Injustice Gods Among Us: Year Four #1

Injustice Gods Among Us: Year Four #1

Writer: Brian Buccellato
Penciller: Bruno Redondo
Inker: Juan Albarran
Colorist: Rex Lokus
Letterer: Wes Abbott
Cover Artists: Howard Porter and Rex Lokus (variant cover by Matthew Clark and Rex Lokus)

Injustice Gods Among Us: Year Four #1…what does it bring? Well the cover gives a hint. For starters it opens up the greek pantheon of gods, thus adding more credence to the series’ title. However it also doesn’t shy away from utilizing a lot of characters and spinning a lot of story threads. But can it deliver with so much in play and so many stories already told before it?

This issue opens with Mount Olympus and some narration from Ares the God of War. We’ve already seen Ares in the series, though his appearance was rather abrupt and unexplained. As someone who is not well versed in DC Comics, I have no clue what comic series Ares appeared in. Either way, he’s used to bring in Hercules. It’s only a two page segment of the issue, but it’s done well in both narration, dialog and visuals. While greek gods may seem out of place in a superhero comic, I do like the look of Ares.

From there the story shifts to Superman who is once again playing tyrant. They even have him sitting on a throne bossing around his fellow allies. Here the story takes a moment to emphasize that not everyone is happy with taking orders from Superman, thus laying the foundation for a rift yet to come. When things shift again, we get to see Batman who is still in hiding in an Alaskan lead mine and who receives some motivation from Alfred. This in turn leads him to Ares, thus some of the threads start to come together. There’s a flashback scene of Montoya, which then flashes back to the present where she’s drunk and ready for a fight. She sets her sights on Robin and, with the help of some super pills, beats the crap out of him. The issue ends with her threatening to kill him.

Even will all that going on, there’s still more that happens, including Harley and Poison Ivy getting some page time. The end result is that a lot happens in this issue, however most of it is setup. In a way, it makes the issue feel crowded, but it also gives readers a lot to think about as this run of the series gets started. With so many story threads being wove, it’s an ambitious start. From here, we’ll have to wait and see if Brian Buccellato can pull it off.

The artwork is solid with lots of great visuals. The color and lighting is in high gear right at the start with the opening on Olympus. There’s good arrangement with the panels which does a decent job of eliciting motion. For example, there’s a four shot panel of Superman sitting on his throne with each panel zooming in tighter but further off center, just like a camera zooming in for a close-up. But since this is a static shot, each panel has the luxury of changing the other character in the panel. First it’s Superman with Wonderwoman, then Flash, Shazam, and finally Yellow Lantern. While Superman doesn’t change, by using different interaction characters, it gives the shot an interesting contrast. Throughout the issue, there’s some cool visual elements and playing around with the panels which makes this one a fun one to look at.

With solid artwork and a decent story to get things rolling, Injustice Gods Among Us: Year Four #1 is a good opener for the year. I give it a four out of five metal bikinis and look forward to how things will play out. Will Ares give Batman the edge he needs to take on Superman? Will we see Superman slip farther into darkness? And what’s going to happen to Montoya and Robin? Lots of questions, and hopefully some fun answers that lie in wait.

Reviewed By: Skuldren for Roqoo Depot.