Way back in October, in the context of Darkseid being the creative energy behind the new Absolute Universe, I reviewed Justice League of America #183 , the first part of the annual JLA/JSA crossover. That year's story brought in the New Gods as well.
How inappropriate of me to drop the ball and not finish reviewing the three parter! Since that time, DC All In has been in full swing and a New Gods book is on the shelves which makes this an even better back issue dive to review.
Written by Gerry Conway with art by new League artist George Perez, this middle chapter pushes the story forward, gives us some great character interactions between these three groups, and showcases the force Perez would become in the DCU.
Conway does need to play a bit with villains' power levels to keep this story going. I have never seen the Fiddler be this powerful. But outside that tiny quibble, the rest of this works well. One thing I love is that Conway definitely gives many of the characters a tiny moment to showcase a part of their personality, making them feel unique. In particular, his scenes with the mini-team of Superman, E2 Wonder Woman, and Big Barda really have some powerful character moments.
I'll also say that the New Gods were not a huge presence in the DCU in this time of the Bronze Age. This was probably the first encounter with these characters for many readers. So I do like how Conway tries to let us learn about the characters we meet here.
Remember, last issue was drawn by Dick Dillin who unfortunately passed away after completing that issue. Dillin's run was historically long and truly beloved. Perez had big shoes to fill. We know how huge Perez becomes and you can see that even here. His page breakdowns, knowing when to inset panels and when to go splash page, even the dynamic cover showing our heroes in readiness around the face of Darkseid, shows us Perez was destined for greatness. On to the issue.
We start out with this great recap page with all the heroes staring in fear and amazement at the crackling silhouette of Darkseid.
13 characters, shot from behind, ranging from medium sized to tiny, all in a great page. Classic Perez.
But onto the true story. The JLA/JSA/New Gods have split into 4 teams, each with a mission to try and save the citizens of New Genesis while thwarting the resurrection of Darkseid.
We start out with Power Girl, Firestorm, and Orion running into The Shade, The Icicle, and the Fiddler who are using a reviving cannon to reform Darkseid.
Lots to talk about initially. I don't know why the resurrected Darkseid would be this massive, Kong-sized, version of himself. Second, how powerful is this trio of heroes. These are some heavy hitters.
Very quickly, Firestorm uses his matter manipulation powers to disintegrate the Shade's dark-energy cane and deposit the villain in a giant pot of water. One down.
I do love how Power Girl flirts with Firestorm here. Remember, in prior crossovers, Firestorm was flirting with her. So this interaction has a little history. I won't say it is a double entendre. But maybe it is a one-and-a-half entendre?
Love this tiny panel as it builds on continuity. Beautiful.
And then, Orion and Power Girl swoop in together and punch out Icicle's lights. I am pretty sure the Icicle would be dead if even one of them punched him. But maybe they pulled their punches.
But how great is this page set up by Perez. Great dynamism. That split panel above with Icicle swiveling his head to see the incoming heroes to then merge into one panel of the actual attack.
Just perfect.
So two of the three villains are taken out, leaving just the Fiddler against these three massively powerful heroes.
The Fiddler defeats them.
He uses his music to psychologically attack the heroes, making them see their innermost fears until they pass out. Again, imaginative panel construction by Perez, having the borders and gutters being jagged musical notes. Fun.
Orion seeing Darkseid's image makes sense as his fear.
But Power Girl being hit by lasers? And Firestorm seeing demons? Hmmm ...
At least Professor Stein is colored blue like the hero. At first I thought his face was once of the nightmares. Kudos to Gene D'Angelo.
With the heroes out of commission, the Fiddler continues to use his music to control the Recreator cannon to bring Darkseid back.
Meanwhile, the incredibly powerful trio of Superman, Wonder Woman, and Barda try to work their way towards the rebel army on Apokolips, hidden below Granny Goodness' orphanage. Throughout the scene, we hear from Barda about how tortured her life was here.
We get to this page, a splash page looking from above into the layered rebel stronghold.
Once more Perez stretches his artistic muscles here, giving us this incredibly detailed, almost dizzying look at this place. Had to share this.edmd
The heroes are shocked to see that the rebel army are just children, led by the red-headed Crimson. We see toddlers toting guns and others practicing with weapons. They are all psychologically scarred. I think Crimson is sort of kid-sized Red Sonja based on her outfit.
Luckily Barda is there to teach them all that love exists and love can save them. It softens Crimson who finally breaks down and hugs Barda.
Yes, Darkseid is being reformed. Yes, New Genesis' citizens have been kidnapped.
But I like that Conway gives us this one panel showing the heroes hanging out with the kids. I just love that Superman has one of the kids on his shoulders. These are probably the first nice adults these kids have met. It gives us just a pause in this rocketing story to show how heroes can be heroes just by being there.
One of the children named Playto (a Kirby-esque take on Plato?) turns out to be a 'multi-cog', a telepath who is cognizant of all.
He shows our heroes how the Earth 2 villains were brought into this Darkseid plan. On Earth-2, while the Icicle, Shade, and Fiddler are robbing an armored car, Darkseid's soul manifests itself out of the street and nearby material.
He needs these villains to build and work the recreator ray cannon. He dominates their will and brings them into the fray.
Why these three and not his own Elite? How did they get from Earth 2 to Apokolips? How did they build the recreator ray on this alien planet? I have no idea about any of it. But here we are.
Perhaps Conway simply wanted to use some JSA villains?
The next team of Green Lantern, Dr. Fate, and Oberon have been fighting Darkseid's armies trying to free some prisoner.
It turns out the prisoner is Izaya, the Highfather. It makes sense for Darkseid to want to imprison his biggest enemy, someone who could actually try and thwart his resurrection.
It is another good scene. For one, Hal can't break the chains that Izaya is held in. In fact, Hal is sort of defeated and upset by the whole thing. We hear him tell Oberon that he feels the Guardians are sort of father figures for him and Izaya had that presence. Again, a brief character moment to build up who these characters are.
I also like that it sort of shows just how powerful Fate is. GL failed. Fate didn't, freeing Highfather.
And then the last team of Mr. Miracle, Huntress, and the E1 Batman. Their mission is to sneak into the Imperial Palace to try and uncover whatever the plot is. This is the weakest team for sure but best suited for their mission.
Inside, Miracle uncovers the plan. Darkseid will be reborn. But most importantly, Darkseid wants to teleport Apokolips into the Earth 2 universe where there will be no New Gods to oppose him. But he will teleport it into the space Earth 2 occupies.
Crisis on One Earth!
It sure is a great cliffhanger!
There is a ton to love about this issue. I love the small teams and how they interact with each other. I like the character moments Conway slips into the story. Perez art is great. Just spectacular. Will it pull off the ending?
One last thing.
The letters page is a memorial for Dick Dillin, including words from comic professionals Jack C. Harris, Paul Levitz, Bob Rozakis, and Len Wein. Definitely worth sharing as they discuss the JLA Legen.
Overall grade: A
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