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dailyjsa · 3 months

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Welcome to DailyJSA's JSA Member Tournament!

Sixty four enter, one takes the crown!

These are characters who were either explicitly stated to be members of the JSA, or very involved with the team to the point that they're basically a member (mainly applies to Thunderbolt). Some are in a grey area due to retcons (such as Hippolyta) or were barely involved with the team, but they still count. Batman, Wonder Woman (Diana), Superman, and Robin have been excluded from this tournament to give other less popular characters a fair chance.

These initial matchups were made with a randomizer to be as fair as possible.

Each week, a round of polls will be posted. All polls will be a week long.

Since there are so many matchups to start, Round One will be split into two parts. The matchups are below the cut for those who may have trouble reading the bracket.

Feel free to send in an ask if you have any questions.

Round One (3/20):

Darknight vs Terry Sloane (Mr. Terrific)

Jesse Chambers (Jesse Quick/Liberty Belle) vs Al Pratt (The Atom)

Jennifer Pierce (Lightning) vs Al Rothstein (Atom Smasher)

Salem Nader (Salem The Witch Girl) vs Jeffrey Graves (Mister America)

Earth 2 Helena Wayne (Huntress) vs Jay Garrick (The Flash)

Dinah Lance (Black Canary) vs Sonia Sato (Judomaster)

Hector Hall (Doctor Fate) vs Pieter Cross (Doctor Mid-Nite)

Rick Tyler (Hourman) vs Ted Grant (Wildcat)

Matthew Tyler (Hourman) vs Joan Dale (Miss America)

Tom Bronson (Wildcat) vs Grant Emerson (Damage)

Jakeem Williams (Jakeem Thunder) vs The Thunderbolt

Jim Corrigan (The Spectre) vs Hippolyta (Wonder Woman)

Khalid Nassour (Doctor Fate) vs Jack Knight (Starman)

Kent Nelson (Doctor Fate) vs Thom Kallor (Starman)

Maxine Hunkel (Cyclone) vs Markus Clay (Amazing Man)

New Golden Age Helena Wayne (Huntress) vs Roxy

Round One Continued (3/27):

Billy Batson (Captain Marvel) vs Yolanda Montez (Wildcat)

Todd Rice (Obsidian) vs Dinah Drake (Black Canary)

Anna Fortune vs Beth Chapel (Doctor Mid-Nite)

Carter Hall (Hawkman) vs Red Tornado (John Smith)

Shiera Hall (Hawkgirl) vs Sand Hawkins (Sand/Sandman)

Michael Holt (Mr. Terrific) vs Alan Scott (Green Lantern/Sentinel)

Sylvester Pemberton (Star-Spangled Kid) vs Courtney Whitmore (Star-Spangled Kid/Stargirl)

Karen Starr (Power Girl) vs Wesley Dodds (Sandman)

Sara Butters (Red Beetle) vs Nathan Heywood (Citizen Steel)

Kent V Nelson (Doctor Fate) vs King Chimera

Kendra Saunders (Hawkgirl) vs Teth-Adam (Black Adam)

Ri vs Ted Knight (Starman)

Pat Dugan (S.T.R.I.P.E.) vs Libby Lawrence (Liberty Belle)

Rex Tyler (Hourman) vs Johnny Thunder

Charles McNider (Doctor Mid-Nite) vs Jennie-Lynn Hayden (Jade)

David Reid (Magog) vs Kate Spencer (Manhunter)

#dc comics #jsa #justice society of america #dc character tournament #bracket #character tournament #jsa member tournament

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vampibrainrot · 1 year

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Zealot/Lady Zannah of Khera reading guide

Lady Zannah is a high-ranking member of the CODA Sisterhood, a women-only group of warriors and a very influential party in the Kheran government.

After being stranded on Earth, Zealot created her version of the CODA, training women on the kherubim ways of war and fighting. After thousands of years of having a hand in many Historical events, Zealot (and Grifter) stepped out of the shadows and joined the WildC.A.T.S, a superhero team financed by the HALO Corporation and composed of descendants of the other kherubim living on Earth, to help fight in the war against the Deamonites.

