JSA in the 90s – Justice Society of America #4 (July 1991)

We continue our coverage of the 1991 JSA mini-series! J David Weter and The Irredeemable Shag discuss JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #4 (July 1991) by Len Strazewski, Tom Artis & Frank McLaughlin! Hawkman investigates an archeological dig, but is interrupted when the constellation of Andromeda attacks! Plus, we celebrate beloved comic book creators whose lives and careers were cut tragically short. Finally, we wrap up with YOUR listener feedback!

 

 

 

 

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15 responses to “JSA in the 90s – Justice Society of America #4 (July 1991)”

    1. Didn’t care for what happened to the JSA in Zero Hour but I like that Jack Knight debuted there. Of course, at the time of the miniseries release, I didn’t realize the significance. Only after I started buying the Robinson-Harris Starman series did his first appearance become a big deal for me.

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    2. It’s funny because I just got the DC Finest volumes of Zero Hour to test out the format. I love the idea they’re doing these reprints for a cheap price. I know Compact Comics are cheaper, but also smaller. I had a choice between this and DC Finest Wrath of The Spectre. I went with Zero Hour, but I may go back to The Spectre with some more research.

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  2. Not traveling for Father’s Day, so I got to listen to this episode in the comfort of my own home, which means I also could comment in a timely fashion and remember to address the question you asked this time.

    Two of my favorite artists who passed away too young would be, Carlos Pacheco and Edvin Biukovic. Carlos was a Spanish artist who catapulted himself into one of my all-time favorite artists drawing Avengers Forever with writer Kurt Busiek. He of course has Justice Society ties, maybe most notably for drawing the JLA/JSA Virtue & Vice one-shot and covers to the ongoing JSA series. I was enjoying the heck out of his brilliant art on the creator owned series Arrowsmith (also with Busiek) and was heartbroken when I heard he passed at age 60 in 2022.

    Edvin Biukovic passed away way far too soon at age 30. I can’t recommend enough, checking out any one of his works. His art was dynamic without being ostentatious. And his character faces were emotive to the point that words wouldn’t even be necessary. A Croatian artist, I first saw Biukovic’s work at Dark Horse on Grendel Tales: Devil’s and Death and its sequel Devil’s Choice. He followed it up by the best looking Star Wars comic you will ever get your hands on, X-Wing Rogue Squadron: The Phantom Affair. He then followed that up with Star Wars: The Last Command, an adaptation of the Timothy Zahn novel. He made the jump to DC in 1999 for The Human Target with Peter Milligan. And published after his death was the short story “A Prayer to the Sun” in Weird War Tales Vertigo Special, with long-time writing partner Darko Macan. In my eyes, Biukovic was well on his way to becoming a superstar in the comic industry. A tragic loss at so young an age.

    PS I love the term “Timey-Wimey” has become common place. (Or is just on this podcast that I hear it get used so often?) And I enjoy that I know it’s a Doctor Who reference.

    And David, your voice sounds great. You’ve got a tenor built for radio, or podcasting!

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  3. Great episode and great to hear from J David Weter again. I was an avid listener of his New 52 Superman podcast back in the day even when I wasn’t loving the New 52 Superman books. But this issue…this was the one I was waiting for because this issue IS my childhood. I got it in a grab bag from my local comic shop when I was a kid. For five dollars they gave you about ten comics wrapped in a brown paper back so you didn’t know what you’d get. It was probably a cheap way to get rid of excess stock but for a kid with little money, this was a great way to get some bang for my buck while exposing me to comics like The New Teen Titans, lots of Impact Comics titles, and this issue of Justice Society just to name a few. While this is the fourth issue of a series, I never had trouble following along. And I loved the image of Hawkman holding the shield and spear with the hatchet tucked into his belt.

    I’m happy to say I still have this issue and it will forever hold a special place in my heart. When I look at the cover with Hawkman and Andromeda, it takes me back to being a kid and sitting on the floor of my room to be caught in the wonder of comics.

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  4. When this mini-series first came out, I hadn’t been familiar enough with the JSA to actually KNOW that the original Golden Age stories tended to have each member off on their own for the bulk of each story, only coming together at the end. That said, when it was explained with the early volumes of the mini that this was the pattern they were attempting to emulate, I understood. I’m not saying I wasn’t disappointed. Sure, I wanted to see the whole team together for as much as possible (already understanding that it was “just” a mini, and that the heroes were still stuck in limbo, with no known likelihood that this situation would ever change), but I understood what they were trying to accomplish, and was okay with that. That the response of the time was any more heated than that… well, I can’t honestly say that it comes as a surprise, but I was unaware of the fact of it.

    I do tend to agree with J. David that this probably reads much better now, when you can binge all of the parts together, and enjoy the slow burn. I think that, having to wait for a full month between installments, it was probably just too hard to maintain the interest when fans didn’t get what they were looking for out of the gate.

    That said, it must have still done well enough that they DID bring the JSA back from limbo, even with the complainers out there. So it seems that it all worked out.

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  5. Creators who died much too soon? Shag and Dave mentioned several including the amazing Tim Sale. I would also highlight Mark Gruenwald whose Captain America run is my favorite Marvel solo book from the 80s and maybe ever. His style seemed like a perfect fit for DC and it’s a shame he never had the opportunity to play with that universe. I think he would have written a very good JSA book.

    I will add the name of Lee Moder who passed at the age of 53. I loved his Legion art and, most of all, his contribution to the creation of Courtney Whitmore aka Stargirl.

    Great episode, Shag. And David, I am trying to catch up quickly with the (long) walk through Knightfall on The Bat-Pod.

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  6. This was good episode.
    I’ve never read any golden age hawk man
    So nothing to ad this time .
    I’ve only read hawkman when I read the times he teamed up with the atom

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  7. First off, good on Dave for getting that sick burn in on Shag’s never-ending feet pics he subjects the world and in particular the rest of the FW network to.

    Secondly, great show fellas! I liked Tom Artis’ work here quite a bit. One unique thing about him that really fits the JSA is his penchant for drawing slim-waisted heroes with thick belts, and their pants pulled up to the abdomen. Similar to how artists like a young Carmine Infantino, Lee Elias, Alex Toth, Irwin Hasen etc. drew the JSA back in the later Golden Age tales. He seemed to switch to a much looser, wilder style when he drew The Web for !mpact, and honestly, I didn’t like it nearly as well.

    I did think the format of solo stories, then small team-ups, then a final team gathering was a bit odd, but I also knew it was based on the JSA stories of the Golden Age. For years each hero had a solo chapter, then they’d have a brief team-up at story’s end. Later, the writers began splitting them into teams of two, and then a big team-up at the end (the same format many JLA stories later followed). So this mini combines both approaches. In hindsight, I think it works, despite contemporary audiences not getting it.

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    1. The big difference (I know you know, honest) is that the original stories used that format within what we’d consider a giant, 64pp issue, so you did get to see everybody every issue, eventually, and maybe for only a few pages. I remember pulling a face at the format of this mini!

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  8. I’ve loved the artwork in this series quite a bit, which is a feat when having such different artists each issue. But man, Tom Artis’ work this time really sings to me! I’ve seen other books by him, and I don’t remember them leaving such an impression, but maybe McLaughlin’s inks are the key. Carter both in civvies and costumer look great, and elevates the whole issue. So much energy and movement, which you need for Hawkman whose primary thing is flying.

    I will admit, I had to double check if Carter’s colleague was related to the guy who appeared in Animal Man and lead him on his “spirit quest”, but completely different names (William Wildeagle versus James Highwater) and no connection I could find. Which is fine, but you never know in comics, so I had to check.

    But I did look askance at one bit. On page 5 when Carter is giving the big info dump, they use the exact same headshot, just tweaking the angle of the head once. But his mouth is clamped shut while he’s supposedly talking, and no change in expression. That just looked odd enough to take me out of it. But just for a minute, because the rest of the story got back on track.

    Great episode, guys!

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  9. Great episode as always! On the topic of creators that have left us far too soon, I wanted to echo mentions of Sale, Cooke, and Cassaday. All three of those artist were major inspirations for my art. Each had a different approach to their work but they all had something special. Cassaday’s Astonishing X-Men was my re-entry back into comics and I remember studying the way he was able to convey such emotion with such minimal line work. Cooke’s New Frontier was just life changing as a comic reader and was in a way my first real exposure to a history of the DC Universe, albeit in a different lens. Sale’s work is just something else. Perfectly moody and expressive. Which brings me to an interesting note, for those who loved Superman For All Seasons and wanted a sequel, I recommend checking out Cooke and Sale’s Superman: Kryptonite. It was published as Superman Confidential #1-5 and 11. Cooke is on writing duties and Sale manages to get away from Loeb for a few issues. It’s a great follow up and criminally slept on. One last thing about Cooke, I started reading his Parker adaptations and they are easily some of the finest examples of comics work from someone who was already a titan of the industry. All three of their deaths were far too soon and all three hurt deeply.

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  10. Cheers for another great episode, Shagg and J David. I love this cover so much, you’re right Shagg, it’s rare to see the full wingspan of a Hawkperson. By the way, did anyone ever buy the explanation that massive clunky wings aided direction… come on, any human being would be a lot faster and zippier with the Nth metal belt alone. Still, don’t those wings look cool?

    The art of Tom Artis is so great with Frank McLaughlin, as Chris said, it looked very different on The Web… I found that comic incredibly tough to follow.

    William Wildeagle was a striking fella, he had real Wyatt Wingfoot energy – same initials too. But it did feel really weird that he didn’t gain super-powers. Roy would have had him gain super powers. Desert Stormer? Mesa Man. The possibilities were endless.

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  11. Cool episode as always, not a big fan of this version of the villain. But the artwork was nice decent enough story though having the heroes on the back sitting near the end was kind of annoying, but I get it. It’s to build up to the next issue. It is kind of weird that they don’t show it stand savage, acne, and justice gang or whatever there called here. Still I look forward to the next episode.

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