“Thy Kingdom Come” continues as the Kingdom Come Superman takes his first steps trying to fit into a new world. Plus some new and returning heroes, more with the Cosmic treadmill, a kick ass battle or two, and a tender moment between two lost super-humans without worlds of their own. It’s Justice Society of America issue #11 folks, and this is the review!
Justice Society of America #11
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“The Second Coming,” part two of “Thy Kingdom Come” finds the Justice Society and the Kingdom Come Superman coming to grips with each other. I really enjoyed the early uncomfortable scenes as different members of the JSA react to Superman in their own ways. I like Johns too-short take on Batman in these scenes and wonder if he might get to take a stab at one of the Bat-books in the future. We learn that Earth-22 has been destroyed and there is no home for this Superman to return to. It’s a fun ride as the “new” Superman takes his tentative steps to be part of the new world and the JSA.
We also get a new Judomaster (which was okay but nothing special). When you fill the pages with more and more heroes as this version of Justice Society is doing many of these marginal heroes just don’t make the cut. I’m a little concerned the cast is getting too big (it will grow even larger next issue), what I liked about the previous JSA was Johns making the group just big enough to emphasize their characters but not going overboard. We’ll have to see how this plays out.
Also in this issue: Wally and Jay play with the Cosmic treadmill (which didn’t really live up to the promise from the teaser in the last issue), plus a very touching between Superman and Power Girl – both lost heroes from other worlds now gone, and the re-appearance of Mr. America. All these moments are laying ground for stories to come, and I like the idea of teaming up the two lost souls together in Supes and Power Girl, and any mention of Barry Allen makes me happy (but is anyone else wondering, with all the Countdown tie-ins why hasn’t a Barry Allen shown up from any alternate reality??). Oh, well.
There’s a huge fight between Judomaster and the Ketsueki Sensei, but as with all of Geoff Johns tales the real fun comes in the characters interacting with each other and dealing with new and unusual circumstances. Sadly there’s now flashbacks in this issue showcasing the art of Alex Ross, but we do get a pretty darn good cover and a story credit for him; guess that will have to do ‘til next issue.
So far the “Thy Kingdom Come” has started out subtly. I’m not sure exactly where Johns plans on taking our new Superman, how long he will stick around, or what his role in the larger DCU will end up being, but I’m psyched to see his introduction and very pleased to see how well and naturally he fits into the Justice Society. I hope they keep him around a very long time.