60 WEEKS WITH THE JUSTICE LEAGUE: Week 58

Justice League America #58
Jan. '92
Breakdowns Part 11
"Mayhem"
No--"Breakdowns" ain't over yet! So, drop to your knees and say a prayer for those forgotten, overworked souls:
Keith Giffen, plot & breakdowns
J.M. DeMatteis, script
Bart Sears, penciller
Beatty & Elliott, inkers
Bob Lappan, letterist
Gene D'Angelo, colorer
Kevin Dooley, slave driver
Andy Helfer, slave owner

Justice League Europe #34
Jan. '92
Breakdowns Part 12
"Blood-Dimmed Tide"
Keith Giffen--plot & breakdowns
Gerard Jones--dialogue
Darick Robertson--pencils
Randy Elliott--inks
Willie Schubert--letters
Gene D'Angelo--colors
Kevin Dooley--associate editor
Andy Helfer--editor


After the lackluster performance of December 91, the "Breakdowns" team rings in 1992 with what is hands down the best issue yet of this storyline. I was hesitant going into JLA #58--it's one of those dreaded "punch-up" issues, continuing the three-way battle between the League, Despero and Lobo--but then DeMatteis upped his game significantly, turning in a phenomenal script with some of the best (and most consistent) humor of this book's entire run. Then, making things better still, Bart Sears tackled the penciling duties (with inking responsibilities shared by John Beatty and Randy Elliott), and man-oh-man are his skills a sight for sore eyes after the Wozniak debacle. Here are some of the issue's highlights:

J'onn finally uses his ability to shapeshift in a fight...

...and then he gets fed up with the whole show. Yet again.

Metamorpho gets in a one liner at Guy's expense...

...while Guy and Lobo knock the blue blazes out of one another.

Blue Beetle achieves, but fails to recognize, spiritual illumination...

...and then goes on to destroy the Lord Havok robot, who's been terrorizing the cave.

And most poignantly of all, L-Ron sacrifices himself so that Despero can be stopped.

JLE then picks up the thread, but the package isn't quite as dynamite as JLA. Most regrettably, despite some fine penciling, Darick Robertson does a lot of unnecessary breaking of the grid, and the layouts strike me as looking more "forced" than "creative." Happily, though, story-wise, L-Ron lives on ... after a fashion: In JLA, he had Kilowog turn him into a controller for Despero's malfunctioning collar, and in this issue, when Kilowog uses said controller, it zaps L-Ron's "consciousness" into Despero's body. It's all pretty wacky, I know. And speaking of wacky, Dreamslayer (in Max Lord's body, don't forget) has turned the inhabitants of KooeyKooeyKooey into a mindless army.

"Europinion" marks L-Ron's final lettercol, since he'll be rejoining Manga Khan to scout the stars for bargains, and so we can forgive him for neglecting to note that Robertson and Patterson did the cover (with colors, I presume, by Bob Le Rose, but I could be mistaken). Also, he advises that to say "G'nort" correctly, "Hold your nose and pronounce it like the 'n' in onion (and because G'nort stinks when he's wet)." In "Justice Log," the erstwhile robot notes, "Cover pencilled by Chris Sprouse and inked by Bruce Patterson with colors by Bob Le Rose." Additionally, when asked "why we never see Guy charge his power ring," L-Ron answers, "Because his oath won't get past the Comics Code." I'm gonna miss that robot.


The complete 60 Weeks with the Justice League on The Danger Digest:
#1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13, #14, #15, #16, #17, #18, #19, #20, #21, #22, #23, #24, #25/1, #26/2, #27/3, #28/4, #29/5, #30/6, #31/7, #32/8, #33/9, #34/10, #35/11, #36/12, #37/13, #38/14, #39/15, #40/16, #41/17, #42/18, #43/19, #44/20, #45/21, #46/22, #47/23, #48/24, #49/25, #50/26, #51/27, #52/28, #53/29, #54/30, #55/31, #56/32, #57/33, #59/35, #60/36


All images this post copyright DC Comics. Original text copyright Jon D. Witmer/The Danger Digest.

