Justice League Odyssey #17 Review: Heart is Where the Character Lies

Since Darkseid betrayed Jessica Cruz, she hasn’t seen her friends. But now, the new Justice League Odyssey comes face to face with one of the first New Gods, Cyborg. Minor spoilers for Justice League Odyssey #17 follow.

The past couple of issues of Justice League Odyssey have been some of the best issues of the series since it started. It was set-up for what was coming, but it was also determined to build-up the newly introduced characters, as well as the new team. Those issues managed to introduce some great new dynamics and it was exciting to see where that would go. With this issue though, it seemed like the set-up that had occurred would be dragged out even more than it needed to be. Luckily though, this doesn’t feel the case for the entire issue as it ends up feeling like the beginning of a new act of the story.

Before getting into the things that this issue does well, I’m going to start out with what it does poorly. This is just to get it out of the way. So, what does this issue do poorly? Well, the first half feels almost completely squandered when it comes to how it aligns with previous issues. Nothing really happens plot-wise and some of it feels like a waste of pages. This issue takes the tension that had been built and drags it out for way too long, thus losing said tension. However, there’s a turn about halfway through the issue that allows for it to overcome its rough beginning.

Image by DC Comics/Art by Will Conrad

What this issue does well though is how it plays with its characters. Everyone from Jessica Cruz to Arla Hax has time to shine in this issue. Arla Hax, in particular, has a couple of pages dedicated to her and it’s a really great scene of her coming to grips with how capable she actually is. Even though the plot suffers a bit in this issue, the great character work manages to make the issue, on the whole, quite enjoyable and worthwhile.

Will Conrad’s art in this issue does a great job of keeping the disparate parts of the issue flowing well though, often elevating a lackluster narrative. Conrad does a fantastic job of keeping the issue moving at a fluid pace even at points where the issue could’ve hit a complete stop narratively. Often, what he does to elevate the issue is extremely subtle, like simply knowing when to have a wide shot vs. a close-up, but it absolutely makes the issue better.

On a more basic level, Conrad’s linework and inks, as well as Rain Beredo’s colors work incredibly well in this issue. With each subsequent issue on the series, it feels like they’ve become more and more comfortable with the setting and characters and it shows in the linework, inks, and colors. Not much of the art is necessarily stuff you might want to frame, but it intelligently tells the story well and understands the characters that it is depicting.

CHECK OUT: Justice League Odyssey #16 Review: Gallows Humor in Space

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Despite the lackluster narrative, the character work and artwork through the issue makes it an enjoyable read.Justice League Odyssey #17 Review: Heart is Where the Character Lies