One of the things that made DC’s Justice League a big hit when the “New 52” debuted last year was art from Jim Lee, co-publisher for the company.
The question I had at that time was: How long would he work on that comic?
Turns out he lasted a lot longer than I expected, nothing against Mr. Lee. I was certain he’d move on to other projects after six months or so. I’m glad I was wrong in this instance (although I was not surprised by the fact that we did have a stand-in artist help out).
According to a recent article at buzzfeed.com, the time has finally come for Mr. Lee to take his talents and begin creating his next major DC work. Look for more about what he’ll be creating during the upcoming New York Comic-Con. His final issue of Justice League will be number 15, due to arrive in comics shops on December 26. You can check out the cover for that book at the end of this article.
Considering that Lee can help bolster another DC book/project after a little over a year helping Justice League consistently sell strongly, I can understand his desire to move on to something else. I’m sure the rest of the folks at DC would like to see him contribute to another hit, after all!
When asked about the change, scripter Geoff Johns, chief creative officer for DC, said the following:
“There is no other choice for the next A-Star art team on JUSTICE LEAGUE. Ivan Reis and Joe Prado bring power, grace, emotion and epic storytelling worthy of the world’s greatest super heroes. From GREEN LANTERN to BLACKEST NIGHT to AQUAMAN, I couldn’t ask for better collaborators. The second year of JUSTICE LEAGUE will begin an adventurous, mysterious and heroic storyline focusing on our members as their greatest secrets are revealed…and the repercussions change the world. Ivan and Joe begin with a story they were born to draw — THRONE OF ATLANTIS — a story between JUSTICE LEAGUE and AQUAMAN that will have the League experiencing what Aquaman does — they’ll be caught between land and sea. With new relationships developing – like Wonder Woman and Superman – new members coming on – like Shazam! and the all-new Atom — and new threats rising — like Ocean Master & Atlantis — the Justice League will grow and change as we march towards the impending TRINITY WAR.”
The down side to this development is that we’re getting yet another change in the creative teams on DC’s “New 52.” I’m sad to say that one thing that hasn’t changed with DC is its struggle to keep successful writers and/or artists on a comic more than around a year. But there is some progress to report – for instance, Mr. Snyder and Mr. Capullo continue to hit home runs on Batman and don’t seem to have plans to leave any time soon, thankfully!
A year in, the “New 52” continues to evolve and to grow. Honestly, that’s a good thing in my opinion rather than hanging on to titles that might weigh the company down. Moving Mr. Lee onto another book comes as no surprise to many of us, and I’m anxious to see just what they have in mind! Look for more details as they become available here at ComicBooked.Com!
