Justice League of America #1
Writer: Brad Meltzer
Artist: Ed Benes
Company: DC Comics
I’m about to say some nice things about this book, and I do so knowing full well I may end up wanting to axe-murder it halfway through the run. Because that’s how things went down with Brad Meltzer’s last contribution to the DC Universe, Identity Crisis. Meltzer opened strong with a tightly-plotted mystery that got inside the heads of DC’s heroes and villains better than any new writer in ages. He showed deep knowledge of DC’s rich history, and had a dramatic, confident authorial voice. He THEN spiraled off into a subversion of DC’s heroes, bad plot twists and loose ends, and worst of all, an egotistical finale that proclaimed with a quote from Arthur Miller that this very story had changed the face of superhero comics forever:
“An era can be said to end when its basic illusions are exhausted.”
With the taste of bile still in my throat over Identity Crisis and how it hijacked DC’s editorial direction of the last few years…I would now like to say that I enjoyed Brad Meltzer’s first issue of the relaunched Justice League of America.
I’m going to pause to take a deep breath…
Iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinhale.
Eeeeeeeeeeexhale.
…and now we can move on to the kind words.
First thing’s first: this is a “putting the band back together” issue, anchored by two intercut plot threads. First, there’s a meeting of DC’s “Big Three” – Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman – to review JLA candidates. It’s rife with insider references, jabs both friendly and pointed, heroes referenced by first name only, and floating captions with the speaker’s voice identified only by color (fine for longtime DC fans, confusing for anyone else). The second plot, poised to intersect with the first, belongs to B-list hero Red Tornado. His android body’s been destroyed, but as he seems to have a “soul”, his wife and adopted child anxiously await the resurrection that’s occurred every other time he’s been destroyed. Meanwhile we see Tornado’s literal soul contemplating a risky twist on returning to life (this is the kind of stuff I love about superhero books), aided and abetted by DC’s most famous ghost - Deadman. Now this is my first real Red Tornado story, but damned if Meltzer didn’t make me care about the android with the wind powers. Last time he had me so caught up in a B-lister, of course, it was the Elongated Man, a character he then went on to cripple with misery. Smart money’s on keeping my enthusiasm tempered.
Still, it’s almost impossible to not be won over by Meltzer’s carefully thought-out humanization of all these characters. Small things, like the hard-assed Batman referring to Red Tornado with a friendly “Reddy”, Green Arrow’s quietly genuine, “Go get ‘em, Roy” when his ex-sidekick gets a JLA invite and he doesn’t, or Tornado’s wife reminiscing about their nightly crossword puzzles before bed…these are the moments that draw me in and make me want to believe in Meltzer. If anything, the risk he runs is the characters becoming too human, losing the “super” part of the superhero equation that’s long held them to higher standards than we mere mortals.
As the issue progresses, there are various interludes with likely recruits like Arsenal, Vixen, and Black Lightning. They sport imaginative ideas, like Black Lightning cultivating a network of criminal informants based on his righteous but perceived-as-shady link to the Luthor presidency. And intriguing set-ups, like Vixen being lured to a bar by an oblique romantic note from The Question (“Blue Devil used to try crap like this,” she notes. “But Blue Devil never tried quoting French surrealist novelists like Anais Nin.”) These scenes are absolutely dense with smart, neat moments, but as you might be guessing, a lot’s gonna be lost if you don’t know your DC history. In fact, the last time I read a comic so immersed in continuity-lore was the Giffen/Bierbaum Legion of the 90s. I ultimately dug researching all the characters and history I needed to get that one straight, but I don’t know if that same phenomenon will hold true for most. Still, for them what needs a cheat sheet, the internet’s a godsend, as seen in this list of annotations from reviewer Don MacPherson.
