JSA: Return of Hawkman

Synopsis: This was originally printed in JSA #16-26 and JSA: Secret Files #1.

The JSA fends off a large scale coordinated attack by the Injustice Society. They discover the attack was coordinated by Johnny Sorrow, who wants to destroy the world, but they manage to defeat him. During the battle, the Flash ends up time traveling back to ancient Egypt, where he encounters Khufu, Teth Adam and Nabu. They give him the Claw of Horus, which will be used to recall the reincarnated Hawkman in time of need in his own time. Flash manages to return to his own time. In the meantime, Hawkgirl has been teleported to Thanagar by freedom fighters who need her help. The JSA follows, and end up in a battle against a despot who wants to destroy the universe. However, with the return of Carter Hall, the reincarnated Hawkman, they manage to save the day again.

Good Stuff: Probably the best thing here is a genuine sense of excitement within each story. Johns and Goyer, abetted by the art teams, do a great job of maintaining a high level of energy through each of the story arcs, and while the outcome is never in doubt, they manage to achieve that great balance of still keeping the reader in suspense.

Also, despite the changes in art teams form issue to issue, there’s a nice standard maintained which renders the action sequences relatively simple to follow.

Not so Good Stuff: Well, every moment isn’t perfect. The series does drag a little during the scenes with Hawkgirl leading up to Thanagar, as her whining is never really properly explained, nor do the writers do a better than average job of depicting her transition to a more heroic stature.

I give this book 9/10.