60 WEEKS WITH THE JUSTICE LEAGUE: Week 56

Justice League America #56
Nov. '91
Breakdowns Part 7
"Look Homeward, Leaguers"
The never-ending JLA-JLE "Breakdowns" crossover continues, courtesy of those burned-out old hacks:
Keith Giffen (plot & nervous breakdowns) & J.M. DeMatteis (recycled dialogue)
Aided and abetted by
Chris Wozniak, pencils
Bruce Patterson, inks
Bob Lappan, letters
Gene D'Angelo, colors
Produced by Kevin Dooley
Directed by Andrew Helfer, Esquire
With special thanks to Mark Badger's pal, Gerard Jones

Justice League Europe #32
Nov. '91
Breakdowns Part 8
"The Center Cannot Hold"
Keith Giffen - plots and breakdowns
Gerard Jones - dialogue and cheap W.B. Yeats references
Darick Robertson - pencils
John Beatty - inks
Willie Schubert - letters
Gene D'Angelo - colors
Kevin Dooley & Andy Helfer - paper trafficking


I wouldn't even know these issues were part of "Breakdowns" if not for the label on the covers. Gone is the breakneck pacing of recent months, replaced with some laid-back plotting that feels like it could have been plucked from any point of the JLI run. In other words, I thought these issues were terrific. JLA presents a "getting the band back together" story, wherein all of the Leaguers--from both sides of the pond--make their way to the cave on the outskirts of Metropolis to formulate their plan of action going forward. It's a fitting location, since the cave was the first home to this incarnation of the League.

As J'onn mentions, the Doom Patrol has been using one of the cave's darker recesses, and in JLE, Ralph, Ted and Wally decide to go looking for it, setting up a wonderfully absurd 6-page romp through the surreal that stands among the best moments any of the JLI books have ever offered. Indeed, this is one of my favorite issues I've read during this "60 Weeks" adventure--during which I probably haven't given due credit to Gerard Jones' terrific scripting. He's been knocking these JLE scripts out of the park ever since he joined the book's creative team, and he's showing no signs of slowing as "Breakdowns" rounds the halfway point.

JLE also sets up what are sure to be some significant plot points in the coming issues: Manga Khan hires Lobo to track down Despero, and the Extremists go missing from the museum where they've been on display. Oh yeah, and Maxwell Lord wakes up from his coma.

Once again, JLA's art does nothing to impress me, while Robertson and Beatty's work in JLE is on par with the best of the Kevin Maguire and Adam Hughes eras. JLA's cover does shine, though, and this time L-Ron gets the credits right in "Justice Log," too: "Humans Chris Sprouse, Bruce Patterson, Bob Le Rose execute pencilling, inking, coloring manifestations." In "Europinion," L-Ron lets us know, "Our cover was rendered by the following Earthlings: Darick Robertson on pencils and John Beatty on inks, with assist from Uranian Bob Le Rose on colors." Also from JLE's letters page come these fun facts: BlueJay's "real name is Jay Abrams, Sorceress's name is Laura Cynthia Neilsen."

And here's another classic movie from '91.

The complete 60 Weeks with the Justice League on The Danger Digest:
#1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13, #14, #15, #16, #17, #18, #19, #20, #21, #22, #23, #24, #25/1, #26/2, #27/3, #28/4, #29/5, #30/6, #31/7, #32/8, #33/9, #34/10, #35/11, #36/12, #37/13, #38/14, #39/15, #40/16, #41/17, #42/18, #43/19, #44/20, #45/21, #46/22, #47/23, #48/24, #49/25, #50/26, #51/27, #52/28, #53/29, #54/30, #55/31, #57/33, #58/34, #59/35, #60/36


Star Trek ad copyright Paramount Pictures. All other images this post copyright DC Comics. Original text copyright Jon D. Witmer/The Danger Digest.

60 WEEKS WITH THE JUSTICE LEAGUE: Week 54

Justice League America #54
Sep. '91
Breakdowns Part 3
"The Boot!"
"Krazy" Keith Giffen, plot & breakdowns
"Jolly" J.M. DeMatteis, script
"Swiss" Chris Wozniak, pencils
"Bold" Bob Smith, guest inks
"Battlin'" Bob Lappan, letters
"Gallant" Gene D'Angelo, colors
"Kooky" Kevin Dooley, associate editor
Mr. Andy Helfer, editor*
*He's far too dignified for these kinds of idiotic nicknames.

