Dark Crisis: Worlds Without a Justice League
“Dark Crisis,” or to use its full name “Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths,” was a DC event written by Joshua Williamson and illustrated by Daniel Sampere. It involved the rest of the DCU trying to save everyone from the evil Pariah’s Dark Army in the wake of the Justice League’s “death.” I couldn’t be bothered with it because Williamson hasn’t done much for me as a reader and none of the articles I read about its weekly revelations made the series seem any more interesting. What did seem interesting was the series of one-shots – “Worlds Without a Justice League” – that had a number of talented creators showing where the members of the League were stuck after their deaths. The answers all revolved around worlds that granted their heart’s desires, which lead to some interesting answers and uneven quality throughout this collection.
Superman by Tom King & Chris Burnham: This issue starts off with Jon Kent, age 13, racing to help his dad fight Brainiac in Metropolis complete with his own uniform and eyemask. It then follows the Kent family through successive years as Jon’s budding powers enlighten him to the injustices perpetrated outside of Earth, and a growing desire to do more for those who are suffering. Clark does his best to show his son what the right thing to do is, but he’s ultimately going to have to come to terms with the fact that his son is going to do his own thing.
For me, King and Burnham represent the most A-list creative team in this collection. That kind of pairing doesn’t always lead to the best story in an anthology, but it does here. The yearly vignettes do an excellent job of showcasing Jon’s restlessness and Clark’s ongoing concerns about whether he’s doing right by his boy, while mixing up relatable parenting concerns within a superhero milieu. Burnham turns in reliably detailed art that also manages to make the human moments hit hard as well. Sure, it’s difficult to see a bruised and battered Jon stagger home from a fight with Orion, but it’s just as gut-wrenching to see Superman realize that he doesn’t have all the answers for his son as well.
While this is all good stuff, it isn’t until the final page where you realize why this story could only be told within the specific setup of this crossover. Without ever invoking the event itself, King shows us how a perfect prison for Superman has been created. One that actually does have me wondering how the League broke him out of it and if this specific story was referenced in the event. Granted, this story does require a bit of familiarity with Bendis’ “Superman” run to understand why experiencing these things would mean so much to Superman, but as someone who did read those comics this one really hit home.
Aquaman by Brandon Thomas & Fico Ossio: Aquaman’s daughter is getting married and he’s got a lot of villains to subdue before he can sit back and enjoy the ceremony. That’s basically the story here and Thomas does a serviceable job facilitating all the superhero action needed for that to happen. Better is the art from “No One Left to Fight’s” Fico Ossio which boasts fantastic detail as it sells all the fighting and celebrating. It’s not a bad story, just a simplistic one that might read better for those better versed in Arthur Curry’s history and current status quo.
It should also be noted that this story, like every second one that follows, was published as a backup in the issue featuring the League member before it and starts a trend continued by all subsequent such stories. That of acknowledging the events of “Dark Crisis” in a limited fashion. None of these acknowledgements made the event seem any more interesting to me, but Aquaman’s bit here was charming in a classic “Wolverine” kind of way.
Green Lantern by Phillip Kennedy Johnson & Fernando Blanco: John Stewart is the Guardian, the greatest of the Green Lanterns who saved the Central Battery from the threat of the Radiant Dead. For that, he was able to bring his dead sister back to life to be with him and his mother. While that should’ve been the reward for some legendary service in the name of the Corps, the Radiant Dead are now back and have their sights set on Earth. Which means it’s time for the greatest of the Green Lanterns to get back in the saddle once again.
This is basically an issue showing Stewart being a Big Damn Hero in the face of a cosmic threat. There aren’t any real surprises here, but Johnson and Blanco sell the core idea pretty well. It’s nice and all, but I’m left with this nagging feeling that you have to be more of a fan of the character than I am to really get something out of this.
Hawkgirl by Jeremy Adams & Jack Herbert: Kendra Saunders embarks on an ersatz “Indiana Jones”/”Tomb Raider”/”Uncharted” style adventure in search of one thing: Mortality. She’s lived countless lives and the cycle of rebirth is starting to get to her with its endless repetition and overall sameness. Maybe the Vase of Mortality will be able to help her out with that. Or it could just be a shortcut to a quick death from its skeletal guardians.
An immortal who tires of immortality and tries to embrace mortality is a familiar trope and Adams doesn’t really find an interesting angle to put on it here. Herbert’s art is decent in that he serves up all the tomb raiding action in a serviceable fashion. It’s not a very memorable story, and the bit with Pariah laughing maniacally for no reason at the end doesn’t enliven it much either.
