There's a Huge Justice Society Teaser in 'Doomsday Clock' #8

It has been more than five years since DC fans saw the "classic" take on the Justice Society of America in regular publication, but Doomsday Clock #8 offers a glimmer of hope for fans of the Golden Age super-team.

The team, which was DC's first superhero team but has not been seen consistently since the company's 2011 "The New 52" reboot, appear in the issue, surprisingly intact and just as most fans will remember them.

Spoilers ahead for Doomsday Clock #8, on sale this week.

According to archival footage Lois Lane sees in the latest issue of Doomsday Clock, the Justice Society existed in the current DC Comics timeline, and were somehow retroactively eliminated or forgotten somehow.

This roughly jives with the account offered by Johnny Thunder throughout the miniseries, but the fact that Lois Lane of all people is on the tail of the story certainly seems to suggest the world will know sooner than later.

Back in May, Doomsday Clock #5 gave fans the closest thing they have seen yet to a clear sign that both the Justice Society and the Legion of Super-Heroes still existed, and would be back. The series has featured, among others, the Legionnaire Saturn Girl and the former JSA member Johnny Thunder.

The Justice Society of America were DC's earliest all-star super-team, and were later retroactively moved to Earth-2 when the Silver Age reinvented many of the members and eventually introduced the Justice League. After Crisis on Infinite Earths, all of DC's realities were merged and the JSA were reinvented as the "original heroes," relegated mostly to the distant past, before they were revived by Geoff Johns and David S. Goyer. They have not appeared in their classic form since the 2011 New 52 reboot, but a version of the team, updated for the current day, appeared in the Earth-2 comics released for a few years after that reboot.

The Legion of Super-Heroes, teen superheroes from the future influenced by Superman's reputation, have been constantly reinvented and retooled since Crisis, when the altered timeline removed Superboy's physical presence from their lineup. The team did exist post-Flashpoint, unlike the JSA, but have had a pretty minimal role since the end of 2012. Their most recent appearances, outside of several cameos by Saturn Girl in various books since Rebirth, took place in the now-defunct Justice League United title.

Bear in mind that while the events of Doomsday Clock are canonically taking place in the DC Universe, they are taking place a year from the current stories, giving the DCU a chance to catch up. So don't expect a Legion of Super-Heroes or Justice Society of America comic out in a couple of weeks just because of these little moments.

Doomsday Clock #8 is in stores today. The next issue will be available on January 23, 2019.