It’s alien against alien in in this review of Justice League Unlimited #2 – check out our thoughts below!
Justice League Unlimited #2
Written by: Mark Waid
Art and Main Cover by: Dan Mora
Variant Covers: Simone Di Meo, Mike Deodato Jr., Ariel Colón, Derrick Chew, Fico Ossio, Dave Wilkins, Lucas Meyer
Page Count: 28 pages
Release Date: December 26, 2024
Welcome to Justice League Unlimited #2, a new era of the Justice League: an army of international heroes operating out of a satellite orbiting Earth, available to respond to any crisis anywhere in the world! Hot off the heels of Absolute Power and the DC All In Special, Justice League Unlimited is one of the most exciting additions to the DC Comics lineup.
Last issue, Batman and Blue Beetle were called to the jungles of Costa Rica to locate missing children. There, they discovered a nest of alien eggs ready to hatch! Now, backup arrives to rescue Batman (spoiler: he doesn’t need… He’s Batman) from the clutches of the Parademons – Darkseid’s mindless army of alien soldiers.
While Wonder Woman and Mary Marvel battle aliens and talk theology, Martian Manhunter, the last surviving member of his race, and Dr. Occult, a hard-boiled detective of the dark arts, search the jungle for the missing children and their abductor. Before long, the two investigators find their perp: a self-aware Parademon–the first of his kind–exiled to Earth to build an outpost for Darkseid, is kidnapping children as an offering to Granny Goodness and a way to seek entry back to his homeworld of Apokolips. Clearly, he didn’t read the DC All In Special, or he would know Darkseid is dead!
Meanwhile, in Singapore, the Atoms contend with a giant terrorizing the city. In Absolute Power, Mark Waid and Dan Mora’s precursor series, Amanda Waller stole the super abilities from Earth’s heroes; in the conclusion of that storyline, those powers were all returned to their rightful place… mostly. Dubbed the “power shuffle,” it appears some heroes’ gifts ended up in the wrong hands, as in Atom Smasher’s case, and now must be taken back by force! Ray Palmer and Ryan Choi, known both as The Atom, are working on a way to restore the balance of power in the DC Universe; this setup continues in the upcoming spin-off Justice League: The Atom Project.
As an ensemble piece, Justice League Unlimited features a who’s-who of characters and an occasional “Who the heck is that?” This roster depth breaks a monotony for super fans who feel they’ve seen all there is to see of the DCU. Thankfully, anticipating our unfamiliarity, writer Mark Waid throws in enough origin-revealing dialogue to give us an overview of folks like Dr. Occult – in a way that doesn’t feel shoehorned or expositional. These odd-couple pairings of A-list and D-list heroes make for exciting dynamics we likely have never seen before, and new ways of solving problems that don’t involve a batarang.
Perhaps because of its spiritual predecessor, the early 2000s animated television show, Justice League Unlimited #2 evokes a nostalgia that ought to draw readers in quickly; the fast pace, serial format, and large character count keep us hooked and flipping the page. It’s a great time to beam up to the Watchtower and join the action!
