Justice League Unlimited #5: A Cosmic Gumbo

Justice League Unlimited hit the ground running last year and threw readers back into a world with a Justice League, complete with the Watchtower. The series coincided with DC All-In and did an excellent job showing readers the current state of things. Writer Mark Waid packed the first arc with nonstop action and urgency, with a good portion of the world literally on fire. Justice League Unlimited #5 kicks off a new arc that immediately feels fully settled with less urgency but is still action-packed from cover to cover. Waid, along with artist Dan Mora, colorist Tamra Bonvillain, and letterer Dave Sharpe, does such a great job balancing this large team. If this issue wasn’t packed enough, the inclusion of Legion of Doom stacks the cast, but it will be interesting to see how Waid handles things. He split the Justice League into a few interesting groups in the first arc, so it will be interesting to see whom he pairs with whom for both teams. Wherever this arc goes, it will look fantastic.

This issue, and this series as a whole, has featured some of Dan Mora and Tamra Bonvillain’s best work together. Mora has the supernatural ability to illustrate these characters the exact way they should be depicted. It is worth noting that Waid and Mora do an incredible job ensuring that this isn’t a secret Batman or Superman book. There is a huge emphasis on Justice League, so every character seems to get their moment and attention on the page. Bonvillain is constantly exceeding expectations, delivering fantastic colors that make this series so memorable. The color choices bring out incredible detail in the background while remaining vibrant and bold. It is hard to imagine Mora’s work without Bonvillain’s colors, which add an intensity to Mora’s unmatched work. This issue feels more in line with the earlier arcs of Batman/Superman: World’s Finest, which also boasted the talents of these artists. World’s Famous wears its influences on its sleeve and takes a more lighthearted approach, but compared to the first arc, Justice League Unlimited #5 is simply a lot of fun, thanks to the coloring.