World Famous Comics: JLA: Pain of the Gods (Jla (Justice League of America) (Graphic Novels))
JLA: Pain of the Gods (Jla (Justice League of America) (Graphic Novels))
By: Chuck Austen Publisher: DC Comics Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: DC Comics Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 144 Publication Date: April 01, 2005 Reading Level: Young Adult Release Date: April 01, 2005
Argg...Boring I got this book based on a recommendation from a user on this site and boy, that was a big mistake! Basically, this is just a bunch of stories, each about a member of JLA who is facing a personal problem mostly involving the weight of the world on his or her shoulders and not being able to save everyone and grieving the people they were not able to save. The stories don't really link together, although some stories get revisited at the end. Artwork is on low-quality non-glossy paper and the colors look washed-out. The drawings are less than average. The whole book is really short and while I'm not suggesting it should be longer due to the boring subject matter, I am suggesting to not buy the book at all because it's just a waste of time and a pretty uninteresting read. By far, the weakest book in my collection.
Good Read The story was suppose to make the league feel more human and let everyone know they are even able to fail. It starts out with Superman and unfolds into stories on the rest of the league going in the order Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman, and finally Batman. Even though each seems like it could almost be a one shot it is more of an overall story with an individual focus on a different character in each new chapter. Art was pretty good but, a fall off a little bit from the previous volumes but, I'd recommend it to anyone wanting a good JLA read.
Chuck Austen does good... Some folks won't like this. It's written by Chuck Austen. People hate him with seething, turd-throwing monkey passion.
But this trade isn't half-bad. This is a softer take on the big members of the JLA. It deals with their passions and their pain.
If every JLA trade was like this, you'd probably want to throw yourself off of a cliff. But -- as a one off kind of thing -- it represents a nice counterbalance to the crazy galactic stories that generally populate the JLA landscape.
Graphic SF Reader This traded arc is about the mental and emotional anguish and/or torment that the heroes go through because of what they cannot do, or the mistakes they have made in the past. Basically, here the JLA is functioning as a professional self-help society, so they can talk about their screwups and other problems on the job.
Six Great Spotlights Within A Larger Tale And A Larger Theme Even the Justice League fails sometimes, and when Superman is unable to prevent the death of a new, novice hero, the different members of the JLA begin to feel the cumulative effects of various events they've been unable - individually or as a team - to avert. Tensions that must surely be just under the surface of the superheroes's psyches much of the time - not only the occasions when they haven't been able to 'save the day' to the extent they would have liked but also the toll it takes being 'on call' all the time - come to the forefront, as the story arc unfolds on three different levels: each character's individual moments of mental crisis (each issue - JLA #s 101-106 - focuses mainly on one of the six characters who are the League's core members at the time of the story: Superman, The Flash, Green Lantern John Stewart, Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman and Batman); the reprecussions of the initial disaster, i.e. Superman taking it on himself to try and look after the family of the deceased man, along with subsequent developments; and how the community of the DCU's champions - and the League in particular - acts as both a support system for each other, and very much as an extended family.
Issues 103 and 104 - the GL and Martian Manhunter spotlights - are especially worth commenting on. John Stewart stars in one of his greatest comics ever with # 103, an emotionally riveting issue that draws on the history of the character, including the much-missed (by me, anyhow) "Green Lantern: Mosaic" series from the first half of the 1990s. I'm glad that John was the Green Lantern in the JLA at the time this story takes place instead of Hal Jordan or Kyle Rayner. Hal and Kyle are already acknowledged as top tier characters, but often John seems to be perceived as almost an 'auxulliary' character, probably because a lot of the time when he plays a major role in the books it co-incides with a time when (an)other GL(s) are unavailable, being off in another galaxy or whatnot. Here, John Stewart is seen in his spotlight role as the major hero and great character he is.
And the Martian Manhunter issue - oh, for one glorious issue it's like having the phenemonally good (and sadly underappreciated) Martian Manhunter ongoing from the late 90s/early 2000s back with us again! Although J'Onn is, here, a less well-adjusted character, more pessimistic and less personable than he was in the ongoing, that's the way events between that that series and this arc have affected him. It's got the same quality and the same tone as the Martian Manhunter ongoing though, and it introduced a new character that I found myself instantly and very much wanting to see turn up again and frequently, particularly where J'Onn is concerned.
Overall excellence; one of the best possible choices from the packed 'JLA' section of DC's bookshelf.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Tailipoe
Trevor
