The upshot of the Flashpoint series was that it fused together the three universes that had been (supposedly) split apart - meaning the mainstream DC Universe, the Wildstorm Universe and the Vertigo Universe. Frankly, if those three fought it out to see which was the Alpha Dog, it looks like Vertigo won.
That's because so many of the "New 52" books contain adult elements, with gore and sex being the most prominent features.
Which brings us to Justice League Dark, which will presumably set up a "supernatural" JLA to tackle the menaces the regular League can't handle.
Unlike the first issue of Justice League, here writer Peter Milligan at least manages to introduce all the main characters who will be in the JLD (if just fleetingly) and we get a glimpse of the horrific menace being unleashed by the Enchantress.
So we meet Madame Xanadu, Shade the Changing Man, Zatanna, John Constantine and Deadman - as unlikely a team as you'll find - confronted by a terror that the JLA can't face.
As the title indicates, this is not a comic for young readers. The double-page splash at the beginning depicts as gruesome a scene as I've seen in a DC Comic.
The art is quite good (aside from the gore), as Mikel Janin and colorist Ulises Arreola give the book a lush, painted look.
This is going to be a tough book to maintain, because it's made up (so far) of characters who aren't exactly the kind to join a team. It's hard to see Constantine working in a team setting.
But it's all off to an interesting start, and I'll give it a few more issues before deciding if the series is a keeper or not.
Grade: B+
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