The Massive, Extravagant, Over-the-top Golden Age JSA Re-read

Welcome to our re-read of the first and greatest superhero team in comics ... and quite a bit more!

My plan is to re-read and discuss the Golden Age Justice Society of America, which ran from All-Star Comics #3 (Winter 1940) to All-Star Comics #57 (February-March 1951), and is currently being reprinted in DC's "DC Finest" line.

But, as ever, I am consumed by context. What events brought us to All-Star Comics #3? What characters did editor Sheldon Mayer and writer Gardner Fox have available from which to choose? What else was competing in the superhero space? To achieve that context, I plan to start the discussion at the publisher's beginning, when Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson launched National Allied Publications Inc. in 1935. That was the first step toward the Justice Society — and to DC Comics as we know it today.

So before we even get to the JSA, I'll re-read and open for discussion all the solo stories starring JSA members, mostly from DC's Archives and Famous First Edition series. Which is actually quite a lot! (Although not as much as I'd prefer. I want it ALL!) I'll be writing about non-JSA superheroes created by National, Detective Comics Inc. and All-American Comics Inc. too, like Crimson Avenger and Doctor Occult. I'll also be tipping my hat to some non-powered characters, principally those who managed to appear outside their parent title, like Slam Bradley and Hop Harrigan. That means no re-read for the likes of "Bart Regan, Spy" and "Speed Saunders." Sorry, fellas, but I had to draw the line somewhere — before I found myself doing a deep dive into the history of Ginger Snap.

But I will be re-reading reprints, or availing myself of online information where reprints don't exist, of 14 of the 17 Golden Age characters who launched or appeared in All-Star Comics #3-57. Those characters include:

The Atom: All-American Comics #19-46, 48-61, 70-72; All-Star Comics #3-26, 28-35, 37-57; Big All-American Comic Book; Flash Comics #80, 82-85, 87 89-95, 97-100, 102-104; Comic Cavalcade #22-23, 28; Sensation Comics #86.
Black Canary: All-Star Comics #38-57; Comic Cavalcade #25; Flash Comics #86-88, 90-104.
Doctor Fate: All-Star Comics #3-12, 14-21; More Fun Comics #55-98.
Doctor Mid-Nite: All-American Comics #25-102; All-Star Comics #6 (text story), 8-57.
The Flash: All-Flash #1-32; All-Star Comics #1-7, 10, 24-57; Big All-American Comic Book; Comic Cavalcade #1-29; Flash Comics #1-104, Flash Comics miniature (Wheaties)
Green Lantern: All-American Comics #16-102; All-Flash #14; All-Star Comics #2-8, 10, 24-57; Big All-American Comic Book; Comic Cavalcade #1-29; Green Lantern #1-38.
Hawkman: All-Star Comics #1-57, Big All-American Comic Book, Flash Comics #1-104, Flash Comics miniature (Wheaties).
Hourman: Adventure Comics #48-83, All-Star Comics #1-7, New York World's Fair Comics [#2].
Johnny Thunder: All-Star Comics #2-4, 6-35, 37-39; Big All-American Comic Book; Flash Comics #1-91; New York World's Fair Comics [#2]; World's Best Comics #1; World's Fair Comics #2-3; Flash Comics miniature (Wheaties).
Mister Terrific: All-Star Comics #24, Big All-American Comic Book, Sensation Comics #1-63.
Sandman: Adventure Comics #40-102, All-Star Comics #1-21, Boy Commandos #1, Detective Comics #76, New York World's Fair Comics [#1-2], World's Finest Comics #3-7.
The Spectre: All-Star Comics #1-23, More Fun Comics #52-101, a single panel in More Fun Comics #51.
Starman: Adventure Comics #61-102, All-Star Comics #8-23.
Wildcat: All-Star Comics #24, 27; Big All-American Comic Book; Comic Cavalcade #1-2; Sensation Comics #1-90.

The obvious exceptions here are Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman. Superman and Batman, called "honorary members" in the text, appeared twice in All-Star Comics, but I don't plan to re-read all their adventures from 1938 to 1951. They are peripheral at best to the Golden Age JSA, and would overwhelm the discussion through sheer volume. This problem extends to Wonder Woman as well, who appears in four titles in the Golden Age (Sensation Comics, Wonder Woman, Comic Cavalcade, All-Star Comics). I'll re-read and report on her JSA adventures, but like Batman and Superman, I'll just note her solo stories in passing with a summary that I'll grab somewhere online. That will keep the discussion abreast of any major developments, like new supervillains, in Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman stories.

Here are their Golden Age adventures:

Batman: All-Star Comics # 7 (cameo), 36; Batman #1-63 (February-March 1951); Batman 3-D #1; Detective Comics #1-169 (March 1951); New York World’s Fair Comics [#2]; World’s Best Comics #1, World’s Fair Comics #2-50 (February-March 1951).
Superman: Action Comics #1-154 (March 1951); All-Star Comics #7 (cameo), 36; New York World’s Fair [#1-2]; Superman #1-69 (March-April 1951); Superman 3-D #1; Superman at the Gilbert Hall of Science; Superman Miniature; World’s Best Comics #1; World’s Fair Comics #2-50 (February-March 1951).
Wonder Woman: All-Star Comics #8, 11-22, 24-57; Big All-American Comic Book; Comic Cavalcade #1-29; Sensation Comics #1-102; Wonder Woman #1-46 (March-April 1951).

Fortunately, Jeff of Earth-J is already doing a re-read of the Golden Age Superman. Jeff isn't doing a re-read of all Batman books, but he is compiling "The Greatest Joker Stories Ever Told," by which he means "all of them." Recently he's begun re-reading other major Bat-villains, which he discusses in Riddler - Prinze of Puzzles, The Crimes of Two-Face and Catwoman: Nine Lives of a Feline Fatale.

I should note that my methodology changed over time, as realities required. For instance, I initially lumped books together by cover date, but complications ensued for books without them, like quarterlies and specials. As the number of quarterlies and their importance increased, I ended up going by on-sale dates as the primary organizational tool. (Which aren't available for all books, but that's a lesser devil than chronologically misplacing Batman or All-Star Comics). Initially I only included mention of others strips in anthology books if they were of some importance, like Slam Bradley, but eventually I started including all of them. Here and there I would try to improve the format. And so forth. In some imaginary "someday" I'll go back through and make them all consistent.

I've tried to be comprehensive, relying on a variety of sources, from online to reprints to "companion" books. A tip of the cowl to a Luke Blanchard post in what amounts to an outline for this discussion. But I'm sure I've left out tons, especially stories I don't have or can't find, which may be at hand in your collection. I hope folks will do re-reads of stories I've left out, as well as comment on what I've written. So let's hear what I've missed Legionnaires — and what you think!

Funny you should bring that up, Philip, because I wrote the following over the weekend:

Before we get to All-Star Comics #4, I thought we'd take a breath to review the two JSA origin stories that, chronologically, would have preceded All-Star Comics #3. They aren't particularly good stories, and in some cases change the Golden Age canon, but they are the foundation for every JSA story that followed. As we proceed in the Golden Age, there will be references to JSA origins in the Fun Facts, and I'll be more accurate if I've reviewed them lately.

It's "origins," plural, because there's a pre-Crisis version, and a post-Crisis version. The latter hits most of the same beats as the former, but excises Superman and Batman. The first came out in 1977 and was written by Paul Levitz, the second in 1988 by Roy Thomas. When "Crisis" gave writers the freedom to ditch old stories and blame it on the Anti-Monitor, I wish Roy Thomas had taken the opportunity to drop this story and write his own. And when "Rebirth" gave writers opportunity to ditch old stories and blame it on Doctor Manhattan, I wish a Tom King or a Garth Ennis or someone had been given a free hand to start over.

