Justice League of America #2

Comics Friday "Power and Glory Part Two" by Bryan Hitch, Daniel Henriques, Andrew Currie, and Alex Sinclair.

The God of Rao supposedly shows up on Earth. Superman buys into it immediately, Batman is of course skeptical. Down in Atlantis, a Prophet of Rao has arrived, but Aquaman is equally skeptical, if not downright mocking:

I thought the last issue of JLA was pretty formula in terms of how Aquaman was written, but I liked this segment much more. The Sea King just isn't buying what this supposed prophet is selling, but secure enough that he doesn't feel threatened or even try to talk the guy out of preaching to the citizens of Atlantis. I've always thought that was the hallmark of someone truly secure in their beliefs, that they didn't so much oppose what others think, rather they just don't care one way or the other. Still a bit frustrated that Aquaman is only getting two pages per issue, but we're still very early in the series' run. Two pages of Classic Aquaman is better than none!

All this flippancy however will probably end up biting Aquaman in the rear, because the issue ends with Wonder Woman waking up to an Olympus that is nothing but floating debris, which I bet is what is in store for Atlantis. (Of course, that would be okay in my book, I want Aquaman to back to Amnesty Bay ASAP and forget all those whiny Atlanteans).

To be continued!

Justice League of America #1

"Power and Glory Part One" by Bryan Hitch, Daniel Henriques, Wade Von Grawbadger, and more.

Aquaman makes a big, er, splashy return to the Justice League with the first issue of DC's new Justice League of America title, which debuted last week. The story opens with Superman getting an invitation to the headquarters of a mysterious company called The Infinity Corporation, run by a quirky genius named Vincent who shows the Man of Steel something rather surprising: a room full of dead bodies, all of whom are Superman from other dimensions! What the what?!?

Meanwhile, at the United Nations, Aquaman is making a speech about the relations between Atlantis and the surface world:

At the same time(?), others Leaugers--Green Lantern, The Flash, Batman, and Wonder Woman--have all been lured to the Metropolis Clean Energy Power Plant, where they are sucker-punched by the energy-devouring bad guy The Parasite. Superman gets wind of this and leaves Infinity to help out.

In Atlantis, we see why Aquaman was called away so suddenly:

After The Parasite is defeated (with the additional help of Cyborg), Superman inquires why everyone showed up at the MAW independently of each other. Batman says they were invited, with tips Superman back to Infinity. He, Batman, and Cyborg return to the company's HQ, only to find it...gone.

But before even that mystery can be investigated, a being radiating energy arrives in the sky, claiming to the Great God Rao and saying "I have come to save you." To be continued!


I was of course happy to see Aquaman returning to the Justice League, and being drawn by Brian Hitch doesn't hurt. The chronology of this story confuses heck out of me, so about five pages in I gave up worrying about it and simply enjoyed Aquaman in his classic garb. I do wish the writer part of Mr. Hitch had found something a little more original to do with the Sea King--tense negotiations between Atlantis and the Surface World, again?--but of this was just scene setting before (presumably) he gets involved in the main story (On another note, someone please buy Arthur a razor? Sheesh).

Some of the storytelling baffled me--for instance, Aquaman's final scene in the book feels like it's missing one more page as opposed to actually ending. But that may just be the end result of so many story threads being juggled at one time. Whether I continue on with Justice League of America remains to be seen--I had high, high hopes for Geoff Johns' version, only to find Aquaman mostly pushed out of the book after Throne of Atlantis. Let's see if Bryan Hitch has longer range plans for the Aquatic Ace!

Justice League of America #1 - April 2013

"World's Most Dangerous" by Geoff Johns and David Finch

The Justice League has been somewhat of a mixed bag in the New 52. The original title, although clearly a top-seller with marquee names Johns and Lee at the helm, started off with a six issue written-for-trade origin story and then floundered  in terms of story, art and direction until the recent advent of Throne of Atlantis in #15. JLA #1 picks up in the aftermath of the destruction wrought by Aquaman's brother Ocean Master, with Amanda Waller and Nick Fu--I mean, Steve Trevor forming a reluctant alliance to put together a team of counter-operatives for y'know, just in case the real League ever goes bad...

