Letting villains join Justice League Unlimited is a terrible idea
Justice League Unlimited #18 is my favourite issue of the series so far.
A day in the life issue, writer Mark Waid uses it as an opportunity to address the questions that would arise when a society for good opens its doors to people who have done evil things. Many evil things. Which is why it’s a case of Justice League Incredulity – everyone below the ‘senior leadership’ level – Batman, Captain Marvel, Wonder Woman, Black Lightning – has questions.
Plastic Man points out that heroes can start out as scumbags – he certainly did. And Black Lightning looks after a few other points.
Also, there’s a Phantom Zone catapult for baddies who misbehave, and to avoid panic, the public aren’t being told about the scheme while it’s in Beta.
Have Giganta and Green Arrow Jr had run-ins? Happily, when they’re sent to Bialya to rescue scientists from terrorists with Aquaman, Starro, Kid Flash, Dr Occult, Captain Atom, Wildcat and Lex Luthor, they get down to business with no issues. Wildcat, though, has questions for the bad bald boffin.
Meanwhile, an all-good-guy group are setting off on a secret-ish mission.
Meanwhile again, an all-good-guy group are setting off on a secret-ish mission.
And that’s how Booster, Mary and J’onn wind up in Smallville in Action Comics.
So yes, I liked this issue a lot, give me superheroes chatting and a bit of a fight, and I’m happy. Said tussle gives artist Clayton Henry a chance to show off what a talent he has for dynamic movement.
He also gets to show off his humour chops with a Ted Kord and Guy Gardner scene that could’ve come from the Kevin Maguire Justice League. What’s more, Henry has a real facility for cape draping, as seen with his Air Wave and Martian Manhunter. As for Henry’s Metamorpho…
… hang on, where is the Element Man? Mr Terrific says he’s on the Oa mission, we see the spacecraft after take off, but there’s no sight of Rex Mason.
Meanwhile, Aquaman, recently upgraded to god-level, is in the depths of space in his own title, which takes place at the same time as this series. And yet here he is in Bialya, holding Starro’s interest.
Not speaking, and not seeming especially godlike. Hmm.
I was wondering if Waid was mixing up Hawkgirl and Hawkwoman, the latter being a Thanagarian used to flying spaceships and the former a dead film student. Then I remembered what a mess Hawkgirl Kendra Saunders’ history is, with a stint as Lady Blackhawk in there, so, pass.
Also, I had been asking why heroes who were present when Superman said he was going off on a mission were subsequently looking for him. This issue is where we get the answer, and I rather like Booster’s justification.
As for the supervillain amnesty bit, I’m glad to see we have some in-story safeguards, but I can certainly see the odd villain deciding offing a hero or two is worth a trip to the Phantom Zone – as deterrents go, it’s not up there with head bombs.
What I’d like to see come out of all this is JLU membership for Giganta. She flirted with being a good gal way back in Ryan Choi’s All-New Atom series and, well, I like her.
So, the story is fun-packed, the art is gorgeous. I can also say the colours by Tamra Bonvillain and letters of Ariana Maher are first-rate.
It all adds up to a jolly good read. Stick that on the cover, DC!
But not on this issue’s cover, which is busy enough already. Dan Mora’s illustration isn’t up to his usual standard; there’s a decent concept – hero arguing with villain before the eyes of the world – but not a great composition. It’s far too cluttered with wave after wave of cameras and characters.
Maybe next month’s cover will be better. I’ll certainly be here to find out. Or maybe it’ll be Metamorpho…
Too Dangerous For a Girl 2 
I have always thought that Wonder Woman should have converted a couple of her villains to the side of the angels. Her relationship with Barbara Minerva, for example, would lend itself perfectly to a redemption arc and Cheetah becoming a super-hero. Same with Giganta. In fact, Giganta has been on the verge more than once. She had a relationship with The Atom (Choi) and was very protective and supportive of his activities as a hero.
I think writers have dropped the ball on those two villains in particular.
But the Flash’s Rogues Gallery is one that I think should be a hero team instead of criminals. None of them is psychotic or willing to kill for no reason, and as a hero-for-hire team they could make a ton of money while not being evil.