In addition to being entrenched in DC history, JLA #1 has a few other issues. For one, it’s all set-up and no action. Is it just me or does that feel innately wrong when we’re talking the frickin’ JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA? The closest we get is a great build-up to confrontation in the Vixen subplot, but it’s not the same as seeing the League actually doing something. Then there’s Meltzer’s narrative captions. Boy does he love his narrative captions! And he often uses ‘em well to get in heads and establish structure, but sometimes he ODs on ‘em and sometimes the captions trip up over each other and you forget who’s talking. Lastly, we’ve got Ed Benes’s art, which is passably detailed and heroic – sort of a hybrid between Jim Lee and J. Scott Campbell - but undercut by a mannequin-like quality to faces and a skimpy repertoire of facial expressions. It would’ve been nice to see Rags Morales – the undeniably superb artist of Identity Crisis - teamed with Meltzer for a book this big.
Anyway, I’m stickin’ around. I was drawn in by the characters and Meltzer’s nuanced view of them. I was hooked by the ping-ponging structure, building and building until all the separate subplots come to a head in the energetic, rapid-cut finale. And there are enough cool ideas on every page that I found myself wondering, as I did with the first issue of Identity Crisis, “Why don’t more writers think about the DC Universe in such an interesting way?”
Well, I know how Identity Crisis turned out and I’m braced for a repeat if it happens. Certainly the story plants some dark seeds that might overwhelm it if they play out with Identity Crisis subversion. But I’m reviewing a single issue, not a body of work here, and just at this moment…the single issue has me jazzed.
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Like you I find myself very cautiously, very tentatively, enjoying this first issue, all the while waiting for that other shoe to drop.
Red Tornado is one of those character I thought looked cool as a kid, and I still do, but he’s never been that interesting, but Meltzer got interested and feeling for the character, not to mention worrying some, though so far in a good story tension building way. Which brings me to your point about their being no all set-up and no action, I didn’t even realize that was the case until you pointed out, I guess I got so caught up in the slow burn menace and fan boy nods that I just didn’t notice. It’s also more common in today’s comics so maybe I’m just getting used to it, but I agree a book called JLA should have dramatic world shaking rescues and skies echoing with the thunderous roar of meta human punch-im ups.
29 Aug 2006 at 9:02 am
Quotemultiple covers aside, i really loved this issue. how come theres no mention of green lantern in this review?
and will there be a review rating guide here in comic pants in the future?
29 Aug 2006 at 9:31 am
QuoteGreen Lantern really wasn’t in this book much (only one panel, right?), I’d hazard a guess that’s why Dave didn’t call him out by name. Certainly I thought that Vixen’s appearance was the best thing about the book, and Meltzer did some fun stuff with her powers in her brief appearance.
No ratings on Comic Pants, I’m afraid. Whether we liked the book or not will be spelled out pretty clearly in the review, but we won’t be doing a thumbs up/thumbs down, number rating, label rating or anything of the sort.
29 Aug 2006 at 12:11 pm
Quote“Last time he had me so caught up in a B-lister, of course, it was the Elongated Man, a character he then went on to cripple with misery.”
This, by the way, is a good example of why I wanted to work on a review site with Dave. Perfectly encapsulates the false hope and end results that many of us suffered during Identity Crisis.
29 Aug 2006 at 12:13 pm
QuotePlease add me to the chorus of eager readers hoping for quick ratings of some sort. Here’s why: We love reading well-written, thoughtful and humorous reviews. However, sadly, some of us actually have, you know, work to do during the day, and, although we value your learned opinions, sadly we don’t have the time to pore over every review site to help us make decisions about what’s worth picking up! A simple grade, score, thumbs up, etc. goes a long way toward whether I’m going to read a review or not. I actually use the rating as a starting point most of the time: “Oh, he gave it an A-? Why the minus?” Randy, I loved Fourth Rail, but when you stopped rating, I stopped reading! Don’t let it happen again!
Love the idea of the site otherwise, by the way. A small capsule rating (perhaps a recommended/not recommended with/without reservations like they have on comics should be good?) could make it a real must-read.
Thanks for letting me sound off. Best of luck!
29 Aug 2006 at 12:36 pm
QuoteCan two people be a chorus? I think you’re a duet.
More seriously, I’m afraid that the ratings are pretty much non-negotiable. Dave F and I aren’t generally interested in doing them, and while I won’t rule out Dave M and Nick doing them (I don’t want to speak for them), I think they’re pretty much onboard the “no ratings” thing as well.
