The Monitor Tapes for 10.6.2009
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA 80-PAGE GIANT
Written by Chuck Kim, Josh Williamson, Rich Fogel and others; Art by Mahmud Asrar, Adrian Syaf and others; Cover by Jay Anacleto
Despite being a mixed bag at times, I love the 80 Page Giants. It’s been a while since one’s “Officially” come out (not counting the Holiday specials that are about the same), so despite my 50/50 optimism/ pessimism I picked up the latest one, despite the massive price tag (though it does have a massive page count to be fair).
The framing of the story is probably my favorite part of the story, picking up from Greg Rucka’s “Final Crisis- Resist” where Barbara Ann Minerva, AKA Cheetah and JLA mascot and Checkmate operative Lucas “Snapper” Carr have one of those Zero-Hour Armageddon trysts. Snapper hanging out at the old mountain base formerly used by the JLA find Barbra sneak up on him looking for love, or lust depending on how you look at it. These two hooking up in FC-S and continuing the story here is one of those complicated character dynamics I’m fond of reading about, Snapper the “Hero” working for a spy agency and not as trusted by the JLA due to said affiliation, and the “Villainess” Cheetah, foe to Wonder Woman, member of the Society (of Villains) and Injustice League. These two together make a great pair, and I hope to see more, despite from being from opposite sides of the tracks, it’s a very human dynamic not often seen in DC comics of late.
The main story goes into the JLA (featuring the current-non line up and the big guns absent of late, though still missing Batman) up against Epoch, AKA The Lord of Time. Really though, it’s just an introductory framing sequence regarding the “Worlds Greatest Superheroes” paring up lost in time. Despite being a throwback to the old Justice League stories, it’s refreshing and gives a spotlight on the characters (though small and brief) as opposed to the JLA army barreling down on a massive menace only the team can take on together (though in the end that’s what they end up doing to a degree). As the League disappears into time via Epoch’s attack, Snapper freaking out gets a grip as Barbra tries to explain they’ll be back due to her “Cat’s instinct”. The Time Commander pops into the story providing dynamic exposition regarding the situation, more on that later.
The small stories are fun, starting with Green Lantern and Red Arrow in the old west, the two of them end up in a bar brawl resulting in the arrest of plain close Hal because they are funny lookin’ outsiders (a redneck in any time…). As Hal recounts the recent events from his cell, Sheriff “Bully” as we’ll call him insults Hal and tells him to get ready for hanging and burning his body after.
Meanwhile, Roy, AKA Red Arrow is regrouping with the help of Cinnamon, AKA Katherine “Kate” Manser, reincarnation of Egyptian princess Chay-Ara (recently resurrected in this weeks Green Lantern #46) and future Hawkwomen. The pair go off to rescue Hal and show up at the last minute as the hanging begins. Needless to say, I’m sure you can figure out the rest.
The remaining pair-ups include Vixen and Green Lantern John Stewart teaming up with the original Shining Knight in the days of Camelot. Despite the culture shock of the Europeans, the JLAers help them against the forces of Morgan Le Fey. Zatanna and Black Canary end up in the late thirties and save the Crimson Avenger from lead poisoning, swooning over the legend who inspired much of the DCU. One of the funnier stories includes Firestorm and Green Arrow, hanging out on an island for two months due to Ollie’s worry about the “Space-Time Continuum” (He saw it in an episode of Star Trek). They encounter the Bride (Frankenstein’s four armed ex) who’s trying to stop Ra’s Al Ghul from reaching a Lazarus Pit (turns out he was married to the Bride as well). Despite Ollie’s worries, he tries to kill Ra’s, where Firestorm realizes they have changed the future, so he fixes it with hilarious results (probably my favorite story.
Skipping over the last couple of team ups (mostly for space), the end wraps up with Snapper helping the Time Commander with the grudging assistance of Cheetah. The Lord of Time is trying to kill the Commander’s grandmother who was just born. With the knowledge provided Snapper uses his powers (teleportation) to “disarm” Epoch, only to learn in the end there was more to the story than was said to him.
Thoroughly enjoyable, the book isn’t going to blow you away (especially with the $5.99 price tag). It’s an enjoyable thick read, somewhat distracted from due to what looks to be rushed art with inconsistencies and color errors. Not that that’s really going to ruin the stories themselves, but it can be a bit distracting at times. If you like JLA or even Justice League Unlimited, you can’t really go wrong picking it up. But for the casual fan, probably live without it.
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Thanks for reading!