Justice League Dark #12 Review
Dr. Mist has betrayed the Justice League Dark to help Felix Faust find the Books of Magic!
Justice League Dark #12
We learn that Dr. Mist has betrayed everyone to help Faust because the civil war in Uganda took away his wife and his life as he knew it. Persuaded by the thought his wife could be returned to him if he helps find the Books, he helps Faust get away with the map containing the exact locations of each book. Using the House of Mystery, Constantine and Black Orchid travel to Slaughter Swamp in Gotham City where they run int o Black Boris. Meanwhile, Deadman and Zatanna arrive in Peru where they are attacked by Blackbriar Thorn. Soon, Faust’s benefactor takes control of the House of Secrets to combat Constantine and the rest of the JLD.
Jeff Lemire takes this story into a little more of an adventurous territory as the members of the JLD chase after Faust and Dr. Mist. With this, the story deepens a bit. We are introduced to the main villain who’s behind Faust’s plans and who’s promised Dr. Mist the return of his wife. Now, since I’m relatively new to these characters, can anyone venture a guess with me who the benefactor is? It’s clear that it is someone with history with at least Constantine, if not also Zatanna and Madame Xanadu. Either way, it builds a little more excitement for the next issue.
Even though there’s a legitimacy to Dr. Mist’s motives to help Faust, it’s a little thin and kind of generic. I am glad that his reasons are covered in the very beginning of this book instead of it being revealed in a much later place in the arc, but for it to be summed up in one page and then have it be the reason why someone who isn’t a bad guy taking the risk of giving really bad guys super powerful items kind of falls flat. At best, it feels like a patch to cover up the surprising turning of a character who hasn’t shown any real sign of being a turncoat before the cliffhanger of the last issue. However, the positives of the rest of the story makes this a little easier to deal with once we get back into the meat of the story.
Again, Mikel Janin just knocks another issue out of the park. If you look at his work, particularly in this series, one of the greatest things he does is perfectly match the visuals to what the scene calls for. When looking at the flashback, everything seems happy and emotional. Once you get back into the present, when he needs to show action, he uses angles and space and body language so well. When you move to Faust’s temple, it’s dark and scary. To show Blackbriar Thorn and Black Boris, he takes advantage of space to show their scale in comparison to the other characters. It makes for a beautiful visual experience.
A COMIC BOOK BLOG RATING
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Wonderfully drawn and very adventurous. | Mist’s reasons for turning on ARGUS and the JLD are a little thin. |
| Rating |
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