Waller is as now svelte as Trevor is buff and the issue progresses with some very interesting choices for the initial membership of the team including...

 Hawkman

 Katana

 

 Vibe

 Catwoman

 

Martian Manhunter and a few others...

(handy-dandy guide to the eventual JL vs. JLA smackdown)
 

Its a motley crew of characters cherry-picked by Johns (Stargirl, Simon Baz) and  Dan Didio (Katana) as well as a hodge-podge of under-performing DC solo title stars whose own books are in desperate need of a sales pick-me-up (Catwoman, Green Arrow, Martian Manhunter--plucked as if he was never there from Stormwatch and Hawkman -- oh wait, too late--RIP Savage Hawktitle). Vibe is a wild card in the bunch and for more on Cisco (wait, wasn't it Paco?) Ramon you can check out Vibe #1, also out this week.

Suffice to say, this issue is all set up, the team never actually meets and we're teased with the sub-plot of the Secret Society of Super-Villians reforming under new and mysterious leadership but all-in-all the book moves light years faster than its counterpart title did in its inaugural issue. JLA #1 has a flair reminiscent of Johns' acclaimed Justice Society of America run and while the book is not without potential, I remain skeptical of the need to have two League titles by the same writer.

Justice League of America #7 - Nov. 1961

Comics Weekend "The Cosmic Fun-House!" by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky, and Bernard Sachs.

Another issue of Justice League of America, and it looks like Aquaman has some real trouble on his hands!

A few miles outside Happy Harbor, Snapper Carr and his best gal-pal Midge take in the local fun-house. At first it all seems normal, but then things start to get weird--the mod duo find themselves in a room decorated with drawings of aliens, bathed in strange light. Snapper: "I feel all queer and tingly inside."

Finding themselves at a dead-end, a booming voice tells them to simply push on the far wall to exit. They do, but suddenly Snapper and Midge are hurtling through interplanetary space, landing on some alien world! This is not ginchy!

An alien beast appears and lunges at them, which Snapper fends off with a well-placed rock. He then activates his JLA Signal Device, sending a message to the various members:

The JLA travels through space to the distant planet, and rescues Snapper and Midge, who pass out from the excitement. Back on Earth, Snapper awakens and tells the story of what happened.

The Justice League thinks something must be afoot, and decides to investigate the fun-house...but undercover, in their civilian identities, so as not to arouse suspicion, a comment almost designed to leave Aquaman out of the, er, fun:

Barry Allen (aka The Flash, 'natch) is the first in, and he finds himself in the same dead-end. But when he pushes on the door, instead of going through it, it turns--and that's when a perfect duplicate of Barry walks in! The real Barry, now turned into The Flash, vibrates so as not to be seen, but within moments the fake Barry aims a metal rod at The Flash, paralyzing him!

A similar event happens to Hal (Green Lantern) Jordan, with the duplicate Hal setting off the JLA Signal Device to draw the other JLAers into a trap. Within moments, Green Arrow and Wonder Woman find themselves imprisoned next to Flash and GL in the company of some kooky aliens from the planet Angellax!

These aliens have been involved in a war with another race for thousands of years, and long ago the Angellaxians(?) created a probe to search the universe for a weapon that would tip the balance in their favor. But due to a miscalculation, the probe did not return to their planet, rather landing in (of course) Happy Harbor on Earth!

The aliens' plot gets even more complicated, so let's just skip ahead to the duplicate Flash and Green Lantern, who show up at the Secret Sanctuary where the rest of them is waiting:

The four trapped JLAers find a way to escape, but as they pass through a fun-house mirror, they morph into the distorted versions of themselves they see in the mirror, which shocks the Sea King, who has finally found them:

...The End!

