| Justice League | |
|---|---|
Cover art for Justice League (vol. 2) #1 fourth printing. Art by Ivan Reis. |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | The Brave and the Bold (vol. 1) #28 (February/March 1960) |
| Created by | Gardner Fox |
| In-story information | |
| Base(s) | The Hall and the Satellite Watchtower The Refuge JLI Embassies Detroit Bunker Satellite Secret Sanctuary |
| Roster | |
| See:List of Justice League members | |
The Justice League, also called the Justice League of America or JLA, is a fictional superhero team that appears in comic books published by DC Comics and Marvel Comics.
First appearing in The Brave and the Bold #28 (February/March 1960), the League originally appeared with a line-up that included Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash (Barry Allen), Green Lantern (Hal Jordan), Aquaman, and the Martian Manhunter. However, the team roster has been rotated throughout the years with characters such as Green Arrow, Atom, Hawkman, Hawkgirl, Black Canary, Captain Marvel, Plastic Man, Red Tornado, Zatanna, other Green Lanterns, and dozens of others. The team received its own comic book title in October 1960, when the first issue was published, and would continue to #261 in April 1987, which was the final issue. Throughout the years, various incarnations or subsections of the team have operated as Justice League America, Justice League Europe, Justice League International, Justice League Task Force, Justice League Elite, and Extreme Justice.
Various comic book series featuring the League have remained generally popular with fans since inception and in most incarnations, its roster includes DC's most popular characters. The League concept has also been adapted into various other entertainment media, including the classic Saturday morning Super Friends animated series (1973–1986), an unproduced Justice League of America live-action series, and most recently the animated series Justice League (2001–2004) and Justice League Unlimited (2004–2006). A live-action film was in the works in 2008 before being shelved. "
Contents |
| Justice League of America | |
|---|---|
Cover to Justice League of America #1. Art by Mike Sekowsky. |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Ongoing |
| Publication date | October 1960 – April 1987 |
| Number of issues | 261 |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | Gardner Fox Gerry Conway |
| Penciller(s) | Mike Sekowsky Dick Dillin George Pérez |
| Inker(s) | Sid Greene Dick Giordano Frank McLaughlin |
| Creator(s) | Gardner Fox Mike Sekowsky |
Having successfully reintroduced a number of their Golden Age superhero characters (Flash, Green Lantern, etc.) during the late 1950s, DC Comics asked writer Gardner Fox to reintroduce the Justice Society of America. Fox, influenced by the popularity of the National Football League and Major League Baseball, decided to change the name of the team from Justice Society to Justice League.[1] The Justice League of America debuted in The Brave and the Bold #28 (1960), and after two further appearances in that title, got their own series which quickly became one of the company's best-selling titles. Fox and artist Mike Sekowsky were the creative team for the title's first eight years. Sekowsky's last issue was #63 (June 1968) and Fox departed with #65 (September 1968).
The initial Justice League lineup included seven of the DC superheroes being published regularly at that time: Superman, Batman, Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, and Wonder Woman. However, Superman and Batman barely featured in most of the stories, not even appearing on the cover most of the time. Three of DC's other surviving or revived characters (Green Arrow, Atom, and Hawkman) were added to the roster over the next four years, the latter two having been revamped by Gardner Fox himself. JLA's early success was indirectly responsible for the creation of the Fantastic Four. In his autobiography Stan Lee relates how, during a round of golf, DC publisher Jack Liebowitz mentioned to Marvel-Timely owner Martin Goodman how well DC's new book (Justice League) was selling. Later that day Goodman told Lee to come up with a team of superheroes for Marvel; Lee and Jack Kirby produced the Fantastic Four.[2][3]
The Justice League operated from a secret cave outside of the small town of Happy Harbor, Rhode Island. A teenager named Lucas "Snapper" Carr tagged along on missions, and he became both the team's mascot and an official member. Snapper, noted for speaking in beatnik dialect and snapping his fingers, helped the League to defeat giant space starfish Starro the Conqueror in the team's first appearance. In Justice League of America #77 (December 1969), Snapper was tricked into betraying the cave headquarters' secret location to the Joker, resulting in his resignation from the team. His resignation followed the resignations of two of the League's original members, Wonder Woman (in Justice League of America #69) and J'onn J'onzz (in Justice League of America #71).[4]
In need of a new secure headquarters, the Justice League moved into an orbiting satellite headquarters in Justice League of America #78 (February 1970). Black Canary, Elongated Man, Red Tornado, Hawkwoman, Zatanna and Firestorm all joined the team during this period, and Wonder Woman returned. In the first two thirds or so of this era, the team was sometimes said to have a twelve-member limit and/or a "no duplication of powers" policy; this was formally rescinded in Justice League of America #146, allowing Hawkgirl to join.