Wildstorm Universe

-WildC.A.T.S (1992) #0 - #13

-WildC.A.T.S Trilogy (1993) #1 - #3

-WildC.A.T.S sourcebook (1993)

-Shadowhawk (1992) #13

-WildC.A.T.S (1992) #14 - #17

-Stormwatch (1992) #18

-Backlash (1992) #4

-WildC.A.T.S (1992) #18 - #19

Wildstorm Rising (1995) #1

Wildstorm Universe sourcebook (1995)

WildC.A.T.S (1992) #20

Union (1993) #4

Wetworks (1994) #8

Grifter (1994) #1

Backlash (1992) #8

Stormwatch (1992) #22

Wildstorm Rising (1995) #2

Spartan: warrior spirit (1995) #1 - #4

Voodoo/Zealot: skin trade (1995) #1

Zealot (1995) #1 -#3

WildC.A.T.S (1992) #22

Grifter (1995) #7 - #8

Spawn/WildC.A.T.S (1995) #1 - #4

Fire from Heaven (1995) #1

WildC.A.T.S (1992) #28 - #29

Backlash (1992) #20

WildC.A.T.S (1992) #30

Gen13 (1995) #11

Fire from Heaven (1995) #2

Deathblow (1993) #29

Shattered Image (1996) #2 -4

WildC.A.T.S (1992) #31 -34

Mars Attack Image

Grifter (1995) #9

WildC.A.T.S (1992) #35 - #37

Grifter (1995) #10

Backlash (1992) #31

WildC.A.T.S (1992) #38 - #40

JLA/WildC.A.T.S (1997)

X-Men/WildC.A.T.S (1997) #1 - 3

Wildcore (1997) #1 -2

Gen12 (1998) #2 & #5

Wildcats/Aliens (1998)

WildC.A.T.S (1999) #1 & #4 - #5

Wildcats: Mosaic (1999)

Wildcats (1999) #22 - #23 & #27

Wildcats version 3.0 (2002) #9, #13, #15, #19 - #21, #23 - #24

Wildcats: Nemesis (2005) #1 - #9

Majestic (2005) #8 - #17

Captain Atom: Armageddon (2005) #2 - 5

Wildcats (2006) #1*

Wildcats: Armageddon (2007) #1

Wildstorm Revelations (2007) #4 - #6

- DC/Wildstorm: Dreamwar (2008) #1 - #6

Number of the Beast (2008) #8

Wildcats (2008) #1

The Authority (2008) #1

Wildcats (2008) #2 - 18

The Authority (2008) #18

Wildcats (2008) #19 - #30

Prime Earth/Post Flashpoint

Deathstroke (2011) #9 - #13

Stormwatch (2011) #17 & #18

Batman: Urban Legends(2021) #4 - #6

Wildcats (2022) #1

Wildstorm 30th years anniversary (2022)

DC's Grifter got run over by a reindeer (2022) #1

Wildcats (2022) #3 -?

Recommended

The ones mentioned here are out of continuity

The Wild Storm (2017)

Superman vs Lobo (2021)

#zealot #Zannah of khera #Wildstorm #Wildcats #birds of prey #comics #Dc #reading guides

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omniversecomicsguide · 1 year

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OmniverseComicsGuide has launched Aliens Vs Predator Vs the Omniverse(1991-2019) Reading Order!

Under @darkhorsecomics the Xenomorphs & Yautja take on Batman, Witchblade, Buffy, Archie, Green Lantern, WildCATs, Judge Dredd & more!

Who would you most like to see them go up against?

Reading Order : https://bit.ly/ocgAVPvsOmniverse

#predators #aliens #dark horse comics #yautja #omniverse comics guide

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littlemonstert-blog · 1 year

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One of My Favorite DC Superheroes

Black Canary ( Dinah Laruel Lance)

Going of Mostly NewEarth and a bit of Rebirth ya'know if I go back to golden Age/Sliver Age it'll get messy. I might use it certain panels if i know its Dinah Laruel Lance

I love this l legacy street level hero.

She is the second Canary difference between the first is she has a metahuman ability of a sonic scream.

She's came a long way. Her father was a cop and her mother was a the first Black Canary. Dinah and her mother used to argue when her mother was villiante Justice Society Of America crime fighter that didn't have time for her. But somehow became a hero oh, the irony lmao.

Green Arrow LongBow Hunters:

She went through so much while investagating a missing person mixed with a cartle. She was kidnapped and tortured.

Dinah is looking better and eager to make them pay. Though Oliver says its too late. (Don't wanna spoil to much it's good story despite a few hiccups)

When Dinah came out of the hospital, she was still emotionally traumatized by the incident. She learned that she had lost her ability to perform her Canary Cry. Along with other scars.

After this, lot's things happen after that arc relationships ended, dealing with trauma getting better along they way, healing and self-discovery. What she's been through she still never gives up and keeps moving forward.

She kept training and bettering herself :

Trained by Batgirl, Wildcat, Nightwing, Wonder Woman, Connor Hawke, Mister Terrific, Richard Dragon and Lady Shiva. Many more

She's no slouch becoming one of the best fighters DC

Birds of Prey (1999) #61, #68, #74, #95, & #100

Birds of prey: Pretty fun run. A group of crimefighters mostly females but guys have joined to. Despite their ups and downs they would come back better than ever. Loved her moments between Huntress and Oracle.

