DC Comics is on a roll. The new Absolute line of books is sensational, each of the six books selling in the six figure range, which is huge for the superhero comic industry in the ’20s. The DC All-In publishing initiative has also been a success, with DC’s main line of superhero comics making fans happy, and finally making in-roads into the top of the charts, challenging Marvel for the first time in years. The new flagship book Justice League Unlimited has played a big role in the new status quo, as the Justice League has decided to take a more active role in protecting the Earth. They ended up battling against mysterious new villains known as Inferno, and eventually DC announced the “We Are Yesterday” crossover, with Justice League Unlimited and Batman/Superman: World’s Finest dealing with the ramifications of Inferno’s attack.
“We Are Yesterday” takes advantage of the central conceit of World’s Finest, a book set in the past of the DC Universe starring Superman, Batman, Robin, and sometimes Supergirl, taking a major plot point from the story Absolute Power, and using all of that to inform its story. “We Are Yesterday” excited a lot of fans, but the six issue story, five issues of which have been released, hasn’t really felt like it came together. It takes all of the problem with superhero time travel stories and brings them to the fore, creating a story that can honestly get kind of confusing at times.
SPOILER ALERT for Justice League Unlimited‘s first story arc and “We Are Yesterday”
“We Are Yesterday” Feels a Bit Too Cliche
So, “We Are Yesterday” picks up at the end of Justice League Unlimited‘s first story arc, revealing the secret identity of Inferno. Inferno was a complete mystery throughout the first story, but then readers learned the truth — it was the Legion of Doom, led by Gorilla Grodd. However, it wasn’t the Legion of the present day but one of the past. Grodd received Martian Manhunter’s powers during the power swap that ended the book Absolute Power, allowing him to reach back into the past, and pull the Legion to the present day using time travel technology and a traitor in the League, disguising them as Inferno. “We Are Yesterday” is about the Justice League teaming with the Superman and Batman of the past to defeat the Legion before Grodd kills the Justice League and changes time completely with his use of the past Legion of Doom. I feel reticent to say too much bad about it, but this entire idea just doesn’t feel right. A Justice League story kicking off with a battle against the Legion of Doom feels incredibly easy to guess, which is why no one guessed that Inferno would be the Legion. No one actually expected that to be the case, so fans were sort of surprised by this development. It’s something of a problem with the story, but not the last one.
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“We Are Yesterday” keeps jumping back and forth between the past of World’s Finest and the present of Justice League Unlimited, but it never really feels like anything important has happened yet. Grodd’s plan — bringing together an older version of the Legion — doesn’t really make a lot of sense. Why bring a Legion of Doom that isn’t as experienced against more experienced versions? In fact, there’s really no other endgame than just the Legion taking over the Watchtower satellite and then… profit? Which isn’t a terrible plan, but it doesn’t really feel like a big crossover story. In fact, the time travel aspects of the story feel almost completely superfluous, since Grodd’s plan would work just as well if he concentrated on the present. There’s also the fact that the story right now feels like one of those comics that will read way better when you can sit down with it and read the whole thing instead of reading it piecemeal. There is some great art and writing in “We Are Yesterday”, and the ideas are there at times. I personally love the last chapter’s reveal, which ties into the beginning of Justice League Unlimited. However, there’s just something downright confusing about the story on multiple levels.
“We Are Yesterday” Has a Bright Future, But the Present Is Dark
“We Are Yesterday” is a combination of two of the best DC books on the stands, with creators Mark Waid, Dan Mora, Travis Moore, and Clayton Henry doing their best to give readers an excellent story. While I have complaints about the new Justice League getting a Legion of Doom story immediately, just like the last Justice League reboot of 2018, “We Are Yesterday” is an interesting take on a time travel Legion of Doom story. The problem is that there are a lot of moving parts with the story, and that’s hurt reading it week to week.
“We Are Yesterday” is wrapping up soon, and it’s definitely a book that needs to be sat down and read in one go. The way the time frame goes back and forth, crossing the future and the past, hurts casual reading — you basically need to go back and read every part before each new issue to really know what’s going on (or maybe I’m just old). I look forward to reading it in one sitting, but at this point I’m not terribly thrilled with it as a reading experience, while mostly enjoying the elements of the story.
What do you think about “We Are Yesterday”? Sound off in the comments below.
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