REVIEW: Justice League Unlimited #6

Justice League Unlimited #6 sees DC All-In’s first crossover event ‘We Are Yesterday’ continue. With an entirely different tone and point of view, this chapter is all about the villain’s journey with Gorilla Grodd and how he was able to pull off bringing back the Legion of Doom in DC’s villain climate today. 

While Dan Mora isn’t on this issue like the last one, he does do the cover. Including heroes other than Batman and Superman was probably essential to differentiate this cover from the World’s Finest series. While Superman does get some page time in this issue, Batman is nowhere to be seen. Including Supergirl in her contemporary Action Comics suit sets it in the current DC time.

Superman legend Dan Jurgens graces us with a variant this week. It’s a simple Justice League lineup with no background. It feels like a nice little piece done for the passion of the characters. I personally feel like hero line-up pieces like this went out after Rebirth when it became about including as many characters in an action shot on a cover as possible. There’s always something familiar about Jurgen’s art with over 30 years in DC. 

Lex Luthor and Batman: Noel artist Lee Bermejo has another in-demand variant for Justice League Unlimited this week. The dark, gritty photo realness of his art is unmatched, but here the sun is shining down on our heroes. Black Lightning by Bermejo has not really been seen yet, and he hits it out of the park. 

Other variants for this week are available from Nathan Szerdy, Mark Spears, and Travis Moore. 

As we saw in Batman/Superman:World’s Finest, Grodd’s takeover of Gorilla City was foiled but he was contacted by his future (or rather present with the main DC continuity) self who we are now following. It’s no mystery that the events of Absolute Power transferred Martian Manhunter’s powers to Grodd, and he’s now more psychically advanced and ready to take over the worlds as he’s ever been. The problem is though, his fellow villains like Lex Luthor, Sinestro, Black Manta, and other former Legion of Doom members do not. Grodd needs them in their evil prime. 

Superman gives Air Wave his official Justice League membership before the young hero goes off to save the International Space Station. There, he meets Grodd, who helps him and manipulates him into giving him access to the former site of the Watchtower, where Darkseid died in DC All-In. His death left behind tachyons and time gates that he could use to bring back the Legion of Doom from the past. Now, the smoke and mirrors are over and the Legion is coming directly for the League.  

Mark Waid takes advantage of the fact that Justice League Unlimited can quite literally have an unlimited number of points of view with all the characters. So naturally, he goes with the Grodd – the mastermind revealed. It’s funny how most of the villains of DC have seemed to be reformed or degraded as Grodd said while he has always remained his villainous self. Of course, Air Wave was always figured to be hiding something in the previous issues. So, that leads to suspicions that he might be a sinister character. As it would tragically turn out, this wasn’t the case and he was just scared into doing it. The one criticism is that Grodd going back in time was kind of glossed over in one page. It would have been fascinating to get more of that. Waid is definitely setting up something fun. Letters are by Dave Sharpe. 

Travis Moore steps in for Mora and does a great job illustrating the story of false trust and betrayal with Grodd and Airwave. While action shots are largely brief and recounted events, it does do a good job of teasing that it’s just a taste of what’s to come. Grodd’s new Martian-like crown is a cool design addition for this event – representing a new era of power for the character. Moore also densely populated the issue with tons of heroes and villains. Colors are by Tamra Bonvillain. 

(9/10) Look out Apex Luthor, Martian mind-powered Grodd is here and definitely going to be a problem for the DC Universe as a whole with Justice League Unlimited #6. He’s pulled off a time heist for the Legion of Doom and how he did it was just despicable.