Reviewed By Gregory Dickens.
JSA #1-4
"Justice Be Done," "The Wheel of Life," "Old Souls," "Ouroboros"
Writer: James Robinson and David Goyer
Artist: Stephen Sadowski and Michael Bair
Letterer: Ken Lopez
Colorist: John Kalisz (Heroic Age, separations)
Published monthly June-Sept. 1999, by DC Comics
The Justice Society of America, the 1940s supergroup, informally assembles to bury the recently deceased Wesley Dodds, the original Sandman. The ceremony is interupted by the dying Fate, wounded and pursued by magical zombies. Aided by the former-JSA foe, the Scarab, the team is told of the threat of the dark lord Mordru. Mordru is attempting to steal the power of Dr. Fate from a newborn chosen by the Lords of Chaos and Order to carry Fate's mantle. Made up of original members, descendants of the JSA and namesakes, the team finds the child and battle Mordru in Dr. Fate's tower. Defeating the JSA, Mordru is challenged and captured by the now adult Fatechild, who is revealed to be the reincarnation of a JSA-related character. The team then officially reforms comprised of Sentinel (the Alan Scott Green Lantern), Starman, Hourman, Dr. Fate, Star-Spangled Kid, Black Canary, Flash, Sand (the former Sandy), Hawgirl, Atom Smasher and Wildcat. Finally we get a new JSA title.
Following the CRISIS ON INFINTE EARTHS and ZERO HOUR series, these characters - save a select few like the original Flash - were simply abused by DC Comics. Continuity problems the likes of which we'd never seen had to be hammered out. After CRISIS, DC had the unenviable task of reorganizing a single timeline out of divergent parallel universes, and the JSA, All-Star Squadron and all the Earth-2 folks bore the brunt. Heavyhitters Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman were erased and placed in a permanent modern continuity. Wonder Woman, for example, presented some huge pardoxes. Taking her out left some big holes for the children of the JSA in their INFINITY, INC. Before CRISIS, Inifinitor Fury was the daughter of Diana, the Golden-Age Wonder Woman. When Wonder Woman was taken out of the equation, how to explain her Amazon name and powers? Think that's bad? When John Byrne took over WONDER WOMAN in 1995, he managed to toss Hippolyta, the mother of the current-age Diana, back into time to join the Justice Society. Follow me? Wonder Woman was in the team, out and back in. So now DC is faced with retconning the retcon. Oy.
And then there's poor Hawkman. If you can iron out his story, I'll give you a dollar. DC has yet to explain his various incarnations, although there is talk of his resurgence next year. This - all this - is what has kept the JSA out of the limelight recently. Any brave soul trying to work on this title has to juggle all these paradoxes.
So given that, how do Robinson and Goyer do? Very nicely. The character reborn as Dr. Fate offers a two-page spread to explain how he came to inherit the name, and that's the most any character here is given. The writers appear to package the bugs when they get to them and ignore the problems until then. Good for them. So for the continuity-crazed readers among you, the best advice is to simply relax for now and read the book. And it's a good book. No single character overrides the story - a pitfall of a group title - especially when Robinson could easily let Starman, whom he writes in his own comic, be the lead.
Starman does, however, come off as a grump by berating the new Star-Spangled Kid by caller her a "brat" and "little Miss Know-It-All." She may appear so in her own title, but not in this story. In fact, she seems almost serene and collected. Her desire to be considered part of the group and her denial doesn't seem quite fair. Our sympathy may be the writers' intent, but not, I hope, to the cost of another character's demeanor. If you don't read STARMAN, you may not get the correct impression. Then again, maybe Jack Knight isn't a team player and takes it out on the Kid. It's a new title; we'll see.
Atom Smasher, who used to be Nuklon, seems the most enthused of carrying the mantle. He's countered by Hawkgirl, a character driven by obligation to her family. There's a small scene of Infinitor Obsidian, Sentinel's son, who may be going through a multiple-personality problem. Wonder Woman is in each issue, but on none of the covers; she declines full membership, just as her daughter did in JUSTICE LEAGUE EUROPE.
Robinson wrote THE GOLDEN AGE, a great Elseworlds miniseries of the Justice League characters. That title was just packed with characters and offered a complete story. It proved Robinson is the go-to guy for these properties, and he moves JSA at a nice clip. It moves fast, but with a solid flow. There are very little hiccups along the way so far. One caveat: There are no editorial notes of events in other comics. In a book with such a history, it may be needed. For instance, we know Sandman is dead, but if you didn't read JSA SECRET FILES, you wouldn't know how. That issue helps out when we see Fate killed in JSA No.1, and its depiction of the Kid discussing history with Sentinel. The book offers the members right before the series starts and offers details new readers need. (Speaking of Fate's death, why on earth does it happen as if in a pulp mystery story? Fate lumbers in and dies, saying he's been murdered. We see the knife in the back, surmise it probably wasn't suicide and the team stands over him and says basically, wow, that's a nice knife. Not one effort is made to revive him or treat the wound. Then the zombies attack and Fate's basically forgotten).
The threat they face, Mordru, is well-done. Haughty, bombastic, downright evil, this is someone to really root against and a villain who sincerely can mop the floor with the team. The reader is drawn in for the best reasons: how can he be beaten and can it be done in a credible manner? The answer is yes, and it allows Dr. Fate to stretch his wings at the same time. Sadowski and Bair offer a clean line style, if a bit staid. Don't get me wrong; there's no wacked-out for-their-own-sake angles to clutter the layout. The art tells the story in a straight-forward and easily acessible manner. One problem is a conspicuous lack of background in some panels. It does draw the attention. So does the awkward anatomy at times. It doesn't appear to be a lack of knowledge by the artists, just an inconsistent presentation of body shapes at times. We get persepective, weight shift and contour though and, these days, that's a blessing.
For fans of the characters, this is a treat. Dr. Fate - helmet, cape and all - is back and we get a new JSA to follow. And if you don't think Mordru's plotting his revenge, you just haven't read enough comics. If so, here's a good one to start with.
Recommended, especially for Golden Age DC fans.
First four issues retail at $2.50 an issue. JSA continues monthly from DC. A collection of the first four issues has yet to be released.
 |
 |
 |
|
Pop Preview - Grendel: Past Prime Talkback:
|
||
 |
|
 |
