Wonder Woman-- Original JLA Member--AGAIN

[Philip Portelli]

I just read "DCUniverse: Legacies" #3 (SPOILER ALERT IS ON)  where they spotlight the beginning of the heroes that found the Justice League. Not only are Superman and Batman once again original members, after years of saying Batman joined after Green Arrow and Superman was too busy to join (though he seemed to be there at every major event), but Wonder Woman is now again back as a JLA founder. After twenty-five years, or three generations of comic readers, of saying WW arrived in Man's World years after the JLA was formed and Wally West was the Flash, that she was a new, different character and that she had no connection with the League whatsoever, she is now back where she started.

 

Now I consider this a good thing, a return to a reality I know well, much like there being a Superboy in the Legion. The JLA is DC's foremost team. It deserves to have Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman acknowledged as its foundation.However this return to a more Earth-One-like continuity does lead to some questions.

 

What is Black Canary's place in JLA history? She joined originally as an older Earth-Two character to be the "girl" on the team. That can't be true now. If they show Silver Age-ish stories or flashbacks with both as members at the same time, that's not right either. In "Identity Crisis", when they show the Satellite-era JLA, WW is NOT depicted, even though she had rejoined the team long before Zatanna was inducted.

 

As the years passed, WW as a relatively recent figure was surplanted by WW as one of the Big Three. She was even shown as a mentor to Wonder Girl (Donna Troy) again, which further twisted her convoluted backstory. By the time of Morrison's "JLA", WW was a major player in the team and was treated as if she always was!

 

Another hero this could effect is Hawkman. I know, I know. Like he needs more alteration to his history. But, if WW who got restarted in 1986, is now established as a JLAer, why not the Post-Crisis Katar Hol who arrived on Earth in 1987? Or will the original Carter Hall still be a member, which never really sat well with me anyway? He looked different from the E-1 Hawkman but will they include Katar as part of the back-to-basics approach?

 

Again, I like this change. I just hope it doesn't create more problems that we'll need another crossover event to fix!

 

 

BTW and off this thought completely, I read "Secret Warriors" #17 and found out that (SPOILER ALERT) former Howling Commandos Dino Manelli and Pinky Pinkerton had passed away. Were these actually depicted or just part of the narrative to show that it's been 65 years since the end of WWII? 

 

[ClarkKent_DC]

Declaring that Wonder Woman is a founder of the Justice League of America is perfectly fine by me. As for the rest of it, I really don't want to think that hard ...

[Figserello]

I thought Wonder Woman is a quasi-amnesiac fugitive from Paradise Island and has been since it was abandoned by the gods when she was only a baby and who has been trained in seclusion as a 90s throwback urban guerilla fighter in leggings.

Ah?

[Don Collett]

That's just until next Tuesday. Then "everything changes"...again! :D

Figserello said:

I thought Wonder Woman is a quasi-amnesiac fugitive from Paradise Island and has been since it was abandoned by the gods when she was only a baby and who has been trained in seclusion as a 90s throwback urban guerilla fighter in leggings.

Ah?

[Figserello]

For what it's worth, the Wonder Woman in Morrison's JLA was WW's mother, Hippolyta, for a good stretch of it. He didn't make a big deal about it, because while he's respectful of continuity in his way, he knew that the punters were counting on seeing a 'real' Wonder Woman amongst the Big 7, and he didn't want to scare off the non-fanboys with too much explication of extraneous stuff that happened elsewhere in not-very-good comics.

The PTB are currently intent on fashioning the DCU into a warm and cosy comfort blanket of nostalgia for backward-loooking fanboys, which is their happy perogative.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Between and among Secret Origins #32, Mark Waid's JLA: Year One and John Ostrander's JLA: Incarnations I think there's enough wiggle room to support any interpretation. Personally, I like to think they all happened in post-whatever continuity, with Superman, Batman (and now, again, Wonder Woman) there from the beginning but playing a limited role in the early adventures.

Years ago I noticed that some of the heroes were given different aliens to fight in Secret Origins #32 than they fought in the original Fox/Sekowsky version. After reading Legacies #3 I meant to do another comparison but haven't gotten around to it yet.

[Philip Portelli]

But there is still the issue of Black Canary's joining. From Justice League (first series) #75 to now, there has been only two depictions of her involvement with the League. The original, where she is widowed and leaves Earth-Two for Earth-One which was amended in the 80s as the mother leaving E-2 and the daughter arrives on E-1 thinking like the mother (which had its share of problems, to be sure) and the Post Crisis revision where the daughter is a founding member which has been maintained until now. Unfortunately there must now be a third, totally new Black Canary timeline which has to be dealt with at some point.

[Figserello]

Meltzers Justice League of America 0(?) was probably the real re-reset, placing WW, Bats and Supes as founders and custodians of the JLA.

I knew as soon as I read it that they were realigning JLA history with the pre-Crisis version.

In-universe, as Black Canary has discovered, it does mean that the 'Trinity' do see themselves as above and better than their colleagues. (Of course they are, but do they have to ACT as if they are?) Its hard to interpret what we've seen since Infinite Crisis in any other light.

[Eric L. Sofer]

Figserello said:

For what it's worth, the Wonder Woman in Morrison's JLA was WW's mother, Hippolyta, for a good stretch of it. He didn't make a big deal about it, because while he's respectful of continuity in his way, he knew that the punters were counting on seeing a 'real' Wonder Woman amongst the Big 7, and he didn't want to scare off the non-fanboys with too much explication of extraneous stuff that happened elsewhere in not-very-good comics.

Yes, well, that was when Diana was spending a year dead. For tax reasons.

x<]:o){

[Eric L. Sofer]

Welcome to my world.

By the way, Legacies did not exactly restore B&B 28 / JLA 7 status quo... as now, it seems that both Batman and Superman were on the island to be partially transformed by the Appelaxian as well.

This is what happens when no one is running the comic book company and no one gives a good G*dd*mn about continuity. BAD THINGS SHOW UP. STORIES STOP MAKING SENSE. READERS GET CONFUSED.

And another Crisis won't fix it, because now people are so used to the friggin' things. Or to quote Rocket J. Squirrel - "Again?"

Luckily, Wonder Woman's origin has changed - AGAIN - so another origin of the JLA will soon be coming out with Black Canary back in it, I'm sure. And then, when they have to go back to the original Wonder Woman costume (trademark purposes, y'know), why, you'll have another WW origin and another JLA origin!

And all you damned wretches out there who spit on continuity will finally be able to enjoy your day. No continuity! Whatever the current writers/editors like is the real story!

This must be the way to run a comic book company.



Into the ground.

x<]:o({

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Philip Portelli said:

But there is still the issue of Black Canary's joining.

Here's how I rationalize it: as long as the current configuration of the DCU places the JSA and the JLA on the same Earth, then the mother was with the JSA and the daughter was with the JLA... if not from the very first adventure, then certainly early on. It takes only a slight mental effort to place her into a post-Crisis version of the League (see Mark Waid's JLA: Year One and John Ostrander's JLA: Incarnations for published examples). The only exception is when the Black Canary appears with the JSA in a JLA/JSA team-up; then it's the mother. I understand where you're coming from, Phillip, I do. Maybe someday DC will publish the new version of the JLA origin and early years you're waiting for, but in the meantime, my hope is for them to continue to tell good stories going forward. Regarding JMS's Wonder Woman, I got the impression from issue #601 that his story is taking place in a reality which has deviated from the "real" one.

Regarding the Legacies retelling, Eric has already pointed out the main discrepancy, but I'm going to provide some additional details because I did take the time to look it up! In the original Silver Age version, Martian Manhunter fought the Stone alien, Aquaman fought the Glass, Wonder Woman the Mecrury, Green Lantern the big Yellow Bird (of course), and Flash Fire. Then the five of them together fought the Wood alien, and Superman and Batman teamed up against the Diamond alien.

In the post-Crisis re-telling, Aquaman took on the Mercury alien allowing Black Canary to shatter the Glass one with her sonic scream. Then the first five (with BC instead of WW) caught the very end of Superman's solo battle against the Diamond alien. No Batman.

The current version restores Batman and Wonder Woman and matches them with their original opponents, BUT... as Eric pointed out, all SEVEN of them go up against the Wood alien.