The cover promises new members and new threats, but the issue also gives us the brand new writing team of Willingham & Sturges, taking over for the Geoff Johns, who has been on the book for the past 450 years or so. We also get a brand new artist in the form of Jesus Merino.
As the new Mr. America and a couple other new members of the Justice Society of America move into the Brownstone, something wacky is going on with Obsidian and a lame villain called the Tapeworm is threatening to kill some hostages unless Wildcat shows up to fight him one-on-one. It all turns out to be a big ruse and part of a plot to mess the JSA up big-time. And by the time the issue is over, it seems to be working fairly well.
If you are familiar with Fables or House of Mystery, you know that Willingham and Sturges are a powerhouse writing team capable of handling a gigantic cast with ease, and they continue to do so here. They even manage to introduce a few new characters to the cast without missing a beat. Everyone in tis issue has a distinct and completely recognizable personality: a pretty mean feat, especially when you consider who handed them the reins.
And sweet Jesus, Merino’s artwork is nice! He’s got a nice, clean line and a very classic-looking style that is perfect for a book like this. He’s not recreating the medium or anything, but there’s a really cool look to his work that I appreciated.
Willingham & Sturges handle the characters really well and they don’t waste any time jumping into a big storyline, but it kicks off with more of a firecracker than a bang. Something about the story felt a little forced, which makes sense I guess: these guys are getting their feet wet and probably aren’t 100% comfortable just yet.
And I really hope that the last panel ends up being a swerve. That’s the last thing we need.
Cover art for JUSTICE SOCIETY of AMERICA #29 by Jesus Merino
The new creative team delivers and anyone who dropped the book upon hearing of Geoff Johns’ departure should seriously rethink their decision. That being said, I did feel a mild sense of disappointment upon reading it. I’m a big fan of these writers and I was hoping they’d knock this one out of the park; instead they just delivered a solid issue. Yeah, I know that sounds kind of contradictory, but I gotta call ‘em like I see ‘em, even if I don’t make sense on occasion. If I could use a metaphor, I’d say that I was hoping for and somewhat expecting Empire Strikes Back and I got Return of the Jedi – hey, it’s not like I don’t love Jedi, but you know what I mean.
Bottom line: It gets a B and even if this book wasn’t on my pull list, I’d still be back for the next issue to see where it goes from here. One issue in and the Willingham-Sturges-Merino team appear to be worthy successors to the throne.
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