JLA: Year One #1 (1998)

JLA: Year One #1 (January, 1998)
"Justice League of America, Year One"
Storytellers - Mark Waid, Brian Augustyn & Barry Kitson
Letterer - Ken Lopez
Colorist - Pat Garrahy
Separations - Heroic Age
Editor - Peter Tomasi
Cover Price: $2.95

Today we're going to meet the founding members of the (post-Crisis) Justice League of America!

Get ready for Green Lantern, Flash, Martian Manhunter, Aquaman, and... Black Canary?!  Read on...

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We open in a shadowy man... entering a shadowy room, and sitting before a bank of monitors.  Flipping them on, he sees the exploits of various young superheroes Green Lantern, Black Canary, Aquaman, Flash, and Martian Manhunter.  Apart, they are a force to be reckoned with... together, however... they might be unstoppable.  He decides it's time to investigate.

We shift scenes to Central City where Barry Allen is arriving (late) to work.  Today he and his partner, Jack are tasked with comparing some ballistics to tie a gun with a certain crime.  It just takes Barry a glance (at hyper-speed) to deduce that the bullet is a match.

An impressed Jack heads out to deliver the results... at which time Barry decides to clean his workspace, all the while wondering if his newfound powers make him something less than human.  We close out this section with Barry being introduced to a new detective by the name of Paris Jackson.

Next stop... Dinah Lance's flower shop, where she's getting a delivery from "PDQ Deliveries" (heh).  The fellas making the drop are going on and on about the new hot blonde in the fishnets making the scene... and also discuss some positions situations they wouldn't mind seeing her in.

The perverts leave, and Dinah chats with her mom.  Despite Dinah being of the ripe old age of 19, the elder-Lance still treats her like a child.  Go figure!  A man rushes in to buy flowers for the love of his life... and, I think Dinah expects him to hand them to her... but he doesn't?  Anyhoo, she gets upset at her mother... and storms off.

We next join Aquaman who is hanging out in a rather divey bar.  He's mocked for trying to pay with "doubloons" and one of the rowdy drunks dunks his head into a (conveniently placed) basin of water.  Arthur overpowers him and pushes him off.

Before a full-blown riot can break out, a man interjects and pulls Aquaman aside for a drink.

Over to Coast City where Hal Jordan is doing some very Hal Jordanny things... ya know, flying a plane to its very limits... all that jazz.  He is connected via headset to his mechanic Tom Kalamaku... who is oddly still referred to as "Pie" here.  Figure 1998 was a bit late for that to still be a thing, but whattayagonnado?

They foam down the runway... and Hal lands without going boom.  Pie rushes over to lambaste him for his daredevilry and to give him back his lantern ring.  Remember, Hal refuses to wear it when he's testing planes.

Carol Ferris approaches, along with an FAA Investigator named Lora Denton.  Carol pulls Hal aside to ask him to ixnay any talk of their sending planes up too soon.  So, of course, that's exactly what Hal tells Ms. Denton.

Finally, we join John Jones... who along with his partner Diane is staking out a potential drug deal.  When it all starts to "go down", John goes invisible and sneaks inside... and before Diane can even call in for back-up, he already has the situation under control.

We shift ahead and join the entire (not a) team (yet), who are being briefed by General Eiling (hey, we know him!) about aliens beaming in at a nearby cavern... a cavern that houses a fire giant and a big large bird.

The Just Us League hops into action... and starts fighting off the invaders.  Unfortunately, not before the fire giant is awakened!

Also, that big large bird!

This whole fight scene is really well done.  We get to see some interesting banter between the heroes wherein they (unwittingly) share some details of their powers with one another.  Hal lets it slip that he's got a problem with the color yellow... J'onn reveals his fear of fire.  Dinah tips Barry off as to how Jay Garrick would handle a certain situation... it's really such a cool scene!

Between the five of 'em, they're able to contain the situation... and take down the big-baddies.  The invaders do manage to get away though.  After Eiling and company vacate, the fivesome discuss making their association a bit more official.

... a dialogue which is being overheard by a group calling themselves Locus.

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Man this was fun!

This came out (in trade) right around the time I was acclimating to the DC Universe, and was one of the first (full) Justice League stories I'd ever read.

I've mentioned before that when I turned to DC, I didn't exactly dip my toes in... I ran out and grabbed the Crisis on Infinite Earths trade collection... and while it didn't make a whole helluva lot of sense to me (and most/all of the dramatic moments had been spoiled for me), I enjoyed it well enough.  The other trade I picked up was JLA: Year One... which, wasn't confusing at all, and really helped me feel "caught up" on their (post-Crisis) origin.

