And Justice For All!

I've only managed to read one of this week's comics so far, but it was a good 'un! I had been looking forward to the debut of the new Justice Society of America title, but I also had some reservations. Writer Geoff Johns was at the top of his game a few years ago, when it seemed like he could do no wrong as far as I was concerned. He was scribing the previous JSA series, along with Hawkman, Flash and probably another series or two that I'm forgetting. His trademark was that each story would be solidly entertaining, would play off the existing continuity within the DC Universe without becoming obsessed with it (a flaw that plagues other continuity-oriented writers like Roy Thomas, in my humble opinion), and would be full of surprising twists and turns. I was at the point where I'd try any title he landed on, regardless of what it was.

But then his star began to fade recently. The much anticipated Infinite Crisis, a 20-years-later sequel to one of my faves, Crisis on Infinite Earths, started off strong and then proceeded to get weaker with each successive issue. By the time the finale came out (late), I'd lost nearly all of my enthusiasm and interest for what had promised to be a landmark seven issue series. Since then, he's petered out on the previous JSA and worked on a Teen Titans series that bores me most months, and I'd started to think his day had come and gone.

Thus my ambivalence about his new Justice Society run. I know he has great love for these characters, but would it be like the early Johns, or the one who'd fallen out of favour with me? If the first issue's any indication, he's definitely back in the saddle again! He has a ton of stuff going on, and in fact DC went with a larger page count for the premiere, which was a terrific decision. A bunch of new characters are introduced, along with lots of familiar faces returning. Since the group is all about history - they're the very first superteam, after all - you need to keep that sense of grandeur if you're going to call it the Justice Society. Most importantly, Johns is clearly setting out what differentiates the Justice Society from the Justice League: "The Justice League is a strike force. The Justice Society is a family," as Batman tells us on page two. Without that distinction, the thoughtful reader might wonder why we need both teams (Yeah, I know, it's all about selling comics, but pretend it's not, OK?). Now we know: The JSA will make sure the newer heroes have someplace to learn the ropes, and in the process I'm sure a few world-threatening menaces will be taken out, too.

The last page of the issue is particularly interesting: It's four panels, all vertically sliced (narrow and tall), showing four different upcoming scenes, all under the caption "Coming this year in the Justice Society of America!" I mean, c'mon, how cool is that! A little sneak peek at shocking scenes to come; who wouldn't love that? I can certainly say I'm jazzed.

Having a great new Justice League of America title, by novelist Brad Meltzer, along with what looks like a comparable Justice Society of America offering featuring Geoff Johns back at the top of his game, bodes well for 2007!