Page 1 of 4 1234 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 51
  1. #1
    Always Rakzo
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    Peru
    Posts
    4,402

    Default Justice League Incarnate #1 Discussion/Spoilers

    Joshua Williamson's ongoing Multiversal saga continues.

    Infinite Frontier had its ups and downs (and had a pretty abrupt ending) but I was looking forward to another series that could follow up most of those ideas and further expand them. This time Williamson is accompanied by Dennis Culver on writing duties and quite frankly, I don't think that really helps to the execution.

    There's a lot of Multiverse fanservice right from the beginning obviously seen with the appearance of the Retaliators who are the DCU counterpart of Marvel's Avengers who... don't really have the best portrayal but let's talk about that a bit later. Of course there are also other appearances of characters from DC's history and is always cool to see them play a bigger role in the story.

    Speaking about the story, the ongoing plot of Darkseid gaining more power around the Multiverse continues but Williamson always thinks in the long game so there are many sub-plots being planted here, one of the most important being Avery's role here now that Barry is missing (and makes sense considering Williamson created her). Plus, this being a Williamson work, expect a lot of references to continuity (especially digged how Captain Carrot mentions how he preferred Justice Incarnate as name).

    My biggest issues here is the overall narration. Especially once that the Retaliators start throwing names to introduce themselves which is one of the clunkiest ways to present characters, you might believe this is done to homage classic comic dialogue but again, is not like the rest of the issue is that much better in that regard (and speaking about the Retaliators themselves, they're practically presented as a bunch of cowards and I'm not sure how I feel about that). This is weird because I haven't seen this kind of heavyhanded presentation from Williamson (at least not in a while) so I'm willing to assume that Culver might be responsible for this and so, I don't have great expectations for the future.

    Brandon Peterson, Andrei Bressan and Tom Derenick share the pencils and their different styles sometimes clash with one another but fortunately, they all handle different segments of the story so the transitions don't feel so jarring.

    Not bad overall but I could go for better craft next. Hopefully following issues are better.

  2. #2
    Ultimate Member sifighter's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    10,395

    Default

    I mean I like that someone is following the Darkseid plot, seemed like a big plot thread to just leave loose if you ask me.

    Only thing that confused me was tartarus, because I felt like I should have known him but I had no idea. Also the idea of a truce with someone like Darkseid is really weird.
    "It's fun and it's cool, so that's all that matters. It's what comics are for, Duh."
    Words to live by.

  3. #3
    Ultimate Member sifighter's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    10,395

    Default

    Alright I guess I’ll go into detail of why I like this first issue. Well first off it’s not really a first issue, it might as well say Infinite Frontier #7. Because this basically picks up after the epilogue after Red Arrow and the JSA have all gone home and now it’s just Justice Incarnate and the Darkseid family with the whole Multiverse conspiracy still being a thing. I basically feel as though the story I was reading took a few months off and now it’s back, so if you liked Infinite Frontier odds are you will like this.

    Another reason I like this is because Williamson is really bringing back some of his Flash stuff with Avery, so fans of his Flash run will appreciate that most likely.

    As for Tartarus...look he’s just a Thanos allegory but I have no idea if he preexisted or not. Basically Williamson writes a Thanos vs Darkseid fight on page.
    "It's fun and it's cool, so that's all that matters. It's what comics are for, Duh."
    Words to live by.

  4. #4
    PHYSICIAN/PSYCHIATRIST WAKANDA FOREVER!'s Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2014
    Location
    CHICAGO
    Posts
    832

    Default

    Original Orion is back. Sturmer too.

  5. #5
    All-New Member
    Join Date
    Oct 2020
    Posts
    8

    Default

    Earth 8 is a version of marvel and Tartarus is Thanos....
    Thats why he said "Im inevitable"....and the Darkseid "Snap"

  6. #6
    Ultimate Member
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    With the Orishas
    Posts
    12,946

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by OscarDCassio View Post
    Earth 8 is a version of marvel and Tartarus is Thanos....
    Thats why he said "Im inevitable"....and the Darkseid "Snap"
    Exactly.

    It was basically Darkseid vs Thanos.

    It ended with a "snap"...lolol.

  7. #7
    OUTRAGEOUS!! Thor-Ul's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Halfway between Asgard & Krypton
    Posts
    6,437

    Default

    Darkseid got upset than Thanos, I mean, Tartarus stole his catchphrase.
    "Never assign to malice what is adequately explained by stupidity or ignorance."

    "Great stories will always return to their original forms"

    "Nobody is more dangerous than he who imagines himself pure in heart; for his purity, by definition, is unassailable." James Baldwin

  8. #8
    Obsessed & Compelled Bored at 3:00AM's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Posts
    8,635

    Default

    This series is just good enough to keep reading, but also bad enough that I wouldn't recommend this to anyone.

    Williamson's Darkseid is supposed to be this ULTIMATE version of the character, but he comes off as easily one of the most mediocre interpretations of him I've ever read. And the fight against Not-Thanos was so unbelievably purile. It came off as badly written fanfic of some DCEU fanboy who spends half his day posting #RestoreTheSnyderverse on Twitter.

    However, Avery fighting a supervillain obsessed with Cryptocurrency was great.

    It's kind of staggering to me that a writer as C-list as Williamson has been handed the keys to DC's biggest franchise. But why would anyone more talented want to work in corporate comics anymore when the best case scenario is having all the great ideas you came up owned by clueless studio executives in exchange for a slightly higher profile you can parlay into a substack gig that will evaporate in six months to a year?

  9. #9
    Extraordinary Member HsssH's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Posts
    8,223

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Bored at 3:00AM View Post
    It's kind of staggering to me that a writer as C-list as Williamson has been handed the keys to DC's biggest franchise. But why would anyone more talented want to work in corporate comics anymore when the best case scenario is having all the great ideas you came up owned by clueless studio executives in exchange for a slightly higher profile you can parlay into a substack gig that will evaporate in six months to a year?
    This is a sidetopic and relates to what we talked about in Hal's thread... but you rate Venditti higher than Williamson? I would put them both on that C list. Thou with Williamson getting to write main Batman his "star" is bound to rise.

  10. #10
    Three Legged Member married guy's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2016
    Location
    Your mum's place
    Posts
    3,239

    Default

    I bought all issues of Infinite Frontier (including the Secret Files issue) and decided that this just wasn't for me.
    Although it was a decent story, I'm kinda sick of having to purchase 18+ issues of a book at $8 a pop to get a beginning, middle and end.
    While I'm curious to see what Williamson does with Avery, it's not enough to make me want to fork over my hard earned money.
    "My name is Wally West. I'm the fastest man alive!"
    I'll try being nicer if you try being smarter.

  11. #11
    Ultimate Member Jackalope89's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2017
    Posts
    10,388

    Default

    Its not bad. And its not Bendis. I am curious to see what they do with grandpa Bats and now Avery going forward. So, that's several positives for me.

  12. #12
    Moderator Frontier's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2014
    Posts
    115,055

    Default

    Williamson is a C-list writer? I mean, we can argue the quality of his work but I'd say he's on a similar trajectory as Johns at this point and his independent work pre-DC was popular too.

  13. #13
    Always Rakzo
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    Peru
    Posts
    4,402

    Default

    I guess we forget all the characters and series that Williamson single-handedly saved since he started working at DC. He has been one of the most consistent writers DC has hired since Rebirth and one of their best currently (Mind you, considering that roster used to include James Tynion IV and right now includes people like Tim Sheridan, that's not saying a lot but still).

  14. #14
    Extraordinary Member HsssH's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Posts
    8,223

    Default

    What series did he save?

  15. #15
    Always Rakzo
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    Peru
    Posts
    4,402

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by HsssH View Post
    What series did he save?
    Flash after the New 52 disaster, currently Damian after most of the Rebirth and King disasters, Wally after Heroes in Crisis, Stephanie after Tynion, etc.

    Hell, you could say that a lot of the current DC series that can be considered successful owe a lot to what Williamson cemented.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •