Who's This? DC's premiere super-team.
The facts: Based on the success of what we now call the Silver Age, editor Julius Schwartz ordered a new attempt at the Justice Society of America, this one a LEAGUE, combining the greatest heroes in DC's stable under one roof. The JLA first appeared in The Brave and the Bold #28 (March 1960) by Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky. The three-issue try-out naturally led to a series (that was a no-brainer) later that year (November 1960) that would last 261 issues (through April 1987) and three distinct eras (original, satellite, and Detroit). Other versions of the league would follow - Justice League International and its spin-offs, Grant Morrison's epic JLA, further volumes of Justice League of America or Justice League, until we get to today's Justice League Unlimited.
How you could have heard of it: Even if you're not a comics reader, the Justice League has had several incarnations as a cartoon show (including Super-Friends), and a more recent feature film (or two, the contentious second version of which made headline news). It's one of DC's most recognizable I.P.'s.
Example story: Justice League of America #224 (March 1984) "The Supremacy Factor!" by Kurt Busiek, Chuck Patton and Dick Giordano
For this one, I picked one of my first issues of the original title, nearing the end of the Satellite Era. I think there are a number of great one-and-dones around this time, and here we have early Kurt Busiek work, and the villain I always associated with Morrison's Prometheus. At the end of this flashback to 1984, you tell me whether Paragon was the pre-Crisis Prometheus or not. Not that you can change my mind. We often talk today about the League all calling each other by their real names (especially in the mid-2000s), but that was an era where nerds raised on the Satellite era were writing the comics - that's where it really started.
If Black Canary is late, it's because she stops to help the victim of a mugging, who happens to be able to take care of himself... but only because she's in range of his powers! Big vigilante vibes, ready to kill his aggressors, so Dinah steps in... and finds he's slightly better than she is at fighting, and immune to the sonic scream to boot! At least it's a sound Superman is sure to pick up.
The Man of Steel is first on the scene and just in time, too. This trenchcoat character is more than a match for Canary, but a Kryptonian is on a whole other level. Whoops, nope!
A scalable supervillain?! That's a new wrinkle. When you look at JLA villains generally, they aren't just Big Threats worthy of DC's best, but are usually designed so that both a big gun (Superman, GL) and a street-level hero (Batman, GA) will have something to do (throw in a watery element for Aquaman). Often, it's by making them masterminds who control a variety of creatures or robots, which the League must split up to face. Paragon takes the Amazo route, a perfect match for whoever he's fighting - no, not perfect, always a little better. Well, Superman managed to rip a pocket filled with notes out of his trench, so cut to a big special effects shot and who is on duty today...
We're definitely concentrating on the plot, but there are some nice character dynamics between Leaguers. Green Arrow fussing over Black Canary, everyone thinking Firestorm is a dumbass and surprised at his (Martin Stein's) knowledge of chemistry. GA ready to go off half-cocked after the multi-Nobel Prize laureate all clues lead to, over Wonder Woman's call for caution. And best of all, Black Canary deciding that since SHE was the victim here, SHE should call the shots. This was my first contact with Dinah back in the day and she left quite an impression. Later comics where she leads the team (or the Birds of Prey) feel completely natural to me, perhaps as a result. And I like the idea of rotating leadership within the League, according to mission parameters and personal motivations. Unfortunately, the first team in includes Firestorm, giving Paragon molecular transformation powers.
Green Arrow uses tech which can't be reproduced, or could, with Firestorm's powers, but Paragon just uses them to melt incoming arrows, and the sonic scream to take down everybody else. Leaguers get strapped to a wall, and properly integrated Firestorm abilities (those powers fully controlled by Stein's physics expertise) have accelerated Paragon's plans to build a machine that will kill the least intelligent 90% of the world's population, with plans to run the remaining 10% as its superior. I don't think he's thought this through... He then feels an incredible power surge as the other heroes arrive. Now the smart thing to do - once super-hearing had heard his villain monologue - would be to stay out of range and only send in Leaguers who use devices. Maybe he can't copy Red Tornado, and certainly he can't copy the Green Lantern ring. But even then, being better than our heroes means certain... immunities.
He puts Superman in Kryptonite chains, knocks everybody out with super-strength... Maybe this is a time for FEWER Leaguers. Indeed, knocking Firestorm into the stratosphere wasn't very smart of him.
With a couple pages to spare, Canary directs everyone to take their super-asses out of range while the heroes with artificial powers stay to disorient Paragon with air blasts, Lantern constructs and gas arrows. Or else use their long-range powers outside the field of his imitation power. It's called team work.
And Canary gets to last, decisive kick to the face. Wonder Woman schools her on Justice vs. Vengeance, but like, shut up, Diana. Let us have this. Firestorm's question about how to keep this guy in jail is never answered. Oh geez, did he get mind wiped?
Who's Next? A haunted island lair.
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