The following originally ran in the Weekly Planet 8/1/18.
DC loves its Elseworlds. It thrives on having separate universes where the rules are different. Earth-2, alternate histories, a Justice League in the Old West… There is a bounty of universes to choose from. But as far as I’m concerned, there is none better than Injustice.
Spawning first from a fighting video game of the same name, the Injustice comics have since become something so much greater. The premise is this: after The Joker pulls off a plan that results in the death of Lois Lane and her child, Superman is finally broken and kills the Clown Prince of Crime. From there, everything becomes different. Superman becomes a “take no quarter” sort of tyrant and rallies many of our favorite DC heroes to his cause. Batman, a rehabilitated Harley Quinn, and what few heroes oppose the last son of Krypton are the only ones that stand in their way.
There have been five fictional years in the Injustice universe, and now weekly issues entitled “Injustice 2.” The comics now tie in only in the loosest sense to the games. You don’t have to have picked up a controller to really get a kick out of these. I know I haven’t. Most of the series has been overseen by Tom Taylor (X-Men Red, All-New Wolverine), who has essentially been given carte blanche with his own DC Universe. With a weekly comic, there’s plenty of room for experimentation. Taylor skillfully moves back and forth between quiet character stories and moments of grandeur and insanity. All of your DC favorites are in play here. And without the shackles of having kept them in place for decades and the need to keep them pristine for decades to come, Injustice can absolutely let loose and take you to some astounding places.
There are so many stories and moments in this comic that I want to gush about to all of you but I would hate to spoil even one of these amazing scenes. It would eat me up inside. But know that while reading Injustice, my jaw is frequently open, often with a stupid laugh rolling out.
This week, Injustice 2 Volumes 2 and 3 both hit shelves and you are depriving yourself of a rollicking good time if you don’;t dig in. The series show no signs of stopping. Take heart in knowing that this bonkers corner of the DC canon will continue on for years to come.*
*Author’s Note: Since the original publication of this piece, it stopped.
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