Those involved in producing the Justice League of America comic during the 1970s include writers Denny O'Neil, Mike Friedrich, Len Wein, Elliot S! Maggin, Cary Bates, E. Nelson Bridwell, and Steve Englehart, with Dick Dillin handling the art chores from issues #64-181, missing only one issue, #153 and did only a framing sequence for #157. Len Wein wrote issues #100–114 wherein he and Dillin re-introduced the Seven Soldiers of Victory in issues #100-102[5] and the Freedom Fighters in issues #107-108.[6] Libra, a supervillain created by Wein and Dillin in Justice League of America #111 (May-June 1974),[7] would play a leading role in Grant Morrison's Final Crisis storyline in 2008. Writer Gerry Conway had a lengthy association with the title as well. His first JLA story appeared in issue #125 (December 1975) and he became the series' regular writer with issue #151 (February 1978). With a few exceptions, Conway would write the team's adventures until issue #255 (October 1986).[8] After Dick Dillin's death, George Pérez, Don Heck, and Rich Buckler would rotate as artist on the title. Pérez would leave the title as of issue #200[9] to concentrate on The New Teen Titans although he would contribute covers to the JLA through issue #220 (November 1983).
Seeking to capitalize on the popularity of their other team books, which focused upon heroes in their late teens/early 20s, Gerry Conway and artist Chuck Patton revamped the Justice League series. After most of the original heroes failed to arrive in order to help the team fend off an invasion of Martians, Aquaman dissolved the League and reformatted its charter to only allow heroes who would devote their full time to the roster.[10] The new team initially consisted of Aquaman, Zatanna, Martian Manhunter, Elongated Man, the Vixen, and a trio of teenage heroes Gypsy, Steel, and Vibe.[11] Aquaman would leave the team after a year and was replaced as leader by the Martian Manhunter. Because of his own edict of only wanting full-time heroes in the League, Aquaman's estranged wife Mera gave him an ultimatum to stay with either the group or with her to salvage their marriage.
Fan response to the series' new direction was largely negative and even the return of Batman to the team in Justice League of America #250 could not halt the decline of the series. Thus the fan deeming the name of the worst team of Justice Leaguer's ever, which eventually receded to the comics; such as in a moment of coversation in Justice League vol 2 Vixen said "With our line-up we coundn't even beat Detroit!" Which was responded by Dr Light "Anyone can beat Detroit!" The final storyline for the original Justice League of America series (#258-261) by writer J. M. DeMatteis and artist Luke McDonnell, culminated a story-arc involving long-time Justice League enemy Professor Ivo's murders of Vibe and Steel (and the resignations of Vixen, Gypsy, and the Elongated Man) during the events of DC's Legends mini-series, which saw the team disband.
The 1986 company-wide crossover featured the formation of a new Justice League. The new team was dubbed "Justice League" then "Justice League International" (JLI) and was given a mandate with less of an American focus. The new series, written by Keith Giffen and J. M. DeMatteis with art by Kevin Maguire (and later Adam Hughes), added quirky humor to the team's stories. In this incarnation, the membership consisted partly of heroes from Earths that, prior to their merging in the Crisis on Infinite Earths, were separate. The initial team included Batman, Black Canary, Blue Beetle, Captain Marvel, Doctor Light (a new Japanese female character, emerging from the Crisis of Infinite Earths, not the supervillain who had appeared previously), Doctor Fate, Martian Manhunter, Mister Miracle, and Guy Gardner; and soon after inception, added Booster Gold, Captain Atom, Fire (then known as the Global Guardians' Green Flame), Ice (then known as the Global Guardians' Icemaiden), and two Rocket Reds (one was a Manhunter spy, and one was Dimitri Pushkin). The series' humorous tone and high level of characterization proved very popular initially, but writers following Giffen and DeMatteis were unable to maintain the same balance of humor and heroics, resulting in the decline of the series' popularity. New writers gave the storylines a more serious tone and re-focused the team on America, resulting in the book being re-branded Justice League America. By the mid- to late-1990s, with the series' commercial success fading, it was eventually canceled, along with spinoffs Justice League Europe, Extreme Justice, and Justice League Task Force.
| JLA | |
|---|---|
Cover for JLA #1. Art by Howard Porter and John Dell. |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Ongoing |
| Publication date | January 1997 – February 2006 |
| Number of issues | 125 |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | Grant Morrison, Mark Waid, Joe Kelly, Denny O'Neil, Chuck Austen, Kurt Busiek, Geoff Johns, Allan Heinberg, Bob Harras |
| Penciller(s) | Howard Porter Bryan Hitch Doug Mahnke |
| Inker(s) | John Dell Paul Neary |
| Creator(s) | Grant Morrison Howard Porter |
The low sales of the various Justice League spinoff books prompted DC to revamp the League as a single team (all the various branch teams were disbanded) on a single title. A Justice League of America formed in the September 1996 limited series Justice League: A Midsummer's Nightmare by Mark Waid and Fabian Nicieza, which reunited the "Original Seven" of the League for the first time since Crisis on Infinite Earths. In 1997, DC Comics launched a new Justice League series titled JLA, written by Grant Morrison with art by Howard Porter and inker John Dell.
