Circumstances change and alliances are now tested in this week’s Injustice. Batman pulls a sneak attack not by throwing a punch or sending someone in undercover, but with battle of the wits to perhaps outsmart Superman’s team.
The twist we have all been waiting for is finally unraveled as Brian Buccellato fills in the gaps of Batman’s next plan. I actually didn’t see this kind of a deal coming from Batman. As a man of both force and cunning, this was a very bizarre move for him. Though I’m still a little annoyed with the Greek Gods, they just seem so out of place in the entire fight and stick out like a sore thumb. After exhausting option after option, why did Batman resort to this one? And why hadn’t Ares said something sooner? As much as I liked the forced team change of Wonder Woman, I feel like the story is losing stability and that this is only going to end in yet another character death.
Mike S. Miller and J. Nanjan take over the next installment of the issues with a much more fluid panel direction. I notice that this team seems to have their favourite way of drawing characters and I’m glad that the flow from the event from three days ago is consistent, imagery wise, to the story. I’m not sure if Miller insisted on drawing Batman’s unshaven look but the emotion he puts into the exasperated hero really makes you feel the burden he is facing. I also love that Ares face is much more present in this issue more than previous ones and it’s nice to see the man under his mask so to speak.
Positives
The twist of Batman taking Wonder Woman has his champion was very clever. It seems that it’s not all just about the two heavy weights duking it out together. I was expecting Wonder Woman to take her army back but there is still time in this fresh year. I’m also relieved that Hera did not kill Hippolyta. It would have been far worse to have a figure like that dead than just slightly charring the Queen of the Amazons. I know that she couldn’t have just dismissed her so easily and that taking her out at this stage would have been too much to tip the scales in the battle ahead.
Negatives
Firstly the Greek Gods feel a little fake. I know that there are forces at work behind the scenes but they are a convenient escape goat for me in the story and a flaw that I think won’t carry through to the end of this year. Also the Lex Luthor speeches seem to be about all the man can do, I don’t know why he doesn’t stand with Batman or send back, something more than the pills he invented. I feel like he too, is a misplaced character and really doesn’t bring as much as he could to the entire storyline. I also feel that these panels are getting larger and larger for the sake of just giant pages full with only three panels. There is clever panelling and then there is just cramming. Perhaps the template should be thrown out the window sometimes and the artists given a bit more creativity.
Verdict
Injustice has an old fashioned fist fight to the death as lovers face each other in the ring. Will Superman pull out all the stops to not hurt Wonder Woman or will they end up fighting till only one is left standing?
Rating
