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DC Anniversary Celebrations
Justice Society of America: A Celebration of 75 Years
In the winter of 1940, All Star Comics #3, written by comics legend Gardner Fox, introduced the world to the Justice Society of America. Featuring Hour-Man, Doctor Fate, The Spectre, The Sandman, The Atom, The Flash, The Green Lantern and Hawkman, the Justice Society of America would become a mainstay in superhero comics for the next seventy-five years!
This anthology collects stories from the industry's legendary talents, including Gardner Fox, John Broome, Robert Kanigher and Geoff Johns.
This anthology collects stories from the industry's legendary talents, including Gardner Fox, John Broome, Robert Kanigher and Geoff Johns.
400 pages, Hardcover
First published July 28, 2015
22 people are currently reading
121 people want to read
About the author
Dennis O'Neil
1,757 books276 followers
Dennis "Denny" O'Neil
was a comic book writer and editor best known for his work for Marvel Comics and DC Comics from the 1960s through the 1990s, and Group Editor for the Batman family of titles until his retirement.
His best-known works include Green Lantern/Green Arrow and Batman with Neal Adams, The Shadow with Michael Kaluta and The Question with Denys Cowan. As an editor, he is principally known for editing the various Batman titles. From 2013 unti his death, he sat on the board of directors of the charity The Hero Initiative and served on its Disbursement Committee.
His best-known works include Green Lantern/Green Arrow and Batman with Neal Adams, The Shadow with Michael Kaluta and The Question with Denys Cowan. As an editor, he is principally known for editing the various Batman titles. From 2013 unti his death, he sat on the board of directors of the charity The Hero Initiative and served on its Disbursement Committee.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
June 1, 2018
The DC “Celebration” books are decent retrospectives on the characters that helped put this publishing company on the map. This one tries to be inclusive by collecting stories from all the important comic book eras – starting with the Golden Age of Comics.
The Justice Society of America (JSA) were DC’s first super-group – a collection of their finest heroes – except Batman and Superman… Because this type of book was a showcase for heroes and the Batman and Superman books already sold well, those two – who made occasional appearances – didn’t need the exposure. So as super-groups go it was more like Power Station instead of Asia.
It’s 1941, so who are they going up against first?
If you said Nazis, Random Goodreader, you are correct, but with a caveat. The writers couldn’t/wouldn’t/shouldn’t say Nazis, so the bad guys were named Fritz and Hans and they were from a foreign country (Canada?) intent on sabotage and corrupting good All-American values.
The initial group was kind of lopsided in power sets: Dr. Fate and The Spectre could have easily handled these Fascist mooks on their own. In another story in this book, The Spectre lodged himself between two Earths to prevent them from colliding! So why bother teaming up with The Sandman, who has a gas gun and can throw a punch?
Mr. Spectre, you are starting to scare me!
A major step down in abilities from the magic/sorcery dudes, you had The Flash (Jay Garrick), who could quickly (incredibly obvious pun intended) round up these no good bastards. The writers didn’t quite know what to do with The Green Lantern (Alan Scott), since he rarely used his ring for much more than flying and fell for the old crowbar-to-the-back-of-the-noggin’-via-fascist-goon trick.
There’s The Atom, a short dude who has the power of, one would assume, an atom. And finally you have Hourman, who upon taking a drug named Miraclo, had super powers for only an hour. Miraclo is a patented combination of Meth, Viagra, powdered muskrat testicles with the option of either mocha, watermelon or minty flavoring.
Make mine mocha!
*starts humming “Sixty Minute Man”
Wonder Woman joins the Justice League in the next story.
One of the most powerful super heroes ever, she gets to…watch the club house and keep an eye on loser/mascot Johnny Thunder, while her male counter parts get the crap knocked out of them for dozens of pages.
“Oh, and sweetheart, can you have some beer and sandwiches ready for us when we get back to the club house and maybe show us some of those bondage tricks you’ve picked up along the way. Thanks!”
In the last Golden Age story, we have the Justice League traveling by rocket ship to one of Saturn’s moons. Wonder Woman now gets to kick some ass, and because Black Canary is now a member, she gets to stay behind on the rocket ship with the giant Saturnian.
“Oh, and sweetheart, can you have some beer and sandwiches ready for us when we get back to the rocket ship and maybe model your fishnet stockings later. Thanks!”
A note about Golden Age comics: There’s a lot of reading.
There’s more to read on this single page than in the whole bonus version of Stephen King’s The Stand. In addition to the painful exposition-a-rama, it seems that the editors had to explain anything science-y. We learn about gravity, trajectories, centrifugal force – all the things that made me hate science class and by extension, Golden Age comics.
