{"id":16272,"date":"2016-12-31T08:00:06","date_gmt":"2016-12-31T08:00:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=16272"},"modified":"2016-12-21T13:34:35","modified_gmt":"2016-12-21T13:34:35","slug":"jla-deluxe-edition-volume-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2016\/12\/31\/jla-deluxe-edition-volume-1\/","title":{"rendered":"JLA Deluxe Edition volume 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nBy Grant Morrison<\/strong>, Mark Millar<\/strong>, Howard Porter<\/strong>, Oscar Jimenez<\/strong>, Don Hillsman<\/strong>, John Dell<\/strong> & various (DC Comics)
\nISBN: 978-1-4012-18430 (HC)\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 978-1-4012-3314-3 (PB)<\/p>\n

After the Silver Age’s greatest team-book died a slow, painful, wasting death, not once but twice, DC were taking no chances with their next revival of the Justice League of America<\/strong>, tapping Big Ideas w\u00c3\u00bcnderkind Grant Morrison to reconstruct the group and the franchise.<\/p>\n

That was back in 1997 and the result was a gleaming paradigm of comicbook perfection which again started magnificently before gradually losing the attention and favour of its originally rabid fan-base. Apparently we’re a really fickle and shallow bunch, us comics fans\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

And the idea that clicked? Put everybody’s favourite Big Name superheroes back in the team.<\/p>\n

Of course it worked, but that’s only because as well as name recognition and star quantity there was a huge input of creative quality. The stories were smart, fast-paced, compelling, challengingly large-scale and drawn with effervescent vitality. With JLA<\/strong> you could see all the work undertaken to make it the best it could be on every page.<\/p>\n

This Deluxe Edition (still readily available in hardback, paperback and eBook form) collects the first nine issues of the revival plus material from JLA Secret Files<\/strong> #1, spanning January to September 1997 and re-presenting a wave of epic adventures and one-off, stand-alone yarns that altered the continuity landscape of the DC Universe and re-established the Old Guard (even if a couple of them were Young Turk \u00e2\u20ac\u0153legacy heroes\u00e2\u20ac\u009d)\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

The drama begins in ‘Them!’<\/em> by Morrison, Howard Porter & John Dell – with colours from Pat Garrahy – as a family of alien super-beings called the Hyperclan<\/em> dramatically land on Earth and declare that they’re going to usher in a new Golden Age – at least by their standards.<\/p>\n

Almost simultaneously the current iteration of the Justice League is attacked in their orbital satellite and only narrowly escape utter destruction. Tragically, one of their number does not survive\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Hyperclan’s very public promises to make Earth a paradise and attendant charm offensive does not impress veteran heroes Superman<\/em>, Batman<\/em>, Wonder Woman<\/em>, Martian Manhunter<\/em> and Aquaman<\/em> or even the latest incarnations of Flash<\/em> and Green Lantern<\/em>.<\/p>\n

These legends see their methods and careers questioned and are not impressed by seeming miracles or summary executions of super-criminals in the streets. They know there’s something not right about the overbearing sanctimonious newcomers\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Confirmation comes on ‘The Day the Earth Stood Still’<\/em> as the aliens reveal mind control stations in key Earth locations. Pitched battle erupts but humanity’s defenders appear utterly overmatched.<\/p>\n

However the aliens have stupidly underestimated the prowess and ingenuity of Batman who conducts his own ‘War of the Worlds’<\/em> in the Hyperclan’s ship\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Uncovering not only the shocking secret of their might but a horrific truth harking back to the earliest days of life on Earth, the Dark Knight leads an unstoppable counterstrike, defeating the exposed, shell-shocked ‘Invaders from Mars’<\/em> and their hidden hordes in a splendid old-fashioned goodies ‘n’ baddies showdown\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Despite getting off to an incredibly impressive start, the superb quality storytelling actually improved as Morrison & Porter began laying the groundwork for their first major story-arc. In ‘Woman of Tomorrow’<\/em> veteran villains Professor Ivo<\/em> and T. O. Morrow<\/em> construct the perfect super-heroine to infiltrate the JLA as the heroes audition additions to the team. Typically, they build too well and are betrayed by their appealing handmade hero\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

