Will this bind them together or tear them apart?
Creative Staff:
Story: Tom Taylor
Art: Bruno Redondo, Juan Albarran
Colors: Rex Lokus
Letterer: Wes Abbott
What They Say:
Enemies meet in Atlantis to discuss peace and how to save the world. Meanwhile, outside of Gorilla City, Grodd is given the means to overthrow King Solovar.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The return to Earth in Injustice 2 may not exactly thrill in a way in the overall idea but with the plan that’s being put into motion I’m definitely intrigued. The things you can do in standalone universes is what draws me to them with the Big Two publishers and seeing Tom Taylor play in this particular field is exciting as he does shake things up and make drastic changes. This issue brings back Bruno Redondo on the art with Juan Albarran inking and it’s a great pairing once more, particularly with how both Brainiac and Grodd come across but also some really good stuff for Mera in the early scenes that worked well for me, both in character and layout. Shifting things to under the sea for a bit doesn’t hurt either to change things up a bit.
Brainiac’s arrival is pretty much as expected here as his view of things on Earth is not exactly unfamiliar. With as many worlds as he’s dealt with before it’s pretty expected that he’ll have a been there done that kind of approach to things and there’s no real surprises for me. Well, at least until Grodd shows up after Brainiac kills one of the local gorillas. This isn’t exactly a fair fight in a lot of ways and it’s not like we’re going to get Brainiac taken down quickly and easily by Grodd, but I do like that Grodd pushes back quickly and ends up under Brainiac’s thrall just as fast. Brainiac is the type that does strike me to find useful local tools to achieve his own ends when they can work just as well and with little to no cost to himself and what he’s already acquired.
The other side of the story is a sit down between the three ostensible sides of the larger debate happening about moving the world forward. Taking place in Atlantis as a kind of neutral territory, bringing Batman and his group, Ra’s and his, and the US President in Jefferson Pierce along with other world leaders is certainly an auspicious event. Which is why it’s no surprise that it nearly turns into a fistfight, initially over Aqualad and his role in events and who wants him to deal with him. There’s a lot of expected and natural tensions to be had here that are fun to watch unfold but my favorite moment is that we get Harley and Ivy laying down the law and setting the tone for the summit. Rather than a quick end, setting a month long ceasefire in which to work things out, it’s hard to imagine it’ll work well with what’s afoot in the world but there’s potential for some odd alliances ahead.
In Summary:
Tom Taylor has some good stuff in the mix with all the politics of the moment and interactions in Atlantis that keeps it fun and uncertain of which direction it’ll go. I really like the idea of exploring this even if Injustice 2 may not be the best place considering how many people have died, heroes, villains, and civilians alike, but that also gives it a good place to unfold in some ways too. Bruno Redondo has some really great scenes throughout this and fun with characters we haven’t had before. I also really dig the presentation of Brainiac in this since it’s not the usual one I’m familiar with in this form and it has a pretty chilling look to it. Here’s hoping we get a few more Redondo and Albarran issues coming up!
Grade: B+
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: DC Comics via ComiXology
Release Date: July 24th, 2018
MSRP: $0.99