Review: Justice League Dark Vol. 3- The Witching War
Quick Summary
Pros: The main storyline is full of action and suspense. The entire volume utilizes and contributes to the larger narrative stretching through the series. The volume’s artwork is mostly positive.
Cons: There is some disappointing disconnect between the volume’s beginning and end.
Overall: This volume has more troubles than some of its predecessors but is still a worthwhile collection overall. It depicts an intense war of magic that pushes forward the larger narrative surrounding this series. There are some pieces of the story that feel unnecessary but the majority of the read is definitely fun. In the end, this volume will primarily appeal to those already invested in the series but could still appeal to readers just looking to see an intense, magical war.
Story
After an immensely strong showing in the previous volume, it is a little disappointing to see the Justice League Dark series move from great to just good. However, Justice League Dark Vol. 3: The Witching War, by James Tynion IV, still manages to be highly entertaining. The volume successfully pulls off the series’ penchant for telling exciting stories that are further bolstered by the development from previous volumes. This creates a narrative that is engaging and leaves fans wanting even more by the time it is over. The problem is that there is a disconnect between the story’s beginning and its conclusion, causing pieces of the read to feel either pointless or disappointing. Overall though, this is still a worthwhile story that manages to build on an already worthwhile series.
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The main narrative in The Witching War is steeped in the action and suspense derived from the titular war. It starts with Circe gathering her forces and having them toy with the Justice League Dark, reminding readers about how powerful she has now become. Then, a full out battle is launched, complete with nearly deadly assaults on the main characters and the resurrection of a literal dragon. It is a blistering show of magic that is only ended when Wonder Woman makes a tenuous deal with one of the League’s most fearsome enemies.
This volume also keeps in step with previous volumes by utilizing and building on the larger narrative stretching through this entire series. The fight against Circe is far more meaningful and significant because of the connections the League has been forging with her recently, allowing the reader to better understand the depths of Wonder Woman’s frustration. Then, the volume’s conclusion sees Wonder Woman enter a deal with the Upside-Down Man, opening a whole new can of worms to be dealt with in the future. All of this helped me become more invested in what was going on and in what will come next.
The problem with The Witching War is that the volume’s opening chapters feel incredibly disconnected from its conclusion. The opening chapters see Circe’s forces rise in power and number as she marshals her strength. However, in the arc’s conclusion, these forces barely feel relevant. Klarion simply introduced an early annoyance through Man-Bat’s breakdown, the Floronic Man did little besides setting up a Swamp Thing story in the future, Papa Midnite barely contributed anything, and the new lord of the Great Necropolis didn’t even make an appearance. This disconnect leaves pieces of the volume’s opening chapters feeling pointless and leaves pieces of the conclusion feeling disappointing.
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Art
The visuals in The Witching War continue the Justice League Dark series’ trend of providing gorgeous artwork that pairs beautifully with the storytelling. Álvaro Martinez Bueno’s pencils, Raúl Fernández’s inks, and Brad Anderson’s colors, which form the majority of this collection, are a highly successful combination. They provide detailed depictions of the people, places, and events inhabiting this collection. They also have a wonderful ability to adapt to the specific tone required by the storytelling, shifting to something vibrant and bold when a moment of triumph is reached while shifting to something darker and chaotic when more evil magics are let loose. This collection also contains one of my favorite depictions of Eclipso, some twisted takes on traditional characters that suit the more horror-inclined nature of this read, and a few seriously impressive splash pages. All of these factors together help make this a great book when it comes to the art.
Continuity
Justice League Dark Vol. 3: The Witching War continues the story from Justice League Dark Vol. 2: Lords of Order (Review).
The story here continues in Justice League Dark Vol. 4: A Costly Trick of Magic (Review).
This volume also references other comic books, detailed below:
- The events of Dark Nights: Metal (Review) (Reading Order), specifically the invasion of the Dark Multiverse and the destruction of the Source Wall, and the events of Justice League: No Justice (Review) (Reading Order), specifically the rise of the tree of Wonder and Wonder Woman’s interest in magic, are mentioned throughout this volume.
- Zatara’s death and the actions leading up to it are depicted across Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #35-50, collected in Saga of the Swamp Thing: Book Four.
- Woodrue references a number of events from his past appearances and past Swamp Thing comics.
- He learned that Alec Holland (Reading Order) was no longer truly alive in Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #21, collected in Saga of the Swamp Thing Book One.
- John Constantine introduced Swamp Thing to the Parliament of Trees in Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #47, collected in Saga of the Swamp Thing: Book Four.
- Woodrue’s origin as a being from another dimension is a reference to his first appearance in The Atom Vol. 1 #1.
- Woodrue’s time as a professor was a retcon that appeared in the Black Orchid miniseries.
- Woodrue’s time as “a Seeder” is depicted across Swamp Thing Vol. 5 #21-27, collected across Swamp Thing Vol. 4: Seeder (Review) and Swamp Thing Vol. 5: The Killing Field (Review).
- A symbol seen at the end of Justice League Dark #16 alludes to Lex Luthor (Reading Order) and Perpetua’s (Reading Order) actions at the conclusion of Justice League Vol. 5: Justice/Doom War (Review).