The Silver Age brings about another conundrum. DC revamped their superhero comics in the late ‘50’s and now had the Justice League. So what about the Justice Society and all the heroes from that previous era?
Say “hello” to the alternate Earth storylines.
The current roster of heroes are now dubbed “Earth One”; the Golden Age heroes, even though they pre-date their modern counterparts are now “Earth Two” and qualify for AARP. Senior discounts are now available for all the now old geezer heroes from “Earth Two”.
This led to the annual JLA hooks up with the JSA storylines.
“Now that we can kick some ass again we don’t have to spend our days playing checkers and counting our liver spots.”
“Combining forces to keep the two Earth’s from smashing into one another. For the millionth time.”
“Not getting our asses kicked by those bozos on Earth 3.” Yes, I said it. Earth 3! Three’s a crowd, Earth 3.
My personal favorite was when Solomon Grundy and Blockbuster punched and gouged the hate out of each other.
“Knocked the hate out of each other.” I think there’s some sort of lesson there, kids, but I’m not sure what.
I’d like to take a minute here and give the Silver Age DC editors the middle finger for even coming up with the “Infinite Earths”concept.
*pauses and gives middle finger*
I feel much better, my rage is almost gone.
The remainder of the book had DC trying to find a place in modern continuity for the JSA pre- and post-Infinite Crisis with varying degrees of success. Of note, Black Canary moved herself from Earth 2 to Earth 1, to 1) avoid having to change the adult diapers of her fellow JSA pals, and 2) challenge the DC artists mad skillz at drawing fish net stockings.
So what kind of storylines round out this tome?
Do we just write retro stories?
He is serious Hawkman and don’t call him Shirley.
Do we bring the JSA into Earth One along with some old pervy Golden Age villain?
Yes, please.
Do we have old man Superman pay a visit and hang out awhile swapping stories about how Earth 2 Batman put Kryptonite in his hemorrhoid cream?
Do we go all New 52, make the Green Lantern gay and spoil any memories of the JSA by writing a crappy book?
The gay Green Lantern Alan Scott with a weakness for “wood”, that was a hard editorial choice to make.
Bottom line: Like I said a million words ago, this collection tries to be inclusive, offering a glimpse of the group from the entire publishing history. It works when the stories are self-contained, but when, you’re stuck on Thanagar with that a$$ Hawkman for whatever reason, you’ll wish you had never left the Golden Age of comics. Not a bad collection, but not for the squeamish.
The Justice Society of America (JSA) were DC’s first super-group – a collection of their finest heroes – except Batman and Superman… Because this type of book was a showcase for heroes and the Batman and Superman books already sold well, those two – who made occasional appearances – didn’t need the exposure. So as super-groups go it was more like Power Station instead of Asia.
It’s 1941, so who are they going up against first?
If you said Nazis, Random Goodreader, you are correct, but with a caveat. The writers couldn’t/wouldn’t/shouldn’t say Nazis, so the bad guys were named Fritz and Hans and they were from a foreign country (Canada?) intent on sabotage and corrupting good All-American values.
The initial group was kind of lopsided in power sets: Dr. Fate and The Spectre could have easily handled these Fascist mooks on their own. In another story in this book, The Spectre lodged himself between two Earths to prevent them from colliding! So why bother teaming up with The Sandman, who has a gas gun and can throw a punch?
Mr. Spectre, you are starting to scare me!
A major step down in abilities from the magic/sorcery dudes, you had The Flash (Jay Garrick), who could quickly (incredibly obvious pun intended) round up these no good bastards. The writers didn’t quite know what to do with The Green Lantern (Alan Scott), since he rarely used his ring for much more than flying and fell for the old crowbar-to-the-back-of-the-noggin’-via-fascist-goon trick.
There’s The Atom, a short dude who has the power of, one would assume, an atom. And finally you have Hourman, who upon taking a drug named Miraclo, had super powers for only an hour. Miraclo is a patented combination of Meth, Viagra, powdered muskrat testicles with the option of either mocha, watermelon or minty flavoring.
Make mine mocha!
*starts humming “Sixty Minute Man”
Wonder Woman joins the Justice League in the next story.
One of the most powerful super heroes ever, she gets to…watch the club house and keep an eye on loser/mascot Johnny Thunder, while her male counter parts get the crap knocked out of them for dozens of pages.
“Oh, and sweetheart, can you have some beer and sandwiches ready for us when we get back to the club house and maybe show us some of those bondage tricks you’ve picked up along the way. Thanks!”
