Justice League 28
Geoff Johns, Ivan Reis, Joe Prado, Scott Hanna
Forever Evil Crossover
Spoiler alert! You have been warned!
Now, before we get started, let me say two things: Yes, this issue was more of a Metal Men #1 (or even a “zero” issue) than an issue of Justice League. And no, even though it was great, please do not read my review as a “please give us a Metal Men series!” type of article. That would completely defeat the purpose of what made this issue so great. Geoff Johns is a fantastic (quite possibly one of the best of all time) comic book writer. And the same can be said about Ivan Reis in terms of comic book artists. So when these two surprised me into liking an issue that I was initially dreading (don’t care for any of these characters at all whatsoever), it shouldn’t have really shocked me as much as it did. After all, they’re great… Always have been. So why wouldn’t their product be equally amazing? You don’t have to be Doc Will Magnus to see that it’s not rocket science.
Forever Evil is making the surviving heroes (and former villains-turned-anti-heroes) very desperate. Lex Luthor has formed his own version of the Justice League out of the team’s most deadly adversaries. And Batman. Justice League Dark’s remaining members are in all sorts of magical turmoil as they try to save the day with the help of actual real-life angels and two members of the Trinity of Sin. And Cyborg is even trying to recruit the Metal Men. There’s only one problem, as Doc Magnus tells him: They’re dead. But in this issue, entitled “Forever Worthy,” we don’t just get the first full appearance and origin of the New 52 Metal Men (as well as their heroic deaths when they stop Chemo). No, we get a story that makes formerly dated characters fun, relevant, and surprisingly human. So when Cyborg lets Will know that they’re bodies are destroyed but their minds and their “hearts” still live on and are just waiting for the doctor to rebuild them. He doesn’t want to at first, because he can’t bear losing them again… But Cyborg asks him what they’d want. The answer, just like the story and the true heroic nature of the Metal Men, is very simple.
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I can’t wait to see them fulfill Doc Magnus’ “rule number one,” and “save everyone [they] can.” I want this to happen in the pages of both Justice League and Forever Evil, though. Not in their own ongoing title. I don’t want them to die, I want them to live and be exactly what this issue made it not only possible, but probable for them to be: excellent supporting characters. They’re true heroes. They’re interesting and relevant for the first time in my lifetime. So don’t blow it, DC. Let Johns and Reis do them justice… But let them do so sparingly. Great work, guys.
My Rating: 5/5
Favorite issue this week put a big smile across my face am probably going to read it ten times over
Metal Men rock!