I used to have time to read my comics in a coffee shop. Now I have to read them in the bathroom. Then I write reviews of them. I wash my hands in between.
JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK #29
Holy Cats! I actually liked this issue! Stop the presses! And it's even a peripheral tie in book to a crossover that I've repeatedly gone on record as being tired of! What the hell? Dogs, cats...living together...mass hysteria!
I'm so disgusted with these peripheral tie ins that I couldn't even remember half the stuff that happened in the last issue. Plus I think the story also crossed over into the Pandora and Phantom Stranger titles. Essentially Felix Faust, at the behest of the Crime Syndicate, captured all the big time magic users in our universe and held them all captive while he stole their abilities and skills. I guess he succeeded because this issue opens with Constantine having just knocked out Faust and preparing to take all that power into himself. The argument being that if Constantine has it, it's less dangerous than Faust having it. And John claims to be giving it back to it's owners. Except, wait a tick, there are two Constantines on site. The regular jerky one and this new & improved selfless one ready to give back all this power even though it will kill him. Zatanna is understandably perplexed as the Constantine she wishes she was with just showed up and then sacrificed his life. EVERYBODY is confused. Until he reverts back into a demon and Pandora drops some knowledge: it was one of John's 'inner demons' so drawn by the foreignness of his love for Z, that it became human. Kinda hokey, yes, but it works.
So some other demons show up to fight, the real Constantine cuts and runs and the complete spirit catalog of Nanda Parbat returns to our plane of existence to transport the city to another dimension for safe keeping. The captured magicians escape, Z confronts Constantine and kicks him out of the House of Mystery (as it has chosen her to take over).
So definitely an important issue, wrapping up lots of threads and setting the tone and circumstances moving forward. It was also, and I didn't get into it, a great character analysis on Zatanna. The whole issue is narrated by her and said narration doesn't shy away from her feelings about Constantine or the circumstances at hand. So if you're a fan of the character and have been waiting for a nice, juicy chunk of characterization for her New 52 iteration, this is it. And I'm excited to see the direction this book goes in with her in the lead.
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