In fact, I'm pretty sure the only thing I was confused about was Black Canary taking Wonder Woman's place.  After acquainting myself with Diana's post-Crisis origin, however, I was totally on board.  I love Dinah being a sort of link between the Justice League and Justice Society.  It gives the team that "legacy" feeling that the entire DC Universe seems built on.

This won't likely win me any "thumbs up" or anything, but I gotta say, Wonder Woman has always sort of bored me (still does!).  Replacing her with Black Canary works just fine for me! I find her to be a far more interesting character... and she just "works" in this context.  The whole League feels far less "stuffy" with her as a founder.  Her removal as an "original" during Infinite Crisis (I think it was Infinite Crisis) was one of the more lamentable things about that event.

This series is also notable for its inclusion of Hal and Barry.  In 1998, in-continuity stories featuring the two of them were something of a novelty.  Not that they could "leave them out", but it's still cool to see.  We weren't really getting them anywhere else.

I really can't say it enough... this was a lot of fun... and, really nice to look at!  Kitson has a style that is both classic and contemporary.  Also... clean, so he's a CCC.  You can look at his work at any time, and it never looks old-fashioned or dated.  It's really something else!

This is a weird one to recommend... especially for a continuity-stickler like myself.  That said... even though this story "never happened" I'd definitely suggest any fans of DC Comics give this a read.  So much good stuff here... and the novelty of this post-Crisis League is a lot of fun.  As mentioned, this has been collected in trade and is also available digitally.

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Divine Right #1 (1997)

Divine Right #1 (September, 1997)
"Blaze of Glory"
Writer/Penciller - Jim Lee
Inker - Scott Williams
Colorist - Joe Chiodo
Letterers - Richard Starkings & Comicraft's Albert Deschesne
Computer Colors - Nick Bell, Laura Depuy, Tad Ehrlich & Alex Sinclair
Assistant Editor - Michelle Upchurch
Editor - Rachelle Brissenden
Cover Price: $2.50

Been taking some inventory of my longboxes, and came across some WildStorm oddities.  I don't often talk WildStorm here... it's kinda "iffy" as DC material... and my readership always seems to take a dive when I do.  It's weird, Flash and WildStorm discussions never do all that well... I wonder why.

Anyhoo... despite all of that, I really wanted to discuss Divine Right... and so, here we be!

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We open... after an "In Case You're Just Joining Us" blurb on the inside front cover (isn't this the first issue?!  Not like there was a Divine Right #0!)... in New York City, where a pair of sharp-dressed ne'er-do-wells are on the hunt for a woman named Christine Blaze.  We immediately shift to Ms. Blaze being attacked by some anatomically incorrect beasties.  Man, maybe that "In Case You're Just Joining Us" blurb wasn't long enough!

She fires at them with her blasters... which doesn't seem to do all that much.  Instead, one of the beasties... er, vomits maggots in Blaze's direction?  Yeah, that'll get 'er!

We shift scenes to Pacific Beach, San Diego, and the home of our hero, Max Faraday.  He's in the middle of an online chat with a lady-friend, all the while his buddy Dev razzes him for being a virgin.  This dialog... man, it's... gotta be seen.

Max, tired of being ribbed, decides to tell the story of this one time he "made it" with a girl.  I guess even though he and Dev are tight, he just never got around to telling him about it.  Ya see, Max is a pizza delivery boy for.. sigh... Phatboy Phizza (Fatboy Feetza?), and this one time (at band camp) he delivered to a naked woman (who isn't depicted as naked in panel).  She offered our lad a $20 tip... or, ya know... sex.  Max claims he took the twenty... which begs the question, why did we just sit through this story?!

He goes back to chatting with his lady-friend Susanna... while at that very moment on the other side of the country, Blaze heads into an internet cafe (remember those?) to try and get in touch with "Lynch" (that Lynch?).

Inside the cafe, the Patrons become distracted by the pretty blue light from the outside... likely hopeful of a surprise sale at K-Mart.  No such luck, however... it's just more bad guys.

Bad guys who... kill everybody!  Even, it seems, Christine Blaze!

As the dust settles, the bad dudes are joined by a Lord Jesthra... who's just an ordinary-looking fella with a bad comb-over.  He's not pleased with the sit-rep, as they weren't able to procure a particular disk.  Jesthra invites the lead baddie to "talk to the hand"... seriously... and kills him.  I mean, just look at it...