But it is what it is, and here it is:

'DC SPECIAL' #29
September 1977
On-sale Date: May 10, 1977

"The Untold Origin of the Justice Society"
By Paul Levitz, Joe Staton and Bob Layton (34 pages)

It's obvious when reading All-Star Comics #3 that the eight charter members of the Justice Society already knew each other. The story mentioned three times that All-Star Comics #3 comprised the first formal meeting of the team, strongly implying some ad hoc crimefighting or social gathering in the past. You know it, I know it.

Even the unnamed writer of "The Story Behind the Story" text piece at the end of DC Special #29 knew it.

"Charlie Patterson, of Huntington Beach, California ... asked [us] to reprint the JSA's origin," the piece said. "Charlie's request ... sent us scurrying to our back files. There we discovered that ALL-STAR COMICS #1 and 2 didn’t feature JSA stories — just individual adventures of unassociated heroes. Then, in #3, the already-formed team held their formal meeting! Obviously, something was missing.”

Like: How had the charter members met? Why did they decide to form a team? How did they know Superman and Batman?

Paul Levitz, who probably wrote that unsigned text piece, set out to answer those questions in 1977.

Summary

The overall plot launches when FDR is told by a British agent going by "Smythe" that Hitler is about to invade England. FDR tells Smythe about America's mystery men, and a plan is set in motion whereby Flash, Green Lantern and Batman are sent to McMurdie Castle in Scotland. There they will capture spies who have information about the invasion. But they are defeated by a robot named "Murder Machine" and taken to Berlin.

Doctor Fate, for unknown reasons, is monitoring events in his crystal ball and swings into action. He grabs Hourman and they fly off to Germany. (Levitz makes it clear they have never met before, so why Fate picks Hourman as his wingman is unknown.) They free Batman, Flash and Green Lantern. They are beating up Nazis, until Hitler whips out the Spear of Destiny. It summons valkyries from Valhalla. Doctor Fate and Green Lantern hold them at bay, while Hitler orders the invasion of England. Fate summons reinforcements from the U.S. via "enchanted tentacles."

Fate's tentacles grab Atom, Hawkman and Sandman, and inform them of the situation, while whisking them across the Atlantic in what appears to be minutes. A fourth tentacle summons, but does not grab, The Spectre, who is hinted to be on his way. Even though Fate summoned the others as reinforcements for Berlin, he drops them off in Dover, where the Germans are invading. Meanwhile, Fate and Green Lantern hold the valkyries at bay until Fate casts a spell that defeats them.

Hitler remembers he has an experimental bomber that can reach the U.S. It also has a really Big Bomb, and while it's never said, one must assume it is a prototype atomic bomb. (How else would a single bomb make any difference in 1940? Everybody was bombing everybody back then.) Hitler orders the bomber to drop the Big Bomb on the White House, and the valkyries form a protective escort. To the JSA, it appears that they have vanished.

Meanwhile, The Spectre stops the invasion. He grows to titanic size, and sinks the kriegsmarine like toys in a bathtub. It is the most impressive sequence in the book.

Fate and Green Lantern bring the Berlin contingent to Dover, and everybody meets everybody. Just then, by extreme coincidence, the bomber flies overhead with the valkyries, and Doctor Fate, The Spectre, Hawkman and Green Lantern fly up to intercept. Green Lantern brings the non-flying characters (Atom, Batman, Flash, Hourman and Sandman) along on a green platform.

The battle continues inconclusively across the Atlantic, until dawn the next day. As the bomber nears the White House, Superman leaps up and smashes the bomber. Aided by Fate, he gets in front of, and catches, the Big Bomb. While Fate explains what's going on to the Man of Steel, Green Lantern takes a (wooden) spear handle to the back of the head and blacks out. All of the non-flyers are unceremoniously dropped on the White House lawn.

Meanwhile, a single valkyrie sneaks into the White House. Atom follows and takes a spear blast (the valkyries don't stab, they shoot some kind of ray). Then Superman arrives and grabs the valkyrie. Their mission a failure, the valkyries disappear. FDR suggests this ad hoc group form a permanent team, and Superman suggests "Justice Society" as opposed to any sort of military term.

So now we know how these 10 characters all knew each other before All-Star Comics #3, and formed a team before that issue. Questions asked and answered!

But now explain how they all know Johnny Thunder, Red Tornado and Robin. God help us, there's another untold story out there.

Big Complaints

I didn't care for this story in 1977, and it hasn't aged very well for me, either.

Let me start by saying that his in no way diminshes my respect and admiration for Paul Levitz. His Legion of Super-Heroes run is so legendary it hardly needs more praise from me. He literally wrote the book on DC's history. His interviews are always a joy, as he he shows himself to be gracious, knowledgeable, insightful and funny.

But I find a lot to criticize in DC Special #29. If I'm honest with myself, I recognize that I set an extremely high bar for this book. I thought a story revealing the origin of the first superhero team in history, an origin left untold for 37 years, should be legendary. And when "Untold Origin" didn't meet my absurdly high standard, I was disappointed. It read to me like an average issue of late 1970s Justice League of America, and I wanted more.

My main problem is that there are too many plots. One villainous scheme is foiled, only for another to take its place. It isn't one big, grand story; it's a bunch of smaller stories stitched together. The plots are:

Fighting spies in Scotland
Fighting valkyries in Berlin
Invasion of England
Attack on the White House

Each of these could have been a story unto themselves, blown to grand size and showing off all 10 heroes to great effect. But instead most of these plots advance until something last minute defeats the heroes (robot in Scotland, Spear of Destiny in Berlin, valkyries over Dover), leading to the next plot. Except for the last one, of course, where Superman plays deus ex machina. And the "main" plot launched on Page 1 (invasion of England) reached its climax on page 24 ... but a whole other plot continued for 10 more pages. This read like four issues compressed into a special., any one of which could have been expanded into the JSA's origin.

A second overall complaint is that the story doesn't show all of its characters in their best light. It's an origin story, so each of the characters should demonstrate to the reader what they're bringing to the table. Instead, the reverse occurs, as this is mostly The Dr. Fate Show.

For example, Batman, Flash and Green Lantern are easily beaten in Scotland, demonstrating a disappointing incompetency.

At the outset of the scene, a British intelligence agent thinks, "Wonder why the chief called in the Americans, though ... our boys would have handled the job just as well." He's right. Heck, given the outcome, they would have handled the job better.

Worse, the three heroes are beaten by a robot. Green Lantern (immune to metals, remember) should have been able to handle the "Murder Machine" solo. And Flash should certainly be faster than a robot. Even Batman had handled worse by that point in his career. But no, they are spectacularly ineffective. It's not a good look.

Especially since heroic incompetency runs through the entirety of the story, especially the non-flyers. Atom, Batman and Sandman, for example, might as well have not been there, for all the panel time they got. And they rarely do anything noteworthy. Flash never shows off his super-speed. Hawkman gets exactly one scene of doing something useful (overturning a tank, presumably by negating gravity), but that was one tank in an invasion, and it was The Spectre who ended the threat. Green Lantern is useful against the valkyries, but as noted, it's really Doctor Fate who does the heavy lifting and ultimately defeats the valkyries in Berlin. Meanwhile, Alan Scott got knocked out ... twice.

I will note that some panels show some of the lesser heroes battling the Valkyries from their little green platform, but it doesn't even look plausible. And they are, of course, entirely ineffective. In a logical world, GL would have left the non-flyers in England, to get home by their own devices. He, Spectre, Doctor Fate and Hawkman had bigger fish to fry — and the others were more distraction than help. But the plot calls for all of them to be together at the end, so GL wastes energy and attention getting them there.

