Justice League United shares an acronym with the late, great television series Justice League Unlimited, and writer Jeff Parker and artist Travel Foreman have taken inspiration from that cartoon for their new run on the comic. Rather than focusing on one set lineup of superheroes, Parker and Foreman have considerably expanded the scope of the title, taking advantage of the wide range of DC characters to assemble teams that are most well-suited for the threat at hand. The current group includes Equinox, Mera, Poison Ivy, Etrigan, and Swamp Thing fighting a “super gross living island thing in the middle of Lake Erie,” and next week’s Justice League United #12 brings Dr. John Henry Irons, a.k.a Steel, into the fray to offer his technical assistance.
Parker proved his mettle on unconventional superhero team books with his exceptional run on Marvel’s Thunderbolts, and his Justice League United has the same propulsive momentum that made his prior team series so exhilarating. This preview of next week’s issue highlights the intense detail and sleek action that Foreman brings to the book, and Jeromy Cox’s coloring brings extra dimension to Foreman’s linework while accentuating the spectacle of the fight with a variety of vibrant colors. It’s a very pretty, very fun book, and the rotating cast means suggests that there will be plenty of surprises in store as the creative team explores the full breadth of the DC Universe.