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The return of the (sort of) 80 Page Giant!
The Stories: "Riddle of the Robot Justice League" (JLA #13) and "Journey Into The Micro-World" (JLA #18) by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky, and Bernard Sachs, with an all-new cover by Dick Giordano.
Roll Call: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Green Arrow, Atom
Notable Moments: The last time DC would issue an all-reprint issue of JLA, released the same month as a regular one. The cover format this time is a little ungainly, and what's with that ancient Wonder Woman head-shot?
The letter page features a missive from a young man named Bob Rozakis.
The JLA versus Sorcery, in another 80...er, 64-Page Giant.
The stories: "The Fantastic Fingers of Felix Faust!" (JLA #10), and "One Hour to Doomsday!"(JLA #11) by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky, and Bernard Sachs.
Roll Call: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Green Arrow
Notable Moments: Cover by Curt Swan (who you didn't see draw the JLA much) and Murphy Anderson--I especially think the cobwebs are a nice touch.
DC had a couple extra pages, so this book also features a Knights of the Galaxy story, "Lives of a Rocket Lancer!" by Robert Kanigher, Carmine Infantino, and Bernard Sachs, from Mystery in Space #8.
If you look at the ad for the book below, either the cover was originally going to have a black background or it's just a mistake. I think I like the black better...
Batman looks really angry here...maybe because he and Superman didn't participate in these stories?
The stories: "The Cosmic Fun House!" (JLA #7), and "The Last Case of the Justice League!"(JLA #12) by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky, and Bernard Sachs.
Roll Call: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Green Arrow
Notable Moments: DC made a subtle change to their 80-Page Giants--i.e., making them 68-Page Giants! Yep, from now on these Giants were twelve pages shorter. Damn inflation.
Along with these two stories, this issue comes with a JSA pin-up and a Seven Soldiers of Victory pin-up, both by Murphy Anderson, plus a text history of bpth teams.
Hey, at least Aquaman got to be in an issue of JLA, even if it is in just reprints!
Rarely does the phrase "all-reprint issue" get one excited, but when a package is put together as cool as this, it doesn't matter that you've read these stories before!
It was a great idea for an 80 Page Giant, to run all the new member-issues all together, and Neal Adams' cover is about as good as you can get.
The stories: "Doom of the Star Diamond!"(JLA #4), "Menace of the 'Atom' Bomb!"(JLA #14), and "Riddle of the Runaway Room!"(JLA #31) by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky, and Bernard Sachs.
Roll Call: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Green Arrow, Atom, Hawkman
Notable Moments: Hey, who's that weird green guy next to Aquaman? Oh! It's founding member the Martian Manhunter! Kind of like skipping high school all year then showing up for yearbook photos.
As I said above, the cover by Neal Adams is a classic--fun and celebratory; it makes it really feel like the JLA is a family, and that being asked to join that family was a Big Deal. In fact, the cover was so well received it's been homaged by no less than Gil Kane and Jerry Ordway...
Beautiful cover by Carmine Infantino and Sid Greene, featuring a fairly pissed-off looking JLA. Doesn't DC pay the JLA reprint fees?
The stories: "World of No Return!" (JLA #1), "Wheel of Misfortune!"(JLA #6), and "For Sale--The Justice League!"(JLA #8) by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky, and Bernard Sachs.
Roll Call: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Green Arrow
Notable Moments: These 80-Page Giants are so much darn fun, not to mention a real value, then and now. For a 1967 quarter you got three whole comics, and even nowadays I find these issues (relatively) cheap to get because they're all-reprint. If I ever want to re-read JLA #1, I read it here instead of risking my already-fragile original copy.
I could be wrong, but I believe this is the first time the JLA is referred to as "The World's Greatest Superheroes", a moniker that would eventually adorn the book on a regular basis.
Update: I am incorrect directly above. Actually, the phrase is first used on the cover to #39, the first 80 Page Giant issue of JLA!
So Batman runs faster than the Flash, Superman, and Wonder Woman? Interesting...
Another 80-page Giant all-reprint issue. You'd almost feel ripped off if they hadn't released this plus a regular issue...
The stories: "Challenge of the Weapons Master!"(B&B #29), "Secret of the Sinister Sorcerers!"(JLA #2), and "Slave Ship of Space!"(JLA #3) by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky, and Bernard Sachs.
Roll Call: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter
Notable Moments: This issue affords founding member The Martian Manhunter a lack of respect usually afforded only Aquaman. Not only were his appearances becoming more and more scarce, but on the cover he's given blue gloves, something he's never had.
You'd think that Sekowsky, who penciled the cover, Murphy Anderson, who inked it, and whoever colored it, would've caught it at some point.
Ah, the classic 80-Page Giants...
The stories: "Starro the Conqueror!"(B&B #28), "Case of the Stolen Super-Powers"(B&B #30), and "When Gravity Went Wild!"(JLA #5) by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky, and Bernard Sachs.
Roll Call: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Green Arrow
Notable Moments: When I first came across these all-reprint issues, I assumed they were placeholders in the regular series to give Fox, Sekowsky, et al, time to catch up. But closer examination reveals these 80-Page Giants came out the same month as one of the regular issues--kids got two issues of the JLA in one month! Sa-weet!