This is followed by ‘Fire in the Sky’<\/em> and ‘Heaven on Earth’<\/em> (with Ken Branch joining Dell to ink Porter’s hyper-dynamic pencils) as the Angel Zauriel<\/em> heads to mundane realms: risking everything to warn the heroes of a second rebellion in Heaven and enlisting the League to strive against an invasion by God’s own armies\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6.<\/p>\n

This spectacular mini-saga occurs during company mega-crossover ‘Underworld Unleashed’<\/em> wherein ancient lord of Hell Neron<\/em> offers heroes and villains whatever they desire – generally manifested as a boost in powers and a new costume – in return for their souls. Neron tempts old foes and arch-demons Abnegazar<\/em>, Rath<\/em> and Ghast<\/em> to expunge the JLA even as the forces of Asmodel’s Pax Dei<\/em> ravage humanity.<\/p>\n

The saga was intended to introduce a new Hawkman<\/em> to the DCU, but somewhere, somehow, wiser heads prevailed and the original was eventually retooled and reintroduced with Zauriel winning his own place in the company’s pantheon after helping the heroes repel the hordes of Heaven and set the world to rights once more\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Oscar Jimenez & Chip Wallace stepped in to render ‘Imaginary Stories’<\/em> as mind-bending villain The Key<\/em> attempts to conquer the universe by trapping individual Leaguers in perfect dreams, and the art team was augmented by Anibal Rodriguez for the tense conclusion ‘Elseworlds’<\/em> which saw Zen warrior Green Arrow<\/em> (son of the original, irascible ultra-liberal bowman) join the team in classic \u00e2\u20ac\u0153saves the day\u00e2\u20ac\u009d style\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Wrapping up this rousing Fights ‘n’ Tights romp is a selection of short tales from JLA Secret Files<\/strong> #1 beginning with ‘Star Seed’<\/em> by Morrison, Mark Millar, Porter & Dell. Set just prior to the advent of the Hyperclan it reveals how new Flash Wally West<\/em> is suborned by alien monster Starro the Conqueror in its latest attempt to mind-control and subjugate humanity. When other heroes assemble to tackle the giant starfish they are stopped by the Spectre<\/em> who prophesies that their efforts will inevitably lead to Starro gaining a super-powered army that will dominate all universal life.<\/p>\n

The heroes’ brilliant solution and appalling sacrifice is utterly unexpected and cheats even divine odds\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Don Hillsman limns the last two mini-tales here as ‘The Lost Pages’<\/em> reveal how Superman – having been transformed into a being of living energy – insists on being properly auditioned beside all the potential recruits to the team whilst ‘A Day in the Life’<\/em> discloses the secrets of (some of) the Martian Manhunter’s many alternate identities as he hides amidst the teeming masses of Earth\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Savvy, compelling, dauntingly High-Concept but never afraid of nostalgia or laughing at itself, the new JLA was an all-out effort to be Smart, Fun and Unmissable. These characters are now and forever the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153World’s Greatest Superheroes\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and these ambitious epics remind everybody of the fact. This is the kind of thrill that nobody ever outgrows.
\n\u00c2\u00a9 1997, 2008, 2011 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Grant Morrison, Mark Millar, Howard Porter, Oscar Jimenez, Don Hillsman, John Dell & various (DC Comics) ISBN: 978-1-4012-18430 (HC)\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 978-1-4012-3314-3 (PB) After the Silver Age’s greatest team-book died a slow, painful, wasting death, not once but twice, DC were taking no chances with their next revival of the Justice League of America, tapping Big … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “JLA Deluxe Edition volume 1”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[76,16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16272","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dc-superhero","category-jla"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-4es","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16272","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16272"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16272\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16272"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16272"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16272"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}