Justice League #23 Review: Trinity War, Part Six

WARNING: Do not read this review unless you’ve already read this book! SPOILERS ahead!

Trinity War, Part 6

Writer: Geoff Johns

Art by: Ivan Reis (pencils), Joe Prado (inks), Eber Ferreira (cover), Oclair Albert (inks), Rod Reis (colors)

The Trinity War mysteries are finally solved in this shocking conclusion! Everything collides where it all began. The Justice Leagues find their way to Athens, where Batman, Xanadu, Constantine and Zatanna gather around Panora’s box. However, they don’t realize that they’ve fallen into a trap. Geoff Johns brings the mysterious of the Trinity to a shocking close that will go down in history as one of DC Comics’ greatest stories ever told.

The revelation of the spy’s identity surprised me more than it should have. Since The Atom’s confession to being a spy for the JLA was a red herring, was really a spy for the Secret Society. It was absolutely brilliant; one of the most shocking moments in the book. Her reveal is followed by the explanation of what happened to Superman. If you recall, someone broke into Batman’s secret, secret bat cave and stole a kryptonite ring. The Atom was that person. She kept a sliver of Kryptonite which she stuck in Superman’s brain, causing him to kill Doctor Light with his heat vision. This may have been more predictable than the identity of the spy but that’s fine because everything preceding and following it completely make up for it.

Most of the jaw-dropping moments happen after the midway point of the book. The second most shocking moment is what happens to Cyborg. Back in Justice League Origins, it was subtlety foreshadowed that the technology Cyborg that was grafted to Cyborg was unpredictable. Here, we saw the follow through on that. Cyborg was also the spy but didn’t know it. A virus in his suit brought down the Watch Tower and destroyed A.R.G.U.S. But, the real shock came afterwards! It was a gruesome moment and I can’t wait to see where this goes. Does this mean a spot of the team will be open for Martian Manhunter to return?

Finally, the big reveal at the end of the book. Whether or not readers will find it surprising depends. If you have been following this event and Forever Evil, then you may not be entirely surprised. Others may have their minds blown. The revelation of The Outsider’s identity makes complete sense once Pandora’s box is opened. As a relatively new comic book reader, the significance didn’t immediately register but when it clicked it got my heart pumping. This is one reveal that will surprise, and delight everyone.

I’ve been singing praise to this event since the beginning but it’s because it’s so good. Most of this is due to Geoff Johns who has been steering other books into this direction. This event has been worked on for so long that there were even hints dropped at the end of Flashpoint. Pandora was responsible for merging the universes into the New 52. She claimed it was to strengthen the universe for “their” arrival. Thanks to Johns, they arrived and it was a truly satisfying journey. The art team also did another phenomenal job. It had the same epic scale as the other books which kept the storytelling stay thrilling. Readers who followed this event since the Free Comic Book Day teaser will remember a two page spread–it’s from this book! The only difference is we now know why the teams were fighting. Action scenes like this were also some of the best looking and the perfect example of how DC Comic fight scenes should look.

For myself and possibly other readers, this book marks the end of an event that may be fondly remembered as one of DC Comics’ greatest stories ever told. It had action, mystery, drama and delivered on all its promises. It could also be considered a perfect event because it leads straight into the next, Forever Evil without leaving readers feeling cheated. You do want more, but it’s more anticipation than a desire for story completion. While the Justice League was left barely standing at the end, that may not be the case when Forever Evil begins. We won’t have long to wait to find out what happens next.

Review score: 7 (of 7)

Frank Fuentes

Frank is a self admitted DC fanboy living in Seattle, WA. He's currently a Computer Science student with aspirations of working in the game industry one day. When he's not writing reviews for the site, he spends his free time absorbed in all kinds of geekery: video games, comic books & technology. For more of his geekery, follow him on Twitter (@cizco) or visit his site at Francizco.com.

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