In the last Golden Age story, we have the Justice League traveling by rocket ship to one of Saturn’s moons. Wonder Woman now gets to kick some ass, and because Black Canary is now a member, she gets to stay behind on the rocket ship with the giant Saturnian.
“Oh, and sweetheart, can you have some beer and sandwiches ready for us when we get back to the rocket ship and maybe model your fishnet stockings later. Thanks!”
A note about Golden Age comics: There’s a lot of reading.
There’s more to read on this single page than in the whole bonus version of Stephen King’s The Stand. In addition to the painful exposition-a-rama, it seems that the editors had to explain anything science-y. We learn about gravity, trajectories, centrifugal force – all the things that made me hate science class and by extension, Golden Age comics.
The Silver Age brings about another conundrum. DC revamped their superhero comics in the late ‘50’s and now had the Justice League. So what about the Justice Society and all the heroes from that previous era?
Say “hello” to the alternate Earth storylines.
The current roster of heroes are now dubbed “Earth One”; the Golden Age heroes, even though they pre-date their modern counterparts are now “Earth Two” and qualify for AARP. Senior discounts are now available for all the now old geezer heroes from “Earth Two”.
This led to the annual JLA hooks up with the JSA storylines.
“Now that we can kick some ass again we don’t have to spend our days playing checkers and counting our liver spots.”
“Combining forces to keep the two Earth’s from smashing into one another. For the millionth time.”
“Not getting our asses kicked by those bozos on Earth 3.” Yes, I said it. Earth 3! Three’s a crowd, Earth 3.
My personal favorite was when Solomon Grundy and Blockbuster punched and gouged the hate out of each other.
“Knocked the hate out of each other.” I think there’s some sort of lesson there, kids, but I’m not sure what.
I’d like to take a minute here and give the Silver Age DC editors the middle finger for even coming up with the “Infinite Earths”concept.
*pauses and gives middle finger*
I feel much better, my rage is almost gone.
The remainder of the book had DC trying to find a place in modern continuity for the JSA pre- and post-Infinite Crisis with varying degrees of success. Of note, Black Canary moved herself from Earth 2 to Earth 1, to 1) avoid having to change the adult diapers of her fellow JSA pals, and 2) challenge the DC artists mad skillz at drawing fish net stockings.
So what kind of storylines round out this tome?
Do we just write retro stories?
He is serious Hawkman and don’t call him Shirley.
Do we bring the JSA into Earth One along with some old pervy Golden Age villain?
Yes, please.
Do we have old man Superman pay a visit and hang out awhile swapping stories about how Earth 2 Batman put Kryptonite in his hemorrhoid cream?
Do we go all New 52, make the Green Lantern gay and spoil any memories of the JSA by writing a crappy book?
The gay Green Lantern Alan Scott with a weakness for “wood”, that was a hard editorial choice to make.
Bottom line: Like I said a million words ago, this collection tries to be inclusive, offering a glimpse of the group from the entire publishing history. It works when the stories are self-contained, but when, you’re stuck on Thanagar with that a$$ Hawkman for whatever reason, you’ll wish you had never left the Golden Age of comics. Not a bad collection, but not for the squeamish.
July 13, 2024
I usually begin my reviews with caveats as to why I'm rating and reviewing something a certain way. I think it is especially important when rating something that might include some people's sacred cows such as the JSA (Justice Society of America) seems to be for some fans, that I write this with transparency and sensitivity.
I have never been a fan of the JSA, although I have read occasional JSA and All Stars comic books in the past. I only decided to read the TPB because I have enjoyed the Stargirl TV show and wanted some background on the characters: Starman / Stargirl, Hour-Man, Wildcat, Atom, Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman, Dr. Fate, Spectre, and Sandman. This was very different from the TV show.
The trade paperback before me is a compilation of snippets from the 75-year history of the Justice Society of America. Small problem, the history being shared is that of an alternate world, Earth-2, with more alternate Earths included along the way. Then the Justice League crosses over a great deal, almost completely dominating the first half of the TPB, which seems to predicate its entire existence on the Justice League? It's not clear. The JSA are supposed to be Golden Age and the JLA are Silver Age.
The snippets being offered do not give complete stories so what you're getting is really just a hodge podge of incomplete story arcs. Since I never followed the comics, I was mostly lost. Lastly, when I read the title, my thought was that this was supposed to be a "Celebration," usually a joyous event where the best of the magazine's run is underscored. That did not happen.
