Some thoughts about Justice League of America: The Ray Rebirth #1

Who is the brightest superhero in Vanity?

Ray Terrill has lived secluded in the dark for most of his life and he can't stand it anymore and maybe that's what the world needs.

Yet another one-shot focusing on another of the new members from the upcoming Justice League of America book. For those who don't know, The Ray has been a superhero highly based on legacy since the creation of Ray Terrill in the 90's due that he was inspired by the original The Ray from the Golden Age.

This time though, Steve Orlando has used the premise of a young man who was forced to live excluded from others due to his powers as a way to reinterpret him as Gay and connect him to classic themes that the LGBT community face. This is not a bad premise per se since lord knows that barely anyone cared about Ray's sexuality and this could actually give him some exposure. However, some of concepts are a bit heavyhanded and I wish there would be more distinctiveness in the kind of adversaries that Ray faces since they're mostly connected to his sexuality and sadly don't give them much personality beyond that.

That being said, Orlando offers some worldbuilding by recreating the city of Vanity along with the people who live in it while also reintroducing the Sons of Liberty which is appreciated.

Stephen Byrne's cartoony style is certainly great for character expressions and fluidity but I wish he wouldn't have used such a stereotypical haircut for Ray (although that might have been Orlando's idea).

Other than that, I think is a worthy entry but some things could have been better.