We’ve seen in general that DC’s new52 is keeping pace with itself - the good books stay good, the mediocre books stay mediocre, and the terrible books stay terrible. While I’ve heard Stormwatch got way better, most quality jumps stayed fairly small. (I’m still not going to pick it up though.) One of the books that got marginally better with its sophomore issue was Justice League Dark.
Plot-wise, we’re still putting the pieces in place, so it’s still a little disjointed, but in this issue we get some magic dueling, as well as a piece on why Deadman, who is essentially a ghost, can’t be with his (living) girlfriend, Dove. The questions you immediately asked at the end of Brightest Day about their love post-boomerang are somewhat answered here, and definitely enters creepy, Swayze Ghost territory. While a little strange, it did perk my interest in Deadman enough to pick up the first two issues of DC Comics Presents, whose inaugural story centers on Boston Brand himself. Great cross-promotion.
The only thing that bummed me out some was that other than the Deadman sections, I felt that the story is still moving too slow; something needs to happen soon.
And right at the end, we get a fun twist with what seems to be a betrayal of a group that does not yet exist. Will it ever actually exist? Is this going to be like Seven Soldiers of Victory? I guess we’ll have to wait to find out.
One of the things I like about the book is how it subtly demonstrates everyone’s different magical and supernatural abilities - Zatanna’s backwards talking is different from Constantine’s rituals, which also feels very different from whatever Xanadu is doing with those cards. This is a great meld between Milligan and Janin and I look forward to seeing how they’ll work together when everyone is finally in the same room.
Speaking of the art, Janin and colorist Ulises Arreola do a bang-up job here. The style and colour palettes change with whoever we’re focused on, making for a distinct difference in tone, which of course helps the pacing of the book. The level of grit on constantine and enchantress compared to the smoothness of Zatanna and Xanadu make for a well-put-together book.
TL;DR
Another win, and possibly better than #1
WK
The Shade is an interesting character - he’s not a hero by any stretch, but Robinson made him into something other than a villain. He’s someone who wants to protect his dear city from destruction and squalor, and is perfectly happy to kill many, many people to do it. For those who know, it is very similar to Frau Totenkinder of Bill Willingham’s Fables: a character with few morals outside of protecting those they love or owe a debt to. Scary and awesome at the same time. Whenever I can, I want to read more about him, even if (especially if) I can’t get Jack Knight on the page anymore.
Batwoman #2 hits the ground running with Kate talking to Bette about possibly joining Batman Inc, though Kate isn’t sure if is awesome or terrible (a little meta there, maybe). This is followed by our friends at the DEO getting deeper into the case by getting Kate’s date Detective Sawyer further on the trail of Batwoman in classic love/hate triangle between Sawyer, Kate, and Batwoman. More creepy weeping woman and a two-gang slaughter of metahumans. Finish off with a superhero on detective shakedown and Batwoman under a pier about to be attacked by the Weeping Woman herself. 
Demon Knights #1 was a funny, slightly-horrifying and action-packed comic that set a tone similar to my days playing Dungeons and Dragons. If anything, that tone has been amped up to another level. I don’t know how good the actual D&D comic is, but this could replace it!
