Well that escalated quickly. The second issue of Justice League 3000 has come out, and “Things Fall Apart” certainly lives up to its name. It’s the new League’s first true mission against The Five’s organization and a chance to showcase how ready they are to take the fight to The Five themselves. Last issue, we were introduced to new League, five members of the 21st century Justice League brought back to life with the intellect of Ariel Masters, The Wonder Twins, and Cadmus. After battling the forces of The Convert (also known as The Persuader), the League returned to Cadmus to prepare for this upcoming fight.
Tasked with taking out several garrisons of soldiers under the influence of The Five, the League arrives on a distant planet covertly. After more fun interaction between heroes as they journey towards their target planet, there is a serious moment between The Wonder Twins and the heroes. As Green Lantern is transporting our heroes through space, Terry refers to the League members as “brain-damaged children – in super-powerful adult bodies!” That’s harsh, even if she didn’t mean that, but from the viewpoint of someone who’s worked with mentally-disabled children, that’s something you can’t take back. It shows the youth and immaturity of the Twins, and I actually had to pause and think on the implications of her comment.
Obviously this causes friction between the League members and The Wonder Twins, but it raises a very crucial question. Who are these heroes? Are they indeed the bodies and minds of the 21st century Justice League? Are they clones? What happened to cause them to suffer their partial amnesia and to change their personalities in such a dramatic way? If The Wonder Twins, the creators of the League, hold them in such low regard, why should I have any faith in them? It was a very powerful statement that both caused me to wince and question the relationship between the Twins and the League.
We are also introduced to two more members of The Five, bringing the known roster to three. The first is Locus, a nineteen year-old girl who has the ability to change reality to suit her whims. She’s the stereotype of a teenage party girl: she’s highly-emotional, promiscuous, a drinker, extremely possessive, and probably a clinical psychopath. Locus cares little to nothing about the lives of others, and seems to be hindered only by her own emotional instability. The second of The Five is Coeval, but very little it seen of it in the issue. I use the term “it” because Coeval is a spontaneously created being “born” inside the Internet. Coeval is what would happen if the Internet gained sentience, and is the reason behind The Five’s ability to cause a galaxy-wide blackout. The more dangerous is certainly Locus, whose insanity gives us the title of this issue, “Things Fall Apart.” Events happen that may shape the tone of the book in the coming issues, and I will put what happens in the Spoilers section.
Even with all the action occurring in the story, and the battle between Locus and the League has some great action, there is little actual progress of the storyline. There was also little character development, and some reused jokes that are getting old. (Writers Keith Giffen and J.M. DeMatteis must have done the “Don’t Call Me Clark” shtick five or six times.) But the artwork is as enjoyable as last issue. There is a better job done on the faces this time around, and I’m loving the very Blade-Runner/Star Wars feel of the city environments and background characters. The Five seem to be worthy and powerful enemies, and I’m looking forward to see how the League will counter in the coming issues.
- Flash dies. He gets ripped apart on a molecular level and reduced to a pile of “moist mess” by Locus. It was actually really painful, seeing as how Barry was probably the most interesting character in the first issue.
- Locus shrinks Green Lantern down, eats him, and says that he is her boyfriend now. I get that you, the reader, think that you’ve had a crazy girlfriend. But, damn.
- Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman get teleported to some place called Takron-Galtos, let’s see where that goes.
Favorite Quote: We’re the League dammit – now let’s start acting like it! – Green Lantern
Recommended If…
- You’re a fan of surreal comics that look like they’re going to dive into insanity and fun-ness.
- You like crazy villains.
Overall:
Little advancement of the story and overly-used tropes take away from the beautifully drawn and fun “Things Fall Apart.” If you’re into comics that enjoy and exploit the craziness of the universe that our heroes live in, please pick this up.
SCORE: 7/10