Then... Jesthra just leaves, ignorant to the fact that the only remaining active computer is in the middle of an upload.  C'mon... really?

Back at Faraday's, Dev has taken to doing some deep-web stuff.  He finds an interesting file (you'll never guess which one!), and despite Max's concerns, clicks the link anyway!

Enter: Max's sister Jenn.  I'm assuming she's at least 8' tall, because she kinda has to slump to the side just to fit into the... well, page.  Dev is clearly smitten and leaves Max to make time with his sister.  She seems less than pleased to be stuck talking to this fool.

Their flirtation is interrupted by a shout... followed by an explosion (figure the boom would come first, but whattayagonnado?).  Anyhoo, Max's computer explodes... and all of the power in the house goes out.

Back in New York, we meet a low-rent Jim Gordon named Mike.  He's filled in on everything that went down at the internet cafe... to which, he makes a fairly purple monologue.  We can see that he's being watched by some shady-looking folks.

We hop over to Jerusalem where our comb-over pal is checking in with his boss... who looks pretty much like every "big bad" in the WildStorm universe.  He reports that they were unsuccessful in their search for the disk with the "Creation Equation" on it.

We close out back in San Diego, where Max has recovered... and is headed out to deliver some phizzas.  He claims to have never felt better... which is probably code for "I now have superpowers".  Anyhoo, as he hops into his hooptie, we can see he's being watched by some creepy crawlies.

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Not sure what I was expecting here... 

This wasn't a bad time or anything... just a bit underwhelming... and certainly a little confusing.  Ya see, I knew this was part of the WildStorm Universe (the end of the series has Wildcats and Gen13 chapters), but I wasn't ready for it to spin out from any WildStorm ongoing storylines.

I'd never heard of this Christine Blaze before (hell, the DC Wikia can't even be bothered to figure out what her first appearance is!)... and couldn't pick her out of a crowd if my life depended on it.  I think the opening here was a poor choice, and assumed that everybody reading this would already be familiar with her.  The only way I was able to deduce that she was an "established" character, was by her mention of Lynch... who, if it's that Lynch, has been something of a mover and shaker in the WildStorm U since day one.

I definitely think there were better (and less confusing for the uninitiated) ways to start this.  I joked about it earlier... but maybe this series would've done well to have a "zero" issue just to set the stage!

Let's talk about Max.  He's... I guess, a likable enough fella.  His buddy Dev I could do without... but, ya take the bad with the... not-as-bad.  Gotta say it... the dialog here was painfully awkward.  I mean, cringe city.  Forced masturbation jokes, exaggerated Ebonics, I mean... it was a long time ago, but I was their age.  Hell!  I was likely their age when this book came out!  Instead of this resonating with me, I'm sitting here tugging my collar like I'm Rodney Dangerfield.  It's just so awkward!

And that's not even mentioning Lord "Talk to the Hand" Jesthra!  Wow... he's like a parody!  I mean, I look at this and think... there's no way we're supposed to take this guy seriously!  I mean... "Talk to the hand"?  Talk.  To.  The.  Hand?!

The art here is, as you might imagine, really good.  There were some instances of hyper-posing (Hello, Jenn!), but that comes with the territory when we look at a Jim Lee joint.  For the most part, however, this was plenty dynamic.  The scene at the internet cafe was especially fun.  The fella photocopying Sandra Bullock's head on a nudie picture getting his head slammed into the photocopier was pretty funny... and brutal way to go.  Blaze getting harpooned multiple times was also really well done.  Great composition there!

Overall... I can't suggest you rush out to track this down, however, if you do... I think you'll have a good time with it.  It's pretty light... and it's nice to look at.  It looks like DC Comics collected the entire series in trade back in 2014, and the run is also available digitally (for a buck a pop!).

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Action Comics #371 (1969)

Action Comics #371 (January, 1969)
"The President of Steel"
"The Supergirl Best-Seller!"
Writers - Otto Binder & Leo Dorfman
Pencillers - Curt Swan & Kurt Schaffenberger
Inker - Jack Abel
Letterer - Ben Oda
Cover Price: $0.12

Happy President's Day everybody!

Hopefully many of my fellow Americans are in the midst of enjoying a three-day weekend full of rest and relaxation.  Today we're going to discuss that time Superman became President of the United States... er, I should probably change that to "one of the times"... because weird stuff be happenin' in the Silver Age all the time.

