REVIEW: ‘Justice League Infinity,’ Issue #3

Justice League Infinity #3 is written by J.M. DeMatteis and James Tucker, illustrated by Ethen Beavers, colored by Nick Fliardi, and lettered by Tom Napolitano. It is published by DC Comics. Part three of “The Crack’d Mirror” introduces an alternate version of the Justice League called the Justice Alliance, which resides on Earth-D. When the Justice Alliance encounters an interdimensional rift, their Superman is teleported to the same alternate dimension as the Justice League’s Superman; the Justice League is also dealing with a rift in their dimension and the captive Overman.

This series marks the appearance of another version of the Justice League, and the Justice Alliance’s members are inspired by various comics. First and foremost, Earth-D’s Superman is visually inspired by Calvin Ellis, aka President Superman; Ellis has also played a part in DC’s other multiverse-spanning series Infinite Frontier. Justice Alliance’s Batman bears a resemblance to how the Dark Knight appears in Batman: The Brave and the Bold-another DC Animated series that Tucker and DeMatteis worked on-and Wonder Woman is a Black Amazon named Unatti who is married to this world’s Superman. The fun of alternate universes is seeing how radically different specific versions of a character can turn out, and this series is leaning into that.

DeMatteis and Tucker also handle the various intersecting plotlines with ease, which continues to feel like an extended episode of Justice League Unlimited. Overman continues to be a problem as he escapes his confinement and battles the League to a standstill. Superman has to work to convince General Zod, and his rebels that he isn’t as much of a threat as Overman was, especially since they bear a striking resemblance to each other. And other elements such as the Green Lantern/Hawkgirl/Vixen relationship and Batman’s feelings for Wonder Woman are touched upon. This mix of action and character dynamics is what made Justice League Unlimited such a great show, so I’m glad to see that DeMatteis and Tucker are continuing to utilize it.

The cherry on top is Beavers and Filardi’s work, which brings the DC Animated Universe’s sensibilities to a whole new set of characters. While Superman-D’s outfit resembles the armored Superman costume that Calvin Ellis wears, Unatti’s Wonder Woman suit boasts more gold accents similar to Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman costume. The Justice League even build a new shimmering gold version of their Javelin craft, cleverly named the Infinity-1 Javelin; its design is similar to the Ultima Thule that President Superman and the members of Justice Incarnate use in battle. Filardi’s colors also bring a pop to specific scenes, including Green Lantern using his ring to subdue a raging Overman and a fiery red teleportation effect when Superman-D finds himself on Nazi Earth.

Justice League Infinity #3 continues to live up to the series’ title by introducing a new version of the Justice League and continuing to break down reality. With the surprise appearance of a feared villain from the DC Animated Universe, it’s clear that the creative team intends to use the multiverse’s unraveling as a way to further the story of Justice League Unlimited while going in unexpected directions. I cannot wait to read the next issue.

Justice League Infinity #3 is available now wherever comics are sold.