SPOILERS: Review: Justice League 3000 #1 - Lyesmith

Writers: Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis

Artist: Howard Porter

Happy Mid-Week Mini-Christmas, everybody! Today we'll be reviewing Justice League 3000 #1.



This comic has been hinted at and advertised here and there for weeks. We've seen this gimmick before with the DC 1-Million line, amongst others. A futuristic twist on the Justice League meant to boost sales and maybe make a few collectibles out of the new and different costumes. I'll admit it, I bought a few of the 1-Million issues that tied in with the current comics I was collecting at the time. And while the vast majority of those comics were iffy at best (Don't get me started on Kyle Rayner's story line. Grrroooaaaaan. More "Kyle is soooo special!") there were issues, or more appropriately, parts of issues, that were at least amusing. Robin The Toy Wonder, android version of Batman's side kick was pretty funny. I read the hell out of the Young Justice 1 Million. But I digress.

Justice League 3000 is along the same vein, but they're not replacing the current issues to shoe-horn in their latest sales-booster. This one gets its own shiny issue #1. As far as I can tell, this a stand alone story. Possible future timeline kind of deal. And I have to say, I'm actually pleasantly surprised with it.

Teri and Terry, CADMUS's "Wonder Twins" have used research and theories from their mentor, Ariel Masters, to bring back five of the original Justice Leaguers, Flash, Green Lantern, Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman.

WHY, you ask? For some unspecified time in the future, but before the early 31st century, things were groovy throughout the common wealth - the interplanetary group that Earth eventually expands into, according to Ariel's narration. 10 years prior to our first issue here, a group called The Five showed up. Mass murder. Government take downs. The Five singlehandedly threw the Commonwealth into chaos, disarray, and poverty. Any resistance was met with immediate termination.

From the dialogue between the Twins we find out that for some reason, Masters skipped out on CADMUS, where the Twins took up her work and used DNA that CADMUS had been hoarding to bring the Justice League back to life.

But there are some complications. They didn't come back quite right. Pieces of their memories aren't intact, parts of their powers are missing, and relationships that should be cemented by years of teamwork and camaraderie have been replaced with hostile egos.

The Flash's friction field is missing, and he has to use tech to keep from burning himself alive.
The GLC is no longer in tact, so Green Lantern has to use tech to simulate his old powers.
Superman doesn't have heat vision - at least. And he doesn't seem to have any of the morals that came with also being Clark Kent. 
Wonder Woman isn't the compassionate warrior princess we've come to adore and is more like a typical, bloodlustful Amazon.
Batman knows they're missing pieces, they're not whole, they're flawed copies, and he himself seems to be lacking the drive for justice that came from losing his parents. (Whether that's a memory missing or not is unclear. Perhaps he knows the fact, but doesn't actually have the memory. This is only the first issue, mind.)


So we've got a broke, dysfunctional Justice League set in the gritty, grimy, sci-fi future, resurrected by the Wonder Twins to fight the mysterious and ominous The Five.

The art was decent, the dialogue was fun and engaging, and I have to say, I'm looking forward to the next issue. I walked in with low expectations and was pleasantly surprised.

I'm giving it a 4 out of 5
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KEEP GEEKIN'!