Justice League #1
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Justice League #1

Writer: Geoff Johns Artist: Jim Lee Publisher: DC Comics Release Date: August 31, 2011 Cover Price: $3.99 Critic Reviews: 25 User Reviews: 43
7.2Critic Rating
8.2User Rating

Comics superstars Geoff Johns and Jim Lee make history! In a universe where super heroes are strange and new, Batman has discovered a dark evil that requires him to unite the World Greatest Heroes!

  • 10
    Heretical Jargon - Heretic Sep 8, 2011

    I wont lieI loved #1! I think Johns set it up in the best possible way. Im excited to see how Cyborg integrates into the League and how the rest of the members make their way into the ranks. Plus, Darkseids inevitable coming is going to be an exciting moment! Looking forward to it Read Full Review

  • 9.2
    A Comic Book Blog - John Barringer Sep 7, 2011

    Can't wait for issue #2! Read Full Review

  • 9.0
    Major Spoilers - Robot Overlord Aug 31, 2011

    Justice League #1 is a strong issue, and certainly not the failure that so many nay-sayers have been decrying. Read Full Review

  • 8.4
    Chuck's Comic Of The Day - Chuck Sep 2, 2011

    They have a great creative team, the right cast, and loads of potential. Time will tell if they can live up to it. Read Full Review

  • 8.4
    The Fandom Post - Chris Beveridge Aug 31, 2011

    It's well paced, it's a clean book to be sure and it lets us see just who these two guys are while slowly bringing in a couple of more. With the opening arc at the least, Justice League will be one of my same-day digital books even at the $3.99 price simply because of how slick and appealing it looks here and the way these guys already feel something like titans even though it's just the start. There's a real presence to them here, and even with the general darkness of it all in the story, a sense of hope and promise to it as well. It's only served to ramp up my interest in the relaunch overall. Read Full Review

  • 8.0
    ComicBuzz - simon Sep 13, 2011

    OK, first things first. I really enjoyed this issue. It was a great introduction to Batman and Green Lantern with good teases for Cyborg and Batman. The artwork is crystal clear throughout and we get to have a really good look at the outfits and armour for the three established heroes. Johns and Lee were the perfect choice for this book, as Johns writes the different characters as clearly as Lee illustrates them. If the rest of the New DCU is up to this standard, then I'll be sticking around for a long time to come. Read Full Review

  • 8.0
    cxPulp - Walt Kneeland Sep 1, 2011

    If you want to be in from the beginning, and follow this launch of the new DCU as the issues are released...by all means, this is the place to get in. But if you're just looking for a solid story, of this new take on the Justice League, I almost hate to say it...but what doesn't work for me in this being a single issue will probably be part of a really fun collected volume when the story arc is complete. Read Full Review

  • 8.0
    Comic Vine - Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero Aug 31, 2011

    The "New 52" is off to a great start. As it's meant to be, this book kicks off the relaunch of everything in the DC Universe. Who are the characters? Where do they stand with each other and the world? What is the big threat that brings them together? These questions are answered or touched on in a subtle way that makes it easy for new and old readers to follow. Read Full Review

  • 8.0
    IGN - Joey Esposito Aug 31, 2011

    Justice League #1 is fun, no doubt about it. There is a certain sense of feeling underwhelmed after reading it, simply because it's been hammered into our brains that this book represents the ushering of the single biggest comic book industry initiative in years. It's gained a whole lot of external weight. But when you strip all that excess media hype away, you're left with a perfectly entertaining " if somewhat safe " glimpse into a universe we're only just beginning to understand. Read Full Review

  • 8.0
    Weekly Comic Book Review - Minhquan Nguyen Aug 31, 2011

    Here's my fresh-eyed, baby-faced impression. It may capture my interest enough to keep me following the title, in a "wait and see" kind of way, but it doesn't quite succeed in me to empty my wallet for the slew of new titles and characters very soon to come. Read Full Review

  • 8.0
    Examiner - Mark Ruffin Sep 4, 2011

    The comic book moves on the tandem velocity brought by the upcomer characteristics and the chase on an unknown meta-ability possessing entity. Action forces the drama, which props up volleys of superhero fare - the story told in the superheroes search for the unknown, for their dealing with each other, for interactions that will somehow affect their agendas. Read Full Review

  • 8.0
    Comics: The Gathering - lucstclair Dec 2, 2011

    This new JL series takes a different approach by re-introducing the heroes to each other for the first time. Im curious to see where this is going. Written by Geoff Johns (Green Lantern, Aquaman) whos definitely one of my favourite DC writers. Illustrated by the one and only Jim Lee (X-Men, Batman : Hush). Looks amazing! Read Full Review

  • 8.0
    iFanboy - Conor Kilpatrick Aug 31, 2011

    I wanted to fall head over heels for Justice League #1. I wanted to love it more than pie. Instead I merely liked it a lot. But that's way more than I've been able to truly say about a Justice League book in a long, long time. Read Full Review

  • 7.8
    Crave Online - Andy Hunsaker Aug 31, 2011

    Overall? Justice League #1 does its job in a workmanlike manner rather than with any spectacular flair that we may have hoped for. It sets up a new world where nobody knows each other, it lays the groundwork for a big sinister alien plot as well as an origin story for Cyborg, it gives us decent superhero banter and it has Batman in it. It's not enough to blow us away, but it's just about enough to make us want a little more before we decide whether or not we're down with this whole New 52 thing. Read Full Review