I think a better way to have given readers a taste, would have been to reprint a complete story arc complete with an introduction to the villains and a wrap-up. What the reader received is some fascinating tidbits, but almost joyless, perfunctory noise. My two cents. Sorry.
I have never been a fan of the JSA, although I have read occasional JSA and All Stars comic books in the past. I only decided to read the TPB because I have enjoyed the Stargirl TV show and wanted some background on the characters: Starman / Stargirl, Hour-Man, Wildcat, Atom, Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman, Dr. Fate, Spectre, and Sandman. This was very different from the TV show.
The trade paperback before me is a compilation of snippets from the 75-year history of the Justice Society of America. Small problem, the history being shared is that of an alternate world, Earth-2, with more alternate Earths included along the way. Then the Justice League crosses over a great deal, almost completely dominating the first half of the TPB, which seems to predicate its entire existence on the Justice League? It's not clear. The JSA are supposed to be Golden Age and the JLA are Silver Age.
The snippets being offered do not give complete stories so what you're getting is really just a hodge podge of incomplete story arcs. Since I never followed the comics, I was mostly lost. Lastly, when I read the title, my thought was that this was supposed to be a "Celebration," usually a joyous event where the best of the magazine's run is underscored. That did not happen.
I think a better way to have given readers a taste, would have been to reprint a complete story arc complete with an introduction to the villains and a wrap-up. What the reader received is some fascinating tidbits, but almost joyless, perfunctory noise. My two cents. Sorry.
May 22, 2018
DC Comics' oldest superhero team throughout the years- quite a collection of stories, from their early days until just before Convergence. I enjoyed seeing the original stories from the 1940s, the JLA/JSA team up years and the aftermaths of various crises- this team has a distinguished history in the DC universe and it was great seeing parts of it.
However, I was disappointed with the selection of stories. This collection includes the 1941 story "For America And Democracy" and the 1986 story "The First Case Of The Justice Society." These are the EXACT SAME STORY. Somehow the editors saw fit to include the same story twice, but omit either version of The Origin Of The Justice Society. I would also have liked to have seen the JLA/JSA team up from 171-172, where Mr. Terrific died, or the death of the Earth-2 Batman. I would have preferred to see the story where the new look JSA began their search for legacy heroes instead of the first of the three part Kingdom Come crossover. Those stories are critical points in JSA history, but were omitted so we could read two versions of the JSA's first case.
Overall I enjoyed the collection- I just thought it could have been assembled a lot better.
However, I was disappointed with the selection of stories. This collection includes the 1941 story "For America And Democracy" and the 1986 story "The First Case Of The Justice Society." These are the EXACT SAME STORY. Somehow the editors saw fit to include the same story twice, but omit either version of The Origin Of The Justice Society. I would also have liked to have seen the JLA/JSA team up from 171-172, where Mr. Terrific died, or the death of the Earth-2 Batman. I would have preferred to see the story where the new look JSA began their search for legacy heroes instead of the first of the three part Kingdom Come crossover. Those stories are critical points in JSA history, but were omitted so we could read two versions of the JSA's first case.
Overall I enjoyed the collection- I just thought it could have been assembled a lot better.
December 25, 2017
Still the best
What a fantastic volume.. If you're not familiar with the JSA, this is a great way to start. Like many other early books, it isn't perfect but it's a lot of fun. The main appeal here is the idea of legacy. I cannot emphasize my love for this stuff. Hopefully other readers will feel the same.
What a fantastic volume.. If you're not familiar with the JSA, this is a great way to start. Like many other early books, it isn't perfect but it's a lot of fun. The main appeal here is the idea of legacy. I cannot emphasize my love for this stuff. Hopefully other readers will feel the same.
November 22, 2017
This is campy DC at its best. The exploits of the first superhero team ever, and unbalanced as they could be. However their camaraderie, their morals and good attitude make them a perennial reference about how a group should work together. A very nice, colorful read.
June 21, 2018
Justice Society of America: A Celebration of 75 Years is a compilation of some of the most notable Justice Society of America stories over the years to commemorate the seventy-fifth anniversary debut of one of the most endearing teams in the DC Universe (2015). Over the years, there were many teams named Justice Society of America and for the most part, I liked most of them. Each team is distinctive and showcased a myriad of characters that I wouldn't have normally want to read about.
This anthology is divided into five sections, separate mainly in part by Comic Eras: Golden, Silver, Bronze, Modern, and the Rebooted Universe. As an anthology, it seems rather imbalanced with it focusing more on the Silver and Modern Ages of Comics about two-thirds of the anthology. Furthermore, with so many people in the rooster at any given Age or time, it is difficult to get a feel of the individuals with the limited stories that the editors have collected.
