While browsing DC's Facebook page, I came across a post about JLI Issue 6 preview. I was shocked! DC's Facebook page shies away from the JLI as much as possible! http://kotaku.com/5879593/batman-tells- ... -6-preview Apparently this issue is heavy on Booster's doubt about his leadership capabilities. Batman makes a comment that I greatly enjoy; You were a quarterback in the future you came from. Take a minute and think about that wording. In the future you came from. Bats doesn't say the future, but the future you come from. Perhaps I'm reading too much into it, but I read it as an alternate timeline's future *coughcough*Pre-DCnU*coughcough*

Anyways, with Batman and General Iron's support, how can anyone question Booster's greatness as a leader? And say what you will about the ugly unitard, I actually like the gauntlets, it's cool seeing them being an accessory on the suit instead of a part directly connected to it.

((PS: If this is somehow a spoiler, I deeply apologize D: ))

Ahem. Time has not softened my stance on Booster's DCnU costume.

In previous incarnation, the gauntlets were usually the manual interface and power supply for the power suit and blasters. I have no problem with accentuating them. I DO have a problem with turning them into over-sized plate armor with impractical, pointed edges that would look more appropriate on an armored Atlantean warrior. (FLASHPOINT reference intended.) Their form follows no function, and they look overly fancy and out of place on what should be a "high tech" outfit.

It doesn't help that no artist can draw them the same on two consecutive panels. All of Jim Lee's designs are simply overly busy, as though he had no idea that they would need to be endlessly reproduced at under 2-inches in size by artists who always need to work faster to maintain their occupation. Coming from someone who should know better, I find the designs simply unforgivable.

In summary: they suck.

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I did like the preview (and am certainly glad that the storyline is over) but it also shows what bugs me about nowaday comics (Am I even allowed that phrase, considering I am still new to comics?). this preview consists of 25% of the whole issue and that just seems wrong to me. (Less that the preview is too long, but that the single issues are too short)

There need to be more pages or/and better use of the pages & panels that are there. For one example how not to do it look at the latest Aquaman preview, three pages fpr somethings that would have easily fit on one. This decromprasion is not always bad, but it is wrong when it becomes the norm, everytime and everywhere.

When people who are new to comics are complaining about the decompression, perhaps its finally time for publishers to start listening.

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Well I did after all read some "old" comics from the 80ths (BG volume 1 & JLI of course), and it just seems to be that there was much more content on a single page than there is now. The Cutting of pages made things even worse.

Also, isn't one of the worst offender (Johns) not also one of DC's biggest cash cows at the moment? I would expect them to rather want more of the same, as long as his comics are among the few with good really good numbers.

And another thing:

We did talk in the past about how it seemed a bi odd (in my eyes at least) how much encouragement and praise Booster got from Batman...well based on this preview we'll get now a complete issue just for that *g* No surprise that Robin dislikes Booster. He steals all the love and attention from Bruce.

I can understand blaming Johns for leading the charge in decompressed writing.

I'm inclined to give Johns the benefit of the doubt. While it is true that right now everything that Johns touches turns to gold (no pun intended), that is due in a large part to his recognition of established continuity, and his willingness to add long-absent dynamism via aggressively violent and emotional trauma to oft-ignored characters. This style owes no small debt to modern, long-arc television series like BATTLESTAR GALACTICA and LOST. It's escapist fare, and it can be very entertaining. Modern comic book readers obviously love it.

He has proven in the past that his long-form stories can be very layerd and complex (JSA, INFINITE CRISIS, 52), but his more recent series have lacked the gravity and depth of story. I don't know how much of this to blame on Johns and how much to blame on DC Editorial which was determined to turn recent events like FLASHPOINT into scores of spin-off series filling in the details.

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I might have sounded a bit harsh, I don't even dislike Johns. When it comes to the two big DCU name (Johns & Morrision), I'll pick Johns any day. I would not even mind his style of decrompession if it would not be so omnipresent.

Johns is far from my favorite writer, but I loathe Morrison. His writing is primarily the reason that I willingly quit collecting DETECTIVE COMICS after 30 years.

I'm not going to say that Morrison has never written anything that I liked. He has. (I have even enjoyed some of his work on DETECTIVE.) But his work with DC's mainstream heroes really, really rubs me the wrong way, especially after the excrement pile that was FINAL CRISIS.

Clearly I'm in the minority on this, but these days, if I see Morrison's name on a book, I will go out of my way not to read it. Seriously, he could make me stop reading BOOSTER GOLD.

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Sorry about the blog post for the past two days. I was busy earning money to buy JLI today. Which I have now read and enjoyed, despite reading the entire issue keenly aware of M's complaints about decompression.

Is it just me, or is the decompression getting worse? I swear there were issues of BOOSTER GOLD just 2 years ago which contained more plot than this issue. I certainly got the impression on multiple pages that August General's dialogue balloons were over-sized, and that his dialogue could have -- should have? -- been contained to fewer panels to allow for more discussion to happen. It felt like reading a book with over-sized text for children.

But that's my only real complaint (that isn't art related).

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