{"id":26377,"date":"2022-08-23T12:05:21","date_gmt":"2022-08-23T12:05:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=26377"},"modified":"2022-08-23T12:05:21","modified_gmt":"2022-08-23T12:05:21","slug":"jla-year-one-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2022\/08\/23\/jla-year-one-2\/","title":{"rendered":"JLA: Year One"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nBy Mark Waid<\/strong>, Brian Augustyn<\/strong> & Barry Kitson<\/strong> with Michael Bair<\/strong>, John Stokes<\/strong>, Mark Propst, & various (DC Comics)
\nISBN: 978-1-56389-512-8 (TPB)<\/p>\n

If the chop-and-change continuity gymnastics DC have undergone in recent years gives you a headache, but you still love reading excellent superhero team stories, you could just take my word that this is one of the best of that breed and move on to the next review. If you\u2019re okay with the confusion or still need convincing, though, please read on.<\/p>\n

With then-partner All-American Publishing, in 1940 DC published the Justice Society of America<\/strong><\/em> in All-Star Comics<\/strong> from #3. Cover-dated \u201cWinter Issue\u201d, it spanned the year end and was on sale from November 22nd<\/sup> until January. The JSA<\/strong> were the first superhero team in comics.<\/p>\n

In 1960 after a decade largely devoid of superheroes, the now fully-amalgamated publisher sagely revived the team concept as the Justice League of America<\/strong><\/em>, and gradually reintroduced the JSA ancestors as heroes of an alternative Earth to a fresh new caped and cowled world. By 1985, the continuity had become saturated and overcrowded with so many heroic multiples and close duplicates that DC\u2019s editorial Powers-That-Be deemed it all too confusing and a deterrent to new readers, and decreed total change. It resulted in maxi-series Crisis on Infinite Earths<\/strong> and the events of the groundbreaking, earth-shattering saga led to a winnowing and restructuring of the DC universe\u2026<\/p>\n

With all the best bits from past stories (for which one could read \u201cleast charming or daft\u201d) having now occurred on one Earth, and with many major heroes remade and re-launched (Superman<\/strong>, Wonder Woman<\/strong>, Flash<\/strong> et al.), one of the newest curses to readers – and writers – was keeping definitive track of what was now DC \u201cHistory\u201d and what had now never actually happened.<\/p>\n

Thus 12-issue maxi-series JLA: Year One<\/strong> presented the absolute, definitive, real story of the formation and early days of the Justice League, the World\u2019s Greatest – but no longer first – Superheroes\u2026<\/p>\n

Of course, since Zero Hour<\/strong>, Infinite Crisis<\/strong> and all the other subsequent publishing course-correcting extravaganzas (such as 52<\/strong>, Countdown<\/strong>, Dark Nights: Death Metal<\/strong> and so on) it\u2019s not strictly true anymore. Still. Again\u2026<\/p>\n

None of which impacts upon the superb quality of the tale told here. Way back then – January to December 1998 and in the wake of Grant Morrison & Howard Porter\u2019s spectacular re-reboot of the team – Mark Waid, Brian Augustyn & illustrator Barry Kitson (plus assorted assisting inkers) produced a superb version of that iteration\u2019s earliest days. It\u2019s still one of the best and most readable variations on the theme, even if DC have inexplicably let it slide out of print\u2026<\/p>\n

It begins \u201cten years ago\u201d in \u2018Justice League of America: Year One\u2019<\/em> as a hidden observer gathers files on an emergent generation of new costumed heroes. When an alien invasion from Appellax brings inexperienced neophyte heroes Flash<\/strong>, Green Lantern<\/strong>, Black Canary<\/strong>, Aquaman<\/strong> and Martian Manhunter<\/strong> together to save Earth from colonisation, the media scents a news sensation, but the real story is the hidden forces hovering in the background of the event\u2026<\/p>\n

The Canary was reimagined as the rebellious daughter of the JSA original who had been active during WWII, and the others, like the Sea King and J\u2019onn J\u2019onzz<\/em>, had undergone recent origin revisions too\u2026<\/p>\n

The main action begins after that initial victory, as the heroes – novices all, remember – opt to stick together as a team, only to be targeted by secret super-science society Locus<\/em>, who begin snatching up alien invader corpses for genetic experimentation\u2026<\/p>\n

The second issue sees the new kids as media sensations overwhelmed and out of their depth, with everyone wanting a piece of them. Older outfits like the Blackhawks<\/strong>, Challengers of the Unknown<\/strong> and even officially-retired JSA<\/strong> veterans are watching with apprehension whilst Bruce Wayne<\/em> wants them far away from Gotham City as they establish their \u2018Group Dynamic\u2019<\/em>. Even trick archer Green Arrow<\/strong> is constantly hanging around, clearly angling for an invitation to join, but that\u2019s never gonna happen\u2026<\/p>\n

