The Justice Society of America is, in my humble opinion, the greatest team in the history of comics. Without them, the superteam wouldn’t exist in the form they do now, and the multiverse stories of the Silver Age wouldn’t exist. Without those stories, we’d never have gotten all time great tales like Crisis on Infinite Earths or all of the other amazing DC stories that defined and redefined their multiverse. However, they aren’t just important because of what they’ve done; their also amazing because of their adventures in the present, brilliant superhero stories that have done an amazing job of fleshing out the first superhero team.
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The Justice Society have suffered from the wonkiness of DC continuity, but they’ve also benefited from the changes made to the publisher’s universe. Some of the greatest creators ever have worked on the team (you’re going to see several of the same names here), giving them stories unlike anything you’ve ever experienced. These ten Justice Society stories are the best in DC history, helping the team enthrall readers for close to a hundred years now.
10) DC Special #29
Many stories have defined the Justice Society, but one story story truly deserves that appellation: DC Special #29, by Paul Levitz and Joe Staton. This double-sized issue gave readers the origin of the pre-Crisis Justice Society on Earth-Two. When Hitler gets his hands on the Spear of Destiny, he decides to use it and the army of Valkyries he controls with it to spearhead an attack on Washington DC. The various heroes of the US jump into action, fighting a climactic battle at the White House. This is pitch-perfect pre-Crisis DC goodness from two of the best creators around in those days. It’s hard to find, but it’s definitely worth the hunt.
9) JSA (Vol. 2) #1-12
So, this one is technically two different stories that fit together, so I’m putting both of them. JSA (Vol. 2) has been a wild ride, its first twelve issues giving readers the ultimate Justice Society vs Injustice Society story. Written by Jeff Lemire with art by Diego Olortegui, Joey Vazquez, Rafael De Latorre, and Gavin Guidry, the story sees the team broken in half by the villains, with the team’s old school members trapped in Fate’s Tower in a hellish dimension, while the younger members squabble on Earth, manipulated by a secret enemy. This story was an amazing reintroduction to the team, and gave readers some amazing moments, emotional storytelling, and awesome action.
8) Justice Society of America (Vol. 4) #1-12
Flashpoint changed the DC Universe and readers lost the version of the Justice Society they loved, and it wouldn’t be until 2023 that we’d get them back. Justice Society of America (Vol. 4) #1-12, by Geoff Johns, Mikel Janin, Jerry Ordway, and Marco Santucci, was that return and it’s one for the history books. This series kicked off with the future daughter of Batman and Catwoman Huntress coming back in time to save the Justice League from the time-traveling Nazi Per Degaton, all while trying to bring the team into future and dealing with some of the team’s most dangerous enemies (and a Legion of Superheroes continuity fix). Johns is the greatest Justice Society writer, and this story shows off why. Sure, it only exists so he could write Helena Wayne Huntress into continuity, but it’s brilliant and the last issue is one of my favorite comics of the 21st century.
7) “JSA/JSA”
The Justice Society is a team with a rich history; Golden Age DC has some amazing heroes and the team has only grown since then. A team like the JSA has a lot of story potential and one of them is a team up between different generations. Writer Geoff Johns and artist Don Kramer gave readers that with “JSA/JSA”. Per Degaton goes on one of his periodic kill the past versions of the team so the modern team won’t exist sprees, but a group of modern Society members are sent back in time to help the original team survive Degaton’s attack. This is an awesome story that doesn’t shy from some of the darker elements of the past, with excellent action and great character interplay. Kramer is an extremely underrated artist, and this is one of the best stories of his time on the book.
6) “Stealing Thunder”
JSA killed it in the ’00s, and stories like “Stealing Thunder” were why. The story, by Geoff Johns, David S. Goyer, Peter Snejberg, Keith Giffen, Leonard Kirk, and Stephen Sadowski ran in JSA #32-37. Johnny Thunder had been in a nursing home for years with Alzheimers and then one day gets better. The JSA welcome back their old friend, but once he takes back the Thunderbolt from Jakeem, things go terribly wrong. Soon, the world is under his control and a ragtag JSA has to learn the truth and take him down. This is yet another awesome story that pays homage to the greats of the past while giving readers an insanely cool book. It’s honestly the kind of story that could have been a JSA-focused event, it’s that great.
