Injustice vs. Masters of the Universe #1 – Tim Seeley, Writer; Freddie Williams II, Artist; Jeromy Colwell, Colorist
Ray – 8/10
Ray: DC’s been doing a lot of oddball crossovers lately, but this may be the oddest of them all – and it’s technically an internal crossover. DC’s been publishing He-Man comics on and off for years now, including a Thundercats crossover a few years back. Now, though, they’re crossing the ’80s cartoon legends over with the DCU proper for the first time – specifically, the brutal, dystopian Injustice universe. This could have easily been something completely ridiculous, but the writer at the helm is top-tier DC writer Tim Seeley, coming off acclaimed runs on Nightwing and Green Lanterns. He manages to infuse both sides of the equation with some genuine character development and pathos. He-Man is coming off one of the worst periods of his life, after he’s been replaced by the evil robotic Faker, who impersonated him for weeks. Despite defeating the villain, he finds that many of his subjects resent him and preferred Faker’s dictatorship. Despite his mother’s encouragement, he begins to doubt himself – just as he’s contacted by a mysterious band of rebels from another dimension.
The heroes from the Injusticeverse include Harley, Zatanna, Constantine, and Swamp Thing, as well as a young Batman who is definitely not Bruce Wayne – Jason, maybe? The timeline here doesn’t really match up with the current events in Injustice 2, as Superman is still in charge, and in fact is consolidating his hold on the world via a new pre-crime system that he acquired from his new ally – Skeletor. The evil Eternian found himself in the Injusticeverse after his last defeat and wasted no time building a new powerbase. With hateful villains and flawed heroes, this first issue is a lot more compelling than it has any right to be. There are a lot of really fun moments, such as the communion between Swamp Thing and Moss Man, and the way He-Man defeats Faker and exposes him in the opening segment. It feels like there may be a bit too much set up here initially, with Superman, Skeletor, and Darkseid all being set up as major threats. However, it’s a fun, fast-paced read that gets me more interested in the Masters of the Universe than I was during any of their solo comics.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