Chairwoman in 2006’s Justice League of America. Cut short, I wish they were able to tell the story heard it was scrapped or cancelled.

Relationships:

Ollie & Dinah

I'll be honest I never really liked Green Arrow & Black Canary together. Never saw them as a iconic couple. So many issues with them as a couple. I'm liked, why are they together? Is it bad I want to see them be with other people.

When I read Green arrow comics is an okay hero to me has some good runs in my opinion he's has similarities to batman, only difference more altrustic and sarcastic but is more willing to kill and has killed. Green arrow & Black canary comics I'm just more intrested in Canary or other memebers of arrow instead.

Let them be with other people. I guarntee if another new earth or something happened lots a people wouldn't care. Example, it's the same with Batman & Catwoman though I love them together, I don't mind seeing them with other people.

To me, they worked well without each other. If they ever breakup again just because there not together anymore doesn't mean she's not apart of Team Arrow. Only three times I actcually liked them as a couple Justice Leaque Unlimted, Young Justice and Injustice.

JSA:

So much can be explore with her lore. Her connection to the JSA since her mother was once a memeber.

Ted aka Wildacat:

Another one:

Shiva & Canary they have a intresing dynamic. Clash of ideals yet they seemly to work well together. Shiva even suggested Dinah become her apprentice.

Gotham: Now, I know Gotham is more of Batman's. But irronically Dinah's father was a cop at Gotham and her mother was a crime fighter in Gotham to ( before batman's time). I feel like they should be brought up more in Gotham lore. Only time I seen it was in Harley Quin and the birds of prey

Edit extra Other stories:

Deathstroke Inc:

Deathstroke & Black Canary not a team up likely to happen but unusally fun while short. Just wish we had a Black Canary vs Deathstroke fight because she's grown so much. ( But this version Prime Earth seems more weaker than New Earth. PE seems to really a bit more on her canary cry) maybe next time.

Canary almost had another solo in DC robin round to me fair i saw alot intresting stories than this one. Still wish we got it though.

Hope I see more love and stories for my favorite blonde bare-knuckle brawler

Art by: Otto Schmidth

Going to be posting more dc character's I love.

#Black canary #arrow #dc

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best-bird-bash · 1 year

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Black Canary, DC, "the character is often portrayed as a prodigious hand-to-hand combatant, having mastered styles such as Aikido, Boxing, Capoeira, Hapkido, Judo, Jujutsu, Kung Fu, Krav Maga, Muay Thai, Shuri-te, and Wing Chun. She has been trained by other top-tier fighters, such as Wildcat, Lady Shiva, Cassandra Cain, and Wonder Woman, as well as having bested Batman from time to time in hand-to-hand combat."

Hawk & Dove, DC, "Inspired by the emerging political divides of the 1960s between pro-war hawks and pacifist doves, the central concept traditionally revolves around two young heroes with contrasting personalities and diametrically opposed ideologies who, by speaking their superheroic aliases, are transformed and granted power sets of heightened strength, speed, and agility. With Dove embodying reason and nonviolence and Hawk embodying force and aggression, the two heroes complement one another to effectively fight evil."

#black canary #dc comics #hawk and dove #dc universe #best bird bash #poll #tumblr competition

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cybercitycomix · 2 years

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Top New DC Comic Releases for the Week of November 9th, 2022.

Batman Incorporated #2,

Batman vs Robin #3,

Dark Crisis #6,

Death of Superman 30th Anniversary Special #1,

Detective Comics #38 Facsimile,

New Golden Age #1,

Superman Son of Kal-El #17,

Superman #75 Special Edition,

Wildcats #1,

Wonder Woman #793.

#dc comics #batman #superman #comics #comic books #wildcats

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i-r-readcomics · 5 years

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America vs. the Justice Society

Volume: 1 #3

Hostile Witness

Writers: Roy Thomas, Dann Thomas

Pencils:Howard Bender

Inks: Alfredo Alcala

Covers: Jerry Ordway

Featuring: Justice Society of America of Earth-Two (Atom (Al Pratt), Dr. Fate (Kent Nelson), Dr. Mid-Nite (Charles McNider), Flash (Jay Garrick), Green Lantern (Alan Scott), Hawkman (Carter Hall), Hourman (Rex Tyler), Johnny Thunder, Robin (Dick Grayson), Starman (Ted Knight), Superman, Wildcat ( Ted Grant), Wonder Woman), Wizard (William Zard), Batman, Huntress, Black Canary

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marvelman901 · 3 years

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America vs the Justice Society 1 (1985) . I Accuse . Written by Roy and Dann Thomas Penciled by Rafael Kayanan, Rock Buckler and Jerry Ordway Inked by Alfredo Alcala and Bill Collins . The Justice Society (in Earth-2) had been outed as traitors by the late Batman (or someone who was believed to be Batman)... . #dc #superhero #superman #batman #ww2 #sandman #wonderwoman #hawkman #atom #huntress #robin #doctorfate #doctormidnite #flash #greenlantern #johnnythunder #hourman #spectre #wildcat https://www.instagram.com/p/CVnrRrJtm9y/?utm_medium=tumblr

