JSA #18 – Jeff Lemire, Writer; Gavin Guidry, Joey Vasquez, Artists; Luis Guerrero, John Kalisz, Colorists
Ray – 9/10
Ray: “JSA: Year One” concludes this issue, with the Ultra-Humanite finally taking center stage as the main villain after possessing Alan Scott’s dead friend – only to finally debut his iconic giant white gorilla version and lead the charge against the heroes. Overall, this arc has gone on a little too long as it introduced us to all the JSA members and how they interact with each other, but this issue does a good job of leaning into some really intriguing character beats. It’s great to see Alan Scott, in his public heroic debut, finally see his identity for what it is and not succumb to the Nazi villain’s attempt to use it against him. And Jim Corrigan finally embraces the legacy of the Spectre, but the toll of carrying out God’s vengeance isn’t easy to bear, and the story doesn’t shy away from the fact that this is something no human can easily handle. It’s those little beats that make this team gel together so well.
There’s some great banter towards the end as the team gathers for the first time and becomes an official entity, but I’m more intrigued by what’s coming next. Guidry steps off the title this month as he takes over as the full-time artist on Flash, and Joey Vasquez’s backup hints at the future of the Society. With Wildcat gone and the team having just been through a year-long crisis, it seems like the elders want to refocus the team as more of a place for young heroes to learn and carry on the legacy. But one major legacy is about to re-emerge – in the form of the Spectre, who is now unchained from Jim Corrigan, who moved on long ago. The spirit was bound to Hal Jordan and Crispus Allen in the past, but now it’s set its sights on a new character who appeared in the first arc of this series – and it’ll be really intriguing to see where this goes. Promising start to the next year of stories.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes
