Justice League – No Justice has been a smash hit here at The Revolution. Snyder, Tynion, and Williamson are delivering a stunning epic tale that absolutely captivates the reader’s attention from cover to cover. There is zero doubt in my mind that Justice League – No Justice #3 is going to be another excellent read. Let’s hit this review.
Words: Scott Snyder, James Tynion IV, and Joshua Williamson
Art: Riley Rossmo & Marcus To
Colors: Hi-Fi
Story Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
Art Rating: 5 Night Girls out of 10
Overall Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10
Synopsis: We begin on Colu with Team Mystery deciding how they are going to free all of the miniaturized bottled planets in the Nursery. Martian Manhunter says that Brainiac’s suit he is wearing is interfering with his telepathy. Martian Manhunter says that Starro is a different story. That Starro’s powers are as strong as ever. Martian Manhunter says that Starro is their only hope of rescuing Colu.
Starro calls Martian Manhunter “Marty” (Ha! I love it!) and responds that his powers are for dominating weak minds. Martian Manhunter asks if that is what Starro wants to be known for. A tyrant? Or does Starro want to be something greater.
We hop over to Team Entropy at the Ultra Penitence prison. Brainiac 2 says that the second the heroes killed Brainiac that they doomed Colu and Earth. Brainiac 2 complains how he forgot how frustrating it is to speak to lower intelligences. Brainiac 2 explains that Brainiac was not counting on the Earth heroes to save Colu without Brainiac.
Brainiac 2 continues that Brainiac viewed the Earth heroes as barely sentient. That the Earth heroes were nothing more than tools. And each tool had a specific function. They were tools for Brainiac to wield so that Brainiac could save Colu himself.
Batman says that any plan that Brainiac had must have had a backup. That Brainiac 2 is the backup plan. That Brainiac 2 has his father’s programming and can fill the role that Brainiac would have filled in this plan to save Colu.
Brainiac 2 says that the heroes still don’t understand. That when the Source Wall broke that the rules of the universe changed. That universal domination new requires greater power resources like the ones on Colu. That Brainiac needed the power of the mystery of the World Nursery, the wonder of the science priests, the wisdom of the core databank and Brainiac 2, Brainiac’s own backup.
Brainiac 2 says that the problem is that no planet hates Brainiac more than Colu. Brainiac 2 says that he was imprisoned simply for sharing the same genetic sequence as Brainiac.
Brainiac 2 says that when Colu came under attack of the Omega Titans that Brainiac saw an opportunity. His plan was to use the Earth heroes to both save and finally conquer Colu. Brainiac 2 says that Brainiac is the missing piece required in each of the four teams’ missions. That the Earth heroes’ suits were directly connected to Brainiac’s processing center so he could channel the energy directly into himself.
Brainiac 2 says that he cannot replace Brainiac because the Earth heroes’ suits are programmed to absorb Brainiac 2, to kill him, and download his data to Brainiac. Then the Omega Titans would have been diverted from Colu and would head directly to Earth and devour it instead of Colu. This would leave Brainiac as the rule of Colu and the universe without the nuisance of the Earth.
We cut to the Arctic Circle on Earth. Amanda Waller says that now that the seed has been activated that the four energy trees will being to grow on Earth. Green Arrows says that Hal Jordan gave him an emergency communicator to reach him. Ollie says that he has not been able to reach Hal so far. Ollie says that Amanda needs to order the Q.I. and U.S. satellites to be redirected to boost Green Arrow’s communicator so that they may be able to reach Hal and the Green Lantern Corps. Hal might now how to safely deactivate the seed.
Waller responds that the Earth heroes got them into this mess by breaking the Source Wall. Waller says that the only solution is to drop the biggest nuke that the U.S. has right on top of the seed.
Green Arrow pulls his bow and arrow on Waller and says that the seed is connected to the heroes in stasis. Green Arrow says he won’t let Waller kill them. Waller pulls out her gun and says that it is either the death of a handful of people or everyone on the planet.
We slide over to Team Wonder. Brainiac’s suits are blocking the heroes from using the full extent of their magical powers. Zatanna says that she already tried to remove her costume but they are locked on them by some kind of code. Zatanna says that her suit is preventing her from even thinking backward let alone speaking it.
Wonder Woman says that where she comes from magic is not definite by limitations. That it is about belief. Wonder Woman says that she does not know if there is any raw magic in her but that she has been blessed by the gods and by wondrous forces. Wonder Woman says that she feels the Tree of Wonder calling out to her. Wonder Woman wraps her golden lasso around the tree. Raven tells the other heroes to believe in Wonder Woman. Zatanna says that they are all focusing their belief into Wonder Woman. Wondy shouts, “For Colu! For Earth! For Wonder!” (Yeah, that is pretty cheesy, but that is still a great moment!)
