Not So Dream Wedding — Reviewing ‘Justice League: Dream Girls — A DC Pride Event’ #4

It’s easy to become lost in the realm of dreams and let it take over when reality is too hard. Having an anchor, to keep us in place and help us remember why we’re always worth it is the true key.

Dreams come crashing down as Galaxy and Dreamer face their powerful foe and prepare to face the real world together in Justice League: Dream Girls – A DC Pride Event #4. The final chapter of this weekly Pride event comes together thanks to Jadzia Axelrod, Nicole Maines, Rosi Kampe, Brandt&Stein, Triona Farrell, Dearbhla Kelly, Jodie Troutman, and Frank Cvetkovic.

-SPOILERS FOLLOW-

What a truly powerful ending.

Sure, there is a lot of superhero action to go down here, as the duo takes down the villainous Key, but there is so much more. As great as cape action fights are, the heart of these comics is always in the humanity we find. The relatability and the messages that resonate beyond the pages into our reality itself.

As someone that has depression and anxiety, I know in some respects the feelings that Dreamer is going through. Not understanding who you are and what you should be doing, while feeling like everything you have done has been a mistake in some fashion. Believing that the world could be better without you and it’s easier to just slip into the dreams and fantasies. Giving up control if possible so that you don’t have to face reality and make choices anymore.

The words “I can’t save you” and “Only you can get yourself out of here” resonate so strongly for me. It’s a lesson that was hard to learn in my most depressed state, only we can truly save ourselves. Others can only keep us afloat for so long. We have to want to float and swim.

Axelrod and Maines have poured so much onto the pages, giving these characters so much power and personality and vulnerability. Allowing them to triumph in the face of adversity and push back at those who might doubt or want to shun them. Proving why diverse voices behind and on the pages is such a powerful and necessary thing in mediums of creation. I would read an ongoing from this duo about this duo of characters and the League in a heartbeat.

Last issue I spoke about the Justice League being on the side of wrong with how they approached the “issue” of Galaxy. Seeing our heroes stumble and make mistakes is good to see, because they are “just human” at the end of the day. Even better is seeing those heroes, chiefly through Batman, admit those wrongs and stand firmly behind others. Hearing Batman say that it’s the people that have a problem with you that should leave and not you undoubtedly feels damn good for many across the LGBTQIA+ spectrum reading this comic.

With one dream space this time around we just get a nice back and forth hand off on the artistic side from Kampe and Brandt&Stein. Their styles are similar in many respects and play off one another quite well.

Each sequence feels powerfully dense and light at the same time. Utilizing the page space and paneling to their advantage to get the most out of the moments. In the dream space, Kampe really allows the realm to feel limitless but grounded. The action sequences there don’t hold back, because the characters don’t have to in a place where anything is possible.

I’m a sucker for paneling that eschews standards and classic sentiment, and Kampe delivers in that respect. Panels of varying shapes and sizes that slice across one another and cut the page up into a visual delight. Again, feeling very in line with both the power of the action but also the identity of the dream space they inhabit.

On the other end, Brandt&Stein once again tackle the reality portion of this story. Getting to bring the characters to vivid life in emotional and talking space ways. Giving their all to let these moments have weight and power beyond the idea that they are just people sitting or walking around. No, these pages have kinetic life to them that transcends the page.

Their style is one that again has denseness to it but really feels perfectly whimsically soft and popping for heroes. Even before the colors are added it’s clear there is a brightness and weightlessness in what they are delivering. It works for various styles and tones they have tackled in the past, especially here though as it feels fun and heroic at the same time.

Speaking of colors, that once more falls to Farrell and Kelly to deliver. Their chosen color palettes are also very complimentary throughout the issue. Most of the baseline being very neutral in blues and grays and other tones for the set pieces. Keeping them more toned down and firm to set the stage for the brighter bolder vibrant beats. Those that are the big costumes, power usages, and other big comic book superhero stuff that we love to see explode before our eyes on the page.

We get a lot of exposition here as the plan of the Key is finally fully revealed. It shits from caption boxes to speech bubbles in rapid fashion to kick things off. Even with all that lore being dropped, it never feels like too much. There are numerous speeches and longer talks and they all flow so smoothly and powerfully. That’s because Troutman and Cvetkovic know how to place things and let the lettering expand in the right ways.

Giving everything the right touch at the right moment to let the tone, emotional resonance, and feeling ring loud and true. Dropping in those solid fun bold SFX to heighten the moment while bringing some more of that levity we need in heroic comics. All around, the duo bounces off one another through the issue to deliver beyond solid work. Duos and tandem work being the focus of this story, on and off the page is really delightful.

Comics are a grand team effort, and this team, along with others, across four weeks delivered a truly special thing. Big anthology issues are great, but I hope DC sticks to this format in the future. Giving us a four-week big superhero event with heart that focuses on LGBTQIA+ characters in the spotlight? Yes more please, thank you.

Justice League: Dream Girls – A DC Pride Event #4 is now available from DC Comics.