Yes, I’m running late again. It’s been one of those weeks.
I’m not a huge fan of Grant Morrison. I don’t hate his work…sorry, I know he goes by they/them but I’m old and this makes no sense to me. It sounds like he’s multiple people, and it’s one of the few bits of the current pronoun game my brain just refuses to follow, in part because it also messes with other parts of grammar. Still, I’ll go along with it for the sake of avoiding the argument. It’s his/their choice overall but don’t be surprised if I slip because I only heard about this as I was going over the comments, so it’s news to me. Plus I’m past deadline as it is.
Back on topic: They’re a good writer. The problem is the same as their greatest strength: an obsession with history. On the one hand they does their best to pay tribute to everything that came before. On the other hand that sometimes leads them to force events together that don’t go together, and while not as bad as Bendis they still like their complicated explanations, trying to fit Silver Age sci-fi into modern science rather than embrace the silliness of a superhero universe. This did make them a good choice to reform the Justice League Of America in the 1990s…but they was up against a few issues. Like the 1990s.
This is the time when Superman turned into red and blue versions and at some point ended up with electrical powers, the only benefit being losing the mullet he gained in his resurrection. It’s the time when Hal Jordan was gone and replacement Kyle Rayner was just finding his audience. It’s when Aquaman also had a mullet, lost one of his arms and replaced it with a harpoon, and wore a less interesting outfit than that blue thing from the 1980s. Basically, the 1990s messed with the classic looks, while the various Justice League titles were too many.
In the following video from Owen Likes Comics, he makes the case that Morrison and their JLA title may have save the premier DC superteam-up book. Maybe, but I still prefer the full name: Justice League Of America.
Okay, I stopped reading this after a few storylines, but why disband the team and then immediately reform the team when the reason you disbanded, not wanting to create another Injustice Gang or Legion Of Doom or whatever is as much a concern as before? Which is exactly what happened. A lot of this seems really complicated. How do we stop the Joker? Project ourselves into our future selves and fight Darkseid. Of course.
This is my problem with this run, and it goes back to yesterday’s conversation about how epic stories ruin the quiet ones. No mention of Tomorrow Woman, whose story I found more interesting than anything involving the New Gods from this summary. Even that story had to feature some superweapon so powerful it’s only called IF. Morrison goes too large in the stories they tell and the result is kind of lame because it’s overblown. The Justice League should be the threats that the individual heroes can’t handle alone; it’s the point of any superhero team. However, trying to make each threat the biggest ever leave little room for threats that only require multiple heroes by circumstance as you try to outdo yourself each time. My first Justice League Of America comic had Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Arrow (after Green Lantern was knocked out and Zatanna, Elongated Man, and Red Tornado were sent into a continuity subplot involving her lost memories…which I just realized may be ironic given Identity Crisis) dealing with Shark, who wanted to create more man-creatures like himself. The main story was told in one shot and was a great story. Not every story needs to be five chapters long. It’s a monthly comic. If you want to write a graphic novel…write a graphic novel. Don’t screw over your casual audience while rewarding the people who return each month.
I dropped out of this title after Tomorrow Woman’s story, only dropping in now and then when the story looked interesting. Whatever advantages the comic had during this period, it was just a bit TOO large, and it just doesn’t work for me. You can get burnt out on all the explosions.
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