The first comic book I remember picking up at the store and reading when I was a kid was X-Men #2 (in french, nonetheless!). I started reading comics again in January of this year after grinding through all the Grant Morrison Batman books and more. This relaunch took me by surprise when it was first announced and I was a little pissed off that all I had read so far would be gone (phew it isn’t!) and after reading interview after interview I got more and more excited about the DC New 52. So, seeing that Jim Lee, my first “contact” into the marvelous world of comics was going to draw Justice League with Geoff Johns (whom I loved on Flash and Flashpoint) was just too good to be true. But enough of me blabbering nonsense and on to my review!

First off, this is a special book, special in the sense that we get “a” beginning (not THE) of how Batman met Green Lantern, leading to the formation of the Justice League. Geoff Johns has this particular way of infusing drama, action and humour in his books and it shows here that the man had a blast writing the characters we all know and love with a new twist; he makes (re)discovering those characters something fresh and fun. I particularly appreciated the dialogues and the interaction between Batman and GL, both overconfident of their abilities and reckless. The best scene in the book involved Batman and Green Lantern’s ring…

Jim Lee’s art is georgous, this is what I remembered seeing when I was a kid and telling myself “man, this effing rocks” and 20 years has made the man a master of his art! The attention to detail, to the scenery, to the fluidity of movement is perfect here. This is what (for me) a comic book MUST look like.

All in all, Justice League #1 is a fresh take on characters that are common knowledge to a large audience and a good entry point into the DC Universe, for readers old and new (I’m in between! 😉 ). Highly recommended!