This series, in an attempt at a "back-to-basics" approach, used as its core the team's original seven members (or their successors): Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash (Wally West), Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner), and the Martian Manhunter. Additionally, the team received a new headquarters, the "Watchtower", based on the Moon. Morrison introduced the idea of the JLA allegorically representing a pantheon of gods, with their different powers and personalities, incorporating such characters as Zauriel, Big Barda, Orion, Huntress, Barbara Gordon (Oracle), Steel (John Henry Irons), and Plastic Man. He also had temporaries as Aztek, Tomorrow Woman, and Green Arrow (Connor Hawke).
Under Morrison, the series pitted the League against a variety of enemies, ranging from murderous White Martians, renegade angels, a new incarnation of the Injustice Gang led by Lex Luthor, the Key awakened from a coma, to the villainy of new villain Prometheus, the alien species of existing JLA villain Starro the Conqueror (revamped as a monstrous creature known as "The Star Conquerer") and Captain Atom villain General Wade Eiling, who transformed a cadre of Marines into deformed super-powered beings known as "The Ultra-Marines" as well as put his mind into the body of the indestructible Shaggy Man, and a futuristic Darkseid. Morrison's run itself featured a myth-arc involving the New Gods preparing the Earth for battle against a creature known as "Maggedon", a super-sentient weapon of mass destruction that was approaching Earth, that culminated in the final Morrison arc "World War III".
The run also had its share of editorial problems, such as Morrison's need to adapt to Superman's changing powers, the death of Wonder Woman and the loss of Green Arrow Connor Hawke, due to plans for a Kevin Smith-penned Green Arrow series. Still, JLA quickly became DC's best-selling title,[12] a position it enjoyed off and on for several years.[13] Despite this, DC did not create continuing spinoff series as it had done before.
Morrison departed with issue #41, after which the book saw runs by Mark Waid and Joe Kelly. Subsequent to this, the series switched to a series of rotating writers with issue #91 while Kelly (via JLA #100) was given a the mini-series Justice League Elite, which featured Green Arrow, Flash, and several other Kelly created characters. The new format saw stories by John Byrne, Chuck Austen, and Kurt Busiek. Geoff Johns and Allen Heinberg would take over the book with #115, which saw a multi-part storyline that dealt with the aftermath of Identity Crisis, and served as a lead-in to the events of "Infinite Crisis", as Superboy-Prime destroyed the Watchtower at the end of issue #119. Bob Harras would ultimately write the book's final storyline (JLA #120-125) as Green Arrow struggled in vain to keep the League afloat.
In 52 Week 24, Firestorm recruits a group to reform the Justice League. It consists of Firehawk, Super-Chief, Bulleteer, and Ambush Bug. They fight a deranged Skeets who takes Super-Chief's powers and kills him as well as numerous people given powers by Lex Luthor's Everyman Project. Afterward, Firestorm breaks up the team.
Also in the series, Luthor's new Infinity, Inc. was informally referred to as a "Justice League" in solicitations and on covers.
| Justice League of America (vol. 2) | |
|---|---|
Variant incentive cover for Justice League of America (vol. 2) #1 Art by Michael Turner. |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Ongoing |
| Publication date | August 2006 – August 2011 |
| Number of issues | 60 (including #0) as of August 2011 |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | Brad Meltzer Dwayne McDuffie Len Wein James Robinson |
| Penciller(s) | Ed Benes Mark Bagley Brett Booth |
| Creator(s) | Brad Meltzer Ed Benes |
One year after the events of Infinite Crisis, Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman reunite in the Batcave to re-form the League in Justice League of America #0, the kick-off for a new series by Brad Meltzer and Ed Benes. The series featured a roster which included Green Lantern (Hal Jordan), Black Canary, Red Arrow (Green Arrow's former sidekick), Red Tornado, Vixen, Black Lightning, and Hawkgirl. The first arc of the series focused upon Red Tornado and pitted the team against a new intelligent incarnation of Solomon Grundy and the rebuilt Amazo. The new incarnation of the team has two main headquarters, linked by a transporter. The first site is The Hall, which in mainstream DC Universe is a refurnished version of the Justice Society of America and the All-Star Squadron's former headquarters located in Washington, D.C. Black Canary is elected as the first official Chairperson after the fight against Amazo and Solomon Grundy, and led both the Justice League and Justice Society in a complex quest to reunite time-lost members of the pre-Crisis Legion of Super-Heroes, who had been sent back in time to free both Bart Allen and Flash from the other dimensional realm of the Speed Force. Meltzer left the series at the end of issue #12, with one of his subplots (Per Degaton, a pre-nuclear fire mutation version of Despero, and a circa 1948 version of the Ultra-Humanite gathering for an unknown plot) resolved in the pages of Booster Gold.