Immortal villain Vandal Savage<\/em> targets the inexperienced heroes with a squad of veteran supervillains – the Thorn<\/em>, Solomon Grundy<\/em>, Clayface<\/em> and Eclipso<\/em> – as everywhere, more new superheroes are emerging. Savage is resolved to stop this second Heroic Age before it begins\u2026<\/p>\n

In #3, Locus\u2019 bio advancements lead to alliance with Savage, but their schemes are sidelined as the team struggle to work together. Every man there seems distracted by Black Canary, but their \u201cchivalrous impulses\u201d in combat are not only insulting but will get someone killed – if not by enemies, then by her\u2026<\/p>\n

The team is fully occupied playing \u2018Guess Who?\u2019<\/em> after accepting funding and resources from a mystery billionaire. The influx of cash results in a purpose-built secret mountain HQ, a covert personal communications network, live-in custodian\/valet\/tech support Snapper Carr<\/em> and a security system designed by maverick teen genius Ted Kord<\/em>.<\/p>\n

At least the heroes are starting to bond, sharing jokes, origins and trade secrets, but tensions are still high and trust in each other is fragile\u2026<\/p>\n

Inker Michael Bair joins with #4 as \u2018While You Were Out\u2026\u2019<\/em> sees Locus at last launch their campaign of conquest: picking off lone hero Dan Garrett<\/em>, whose mystic Blue Beetle<\/strong> scarab proves no match for alien-enhanced bio-weaponry, even as the heroes are all singled out for close observation by mystery operatives\u2026<\/p>\n

The merciless Brotherhood of Evil<\/em> unleash Locus-designed horrors on Manchester, Alabama in #5, leading to a tenuous team-up of Justice League and Doom Patrol<\/strong> that ends in disaster and defeat. Maimed and deprived of their abilities, they are \u2018A League Divided\u2019<\/em> until the DP\u2019s resident genius Niles Caulder<\/em> provides stopgap powers and weapons in \u2018Sum of Their Parts\u2019<\/em> (inked by Bair & John Stokes), enabling the heroes to rally and restore themselves\u2026<\/p>\n

In \u2018The American Way\u2019<\/em> the JLA suffer a shock after their greatest inspiration – Superman – declines an offer to join, even as Locus\u2019 endgame begins.<\/p>\n

The dispirited heroes barely notice, as \u2018Loose Ends\u2019<\/em> exposes treachery in the ranks, further distracting the heroes who discover a trusted ally has been spying on them in their private lives. They have no idea what\u2019s really going on\u2026<\/p>\n

With unity shattered, the JLA turns on itself, missing Locus\u2019 attempt to terraform Earth and literally \u2018Change the World\u2019<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2018Heaven and Earth\u2019 <\/em>(inked by Bair & Mark Propst) finds all humanity\u2019s helpless and all its many heroes subdued in a superpowered blitzkrieg that catches the planet napping. Crushed, defeated and interned in \u2018Stalag Earth\u2019<\/em> all hope is lost until the reunited Justice League lead a counter-offensive, turning tragedy into triumph and ensuring \u2018Justice for All\u2019<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

A brilliantly addictive plot, superbly sharp dialogue and wonderfully underplayed art suck the reader into an enthralling climax that makes you proud to be human\u2026 or at least terrestrially-based. This saga of our champions\u2019 bonding and feuding under extended threat of rogue geneticists, planetary upheaval, and the mystery of who actually bankrolls the team, all added to continual, usual, everyday threats in a superhero\u2019s life, is both enchanting and gripping.<\/p>\n

When it\u2019s done right there\u2019s nothing wrong with being made – and allowed – to be feel ten years old again. In-the-know fans will delight at the clever incorporation of classic comics moments, in-jokes and guest-shots from beloved contemporaneous heroes and villains such as the Sea Devils<\/strong>, Metal Men<\/strong>, Atom<\/strong> and such, but the creators of this revised history never forget their new audience and nothing here is unclear for first-timers. The finale is a fan\u2019s all-action dream with every hero on Earth united to combat all-out alien invasion! \u2026And of course, the rookie JLA save the day again in glorious style.
\n\u00a9 1998 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Mark Waid, Brian Augustyn & Barry Kitson with Michael Bair, John Stokes, Mark Propst, & various (DC Comics) ISBN: 978-1-56389-512-8 (TPB) If the chop-and-change continuity gymnastics DC have undergone in recent years gives you a headache, but you still love reading excellent superhero team stories, you could just take my word that this is … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “JLA: Year One”<\/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":[133,10,258,295,110,294,76,164,91,15,82,16,28,241,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26377","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-aquaman","category-batman","category-black-canary","category-blackhawks","category-blue-beetle","category-challengers-of-the-unknown","category-dc-superhero","category-doom-patrol","category-flash","category-green-arrow","category-green-lantern","category-jla","category-jsa","category-martian-manhunter","category-superman"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-6Rr","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26377","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=26377"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26377\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26379,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26377\/revisions\/26379"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26377"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26377"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26377"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}