at Marvel, isn't known for writing action, and when he does, it's not always good. Even with a good artist, Bendis's action scenes can be underwhelming at best, and that's definitely something he's actually worked on since he got to DC. His books have become more action-packed as time went on (well, for something Bendis writes), and this issue is a great example of that. Most of the time with the League is spent watching them fight Brutus, and that's exactly what the Justice League needs- big action scenes. It's the one thing about Bendis that inspires trepidation- his tendency to not deliver during the action sequences. This issue does deliver on that note, and it's great.
Of course, this being Bendis, he still finds a way to make it work in his style. The people of Brutus's world are cheering him on, and Brutus himself is cracking wise during the fight, and it's all just so very entertaining. The fight works on more than one level, and that's what is so great about it. Readers get to see Black Adam exhorting Superman to keep fighting no matter how bad he feels, Green Arrow battle against a foe that should end him but never give up more weirdness with Naomi's powers, and more. Beyond that, Bendis's pages with Hippolyta lay out how he's going to approach her, and it's pretty interesting- she doesn't understand Man's World, not like Diana did, but she wants to. This is a great approach for her, and it'll be interesting to see how Bendis plays with that in the future. In the backup, Ram V is still quietly stealing the show. One of the most amazing things about these JLD backups is how much Ram V can fit into these short stories. He's able to do character work, set up plot threads to pay off later and move the plot along, and he does it organically. It's some top-notch writing.
Marquez's art is great as usual. Of course, the fight scene pages are the highlight- each one is a double-page spread, with a widescreen-like approach to the visuals. Then, at the bottom or top of each spread, bubble panels focus on the character's action in the fight. It's an interesting way to layout a fight scene, but it works wonders. Bonvillain isn't doing colors in this issue, and it's noticeable but not in a bad way- Plascencia does a great job, but the difference in their work really shows what each brings to the pages they color. Over in the backup, Xermanico's art feels like it has a Joe Kubert quality in this issue, and everything looks fantastic.
Justice League #62 continues the high this book has been on since Bendis took it over. It's just completely entertaining, both the main and the backup, and that's just how a Justice League book should be. Both stories are a lot of fun, with cool twists and turns. Justice League is quickly becoming the premier team book in comics.