Great Guardians, was the alien plot in this issue complicated. I had to read it three or four times just to understand it, and even then could not find a way to condense it so it made any sense at all here. I have newfound respect for Mike Sekowsky, who had to somehow visualize all those settings and concepts in such a tiny space. Seriously--I think the Crisis on Infinite Earths was easier to follow.

By the first half of course, it looks like Aquaman is going to get the short end of the trident, stuck back in the Secret Sanctuary with Snapper, a fate I wouldn't wish on anyone. But then he gets to show up and save the day...though he skips out on attending the fun-house at the end. This was before he met Mera, so maybe he felt weird about having to go stag.

Justice League of America #6 - Sept. 1961

Comics Weekend "The Wheel of Misfortune!" by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky, and Bernard Sachs.

Another issue of Justice League of America, another new deadly villain--in this case, the master of magic known as Amos Fortune!

This issue opens off the coast of Florida, which of course means Aquaman, King of the Seven Seas!

While this might seem like a revolting development for Aquaman, even an embarrassing one, take heart Aqua-Fans! It's not just the Sea King that finds himself stumbling around in confusion. Across the country, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Green Lantern, Green Arrow, and Martian Manhunter all experience similar events. It's all just bad luck, surely...right?

Nope:

The JLAers figure out that something must be going on, but they also dismiss the idea someone can make someone else "have" bad luck. This conversation is interrupted by Snapper Carr, who is carrying the JLA's mail, which is how the heroes learn of smaller, less earth-shattering cases. Green Arrow, Manhunter, and Flash take the case of a young girl and a missing family fortune, and Aquaman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern investigate "an invisible thief."

The former's case gets them involved with Amos Fortune, who used his powers of good luck to amass a, well, fortune at the race track and the stock market--as well as the purchasing of some antique posts that contained the missing fortune of the little girl!

Normally this would spell disaster, but in their attempts to find the gold, the JLAers found a valuable painting, oil, and uranium deposits on the very same piece of land, making the young girl rich! Amos Fortune is confounded--the JLAers were only supposed to have bad luck! What's going on?

Meanwhile, at the coastal down of Sea Dunes:

Later, the three JLAers find themselves trussed up on Fortune's giant wheel of misfortune, which will destroy the heroes' "good-luck gland" (okay, everyone, stop chuckling).

Outside, Flash, Green Arrow, and Martian Manhunter have arrived to help their fellow team members. They find Fortune's lab, and recognize him as the man who bought the valuable posts. Flash and Green Arrow slip on some spilled oil--some more bad luck--leaving only the Martian Manhunter. Fortune fells him with the flick of a cigarette lighter (not one of J'onn's finest moments), and soon all six heroes are strapped to the wheel.

But as Fortune crows about his plan to remove everyone's "good luck gland" (I said stop laughing!), Martian Manhunter frees himself! Fortune tries to stop him, but he seems to be the one suffering from bad luck this time:

...The End!

I imagine whoever was lettering this issue must have occasionally stopped and said to himself, "What in the holy hell is Gardner Fox talking about?" The whole "good luck gland" thing is so goofy that once you read about it, you just have to go along with the whole premise otherwise you're lost.

Aquaman got some good moments last issue (see: "Suck it, haters"), this time around Martian Manhunter gets the lion's share of the big scenes. Sure, watching him cower in terror from a Bic lighter is a little undignified, but they probably left that part out of the official JLA Casebook.


One final note: In an age of (IMO) way, way too many "homage" covers and appropriations of previous work, it's worth mentioning that this cover--by Mike Sekowksy and Murphy Anderson--is itself an homage to All-Star Comics #42, featuring the Justice Society!

Justice League of America #5 - May 1961

Comics Weekend "When Gravity Went Wild!" by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky, and Bernard Sachs.