I really liked when they turned Killer Frost into a hero in one of the Justice League books a while ago.
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The Killer Frost character arc was terrific, I’m glad we’ve seen her lately in Titans, and she wasn’t ‘re-evilled’.
You’re so right about Diana and her enemies, she should have helped a good few reform over the years. Maybe the US authorities wouldn’t let her take them to Transformation Island.
We know that in the real world the bad guys have to stay bad so we readers can enjoy them fighting the heroes, which is likely why the refreshing post-Crisis turns for the good of the Flash Rogues didn’t stick.
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Writers who either don’t know of the reformations or just plain don’t like them (Carey’s re-evilling Juggernaut is a prime example since he admits he had no good story reason. He just preferred Cain eeeeeeeeeevil) also guarantee the majority of the unevilled characters will go bad again.
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Ugh. The one time a DC Event has any effect on the rest of the line afterwards and it has to be something I hate. What irked me first was page four and Wonder Woman saying human concepts of good and evil are trivial, even if it’s framed in the light of the threat of a character now more tired and overused than the Joker. I especially call bullshit on that. That one speech makes mockery of having a moral stand on what’s just plain good and right.
Throw in Guy getting treated like he’s had no character progression since his brain damage, Luthor either having no parole officer or worse, it being the Wildcat who should have been killed off instead of Ted (who somehow died despite having nine lives that reset with enough time between deaths). The better Green Arrow somehow showing more negative emotion than he has ever in whole issues in one panel. And Hector? Tell me Weather Wizard isn’t being shown as psychotic or willing to kill for no reason. It feels like Waid is being unsubtle about what a freaking disaster this stupid idea is.
The Rogues as a hero team would mean they might go back to being credible threats. Separate they were all credible menaces to be taken seriously and took effort to beat, sometimes taking more than one issue to be taken down. Since they’ve been yoked to each other they all get jobbed within panels.
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I fear you are always right, Steve… excellent points all round! Waid does seem to be treating this book as a bit of a romp rather than a series featuring the heroes and villains as they have become. I wonder if I’ve been worn down by all the continuity revamps to be so accepting.
A few folk have said they’d rather Waid was on a more traditional, less sprawling Justice League book and it’s hard to disagree; I’ve seen only a few episodes of the JLU cartoon, but am I right in thinking that within the ‘unlimited’ concept each episode focused on just a few characters?That would do me nicely.
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I think this will be my last issue, at least for a while. I’ve had a love/hate relationship with this title for 18 months. I’ve hung on because it’s Waid. And if you don’t think too hard about it, it’s a fun book. A “popcorn” read as they say. But it’s just – off. I can’t get through an issue without questioning a story choice (in #18 it’s the idea the heroes somehow stored some of their powers in a container?!?!) or characterization decision or plot hole or without lamenting the fact it is ALWAYS having to be so closely linked to the Darkseid saga Snyder and Williamson are helming into 2027.
I realize it’s very, very, very, very unfair of me to expect Waid to write three DC monthlies, on top of whatever other DC/non-DC projects he has cooking, and expect “Kingdom Come” or “Superman: Birthright” or “Batman & Robin: Year One” or “Black Widow” quality in every issue. But yeah, with “Justice League Unlimited,” that’s what I want. I want a modern day classic every month. I want “JLA: Year One” caliber plotting and characterization every month. I want a book that I can re-read 20 years from now and it feels timeless.
I just so wish this book, under Waid, was off, doing it’s own thing, just like Grant Morrison was seemingly allowed to chart his own course when he wrote “JLA.” Just like Waid was also able to do his own thing when he succeeded Morrison on “JLA” over 20 years ago.
-Brian
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I forgot about the bag of powers in my comment. It’s stupid and only someone reading this as their first comic ever wouldn’t realize it’s a set up for basically the most powerful Amazo to date. (And I want Amazo’s kid back!)
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You’re not being unfair on Waid, Mark, he doesn’t have to be taking on so much work; I suspect that having wanted to play in the greater DC playground for so many years he’s grabbing every opportunity that comes up.