#dc #superhero #superman #batman #ww2 #sandman #wonderwoman #hawkman #atom #huntress #robin #doctorfate #doctormidnite #flash #greenlantern #johnnythunder #hourman #spectre #wildcat

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freaknoobnews · 4 years

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Injustice: Years Zero

Batman vs Wildcat

#comics #geek #comic book #dc comics #batman #justice league #flash #justice society of america #jl #jsa

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chrissysky · 7 years

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#batman vs wildcat #chuck dixon #lord help me it's really the 90s again

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musesofconstantchange · 5 years

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We Have To Talk About Batman

So, I just read The Batman Who Laughs #3 and Detective Comics #998, and I can’t hold it in anymore. We need to talk about how Batman is the worst character in comics right now.

For those unaware, the previous holder of this title was Deadpool, but previous luminaries include Cyclops, Wolverine, Hal Jordan, and many others. Rather than talk about all of them, let’s focus on Deadpool and why he held it, and you’ll likely grasp why the others did as well.

First, Deadpool at his best is a humorous, witty character who swaps between moments of humor with striking, honest takes on serious topics. He is both comic relief and the character that points out the moral incongruities in the protagonist’s actions. As a protagonist, he is well suited to commentary on many things, because of his nature as an outsider sort of character. At his worst, he’s the signal to the reader that nothing that follows his appearance matters, because his existence is akin to throwing the stakes out the window. At his worst, he’s the character that derails anything resembling tonal consistency, and at his worst, he’s the character to whom all others are sacrificed in order to keep him from coming off as a psychotic madman that ruins everything. At his worst, he’s the character that all others must prostrate themselves before, no matter what he’s done, because to accept that this character is flawed is to call into question the writer’s ability to actually write a nuanced character, and we can’t have that.

You can probably tell already how all of the other mentioned characters have fallen into this trap whenever they become extremely popular, as writers with more interest in being attached to a hot property than writing good stories use them. So it was when Wolverine was the hottest character in comics, so it was when Hal Jordan was the next hot shit, so it now is with Batman.

Of course, the problem with Batman is that Batman is a character whose main flaws have been around so long that they are now parody; everyone jokes about the ‘i’m the goddamn batman’ line, and laughs at the ‘who wins in a fight, x or batman with prep time’ joke, but these hide the fact that the character of Batman himself has become the biggest mary sue in comics today. His entire character has been so flanderized, so utterly lost inside the infinite layers of parody and lack of self awareness, that all joy has been lost from the character.

Let us be honest here: the core idea of Batman is not the problem. There is a reason that there are so many Batman cartoons, and it is in no small part because Batman as a character is an almost universal one. A child suffers a great tragedy and uses that as the moment where he begins his heroic journey towards making things better. This is neither dumb nor uninteresting.

The problem is that writers of batman have, for a very long time, been very uncomfortable with the idea of who Batman is. Batman at his best is a detective, a man of science and reason and restraint, a man who resists his darker urges in comparison to the obsessives that make up his rogue’s gallery. He is a mortal man, a flawed man, but he is always a man, in that he is human and not a god. It is why he is a member of the “trinity” and the Justice League, because he is the mortal element. He is the perspective of the common man compared to the near godlike beings ( Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Martian Manhunter ) and cosmic focused heroes ( Green Lantern, Hawkgirl ) that he is surrounded by. He is the one that can say ‘look, you all mean well, but remember how you look to the normal guy.’

But this Batman is not popular with writers. Indeed, ever since The Dark Knight Returns, the version of Batman that has become the most common is the paranoid, near psychopathic, almost godlike messiah figure who is always right, who is never wrong for taking immoral actions, whose character all others are sacrificed to in order to ensure we all know how great he is. This Batman isn’t a mere man who uses his inherited wealth and sense of right and wrong to try and make the world a better place. This Batman is someone who is the best at everything, who constantly treats friends, allies, and family members as disposable or hindrances, who sees nothing wrong with spending his time planning on how best to kill all his friends and family, and who must constantly be shown to be smarter and better than all around him.

This Batman is a super rich mega genius who has been trained by all the world’s best people, who can never be physically defeated by anyone or mentally outwitted by them. This is Batman, invincible ninja playboy billionaire genius.