Ratings are a lot tougher than they look, and I feel like in general people use them as an excuse to skip the review and just look at the “quick fix” which probably isn’t really representative of the review as a whole. It lacks a lot of the subtlety and qualifications that go into an actual review. Also, we put a fair amount of time into doing these reviews… it’s a little disappointing if everyone is just looking at a number, letter or thumbprint that we could have banged out in two seconds.
I will say that the amount of content we’ll be having on the site on a regular basis should be pretty easy to keep up with, even as a casual reader. Hopefully, the intro paragraph (or even the intro sentence) will serve the same purpose as a rating, making you decide whether or not you want to read further. Or, if you’ve seen a well-graded (or badly graded) book on other sites and you want to see our thoughts, you can check in on our review, with or without number ratings. So I do think we’re still plenty useful as a resource with or without ratings. Some of my favorite reviewers, like Greg McElhatton and Johanna Draper Carlson, don’t use ratings and seem to do OK.
We do offer the “Hot Pants” pick, which is sort of the equivalent of a “Site Pick,” so there’s that.
Anyway, that’s my long-winded take on where I’m at with the ratings.
29 Aug 2006 at 6:17 pm
QuoteI prefer the no ratings, for all the reasons Randy mentioned, and also because what I am looking for in a review is someone’s opinion on something, thought out and explained and hopefully entertaining (except in Randy’s case, where I’ll put up with just reasoned explanations, har de har har). Ratings always smack to me of reviews with nothing to say, even though that may not be the case.
29 Aug 2006 at 10:08 pm
QuoteI thought this was a pretty solid issue. I was a tad bit disappointed Ollie didn’t make it onto the team. I do like Roy though and thought it was a good payoff to back in Meltzer’s “The Archer’s Quest ” in Green Arrow when Ollie said the JLA should be asking you(Roy) to join the league.
I’m kind of suprised Zatanna didn’t show up in this. Maybe he is just saving her for another issue but he’s always been a big Zatanna fan. Just curious.
29 Aug 2006 at 10:25 pm
Quoteso far so good with this issue. i gotta admit im a little bit interested what the “meltzer/benes era” will have to offer. i think i’ll stay on this series for the long run. i wasn’t that disappointed with meltzer’s identity crisis, i think it was a very interesting read. more power to you guys and good luck on the jla run. peace!
30 Aug 2006 at 2:18 am
QuoteI’m kind of suprised Zatanna didn’t show up in this. Maybe he is just saving her for another issue but he’s always been a big Zatanna fan. Just curious.
Well, Meltzer has indicated that there’s going to be another member added a few issues down the line (bringing the total up to 11). I’m thinking it’s either going to be Zatanna or Flash.
30 Aug 2006 at 10:09 am
QuoteJust read this yesterday and liked it to a degree. The main thing that held me back from really enjoying this was the fact that, 2 issues in, nothing much has happened at all. Also, it was overly soapy at times and had too many unknown (for me at least) characters who seemed to be used for a panel just to show that Meltzer knew his JLA history. What I liked is that I could really feel Meltzer’s love for the main players. Having just read Identity Crisis (waited for the trade), I’m not sure it’ll last. Will def stick around for #2 but stuff better start blowing up soon
30 Aug 2006 at 3:07 pm
QuoteI know what you mean about that character-love not lasting, Glennewman. I think in his heart, Meltzer’s more interested in these characters suffering than triumphing. That’s a kind of blunt way to put it, and doesn’t mean the suffering isn’t imaginatively portrayed, but…Identity Crisis almost became blackly humorous for me with all the sh*t it heaped on its characters. I’m just sayin’: let the good guys catch a break every once in a while, Brad!
31 Aug 2006 at 11:33 am
QuoteThis is a question for anyone who knows the answer: What is the crossword question that Red Tornado’s wife asks him in issue one or two. It’s something along the lines of “A propper goose” and it’s been bothering me for a while.
But, about the book. It is deffinately a great start to a great series. I kinda wish that they would try to make the new league completely different, kind of like how the new Avengers do not have Captain America. Anyways… please get back to me.
18 Jun 2007 at 9:05 pm
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