Dwayne McDuffie took over the writing job with the Justice League Wedding Special and the main book with issue #13. Due to DC Comics seeking to launch a spin-off Justice League book led by Hal Jordan, the character was removed from the main League series and replaced by John Stewart. Firestorm also joined the roster, with the series entering into a series of tie-in storylines towards Countdown to Final Crisis, with the arrest of a large number of supervillains (gathered by Lex Luthor and Deathstroke to attack the League on the eve of the wedding of Black Canary and Green Arrow) setting up the Salvation Run tie-in miniseries. Also, roster members Red Tornado and Geo-Force were written out. McDuffie's initial issues received mixed reviews and experienced minor conroversy due to fan favorite Hal Jordan's removal in favor of Stewart. Jordan ended up being restored to the roster by issue #19 of the series, only to be removed once again by issue #31 once Justice League: Cry for Justice was completed and ready to be shipped.
Issue #21 saw the return of Libra and the Human Flame, setting up their appearances in Final Crisis. Later issues would resolve issues involving Vixen's power level increase and see the integration of the Milestone Comics characters the Shadow Cabinet and Icon, who fought the Justice League over the remains of the villainous Doctor Light. The group suffered greater losses during Final Crisis with the deaths of Martian Manhunter and Batman, as well as the resignations of Superman and Wonder Woman, who could no longer devote themselves full-time to the League due to the events of the New Krypton and Rise of the Olympian storylines in their respective titles. Hal Jordan would also resign as well, clearing the way for John Stewart's return to the team. Black Canary (now team leader) found herself declaring the League no more, though the group would continue with Canary taking a secondary role in the group. Her last act as leader would be assigning John Stewart and Firestorm the task of hunting down the Human Flame, for his part in the murder of Martian Manhunter, as seen in the Final Crisis Aftermath: Run! miniseries.
Vixen would take over the team, with Plastic Man rejoining the group. Len Wein wrote a three-part fill-in story for Justice League of America[14] that ran from #35 to #37. McDuffie was fired from the title before he could return, after discussion postings to the DC Comics message board, detailing behind-the-scenes creative decisions on his run, were republished in the rumor column "Lying In The Gutter".[15] James Robinson was announced as the new Justice League of America writer.[16]
Wein's fill-in run would be published as "Justice League: Cry For Justice" neared its conclusion, as Vixen and Black Canary's group (sans John Stewart) would confront Hal Jordan and Green Arrow's makeshift Justice League group, which had stumbled upon a plot by the villain Prometheus that had resulted in much death and carnage. During the confrontation over Jordan's group using torture to extra information from the villains being blackmailed into carrying out Prometheus' plan, both Roy Harper and Supergirl would discover that one of Jordan's heroes, Captain Marvel Jr., was really Prometheus in disguise. In the ensuing battle, the League would suffer horrible losses: Roy Harper was maimed and his daughter Lian and hundreds of thousands of people in Star City would be killed by a doomsday device Prometheus activated. Vixen would have her leg broken and Plastic Man would have his powers permanently scrambled, making him a slowly disintegrating puddle creature. To save other cities from being destroyed like Star City, the League reluctantly allowed Prometheus to go free. However, Green Arrow (with help from the Shade) would track down and kill Prometheus.
Following the events of "Blackest Night", Hal Jordan and Donna Troy begin the task of rebuilding the League, with Green Arrow, the Atom, Batman, Mon-El, Donna, Cyborg, Doctor Light, Starfire, Congorilla, and the Guardian.
At the end of issue #43, the majority of the new members leave for various reasons. Mon-El and the Guardian leave after Mon-El returns to the future, Black Canary returns to the Birds of Prey, Starfire leaves to join the R.E.B.E.L.S., Green Lantern leaves locate the other Lantern Corps Entities, and Green Arrow is forced to leave due to his fugitive status. James Robinson revealed this was due to him having second thoughts about his decision to use so many characters, and revealed that the team would have a different roster in the coming months.[17] To replace the departed members, Jade and Jesse Quick were added to the team. Cyborg remained with the team in a reduced capacity, and was eventually given his own co-feature storyline for issues 48–50.[18]
Under Robinson, the title experienced mixed reviews and lower (but stable) sales than under Meltzer and McDuffie, with negative fan respone being leveled at the series due to its usage of lesser known heroes instead of more popular Justice League members. DC eventually announced that Saint Walker of the Blue Lantern Corps would be joining the Justice League during a tie-in to the Reign of Doomsday crossover, but the character did not become a full member due to the cancellation of the title.[19]
The series ended with issue #60 in August 2011, with the title being one of the numerous DC books cancelled after the Flashpoint crossover. The issue saw Batman disbanding the League due to most of the individual members becoming preoccupied with personal commitments.