A prime example of multiple-plot syndrome is when Hitler captures the mystery men, then suddenly has the Spear of Destiny, then orders the invasion of England, then remembers he has a super-bomber and attacks the White House. It's like Penguin running for mayor in Batman Returns, then switching to stealing the Batmobile, then switching to kidnapping children, then switching to bombing Gotham with penguin rockets. Why didn't he do them all at once? And why was Max Schreck even in this movie?

I digress, but that's how "Untold Origin" struck me.

What About Those Valkyries?

The Spear of Longinus has been used (along with the Holy Grail in Japan) as the reason America's superheroes couldn't invade occupied territory in World War II. It's been established that the Spear and the Grail will mind-control any super-being (and possibly non-powered heroes) if they get within range. Here, though, it is used to summon valkyries. And that's because, as far as I can tell, this is the first use of the Spear of Destiny in DC Comics. The mind-control aspect hadn't been established yet (although it will be hinted at in America vs. the Justice Society #1 in 1985). I think we can assume the Spear's use as a Valkyrie-Signal will not be repeated.

When the valkyries arrive, the lead one says, "after eons, we are free to ride again!" That's flatly ridiculous. In popular terms, an eon is a very, very long time. In geologic terms, an eon is about a million years. So these are some pretty old valkyries. So old, in fact, that they predate the concept of valkyries by about 999,000 years. This error is corrected in Roy Thomas' version of the story to "after 1,000 years." That's historically accurate, placing their last flight at the end of the Viking Age.

I remember when reading this story in 1977, the appearance of the valkyries was a WTF moment. Hitler didn't believe in Norse or Teutonic mythology, so why would valkyries be top of mind? Then I remembered he was a Wagner fan, specifically "Das Ring des Nibelungen," which includes "Ride of the Valkyries." So there's a connection, however tenuous.

In retrospect, perhaps Levitz was going for a mythical feel, by borrowing mythical elements which were Nazi-adjacent. My reaction is that borrowing anything for the origin of the Justice Society is a mistake, and if you need a mystical foe to counter Spectre, Doctor Fate and Green Lantern, there were already some to choose from, like Wotan, Kulak and Zor. A devil's bargain between any or all of these characters with Adolf Hitler would obviate the need for valkyries, or the Spear of Destiny itself. And frankly, a lot more terrifying. If Spectre and Doctor Fate are stymied or taken off the board entirely, the JSA is in serious trouble. (But the others might actually get to do something useful.)

And to further my argument, Levitz obviously couldn't use actual Tuetonic gods, like Donar, Wotan and Logi. So we get Germanic mythology, but we get the B-team. None of the valkyries were even named in the original story. They were all anonymous women, with undefined powers, in identical, ahistorical outfits straight from the opera house. I found them an ad hoc threat that wasn't very compelling. Especially since their power waxed and waned according to plot needs.

For example, they were more powerful than Doctor Fate and Green Lantern when they first appeared. Later, Doctor Fate and Green Lantern were their equal, and held them at bay. Later still Doctor Fate stopped them single-handedly with a single spell. Later still, they were able to fend off Doctor Fate, Green Lantern AND The Spectre. They were just as powerful at any given time as the plot required.

America vs. the Justice League #1 had the courtesy to suggest that the valkyries might not be the real deal. “I’ll leave it to Congress to debate whether they were the Valhalla McCoy,” Flash says at a congressional hearing, “or whether Hitler just called them into existence with the magic added to his well-documented will power.” That actually makes a bit more sense. But it doesn't make the story better.

Small Complaints

Even in good stories, there are often plot holes or inconsistencies. And this is not a good story. For example:

Batman is summoned to Commissioner Gordon's office by the Bat-Signal. Need I point out that Bat-Signal didn't enter comics history until 1942?

But even if we accept that as a retcon, it's never explained how Flash and Green Lantern were contacted, or why Atom, Hawkman, Hourman, Sandman, Spectre and Superman weren't. This despite Hourman literally answering ads in the paper in 1940, and Superman reachable through Clark Kent's newspaper. (Which, in 1940, would have been the Daily Planet. But it was retconned to Daily Star throughout the Earth-Two Superman's career in the Silver Age, so Levitz would have used the Star if the newspaper had been named.) This is supposedly to counter the invasion of England, which is a game-changer, so it really should be all hands on deck.

It is specificaly noted that Doctor Fate wasn't reachable by ordinary means, and wouldn't have responded if he were. He is introduced, however, monitoring the Scotland mission. It is not explained why. And he answers the "call of evil," although he's been ignoring it pretty well so far.

Green Lantern uses energy constructs. That was not a thing he did in 1940, but OK, maybe it's a retcon. But it's a flat-out error when Green Lantern knocks down the wooden door at McMurdie Castle with a ring construct. He can't do that.

I'm really not buying enchanted tentacles outside of Japanese porn. Couldn't Levitz or Staton come up with something less, uh, gross? Especially since they are talking tentacles, who conveniently inform the reinforcements about The Plot So Far. Roy Thomas changes the tentacles into magic spheres, which is much more palatable.

Doctor Fate and Green Lantern can't handle the valkyries, so Fate sends for reinforcements. But he inexplicably sends the reinforcements to Dover instead of Berlin, and then, suddenly, Fate can handle the valkyries solo and doesn't need reinforcements.

When Atom, Hawkman and Sandman are dropped onto the invasion beach, it is instantly obvious how useless they are. Have you seen Saving Private Ryan? They would be dead in seconds. None of them are bullet-proof. Atom and Hawkman just punch people, which is way less effective than the actual British troops there firing actual British rifles, mortars and artillery.

Sandman puts Nazis to sleep with ... sand. Not a gas gun. Sand. Someone didn't do their research. In one panel during the transatlantic battle, he is seen throwing sand at valkyries from his little green platform. If I wanted to establish how useless he is in this situation, I couldn't have written better.

You might expect me to complain about the absence of the RAF and the Royal Navy. Or that Germany in 1940 didn't really have much of a navy, at least not one capable of trading blows with England. And the Luftwaffe had taken a beating in the Battle of Britain. These are the real reasons Operation: Sea Lion was canceled. But I won't, because it's a comic book, and the Axis having limitless resources was pretty much standard in wartime comics. They were building cross-Atlantic tunnels, and hiding aircraft carriers in clouds, and building Arctic bases inside icebergs, and all sorts of things. And Germany, at least, seemed to have unlimited manpower. It made the heroes look all that much more heroic when they won!

So Spectre stops the invasion, while Atom, Hawkman and Sandman are basically spectators (as they would continue to be for the rest of the book). I could grumble about Spectre having his God-like power in 1940, when he didn't in More Fun Comics at the time. But this seems to be the result of an earlier retcon, Silver Age at least. Post-Crisis stories establish Spectre's enormous power going all the way back to biblical times, or whenever it was he took the job from Eclipso.

But if he's that powerful, why did Fate bother recruiting the other three? Or, once he did, drop them in Dover to be brightly-colored targets? Bring 'em on to Berlin, where they can do some good, fighting valkyries! Not that they're needed, though, because it appears Fate and Green Lantern are enough to keep them busy. (Don't ask what Batman, Flash and Hourman are doing against magic women on flying horses, because the answer is "nothing." Not a great origin story if half your team is sidelined and can't show what they can do. And Flash and Batman were already depicted as useless in Scotland.) Not that it matters. With the invasion stopped, the overarching story begun on Page 1 is over. Our boys can return to the good ol' U.S.A., probably on some enchanted tentacles, and congratulate themselves on a job well done. Except they don't, because it's time for Plot No. 4 and the preposterous battle over the Atlantic.