It has always been rather egregious on some level, but as time has gone by, successive writers have only deepened the problem, incrementally moving further and further towards the complete mary sue he is today. The fact that Batman needs a giant robot suit, the fact that Batman could put together such a thing somehow despite it requiring genius level knowledge in robotics and electrical and mechanical engineering, speaks to the levels of broken the character is. When movies are made where the concept of Batman vs. Superman is created to justify the existence and need for a giant robot suit so that Batman, a mortal man, can fight godlike beings, you are fundamentally failing to grasp the character and what that character is supposed to be.

Example, from the recent and aforementioned Detective Comics #998:

Ah yes, because you know what Batman needed? A giant robot suit that was put together by the Justice League with all their powers because he wasn’t awesome enough. Also, that ‘weakness’ that’s described? That’s not a weakness, which we the reader find out about it when he literally pushes it to the extreme and he’s completely fine from doing so.

But I can understand how this might come off as just me being mad that Batman has his own Iron Man suit. It’s not. The suit itself is not the issue. It’s what the suit represents that is. Because the whole reason that this exists in this is because Batman can’t stop going to people who trained him, which is basically half the known DC universe. It’s not just that he studied under Wildcat, best fighter alive, and Zatara, best escape artist alive, and Jason Blood, best fear creator alive, and Dr. Stone, one of the greatest inventors in the DC universe. The list goes on. Batman has a staggering amount of former tutors, who apparently imparted upon him near infinite knowledge of all things.

And it’s not just this near omniscient knowledge of everything either. He’s also physically better than everyone. He’s a master martial artist of a dozen styles who also knows every weapon style known to man. Oh, and apparently he’s also one of the best marksman on earth. From this week’s The Batman Who Laughs #3:

Because that’s what Batman needed, more skills!

And make no mistake, all of this makes Batman extremely boring, which is not something Batman should be. A lot of this can be chalked up to writers literally having no idea how to write a challenge for him anymore. At first, the plan was simply to make all of Batman’s villains overwhelmingly overpowered as well. This is why the Joker is somehow also a super ninja genius of everything who can conjure impossible chemicals and defeat the entire legion of doom on his own because he’s just so powerful and smart and crazy! It’s why most of Batman’s villains don’t even really fight Batman any more, it’s usually Batman fighting himself. As we saw in Kings of Fear, the entire series is nothing but Batman in his own head, the Scarecrow didn’t actually do anything.

Speaking of Batman fighting himself, let’s talk about Batman: Metal.

Look, I love me some multi-verse. I love Elseworlds. I think one of the greatest tragedies in comics was the decline of the multiverse concept in comics. But Batman: Metal goes from being about the return of the multiverse to being the latest in a long line of resignations that the only person who can compete with Batman is... Batman himself.

All the villains are various versions of Batman who, you guessed it, killed all the other members of the Justice League. Now, if you were a crafty, or moderately smart writer, you might realize that having a universe where all your nightmares are real means that this is a great way to show how wrong your character is! After all, it’s made of their beliefs in what things are, not what they actually are, which is why Batman’s idea of him becoming Green Lantern involves him using a hard light ring to make darkness and the like.

What this should do, is provide the writer with some ability to show how Batman isn’t a one-man show. That when Batman’s idea of what makes those other heroes strong runs up against the real thing, his ideas lose. But no, Batman wins, because Batman always wins, because heaven forbid Batman be wrong about other people. Apparently, Hal Jordan being the greatest Green Lantern means nothing compared to Batmans complete and utter bastardization of the concept of the ring, just as Wonder Woman being a near immortal godlike warrior who’s trained for centuries means nothing compared to Batman in what he thinks is the helmet of Ares. And it’s the same as Batman also clearly being better than the greatest Flash that ever lived because apparently Batman also has complete knowledge of the speed force now.

But almost all of what I’ve talked about could be reasoned away or excused if the moral center of Batman’s character wasn’t utterly corrupt. Consider this mentality for why Batman has contingencies and plans for every possible outcome, and why he plans for the possibility wherein he’ll need to kill all his supposed friends. The world is a dangerous place, and those people have powers, and you never know what might happen that might cause them to go over the edge. We don’t know what might cause Superman to go rogue and kill everyone. Or what might cause Wonder Woman to destroy the world of man. Or what might cause Aquaman to flood the world in the name of Atlantis! All it could take is one bad day!

Is that possibly true? Sure. But that’s not the mentality of Batman, that’s the mentality of the Joker. Joker is the one who believes that everyone is just one bad day from turning into a psychotic monster, who believes civility and decency are facades that people use to hide the fact that deep inside we’re all animals and monsters who will eat each other given half a chance. He’s the one who believes that people are all naturally bad, that people aren’t really decent, that anyone can be made into a monster and will give up their morality at the first opportunity. That’s the entire concept of his character and why he opposes Batman. It’s also why Batman opposes him.

Because Batman at his core is not meant to be an agent of vengeance. He’s not the Spectre. He’s not the Punisher. Batman is supposed to be someone who believes that people are ultimately good, that people are not all one step away from committing atrocities and war crimes, that people are, by virtue of their humanity, good people at heart. Not everyone is good, but people aren’t all monsters inside, and the reason Batman needs to exist is because someone has to stand up for the fact that there are still good people in the world.

If Batman doesn’t believe that people are good, if Batman believes that everyone is one step away from committing mass murder, then Batman is no different then the Joker. When Batman does things like make spy satellites to gather information on other hero’s weaknesses and bugs the rooms of his supposed family members, he’s not just not being Batman, he’s behaving exactly counter to the very values that Batman should be representing.

If Batman cannot trust his allies on the Justice League to be good people, then how is he any different from Amanda Waller? If Batman cannot trust his ‘family’ to the point where he feels the need to bug their homes and spy on them, why exactly did he train them? If Batman cannot believe that there is any real good in the world, then why exactly is he Batman?

Hopefully I’ve demonstrated that the problem with Batman as a character is more than skin deep. The issue of him being an overpowered superhuman being are problematic. The issue of him being a near psychopathic figure whose mental state reads like an episode of Making a Murderer is problematic. The issue of him being completely unmoored from any sort of heroic morality is problematic.

Taken together, the character represents the worst of mary sue writing. He is a character who routinely commits morally and ethically objectionable actions and suffers no fallout for them; he is a character that all others are constantly made to seem inferior towards; he is a character whose very nature and concept must constantly be revised and changed because the writers cannot bear to let the character whose defining trait is his humanity actually be human.

He is a character whose jokes have become the reality; where the exaggerations are now the baseline. Batman now is little more than a patchwork of skills and gadgets, of psychosis and grimdark man pain. It would be comedic, perhaps, if Frank Millers All Star Batman and Robin, from which the iconic ‘i’m the goddamn batman’ arises, was some kind of outlier. Yet for all the jokes and derision that comic gets, and rightly so, very little distinguishes it from the mainstream depiction of Batman in comics more generally. The flanderization of Batman is complete, and this is why Batman is now the worst character in comics.

#ooc #tw rant #rant tw

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sebeth · 5 years

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Young Justice: “Down The Rabbit Hole” and “Schooled”

Warning, Spoilers Ahead…

The seventh issue of Young Justice “Rabbit Holes” takes place in Gotham City on July 31st.

“My name is Artemis. And this is my life. My life. Waiting. Waiting for something to happen. For something to change. My life is a bus stop.”

Artemis is waiting at a bus stop. Artemis’s mother, the original Huntress, has been released from prison. The wheelchair bound woman exits the bus: “Artemis? Is that you?’

“Your father?”

“I reminded him it was today but…”

“I understand.”

I feel we should pause for an info drop on the mainstream DC universe Crock family.

In the main DC universe, Artemis Crock is the daughter of the Huntress and Sportsmaster.

Sportsmaster’s name is Lawrence Crock. He was a Golden Age character and fought the original Green Lantern (Alan Scott), Wildcat (Ted Grant) and he was a member of the Injustice Society.

I don’t remember if the circumstances of Lawrence’s death are revealed but afterwards the Council, a mysterious criminal organization, took his remains and cloned his body numerous times to use as their enforcers. The Council did the same thing to Paul Kirk, the second Manhunter. I wonder if Gregg Weisman was inspired by the Council storyline – specifically its use of cloning heroes/villains – and applied it to the Light storyline? He clearly has an extensive knowledge of the DC universe. Paul Kirk’s battle with the Council was fairly well-known by Bronze Age DC fans so I could see Weisman being aware of the event. Superboy and Guardian are the exceptions as their creation (or cloning in the Guardian’s case) was straight out of Cadmus/Return of the Superman storyline. But Roy and the attempted cloning of the YJ heroes – yeah, that’s straight out of the Council storyline.

Small spoilers for Sportsmaster-related moments in “The Golden Age” in the next two paragrapghs.

Lawrence has a small part in “The Golden Age” an elseworlds that is mandatory reading for anyone who loves the Golden Age heroes of the DC universe. Lawrence is on a robbing spree – he is attempting to earn enough money to be able to see his daughter again. The girl’s name isn’t mentioned but this storyline was written several years after Artemis’s creation so it could be her.

Sadly, Lawrence will never see his daughter again as he sacrifices his life to save a little girl from being murdered by the main bad guy. I’m intentionally not mentioning said villain’s name because it’s the main bombshell of the series. If you haven’t read it – 1) read it and 2) Don’t go looking for spoilers before you do.

Paula Brooks was the original Huntress of the DC Universe. She was a frequent foe of Wildcat and the Justice Society. Paula’s romance with Sportsmaster might have been one of the earliest villain-villain romances in comics.

Paula had a notable one on one fight with Helena Wayne: Golden Age-Huntress vs Silver/Bronze Age-Huntress!

Post-Crisis, Roy Thomas retconned Paula’s past and had her be the heroic Tigress, a member of the Young All-Stars, before she later turned to a life of crime. Paula idolized Paul Kirk and had him sponsor her admittance into the All-Star Squadron. Paula’s reasons for turning “evil” were never explained – possibly she fell in love with Sportsmaster and fell from grace as a result? It was long rumored/theorized that Paula had a fling with Wildcat (Ted Grant) and a child resulted from that union. A child that he remained unaware of. Wildcat’s long-lost children rumor was later brought into the JSA series – unfortunately, Paula wasn’t the mother of either boy.

Artemis grew up in her parent’s footsteps. She used her real name, “Artemis” as her criminal alias. She joined “Injustice Unlimited”, a group consisting of the children of the Injustice Society, and battled Infinity Inc.

Artemis began a relationship with the latest Icicle. Side-note: Geoff Johns made Icicle a very sympathetic character who came very close to turning into a “hero”.

Artemis would later marry Icicle and give birth to their son.

In another “like mother, like daughter” moment, Artemis would later change her alias to “Tigress” due to another character with the same name becoming more popular than the original. The writers changed Paula from the Huntress to the Tigress due to the creation of Helena Wayne/Bertinelli. Artemis would become Tigress due to the debut of Artemis in the Wonder Woman series.

Artemis and her mother are changed to half-Asian and Asian in the Young Justice universe due to an addition to the family that is not cannon in the main DC universe. But we’ll talk about Cheshire later.

Back to the issue…

We establish the length of Paula’s prison sentence when she states dinner is better “than I’ve had in the last six years.”

Artemis is around 15/16 years old in the first season. Paula’s imprisonment occurred when Artemis was 9/10 years old. We know Cheshire split soon after Paula’s imprisonment and Sportsmaster is running around as an operative for the Light…10 years old is a very young age to essentially raise yourself.

We see Artemis’s bedroom that she clearly shared with Cheshire. It’s pretty bare bones but there are two posters on the wall – an Alice In Wonderland one and another that has a dragon/martial artist combo.

“This is my life. Preparing for a battle that never comes. What I wouldn’t give for a rabbit hole to tumble into.”

Artemis’ ruminations are interrupted by Sportsmaster’s return. Lawrence calls out “Daddy’s home” and then realizes Paula is in the house.

“Oh, yeah…Paula. Forgot you were coming home.”

“Overjoyed to see you too, lover.”

Yep, the bloom is definitely off this romance.

“I meant to visit.”

“Even a postcard would have been nice. Artemis wrote once a week.”

“She did? You’re kiddin’.”

“Stop rolling your eye. It’s all that got me through.”

“Look, the way the game played out. It could have been either of us.”

“But it wasn’t. I took the falls. Both falls. I did the time. But I’m back now. And Artemis is my priority.”

The conversation establishes Paula’s injury and paralysis occurred in their final heist. I wish we had more details – did it happen while battling a hero or the cops? Was the injury caused by a fall, a bullet?

Paula kept quiet about Sportsmaster’s involvement – was it due to love for her husband or the desperate desire for the girls to have one free parent while she was imprisoned?

Paula continues “I lost one daughter while I was gone. I won’t lose the other. I need to set some ground rules, Lawrence.”

“Six years you’re away and now you’re taking over? While you were gone, I raised her, trained her, toughened her up!”

Did Paula participate in the girls training before she was imprisoned? Probably not Artemis but possibly Cheshire? Maybe not with the goal of training future criminals but in general self-defense? Paula didn’t fall off the criminal bandwagon until her paralysis and imprisonment – did she want the girls to follow in her footsteps before that?

“I’m giving up the life. You have to give it up too.”

“Or else what?”

“Or else you’re out of here.”

“Then I guess I’m out but, Baby, you’re kiddin’ yourself if you think you can save Artemis from the life. She’s one of us.”

Lawrence is both right and wrong in that statement. Also, way to fight for your marriage and family, Lawrence!

I said the Crocks’ apartment is pretty bare bones. Lawrence is clearly not putting money into their home. Is Sportsmaster hiding it away to avoid suspicion? The Light would have to pay Sportsmaster some serious money for his time. I’m assuming Lawrence is hiding the majority of the money is an anonymous bank account. Pretty sure if he spent big money on his home and possessions any local cops, federal agents, and heroes would make inquiries on how he obtained it.

Speaking of local heroes…it’s pretty ballsy of Lawrence to have the family located in Gotham City. Batman’s pretty snoopy, “World’s Greatest Detective” etc. Batman isn’t like most heroes – he can and will track down all of their known hideouts and locations. Lawrence has to have a supreme confidence in himself to live in Gotham City. Particularly as he is one of the main operatives for the Light.

