Justice League Dark #3 – Review

By: Peter Milligan (writer), Mikel Janin (artist), Ulises Arreola (colorist)

The Story: Tantric magic in a cheap hotel?  Have you no self respect?

The Review: It’s disappointing to find Milligan falling into the same problem that hampers a lot of writers in the supernatural genre: failing to establish the mechanics of his world.  Even though magic by its very nature has no limitation, that same quality can make it deadly to fiction.  If a writer doesn’t take care to create some ground rules or explain the whys and wherefores of magical workings, they’ll just seem like they work in any way convenient to the story.

Here’s an example: Zatanna’s backwards magic, which has never been clearly or consistently explained.  You’d think it takes more to work the magic than just picking up a few words by listening to her sleep-talking, but Constantine does just that here.  Not only does this simplify Zee’s powers radically and make it feel less specialized, it also makes little sense.  Why would he need to use her magic to wake her up when he clearly has power of his own?

Milligan misses a few other opportunities to give some much needed explanation.  After two issues of seeing June Moone’s traumatized behavior, you already know very well her bonding to Enchantress was not a mutually beneficial experience.  So it seems a waste of time to have scene after scene of June in hysterics over the idea of going back.  It would’ve been more profitable to give some background on how she got tied up with Enchantress in the first place.

At least then we could avoid the awkward romance springing up between June and Deadman.  Considering the guy basically bozoed his way out of his relationship with Dove, his hitting it off with June in what is apparently Dove’s apartment, moments after she left (and is still M.I.A. since last issue, by the way), seems pretty contemptible.  While he comes across slimy (to June’s kiss, he remarks, “I can feel it.  And it’s beautiful.”), his new flame is just macabre; in the event Enchantress might recapture her, she wants him to kill her so “We’d both be dead…together.”

Flashpoint: Secret Seven #3 – Review

By: Peter Milligan (writer), Fernando Blanco (penciller), Scott Koblish (inker), Brian Buccellato (colorist)

The Story: This wouldn’t be an inappropriate time to bust into Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy,” right?

The Review: The key to a really great ensemble cast is a broad diversity of characters.  The more far apart in personality and background they are, the richer their interaction becomes.  In superhero comics, you also have to consider their power sets.  Too many redundant abilities, and the range of obstacles they can face drastically narrow.  Most of all, you need a writer who can give each member life and motivations of their own, so they don’t just disappear into the group.

Secret Seven has a great ensemble.  Whereas previous issues dragged from Shade’s ceaseless moans over his questionable sanity, the back-and-forth among the team once Zatanna, Raven, and Mindwarp show up has great pop and crackle.  Interestingly, despite their animosity and suspicion towards Shade (even after he admits he may be responsible for some of their deaths) they demonstrate a kind of sympathy, even loyalty, to him, trying to gauge how far he’s gone.

But once the kid gloves come off, none have any qualms about getting their hands dirty, a sequence made all the more entertaining by their specific range of powers, a mixture of the occult and psyche very much in tune with the spirit of this title.  Zee’s incantations, though put to some dark uses here (“Raet reh trapa!”), seem restrained in contrast to Enchantress’ wild magic, while Raven, Mindwarp, and Shade’s psychic manipulations prove capable of some grim effects.

It’s particularly good to see Shade in action, as we finally get a sense of just what his vest can do: “The M-Vest has used the psychic energy of their anger…to turn their souls into amorphous solids.”  We also see how unsettling his abilities can truly be; his attempt to reanimate the broken Amethyst’s corpse strikes a perfect chord of creepiness (“Hello, Shade.  Hello, June.  I’m twelve years…  I’m twelve years…”), showing why Shade’s grip on reality may have so degraded.