The "Can't Catch A Break" League
Ok, I've been knocking David Finch as the JLI cover artist (and as a writer) but I gotta say, O.M.A.C.'s crazy afro honestly looks kind of cool here. The fact that only three JLIers are on the cover is kind of lame, but the melting faces look pretty interesting. A decent cover.
This issue continues to demonstrate the stronger points of this series, and what it has over the main Justice League. While the main JL series is all about the biggest battles (Which CAN be great when done well), but JLI is about the characters. Justice League doesn't NEED lots of character development, it's got the biggest heroes taking on the biggest threats that require the biggest heroes. JLI is about the underdogs. And also Batman for some reason. Seriously, we could do without Batman at this point. We've got Batwing, who better represents the idea of Justice League 'International' anyways. Minor complaint. We've also got Guy Gardner, but to be fair, he's generally the least known Earth Green Lantern, which is a shame really. He's the best.
"You expected a giant boxing glove? Not Guy's style."
Because he shows shades of all the other Earth lanterns, and sometimes better. Hal defies authority, but he still ends up a considerable tool. Guy Gardner's got bigger balls to tell things how it is. He's got the attitude, but somehow isn't even close to being a jerk jock like Hal can be at times. And despite his gruff exterior, he's a lover just as deeply as Kyle is. He pretends to be a flirt, but he cares deeply about Ice. There was a moment in this issue where I saw so much of myself in him. He also kind of points out the pointlessness of the previous issue. Sure Booster has a point, they did save lives, and Guy's point that it 'had nothing to do with them' isn't completely right; but they really didn't do much of anything to help out Firestorm.
And like the JLI of old, this series highlights the C-Listers of today, it's why Vixen, Fire, and Ice aren't front and center. It's why Blue Beetle, Captain Atom, and Dr. Fate aren't here. They're no longer C-Listers. What we've got are characters even I myself barely know. Godiva, O.M.A.C., and of course August-General-In-Iron. AGII takes the reigns this issue, driving a lot of the depth through his own narration. His quiet demeanor covers his intense understanding of those around him. His attempts to relate to O.M.A.C. are interesting, and highlight deep characterization in both of them.
Godiva continues her development as she shares an interesting moment with Booster. Well ok, she doesn't get much development, but she's had more than some of the others. Overall the team is really coming together. It's a shame this series is about to be cancelled. Sigh. And the reasons Didio gave for the cancellation sound like ridiculous bullcrap. Plus, it just seems weird. Why cancel this series quietly on its own? I thought the point of the New 52 was to keep a more regulated schedule. Series new releases consistently in the same week of the month, cancellations in waves to keep at 52 titles. Why is JLI ending on it's own, and only 4 months after the first set of cancellations? HALF the time it took for the first set. JLI's not been the best, but it's far from the worst. And it was such a great series for characters who needed exposure. I'm not happy unless we get Doom Patrol or Outsiders as a replacement.
In addition to the heroes, the new villains get a lot of nice characterization. They're developed outside of just being villains, they have a nice variety of personalities despite the same goal, and frankly they have an interesting dynamic that provides some nice comedy. They're still villains, but they're humanized.
In Conclusion: 4.5/5
Really nice issue overall. Not the best thing I've ever read, but I struggle to find any real flaws. It's a little odd to see that this arc, which sewed seeds in the first arc, is still going; but to be honest, this odd sense of ambient direction reminds me a lot of the original. The old JLI didn't exactly move in solid arcs, it weaved and flowed around itself. And it worked. And this does too. It's missing a bit of the super comedy of the original, but it captures 80% of the spirit imo.
