WHEN FALL THE MIGHTY
JUSTICE LEAGUE EUROPE #36
 Published: 4th February 1992 Cover Date: March 1992 Cover Artists: Kevin Maguire / Karl Kesel Writer: Penciler: Chris Wozniak Inker: Robert Campanella Colourist: Gene D’Angelo Letterer: Willie Schubert Editors: Brian Augustyn |
Introduction
The New Year is always a time to look forward to beginnings, so obviously I’ve chosen to look at the end (or a tacked-on bit at least) of the Giffin / DeMatteis JLI/JLE run. Partly it’s my way to celebrate Shag’s podcast meeting this bitter-sweet moment, and just because he was crazy enough to let be on an episode, but also as we enter five years of this blog (some better than others) I thought it was a good time to tackle a big blank spot in my comic knowledge… the 90s!
Synopsis
All good, or at least competent, comic book writers carefully put back all the toys in the box, so the oncoming team has the choice to pick things up and start from there. This was done skillfully in Justice League America #60 where Maxwell Lord, a character I’ve never warmed to (mostly as I really got to know him during his villain stage), recovers his mojo and stands to start the JLA/JLE again. This may be retro nostalgia goggles, not having read the comics at the time, but in that issue I for once found myself warming to the character.
Well, forget about all that because the team falls apart almost instantly, not once but twice, as in both books Maxwell’s return is muted and the teams go in very different directions.
First to leave are the Lanterns, Guy, who you might remember was willing to throw down with Power Girl to be the leader of the team, and Kilowog who apparently has been offered his old job back in the Lantern Corp. But wait remember I said Guy was quitting, well as it happens he’s only gone a joined the JLA again aiming to be the team leader! What’s baffling is that he quits this team, goes off, and ends up fighting alongside a combination of old and new teams in Justice League Spectacular, before coming back to join the new Superman-led Justice League America team. It doesn’t help that JLA #61 is written without you needing to read the spectacular meaning it looks like he went straight from the JLE to JLA without any time in between. He’s not the only one as the well-crafted connections between the two books, with a few slip-ups, fall apart almost immediately.
Metamorpho and, sadly, Rocket Red depart with some dignity, which can’t be said for poor Power Girl who high on Diet Cola (thankfully we’re reaching the end of that plot, I hope) quits the team in a fit of rage, because everyone else is already leaving. And don’t think you can get away with lampshading how stupid this sounds comic, it’s your stupid writing and you could have fixed things to make more sense! I will give the comic faint praise for Power Girl whanging Wally in the face with her soda can, I don’t quite know why but it at least makes me smile, a rarity in this issue!
Catherine gets recalled to the UN, a scene which is given some gravitas compared to some of those that quit here, which is something compared to why Crimson Fox quits the team because she’s not sure if her pheromone powers might now work on Max any more! This is from a character, or her identical twin sister (because comics) who swore to use every resource of her company to make sure the team survived, just ups and quits because she might not be able to be super sexy enough to work with the boss! It’s icky and gross and it’s probably the only part of the comics that makes me angry.
The sad part is almost the next scene, I’ve been skipping a few pages here and there though they’re really not important, has is a touching scene of Ralph and Sue talking about their future and wanting to go out in the world to have their own mini-series! With them quitting it’s the final straw for Wally, not a skull fracture from a can thrown by Power Girl, and it looks like he’s about to quit too, but then…
All through the comic we’ve had the spirit of Despero in L-Ron’s body pull itself together, whilst we (probably) thought L-Ron (who was swapped in Despero’s body, it was a whole thing) suppressed Despero it was a full-on Freaky Friday body swap. At this point the little hate robot that could. Desp-L-Ron if you will, attacks the league and gives them a right smackdown over the next few pages. Ice finally gets a little moment to do something, so that’s nice at least.
Then when all seems lost, and to show how much of a lame duck the team, are now, the robot gets taken down by a duck hunter with just a shotgun!
This is the final straw for some and the remainder of the team quit and go their separate ways! That’s right every single member of the team, the one that triumphantly got back together last issue, quits and surprisingly this isn’t the final issue of the comic!
It’s strange and frustrating that instead of a time skip with some of the characters moving on and some staying, we get this teardown of the team which can’t help but suggest that those working on the books really don’t care about what has come before.
Final Thoughts
That said despite everything I can’t hate this, comic, mostly because I can’t work u the energy to feel anything about this story at all. And the story is being generous as it’s mostly a series of vignette’s about the various members quitting the teIt might be me projecting but it has a mean streak implied about some of the characters, as it happens mostly the female members.
And it’s all nothing as a portion of these characters will be back on either team in pretty short order. Amusingly Ire and Ice, the last to quit here, are almost straight away back on the JLA. with Ice having a massive crush on Superman, which may explain in recent comics why Fire doesn’t seem as enamoured about Supes!
Forgettable and easily ignored, which I suggest everyone does unless there doing one of these mega read-throughs, or are just a completest in general. Still, if we’re starting on such a low, the 90s must get better, right… ?