With The Extremists finally defeated, the League prepares to become a real team, but a minor villain and a major romance may bet in the way… Your Major Spoilers review of Justice League Of America #7 awaits!
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #7
Writer: Steve Orlando
Artist: Jamal Campbell
Colorist: Hi-Fi
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Editor: Brian Cunningham
Publisher: DC Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Previously in Justice League Of America: “Batman and Xenos work on the Secret Sanctuary while the Ray and Vixen perform community outreach. But it’s not all fun and games for DC’s newest superhero team, as the Atom and Killer Frost face off against the Terrorsmith (and their own budding romance) while Lobo and Black Canary come to blows in a casino caper. And it’s all capped off with a moment fans have been waiting for since DC UNIVERSE: REBIRTH!”
YOUNG HEROES IN LOVE
While Batman works to update the Justice League Sanctuary in Happy Harbor, the rest of the team splits up to handle other duties. Vixen and The Ray handle public relations with a press conference, while Frost (who’s working to lose the ‘Killer’) and The Atom seek out a particular mummy that may hold the key to unlocking her power problems. Their investigation leads to a confrontation with The Terrorsmith, one of the ‘New Blood’ characters from 1993’s Bloodlines crossover, who is seeking out another museum piece: The head of Glonth, the parasite that bit and empowered him. They are forced to battle him, while Atom deals with his own self–esteem issues, while in New Jersey, Lobo and Black Canary find conflict in a casino. As the issue ends, Amanda Waller herself steps out of the shadows to take Terrorsmith into custody, ending with an ominous warning of what’s to come…
RETURN OF ‘BLOODLINES’
I love this done-in-one story for a number of reasons: The re-introduction of the Bloodlines elements, giving Orlando a chance to rehabilitate another much-maligned bit of DC history; the interplay between Frost and Atom, whose flirtation is starting to turn into something that could be amazing as the emotional heart of the book; and even Lobo’s battle with Mister Scarlett, a character from ‘Kingdom Come’. This issue is about building relationships and character beats, but it doesn’t skimp on action, and ends up feeling very well-balanced. Jamal Campbell’s art still has some wobbly bits (I’m not 100% sold on Ryan Choi’s glasses-under-visor” looks, but it’s evolving to be something I can live with) but I appreciate his figure work and facial expressions and his Black Canary is top-notch.
THE BOTTOM LINE: SOLIDLY ENTERTAINING
I keep coming back to this over and over: If you’re not reading this book because it doesn’t have the “Big Seven” heroes, you’re missing the best Justice League in quite some time, featuring an interesting cast of heroes and at least one character who flat-out shouldn’t work at all in this context. (And yet, there Lobo is.) Justice League Of America #7 is well-constructed, featuring a complete story full of character and humanity, with solid art throughout and just enough Batman, earning 3.5 out of 5 stars overall. Every Spoilerite owes it to themselves to check this one out, if only to keep them from “saving” it with Jim Lee and Hal Jordan again…
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