Written by John Ostrander
Lead Story Art by Val Semeiks; Kevin Conrad; Prentis Rollins; John Kalisz; Heroic Age; & Ken Lopez
Cover Art by Val Semeiks; Prentis Rollins; John Kalisz; & Heroic Age
Role Call: Martian Manhunter (J’onn J’onzz); Zatanna Zatara; Elongated Man; Vixen; Steel I; Gypsy; Vibe; & Aquaman.
SUMMARY:
Published by DC Comics for November 2001, the 40-page fifth installment of this seven-part mini-series divides into three stories. First is the 23-page tale simply entitled “Crisis.” After Aquaman abruptly quits the League for personal reasons, Martian Manhunter steps up as its new commander. Overcoming growing pains, doubt, and a sense of redundancy (when compared to DC’s other super-teams), Justice League ‘Detroit’ valiantly fights in the 12-issue Crisis on Infinite Earths saga (most of this tale are off-screen sequences during Crisis # 3-6).
The back-up tales are:
“Changes” (8 pages). Writer: John Ostrander. Art: Norm Breyfogle; Joe Rubinstein; Ken Lopez; John Kalisz; & Heroic Age.
Paralleling the climax of Crisis on Infinite Earths # 8, Barry Allen’s Flash poignantly reflects on his life and legacy, as he runs one last race against time to thwart the Anti-Monitor’s anti-matter cannon.
“Doubt” (7 pages). Writer: John Ostrander. Art: Eric Battle; Keith Champagne; Ken Lopez; John Kalisz; & Heroic Age.
Grieving journalist Tully Reed is left disillusioned by super-heroes in the wake of the concluding Crisis # 12. As Darkseid’s secret field operative, Glorious Godfrey exploits Reed’s influential lapse in judgment. The story alludes to both the 1986 Legends mini-series and the tragic demise of Justice League ‘Detroit.’
Note: This series’ continuity builds off 1998’s Justice League: Year One twelve-part mini-series.
REVIEW:
The creative team seamlessly delivers a Crisis homage well worth re-discovery. In addition to some plausible in-fighting and skepticism re: the team’s inexperienced rookies, writer John Ostrander retroactively gives Justice League ‘Detroit’ a solid boost during major moments from the first half of Crisis. In particular, Ostrander gives Vibe, Gypsy, and Vixen some deserved screen time as the League’s ‘new’ generation. His two other tales, especially the Barry Allen Flash’s goodbye, should be deemed storytelling gems. Meeting the challenge of replicating visuals from Crisis, the art squad deserves kudos. Including the extra stories, suffice to say, an abundance of classy artwork is delivered in triplicate for Issue # 5.
As of this writing, this mini-series inexplicably hasn’t been collected by DC Comics as a trade paperback. Still, if one wants a rewarding supplement to the Crisis saga, JLA: Incarnations # 5 is definitely recommended.
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
Reviving the “JLA Mail Room” column, correspondence from industry names Paul Levitz, Julius Schwartz, Mark Waid, Fabian Nicieza, and Tom Breevort reveal their favorite JLA issues.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 9 Stars
