The Fly #11 (June, 1992)
"Which Way Out"
Writer - Len Strazewski
Pencils - Mike Parobeck
Inks - Paul Fricke
Letters - Bob Pinaha
Colors - Rick Taylor
Editor - Paul Kupperberg
Inspired by - Joe Simon & Jack Kirby
Cover Price: $1.25
From the Mixed-Up Files of C.M. Sheehan, I bring to you... The Fly? Yup, felt like just grabbing any old book to discuss today... and just reached into one of my many "Misc. DC" longboxes... and, here we are! And hey, it's by our friends, Len and Mike... the Justice Society of America creative team!
Lookit that oddly-written cover copy... "This Girl's Life--Do You Care?" C'mon, lose the attitude, cover... I don't know the girl!
Will we know her... and/or care about her after reading this issue? Let's find out!
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We open with young Jason Troy about to be jammed into an iron maiden by an SS-suited woman and her hunchbacked assistant. Wow, we're starting off hot! Only... not really, so much. This is just a doodle the real Jason is drawing in class. Yeah, we've all been there! Anyhoo, he is interrupted by his teacher, who tells him to save that kinda thing for art class. Gotta say, I feel bad for any kid who draws an iron maiden these days... they'd probably be expelled. They'd at least be sent to therapy. Anyhoo, we can see that one of Jay's classmates looks pretty bummed out... we'll come back around to her later.
The teacher goes on to give a lecture on the story of Samson and Delilah... which is interrupted by the arrival of, some goofy kid called Boober. He's got a slip for young Master Troy, it would appear that the counselor wants to see him. Wow, word of the iron maiden doodle traveled fast!
Anyhoo... in Ms. Kriz's office, Jason is chatted up by Lieutenant Odell. Counselor Kriz seems surprised that they already know one another. Odell is here to talk to Jason about... The Fly!
Ya see, Jason's mother had called the police to tell them that Jason had gone missing for two days. Then The Fly allegedly brought Jason home, and reported to the police that the young boy helped him out on a mission. If you haven't figured it out yet, Jason is The Fly. Just wanna make that clear.
Jason begins weaving a tale, starting with the fact that The Fly is actually a friend of his grandfather. Anyhoo, The Fly had asked for his help, and together they had one heck of an adventure... even involving the other heroes of the Impact! line of comics, The Crusaders! Long story short, they lost track of time, and before they knew it... two days had passed. Bingo-bango, Jason was dropped off at his doorstep.
Odell appears to be satisfied with this story... but then, the other shoe drops. He asks Jason if The Fly did anything... uh... inappropriate with him... as in, did he force young Jason to do anything he didn't want to do. And, well...
After this, Jason is dismissed. Kriz and Odell contentiously chat for a bit. They're both almost positive that Jason's story has a few holes in it... and Kriz blames Odell for scaring Jason into lying. And so, he leaves. As he goes though, we can see that the next file on Kriz's docket is that depressed-looking girl from earlier.
We rejoin Jason as he wonders whether or not the growed-ups bought his story. Ah, you sweet summer child. Either way, this facilitates a quick and dirty look at how he became The Fly to begin with... so, that's a good thing. Turns out, it's sort of a Captain Marvel deal, where a young fella turns into a super-powered adult.
Outside, Jason has a run-in with some bullies... and winds up getting tossed right into the depressed girl from earlier, sending the contents of his and her respective binders all ova da place!
We (or at least I) learn that this girl's name is Rachel... and her behavior has changed severely over the last few months. She went from being the head of the school newspaper, to a short-tempered loner... who actually quit the paper by chucking a garbage can at the editor!
Later on, Jason is going through his binder when he realizes that he has some of Rachel's papers... including, what looks to be a rough draft of ... a suicide note!
Jason frets over what to do... and decides to ask his mother. Unfortunately she's still ticked off about his disappearing act, and doesn't even let him finish his question before exiling him to his room for two-hours of study time! Worth noting, his mom looks a lot like that girl who told us about Rachel a couple of pages back... only without the headband. Anyhoo... Jason "Fly's up" and heads out.
Shortly, he arrives outside Rachel's house... where it looks like she's being plied with wine by her step-father. He overhears that Rachel's mother is out of town on business... and won't be back for a few days. This is the recipe for... a really bad time. Nothing is said outright... but, it's pretty clear where this is headed.
The Fly... uh, flies away before being detected by dirtbag-daddy, and happens across a high-speed police chase. He figures, while he's here, he may as well make himself useful. He wrangles the crooks and gets home just in time for dinner.