Where not a single Valkyrie is taken out, or a single superhero injured or killed. Despite five of them being sitting ducks on a green platform.
Where the battle is depicted as continuing into the next day, so Green Lantern really should be hitting his 24-hour limit.
Where a single bomber really shouldn't be a problem for U.S. coastal defenses. And if it manages to get through and bomb the White House, I don't think it'll be the game-ender Hitler thinks it is. (See: Pearl Harbor, U.S. reaction to.) Even assuming FDR is in town.
Where Spectre's power is suddenly dialed back to meet the plot. How else could Superman save the day?

Speaking of which, there's no explanation for Superman's appearance. Which leads me to ask: Is there some reason FDR didn't summon him to start with? Or why Doctor Fate didn't "tentacle" him? Is there some reason he was in Washington instead of Metropolis? Is there some reason I'm still asking questions, when the answer is always "the plot requires it"?

Fun facts:

Smythe represents "Intrepid." That was the real code name of a real person. William Stephenson was the "British Security Coordinator" — read spymaster — for the British in World War II.
Flash says he's from Keystone, and Green Lantern tells Batman he's a "fellow Gothamite." Those are later conventions. In Golden Age comics, at least up to the point where this story takes place, Flash lived in New York and Green Lantern patrolled Capitol City.
One bright spot: Doctor Fate and Hourman teaming up years before Showcase #55-56. The original World's Finest team! Those two having Golden Age adventures is a series I'd buy. So. Much. Yellow.
In America vs. the Justice Society #1 (January 1985), Batman says the founding of the JSA "occurred in November 1940, under conditions still little-known, even decades after the end of World War II." So this story isn't public knowledge, at least up to 1985.
This story is told twice in America vs. the Justice Society #1, once by Batman's diary, where the JSA members are all Nazis, and once by Flash at a congressional hearing, where this story is recapped pretty faithfully.
In America vs. the Justice Society, we are shown a cop telling Flash he's wanted in Gotham City. So that explains how Flash ended up in Commissioner Gordon's office (but not Green Lantern).
The unsigned text piece in the back says Flash chaired the first JSA meeting.

SECRET ORIGINS (second series) #31
October 1988
On-sale Date: June 30, 1988

"The Secret Origin of the Justice Society of America"
By Roy Thomas, Michael Bair and Bob Downs (38 pages)

This book is a pretty faithful retelling of the original story, too, with the omission of Superman and Batman. It does give the minor JSAers more dialogue than before, reveals a few details and fixes one or two errors. The biggest change is at the end.

Ch-ch-changes

Thomas establishes a date for Smythe's meeting with Roosevelt: Saturday, Nov. 9, 1940. It is the day Neville Chamberlain died, and four days after the presidential election of 1940. It is 13 days before Roy Thomas is born, the first official meeting of the Justice Society is held, and All-Star Comics #3 hits newsstands.

FDR's folder of mystery men lists their home cities. We can't see Fate's. It puts Hawkman, Hourman and Sandman in New York, Atom in Calvin City and Spectre in "whereabouts unknown." The comics of the time put Hourman in Cosmos City and Spectre in Cliffland. I don't think Atom's home town was named in 1940, but he does go to Calvin College, so Calvin City is OK by me. Hawkman and Sandman both in New York makes sense, and I don't remember differently.

The photos repeat what I considered an error in the first story, putting Flash in Keystone City and Green Lantern in Gotham City. In Flash Comics of 1940, the Scarlet Speedster is very definitely in New York. In All-American Comics of 1940, Green Lantern lived in Capitol City. Since this is the second time they've been relocated, and by no less a Golden Age expert than Roy Thomas, I'm going to have to assume this is a retcon — and that from now on, Flash will always have been from Keystone, and Green Lantern will always have been from Gotham, no matter what it says in old comics. Maybe that's true of the others as well.

The bit about Flash learning he's needed in Gotham City by a cop (introduced in America vs. the Justice Society) is repeated here.

Green Lantern again uses his ring to break down a wooden door. Maybe it just looks like wood, and is some other material.

The Nazi robot, dubbed "Murder Machine" in both stories, is again triumphant in Scotland. But it's an even more sour defeat this time, because the robot defeats Green Lantern directly (instead of hitting him with Flash, like in the first story). The early Green Lantern stories make it very clear that he simply can't be hurt by anything made of metal. He doesn't have to do anything; bullets just bounce off, knives bend and break. According to Golden Age comics, he should just shrug off the Mordmaschine. But instead he is literally beaten into the ground. And then the robot knocks out The Flash, who really should be able to dodge, with one swing of its arm.

Thomas makes it very clear that when Doctor Fate recruits Hourman, they have never met before. He did the same with Flash and Green Lantern, and later when nine of them are gathered in Europe. None had met the other, including Doctor Fate and Spectre. A later Spectre Annual will show Fate and Spectre meeting well before World War II.

Atom, Hawkman and Sandman make their minutes-long trip to Europe inside magic spheres. That's just so much better than enchanted tendrils. Honest, I know it's all hokum. But spheres just feel less more plausible, somehow, and more visually compelling.

Gudra, the lead valkyrie, says that they are returning after 1,000 years. That is more accurate than the "eons" mentioned in the first story.

It's Doctor Fate who suggests Green Lantern carry the non-flying crew along with them to battle the valkyries and to down the bomber. It's still not a good idea, but at least it was a plan.

Unlike the first story, the JSA and the valkyries don't fight all night across the Atlantic Ocean. In this version, valkyrie magic bridges the gap between Great Britain and Washington D.C. with some sort of portal. That's definitely an improvement (and doesn't break the 24-hour rule for Green Lantern).

Instead of Superman, Green Lantern brings down the bomber (and is knocked unconscious by the explosion, rather than Gudra's spear butt).

Gudra calls FDR "Cripple." That's just rude.

Atom takes Gudra's initial blast like in the original, but now there's no Superman to follow up. Gudra kills Roosevelt, and Spectre goes in the afterlife to petition The Voice for his life. He gets FDR back, but only (I'm guessing) for his alloted lifespan, since he dies on schedule. He reappears, as time is more or less turned back to before Atom took the spear. And conveniently, nobody will remember FDR dying, or any of the future things The Voice talked about.

As before, FDR suggests they form a team. Since we have no Superman, this time it's The Spectre who suggests "Justice Society."

Summary

Obviously, I didn't care for this story, in either of its incarnations. I expect the upcoming "JSA: Year One" storyline will nibble around the edges, but not really change anything significant. So we're stuck with it, and I accept that. Reluctantly.

Replies

- doc photo > Jeff of Earth-J October 31, 2025 at 8:25am
  
  I would tend to agree that Marvel comics in the '60s made great strides toward making multi-issue stories the norm.
  
  That is when "continued next ish" became a common sight for comic book readers. The challenge was finding that next issue on the spinner rack.
- Luke Blanchard > Captain Comics October 31, 2025 at 8:50pm
  
  At first the features in US comics were short, so the adventure features were serials. In fact, the cover of the first issue of New Fun was the start of a "Jack Woods" serial.
  
  As the features got longer complete-in-one-issue stories became more common, but there continued to be use of the serial form and multi-parters in some features.
  
  The transition is illustrated by "Dr Occult" from New Fun/More Fun/More Fun Comics. This started as a one-page serial feature. The initial story ran from #6-#9. The first 2-pager, in #10, was the first one-parter. The next story was a werewolf serial that ran from #11-#13. This was followed by the Koth serial which continued its storyline from "Dr Mystic" in The Comics Magazine #1. It ran to #17. The next storyline, "The Life-Ray", ran from #18-#23. During this the feature went to 4 pages, in #22. After this the stories were one-part until the final instalment in #32, which started a never-completed storyline.
  
  The early issues of Detective Comics featured serials drawn by Tom Hickey about a hero called Bruce Nelson. The first, "The Claws of the Red Dragon", was written by Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson and ran for eight parts (=97 pages). Siegel's and Shuster's "Spy" was handled as a serial to #5.
  
  In Action Comics the Western, ""Chuck" Dawson", was handled as a serial to #14. "The Adventures of Marco Polo" was handled as a serial feature through its run and ended on a cliffhanger in #17.
  
  Shorter continued storylines also appeared. Tex Thomson's foe the Gorrah was introduced in a two-parter in Action Comics #2-#3. #4's story was a sequel. The Batman vs Dr Death stories in Detective Comics #29-#30 were a self-contained story and a sequel, but the Batman vs the Monk story that followed in #31-#32 was a two-parter. The Spectre's origin was a two-parter.
  
  "Sub-Mariner" and "Amazing Man" both had serial elements early on. In "Scribbly" the Red Tornado was introduced in a serial storyline that the Captain has covered.
  
  In Whiz Comics "Ibis the Invincible" usually ended on cliffhangers for its first couple of years.
  
  A crossover serial involving both the "Captain Marvel" and "Spy Smasher" features appeared in Whiz Comics #14-#15 ("Spy Smasher" opening of story), #16-#18 (both features).
  
  And so on.
  
  (corrected)
The Baron October 31, 2025 at 9:22am

Interesting info, gents.
Philip Portelli October 31, 2025 at 12:42pm

The funny thing is that DC editors used to say that Marvel had continued stories because they never had proper endings!
Captain Comics October 31, 2025 at 2:00pm
'ALL-AMERICAN COMICS' #23
Cover date: Feburary 1941
On-sale date: Dec. 20, 1940
Cover: Green Lantern by Sheldon Moldoff

Green Lantern
Untitled by Bill Finger and E.E. Hibbard (10 pages)
Where I read it: Golden Age Green Lantern Archives Vol. 1

Irene Miller is sent to interview Delia Day, the movie star, with Alan as her tech guy. As they arrive, a gangster is leaving, and Delia is clearly shaken. That night the Green Lantern visits the actress, who is being threatened by thugs. One of them knifes the Lantern, but the blade breaks on his chest. He beats them up and throws them out. Delia confesses she is actually the daughter of gangster Al Maloney, and is being blackmailed. GL visits Maloney, who says it's true, and says Frankie Fowler is the only other person who knows. GL goes to visit Frankie at his nightclub, while Maloney breaks prison. Delia is there giving money to Fowler, having given in to the blackmail. GL makes short work of the gang, but surrenders when Fowler puts a gun to Delia's head. Then Maloney bursts in, and he and Fowler shoot each other. GL escapes, and leaves with Delia before the police arrive, telling her to respect Maloney's last wishes and never reveal that he was her father.

Takeaways

Opening narration: "Streaking through the air — walking through walls — immune to all metals ... these and other supernatural gifts are Alan Scott's, to use by way of will-power when he wears the potent ring made from part of a mysterious green lamp ..." Those are, in fact, the powers he uses most often. Here are some new ones:

1,001 Uses for a Power Ring
- GL freezes some prison guards
- GL makes gangsters forget that Delia Day is Al Maloney's daughter.
The knife breaking on GL's chest is more Superman than Green Lantern. They're probably still in shakedown mode on the character.

Fun facts:
- I assume Delia Day is based on Doris Day. I don't know who her fiance, Harvey Drake III, might represent, if anyone.
- Al Maloney is in prison for tax evasion, like Al Capone.
- Alan Scott recognizes "Slug Kafey, the hoodlum" on sight. It's common for the heroes (and Lois Lane) to recognize every criminal on sight. And he knows who Frankie Fowler is, and what nightclub he owns. I write it off to a quick shorthand that's probably needful in stories that rarely run more than 13 pages, and often less. This one, for example, is only 10 pages, and they pack a lot in.
- GCD says Green Lantern uses an altered oath in this appearance, but it's just using the word "upon" instead of "over." And they dropped the ellipsis. I wouldn't even have noticed if they hadn't said something.
- The narrator describes Lantern's costume as "somewhat spectacular garb." At least they're aware it's peculiar!
The Atom
Untitled by Bill O'Connor and Ben Flenton (6 pages)
Where I read it: JSA All-Stars Archives Vol. 1

Joe Morgan is injected with a drug on the street by a woman named Nada that makes him her slave. She tells him to meet her at 32 Oakhurst Road at 9 p.m. In a daze, he does. She's there with some henchmen, one of whom is named Boris, and orders him to steal some top secret military plans. He does so, and delivers them, but somehow also gets caught. Al goes to the police station and they hold him as a possible accomplice. Joe doesn't remember anything except "32 Oakhurst Road" so Al breaks out and goes there. He captures the gang and the plans and takes them to the police, who release Joe and Al (who has returned to his cell). We never learn anything more about Nada and her crew, or the drug, or why they picked Joe.

Super-strength watch: Al pulls cell bars out of the wall with his bare hands.

Scribbly and the Red Tornado
Untitled by Sheldon Mayer (4 pages)
Where I read it: JSA All-Stars Archives Vol. 1

Ma Hunkel pretends she doesn't believe in the Red Tornado. When next she goes into action, the police come after her. She runs into the zoo and puts her costume on a gorilla, which she frees. The cops find Ma in the gorilla cage, and release her. She says the Red Tornado put her in there. The cops chase down the "Tornado," only to discover it's an ape in the costume. It's straight-up slapstick, and very well drawn.

Fun facts:
- Mayer makes the tomato joke again.
- The strip's name is changed to include Red Tornado.
Continuing: Hop Harrigan, Ben Webster, Adventures in the Unknown, Red White and Blue.
Captain Comics October 31, 2025 at 10:25pm

The text article in the back of DC Special #29 said about All-Star Comics #3: “Flash chaired that first formal meeting.” That pushes our "first proof of Flash's chairmanship" back to 1977.
- Commander Benson > Captain Comics October 31, 2025 at 11:06pm
  
  I mentioned that, Cap, in my post of my research. As I said, it's not that strong of an indicator---the writer, probably Paul Levitz, may merely have been repeating the conventional opinion. He didn't cite a specific reference.
Captain Comics November 2, 2025 at 1:39pm

And so you did. So I didn't find anything new, dang it.

As you pointed out, it wasn't in the story proper, so doesn't "count" as much as it could. I guess this could be the first direct mention, but it doesn't seem likely, so I'll still keep a weather eye out. I'll look through All-Star Comics from the 1976 relaunch when I get a chance. And there's always the possibility that some later Golden Age story mentions who the first chairman was, which I'll reach organically.
Philip Portelli November 2, 2025 at 8:04pm

Some more thoughts on All Star Comics #3:

The issue brings up a few times that this is the first meeting of the Justice Society and some have labelled it the first formal meeting which I agree with. I've mentioned the rumor of another meeting between the events of DC Special #29 and ASC #3 but I'm thinking that the timeline might be something like this:

1) DCS #29 or events similar to it

2) The ten heroes gather again for a stateside adventure that involves Robin, Johnny Thunder and the Red Tornado. They learn about Johnny's unpredictable power and discover the Red Tornado's secret identity. Possibly they even meet Scribbly.

3) They meet at an informal get-together to lay down some ground rules and structure for the Justice Society. Superman and Batman decide not to be active members but will accept honorary status. The Flash is picked as the first chairman though it's not a serious position at the time. They do not consider Johnny and the Tornado members though somehow the Tornado knows where the first meeting is taking place. Johnny does not and he's not happy. Someone, presumbly the Sandman, rents out some rooms at a hotel and orders food.

By this time, the public hears about a team of mystery men and the new JSA inform FDR about their first meeting.

4) ASC #3
Captain Comics November 3, 2025 at 2:50pm
Funny you should bring that up, Philip, because I wrote the following over the weekend:

Before we get to All-Star Comics #4, I thought we'd take a breath to review the two JSA origin stories that, chronologically, would have preceded All-Star Comics #3. They aren't particularly good stories, and in some cases change the Golden Age canon, but they are the foundation for every JSA story that followed. As we proceed in the Golden Age, there will be references to JSA origins in the Fun Facts, and I'll be more accurate if I've reviewed them lately.

It's "origins," plural, because there's a pre-Crisis version, and a post-Crisis version. The latter hits most of the same beats as the former, but excises Superman and Batman. The first came out in 1977 and was written by Paul Levitz, the second in 1988 by Roy Thomas. When "Crisis" gave writers the freedom to ditch old stories and blame it on the Anti-Monitor, I wish Roy Thomas had taken the opportunity to drop this story and write his own. And when "Rebirth" gave writers opportunity to ditch old stories and blame it on Doctor Manhattan, I wish a Tom King or a Garth Ennis or someone had been given a free hand to start over.

But it is what it is, and here it is:

'DC SPECIAL' #29
September 1977
On-sale Date: May 10, 1977

"The Untold Origin of the Justice Society"
By Paul Levitz, Joe Staton and Bob Layton (34 pages)

It's obvious when reading All-Star Comics #3 that the eight charter members of the Justice Society already knew each other. The story mentioned three times that All-Star Comics #3 comprised the first formal meeting of the team, strongly implying some ad hoc crimefighting or social gathering in the past. You know it, I know it.

Even the unnamed writer of "The Story Behind the Story" text piece at the end of DC Special #29 knew it.

"Charlie Patterson, of Huntington Beach, California ... asked [us] to reprint the JSA's origin," the piece said. "Charlie's request ... sent us scurrying to our back files. There we discovered that ALL-STAR COMICS #1 and 2 didn’t feature JSA stories — just individual adventures of unassociated heroes. Then, in #3, the already-formed team held their formal meeting! Obviously, something was missing.”

Like: How had the charter members met? Why did they decide to form a team? How did they know Superman and Batman?

Paul Levitz, who probably wrote that unsigned text piece, set out to answer those questions in 1977.

Summary

The overall plot launches when FDR is told by a British agent going by "Smythe" that Hitler is about to invade England. FDR tells Smythe about America's mystery men, and a plan is set in motion whereby Flash, Green Lantern and Batman are sent to McMurdie Castle in Scotland. There they will capture spies who have information about the invasion. But they are defeated by a robot named "Murder Machine" and taken to Berlin.

Doctor Fate, for unknown reasons, is monitoring events in his crystal ball and swings into action. He grabs Hourman and they fly off to Germany. (Levitz makes it clear they have never met before, so why Fate picks Hourman as his wingman is unknown.) They free Batman, Flash and Green Lantern. They are beating up Nazis, until Hitler whips out the Spear of Destiny. It summons valkyries from Valhalla. Doctor Fate and Green Lantern hold them at bay, while Hitler orders the invasion of England. Fate summons reinforcements from the U.S. via "enchanted tentacles."

Fate's tentacles grab Atom, Hawkman and Sandman, and inform them of the situation, while whisking them across the Atlantic in what appears to be minutes. A fourth tentacle summons, but does not grab, The Spectre, who is hinted to be on his way. Even though Fate summoned the others as reinforcements for Berlin, he drops them off in Dover, where the Germans are invading. Meanwhile, Fate and Green Lantern hold the valkyries at bay until Fate casts a spell that defeats them.

Hitler remembers he has an experimental bomber that can reach the U.S. It also has a really Big Bomb, and while it's never said, one must assume it is a prototype atomic bomb. (How else would a single bomb make any difference in 1940? Everybody was bombing everybody back then.) Hitler orders the bomber to drop the Big Bomb on the White House, and the valkyries form a protective escort. To the JSA, it appears that they have vanished.

Meanwhile, The Spectre stops the invasion. He grows to titanic size, and sinks the kriegsmarine like toys in a bathtub. It is the most impressive sequence in the book.

Fate and Green Lantern bring the Berlin contingent to Dover, and everybody meets everybody. Just then, by extreme coincidence, the bomber flies overhead with the valkyries, and Doctor Fate, The Spectre, Hawkman and Green Lantern fly up to intercept. Green Lantern brings the non-flying characters (Atom, Batman, Flash, Hourman and Sandman) along on a green platform.

The battle continues inconclusively across the Atlantic, until dawn the next day. As the bomber nears the White House, Superman leaps up and smashes the bomber. Aided by Fate, he gets in front of, and catches, the Big Bomb. While Fate explains what's going on to the Man of Steel, Green Lantern takes a (wooden) spear handle to the back of the head and blacks out. All of the non-flyers are unceremoniously dropped on the White House lawn.

Meanwhile, a single valkyrie sneaks into the White House. Atom follows and takes a spear blast (the valkyries don't stab, they shoot some kind of ray). Then Superman arrives and grabs the valkyrie. Their mission a failure, the valkyries disappear. FDR suggests this ad hoc group form a permanent team, and Superman suggests "Justice Society" as opposed to any sort of military term.

So now we know how these 10 characters all knew each other before All-Star Comics #3, and formed a team before that issue. Questions asked and answered!

But now explain how they all know Johnny Thunder, Red Tornado and Robin. God help us, there's another untold story out there.

Big Complaints

I didn't care for this story in 1977, and it hasn't aged very well for me, either.

Let me start by saying that his in no way diminshes my respect and admiration for Paul Levitz. His Legion of Super-Heroes run is so legendary it hardly needs more praise from me. He literally wrote the book on DC's history. His interviews are always a joy, as he he shows himself to be gracious, knowledgeable, insightful and funny.

But I find a lot to criticize in DC Special #29. If I'm honest with myself, I recognize that I set an extremely high bar for this book. I thought a story revealing the origin of the first superhero team in history, an origin left untold for 37 years, should be legendary. And when "Untold Origin" didn't meet my absurdly high standard, I was disappointed. It read to me like an average issue of late 1970s Justice League of America, and I wanted more.

My main problem is that there are too many plots. One villainous scheme is foiled, only for another to take its place. It isn't one big, grand story; it's a bunch of smaller stories stitched together. The plots are:
1. Fighting spies in Scotland
2. Fighting valkyries in Berlin
3. Invasion of England
4. Attack on the White House
Each of these could have been a story unto themselves, blown to grand size and showing off all 10 heroes to great effect. But instead most of these plots advance until something last minute defeats the heroes (robot in Scotland, Spear of Destiny in Berlin, valkyries over Dover), leading to the next plot. Except for the last one, of course, where Superman plays deus ex machina. And the "main" plot launched on Page 1 (invasion of England) reached its climax on page 24 ... but a whole other plot continued for 10 more pages. This read like four issues compressed into a special., any one of which could have been expanded into the JSA's origin.

A second overall complaint is that the story doesn't show all of its characters in their best light. It's an origin story, so each of the characters should demonstrate to the reader what they're bringing to the table. Instead, the reverse occurs, as this is mostly The Dr. Fate Show.

For example, Batman, Flash and Green Lantern are easily beaten in Scotland, demonstrating a disappointing incompetency.

At the outset of the scene, a British intelligence agent thinks, "Wonder why the chief called in the Americans, though ... our boys would have handled the job just as well." He's right. Heck, given the outcome, they would have handled the job better.

Worse, the three heroes are beaten by a robot. Green Lantern (immune to metals, remember) should have been able to handle the "Murder Machine" solo. And Flash should certainly be faster than a robot. Even Batman had handled worse by that point in his career. But no, they are spectacularly ineffective. It's not a good look.

Especially since heroic incompetency runs through the entirety of the story, especially the non-flyers. Atom, Batman and Sandman, for example, might as well have not been there, for all the panel time they got. And they rarely do anything noteworthy. Flash never shows off his super-speed. Hawkman gets exactly one scene of doing something useful (overturning a tank, presumably by negating gravity), but that was one tank in an invasion, and it was The Spectre who ended the threat. Green Lantern is useful against the valkyries, but as noted, it's really Doctor Fate who does the heavy lifting and ultimately defeats the valkyries in Berlin. Meanwhile, Alan Scott got knocked out ... twice.

I will note that some panels show some of the lesser heroes battling the Valkyries from their little green platform, but it doesn't even look plausible. And they are, of course, entirely ineffective. In a logical world, GL would have left the non-flyers in England, to get home by their own devices. He, Spectre, Doctor Fate and Hawkman had bigger fish to fry — and the others were more distraction than help. But the plot calls for all of them to be together at the end, so GL wastes energy and attention getting them there.

A prime example of multiple-plot syndrome is when Hitler captures the mystery men, then suddenly has the Spear of Destiny, then orders the invasion of England, then remembers he has a super-bomber and attacks the White House. It's like Penguin running for mayor in Batman Returns, then switching to stealing the Batmobile, then switching to kidnapping children, then switching to bombing Gotham with penguin rockets. Why didn't he do them all at once? And why was Max Schreck even in this movie?

I digress, but that's how "Untold Origin" struck me.

What About Those Valkyries?

The Spear of Longinus has been used (along with the Holy Grail in Japan) as the reason America's superheroes couldn't invade occupied territory in World War II. It's been established that the Spear and the Grail will mind-control any super-being (and possibly non-powered heroes) if they get within range. Here, though, it is used to summon valkyries. And that's because, as far as I can tell, this is the first use of the Spear of Destiny in DC Comics. The mind-control aspect hadn't been established yet (although it will be hinted at in America vs. the Justice Society #1 in 1985). I think we can assume the Spear's use as a Valkyrie-Signal will not be repeated.

When the valkyries arrive, the lead one says, "after eons, we are free to ride again!" That's flatly ridiculous. In popular terms, an eon is a very, very long time. In geologic terms, an eon is about a million years. So these are some pretty old valkyries. So old, in fact, that they predate the concept of valkyries by about 999,000 years. This error is corrected in Roy Thomas' version of the story to "after 1,000 years." That's historically accurate, placing their last flight at the end of the Viking Age.

I remember when reading this story in 1977, the appearance of the valkyries was a WTF moment. Hitler didn't believe in Norse or Teutonic mythology, so why would valkyries be top of mind? Then I remembered he was a Wagner fan, specifically "Das Ring des Nibelungen," which includes "Ride of the Valkyries." So there's a connection, however tenuous.

In retrospect, perhaps Levitz was going for a mythical feel, by borrowing mythical elements which were Nazi-adjacent. My reaction is that borrowing anything for the origin of the Justice Society is a mistake, and if you need a mystical foe to counter Spectre, Doctor Fate and Green Lantern, there were already some to choose from, like Wotan, Kulak and Zor. A devil's bargain between any or all of these characters with Adolf Hitler would obviate the need for valkyries, or the Spear of Destiny itself. And frankly, a lot more terrifying. If Spectre and Doctor Fate are stymied or taken off the board entirely, the JSA is in serious trouble. (But the others might actually get to do something useful.)

And to further my argument, Levitz obviously couldn't use actual Tuetonic gods, like Donar, Wotan and Logi. So we get Germanic mythology, but we get the B-team. None of the valkyries were even named in the original story. They were all anonymous women, with undefined powers, in identical, ahistorical outfits straight from the opera house. I found them an ad hoc threat that wasn't very compelling. Especially since their power waxed and waned according to plot needs.

For example, they were more powerful than Doctor Fate and Green Lantern when they first appeared. Later, Doctor Fate and Green Lantern were their equal, and held them at bay. Later still Doctor Fate stopped them single-handedly with a single spell. Later still, they were able to fend off Doctor Fate, Green Lantern AND The Spectre. They were just as powerful at any given time as the plot required.

America vs. the Justice League #1 had the courtesy to suggest that the valkyries might not be the real deal. “I’ll leave it to Congress to debate whether they were the Valhalla McCoy,” Flash says at a congressional hearing, “or whether Hitler just called them into existence with the magic added to his well-documented will power.” That actually makes a bit more sense. But it doesn't make the story better.

Small Complaints

Even in good stories, there are often plot holes or inconsistencies. And this is not a good story. For example:

Batman is summoned to Commissioner Gordon's office by the Bat-Signal. Need I point out that Bat-Signal didn't enter comics history until 1942?

But even if we accept that as a retcon, it's never explained how Flash and Green Lantern were contacted, or why Atom, Hawkman, Hourman, Sandman, Spectre and Superman weren't. This despite Hourman literally answering ads in the paper in 1940, and Superman reachable through Clark Kent's newspaper. (Which, in 1940, would have been the Daily Planet. But it was retconned to Daily Star throughout the Earth-Two Superman's career in the Silver Age, so Levitz would have used the Star if the newspaper had been named.) This is supposedly to counter the invasion of England, which is a game-changer, so it really should be all hands on deck.

It is specificaly noted that Doctor Fate wasn't reachable by ordinary means, and wouldn't have responded if he were. He is introduced, however, monitoring the Scotland mission. It is not explained why. And he answers the "call of evil," although he's been ignoring it pretty well so far.

Green Lantern uses energy constructs. That was not a thing he did in 1940, but OK, maybe it's a retcon. But it's a flat-out error when Green Lantern knocks down the wooden door at McMurdie Castle with a ring construct. He can't do that.

I'm really not buying enchanted tentacles outside of Japanese porn. Couldn't Levitz or Staton come up with something less, uh, gross? Especially since they are talking tentacles, who conveniently inform the reinforcements about The Plot So Far. Roy Thomas changes the tentacles into magic spheres, which is much more palatable.

Doctor Fate and Green Lantern can't handle the valkyries, so Fate sends for reinforcements. But he inexplicably sends the reinforcements to Dover instead of Berlin, and then, suddenly, Fate can handle the valkyries solo and doesn't need reinforcements.

When Atom, Hawkman and Sandman are dropped onto the invasion beach, it is instantly obvious how useless they are. Have you seen Saving Private Ryan? They would be dead in seconds. None of them are bullet-proof. Atom and Hawkman just punch people, which is way less effective than the actual British troops there firing actual British rifles, mortars and artillery.

Sandman puts Nazis to sleep with ... sand. Not a gas gun. Sand. Someone didn't do their research. In one panel during the transatlantic battle, he is seen throwing sand at valkyries from his little green platform. If I wanted to establish how useless he is in this situation, I couldn't have written better.

You might expect me to complain about the absence of the RAF and the Royal Navy. Or that Germany in 1940 didn't really have much of a navy, at least not one capable of trading blows with England. And the Luftwaffe had taken a beating in the Battle of Britain. These are the real reasons Operation: Sea Lion was canceled. But I won't, because it's a comic book, and the Axis having limitless resources was pretty much standard in wartime comics. They were building cross-Atlantic tunnels, and hiding aircraft carriers in clouds, and building Arctic bases inside icebergs, and all sorts of things. And Germany, at least, seemed to have unlimited manpower. It made the heroes look all that much more heroic when they won!

So Spectre stops the invasion, while Atom, Hawkman and Sandman are basically spectators (as they would continue to be for the rest of the book). I could grumble about Spectre having his God-like power in 1940, when he didn't in More Fun Comics at the time. But this seems to be the result of an earlier retcon, Silver Age at least. Post-Crisis stories establish Spectre's enormous power going all the way back to biblical times, or whenever it was he took the job from Eclipso.

But if he's that powerful, why did Fate bother recruiting the other three? Or, once he did, drop them in Dover to be brightly-colored targets? Bring 'em on to Berlin, where they can do some good, fighting valkyries! Not that they're needed, though, because it appears Fate and Green Lantern are enough to keep them busy. (Don't ask what Batman, Flash and Hourman are doing against magic women on flying horses, because the answer is "nothing." Not a great origin story if half your team is sidelined and can't show what they can do. And Flash and Batman were already depicted as useless in Scotland.) Not that it matters. With the invasion stopped, the overarching story begun on Page 1 is over. Our boys can return to the good ol' U.S.A., probably on some enchanted tentacles, and congratulate themselves on a job well done. Except they don't, because it's time for Plot No. 4 and the preposterous battle over the Atlantic.
- Where not a single Valkyrie is taken out, or a single superhero injured or killed. Despite five of them being sitting ducks on a green platform.
- Where the battle is depicted as continuing into the next day, so Green Lantern really should be hitting his 24-hour limit.
- Where a single bomber really shouldn't be a problem for U.S. coastal defenses. And if it manages to get through and bomb the White House, I don't think it'll be the game-ender Hitler thinks it is. (See: Pearl Harbor, U.S. reaction to.) Even assuming FDR is in town.
- Where Spectre's power is suddenly dialed back to meet the plot. How else could Superman save the day?
Speaking of which, there's no explanation for Superman's appearance. Which leads me to ask: Is there some reason FDR didn't summon him to start with? Or why Doctor Fate didn't "tentacle" him? Is there some reason he was in Washington instead of Metropolis? Is there some reason I'm still asking questions, when the answer is always "the plot requires it"?

Fun facts:
- Smythe represents "Intrepid." That was the real code name of a real person. William Stephenson was the "British Security Coordinator" — read spymaster — for the British in World War II.
- Flash says he's from Keystone, and Green Lantern tells Batman he's a "fellow Gothamite." Those are later conventions. In Golden Age comics, at least up to the point where this story takes place, Flash lived in New York and Green Lantern patrolled Capitol City.
- One bright spot: Doctor Fate and Hourman teaming up years before Showcase #55-56. The original World's Finest team! Those two having Golden Age adventures is a series I'd buy. So. Much. Yellow.
- In America vs. the Justice Society #1 (January 1985), Batman says the founding of the JSA "occurred in November 1940, under conditions still little-known, even decades after the end of World War II." So this story isn't public knowledge, at least up to 1985.
- This story is told twice in America vs. the Justice Society #1, once by Batman's diary, where the JSA members are all Nazis, and once by Flash at a congressional hearing, where this story is recapped pretty faithfully.
- In America vs. the Justice Society, we are shown a cop telling Flash he's wanted in Gotham City. So that explains how Flash ended up in Commissioner Gordon's office (but not Green Lantern).
- The unsigned text piece in the back says Flash chaired the first JSA meeting.
SECRET ORIGINS (second series) #31
October 1988
On-sale Date: June 30, 1988

"The Secret Origin of the Justice Society of America"
By Roy Thomas, Michael Bair and Bob Downs (38 pages)

This book is a pretty faithful retelling of the original story, too, with the omission of Superman and Batman. It does give the minor JSAers more dialogue than before, reveals a few details and fixes one or two errors. The biggest change is at the end.

Ch-ch-changes

Thomas establishes a date for Smythe's meeting with Roosevelt: Saturday, Nov. 9, 1940. It is the day Neville Chamberlain died, and four days after the presidential election of 1940. It is 13 days before Roy Thomas is born, the first official meeting of the Justice Society is held, and All-Star Comics #3 hits newsstands.

FDR's folder of mystery men lists their home cities. We can't see Fate's. It puts Hawkman, Hourman and Sandman in New York, Atom in Calvin City and Spectre in "whereabouts unknown." The comics of the time put Hourman in Cosmos City and Spectre in Cliffland. I don't think Atom's home town was named in 1940, but he does go to Calvin College, so Calvin City is OK by me. Hawkman and Sandman both in New York makes sense, and I don't remember differently.

The photos repeat what I considered an error in the first story, putting Flash in Keystone City and Green Lantern in Gotham City. In Flash Comics of 1940, the Scarlet Speedster is very definitely in New York. In All-American Comics of 1940, Green Lantern lived in Capitol City. Since this is the second time they've been relocated, and by no less a Golden Age expert than Roy Thomas, I'm going to have to assume this is a retcon — and that from now on, Flash will always have been from Keystone, and Green Lantern will always have been from Gotham, no matter what it says in old comics. Maybe that's true of the others as well.

The bit about Flash learning he's needed in Gotham City by a cop (introduced in America vs. the Justice Society) is repeated here.

Green Lantern again uses his ring to break down a wooden door. Maybe it just looks like wood, and is some other material.

The Nazi robot, dubbed "Murder Machine" in both stories, is again triumphant in Scotland. But it's an even more sour defeat this time, because the robot defeats Green Lantern directly (instead of hitting him with Flash, like in the first story). The early Green Lantern stories make it very clear that he simply can't be hurt by anything made of metal. He doesn't have to do anything; bullets just bounce off, knives bend and break. According to Golden Age comics, he should just shrug off the Mordmaschine. But instead he is literally beaten into the ground. And then the robot knocks out The Flash, who really should be able to dodge, with one swing of its arm.

Thomas makes it very clear that when Doctor Fate recruits Hourman, they have never met before. He did the same with Flash and Green Lantern, and later when nine of them are gathered in Europe. None had met the other, including Doctor Fate and Spectre. A later Spectre Annual will show Fate and Spectre meeting well before World War II.

Atom, Hawkman and Sandman make their minutes-long trip to Europe inside magic spheres. That's just so much better than enchanted tendrils. Honest, I know it's all hokum. But spheres just feel less more plausible, somehow, and more visually compelling.

Gudra, the lead valkyrie, says that they are returning after 1,000 years. That is more accurate than the "eons" mentioned in the first story.

It's Doctor Fate who suggests Green Lantern carry the non-flying crew along with them to battle the valkyries and to down the bomber. It's still not a good idea, but at least it was a plan.

Unlike the first story, the JSA and the valkyries don't fight all night across the Atlantic Ocean. In this version, valkyrie magic bridges the gap between Great Britain and Washington D.C. with some sort of portal. That's definitely an improvement (and doesn't break the 24-hour rule for Green Lantern).

Instead of Superman, Green Lantern brings down the bomber (and is knocked unconscious by the explosion, rather than Gudra's spear butt).

Gudra calls FDR "Cripple." That's just rude.

Atom takes Gudra's initial blast like in the original, but now there's no Superman to follow up. Gudra kills Roosevelt, and Spectre goes in the afterlife to petition The Voice for his life. He gets FDR back, but only (I'm guessing) for his alloted lifespan, since he dies on schedule. He reappears, as time is more or less turned back to before Atom took the spear. And conveniently, nobody will remember FDR dying, or any of the future things The Voice talked about.

As before, FDR suggests they form a team. Since we have no Superman, this time it's The Spectre who suggests "Justice Society."

Summary

Obviously, I didn't care for this story, in either of its incarnations. I expect the upcoming "JSA: Year One" storyline will nibble around the edges, but not really change anything significant. So we're stuck with it, and I accept that. Reluctantly.

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