Justice League Europe #30
Sep. '91
Breakdowns Part 4
"The Widening Gyre"
Keith Giffen - plot and breakdowns
Gerard Jones - dialogue
Darick Robertson - pencils
John Beatty - inks
Gene D'Angelo - colors
Willie Schubert - letters
Kevin Dooley - associate editor
Andy Helfer - editor


Here's hoping Kevin Smith paid for the rights to JLE's title--nevermind William Butler Yeats. Seriously, though, folks (yeah, I know, I just started this post with a bad joke followed by "seriously, though, folks"--what can I say, I've been reading too much JLI), "Breakdowns" continues at a breakneck pace in these two issues. In JLA, Ambassador Heimlich continues to mess with a good thing, firing Beetle and Ice and replacing them with Tasmanian Devil (who, according to the sacrosanct letters column, was a member of JLAustralia, anyway) and Doctor Light. (That's right, the same Doctor Light who wanted nothing to do with the League back in the beginning, but has no trouble showing up now, and in costume, no less.) On a bright note, it takes little more than a page for Tasmanian Devil to knock Guy Gardner on his ass, and that's always good for a laugh. Oh yeah, and apparently Manga Khan is in the process of bartering away Despero.

Meanwhile, it's revealed that Jack O' Lantern has allied himself with Sumaan Harjavti, the brother of the late Rumaan Harjavti, and the two arranged the assassination attempt on Max Lord to look like it was the Queen Bee's doing; Jack wants sole control of the Global Guardians, and Sumaan wants to rule Bialya. Speaking of Bialya, the members of the Ex-Justice League--namely Captain Atom, Elongated Man, Blue Beetle and Ice, aided and abetted by Crimson Fox and Inspector Camus--sneak back into that country in the hopes of getting to the bottom of the apparent Queen Bee connection, which leads us into JLE. Naturally, the heroes' snooping doesn't go according to plan, and when Jack O' Lantern catches them in the Guardians' Dome, all hell breaks loose. It's all pretty standard fare until Atom dodges one of Jack's power blasts, which winds up decapitating Little Mermaid. (Somehow, Jack keeps all of the other Guardians in a suspended state until he wakes them; they're all seated around their meeting table throughout this fight. And yeah, that's a little awkward. Also, and perhaps more importantly, until reading this issue, I had no idea there was a DC Comics character named Little Mermaid. What a world, you know?) Naturally, the erstwhile Leaguers are now charged with murder, inciting yet another Major International Incident. Oh yeah (again!), and it turns out Heimlich is one of the Queen Bee's drones.

The best part of these two issues is undoubtedly the banter between Ted Kord and Ralph Dibny--it's like the best of Beetle's repartee with Booster, and it makes me wish these two would have crossed paths more often during this run. I don't mean that to sound dismissive of the story, though; this is a big piece of work that feels as epic as DC no doubt wanted the readership to believe it was. After four parts, it seems to be shaping up as a fitting send off to this incarnation of the League, but it does suffer in the art department. (Tangentially, Lappan and Schubert swapped books this time around, and I'm still not a fan of the latter's work in this series.) However, I do totally love the awkward stiffness in this panel from JLE, showing Crimson Fox and Ice in the heat of battle while done up in their civvies:

"Europinion" reveals JLE's cover credits: "Chris Sprouse and Bruce Patterson, pencillerer and inkerer, Bob LeRose, colorer." I'm not sure about that, though, seeing as that although no cover credits are listed in JLA, the cover itself bears Sprouse's signature (as well as "PCR"--anybody?), and that cover's style looks nothing like JLE's. A mystery for the ages, I suppose. Also, in a sign of the shifting winds, Dooley does, in all seriousness, ask the readership in "Justice Log," "Should we put Hal in the League?"

Lastly, and apropos of nothing, if ever I should have access to a time machine, I'm totally going back to '91 and taking advantage of both of these offers:

The complete 60 Weeks with the Justice League on The Danger Digest:
#1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13, #14, #15, #16, #17, #18, #19, #20, #21, #22, #23, #24, #25/1, #26/2, #27/3, #28/4, #29/5, #30/6, #31/7, #32/8, #33/9, #34/10, #35/11, #36/12, #37/13, #38/14, #39/15, #40/16, #41/17, #42/18, #43/19, #44/20, #45/21, #46/22, #47/23, #48/24, #49/25, #50/26, #51/27, #52/28, #53/29, #55/31, #56/32, #57/33, #58/34, #59/35, #60/36


Ball Park ad copyright Hygrade Food Products Corp. The Seagal ad's copyright is anyone's guess. All other images this post copyright DC Comics. Original text copyright Jon D. Witmer/The Danger Digest.

60 WEEKS WITH THE JUSTICE LEAGUE: Week 52

Justice League of America #52
Jul. '91
"The Battle of the Century! Decade! Year! Month?"
Pull up a chair, sports fans, as those pusillanimous pugilists...
Keith Giffen, plot & breakdowns
J.M. DeMatteis, script
Trevor Von Eeden, pencils
Randy Elliott, inks
Bob Lappan, letterer
Gene D'Angelo, colorist
Kevin Dooley, trainer
Andy Helfer, referee
...get ready to knock you out again!

Justice League Europe #28
Jul. '91
"The Man Who Wears the Star"
Keith Giffen, plot and breakdowns
Gerard Jones, script and script
Bart Sears, pencils and pencils
Randy Elliott, inks and inks
Bob Lappan, letters and borders
Gene D'Angelo, colors and colors
Kevin Dooley, this and that
Andy Helfer, stuff 'n' nonsense

July 1991 was the month everything started to change for the ol' JLI, taking a turn for the serious and setting up the massive "Breakdowns" storyline that will run through both JLA and JLE for the next eight months. (Don't worry--that's only eight weeks for us.) And what  could trigger such a sea change other than this little cliffhanger?

(JLE also ends with this revelation--after all, this is where the two books' continuities become inextricably--irreparably?--combined.)

The shooting is all the more shocking because the earlier pages in the same issue of JLA are, for the most part, so much fun. After months of slacking off, Beetle decides it's time to get himself back in shape, but when he hits the gym he's mercilessly taunted by--who else?--Guy Gardner. General Glory proposes the teammates take out their aggression in the boxing ring, but when Beetle shows he's the better pugilist, Guy attacks from behind. The dirty move, which does some serious damage to Beetle's ribs, leaves J'onn with no choice but to expel Guy from the League.

The story honestly leaves me feeling sorry for Guy--sure he's an unrepentant heel through and through, but he's shown once or twice that he's made of at least a lit bit of heroic stuff, and he's always been good for a laugh. Art-wise, Von Eeden's pencils look very good, but his layouts (as seen above) are often clunky. (Elliott inks this title in addition to JLE this month, but his work here overall doesn't seem as strong.) The undisputed TKO in the art department, though, is awarded to Bart Sears, whose cover for JLE (with colors by Bob Le Rose) is insane in its detail--I'd hate to be the guy drawing all those stars. (Speaking of covers, JLA's was done by "Adam 'Hulk' Hughes, pencil; Joe 'Rocky' Rubinstein, ink; Bob 'The Rose' Le Rose, color," according to "Justice Log.") Sears and Elliott's work inside the book is nice to look at, too, as the Starro storyline wraps up in very satisfying fashion, with guest-star Ice playing a key role and Manga Khan making a brief appearance.

Be back here next week for the beginning of the end.

The complete 60 Weeks with the Justice League on The Danger Digest:
#1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13, #14, #15, #16, #17, #18, #19, #20, #21, #22, #23, #24, #25/1, #26/2, #27/3, #28/4, #29/5, #30/6, #31/7, #32/8, #33/9, #34/10, #35/11, #36/12, #37/13, #38/14, #39/15, #40/16, #41/17, #42/18, #43/19, #44/20, #45/21, #46/22, #47/23, #48/24, #49/25, #50/26, #51/27, #53/29, #54/30, #55/31, #56/32, #57/33, #58/34, #59/35, #60/36


All images this post copyright DC Comics. Original text copyright Jon D. Witmer/The Danger Digest.

