Justice Society of America #1

Posted by Graig on December 8, 2006

(DC Comics)

From one perspective, Justice Society of America is the book that defines the DC Universe, that is, and perhaps should always be, steeped in the mythology, history and legacy that is DC. For many long-time fans of the publisher, this would make it essential reading. For others just jumping into the title either as Marvel turncoats, newcomers to comics, or even just a casual or curious reader, it can be somewhat impenetrable.

The last version of the book, JSA, was launched by David Goyer and James Robinson, and was intended as both counterpoint and compliment to Grant Morrison’s “big 7″ JLA re-launch. On the one hand, like the JLA it was simplifying the concept, filling out the team with as many original members or their namesakes as they could and running from there. On the other hand, unlike the JLA they weren’t attempting to ignore team dynamics or personal stories in lieu of high-concept, action-prone scenarios. Then again, most of the JLA-ers had their own titles, while few of the JSA-ers appeared elsewhere. When Geoff Johns took over for Robinson, and eventually took full reigns, the book hit even heavier the overtones on legacy and namesakes, sometimes introducing new-yet-similar versions of old JSA/All-Star Squadron characters seemingly just for the sake of doing so. Longtime DCU fans likely got a charge out of it (I know I did), while newer readers could feel lost, or at least a little left out.

Johns, with his Infinite Crisis duties weighing heavy left for the last few issues of JSA before it was canceled, with the intent of returning to a newly launched Justice Society of America shortly thereafter. Now that time is here, and Johns is still a busy guy, also working on 52 amongst others, but the fact that he’s so ingrained with the great fifty-two week experiment means he can better tie this new Justice Society into current continuity, and his role as chief scribe of the Crisis affords him the opportunity to refine and clarify some of that event’s messes.

This first issue of Justice Society of America seems to carry itself similarly to Johns’ JSA run, meaning the new #1 was basically a business decision on DC’s part (the spirit of legacy doesn’t extend to the numbering system I guess). Johns is certainly taking the book in an altered direction, but it’s not that drastic a departure from what he was doing before. If anything he’s hitting the legacy node even harder, with Green Lantern, Flash, and Wildcat making a point to seek out the descendants and namesakes of the original Society. This time, it’s not just about assembling a team, but about building better superheroes, making the newbies understand what it means to be a part of something bigger than just themselves.

Johns brings in three new recruits: Damage (a descendant of the original Atom), Maxine Hunkel (the granddaughter of JSA caretaker Ma Hunkel), and the new Starman. In each case Johns has made pains to deliver a character with a unique perspective. Damage has aggression issues, Maxine suffers from “atypical depression” and Starman is found living in an institution. The rest of the team features Power Girl (whose remembrance of Earth-2 allows Johns to play in his Infinite Crisis sandbox), Liberty Belle (once the speedster Jesse Quick after her father Johnny Quick, now trying on her mother’s powers), Hourman (ex-drug addict Rick Tyler), Stargirl (who I guess will no longer be seen as the youngster of the group), Mr. Teriffic and Dr. Mid-Night (both of whom I presume are the normal ones?).

While the first issue is a fun read, and certainly many will find it a more satisfying “gathering of the team” than Meltzer’s Justice League of America, Johns utilizes a non-linear narrative between three storylines, as well as a disjointed first (”World War III”) and second (”Three Months Later”) page. The gathering of the new recruits is interspersed with the tragic story of Mr. America that will lead into the books first storyline, while Green Lantern and Flash have a surprise for Wildcat which only served to confuse me (is it supposed to be related to the Mr. America story?)

Dale Eaglesham returns from his post-Villains: United hiatus, and paired with Art Thibert is in top form. Eagleshams grasp of movement is particularly dynamic and exciting to look at, and he handles plainclothes and talking heads just as well. Thiberts inks keep things exceptionally clean allowing Jeromy Cox’s colors to absolutely pop. The book looks good.

The extra-sized book closes with a single page of four distinctively different panels, with the notation “Coming this year in Justice Society of America”. With the tease of Batman and Sandman appearing in a murder mystery, the Legion of Superheroes (in particular a Legionnaire who has yet to appear in Mark Waid’s current ongoing) traveling back to find Starman, and Earth-2 Superman rising from his grave, Johns is making a statement that he has things planned out far in advance which will take full advantage of whatever liberties the Infinite Crisis has afforded him. As a fan, I’m excited by all of this, but I can see it being a fairly extreme challenge for anyone who avoided the Crisis and 52 to really get into, especially long term. But then, that’s just status quo for America’s oldest super-team.

3 and a half out of 5 Vikings