Scott Snyder's first Justice League arc mercifully comes to an end (sort of--this issue's final pages suggest that parts of "The Totality" storyline will continue). What a mess! Even an epic story that's cosmic in scope should make sense. This issue has plenty of action, but the story is again hard to follow. There are lofty concepts that seem half-baked, and there are far too many characters. Not helping matters is distractingly dorky dialogue. The strengths of this first arc have been the fun nostalgia (Hall of Justice, Legion of Doom, etc.) and the variant covers featuring individual Justice Leaguers. And the prominent role given to Martian Manhunter is an interesting and promising choice. But there is much room for improvement.

This issue is a disappointing start to a much-hyped series. It's a bloated mess, with too many characters--including several newer X-Men who are at best uncompelling and at worst silly. The plot is unoriginal, and the sloppy art looks like it was rushed. To top it off, it's overpriced.

Infinity Wars #3 focuses almost entirely on two characters--Gamora and Loki (currently the most overused villain in the Marvel Universe). This issue lacks the drama of the issues preceding it. Gerry Duggan's scripting is readable and witty (as usual), but the story's pace slows to a crawl. The primary purpose seems to be setting-up spinoffs--which makes one wonder whether the primary purpose of this event series is to get people to buy more comics. Is there a story that matters here? It's not yet clear. The book continues to look great. Mike Deodato's art and Frank Martin's colors are consistently strong from start to finish. But the visuals are not enough to keep this issue from falling flat.

This arc, a kind of reboot of the series, has fallen short of its potential. Dan Abnett's new lineup pays nice homage to the classic Wolfman/Perez run, which also featured Dick Grayson, Donna Troy, Gar Logan, and Raven. Here Miss Martian subs for Starfire, and Steel subs for Cyborg. Abnett has also given this team a clear and straightforward reason for existence as first-responders to emergent events caused by source wall energy. Due largely to the art, however, this new arc has yet to hit its stride. Three artists drew this issue, and the result (predictably) is inconsistency. Brandon Peterson's first few pages are solid; but then the look changes--and not for the better. Hopefully, the creative team will settle into a groove soon.

Beautiful artwork. Intriguing plot.