| Justice League | |
|---|---|
Cover for Justice League #1. Art by Jim Lee and Scott Williams. |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Ongoing |
| Publication date | August 2011 – present |
| Main character(s) | Justice League of America |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | Geoff Johns |
| Penciller(s) | Jim Lee |
| Inker(s) | Scott Williams |
| Colorist(s) | Alex Sinclair |
| Creator(s) | Geoff Johns Jim Lee |
In 2011, following the "Flashpoint" crossover storyline, all DC titles were canceled. Fifty-two titles were relaunched with new first issues and new creative teams. Justice League of America was relaunched as Justice League, and was the first of the new titles released, coming out the same week as the final issue of Flashpoint.[20] The title will be written by Geoff Johns and drawn by Jim Lee, and will feature a brand new origin for the team[21] which is covered in the first six issues of the series that takes place five years before the events of the titles from the other relaunched series. Issue #7 of the series will begin the story of the Justice League in the present which is set to be released in March 2012.[22]
The starting line-up of the team will consist of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern (Hal Jordan), Aquaman, the Flash (Barry Allen), and Cyborg,[23][24] with the Atom (Ryan Choi), Hawkman (Carter Hall), Firestorm (Ronnie Raymond), Green Arrow, Aquaman's wife Mera, Deadman, recently created character Element Woman,[25] and Lady Luck, a revamp of the Golden Age character, as additional members.[26]
In addition to this series, two other Justice League-related titles have been announced and will launch during the same month; a new Justice League International, written by Dan Jurgens and drawn by Aaron Lopresti, featuring a roster consisting of Batman, Booster Gold, Rocket Red, Vixen, Green Lantern (Guy Gardner), Fire, Ice, August General in Iron,[27] and Godiva, and Justice League Dark, written by Peter Milligan and drawn by Mikel Janin, featuring a roster consisting of John Constantine, Shade, the Changing Man, Madame Xanadu, Deadman, Zatanna, and new character Mindwarp.[28]
In a story told in flashback in 1962's Justice League of America #9, Earth was infiltrated by the Appelaxians. Competing alien warriors were sent to see who could conquer Earth first to determine who will become the new ruler of their home planet. The aliens' attacks drew the attentions of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash (Barry Allen), Green Lantern (Hal Jordan), Aquaman, and Martian Manhunter. While the superheroes individually defeated most of the invaders, the heroes fell prey to a single competitor's attack; only by working together were they able to defeat the competitor. For many years, the heroes heralded this adventure as the event that prompted them to agree to pool resources when confronted with similar menaces.
Years later, however (as revealed in Justice League of America #144), Green Arrow uncovered inconsistencies in League records and extracted admissions from his colleagues that the seven founders had actually formed the League after the Martian Manhunter was rescued from Martian forces by the other six founders, along with several other heroes including Robin, Robotman, Congo Bill/Congorilla, Rex the Wonder Dog, and even Lois Lane. Green Lantern participated in this first adventure solely as Hal Jordan, due to the fact that he had yet to become the costumed hero at that time (the biggest inconsistency Arrow found, as they celebrated the earlier incident's date, while recounting only the later one's events). When the group formalized their agreement, they suppressed news of it because of anti-Martian hysteria (mirroring the real-world backdrop of Martian scares and anti-communist hysteria of the 1950s). Because the League members had not revealed their identities to each other at the time, they did not realize that Jordan and Green Lantern were one and the same when he turned up in costume during the event described in #9. While most subsequent accounts of the League have made little mention of this first adventure, the animated Justice League series adapted this tale as the origin of the League as well.
1989's Secret Origins #32 updated Justice League of America #9's origin for Post-Crisis continuity. Differences included the inclusion of the original Black Canary as a founding member and the absence of Batman, Wonder Woman, and Superman (the 1960s time frame was retained, but the post-Crisis versions of DC's three biggest stars were young and early in their careers in the late 1980s). Additionally, while Hal Jordan served as the public face of the Justice League, this iteration of the League's origin cast the Flash as the team's unofficial leader, since it was Allen who usually came up with the plans that best utilized everyone's powers. 1998's JLA: Year One limited series, by Mark Waid, Brian Augustyn, and Barry Kitson, further expanded upon the Secret Origins depiction, with the revelation that the group was secretly financed by Oliver Queen, a.k.a. the superhero Green Arrow. It also stated that Superman rejected membership into the group, leading to much animus between him and the other "founders" during the early years of the group.
In 1994's Justice League Task Force #16, during Zero Hour, an unknown superhuman named Triumph appeared. In a plotline never explored before, Triumph was revealed to have been a founding member of the Justice League and was their leader. On his first mission with the fledgling Justice League Triumph seemingly "saved the world" but was teleported into a dimensional limbo that also affected the timestream, resulting in no one having any memory of him. This explained how all the heroes ended up in Washington for their first meeting.