5) Last Days of the Justice Society of America
Roy Thomas was Stan Lee’s protege and a fan of Golden Age comics (he grew up with them). After years at Marvel, he moved to DC and took over the Earth-Two books like All-Star Comics and Infinity, Inc. After Crisis ended the multiverse, the Justice Society was put in a time out and that’s where Last Days of the Justice Society of America, by Roy Thomas, Dann Thomas, and David Ross, comes in. The team finds itself having to hold the line against the invasion of Surtur and his fire demons, with nothing less than the fate of the world at hand. This is an integral story in the lore of the modern post-Crisis Justice Society, and luckily, it’s also an awesome old school comic to boot.
4) “Black Reign”
“Black Reign” is one of the best DC stories of the mid ’00s, an action packed little yarn that made Black Adam into a true A-lister. The story ran through JSA and Hawkman, written by Geoff Johns with art by Don Kramer and Rags Morales. Black Adam and Atom-Smasher have recruited JSA allies Brainwave II, Northwind, Nemesis, and Alex Montez to smash the government of Khandaq. Hawkman brings the Justice Society to bear against their former teammates in a six issue brawl that will knock your socks off. This is THE Black Adam story, a comic that perfectly captures why he’s such a great anti-hero. It’s an awesome story that is still good over 20 years later.
3) “They Kingdom Come”
Justice Society of America (Vol. 3) was the post-Infinite Crisis reboot of the team, and it gave readers an epic unlike any in the history of the group. “Thy Kingdom Come”, by Geoff Johns, Dale Eaglesham, Fernando Pasarin, Alex Ross, and Ruy Jose, encompassed Justice Society of America (Vol. 3) #9-21, Justice Society of America Annual #1, Justice Society of America Kingdom Come Special: Superman, Justice Society of America Kingdom Come Special: Magog, and Justice Society of America Kingdom Come Special: The Kingdom. The Superman of Earth-22, the Kingdom Come Earth, shows up out of nowhere and all hell breaks loose, as new members join up and a familiar menace returns to save the world… or break it. This story is no longer canon of the Kingdom Come Earth since Mark Waid’s own sequel to the story in World’s Finest, but it’s still a spectacular little yarn that will leave you begging for more.
2) “Princes of Darkness”
JSA is a brilliant team book, and its finest hour came in “Princes of Darkness”, by Geoff Johns, David S. Goyer, Sal Velluto, and Leonard Kirk. Over the course of the book, Mordru has been trying to take control of the Helmet of Fate, all while two of the Justice Society’s other enemies have worked for him in the physical world. Mordru succeeds, and teaming with Eclipso and Obsidian, plunges the world into darkness. What follows is an all-out superhero war led by the Justice Society. Much like “Stealing Thunder”, this could have easily been a linewide crossover event and it would have felt right. This story is the definition of peak; we didn’t call it that back then, but that’s the best way to describe: peak.
1) The Golden Age
The Golden Age, by James Robinson and Paul Smith, was a 1993 Elseworlds tale that took readers back to the Golden Age. World War II has ended and the heroes of the United States are looking to rebuild their lives. However, all of the enemies aren’t gone yet, and one of their own has become a traitor. What follows is a plan that will bring back history’s greatest villain for a battle that could destroy everything they’ve all fought for. This is a brilliant story that will make any one love Golden Age DC (I have my suspicions that it’s success is what led to DC going all in on the Golden Age legacy of the publisher in the mid ’90s with books like Jame Robinson’s Starman, Hourman, and Stars and STRIPES). It’s amazing, and one of the best DC books of the ’90s. This book is top-tier, and if you love DC Comics you need to read it.
What are your favorite Justice Society stories? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!
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