Review:
Everyone on Earth has been trapped in a dream-state by a powerful villain. Heroes need to gradually realize that it is a dream world and extract themselves to combat and thwart the villain and set the world right again.
Having recently read and reviewed some of the Knight Terrors crossover series, I am struck by the similarities of plot outlines. This book, reprinting the 1996 Justice League reboot, presents a fascinating contrast.
On balance, this earlier iteration of the global threat in the dream-world is better at showing the diversity and complexity of humanity. Whereas Knight Terrors is all about darkness and the worst fears of our nightmares, this story has space for a wider range of experience and emotion. There is fear, of course, and a handful of nightmarish elements. But the dreams also bring pure joy to the Martian Manhunter, confusion to Wally West Flash, frustration to Kyle Rayner Green Lantern, and almost boredom to Clark Kent Superman.
The clever nightmare twist is that our heroes are just ordinary people in their dreams, while millions of other people are "sparking" and developing sudden super-powers. Who has not dreamt of having the power to fly, the strength to hoist cars into the air or to be too powerful to stop.
What this series lacks, compared to Knight Terrors, is a clear purpose behind the villainy. In Knight Terrors, the terrifying Insomnia seeks a magical stone that will give him even more power. Here, the enslaved Doctor Destiny and his manipulator, Know Man, lack a coherent goal. Know Man, as the brains of the operation, seems to have a desired outcome in mind, but seems unable to communicate it to the confused readers. He mutters some things about saving the world from the heroes, whom he critiques for failing to use their godlike powers to maximum effect. But it comes across as inane villain-babble, not solid character motivation.
The 2017 Deluxe Edition hardcover in my hands coincided with the 2017 release of the Zack Snyder Justice League film. A deluxe reprint needs special additions and inserts to raise it above the rest, and this most notably includes concise little profiles that outline the motivations of each of the founding seven JLA members.
Grant Morrison, a writer renowned for his own skills at rebooting characters like Animal Man, Doom Patrol and Green Lantern, was a smart choice to pen the preface. But his words badly overstated the mythic status of this series. Yes, it was pivotal in restoring the Justice League franchise to its pride of place - by the mid 1990s, it had been diluted and tarnished by the likes of Justice League Task Force or Extreme Justice, and this hard reboot reset it on its way to glory.
But his claim that this series was the tipping point away from the gritty realism and dark violence of the preceding decade of comics is a bit much. Did this restore the nobility and grandeur of the superhero genre? Its predecessor Kingdom Come would have a better claim to that honour, and in hindsight its impact falls short of the boast.
As a solid reboot and fun tale, filled with at least the art stylings of the mid 1990s - most notably in both men's and women's hair styles - this is worth a read. But it is far from perfect, slipping too easily into overwrought melodrama and simplistic formulas.
Description:
The most powerful super-team in comics history is reunited in JUSTICE LEAGUE: A MIDSUMMER’S NIGHTMARE, a prologue to Grant Morrison’s legendary JLA series.
Something is wrong. The world’s heroes—Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, the Flash, Aquaman and Martian Manhunter—are gone, and in their place, their alter egos live peaceful, happy lives. Meanwhile, millions of everyday people are “sparking,” transforming into super-powered beings whose unleashed abilities are wreaking havoc on law and order and causing panic across the globe.
In a world lost in a nightmare, Earth’s greatest champions must awaken to remember their true identities, reclaim their powers and discover that together they are, now and forever—
From acclaimed writer MARK WAID—the Eisner Award-winning author of seminal works including KINGDOM COME, SUPERMAN: BIRTHRIGHT and celebrated runs on Daredevil and The FLASH—comes this classic Justice League tale that serves as a precursor to one of the greatest comics runs of all time!
Collects: JUSTICE LEAGUE: A MIDSUMMER’S NIGHTMARE #1-3
Authors: Mark Waid (Author), Fabian Nicieza
Artists: Jeff Johnson (Artist), Darick Robertson
Published By: DC Comics
Published When: Oct. 31, 2017
Parental Rating: Teen
ISBN: 978-1401274320
Pages: 128 pages
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