That power donation nonsense, I wish Waid had at least come up with a ‘comic booky’ explanation – something wild, maybe, that would at least indicate we readers weren’t being taken for granted.
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Man, I love Clayton Henry’s art. I hope he finds a permanent home soon, but he does wonders as the regular fill-in on this book.
I liked this issue, especially in the ways the League tries to mitigate what’s almost certainly a bad idea (using the phantom zone, and hero sponsors, and keeping this beta test from the public) — and how Lex makes sure that secrecy will immediately bite them on the ass.
Giganta would be a great permanent hero turn. As for the Rogues, half of them have reformed at one time or another. Heat Wave reformed pre-Crisis; Golden Glider and Captain Cold set up their own troubleshooting service in the early days of post crisis (I think it was called “Golden Snowball Recoveries”), and of course, Pied Piper has reformed and that’s stuck.
As for Weather Wizard wanting to kill someone? It feels out of character for him, but at the same time, I think he murdered someone in his origin story, so it might just be Waid going back to basics there. (Although after all the reboots, I’m not sure if this is the same Weather Wizard as the one I grew up with.)
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Clayton Henry is such a talent, why does DC not promote him the way they do some of their creatives? The least they could do is announce he’s the ongoing JLU pictures person.
I was glad to see so many Leaguers questioning the ‘senior leadership’. Why is there even such a thing, the organisation should be a lot more democratic. I’ve moaned about this previously, but why is the concept of ‘the Trinity’ (ugh) an in-universe thing?
I loved those early Wally Flash issue with the Rogues inviting him to their parties and the like. I suppose it couldn’t last, he has to fight someone and it takes a long time to bed in new enemies, if they ‘take’ at all.
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The Trinity only exists because Wonder Woman had merch that sold. Their true top three IMO was Bruce and Clark with Barry for a bit and Hal (ugh) after Johns. Is it true they lost ownership of Wonder Woman had they cancelled her series? That would explain how she made it out of the Golden age for sure.
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Yes indeed, I’m not sure of the exact details but there was a clause that if a Wonder Woman comic wasn’t published for a certain amount of time the rights would revert to the Marston estate. I believe that’s why we got the Legend of Wonder Woman mini series post-Crisis and pre-Potter/Wein/Perez.
I do hope Harley Quinn hasn’t won the Trinity spot!
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The Trinity should ignore gender. Despite them artificially including Diana in it she’s unimportant compared to many other characters in continuity and in sales. It’s gotten so bad lately that no one cares about Yara Flor or Trinity anywhere near as much as Cassie was for years after her debut. The third spot in the Trinity should be the highest selling character period over the last ten years and limited to those that have their own titles. I’d even accept Hal because even though I usually hate how he’s written, Hal’s friction with Bruce is entertaining.
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To me, this feels less like a Justice League book and more like an Adventures in the DCU series. It’s been designed from the very beginning to reflect whatever is going on within the DC universe either by setting up crossovers, or telling stories directly connected to those events.
i don’t mind having that kind of book floating around, but it’s hard to feel connected to the characters or any particular storyline.
Maybe it would be different if we had a point of view character(s) or a little breathing space between events.
I’m not complaining. As I said, I’m enjoying the series, but it’s not really what I want from a Justice League book. Maybe we need a second title that’s a more traditional JLA series, while keeping this title for the ongoing story of the DCU.
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Excellent thinking Murray, this isn’t a JL book in any of the traditional senses. Give me a nice old satellite series!
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Even if it’s meaningless twaddle you can skip if you’re sitting out the semiannual Big Event, it’s Waid written meaningless twaddle which is levels above most other writers, the very good ones and Snyder.
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It seems like Mr. Terrific, Airwave and Ted Kord have been the point of view characters for a few months. But Waid doesn’t really do anything with them. There’s the intense smart guy, the young kid and the more laid back smart guy. We got a whole story arc with Terrific leading a team to hell. That would have been a great time to explore his character. The science guy grappling with spirituality. Also didn’t his wife die? Does he believe in an afterlife? We got none of that. He could have been replaced with anyone. Waid is much better than this. That’s my frustration. This is just interchangeable action figures playing out scenes. – Brian
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oh very good points, Brian. The characters are interchangeable and we aren’t getting even a cursory examination of anything that might approach character development. Those story suggestions if things that could have been explored with Mr. Terrific are excellent.
it’s really cool to have a book where any character from the DCU could pop up, but if nothing interesting or exciting is done with that character, it feels a little pointless.
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Excellent points as ever, Brian. And didn’t Mr Terrific get together with an alternate world double of his late wife in The Terrifics? I’m likely misremembering.
DC never has come up with an explanation as to why the pragmatic sceptic types don’t believe in angels and demons as they’re teaming up with the Spectre and Azrael.
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I always assumed they believed there was a more prosaic explanation than God granted powers that they just haven’t figured out yet.
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I like the book, even though I don’t think it’s a true Justice League series. It feels more like a DCU Break Room book: a place where we see the various heroes sent onto their missions or catching a breather in between. Which is fine. But it doesn’t make it a Justice League book.
It’s really only had two arcs over 18 issues: We Are Yesterday (with buildup) and DC KO (with build-up and aftermath). Meanwhile, a lot of the real action has been happening in the “mission” books like Challengers, The Question, The Atom Project, Just League Red, Aquaman, Action Comics, Cheetah & Cheshire Rob the Justice League, Dream Girls, etc.
When the Power Bank was introduced in C&CRJL, I really hopped it was a McGuffin: A rumor the heroes purposefully put out there to make a tempting target for villains to go after (and thus nab them in their attempt). I am not thrilled to see it was real. Even in a universe of magic wishing rings, mechanized armor suits, gods, sentient planets, parallel worlds, and timeline resets, it is a bridge too far. How does a Kryptonian give a “portion” of their biological powers? Or a tech-based hero like Steel? Does it mean they are all willingly reducing their power levels so they have some last ditch reserve? If so, how helpful would it be to have 2% (or whatever) of their powers restored if they were defeated at “full” strength? And the Atom Project showed us how difficult it was to restore powers to the proper individuals. And another thing… And another… And…
It’s just dumb.
Sorry. Where was I? Oh, right. That I do like this book. But I want to see an actual adventure-based Justice League book accompanying it. Maybe borrow from another animated series and call it Justice League Action?
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Justice League Break Room, I like that!
Aha, so the power bank nonsense doesn’t originate here. I did see a Cheetah and Cheshire… preview, but not liking either character, and always ending up bored by Greg Rucka stories, I’d not read it. Now I shall have to dig it up on DC Infinite.
I’ve not been impressed by several of the spin-off books as a whole – the Atom Project, Challengers, The Question all failed to provide satisfying endings, the creators apparently being instructed to leave loose ends for the mother book.
Justice League Action makes sense, but I really hope for a Justice League of America – I’m sentiment that way.
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I’m more of a fan of Rucka than you are, but even so, I think I can definitely recommend Cheetah and Cheshire Rob the Justice League. While I hate the concept of the power bank, I do think it’s a fun mcguffin for a heist — and the heist itself is a blast to watch come together. This one pays off a lot better than most other JLA “satellite” books. And Nicola Scott’s art is always fantastic.
With Rucka, I tend to read his books in chunks; he’s subtle & intricate enough with his plot points to make his things read better as a trade. Or, sometimes, I’ll let the first several issues build up, and then read the end of the story when it’s delivered, a chapter at a time. But the important thing is to read the first several setup issues all at once. That’s what I’m planning on doing with Batwoman.
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Better yet, just Justice League with arcs featuring the JLU members who team for their areas? JLA and JLE, of course, but JL Asia, JL Australia, and JL South America where maybe we’ll get native heroes that were raised there instead of Surplus To Requirements Girl.
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Yeah, the periphery Justice League books have been a mixed bag. I was especially annoyed by the lack of a real ending in Challengers. Which is too bad, because the concept, the character work, and the art were all great.
I didn’t think the characterization in Atom Project was right, especially for Ray Palmer. And I had to page through Justice League Red to remind myself how it ended. But man is Clayton Henry’s art great. Super-nice guy, too. I met him at Baltimore Comic-Con some years ago.
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