60 WEEKS WITH THE JUSTICE LEAGUE: Week 51

Justice League America #51
Jun. '91
"My Dinner with G'nort"
A profound psychological study of lonely, tormented spirits in search of truth ... as brought to you by DC's most sensitive soul-searchers:
"Svelte" Keith Giffen - plot
"Slim" J.M. DeMatteis - script
"Tall" Adam Hughes - pencils
"Big" Joe Rubinstein - inks
"Elliptical" Bob Lappan - letters
"Square" Gene D'Angelo - colors
"Amorphous" Kevin Dooley - asst. ed.
"Hexagonal" Andy Helfer - editor

Justice League Europe #27
Jun. '91
"The Vagabond King"
Still another Giffen, Jones, Sears, Elliott, Lappan, D'Angelo, Dooley and Helfer presentation


As if seeing Adam Hughes' pencils and Joe Rubinstein's inks return to JLA wasn't treat enough, Booster Gold also returns to the pages, dropping by the New York embassy to catch up with his former teammates. And what a night he chooses to return: After being banned from the League following a disaster with Justice League Antarctica (from JLA Annual #4), G'nort nevertheless drops by the New York pad to say hello, and he and Kilowog convince J'onn to join them for an aliens' night out on the town. Naturally, disaster ensues--even Black Hand returns, and ends the issue interred in the Home for the Terminally Bewildered--and Booster and Beetle get to enjoy it all together from the sidelines. This issue's a treat all around.

Apparently JLA #51 takes place before the current story arc in JLE, where Kilowog and the majority of the League's European branch get "starred" by Starro. (If years of fandom have produced an actual term for that process, I apologize for not knowing it and using it here. UPDATE: Issue 28 reveals that "starred" is, in fact, the proper term. Yo-ho!) The only members unaffected are Captain Atom, Rocket Red and Metamorpho, whose "inorganic coatings" prevent the face-hugging stars from bonding. The trio flies all the way to New York to enlist aid (don't ask me why Rocket Red doesn't have a communicator built into his suit that could keep him connected to the League's various embassies), and in the glorious tradition of the JLI, J'onn concocts a maybe-halfway-decent plan that falls all to pieces when he himself becomes the new host for Starro's central consciousness. This is a great second chapter in what's shaping up to be a Starro story for the ages--and yes, it's very much making me want to go back and re-read Grant Morrison's Starro tale from his later JLA run.

As usual, both books' letters pages offer cover credits. "Justice Log" notes, "Cover by penciller Adam Hughes, inker Joe Rubinstein, and colorist Bob Le Rose." "Europinion" shares, "Cover by Bart Sears and Bob Le Rose--pencils and colors." Also in "Justice Log," L-Ron drops by to respond to a letter from Matt "Elvis" Apple of Annadale-on-Hudson, NY, and writes, "This is my second letter column. You know, I could get used to this. What say you, readers? Shall I answer your letters and give this Dooley-person the metallic boot?" Hard to say whether there will be time for the transition, though, as the book races toward issue 60. Speaking of which, the "next issue" blurb is worth noting: "For those of you who think all we can do is humor, you won't want to miss the last page. Things are going to get real serious real fast, fans." Stay tuned.

The complete 60 Weeks with the Justice League on The Danger Digest:
#1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13, #14, #15, #16, #17, #18, #19, #20, #21, #22, #23, #24, #25/1, #26/2, #27/3, #28/4, #29/5, #30/6, #31/7, #32/8, #33/9, #34/10, #35/11, #36/12, #37/13, #38/14, #39/15, #40/16, #41/17, #42/18, #43/19, #44/20, #45/21, #46/22, #47/23, #48/24, #49/25, #50/26, #52/28, #53/29, #54/30, #55/31, #56/32, #57/33, #58/34, #59/35, #60/36


All images this post copyright DC Comics. Original text copyright Jon D. Witmer/The Danger Digest.

