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Of Embassies and Origins - Justice League International Part 2 (Eaglemoss Collection v77)

  Review: Since we are doing a series of reviews focusing on Booster Gold over his nearly 40-year history, we include this one as a collection of some of his earliest appearances, dating to late 1987. That places the original publish date of these tales while his original solo series was still going strong.  This book is a beautiful, glossy hard-cover with smooth and heavy-stock paper inside, although the sometimes-low print reproduction quality leads to blurred and hard to read word balloons on occasion. It is also a rare book here in North America, as Eaglemoss Collections targeted UK fans with this series. At this point in the history of the 1987-rebooted Justice League, they have gained official United Nations recognition and sanction. To ensure their reach truly is global, they rebrand as Justice League International (as does the title of the series!) and they open new headquarters buildings around the world: New York, Paris and Moscow are included here. As this is a product of 19
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Date Night from Hell - Justice League Beyond - Power Struggle

Cover of Justice League Beyond - Power Struggle TPB


Review:

This collection is a solid and entertaining read, from cover to cover. It blends clever, imaginative tales, earth-threatening villains, superb portrayals of team dynamics - and all the awkwardness and anxiety of a first date!

In this Beyond world, Superman is a middle-aged widower. In a twist from the classic Clark Kent as Reporter alter ego, this one is a firefighter, where his bravery and self-sacrifice in the face of danger fits well with his super-powered mindset. All the more so as he struggles through a period of lost powers.

After fellow firefighter Rita coaxes him into a date, author Christos Gage gives us a truly delightful chapter of anxiety as Superman seeks advice from his fellow League members. It is followed by a disastrous date itself, interrupted as it is by the attack of a giant robot.

Gage dazzles in these chapters with well-balanced drama, conflict and relationships. His handling of Zod - the boy whom still-powerless Superman rescues from the Phantom Zone and an abusive father - is masterful. Gage also achieves the rare task in a team book of portraying all members of the League with a richness of depth and nuance. The Brainiac storyline slips a bit into world-conquering supervillain tropes, but does give a solid platform for the relationships and team interactions to shine. And while Brainiac's conquest of the earth is too quick and complete for a satisfying story, the conversion of the Earth into a tentacled Brainiac skull is very cool!

Artistically, the collection is a mixed bag. Through much of it, Iban Coello gives us timely stylistic shifts that are often picture-perfect to the tone of the narrative. Yet elsewhere the images veer toward the gratuitously gruesome, as in the freeze-frame panels catching the moment of impact of the super-blows and the ripples in the flesh and frozen, blood-drop-spattered expressions of pain.

3.5 capes out of 5



Description:

The World's Greatest Super Heroes of Tomorrow are here! Now with a few fresh faces and a newly-constructed Watchtower, the Justice League are back to being a well-oiled crime fighting machine! But when Superman's powers begin to rage out of control, the League must figure out a way to protect the world--and themselves--from the Last Son of Krypton.

JUSTICE LEAGUE BEYOND: POWER STRUGGLE is collected here in its entirety for the first time, written by Christos Gage (Avengers Arena). This volume collects issues #1-8

Collects: Originally published as Justice League Beyond 2.0 digital chapters #1-16

Authors: Christos Gage
Artists: Iban Coello
Published By: DC Comics
Published When: Oct. 7 2014
Parental Rating: Teen
ISBN-10: 9781401250737
ISBN-13: 978-1401250737
Pages: 176 pages


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