Justice League #001

Justice League #001 (Issue 1-6 form the graphic novel title Justice League Vol. 1: Origin)

OK, so first the obvious. Justice League 001 has beautiful, iconic cover art. It's a beautiful image of all the Justice League members starting out the new 52's lineup. It's simple, sexy and does the trick, showing off the Justice League's new design. The focus is on the characters themselves, where it should be for this kind of origin story.

The interior art is equally good. It's sleek and sexy as Batman and Green Lantern battle a mysterious extraterrestrial enemy. Jim Lee has done an excellent job.

Since this is a Justice League origin story, it's all about the superheroes meeting for the first time. This issue features Batman and Green Lantern. There isn't enough time for a lot of character development, but immediately there is a difference between Batman's seriousness and Hal Jordan's joking and over confident personality. 

The dialogue here is what shines the most. The confrontation between Batman and Green Lantern is full of fun, snarky dialogue that doesn't take itself too seriously. The bottom line is that is it enjoyable. The best is this gem!:

 - Green Lantern: "What are your powers anyway? You can't fly."

- Batman: "No."
- Green Lantern: "Super-strength?"
- Batman: "No."
- Green Lantern: "Hold on a second... You're not just some guy in a bat costume, are you? Are you freaking kidding me?!"

There isn't much in the way of plot yet. Instead we have introduction and some dialogue moments between Batman and Green Lantern. The ending promises our first Justice League glimpse of Superman.

From other reviews I've read online, it seems that a lot of people are upset by the Justice League reboot. It takes place 5 years in the past, and so compresses the entire history of the JLA into a five year period. Some people are particularly annoyed that now Batman seems to have gone through 5 Robins in 5 years. Or at least that's how I understand it. None of this really bothers me. I don't think people should take it that seriously. 

Justice League 001 is a promising start to the flagship DC title. It's super accessible for newbies like me. I don't have to know anything about the DC Universe to get into it, and for me, that's important.

My Criteria for Reviews of Graphic Novels and Comics

I've been thinking about the criteria I would use to review graphic novels and I came up with a few categories and thoughts on the subject.

Art: First of all there's art. Artwork is what makes graphic novels different from regular novels, so I think judging the artwork is a really important part of judging the graphic novel. This category can be further broken down into cover artwork and interior artwork. Is the cover artwork eye-catching? Does the interior artwork match the tone of the comic? Are there panels you just want to look at because they are so awesome? Obviously this is a pretty subjective category, but there's a lot of discussion to be had.

Story: Is there a good plot? Does the plot have elements necessary for good fiction? To me, the plot here shouldn't be all that differently judged from regular novels. There should be conflict, action, climax, often a narrative hook, and resolution (or cliffhanger).

Also important for me, since I am a comic newbie, and i think important for a title to remain successful over a long period of time, is the plot's accessibility for newbies. I think there is probably a bit of a balancing act between keeping old readers interested and making it easy for new readers to jump in and become interested in a title.

Characters: Are the characters full and well developed. Do they have meaningful relationships, are they static or dynamic?

Themes: Finally, do the titles have themes that are interesting and engaging? How are the themes presented?

I am totally open to suggestions for reviewing graphic novel and comics. What criteria do you use? Feel free to comment!

I am currently reading:

Welcome!

First of all -- Thanks for stopping by my new blog! Blogging is no fun without plenty of people to stop by, read, comment and create a sense of community. So, thank you to all of you.

Second -- A little about me: I'm new to comic books. I've just started into reading them this year and now I have absolutely no idea how I lived thirty years without them! My wonderful boyfriend, David, is a huge Green Lantern fan and he got me started with comics. They were just lining the shelves daring me to read them and now I can't stop!

And here's a picture of David in a homemade Sinestro costume:

Third -- About this blog: This blog is from the perspective of a comic book newbie. I'm starting out. I don't know thirty years of comic book history. Comic book history is interesting to me, but all of my reviews will be from the perspective of a newbie who is just starting to learn about the comic book universes. I welcome discussions from comic book veterans, but I won't always have the answers!

Right now I'm really into DC's New 52. I know some people are irritated by the reboot, but I think DC did the reboot for people exactly like me: People who want to get into comics but can't find a place to start without it all being too confusing.

Right now I am reading: