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Golden Age JSA Lineup Changes

Posted by The Baron on August 28, 2025 at 3:44pm in The Baron's Timelines

I didn't want to infringe on the Skipper's JSA conversation by cluttering it up with things that he hasn't gotten to yet, but I wanted to commit this to electrons before it  vanished from that scrapheap that I call a brain.

All-Star Comics #3

31179506478?profile=RESIZE_400x

  1. The Atom
  2. Doctor Fate
  3. The Flash
  4. The Green Lantern
  5. Hawkman
  6. Hourman
  7. The Sandman
  8. The Spectre

Non-members Johnny Thunder and the Red Tornado gate-crash.

 

All-Star Comics #4

31179506665?profile=RESIZE_400xSame lineup.

Johnny is still present (in final chapter and unrelated text story).

Red Tornado is not.

 

All-Star Comics #5

31179506677?profile=RESIZE_400xSame lineup.

Johnny appears in unrelated text story.

 

All-Star Comics #6

13740352886?profile=RESIZE_400x

  1. The Atom
  2. Doctor Fate
  3. The Green Lantern
  4. Hawkman
  5. Hourman
  6. Johnny Thunder
  7. The Sandman
  8. The Spectre

The Flash moves to honorary status

Johnny is made a member.

Doctor Mid-Nite appears in unrelated text story.

 

All-Star Comics #7

31179506299?profile=RESIZE_400xSame lineup.

Cameo appeareance by the Flash, Batman and Superman in the Conclusion. That puts all 11 members (so far) in the same room.

Annnounced that the Green Lantern is moving to honorary membership, and Hourman is taking a leave of absence.

Doctor Mid-Nite and Starman are announced as their replacements, and appear on the symbolic final page, but do not appear in the story proper.

 

All-Star Comics #8

31179507297?profile=RESIZE_400x

  1. The Atom
  2. Doctor Fate
  3. Doctor Mid-Nite
  4. Hawkman
  5. Johnny Thunder
  6. The Sandman
  7. The Spectre
  8. Starman

Wonder Woman makes her first appearance, but not in the JSA story.

Doctor Fate switches to half-helmet.

 

All-Star Comics #9

31179507858?profile=RESIZE_400xSame lineup.

 

All-Star Comics #10

31179508055?profile=RESIZE_400xSame lineup.

Sandman switches to purple-and-gold costume.

The honorary members appear as vignettes on the cover and splash page, on a painting in the future and as statues in the future. Flash and Green Lantern physically cameo.

 

All-Star Comics #11

31093109301?profile=RESIZE_400xSame lineup.

Guest appearance by Wonder Woman, who is nominated to be a member.

Wonder Woman has a solo chapter, but Spectre does not.

 

All-Star Comics #12

Same line-up.  Wonder Woman volunteers to be the team's secretary.

 

All-Star Comics #13

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still secretary, but takes part in the adventure.

 

 All-Star Comics #14

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still listed as secretary. Sandy also appears, but not as a team member.

 

 All-Star Comics #15

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still secretary, but takes part in the adventure. Sandy also appears, but not as a team member.

 

 All-Star Comics #16

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still listed as secretary. No sign of Sandy.

 

 All-Star Comics #17

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still listed as secretary. 

 

 All-Star Comics #18

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still listed as secretary. 

 

 All-Star Comics #19

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still listed as secretary. Sandy also appears, but not as a team member.

 

 All-Star Comics #20

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still listed as secretary. Not only is Sandy not in this issue, the Sandman himself barely appears.

 

 All-Star Comics #21

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still listed as secretary. 

 

 All-Star Comics #22

  1. The Atom
  2. Doctor Mid-Nite
  3. Hawkman
  4. Johnny Thunder
  5. The Spectre
  6. Starman

Fate and the Sandman are absent without explanation.  Wonder Woman is still secretary.

 

 All-Star Comics #23

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still listed as secretary. 

 

 All-Star Comics #24

 

  1. The Atom
  2. Doctor Mid-Nite
  3. Hawkman
  4. Johnny Thunder
  5. Mister Terrific
  6. Wildcat

The Sandman and the Spectre are absent without explanation. Mister Terrific and Wildcat have been called in without explanation.  The Flash and the Green Lantern appear, but don't take part in the adventure.  Wonder Womn is still listed as secretary.

 

 All-Star Comics #25

  1. The Atom
  2. Doctor Mid-Nite
  3. The Flash
  4. The Green Lantern
  5. Hawkman
  6. Johnny Thunder

Terrific and Wildcat are gone (Although they are pictured  in the ad for the Junior JSA.  Were they originally meant to stay longer?), the Flash and GL  are back as full-timers. Wonder Woman is still listed as secretary.

 

 All-Star Comics #26

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still listed as secretary.

 

 All-Star Comics #27

  1. The Atom
  2. Doctor Mid-Nite
  3. The Flash
  4. The Green Lantern
  5. Hawkman
  6. Johnny Thunder
  7. Wildcat

Wildcat is back without explanation. Wonder Woman is still listed as secretary.

 

 All-Star Comics #28

  1. The Atom
  2. Doctor Mid-Nite
  3. The Flash
  4. The Green Lantern
  5. Hawkman
  6. Johnny Thunder

Wildcat is gone again. Wonder Woman is still secretary.

 

 All-Star Comics #29

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still secretary.

 

 All-Star Comics #30

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still secretary.

 

 All-Star Comics #31

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still secretary.

 

 All-Star Comics #32

Same line-up. Wonder Woman is still secretary.

 

 All-Star Comics #33

Same line-up. Wonder Woman isn't called the secretary here, but she is made to stay back at HQ, so...