Further convolutions came with the issue of Batman's involvement with the League; during the 1990s, the editors of Batman sought to distance Batman from the Justice League, to the point of demanding that Batman's entire Justice League membership be removed from the group's canon. According to Christopher Priest, this "Batman was never in the Justice League" edict came down ironically after DC published Justice League America Annual #9, which featured Batman as a member of the League during its early days. The edict itself was largely haphazardly enforced; while Mark Waid had Batman proclaim to have never been a member of the League in Justice League Incarnations #7, other writers such as Grant Morrison and Keith Giffen took the stance that Batman had simply never joined the team until the Justice League International era. This edict was ultimately dropped by the early 2000s, as Batman's involvement with the League is now referenced heavily by later writers such as Brad Meltzer.
The convoluted change made to Hawkman's background in the wake of the launching of the Hawkworld ongoing series, in 1990, resulted in a retcon where the original Golden Age/Justice Society Golden Age Hawkman, Carter Hall was now a member of the team as opposed to Katar Hol (who would now not join the group until 1994's Justice League America #0). The details of how Carter Hall joined the team, would be revealed in the 2001 Justice League Incarnations #1, with the revelation that Carter joined the team to serve as a mentor for then-young heroes.
In 2006's Infinite Crisis #7, the formation of "New Earth" (the new name for the Post-Crisis Earth) resulted in the retcon that Wonder Woman was a founding member of the Justice League in the early days. In Brad Meltzer's Justice League of America (vol. 2) #0 (2006), it was also revealed that both Superman and Batman were founding members as well. 52 - Week 51 confirmed that the 1989 Secret Origins and JLA: Year One origins were still in canon at that time, with Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman joining the team (consisting of Aquaman, Black Canary, Flash, Green Lantern, and Martian Manhunter) with founding members' status shortly after the group's formation.[29] However, in various issues (particularly issue #12) of the 2006 Justice League of America series, the founding members of the Justice League are shown to be: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern (Hal Jordan), Flash (Barry Allen), Aquaman, and the Martian Manhunter.
With much of DC's past history rebooted by the 2011 "Flashpoint" event, an entirely new origin for the League is introduced in the subsequent Justice League series which debuted in September 2011. Issue #1 portrays the first meeting between Batman and Hal Jordan, with the two encountering each other during a battle against a Parademon in Gotham City. After realizing the creature is extraterrestrial in origin, the two heroes head to Metropolis to seek out Superman (who is a known alien in the new continuity), and are attacked by him.[30] Later, after a brief fight to which the Flash arrives and Batman convinces Superman they are on the same side, they move to an abandoned newspress building to work on analyzing the mysterious alien box, when it suddenly activates and more Parademons arrive.[31] While fighting them off, the heroes notice them capture people for something. During this they meet two more heroes Aquaman and Wonder Woman who join them. [32]
In 2003, Giffen, DeMatteis, and Maguire returned with a separate limited series called Formerly Known as the Justice League with the same humor as their Justice League run, and featuring some of the same characters in a team called the "Super Buddies" (a parody of the Super Friends). A follow-up limited series, entitled I Can't Believe It's Not the Justice League, soon was prepared, although it was delayed due to the events shown in the Identity Crisis limited series, but was eventually released as the second arc in JLA: Classified. The Super Buddies consisted of Blue Beetle; Booster Gold; Captain Atom, Fire; Mary Marvel; the Elongated Man with his wife, Sue Dibny; Maxwell Lord; and L-Ron. The second story arc of JLA: Classified focuses on the Super Buddies in a humorous story that features Power Girl, Guy Gardner, and Doctor Fate.
In 2004, George Pérez and Kurt Busiek came out with a JLA/Avengers crossover, an idea that had been delayed for 20 years for various reasons. In this limited series, the Justice League and the Avengers were forced to find key artifacts in one another's universe, as well as deal with the threats of villains Krona and the Grandmaster. A key moment in League history occurs in this series, when the Avenger Hawkeye becomes the first Marvel Comics character to be inducted into the Justice League.
| JLA: Classified | |
|---|---|
Cover of JLA: Classified #1 by Ed McGuinness. |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Ended |
| Publication date | January 2005 - May 2008 |
| Number of issues | 54 |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | various |
| Artist(s) | various |
| Creator(s) | Grant Morrison Ed McGuinness |
In 2004, DC began an anthology series titled JLA: Classified, which would feature rotating writers and artists producing self-contained story-arcs and aborted mini-series projects that were reappropriated for publication within the pages of the series, starring the JLA. While the bulk of the stories took place within the continuity of the series (circa JLA #76–113) some of the stories take place outside of regular DC Universe canon. The series was canceled as of issue #54 (May 2008).