The following morning, Jason arrives at school... and he's got some mixed emotions. He knows he probably should talk to Ms. Kriz about Rachel's suicide note, yet at the same time, he doesn't want to "rat her out". That decision is just about to be taken out of his hands, however...
Ya see, Rachel locked herself in the bathroom, and isn't responding to any of her friends. Jason sneaks off to suit up... then returns to bust into the bathroom. He finds Rachel curled up on the floor... with her wrist slashed!
He flies her to the hospital, and they are able to save her. The following day, Jason and her classmates are having an old-fashioned "rap session" with Ms. Kriz. They all question whether or not they should've (or could've) done more to help her.
It ends pretty high on the melancholy scale... plenty of tears, and almost a fourth-wall break, where Ms. Kriz addresses the reader directly... imploring us that, if we're in a similar way (or know someone who is) not to wait to tell someone. Total missed opportunity to include a number to a hotline. It's 1-800-273-8255 by the way.
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So... this sure got dark after the staples, dinnit?
I'm having trouble even deciding where to start... I guess we should probably work backwards. So yeah, attempted suicide... a pretty heavy (and emotionally charged) subject. One that totally turned this issue on its ear. It came out of nowhere, which, has got to have been by design. I mean, as a human who crosses paths with many other humans on a daily basis, how often to we stop and consider what other people might be going though? Not very.
I feel like this was the case with Rachel. People who don't know her (like Jason) just think she's a jerk with a bad attitude. Her friends... well, they know she's changed over the past little while... but she's withdrawn from them, and they haven't exactly been doing their best to find out why...
... we readers, however... know exactly why. It's heavily alluded to here (so much so, I hate leaving it at "alluded") that Rachel is the victim of sexual abuse from her step-father. It's handled here very well... nothing graphic, but it's abundantly clear what's going on.
Does the story "land", though? I'm not sure. The drastic shift in tone, which... again, might've been on purpose, really takes the "oomph" and sense of urgency out of the situation. It feels almost like a Degrassi Junior High story happening on Saved by the Bell... if that makes any sense? Like, it's serious... and "issue of the monthy", but there's still this kinda innocence and hokeyness to it. Ya follow? It might just be me projecting... Mike Parobeck's art really doesn't make me think of "darker" subjects.
Continuing to work backwards... Jason talks to Kriz and Odell about his adventure with The Fly. The subject of abuse is brought up there too... but, again... it's hard to take it as serious as it should be given the art style, and lemme tell ya, Jason saying "Are you asking me if The Fly is a pervert?" made me actually chuckle... which, in retrospect... is probably not the intended reaction. I swear I heard a "laugh track" though.
One more thing... I joked about it above, but... I gotta imagine that if, these days, a kid drew a picture of a Nazi tossing a kid into an iron maiden at school... they'd get, at the very least, a "talking to". Growing up, I used to draw all sorts of comic booky pictures during class. No straight-up gore or anything, but I'm sure there were plenty of Liefeldian firearms and blades on my binder covers. I know I drew superhero battles and probably even had the Red Skull getting his butt kicked a time or two as well. I'm sure if I was a kid today, I'd be in so much therapy... or expelled... or both! Weird times, gang.
Overall... this was an interesting issue. It was also my first ever issue of The Fly (it's been sitting in a longbox unread for probably twenty years now)... and I was actually able to follow it! Remember, this is back from when writers felt that sort of thing was important. I'd say it's probably worth a look...
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Justice Society of America (vol.2) #2 (September, 1992)
"Days of Valor"
Writer - Len Strazewski
Pencils - Mike Parobeck
Inks - Mike Machlan
Letters - Bob Pinaha
Colors - Glenn Whitmore
Editor - Brian Augustyn
Cover Price: $1.25
Boy, it's been ages since we covered the first issue of this series. Ages! As luck would have it... my JSA box somehow made it to the top of the pile(s) during a re-sorting. I probably ought to come to grips that... this is my life now... organizing, and reorganizing boxes... a Sisyphean task, if ever there was one!
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We last left off with Jay and Alan doing their best Wayne and Garth impression... Not! Either way, they're back in the game... but, they're not yet a Society. We open in a subway where a protester is about to get his block knocked off by a couple of big dudes... we'll find out more about this conflict as we continue. Lucky for the fella, a pair of septuagenarians happen to enter the scene. They are Ted and Al... better known to some as Wildcat and the Atom. The buff baddies refer to them as "geez" (which we're gonna assume is short for "geezer" and not the plural of goose)... and so, a fight is on.
Al's a bit trepidacious... after all, they've only been back from the "other place" for a little while, and they're not totally secure in their powers. Also, it wasn't too long ago that Ted Grant didn't have the use of his legs. Regardless, the pummel the punks, and Ted even hands the victim a business card for some personal training.
