Justice League #38

By Geoff Johns, Jason Fabok & Brad Anderson

Part three of “The Amazo Virus” continues powerfully with the trinity working towards taking down patient zero and Batman becoming infected… The central focus or theme though, is why on Earth did Lex Luthor create this disease? With the combined efforts of this creative team, the plot thickens into dangerous territory.

This is a dialog heavy issue, but this should not be a deterrent, especially if the man behind the words is Geoff Johns. Time and time again Johns has shown his strong understanding of the motivations of DC’s pantheon of characters; who they are at their core. In this issue, Luthor, no surprise, is the focus. He’s the only man who can develop a vaccine and attempts have been made on his life. Going from Forever Evil to Justice League, Lex has come to the forefront as a key player, as he should, considering he is Superman’s nemesis. I can’t wait to see where Geoff takes him next. Also, if you’ve been curious to see what superpowers Batman would have…wait no more!!

Considering this a dialog-centric book, Jason Fabok and Brad Anderson keep the material fresh and captivating. This could be used as a great case study on how to express key moments or conversations with a character’s facial expression or stance/position in a panel. Seeing Luthor drop major plot bombs in his matter-of-fact demeanor is absolutely spot-on. Anderson’s color work continues to make the story very atmospheric, even in the base-camp panels. There is so much shadow used to convey the dread and unease the virus represents. Eerily good work.

Some may argue that not a lot goes on in this issue, but I beg to differ. Fabok gives readers so much imagery to feed off and Johns is ramping up for what looks to be a big event. This is a new creative team that no one should be missing-keep up to date and pick this issue up.