Broken Frontier

Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman gather to create a new Justice League of America. Forces are moving, however, and the new League may face its first threat too soon.

There has been a lot of speculation about the new Justice League line-up as fans try to guess who writer Brad Meltzer will put on the team. Anyone looking for definitive answers will not find them here as the process has only just begun. Meltzer, does, however, pack the story with plot and dialogue and characterizations and that may also be this issue’s greatest weakness.

Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman may be sitting down to discuss which heroes they will ask to be in the new Justice League of America but for those heroes in question life goes on. Jefferson Pierce (Black Lightning) is working semi-undercover to find out what is happening in the villain community. And something is happening...villains are mysteriously disappearing. Meanwhile, Vixen is responding to a strange request from The Question only to find she’s been set up. Now Vixen’s question is who is behind it? The heart and soul (in this case literally) of this issue, though, is the problem of Red Tornado. Unlike Humpty Dumpty, Reddy has been put back together again but his soul is still missing. Reddy’s wife is worried but what she does not know is that Reddy’s soul has a plan...a plan that could have far greater consequences than he ever imagined.

Meltzer proves yet again that he excels at capturing the voices of these disparate characters and giving them perfect moments that display their humanity and emotion. The scenes with Red Tornado’s soul and the anxiously waiting Kathy Sutton are touching and tender and the readers really gain a sense of how much love had to go into making this odd relationship work. Even in the smaller scenes, Meltzer works quickly and efficiently, showing readers the strong, confident and capable Vixen as well as the crafty and careful Jefferson Pierce. Perhaps my favorite, however, are the scenes with Hal Jordan, Dinah Lance (Black Canary), Oliver Queen (Green Arrow), and Roy Harper (Arsenal). Meltzer manages to create a real sense of family among this group, something that has not been done in a great many years.

It is, however, these very character moments that ultimately leave the reader feeling a bit unsatisfied. The shifting from scene to scene and character to character does not always transition well and the reader is left feeling a bit disoriented. Additionally, there are a number of plots introduced here, perhaps too many. There is little indication how and where all of these diverse elements are going to fit together in the story. The result of all of this looks more like a patchwork quilt than a smooth sheet.

Ed Benes, previously known for his work on Birds of Prey, is handling the art for this new series. There is no mistaking that Benes draws beautiful women and good-looking men but among the cheesecake and the beefcake he also adds some wonderful body language and facial expressions. He also takes the time to create detailed backgrounds that include at least one Easter Egg for observant fans.

The Justice League of America gets off to a solid, if not exceptional start here. For now, at least, Brad Meltzer appears to be keeping true to his promise to bring these heroes back to the lighter side. Readers are treated to heroes who have a sense of family, a bond of friendship, and a devotion to duty. If nothing else, readers will really see the character of Red Tornado get to shine, as he has not since probably the days of Young Justice. Despite the detractions I trust that Meltzer is a canny enough writer to eventually bring everything together. Justice League of America would turn out to be one wild ride...after all Brad Meltzer is chasing tornadoes.