Justice League 3001 #1 Review

Even 1,000 years in the future, nothing can stop the power of BWAH-HA-HAAA!  Your Major Spoilers review of Justice League 3001 #1 awaits!

JUSTICE LEAGUE 3001 #1
Writer: Len Wein
Penciler: Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez
Inker: Joe Prado
Colorist: Alex Sinclair
Letterer: Wes Abbott
Editor: Jim Chadwick
Publisher: DC Comics
Cover Price: $3.99

Previously in Justice League 3001: In the far future, Cadmus uses the genetic material of the heroes of the past to build their own Justice League, albeit one that isn’t quite what they remember.  By overwriting the genetic codes of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and others onto new bodies, they have created a new League to deal with the worst that the year 3001 has to offer.  Unfortunately, that “worst” includes Starro the Conqueror, who has taken over an ENTIRE PLANET, seemingly using perfectly legal means.  What can the Justice League do about it?

GUY IS NO LONGER A GUY

Unlike most of the DCYou Number Ones, this issue picks up right where the previous volume (Justice League 3000) left off, as Lois Lane has downloaded her consciousness into the body of JL ally Ariel Masters.  The League (Superman, Batman, Guy Gardner, Wonder Woman and Wonder Twin Teri, who is the new repository of the Flash’s powers) has discovered that the Starro consciousness has taken over EVERY SINGLE BEING on planet Wodin Twelve, even filing the paperwork to enslave the populace in a legal manner.  Things quickly spiral out of control from there, as Guy Gardner heads for the “Office Of Fathomless Bureaucracy” to verify it, while Lois/Ariel pontificates about how the Justice League is going to fall before her plan.  I’ve been out of the JL3000 loop for a bit, so I was utterly shocked to find that Fire and Ice are in this issue (as one of them is immortal and the other apparently did a stint as a demon in hell to fill the missing centuries), searching for Beetle and Booster, who have apparently been in suspended animation.

L-RON, IS THAT YOU?

The biggest issue with Justice League 3001 to me is the preponderance of familiar faces, with Sinestro, Lois, the JLI and more all surviving 1,000 years in the future.  Even Lois’ robot majordomo turns out to be Maxwell Lord’s robotic sidekick L-Ron, and while it’s great to see the callbacks to the stories of the past, it strains credulity a bit to have it all last so long into our future.  Still, this issue has lots going for it, from Howard Porter’s art (although I still hate Superman’s dumb haircut) to some truly inspired dialogue from and about Guy Gardner, whose new body is female.  It’s a dystopian, filthy future, to be sure, and one that I still resent for the way it seemingly supplanted the Legion as “official future lore”, but I’m glad to say that this iteration of the book seems to be growing into something much more than just another grimdark Justice League title.  Most importantly, the last page reveal, though it leans again on the 21st century, promises something that could be a game-changer for this whole book.

THE BOTTOM LINE: MORE TO MY LIKING

There are a lot of interesting things percolating in this first issue, but once again, not a whole lot actually takes place in this issue.  I don’t want to run down the title, as they’re clearly trying something different from the bulk of comics on the stands today, but there are still some rough edges to deal with in this story.  I don’t mind the use of Lois Lane as antagonist, but she doesn’t seem like she’s very good at getting the League killed on their missions, and while Porter’s art is quite good overall, it doesn’t always fit the tone of the writing, especially when things get humorous or absurd.  Justice League 3001 #1 is nonetheless an improvement over the last issue of JL3000 I read, with a few story/art problems left to iron out, earning a better-than average 3 out of 5 stars overall.