When the New 52 came along, Justice League Dark was one of those books which were an unknown quantity.  There had been horror books before in the DCU, each character on the team have had their own book previously, but together as a team was something new and untested.  Featuring art almost exclusively by Mikal Janin for the run of the book to this point and writing by Peter Milligan on the first arc and Jeff Lemire for the remainder – looking at the first twenty issues and the first annual, the book has been nothing short of fantastic.

John Constantine, a character who had not even been a part of the proper DC universe for many years was chosen to lead the team with other Vertigo characters and DCU mystical mainstays making up the balance.  Members include Shade the Changing Man, Madame Xanadu, Deadman, Frankenstein, Zatanna, Tim Hunter, Amethyst, Black Orchid, Andrew Bennet and others.  Some have gone, such as Shade, and others come and go, such as Swamp Thing, but the one thing that remains is just how well the team dynamic works.  Constantine is possibly the most powerful member of the team and yet is a pathological liar who never fully reveals what he is up to, or what the team could possibly be getting into.  Zatanna is an insecure young woman who feels inferior around Constantine but forever lives in the shadow of her father Zatara while Deadman is a frustrated ghost who yearns for nothing more but to live again.  Madame Xanadu is troubled more often than not as her visions of the future show nothing but decimation lately while Frankenstein is… Frankenstein.

The first arc, written by Peter Milligan was good but set the wrong tone for the book.  Milligan is a good writer, but being used to the characters in a Vertigo setting, that flavour did not work for a book set in the main DCU.  With Lemire taking over he quickly set the pace of the book, adding a little bit of humour and a set a more adventurous pace with a bit of a grander scope.  The outlandish horror works well in Vertigo and in this book it could have if it was set in that universe.  Lemire takes the book and ramps up the action with some of DC’s mystical baddies while creating some of his own while weaving in some of the best that both universes have to offer to great effect.

The artwork is sumptuous and simply beautiful.  Mikal Janin should have been on big name books long before now.  The bonus is that he is on this book and it truly benefits from him being on it.  There is a panel in one of the first books of just trees that is stunning in its detail and simplicity.  The fact that he can make trees look so good tells you just how good an artist he is.  If this guy is not on a bigger book soon, it would be surprising.

With a cast that is so strong and diverse it is fascinating to think of just where this book could go.  There are endless possibilities as team members come and go and an impressive library of villains, characters and creatures they could potentially come into contact with.  So far the book has not disappointed.  It has a good blend of action, comedy and drama and keeps it interesting whether the characters are just sitting around or in the middle of a battle.  The quest against Faust, the trip to the world of Epoch, the inclusion of things such as the Houses of Mystery and Secrets along with other little obscure bits of DC lore and the introduction of the Black Room are just a few of the reasons to read this book.  It is fascinating to note that separately these characters could never hold a book for very long on their own, the exceptions being Hellblazer and the Books of Magic, so for this book to succeed as it is speaks volumes of the creative team.  With Jeff Lemire and Mikal Janin at the helm the future is bright for the darkest team in the DC Universe.