The first arc of JUSTICE LEAGUE is finally over. The Marvel-like pace of the story may have been a method to introduce these characters to new readers slowly, but I wonder if DC hasn’t underestimated new readers. There’s a lot to take in here, and the identities of the “Super Seven” are the least of it.

The showdown with Darkseid continues for much of the issue, with the League-to-be faring pretty well, while Batman searches for Superman on the other end of that boom tube. Darkseid’s objective is revealed, and I don’t know enough about the Fourth World characters to have any idea if this is a new thing.

The highlight of the story, though, is the conclusion, when the heroes are assembled and thanked by the President in front of a grateful nation. This is the start of the era. This is when these characters go from vigilantes to role models. I guess it works okay.

The backup is a confrontation between Pandora and the Phantom Stranger. Who’s Pandora? She might be the pink lady that cameoed across the whole run of #1s. She certainly dresses like her. They talk a bunch about multiverses and such and it looks like the League is going to encounter her directly in future. I also wonder if maybe this isn’t going to be a device used to introduce the Earth-2 characters and titles somehow.

I’m not a major JUSTICE LEAGUE detractor, even though I’m not a new comics reader. I wish things had been a bit faster paced, but I also didn’t generally feel like I was being coddled by this story – sometimes quite the opposite. And I can certainly say this: it’ll read okay in trade.