Wonder Woman by Tini Howard & Leila Del Luca: Man’s World is at peace, as seen by Wonder Woman’s attendance at the inauguration of Etta Candy’s second term as President of the United States. Diana brings Etta to Paradise Island to make her an honorary Amazon to mark the occasion, but dark tidings are afoot. Plans are being made to leave Man’s World once and for all, forcing the Greatest of the Amazons to choose between her people and the planet she has spent her life fighting for.
It seems like this story breaks with the idea of providing the members of the League with a comfortable prison, until you get to the last two pages. That’s where you get two explanations as to why such a world would appeal to Diana: The first one being provided by Dr. Psycho while holding the Lasso of Truth and the other by Wonder Woman herself in response. I realize that we’re not meant to have much faith in the answer provided from a man’s perspective, but it’s a fascinatingly selfish one that’s more interesting than the one provided by the heroine. I’d actually like to see more from this world following up on these answers, as well as more of De Luca’s dazzling art as well.
Martian Manhunter by Dan Watters & Brandon Peterson: Arguably the weirdest story in this collection as it puts J’onn J’onzz in a 50’s noir setting revolving around a brutal murder where a man was dismembered and the sentence “What does paradise look like on Earth” was scrawled around the crime scene in his blood. What? This doesn’t sound that weird to you? Well, this is also a setting where we’re told that superhuman attacks and environmental concerns led humans to splice DNA from more sensibly designed creatures, such as squid and octopuses, in order to survive. Which means that now everyone looks like Cthulhu in this world.
The setting and creature designs are well-handled by Peterson and Watters handles the hard-boiled schtick well enough. There’s even a nice little surprise when we find out who the murderer is and how J’onn choses to deal with him. This is definitely one of the cleverer stories which showcases one of the better-built prisons of this collection.
Green Arrow by Stephanie Phillips & Clayton Henry: In one world Olive Queen and his Merry Men live to fight against the King and his chief enforcer Merlyn in a wooded kingdom. In another, Dina Lance manages a seedy bar in a barely kept-together metropolis with her wits and sonic scream. While these are separate worlds, nothing can keep true love apart, as also seen in…
Green Arrow & Black Canary by Dennis Culver & Nik Virella: Technologist Oliver Queen is haunted by visions of a blonde woman who doesn’t exist anywhere on his world. In another world, Birds of P.R.E.Y. officer Dinah Lance has visions of a doomsday that seems inevitable. The two may be separated by space and time, but even the apocalypse can’t keep them apart.
These two stories may have different creative teams, but they’re effectively making the same point. Culver and Virella’s story actually makes decent use of Pariah here as the event’s mastermind finally realizes that love is the key to building a better prison for the two of them. Still, I’d have rather seen Dinah come to Ollie’s world in Phillips’ story and witnessed the chaos she would bring to the charmingly on-the-nose “Robin Hood” pastiche of that world.
Batman by Simon Spurrier & Ryan Sook: The world is a wasteland of desolation and gibbering psychopaths with only a single oasis of order within it: Gotham. Inside this technological marvel of a city, the people are safe and provided for under the watchful eye of Wax, its architect. Not everything is perfect, however. When night falls, the vigilante known as the Night makes his presence known, fighting against criminals all the while trying to find the one who killed his parents. This is the status quo, until Night figures out the secret he and Wax share, and how it will lead them to the one place that can provide answers: Arkham Asylum.
Simon Spurrier takes on “Batman.” It’s safe to say that I had big expectations for this story and they were generally met by it. This isn’t one of the writer’s best revisionist takes on established superhero characters, but it’s an intriguing look at the twin drives of the Dark Knight even if it barely qualifies under the remit of providing a world that imprisons the character with their heart’s desire. It’s a story stuffed with interesting ideas, and I liked the back-and-forth between Wax and Night about their justifications for existing. We also get some great art from Sook who easily depicts the utopian and dystopic sides of the world while having fun leaning into the creepy Joker-esque touches within it.
Zatanna by Meghan Fitzmartin & Dan Jurgens: Less a story than a teaser for the end of the event. Zatanna is trying to create a world where she has all the time to do what she wants, but various aspects of her personality conspire against it. I suppose if you were reading the event, this would help to sustain momentum going into its final issues. As you probably guessed, that did nothing for me, and the story itself doesn’t have anything to say about the character herself either.
Which makes it the only outright dud in this collection. The majority here were decent-to-good with King and Burnham’s “Superman” story being the real standout here. Which makes it a shame that it’s the one which leads off the collection, leaving the rest to struggle in its shadow. I’d still say that this is worth reading for fans of the characters, and you won’t have to put up with much “Dark Crisis” nonsense if you do. Whether you read this now in hardcover, or wait for the paperback collection, is up to you. It’s a good event-driven anthology, but I can’t say that it’s something that every fan of the characters featured here should seek out and read.