In October 2005, DC began publishing the 12-issue miniseries Justice by writer Jim Krueger, writer/illustrator Alex Ross, and artist Doug Braithwaite. The story, which takes place outside regular DC continuity, has Lex Luthor assembling the Legion of Doom after he and several other villains begin to have nightmares about the end of the world and the failures of the Justice League to prevent said apocalypse. As the Legion begins engaging in unprecedented humanitarian deeds throughout the world, they also launch a series of attacks on the Justice League and their families. In the end however, the threat that the Legion was warned about destroying the Earth turns out to be caused by Brainiac, who seeks to destroy Earth during the chaos.
Originally a planned ongoing title, Justice League: Cry For Justice is a mini-series written by James Robinson and drawn by Mauro Cascioli. The mini-series, set after the events of Final Crisis, has Hal Jordan leaving the League following the deaths of Batman and Martian Manhunter, as their deaths have caused Hal to seek out a more proactive manner of dealing with super-villains. Hal, along with Green Arrow and later Supergirl, Captain Marvel Jr., and Batwoman are then recruited by Ray Palmer to investigate a murder of a former colleague carried out on orders from Prometheus. This ties into another string of murders, bringing Starman Mikaal Tomas and Congorilla together as their investigation of the murders of several European super-heroes are also revealed to be the work of Prometheus.
With help from the Hawkman villain I.Q., Prometheus plans on creating the ultimate weapon in mass murder, a massive doomsday device which he plans on using to destroy entire cities, as part of his revenge scheme against the JLA for lobotomizing him. Disguised as Captain Marvel Jr., Prometheus maims Roy Harper and brutally injuring JLA members Dr. Light II, Vixen, and Plastic Man while using the JLA Satellite to activate his doomsday device, which destroys Star City, killing 90,000 innocent civilians, including Roy Harper's young daughter Lian. Prometheus ultimately extorts his freedom from the League in exchange for the codes to shut down his weapon, much to the horror of the JLA members. However, afterwards, Green Arrow (with help from reformed villain the Shade), tracks Prometheus down and kills him by firing an arrow into his head.
The mini-series leads directly into the formation of a brand new JLA roster with Green Lantern Hal Jordan, Donna Troy, Dick Grayson as Batman, Doctor Light (Kimiyo Hoshi), Mon-El, Cyborg, Starfire, Congorilla, Guardian, and Mikaal Tomas.
Launching in October 2010, JLA/The 99 was a crossover mini-series featuring the Justice League teaming up with the heroes of Teshkeel Comics' The 99 series. The JLA consisted of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern (John Stewart), the Flash (Barry Allen), the Atom (Ray Palmer), Doctor Light (Kimiyo Hoshi), Hawkman, and Firestorm (Jason Rusch).
The original Justice League of America series has won:
This series has been collected in the following:
| # | Title | Material collected |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Justice League of America Archives volume 1 | The Brave and the Bold #28-30, Justice League of America #1-6 |
| 2 | Justice League of America Archives volume 2 | Justice League of America #7-14 |
| 3 | Justice League of America Archives volume 3 | Justice League of America #15-22 |
| 4 | Justice League of America Archives volume 4 | Justice League of America #23-30 |
| 5 | Justice League of America Archives volume 5 | Justice League of America #31-38, #40* |
| 6 | Justice League of America Archives volume 6 | Justice League of America #41-47, #49-50* |
| 7 | Justice League of America Archives volume 7 | Justice League of America #51-57, #59-60* |
| 8 | Justice League of America Archives volume 8 | Justice League of America #61-66, #68-70* |
| 9 | Justice League of America Archives volume 9 | Justice League of America #71-80 |
*omitted issues featured reprints of material from earlier Archives.