 

 All-Star Comics #34

  1. The Atom
  2. Doctor Mid-Nite
  3. The Flash
  4. The Green Lantern
  5. Hawkman
  6. Johnny Thunder
  7. Wonder Woman

Wonder Woman isn't called the secretary here, and she does take part in the adventure, so I guess she's a full member now.

 

 All-Star Comics #35

Same line-up. Wonder Woman's back to being called secretary, but she takes part in the adventure, somthe heck with it.

 

 All-Star Comics #36

  1. Batman
  2. Doctor Mid-Nite
  3. The Flash
  4. The Green Lantern
  5. Hawkman
  6. Superman
  7. Wonder Woman

Al has a broken leg, and Johnny has a cold, so Supes and Bats are brought  in as ribngers. 

 

 All-Star Comics #37

  1. The Atom
  2. Doctor Mid-Nite
  3. The Flash
  4. The Green Lantern
  5. Hawkman
  6. Johnny Thunder
  7. Wonder Woman

Back to the usual line-up.

 

 All-Star Comics #38

Same line-up. The Black Canary appears as an ally.

 

 

 All-Star Comics #39

Same line-up. The Black Canary appears as an ally.

 

 All-Star Comics #40

  1. The Atom
  2. The Black Canary
  3. Doctor Mid-Nite
  4. The Flash
  5. The Green Lantern
  6. Hawkman
  7. Wonder Woman

Johnny is absent withput explanation.  The Canary seems to be a member now.

 

 All-Star Comics #41

Same line-up. The Black Canary is made a permanent member.

 

  All-Star Comics #42, #43, #44, #45, #46, #47, #48, #49, #50, #51, #52, #53, #54, #55, #56, #57:  Same line-up.

 

Characters By Number of Appearances (If I did my msth right):

Hawkman: 55

The Atom: 54

Doctor Mid-Nite: 48

Wonder Woman: 43

The Flash: 39

The Green Lantern: 39

Johnny Thunder: 36

The Spectre: 21

The Black Canary: 20

Doctor Fate: 19

The Sandman: 19

Starman: 16

Hourman: 5

Sandy: 3

Batman: 2

Superman: 2

Wildcat: 2

Mister Terrific: 1

The Red Tornado: 1

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Replies

  • Philip Portelli August 28, 2025 at 4:19pm

    #13--Doctor Fate is not there. His chapter is given to Wonder Woman.

    #20--The page count is cut so Doctor Fate and Sandman do not get solo chapters.

    #21--The Atom and the Spectre don't get solo chapters. Last appearance of Doctor Fate and Sandman who aren't on the cover but on the similiar splash page.

    #27--The Atom is not there with no explanation, replaced by Wildcat, again with no explanation.

    #36--Johnny Thunder has a cold, not a broken leg! 

    • The Baron > Philip Portelli August 28, 2025 at 8:14pm

      #36--Johnny Thunder has a cold, not a broken leg! 

      D'Oh!

  • Luke Blanchard August 29, 2025 at 3:35am

    I don't think Johnny Thunder appears in #5's JSA story, just the issue's text story. He starred in the text stories in #3-#5. His solo contribution in #3 is the issue's text story, but of course he's very prominent in the framing JSA meeting parts.

    Johnny is among the characters listed in #5's cover blurb: "Featuring [character list] in another complete book-length adventure of the Justice Society of America". The GCD thinks the cover was drawn for All-Star Comics #3 before the JSA concept was created.

    #5's JSA story is followed by a repeat of the splash with text announcing the Flash's changing status and Johnny's initiation the next issue.

    • The Baron > Luke Blanchard August 29, 2025 at 10:11am

      I don't think Johnny Thunder appears in #5's JSA story, just the issue's text story. 

      You are right about that.

  • Captain Comics August 29, 2025 at 9:11am

    Some of these changes are explained in various places, and I hope to include that information on each of them when they occur. Flash and Green Lantern leaving is no mystery, as they received their own books (the point of the exercise), and it was addressed in-story, too. But some swaps are still mysteries to me, and I hope to find the answers ... somewhere.

    • The Baron > Captain Comics August 29, 2025 at 10:13am

      What gets me are the times when a character is just gone and their absence is not addressed at all.  I can't imagine that happening in a modern-day comic.

    • JD DeLuzio > The Baron August 29, 2025 at 11:13am

      Chuck Cunningham Syndrome, though years before he became the trope-name.

      Perhaps they're all in the Phantom Zone.

  • Captain Comics June 15, 2026 at 1:05pm

    I've added covers and some details to the lineups through issue #11, which is as far as I've gotten in my re-read (as of today). I hope to continue doing that as I move along on my own re-read, unless you object, Bob. 

    Johnny Thunder does indeed fail to appear in the main story of #5, and appears only in an unrelated text story. This is the only JSA adventure where he doesn't appear from issue #3 until he's replaced by Black Canary. He gate-crashes in #3, appears in both an unrelated text story the final chapter of issue #4 and joins in #6. Interestingly, he didn't appear in the pre-Crisis origin of the JSA (DC Special #29) or the post-Crisis origin (Secret Origins v2 #31), but does appear in the recent "Year One" retcon (JSA v3 #13-18). 

    One of the Companions points out that Wonder Woman's addition in issue #11 gave them nine characters, with only eight story slots. The solution in #11 was to omit a Spectre chapter, in #12 was to omit a Wonder Woman chapter, and in #13 to omit a Doctor Fate chapter. (IIRC) I assume all nine characters show up in the introduction and conclusion chapters, but will verify as I go. I wasn't noticing these things in the past, but will pay attention on the re-read. 

    • The Baron > Captain Comics June 15, 2026 at 1:40pm

      Thanks, Skipper! Your efforts are much apprecisted. Please make any updstes that you see fit.

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