The big ideas of Justice League continue as writer Bryan Hitch messes with time this week. The “Timeless” storyline begins, but is it good?
Justice League #15 (DC Comics)
So what’s it about? The summary reads:
“TIMELESS” part one! A new epic begins when a mysterious young woman implores the Justice League join the fight against the Timeless, a cosmic threat they’ve never faced before—because it exists at different points throughout Earth’s history! Now, the Justice League must travel to both the past and the future in a literal race against time!
Why does this book matter?
This series is good for a big idea and taking its fair share of chances. The scope is huge too–as it should be for a team book like this–and Hitch isn’t afraid to break some eggs to make an omelette. If you’re into risk taking give this a look.
Fine, you have my attention. What’s good about it?
Sweet ride. Is that for the dunes?
Time travel stories are tricky as they need to explain what is happening coherently without getting into too much gobbledygook explanations. Hitch does well to make the events here very clear if you have a keen eye; details that occur later help explain events happening to the singular characters throughout the book. It may take a reread to totally understand as the issue cuts from an attack to events happening to each character. As the narrative shifts around you find out who the threat is, where the characters end up, and how they’ll need a random girl’s help to survive. Cuts to the heroes as they attempt to understand are clever as they break up the action from their fights with black clad alien things.
The issue opens with Batman and Superman confronting one another about the time travel threat. This thrusts them into the company of the Infinity Corporation Building staff (who were a main facet of the previous Rao storyline). This serves as a way to show the big two heroes attempting to understand the bigger picture and how they’re fighting a battle outside of the rest of the heroes. It’ll be interesting to see how this narrative works moving forward as the placement of scenes–while seemingly out of order–helps keep the drama high.
Fernando Pasarin pencils this issue with truly gorgeous layouts and detail and Matt Ryan inks with colors by Brand Anderson. Altogether this is a gorgeous book with event caliber art throughout; detailed faces, environments, and panels with many characters keep your attention while also keeping the story pushing forward nicely.
It can’t be perfect can it?
Nitpicking here, but the final panel of Superman looks way off. The nose looks like it was broken or smashed in. It looks goofy and certainly hurts the epic full page spread cliffhanger on the next page.
It’s early yet, but the mysterious woman who helps the Justice League in this issue seems way too convenient for the plot. Not much is learned about her beyond assisting with the plot. It’s another nitpick, but it irked me that we learn nothing about her. That’s serial storytelling I guess!
It’s always better yesterday.
Is It Good?
I haven’t dug this series in quite a while, but I think Hitch and Pasarin have quite a tale worth exploring here in Justice League #15. Time travel, excellent art, and a well told story combine to make “Timeless” a must read.
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