This series has been collected in the following hardcover collections:
| # | Title | Material collected |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Justice League International Volume 1 | Justice League #1-6, Justice League International (vol. 1) #7 |
| 2 | Justice League International Volume 2 | Justice League International (vol. 1) #8-14, Justice League Annual #1 |
| 3 | Justice League International Volume 3 | Justice League International (vol. 1) #15-22 |
| 4 | Justice League International Volume 4 | Justice League International (vol. 1) #23-25, Justice League America #26-30 |
| 5 | Justice League International Volume 5 | Justice League International Annual #2-3, Justice League Europe #1-6 |
This series has been collected in the following trade paperbacks:
| # | Title | Material collected |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | New World Order | JLA #1-4 |
| 2 | American Dreams | JLA #5-9 |
| 3 | Rock of Ages | JLA #10-15 |
| 4 | Strength in Numbers | JLA #16-23, JLA Secret Files #2, Prometheus (one-shot) |
| 5 | Justice For All | JLA #24-33 |
| 6 | World War III | JLA #34-41 |
| 7 | Tower of Babel | JLA #42-46, JLA Secret Files #3, JLA 80-Page Giant #1 |
| 8 | Divided We Fall | JLA #47-54 |
| 9 | Terror Incognita | JLA #55-60 |
| 10 | Golden Perfect | JLA #61-65 |
| 11 | The Obsidian Age (Book 1) | JLA #66-71 |
| 12 | The Obsidian Age (Book 2) | JLA #72-76 |
| 13 | Rules of Engagement | JLA #77-82 |
| 14 | Trial By Fire | JLA #84-89 |
| 15 | The Tenth Circle | JLA #94-99 |
| 16 | Pain of the Gods | JLA #101-106 |
| 17 | Syndicate Rules | JLA #107-114, and a story from JLA Secret Files 2004 |
| 18 | Crisis of Conscience | JLA #115-119 |
| 19 | World Without a Justice League | JLA #120-125 |
This series has been collected in the following hardcover collections:
| # | Title | Material collected |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | JLA: The Deluxe Edition Vol. 1 | JLA #1-9, plus a story included in JLA: Secret Files and Origins #1 |
| 2 | JLA: The Deluxe Edition Vol. 2 | JLA #10-17, Prometheus (one-shot), plus JLA/WILDCATS |
| 3 | JLA: The Deluxe Edition Vol. 3 | JLA #22-26, 28-31 and 1,000,000 |
| 4 | JLA: The Deluxe Edition Vol. 4 | JLA #34, 36-41, JLA: Classified #1-3, JLA: Earth II |
This series has been collected in the following hardcover collections:
| # | Title | Material collected |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Tornado's Path | Justice League of America (vol. 2) #1-7 |
| 2 | The Lightning Saga | Justice League of America (vol. 2) #0, #8-12; Justice Society of America (vol. 3) #5-6 |
| 3 | The Injustice League | Justice League of America (vol. 2) #13-16; JLA Wedding Special #1 |
| 4 | Sanctuary | Justice League of America (vol. 2) #17-21 |
| 5 | The Second Coming | Justice League of America (vol. 2) #22-26 |
| 6 | When Worlds Collide | Justice League of America (vol. 2) #27-28, #30-34 |
| 7 | Team History | Justice League of America (vol. 2) #38-43 |
| 8 | The Dark Things | Justice League of America (vol. 2) #44-48; Justice Society of America (vol. 3) #41-42 |
| 9 | Omega | Justice League of America (vol. 2) #49-53 |
| 10 | The Rise of Eclipso | Justice League of America (vol. 2) #54-60 |
These trades don't reprint the series in a coherent fashion, but reprint themed issues.
| # | Title | Material collected |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Justice League of America Hereby Elects | Justice League of America #4, 75, 105-106, 146, 161, and 173-174 |
| 2 | JLA: The Greatest Stories Ever Told | Justice League of America #19, 77, 122 and 166-168, Justice League #1, JLA Secret Files #1 and JLA #61 |
| 3 | Crisis on Multiple Earths volume 1 | Justice League of America ##21-22, 29-30, 37-38 and 46-47 |
| 4 | Crisis on Multiple Earths volume 2 | Justice League of America #55-56, 64-65, 73-74 and 82-83 |
| 5 | Crisis on Multiple Earths volume 3 | Justice League of America #91-92, 100-102, 107-108 and 113 |
| 6 | Crisis on Multiple Earths volume 4 | Justice League of America #123-124, 135-137 and 147-148 |
| 7 | Crisis on Multiple Earths volume 5 | Justice League of America #159-160, 171-172 and 183-185 |
| “ | Irwin said he never played golf with Goodman, so the story is untrue. I heard this story more than a couple of times while sitting in the lunchroom at DC's 909 Third Avenue and 75 Rockefeller Plaza office as Sol Harrison and [production chief] Jack Adler were schmoozing with some of us ... who worked for DC during our college summers.... [T]he way I heard the story from Sol was that Goodman was playing with one of the heads of Independent News, not DC Comics (though DC owned Independent News). ... As the distributor of DC Comics, this man certainly knew all the sales figures and was in the best position to tell this tidbit to Goodman. ... Of course, Goodman would want to be playing golf with this fellow and be in his good graces. ... Sol worked closely with Independent News' top management over the decades and would have gotten this story straight from the horse's mouth. | ” |
Goodman, a publishing trend-follower aware of the JLA's strong sales, confirmably directed his comics editor, Stan Lee, to create a comic-book series about a team of superheroes. According to Lee in Origins of Marvel Comics (Simon and Schuster/Fireside Books, 1974), p. 16:
| “ | Martin mentioned that he had noticed one of the titles published by National Comics seemed to be selling better than most. It was a book called The [sic] Justice League of America and it was composed of a team of superheroes. ... ' If the Justice League is selling ', spoke he, 'why don't we put out a comic book that features a team of superheroes?' | ” |