Well, before we get to celebrating President-style... which, by the past several we had might mean "go to the golf course", let's head back to the swingin' sixties for some Silver Age silliness.

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We open in the Daily Planet offices with Clark Kent... playing on his new inter-dimensional super-computer.  What he doesn't realize is that there's an intruder... intruding behind him.  With the whack of a slapjack, Clark is (pretending to be) kayoed.  While he's playing possum, however, a ray from the computer bathes his head in pink light... giving him super-amnesia!  The baddie wants to take over Clark Kent's identity... so he loads the real deal into a doomed helicopter... and it crashes.  Clark wakes up to see he's wearing a Superman costume... so, he at least knows one of his identities!  But, just who is he when he's wearing street clothes?

I like to picture this part as Clark breaking into Frank Sinatra's "That's Life" as he strolls down the street.

I've been a puppet, a pauper, a pirate, a poet, a pawn and a king...

Looking for answers, Amnesia-man heads for the Governor of whatever state Metropolis is in... hopeful that maybe he'd recognize him.  Worth noting that Clark's not wearing his glasses here... so, really now, who would recognize him?

No dice with the Governor... and so, Clark decides to move up the political ladder to the President of the United States!  He hopes that maybe he had clued the leader of the free world in on his dual identity.  Upon arrival in DC, he learns that the Pres is away on a top secret mission... and he's been gone for... well, just about as long as Superman has had amnesia.  Hmm...

Could it be... that Superman's secret identity is really the President of the United States of America?!  Well, of course not (don't be re-deekyoulos)... but he really seems to think so!  Worth mentioning here that DC (Comics, that is) gave the President a generic middle-aged look rather than "offending the dignity of the office".  Couldja imagine a "current year" comic book being so nonpartisan?  I mean, what would Marvel do with the other 19 pages of each issue?!  Anyhoo, Superman gets into some costume makeup and does himself up like the sitting Prez.

During a briefing... President Superman learns that a little girl became stuck in John Glenn's space capsule at the Smithsonian... which sounds like a job for... well, him.  So, he needs to figure out a way to duck out of the public eye for a moment and change clothes.  I mean, at this point, doesn't he realize that the President is too much of a public figure to have a dual identity?  Anyhoo... he asks to be taken to the Washington Monument... where he wants to go to the top... all by himself.  The Secret Service folks are totally cool with this... and so, he uses this brief "alone time" to perform a quick-change (and burst out the top of the monument).

At the Smithsonian, Superman saves the girl from Friendship-1... then gives her a guided tour of the museum to settle her nerves.  This is a really good likeness of the actual space capsule.

Later that evening (after repairing the Washington Monument) President Superman attends a Foreign Correspondence gala held at the White House.  He is told that it's customary for the President to share a dance with one of the reporters in attendance... and you'll never guess who he picks!  I'm wondering if Super-Prez is a bachelor... I mean, that would actually be some news, right?

Anyhoo... Super President dances with Lois Lane, when suddenly a foreign spy throws a grenade into the fray!  The phony Clark Kent (the intruder from the open) heroically throws the grenade out the window.  Super-Prez uses his super-suction breath to hold the baddie back... and everything is hunky dory.  Clark Kent even gets a commendation in the form of the Presidential Medal of Valor... which is something that actually exists!

The next night, Super Prez hears a coded message coming from an aircraft carrier.  Turns out, this is where the real President has been hanging out... leaving our hero without a civilian identity once more.  He carries the aircraft carrier to shore... and is wished well in his search for his identity.  We close out with Superman seeing a newspaper clipping about a "Wrestling Superman".  We're... to be continued?!  Really?  Wow!

Our second feature is a Supergirl story... in which a schoolmarmish woman named Hilda Powell has written the best-selling book "The Confessions of Supergirl".  This tome chronicles everything Supergirl has done up to this point... even including some things the Maid of Steel can hardly remember!  It goes without saying that Supergirl isn't pleased with this situation... and intends to get to the bottom of it.  In her Linda Danvers identity, she interviews Ms. Powell... and even receives a complimentary (signed) copy of the bestseller!  She's shocked with the accuracy and detail within.

The next day, Supergirl visits Hilda and tells her she sees the book as an invasion of her privacy... and wants it pulled from the shelves!  Powell's all "sue me"... and, well... believe it or not, that's exactly what Supergirl does.  While on the stand, Powell shows Supergirl an (illustrated) story of Kara's childhood in Argo City, which troubles her greatly.  The judge ultimately rules in Hilda's favor, noting that Supergirl is a public figure... and Powell was well within her rights in publishing her book.

