Every now and then you read a book, and when your done you either read it again, or decide you can’t read any more comics for the day, because the bar has been set so high. To me, Justice League Dark is one of these books.

I haven’t read many of the new DCU books yet, but this has been by far the best book that I’ve read. Peter Milligan is an establish writer that I’ve always found to be either great, or passable. With this book he is more than great, he is amazing. The art by Mikel Janin and colours by Ulises Arreola shine, and compliment the script with the tone and atmosphere that they create.

What I really want to highlight here though is how well Milligan crafted what is essentially an introduction/gathering of the team issue. Unlike Justice League were we saw only four of the characters, and only two really interact, we are introduce to every character who will have a significant role in this first arc. This book in a single issue not only gives us a taste for the whole cast, but also clearly establishes the mysterious threat, hints at the stakes, and explains why the Justice League proper can’t handle this threat.

True, like that first issue of Justice League we never see the whole team together in this issue, and I have a feeling we will rarely ever see the team together. But unlike the League, Dark gives each character their space and in the couple of pages we learn a lot about who they are. Shade is a lonely man who can and does shape reality to fit his needs. Xanadu can see the present and future, and is understandably having trouble dealing with this.  Deadman is well, dead. Constatine is younger than the man Milligan writes in Hellblazer, but is hinted at being the cunning bastard we love. Finally, Zantana is the connection between this group of magical beings and the superhero community; she straddles the line between the light and the dark.

If you like Hellblazer, team books or miss the darker elements of the DCU then this book is for you. If you want to try something unlike many of the books on the market, this book is for you.

If you love comics, this book is for you.

This entry was originally written for geekscape.net