Team Wonder then powers up the Tree of Wonder. Wonder Woman calls the other teams and tells them that the Tree of Wonder is alive. Cyborg responds that they still have some major problems.
We zip over to Team Wisdom. Cyborg still cannot access the core database. Harley Quinn says that Cyborg needs to think outside of the box. That Cyborg is being to literal about trying to plus A into B and download C. Harley says that Cyborg should plug A into a unicorn and download a tornado.
Cyborg then says Harley is right. Cyborg says that he can use his Mother Box to plug into the Tree of Wisdom and talk to the artificial intelligence. That Brainiac can’t reprogram universal tech. Cyborg then can draw the information directly into his servers.
Cyborg then screams out in pain as he connects to the Tree of Wisdom. Cyborg says that he is hearing every A.I. in Colu in his head. That they are telling him that the original seed that the Omega Titans planted here comes from the fruit of the Tree of Wisdom.
Cyborg begins to falter and says that he cannot take the strain anymore. The rest of Team Wisdom begins to give Cyborg their support.
We hop back to the World Nursery. Team Mystery is still trying to figure out how to free the planets. Superman asks Sinestro if he will be able to create a construct large enough to carry all fo the worlds safely off of Colu. Sinestro answers that it is dangerous but that he can do so. Sinestro then sees Starfire staring at one of the bottled planet. Sinestro calls out to Starfire. (I’m telling you. Love is in the air between these two! Ship it now, internet!)
Starfire responds that the bottled planet is her home-world of Tamaran. Starfire says that if Starro does not help then her world will die. Starfire begs for Starro to help. Starro replies that he will help.
We cut back to the Tree of Wisdom. We see that Team Mystery and Team Wonder with the exception of Sinestro and Starfire have converged at this location. (Mm-hmmm. How convenient for those two lovebirds.) Our combined heroes begin battling the Omega Titan. The Omega Titan easy swats them away as if they were gnats.
We see that Team Entropy has arrived on the scene with Brainiac 2. Batman radios the other heroes and says that his team is back on Brainiac’s ship with Vril Dox. Batman says, “Flash, unplug Vic and get my son back to the ship right now!”
Cyborg pleads with his teammates to give him just a little bit more time to dim the Tree of Wisdom. Wonder Woman replies that there is no more time. Starro then tells Ryan Choi to invert the frequency of the dwarf star in his belt and fire the energy at Starro. Choi does so. Starro then grows into a massive size and grows additional arms. Starro laughs, “Bwa-ha-ha!! Do you feel me know, Titan?! Do you feel the might of Starro the Conquerer?
Starro attaches himself to the Omega Titan’s face. Starro says that he has conquered worlds and that the Omega Titan’s puny mind is no match for him.
We see Robin and Flash dragging an unconscious Cyborg onto the ship. Robin complains how he cannot believe they are trusting their lives to a Starfish. Flash says that Starro is already saving so many lives. Flash tells Robin that unless he wants to save Flash from Robin’s dad that Robin better get his butt on board the ship now.
We see the other heroes successfully boarding the Coluans aboard the final evacuation ships. We see Sinestro and Starfire flying up into space. Sinestro has all of the planets from the World Nursery in a massive yellow orb.
Suddenly, we see the Omega Titan rip Starro in half and pull Starro off his face. The Justice Leaguers are stunned and believe that they have lost the battle. Superman tells all teams to retreat and for them to get Brainiac’s ship into orbit now. Superman says that the Omega Titan is eating the planet. We see the Omega Titan consuming Colu.
We zip back to the Arctic Circle on Earth. Waller and Green Arrow are still at a standoff with their weapons pointed at each other. Waller begins to pull her gun’s trigger. Green Arrow fires his bow. Green Arrow’s arrow flies into Waller’s gun and jams it so it cannot fire.
Waller says that Green Arrow has doomed them all. Green Arrow then uses Waller’s communicator to say that he has the approval of Amanda Waller and for them to follow Waller’s order to redirect all satellites to boost a signal from their location to the Green Lantern Corps.
Suddenly we see the Tree of Wisdom from at the Fortress of Solitude. We then see the Tree of Wisdom form at S.T.A.R. Labs. We see the Tree of Entropy form at Belle Reve. We see the Tree of Mystery form at the Tower of Fate.
We see Green Arrow and Waller back in Waller’s snowmobile. Green Arrow says that they will get through to the Green Lantern Corps. Green Arrow says that he also knows that the Justice League is still out there trying to get back to them.
Waller replies that Green Arrow still does not get it. That if the energy trees have sprouted then the Omega Titans are already here.
We then see three Omega Titans gazing upon the Earth. Green Arrow says that Waller is wrong. That the Justice League will come. Waller says that the Justice League will not come. Waller says welcome to the end of the world. End of issue.
The Good: Justice League – No Justice #3 was another excellent read. Snyder, Tynion, and Williamson continue to hit it out of the park with each issue of this big event. With each issue, the writers are able to continually top themselves as they ratchet up the intensity and wildness of this story.
The writers have succeeded in crafting a story that completely envelops the reader. Justice League – No Justice #3 is no exception. This issue is a gripping read that captivates the reader’s attention from cover to cover.
What is so amazing about Justice League – No Justice and Justice League – No Justice #3 itself is the superlative plotting and pacing. Snyder, Tynion, and Williamson are putting on a clinic iwth this story. Justice League – No Justice should be mandatory reading for any super hero comic book writer. This story is the blue print on how to handle a large roster of characters and how to properly plot and pace a big event story.
The plotting and pacing of Justice League – No Justice #3 is brilliant. The story moves at an increasingly frenetic pace as we crash toward the climactic finish. The sense of urgency builds inside of the reader as they frantically flip from page to page. The sense of tension is palpable and drives the story forward with a purpose.The pacing of the issue and the excellent scene transitions lead to a natural flow for the story.
The plotting is flat out amazing. Justice League – No Justice #3 is well constructed. The writers are juggling multiple detailed plot lines and numerous characters with aplomb. Each scene organically builds to the next scene. The story proceeds forward in an intelligent and logical fashion as all the pieces of the puzzle slide together in a seamless fashion. Each scene peels back another layer to this complex story.
The writers also deliver tons of action in Justice League – No Justice #3. This is a lively issue. The writers skillfully balance more exposition heavy scenes like the one at the Ultra Penitence Prison and the World Nursery with frenetic action scenes like the ones at the Tree of Wisdom.
The writers open Justice League – No Justice #3 with a one page scene with Team Mystery and J’onn reaching out to Starro to implore him to be the hero that the heroes need in order to succeed at their mission.
This opening scene is important and is an example of strong plotting. This scene sets the stage for Starro’s story. Starro is the main character of this issue. This opening page kicks off his character’s story arc. Starro is the linchpin in freeing the worlds from the World Nursery and awakening the Tree of Mystery. This is the beginning of Starro’s character growth as more than a power hungry tyrant.
We then get a four page scene with Team Entropy. This is a meaty and dense part of the story. Brainiac 2 treats the reader to lots of plot progression reveals several layers of the story as we learn what Brainiac was doing with the suits and the heroes. This was a good scene that helps add so much texture to the story. Brainiac 2’s explanation of Brainiac’s motivation and true nature of his plans were both surprising and logical.
Next is a one page scene with Waller and Green Arrow. This scene is an excellent example of enjoyably condensed storytelling. The writers succinctly gets to the crux of the conflict between Waller and Green Arrow on how to best handle the now activated seed. This is also a good example of organic plot development as the writers finally begin to weave Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps into the story. on how to handle the scene. This scene also gets across the philosophical differences between Waller and Green Arrow with Waller being the pragmatist and Ollie the optimist. This is a lot of character work and plot progression for just one single page!
The writers then give us a four page scene with Team Wonder. Again, the writers cram in a nice amount of plot progression, character work, and some action in just four pages. This scene is another example of compressed and succinct storytelling.
I particularly love how this scene spotlight Wonder Woman. This was the proper spot for Wonder Woman to take lead for Team Wonder. The addition of the other members of Team Wonder fueling Wonder Woman with their faith in her was a perfect touch. Yeah, this scene was a bit cheesy, but it is the good kind of comic book cheese and it was perfect.
Next is a three page scene with Team Wisdom. This scene finally shows the reader why Harley Quinn was placed on this team. While her inclusion seemed off at first it certainly makes sense after her advice to Cyborg on how to access Colu’s computer system.
The writers then deliver a two page scene with Team Mystery. This scene continues Starro’s character arc as he embraces his role as the central hero in this issue. The writers also continue to dole out the surprises with the revelation that Tamaran is one of the worlds in the World Nursery. I am curious to learn how this happened. We have seen Tamaran in the New 52 over in the pages of The Red Hood and The Outlaws. So, I am not too sure what is going on here at this moment.
The writers then crank up the intensity with the five page scene at the Tree of Wisdom. This was easily my favorite scene. The writers deliver some awesome action. This scene also delivers the finale to Starro’s character arc as he heroically takes on the Omega Titan and sacrifices himself to save the rest of the heroes and the inhabitants of Colu. Starro’s sacrifice provides the critical time needed to finish evacuating all fo the residents of Colu and enabling our heroes to get to Brainiac’s ship and head out into orbit. This was a fantastic scene.
The writers then end this issue with a strong three page scene that delivers a massive hook ending. We have the destruction of Colu and the appearance of the Energy Trees on Earth. As if things could not get any crazier! I loved the various sites chosen for the Energy Trees. The writers picked the most logical locations for each tree.
Justice League – No Justice #3 does not just present the reader with excellent pacing, plotting and action. This issue also treats the reader to some fantastic character work and dialogue. The writers also are able to concoct some wonderful chemistry between all of the various characters in this story.
Let’s talk about Starro first. I love how the writers have handled Starro’s character. What is incredible is that Starro is a character that I have never cared for at all. And I thought Starro was an odd and lame inclusion into the roster of characters for this story.
However, the writers completely won me over. The writers made Starro a likable and intriguing character. The writers developed Starro into a charismatic character with an engaging personality. That is tough to do when that character is a one-eyed giant starfish!
The writers succeed in getting the reader to like Starro and become invested in his character. The readers are completely on board for Starro’s’ character arc. The writers succeed in making the reader attached to Starro and invested in his character which then makes Starro’s heroic sacrifice resonate so much more powerfully with the reader.
No Justice has done more for Starro’s character and has made him far more compelling than any story in the recent past that I can remember. I love Starro’s personality and his unique external voice. No Justice has pulled off such great character growth with Starro that it would be a true waste of potential if Starro does not return at some point.
The next character that got the most character work is Wonder Woman. I love how the writers handle her character in this story. Yes, Wonder Woman is a bit cheesy. But, it is exactly the right type of cheesiness that you want in a super hero comic. Wonder Woman is properly inspirational to those around her. The writers understand that Wonder Woman’s role is to serve as the faith of the Justice League. Wonder Woman is the embodiment of love and faith and through that she inspires her teammates.
Martian Manhunter continues to be wonderfully written by the writers. The writers understand that the big guns of the Justice League should all represent a certain emotional importance to the Justice League. J’onn continues to be properly written as the soul and the conscience of the Justice League. And in that role, it makes perfect sense that J’onn would be the character to inspire and convince Starro to be more than what he has been and to become a true hero and save the day.
Brainiac 2 written properly like the condescending smug jerk that he is. It is so awesome to have Vril Dox back and better than ever. I appreciate that the writers get his personality and are giving us vintage Brainiac 2. I look forward to whatever is planned for this character.
Sinestro and Starfire both continue to be well written. I like that the writers has Sinestro show concern for Starfire. It is also hard not to take note that it is Starfire who is the only person left behind to help Sinestro carry out his mission of saving the bottled planets from the Nursery. These two characters have quality chemistry with each other. It would be great to see more of Sinestro and Starfire together.
Batman spot on. I dig that the writers made sure that Batman was properly gruff and pretty much a jerk to everyone around him. The writers get that Batman is a control freak and Batman certainly did not shy away from taking lead once Brainiac got killed. I also appreciate that it was Batman’s team that first succeeded in reviving one of the Energy Trees. As it should be. Batman is the best. Batman always wins. Period.
Once again, Amanda Waller was well done. I dig Waller being the pragmatist and not blinking at all over the fact that she would have to kill herself in order to destroy the seed and save the Earth. Waller gets a lot of shit for the less than wonderful things that she does. However, this scene reinforced that despite Waller’s negative character traits she is willing to sacrifice herself for the greater good.
Green Arrow is also well written in this issue. The writers frame Ollie as Waller’s foil. Green Arrow is ever the optimist and it is no different in this issue. I enjoyed Green Arrow’s absolute faith in his friends. This emphasized the concept of the Justice League as a family rather than just a super hero team. This is refreshing and welcome in an era where most super teams seem to be in a state of permanent dysfunction. I love that the Justice Leaguers view themselves as a family and treat each other as such.
The Bad: The only aspect to the writing in this issue that I was not thrilled about was the destruction of Colu. This is unfortunate. Colu is an iconic planet in the DCU. Hopefully, a new version of Colu will become quickly established.
The only real disappointment to Justice League – No Justice #3 was the artwork. The art in this issue is decidedly of lower quality than the gorgeous art that Francis Manapul delivered in the first two issues of this title.
Rossmo’s art is a bit sloppy at points and lacks the detail that Manapul brought to the table that help to create a textured setting for this story. Rossmo’s art is also more cartoonish. Rossmo’s artwork does not convey the proper epic scope and tone of this story.
Overall: Justice League – No Justice #3 is another entertaining chapter of this excellent epic tale. Any reader who enjoys super hero comics is going to love this story. There are few comic books on the market that are worth the increasingly expensive cover prices that fans are being charged these days. Justice League – No Justice is definitely one of them. If you still have no hopped aboard the train for Justice League – No Justice then definitely get it when it comes out in trade format.