After the trial, Supergirl visits with Hilda... again.  I mean, at this point, you just leave the old lady alone, right?  Anyhoo... it's here that Hilda shows Supergirl the sequel to "Confessions...", the "Biography of Supergirl: World's Greatest Heroine".  A book from the far future that Hilda (the school librarian) discovered in the school library after an adventure where Supergirl had to retrieve the school from the future.  I'm sure there were about a dozen better ways for me to write that sentence.

Supergirl figures that a future-student returned the library book to the wrong library.  Hilda informs Kara that the book holds the answers to everything Supergirl will do for the rest of her days.

Later, Supergirl overhears a radio broadcast revealing that "Getaway" Gillen... a professional jail-escaper, or something... escaped from jail... again.  At that very same time, the Heroes Day Parade is being held in Metropolis... featuring oversized balloons of all your favorite heroes (but sadly, no Supergirl).  She takes one look at the floats... and tears right into Green Lantern's chest... where the Getaway Gang were hiding out.

Ya see, she was able to deduce this because this Green Lantern wore his ring on his left hand instead of his right!  Yeah, it's a stretch considering what superhero merchandising looks like in the real world... but whattayagonnado?  I'd hate to see her reaction to The New-52! costumes.  Anyhoo, she heads back to Ms. Powell's house and learns that the events played out exactly as the book said they would.  This freaks Kara out big-time... and she skims through the rest of the volume... even learning how she dies!

She is then called into action... helping a kook who built a weather control device.  She recalls that the book says she would solve this problem by making a giant lightning rod... and so, to subvert the tome, she decides to try another approach... and it works!  This renders the second half of Ms. Powell's biography book... blank!  What's more, she's forgotten everything she'd already read... because it never happened!

--

Well, this certainly was a surprise!  I mean, it was just as ridiculous as I thought it'd be... but from looking at the cover, I would've bet dollars to dingbats that this was going to be an Imaginary Story.  Further, I'd never have guessed that this was going to be a multi-part deal!

The story itself... is silly.  Not entirely unexpected given the circumstances.  I think this must've been a really fun time to follow this title... an amnesiac Superman trying to figure out who his secret identity is... that just sounds fun!  We might have to come back to this and see how it works itself out.

The thing that really stuck out to me was the fact that the President that Superman portrayed was just a generic middle-aged dude.  I really like that!  I've said it before in audio and print... I'm not one for mixing real world politics into my comics (or any entertainment).  I appreciate the fact that we have a story about a (generic) sitting President without any partisan commentary.

This is the kind of thing Marvel and DC should be doing now.  We're never going to have a 100% consensus politically... and a pithy and angry comic book story isn't going to change any minds.  I gotta say, if a superhero comic book story is enough to change your mind one way or another... maybe you need to read things that aren't comic books.

Instead of fostering echo chambers, I feel like we need to go back to this sort of storytelling.  A generic President... or, better yet... a known entity in the universe as President.  I'm not sure if it's a popular opinion, but I've made clear my love of the President Lex story arc.  That was some fun stuff... political, but without the passive-aggressive vitriol we're used to (from both sides).

I remember Michael Jordan, when asked about politics and business said something like "Republicans buy shoes too"... meaning, he wasn't going to talk down to or vilify potential customers just because he disagreed with them politically.  I wonder if he'd be up for an EiC gig at Marvel?

Anyhoo... apologies for that... I try not to brush up against anything polarizing here.  So... onto the Supergirl story!

I gotta wonder if someone at DC had some rough times in school... it feels like any time Supergirl is pitted against a human... they look like a schoolmarm!  I'd swear I've seen this woman in every Silver Age Supergirl story I've ever read!  I'm exaggerating... but, seriously... it's always a woman who looks like this!

The story... was basic backup material.  A done-in-one with very little ramifications.  Some Silver Age "reaching"... like noticing Green Lantern's ring being on the wrong finger.  I feel like superhero merchandise has always been a bit on the weird side.  I mean, there's that "Superman" costume that comes with a mask... Batman costumes that have the word "Batman" written on the chest... liberties are taken with these sort of things.

Overall... I had fun with this issue, even if both stories kinda dragged in places.  I'm not sure I'd tell ya to rush out and track this one down... however, if you come across it on the cheap, you could do worse!

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