The former heroes continue on their merry way, passing even more protesters during their walk. Looks like there's an evil corporation called Ultragen mucking with the environment. Al waves it off as "politics" before he and Ted enter the GBC Building... both wondering if the other brought their costume.
In the down below, Ted and Al find their path lit by a green light. It's Alan Scott... and he's got something to show them. He and Jay had brought all of their old Justice Society relics out of storage and set up a neat little base of operations.
Ted thinks it's pretty cool... especially seeing his old heavyweight championship belt among the decor. Al, the rational one, thinks this is all childishness which really ought to be left in the past. He calls it a museum... and refers to themselves as nothing more than "museum pieces". He goes on to harangue Alan and Jay for wearing costumes in their seventies, that looked silly even when they were in their twenties.
Ted asks Al to lighten up a bit, and just hear Green Lantern and Flash out. Turns out, Alan (decked out in his gaudy GL costume) kind of agrees with Al! He agrees that they're just old fools... but continues, and says that they used to be young fools anyway. But, they've come back for a reason...
The Justice Society still stands for something... it's just a matter of finding out what that is. Al crosses his arms and asks a pretty simple question, "Where's everyone else?". Apparently, the only former JSAer yet to check in is Johnny Thunder. Sandman is still recovering from his episode (last issue), Starman "sends his support", Hourman is dealing with his sick son, and Dr. Midnight is busy opening up a clinic.
So... whattabout the Halls? Well, let's head to the videophone and find out. Turns out Carter and Shierra are in the Middle East, presumably on a dig. A heated political climate precludes their leaving just yet. Also, their son Hector recently passed away... in an issue of Sandman... which, I gotta say, I never thought would actually be "footnoted" in a mainstream DC book!
The team chats a bit more. Carter brings up how he had the opportunity to work alongside the Justice League... and thought they were a great team. He hopes that perhaps some of his talents might've rubbed off on them, to make them even greater. Just then, the Halls are called away... something big appears to be happening off-panel.
And with that, Al and Ted seems to come around. Maybe the Justice Society's purpose is in bolstering the next generation(s) of heroes. As it turns out, Ted and Al are already in the process of opening a training complex anyway.
Alan receives a phone call from his wife Molly (the former Harlequin)... she tells him that there's some trouble brewing with the Ultragen protesters being beaten by some storm troopers, or something. The JSAers decide now's as good a time as any to shake off some of the rust. Turns out both Ted and Al brought their costumes.
Topside, the Society tries to manage the hostile situation. A mummy who just happens to be looking on (and who is familiar with the JSA), manages to taze Jay. Then, Alan is shot at with some wooden bullets, which puts him down. Looks like this Ultragen group is well-prepared.
Well... maybe not. Wildcat finds himself under a dogpile of storm troopers... and it looks like Al's about to be run over by a tank... when, the Atom punches through the tank with his Atomic Punch!
The Justice Society is victorious... and as the dust settles, we learn that a mysterious shadowy figure has been watching these events unfold... and they're not happy.
We wrap up with the team returning to their new headquarters... and boy are they surprised by who they find there!
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Ya know, no matter how much fun I have with this volume... and how annoyed I get for DC cutting it off at the knees, despite it being a (relatively) strong seller... when reading back, I kinda get it. This definitely wasn't the kind of story DC (or superhero comics in general) was trying to promote back in ye old '92.
It's sorta funny how something that could be viewed as "dated" during the time, went on to actually feel rather timeless. You ask me, this aged so much better than most things that were clogging up the shelves back in the early 1990's. Sometimes, the formula oughta just be "don't mess anything up". Fine classic superhero storytelling, with clean and dynamic art. That sorta thing was at a premium during the era of excess... and it's why stories such as this stand above so many of its contemporaries. For more of the day's offerings, take a look at the Entertainment This Month... ad below!
For the issue itself? It's relatively low-stakes "street level" stuff (for the moment). It was a neat way for Al and Ted to shake off some of their limbo-rust, and hop back into action.
Al especially was an interesting character here... and I really appreciated his conflicted point of view. Seems like he's the only one who realizes that they're all at an advanced age... and really, are only being held together by magic, which could "go away" at any moment. Of course, that mix of nostalgia and peer pressure is too much for him to deny, and so... he's back in his togs.
I wanna mention that footnote to Sandman #12 (which we did discuss here... ages ago). I thought this was especially cool... simply because I never expected it. Sure, Vertigo wasn't yet a thing (I believe we were 3-4 months away from the official rebranding at this point), but still... those proto-Vertigo books (Sandman, Swamp Thing, Doom Patrol, Animal Man, Shade the Changing Man) always seemed to be so disconnected to the goings on in the mainstream DCU, that any mention of any of them feels special. As a big fan of lore and the "everything matters" school of storytelling, this really tickled me.
Overall... a fun romp, with some wonderful characters... and amazing art. Well worth a revisit.
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Justice Society of America #3 (June, 1991)
"Vengeance from the Stars! Chapter 3: Dead Air"
Writer - Len Strazewski
Penciller - Mike Parobeck
Inker - Rick Burchett
Letterer - Janice Chiang
Colorist - Tom Ziuko
Editors - Brian Augustyn & Mike Gold
Cover Price: $1.00
Had so much fun yesterday, I figure why not take another look at the 1991 Justice Society of America limited-series? I have a feeling this one is going to give all new meaning to "rings and arrows".
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We open... well, the same way we did last issue. Alan Scott is delivering the news of the intermittent blackouts via GBC news. He is more than a little bit irritated when the network's emergency back-up generators go on the fritz and they lose air. Like, I don't wanna say he goes full-on "we'll do it live!" but he does throw a little fit. Gotta wonder though, if there is a city-wide power outage, who is he hoping will even see the broadcast? I dunno. Anyhoo, the GBC staffers are then alerted to a bright light coming in from the window... and when they check it out, they find out the reason for the generators losing their juice... Sagittarius has struck!
And so, Alan slips into his office so he can "Lantern-up".
Outside, Sagittarius is in some sort of odd state of nirvana... just sucking up all the energy. Alan arouses the constellation construct with a caffeinated one of his own. Sag' doesn't appreciate being bothered while he, uh... feeds? So a fight is on.
In the alley down below we revisit Black Canary being walloped by the blackjack.
Then... the GBC staffers run right by shooing the nogoodniks, the kayoed Canary... and Solomon Grundy out of the way so they can shoot the Green Lantern/Sagittarius bout for the news. You couldn't ask for a more aloof group of geeks!
In the sky above, Lantern and Sagittarius continue their energized brawl. When Sag' goes to nyoink an arrow from his quiver, Alan recognizes the pose (and the design on his "outfit"), and identifies the baddie as the constellation Sagittarius.
We jump back to Ted Knight's Observatory, where our shadowy big bad is on the phone with the nogoodniks who kayoed the Canary. It's clear this is all connected... the baddie suggests coming at Green Lantern with wood... because that's his weakness. Ted, nearby in a wheelchair, promises that the Justice Society will still win the day.
Back in Gotham, Lantern manages to wrap Sagittarius up in a construct-straitjacket. And so, the archer transforms into a giant eagle... which, I didn't know he could do (I guess it has something to do with the Symbology... which I remain clueless on).
Alan ensnares the big bird in a construct cage... just long enough for Solomon Grundy to hurl a (wooden?) phone booth right at him!
Alan is smashed from behind by the booth, which messes with his concentration... dissipating the bird cage. The Sagittarius Eagle then sucks up the rest of the GBC generator juice.
The nogoodniks plop Alan down next to Canary... but that's not good enough for Grundy. He'd like to kill Green Lantern straight away. Thankfully, the Sagittarius Eagle has other ideas... and takes off with the heroes.
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After revisiting this issue it's suddenly a little bit more clear as to why this hasn't (to my knowledge) been collected. Things happening concurrently in subsequent issues... might not make for the clearest trade-reading experience. Actually, considering the way DC Comics used to mutilate stories for trade collections back in the 1990's, I'm almost glad this didn't get collected! Could you imagine how this might've been reworked? What might've been omitted? Yikes!
I think this issue gave us a little bit more "meat" than last... though, it was largely also just a fight scene. We got some added "flavor" with the goofball GBC staffers, which was pretty cool. We also get a bit "more" from our shadowy big bad. All in all, I felt a bit more momentum this time around.
I think what a lot of folks will notice straight away is the JSA debut of Mike Parobeck. I gotta say, his talents were completely wasted on me the first time around. I really didn't go for the animated style... I think I felt like it came across as "cheap"... like Archie or something. Ehh, no accounting for an early-90's X-Men kid's tastes, right? In revisiting this, I've really found an appreciation for his work. It's just beautiful... and really makes this team stand out from everything else that was on the shelves. There's definitely a "retro" feeling here... but not in an "old fashioned" kinda way... ya know? It reminds me of old "pop-art" advertisements. The same way something like the Fallout games do.
Overall... this was a good time, and I'd even go so far as to say that it made me appreciate the issue that came before even more as well! Most definitely worth a read.
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