We're back with our JLA Casebook tales, moving onto issue #5, where the JLA has to deal with the time gravity went wild!

In the Secret Sanctuary of the Justice League, the members are despondent, for one of their own has betrayed the team! It turns out the "traitor" is new member Green Arrow (I knew it!), and when he shows up for the team's regular meeting, he is confronted with angry accusations and pointy fingers.

Martian Manhunter says that Arrow turned against him in a battle with The Getaway Mastermind (yes, that's a real bad guy), and Wonder Woman says the same involving Professor Menace. Green Arrow demands a fair trial, and suggests the two members who weren't present--Superman and Batman--act as jury. Everyone agrees.

Martian Manhunter begins, telling the story of how six supervillains--the aforementioned Getaway Mastermind, Professor Menace, Captain Cold, King Clock, Electric Man, and Monty Moran--escaped prison via a shrink ray and a Racquel Welch poster (I made that last part up). The group splits into two and immediately begins a mini-crime wave, which the JLA gets wind of. Flash, Wonder Woman, and Green Arrow take off for Chicago.

After a short battle, the three villains head for their jet to escape. Flash and Wonder Woman are about to catch up, when they see two of Green Arrow's arrows whiz past them, causing an explosion! After the two of them wake up, they find the villains and Green Arrow gone, baby, gone!

Now it's Aquaman's turn (I don't get to say that enough), who offers this testimony about Green Arrow:

...yes, we just saw Aquaman swim up a waterfall. Suck it, haters.

Now its time for Green Arrow to speak up for himself. He says that he noticed, while inside a giant ice structure built by Captain Cold, that the villains had no breath, despite the cold air. Knowing that Professor Menace once built a perfect robot duplicate of Wonder Woman (*a-hem*), he figured that these baddies were also robots! And he guessed that they were rigged to explode when touched--so by firing those arrows, he was actually saving the lives of his teammates!

Green Arrow has a similar story involving Aquaman and the others, which convinces the JLA they were wrong. They beg for forgiveness, and then Green Arrow drops another bomb: he didn't just say all this up front because...one of the Justice League is a real imposter! Get your head around that, Justice Leaguers:

Green Arrow points out the Green Lantern could not have driven those yellow puppets skyward with his ring, but an imposter wouldn't know that! Batman and Superman grab the imposter, and cart him off to jail. But while they're on their way, suddenly gravity goes all kerflooey and the JLA finds itself pitched into the sky!

They are sucked into a waiting ship, helmed by a new bad guy named Dr. Destiny. Using a machine called a Gravitron-Will-Deadener-Ray (clearly a placeholder Gardner Fox forgot to get back to), Dr. Destiny was able to capture the original Green Lantern and keep him captive aboard his ship. Now it's the others' turn!

But Dr. Destiny is in for a surprise--the JLA may be rendered immobile, but now Green Lantern is free! It turns out that when Destiny's ship was aimed at the JLA, a power fluctuation briefly shorted out the beam holding Green Lantern in place, who then played possum to determine Dr. Destiny's plan! Back at the Secret Sanctuary, Green Lantern explains how he then used the ship's transistors to boost his own Power Ring, which had exceeded it's 24-hour charge:

...The End!

Compared to previous issues, this plot is relatively simple. The addition of a new villain in the third act does seem a little deus ex machina, but of course with the benefit of hindsight we know that Dr. Destiny would become of the JLA's most enduring villains, so this was just the first of many scraps with the team. (Not so much Monty Moran, who was never seen again)

Also, while Fox was never much one for characterization, I do like the idea of the whole team believing the worst about Green Arrow--after all, he was their newest member (indeed, their only new member), so you could see how they wouldn't necessarily give him the benefit the doubt the way they would each other. And this was years before Green Arrow became a sanctimonious jackass!

I'd also say this issue features Aquaman's finest moment to date--he saves his two JLA pals, and is shown to be so strong he can swim uphill. I mean, that's pretty damn cool, no?