The Good

I think that the first few pages of this issue are fantastic and serve to develop the story in a great way. I loved the portrayal of Steppenwolf in this issue and I think there is a lot of thought put into the character's motivations. I definitely enjoyed the way Robinson gave readers some insight into the way the character ticks and I think that's really important, particularly since this entire issue is focused on him. It was a great portrayal of Steppenwolf and served to flesh out his character a little bit.

It's clear that Robinson is looking beyond simply presenting readers with an adversary and he puts some thought and effort into making him appear threatening and formidable, which will serve to be very important set-up for future stories.

The art is gorgeous. Although I love seeing Nicola Scott on this title each month, I felt that Yildray Cinar, Ryan Winn and Ruy Jose do a fantastic job illustrating this issue. They capture action and adventure really well with their clean lines, attention to detail and the vibrant colors.

I loved that this issue leaves readers with a lot of questions. Although we find out who Fury's mother is/was, Robinson doesn't give much else about this new character away in the first issue. Additionally, readers gain some insight into Steppenwolf's goals.

The Bad

While there was a lot that I really enjoyed about this issue, I think that the biggest problem was the way it takes a sort of falls a little flat half-way through. The majority of the suspense that we see in this comic happens in the previously released preview pages when readers are introduced to Fury. Following the scene where we discover who her mother is, however, things just get a little bit predictable.

The one thing I really had a problem with was the fact that the population didn't revolt against Steppenwolf, they simply agreed that he should lead their country. I understand that this comic isn't about the population living in Dherain, but I don't think it's realistic to think that there wouldn't be some kind of revolt against Steppenwolf and his forces of Parademons once their King was shot and murdered.

The Verdict

One of the big things that Robinson did right in this issue was leave a lot of things open ended. This issue is mainly set-up. In it we get a little bit of context in terms of Steppenwolf, what he's been doing and what his plans for the future are. We also get more information regarding who this Fury character is although Robinson doesn't spend too much time fleshing her out. I liked this issue a lot. I think it has some amazing art, and it serves as a great introduction into Steppenwolf and his overall goals and I am deinitely looking forward to seeing what happens next.