Batman has to be aware of the Crocks – he is one of the main sponsors for Artemis’s admission into Young Justice and the Gotham Academy. Yet Bruce doesn’t appear to have any knowledge of Sportsmaster’s connection to the Light.

Artemis, having overheard her parents’ conversation, decides “This is my life. I’m not waiting anymore.”

Artemis throws on her costume and heads out into the night to fight crime. She spends the nights of July 31st to August 2nd stopping a variety of crimes.

The fifth episode of Young Justice, “Schooled”, opens in Metropolis on August 3rd. A bridge suffers a physical defect causing multiple crashes and cars heading over the side.

Bruce, watching from a nearby building, presumably in Metropolis and not Gotham City, hits a switch to reveal the Batman suit.

The location of Metropolis varies from continuity to continuity or the media. Sometimes it’s in Delaware, sometimes it’s across the bay from Gotham City, other times it’s near Smallville – which is located in Kansas.

To sum up:

Gotham City – New Jersey

Young Justice HQ – Happy Harbor, Rhode Island

Metropolis – Wherever the writers want it to be.

I don’t like the “bay” approach as it puts Metropolis too close to New York City in the DC universe. One of my main enjoyments of the DC universe is the heroes are spread out across the United States as opposed to the 95% are located in New York City, 4% percent in Los Angeles, and 1% elsewhere route of Marvel Comics.

The near Kansas approach is ridiculous as I can recall that took place around ocean docks. Kansas – and the Midwest in general – has a notable lack of oceans.

Delaware is the best location for Metropolis. It has ocean access and enough geographical distance between other heroes’ bases of operations. Look, Batman may tell other heroes to “stay out of his city” but there is no way he wouldn’t be interfering in Superman’s business if they were essentially neighbors. Yes, it’s hypocritical, and no, Batman doesn’t care.

Back to Metropolis where Bruce is witnessing the impending destruction from a Wayne Enterprises building – let’s assume he’s in town on business.

Bruce is about to change when he sees Superman head for the bridge. Superman is better equipped to handle the bridge repair. Clark braces the bridge and begins welding repairs with his heat vision.

Superboy leaps onto the bridge and hauls listing cars back onto the bridge. Bruce witnesses the situation from the Wayne Enterprises building. He decides to sit the crisis out as the Supers have it handled.

Superboy is not happy with Superman interfering with his rescue of the bus.

“I had that.”

“I didn’t want to take the chance. As it is, your landing could have destabilized the entire bridge.”

“It didn’t.”

“But it could have. We don’t yet know the limits of your powers.”

“Well, maybe you could, you know, help me figure that out.”

“Batman’s got that covered.”

“Yeah. I know, but…”

Beep-beep.

“Superman. Wait, Arrow. Slow down. What’s attacking? No, I’m definitely available. Coordinates? Acknowledged. On my way. Sorry, Super…boy. Duty calls.”

Beep-beep.

“Already got the alert, Bruce.”

“I know, Clark, but we need to talk.”

The scene is both heartbreaking and frustrating. Conner is so desperate for a connection with Clark. Metropolis is not Conner’s home base. So why was he in Metropolis? Was he visiting the Guardian and company at Cadmus? Or was he strolling the streets hoping to chance upon Superman?

Dick would be the only member of Young Justice to be aware of Superman’s secret identity but I doubt he would tell Conner. Cadmus is completely unaware of Superman’s real name so hoping for a chance encounter would be Conner’s only option for contact.

Conner is quickly switching from heartbreak to anger as indicated by his expressions. Conner’s anger is justified – he hasn’t done anything wrong and surely didn’t ask to be created/made into a weapon. Conner’s situation is similar to an adopted child attempting to make contact with their birth parents.

Clark…it’s time to put on your big boy pants and deal with Conner. I cut you some slack in the immediate aftermath – it was a shocking revelation and violation of genentic material but a man who can halt alien invasions, handle erupting volcanos, and go one-on-one with Darkseid can deal with a confused child.

I’m curious on how the scene would have continued without Green Arrow’s interruption. Clark was hedging (“Batman’s got that covered) but he didn’t immediately flee out of terror like he did in the second episode.

Finally, Bat-dad is watching and he is not happy. You’re in trouble, Superman. Bruce knows all about children conceived without your consent – his experience involved a drugged sexual violation – and he accepted Damian. So, no, Bruce isn’t going to accept any excuses.

I’m going to break this post into two parts as I’ve typed up six pages and we still have over 20 minutes of the episode to go along with a few pages of the issue.

#Young Justice #Artemis #Superboy #Conner Kent #Artemis Crock #Superman #Batman #Huntress #Sportsmaster #Metropolis

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