  • 7.0
    ComicBuzz - johnlees Sep 13, 2011

    So, under the weight of all that expectation, Justice League #1 might not quite match up. But if you cast aside that expectation, and take it just as a Justice League comic, Geoff Johns and Jim Lee give us a first issue that offers much to like. I think that a lot of people who picked this up will be back for issue #2. Read Full Review

  • 7.0
    Batman-News - Andrew Asberry Oct 18, 2011

    But those nitpicks aside, I'd say go pick this book up"well, if you can still find it anywhere. I'm sure it's on like a 3rd or 4th printing at this point. The 2nd printing cover was my favorite. Issue #2 will be on shelves this week. Read Full Review

  • 7.0
    Eye On Comics - Don MacPherson Aug 31, 2011

    Johns' script isn't exactly cutting edge. The issue is made up of mostly standard super-hero genre fare, but it's executed capably. But what the script does offer is the best of both worlds in terms of reaching its audience. It's thoroughly accessible, using appropriate shortcuts (such as giving the audience credit for knowing Batman's deal), incorporating exposition into the dialogue (such as GL's explanation to Batman about the Green Lantern Corps) and offering a grounded introduction and complete origin for a lesser-known character. At the same time, Johns offers something to the longtime DC reader, and that's discovering the small and big ways in which he's tweaked these iconic heroes. Johns and Lee don't reinvent comics here (as has been suggested by all of the hyperbole leading up to the New 52), but they do offer some fun comics. Read Full Review

  • 7.0
    CHUD - Jeb Delia Sep 3, 2011

    I had my issues with Justice League #1, sure. It felt a bit rushed yet overly decompressed, a lot has to happen here and yet, when it was all said and done, all we got were hints of what will be. In Silver Age hands, the team would've been assembled, the day done and the cause won. Justice League #1 is a sign that a new age truly has dawned. On the strength of this issue, I find myself growing OK with that. Read Full Review

  • 7.0
    Razorfine - Alan Rapp Sep 6, 2011

    The end of the issue gives us the first appearance of Superman, who aside from looking far too young, is saddled with one of the more questionable costume alterations of the new DCU. Story wise this first issue, set in a world where people are afraid and uncertain of super-heroes, works well. I'm still not sold on the character designs, but it's good enough to bring me back for another issue. Worth a look. Read Full Review

  • 6.0
    Comic Book Resources - Greg McElhatton Aug 30, 2011

    I like Lee's art (and looking at "Justice League" is a reminder that while some of Lee's redesigns don't look so good when drawn by other artists, they're strong under his pencil), and John's script is just average. As the big launch title for the new DC Comics, though? "Justice League" should have been much better than average. There's a lot of interest and potential goodwill around this title, and I fear that DC may have just given some of that away in the very first issue. Read Full Review

  • 6.0
    Comic Book Revolution - Rokk Aug 31, 2011

    Justice League #1 was a failure as a debut issue of a new team title and a failure as the debut of the DC Re-launch. DC simply overpromised and under delivered with the flagship title of the DCnU. As the flagship title and the banner holder for the DCnU, Justice League #1 had a heavy burden and it simply failed to live up to its mission or the hype surrounding its midnight release. Read Full Review

  • 5.0
    Comic Book Bin - Dan Horn Jan 1, 1970

    Is this the standard by which DC will hold the rest of its new line? Let's hope not. Our respective pull-lists are about to become much shorter. Read Full Review

  • 5.0
    Comics Bulletin - Jason Sacks Sep 4, 2011

    The Batman and GL aspect of the story gives it kind of a meta touch. They are the only two franchises that are maintaining their histories and they're currently the two DC characters with the most public exposure in the mainstream media. If the idea is for DC to reset the universe so that all of their other franchises will do as well as the Batman and GL books, then starting the first issue of the relaunch with those two characters is a nice little nod to that plan. In this new DCU market, everything must stem from the two characters that don't have the stink of failure on them (well, aside from GL's movie, but that doesn't count here). Read Full Review

  • 4.0
    Comic Book Resources - Doug Zawisza Aug 31, 2011

    This first issue is simply that: a first issue. The new initiative, with its day and date release of digital books alongside the printed copies, hasn't changed much when it comes to presenting stories for an eventual collected edition down the road. I had hoped for something different, but it appears that hope was a little misplaced. I'll give this series another look with issue #2, but if that doesn't offer some serious changes to the roster and pace of the story, I might just have to resort to trade-waiting. Wishing for more than I received on this issue, I'm looking towards the other fifty-one debuts with tempered expectations. Read Full Review

  • 2.0
    Fanboy Buzz - DustinRiccio Sep 3, 2011

    Overall, this thing is a waste of 3 dollars and 99 cents. It makes me sad to think that there might be people coming to comic stores and grabbing this book to see what the big reboot fuss is about. Those people are going to read it once, throw it on their coffee table and never have the desire to read a comic book again. And thats a shame. Some of the other reboot titles actually look and sound really interesting, so it puzzles me that DC decided to lead with this one. Oh well. Ill still pick up Action Comics #1 which, by all accounts, is actually worth reading. Read Full Review

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