Now that we’ve had a bit of a long strange trip through the Justice’s Society’s origins, we’ve decided to skip ahead, a generation ahead to be precise. That’s right, this week we are going to be starting off reading one of my personal favorites, Infinity Inc. starting with issue #1 and then the Generations Saga.
1: In issue #1 Do you think the members of the JSA acted appropriately or overreacted to the situation?
2: Which member of Infinity Inc. is your favorite so far?
3: Which team member do you think had the most complicated family dynamic going on and why?
4: What effect do you think the Infinitors coming to the rescue of the JSA will have on how others see them afterward? How will it change the way they view themselves?
You’re welcome @Don-El. I thought club posts might be allowed a bit more leeway in that regard since we are discussing comics and that oftentimes can lead to a discussion taking a detour at times.
So I’m reading issue #1 and immediately I have to ask…why is Hector reciting their origin story as a team to his fellow teammates? They were there, and it’s not like their godpappies hit them so hard that they forgot who they were. Shouldn’t they be explaining this to the JSA? I get that Thomas has to go about the origin of this group, but it could be done in a far less awkward way.
Also, this is pretty much the the team at the end of issue 1:
Yeah, I wondered that too. It was a pretty odd stylistic choice on the part of Thomas to me. I didn’t get the impression that Hector was even addressing the reader with his recitation unlike the stories the JSA told in All Star Comics #3.
While I did find the first issue of this pretty enjoyable and readable, you do have a point @Jay_Kay about Roy Thomas not making the motivations and the way of telling these background stories more believable.
I really like the second generation of heroes concept here, and the mix of superpowers with gadget driven hero and “fantasy” literal hawk-man hero. The mystery (even to themselves) of Green Lantern’s kids at the end just made the literary meal even nore palatable.
I grew up on Roy Thomas, Stan Lee had turned over series like the Avengers to him in the late '60s for romps like the first Skrull / Kree war. Roy’s strengths as we’ll see here, are his deep knowledge and love for the Golden Age heroes and for fantasy literature in general (he was the writer for that fantastic Conan run of the early '70s with Barry Windsor-Smith drawing that basically retold the orginal pulp stories of the '30s). So we’ll see references to old Flashh 1946 comics that probably still aren’t digitized along with fantasy “hawk people” kingdoms.
(by the way, they reference the Secret Society of Super-Villains here. Sadly none of that is digitized in our library; I have the 14 or so issue run from the late '70s, and I’ve seen hardcover collections of it, not sure why it’s unavailable).
Mr. Thomas’s weakness however is dialogue and interteam dynamics. At time, people’s dialogues come off like hearing bad actors reading off of cue cards etc. Relationships are either dull or everyone is smashing things.
I read All Star Squadron and Infinity Inc when it came out at the time, and greatly enjoyed it for the amazing concepts both of characters, plot mysteries and twists and turns of story. But I was also keenly aware Roy Thomas is no Steve Englehart or Don McGregor when it comes to interpersonal dynamics being displayed (think "Scarlett Witch and Android).
I’m looking forward to reading this all again. Oh, Jerry Ordway’s art is a treat here in my opinion, a real masterclass artist for comics in my mind.
I just looked through my Helena Wayne Huntress and All Star Comics Trades and it look’s like neither Huntress or Power Girl were trained to be super heroes by Batman Catwoman or Superman.
The Huntress Fact page in her trade says she was trained for mental and physical perfection yet only heard stories from her dad and watched Dick Grayson train. Yet suudenly she becomes a expert fighter acrobat and cross bow user.
But both easily became members of the JSA
So the reaction of the JSA to their own children wanting to be super heroes seems rather strange.
So in rereading my questions are
Did the kids ever express any interest in becoming super heroes before?
Were they trained in all? If not born with their powers how did they get their gadgets?
My initial.impression.is that these young people who have known each other since childhood suddenly decide to become super heroes and get some bad costumes that do not indivate their heritage or power set. Even their name do not have anything to do with their legacy Fury Silver Scarab?
I believe the JSA overreacted to the situation although I do agree with them that the youngsters do need experience before becoming fully fledged members of the JSA. The thing is I don’t think they would have been given a fair shot at doing that while being members of the JSA so becoming their own team is a much better option I think.
Obsidian hands down. I like them all but he’s the one that really stood out to me.
As difficult as it is to be the children of heroes I think ot would be even more difficult to be the child of a villain. Brainwave Junior gets my vote here. Not only does he have to deal with the stigma of being very obviously related to a villain but on top of that his father hasn’t been involved in his life. Both have to have some kind of effect on him.
I think the JSA in particular will see them as being worthy of their legacies and they might see their worth as heroes as well. As for the members of Infinity, Inc. themselves I think it will make them feel as they could actually really make it as heroes in their own right.
Checking in to the JSA board- I’ve read through the Annual for All Star Squadron and started Infinity Inc #3 (Christmas eve/ Christmas).
Between the two series, I’ll just put my cards on the table and state I have fond memories of All Star Squadron as a series back when it came out that at this point have me leaning that series’ direction, but I enjoyed Infinity Inc at the time and have a hard copy of “Generations” on my bookshelf. I wasn’t horribly confused with the very long list of characters, as most I recalled, in particular Amazing Man.
Some favorite panels halfway or so through the reading:
(above) having the “kids” go to a burger joint to chat was a cool idea- but did the main mental villain UItra Humanite cause that fight scene in the restaurant?
I really like the Mist as a villain, he is plenty scary: too bad for him there was a testing wind tunnel nearby for Phantom Lady to trick him to enter…
1: Yes I think they way overreacted. Even re-reading the series through older eyes I still think so. As others have said, I could have seen them giving them probationary membership to be mentored, and not making them full members. (Then again we all know that showing them the door had to happen for the premise of the rest of the series)
2: Everyone should know by now that Nuklon is my favorite.
3: I think none of them really have a completely uncomplicated family life but I must admit, I feel the sorriest for Obsidian and Brainwave Jr. on this one.
4: Hopefully the “grownups” will take them more seriously, and realize that though inexperienced they do have potential.
I also think maybe they will have more belief in themselves, and each other as a unit now, interpersonal disagreements aside.