60 WEEKS WITH THE JUSTICE LEAGUE: Week 46

Justice League America #46
Jan. '91
"Old Glory"
It's a turning point for the Justice League--and champions of liberty everywhere--presented with patriotic pride by those fun-loving flag-wavers
Keith Giffen, plot & breakdance
J.M. DeMatteis, plot assist & script
Linda Medley, guest penciller
José Marzan, inker
Bob Lappan, letterer
Gene D'Angelo, colorist
Kevin Dooley, asst. editor
And let's hear a hearty "hail to the chief" for
Andy Helfer, editor
General Glory created by J.M. DeMatteis & Keith Giffen

Justice League Europe #22
Jan. '91
"Catnap"
Furious feline frenzy as you demanded it, action lovers! From: Keith Giffen, Gerard Jones, Marshall Rogers, José Marzan, Bob Lappan, Gene D'Angelo, Kevin 'n' Andy


It's another year, dear readers. Or, anyway, it was in January of '91, and what better way to ring in the new year than with an old-man fight?

The old timer with the cane is one Joe Jones, a.k.a. General Glory, and the geezer with the giant gun is his antiquated arch-nemesis. The story that unfolds this issue of JLA tackles the Big Issues, diving deep into the culture surrounding comics collecting and taking aim at conventions themselves as Guy Gardner wins an auction for General Glory #1. (His winning bid: 5,000 of the League's dollars.) The only trouble is, Mr. Jones needs to see that comic book himself--he's forgotten the magic words that  turn him into General Glory, which are printed inside--and his repeat attempts to get a peak naturally infuriate the Green Lantern. I'm not sure how this storyline will shake out over five issues, but these first 22 pages are solid, and Linda Medley's art is terrific, a huge improvement over her work in JLE #14. (I would really love to have seen her work on American Splendor--rest in peace, Harvey Pekar--or something else in that vein.)

Across the pond,  Marshall Rogers' art also shows improvement--either that, or after three issues I'm finally getting used to his style. At least in their work with the League, Medley and Rogers both seem to do their best when not illustrating heroes in costume, and fortunately this issue of JLE spends a good deal of time with two young Brits who make the poor life choice of kidnapping Power Girl's cat. Power Girl doesn't take it well at all--she even makes Sue Dibny call up Batman and demand the caped crusader apply his keen detective skills to the case--but ultimately the cat is returned and the catnappers make it through, albeit quite the worse for wear.

However, it must be noted that the cat's return comes only after a pit stop at the mysterious Mr. Bigger's facility. Mr. Bigger was behind the attempt to grab Wally Tortolini's notebook over in JLA #44, and it was all part of a massive intelligence-gathering operation for criminals. Now it seems opportunity has again knocked for the criminal entrepreneur, and Mr. Bigger has the cat fitted with a transmitting camera eye so he can keep a close watch inside the League's London embassy.

Cover credits from "Justice Log": "Cover by Adam Hughes and Karl Story"; and from "Europinion": "Our cover is by Marshall Rogers, Bruce Patterson, and Bob Le Rose of pencilling, inking, and coloring fame."

The complete 60 Weeks with the Justice League on The Danger Digest:
#1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13, #14, #15, #16, #17, #18, #19, #20, #21, #22, #23, #24, #25/1, #26/2, #27/3, #28/4, #29/5, #30/6, #31/7, #32/8, #33/9, #34/10, #35/11, #36/12, #37/13, #38/14, #39/15, #40/16, #41/17, #42/18, #43/19, #44/20, #45/21, #47/23, #48/24, #49/25, #50/26, #51/27, #52/28, #53/29, #54/30, #55/31, #56/32, #57/33, #58/34, #59/35, #60/36


All images this post copyright DC Comics. Original text copyright Jon D. Witmer/The Danger Digest.

60 WEEKS WITH THE JUSTICE LEAGUE: Week 42

Justice League American #42
Sep. '90
"Solicitations"
It's the album of the decade brought to you by those lovable mop-tops:
Keith Giffen, acoustic & electric guitars
J.M. DeMatteis, lead vocals
Mike McKone, bass
José Marzan, Jr., piano
Gene D'Angelo, percussion
Bob Lappan, drums
Management: Kevin Dooley
Produced by Andrew Helfer

Justice League Europe #18
Sep. '90
"The Extremist Vector Part Four: The Happy Place"
Keith Giffen, plot/breakdowns
Gerard Jones, script
Bart Sears, pencils
Randy Elliott, inks
Bob Lappan, letters
Gene D'Angelo, colors
Kevin Dooley, wacky
Andy Helfer, wicky


I've been looking forward to this week with both excitement and trepidation since beginning this whole "60 Weeks" experiment. Indeed, for me, JLA #42 is where it all began. Back in 1990, I'd only recently gotten into reading comics, but it didn't take long to hear about the Justice League of America, the premier assemblage of the World's Greatest Heroes. Superman! Batman! The Flash! Other characters whom I was still getting to know! I explained the premise to my folks and how this must surely be the greatest comic book ever put to press, and, if I recall correctly, my dad soon thereafter brought this and issue 43 home for me after stopping by Cleveland's Super City Comics on his lunch break. Admittedly, it wasn't exactly what I'd anticipated--who were these strange characters on the cover? (Hell, I asked myself the same thing before reading it now, in 2010.) At least this Blue Beetle guy looked pretty cool.

Now though, with 20 years having passed and having finally read the previous 40 issues, I must say this issue is fantastic through and through. Hands down one of my favorites of the series. Even McKone's art seems to have taken a quantum leap forward into greatness since just the previous issue, where I was still dogging it; his characters here show tremendous acting chops, and his layouts are all first rate. He still might not be an Adam Hughes or a Kevin Maguire, but he clearly stands on his own and knocks this membership-drive story right outta the park. And speaking of the story, let's finally get to it.

Recognizing the need for more muscle on the team, Max sends Blue Beetle and Fire out to recruit El Diablo, Guy Gardner to recruit Starman, and Ice and Huntress to recruit Hawk and Dove. Each bit, more or less, turns out like this:

Complicating matters further, J'onn feels the need to take some time away to clear his own head after the Despero debacle. His absence should have been mitigated when the real Scott Free returns to Earth after completing his indentured servitude to Manga Khan--it turns out that kooky Mr. Miracle that was blown up and then buried last issue was one of Manga's robot duplicates--but instead he decides to let the world continue thinking he's dead while he takes some time off to barbecue with Barda. All's not completely hopeless, though: First, Max trades the test-tube remnants of Despero to Manga Khan for Manga's erstwhile robo-servant L-Ron; then, on the last page, New Gods Orion and Lightray arrive at the embassy, ready for action.

JLE's also a fine piece of work this time out, and definitely the most entertaining chapter yet of "The Extremist Vector" storyline. Trapped in Silver Sorceress' nuked-out dimension, the Leaguers are summoned to Wacky World, a pristine amusement park populated by lifelike robots who, in turn, demonstrate a religious devotion to the park's "visionary" (apparently a sort of cross between Walt Disney and L. Ron Hubbard) and his living servant/prophet/freakazoid, Carny. Carny, in turn, has been holding Silver Sorceress captive, and now he's bent on keeping the JLE imprisoned in his house of horrors. Zaniness ensues, and when said zaniness goes against Carny's plans, the big boy throws a fit and blows up Wacky World. The League, protected by Metamorpho, appears to be safe; the Sorceress' fate is less clear; and the last page reveals a mysterious figure waking from some techno-slumber contraption. Perhaps it's the visionary himself?

"Justice Log" alerts us to these cover credits for JLA: "Adam Hughes, pencils/inks; Bob Le Rose, colors." No letters page this month in JLE--instead, there's an ad for Justice League Quarterly, which I won't be covering during this initial 60 Weeks project, but I do hope to come back around for sometime next year--but how about that cover, referencing JLI #11?

The complete 60 Weeks with the Justice League on The Danger Digest:
#1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13, #14, #15, #16, #17, #18, #19, #20, #21, #22, #23, #24, #25/1, #26/2, #27/3, #28/4, #29/5, #30/6, #31/7, #32/8, #33/9, #34/10, #35/11, #36/12, #37/13, #38/14, #39/15, #40/16, #41/17, #43/19, #44/20, #45/21, #46/22, #47/23, #48/24, #49/25, #50/26, #51/27, #52/28, #53/29, #54/30, #55/31, #56/32, #57/33, #58/34, #59/35, #60/36


All images this post copyright DC Comics. Original text copyright Jon D. Witmer/The Danger Digest.