Review: Justice League Dark #8

Â I have been a Justice League Dark fan for ages. I mean actual years. Publishers tend to pull me in with supernatural titles. It’s the sticking around part that sometimes gets tricky. That being said, however, I’ll say this loudly and with gusto, I love this issue. We’re stepping up to the plate during the middle of a huge event in which the fate of Magic itself hangs in the balance and things are quite honestly, going to crap. Some of the players we’ve seen from the start, like Kirk Langstrom, are sidelined– be it by themselves or of the Otherkind’s doing.

Â I wholeheartedly get immersed in Jame Tynion IV’s writing. His story telling paired with the sense of urgency in this issue as we steadily climb to the apex of the story really plays on the tight quarters and tension in the Oblivion Bar that Raul Fernandez Beuno and Martin Alavarez give life to. There’s a palpable anxious apprehension that hangs in the pages as we wait to see how everything plays out. The tone of the entire issue is chaos. From necessary chaos as Zee and Diana desperately try to find the being who might be capable of wielding Sargon’s ruby whilst bulking themselves up for the inevitable battle to the chaos created when unexpected guests show up at the Oblivion Bar.

Â Like most situations where all sides of an equation come together during a time of unrest, the refugee magical beings seem to be all too happy to pit themselves against one another for perceived faults, actions, or current handlings of the situation. The truth is, from its opening pages, you’re sucked in and the break neck speed at which we’re running through the issue doesn’t stop or relent. Time is crucial; this is something both the characters and the writer/artist team communicate with and without words.

Â I think the part that stands out the most for me in this writing is the fact that Tynion so expertly explains to us how magic and science walk parallel lines; that pieces of one resound largely in the other. The balance is integral, especially when realizing that two of the team are more science/logical minded beings. I think that ultimately, this major component is going to become imperative to where the story leads. Especially when considering the need for desire to will things into fruition. Ultimately, we’re left waiting to see what order is brought to the team and what this means for Magic itself. I give this issue a 4.5/5 for, not only the beautiful art inside, but the expert blend of magic and science. Do you agree?

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(W) James TynionIV (A) Raul Fernandez, Alvaro Eduardo Martinez Bueno (CA) Kelley Jones