I do not envy the story selector's job – it must have been a Herculean Task and then some. The difficulty of choosing issues for this collection is to showcase the team as a whole evenly, which for the most cases it does somewhat successfully. Most stories features one of the teammates as lead with most of the other teammates as backup – it is fairly rare that there are stories that feature just the team itself.
Story selection was problematic at best – even with four hundred pages it doesn't give the scope to let us know the various teams better – it gives us a taste, but nothing more. In some cases, the stories chosen were a part of a larger story arc which begins or ends with a cliff-hanger with no information on how they got there or left hanging on how it will end. This collection is more of an introductory offering of each era of the team to propel the individual to probe further on their own.
All in all, Justice Society of America: A Celebration of 75 Years is a rather good collection of Justice Society of America stories – despite of the sporadic nature of the anthology, it was in the end, a somewhat successful collection of most things J.S.A.
This anthology is divided into five sections, separate mainly in part by Comic Eras: Golden, Silver, Bronze, Modern, and the Rebooted Universe. As an anthology, it seems rather imbalanced with it focusing more on the Silver and Modern Ages of Comics about two-thirds of the anthology. Furthermore, with so many people in the rooster at any given Age or time, it is difficult to get a feel of the individuals with the limited stories that the editors have collected.
I do not envy the story selector's job – it must have been a Herculean Task and then some. The difficulty of choosing issues for this collection is to showcase the team as a whole evenly, which for the most cases it does somewhat successfully. Most stories features one of the teammates as lead with most of the other teammates as backup – it is fairly rare that there are stories that feature just the team itself.
Story selection was problematic at best – even with four hundred pages it doesn't give the scope to let us know the various teams better – it gives us a taste, but nothing more. In some cases, the stories chosen were a part of a larger story arc which begins or ends with a cliff-hanger with no information on how they got there or left hanging on how it will end. This collection is more of an introductory offering of each era of the team to propel the individual to probe further on their own.
All in all, Justice Society of America: A Celebration of 75 Years is a rather good collection of Justice Society of America stories – despite of the sporadic nature of the anthology, it was in the end, a somewhat successful collection of most things J.S.A.
November 29, 2018
The first super group!
The JSA is still the first of the super groups. Virtually every super hero of the DC verse served in at one time or another. This tome has some of the best JSA stories ever, including the first appearance of the injustice society of the world, the first JSA story i ever read in a reprint. Well worth reading.
The JSA is still the first of the super groups. Virtually every super hero of the DC verse served in at one time or another. This tome has some of the best JSA stories ever, including the first appearance of the injustice society of the world, the first JSA story i ever read in a reprint. Well worth reading.
September 30, 2019
Similar to the Shazam! collection in this line, the strength of this book lies in its heavy reliance on Pro-Crisis stories. While Robinson, Goyer, and Johns wrote a lot of good stories featuring the JSA as part of the modern DC world; similar to the Captain Marvel, much of the JSA works best in its own time and in a world segregated from the main DC Earth.
April 21, 2025
The bits I could understand were mildly interesting. The problem is that the early works are pretty dated in story and art and the later stories are parts of longer arcs and largely incomprehensible to a less knowledgeable reader. There are some nice moments, I'm just not sure who the book is for. Longtime fans already have read these books and newer readers will likely get confused.
January 8, 2020
Great JSA compilation
Great JSA compilation of stories from multiple eras. The JSA came from a different part of the 20th century with different values, and world views, but a shared respect for justice and dignity.
Great JSA compilation of stories from multiple eras. The JSA came from a different part of the 20th century with different values, and world views, but a shared respect for justice and dignity.
January 23, 2018
This was awesome. JSA is one of my all time faves and it was great to read this
September 15, 2020
A (very) mixed bag of selections. A few are chapters in longer stories. It serves though as an introduction to the JSA for those who like them.
Want to read
February 12, 2025Un repaso de tres cuartos de siglo a momentos claves de la JSA.
March 14, 2025
Setenta y cinco años de la JLA y prácticamente la misma cantidad de personajes en sus páginas.
Todavía me queda armar la lista complea de personajes.
Todavía me queda armar la lista complea de personajes.
Want to read
March 16, 2025De esta antología no leí casi nada del material clásico y bastante del moderno.
August 10, 2025
Mucha mitología deceíta condensada y refinada.
Want to read
September 16, 2025Versiones varias de la JSA. Personajes y peleas pendientes.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews