Review by Frank Plowright

This second volume concludes Joe Kelly and Doug Mahnke’s Justice League Elite, opening with a problem associated with team member Coldcast, once a gangster. As seen in Volume One, his brother never renounced the trade, and now believes Coldcast will throw in with him and his alien partners, but it becomes complicated. The JSA turning up is a surprise, but Kelly has several more to drop over what escalates to become quite the epic over five chapters.

It’s over those chapters that it becomes clear Kelly has a story in mind with a definitive ending, and almost every surprise thrown into the mix is designed to tear the team further apart. Over the first three chapters it’s revealed that almost every single team member is somehow compromised, including those placed by the Justice League, and by the end Kelly’s managed to undermine the team’s entire foundation. It’s incredibly dark, and as with the first volume, it’s surprising to see Justice League Elite marketed as a standard superhero graphic novel what with the themes included. Those themes include a unique form of abuse and an attempted suicide.

Mahnke’s dark art fits the tone. His people are hardened and brutal, and you’ll search long for a smile that’s genuine rather than twisted. There’s immense power to the action and the perverse moments possess a visceral creepiness, particularly effective in the case of one character struggling within their own mind. His only weakness is when it comes to the regular Justice League, some of whom resemble brutalised versions of themselves.

While the first story is great, much of the remainder is going to depend on your tolerance for a returned villain who’s all mouth and excess, and considerable involvement from the primary Justice League team. It’s certainly a monumental threat, but featuring a tiresome personality.

As a shortish series over two volumes Justice League Elite hits the spot after a shaky start just as long as it’s not in any way considered a Justice League title. It’s easy to see why DC would want to create that impression as tying in with an existing popular franchise will always boost sales, but the team’s conflicted and fractured characters work best on their own merits. Take a warning that this is dark and will possibly offend some people, but otherwise dive in for a surprise.