Justice League Europe #36

Break Downs: Postscript (Part 16 of 15)

That is exactly what it says on the title page.  But after reading this, I wonder that they call it a post-script.  Because EVERYONE QUITS.  Max and Oberon are the only ones left at the end of this issue.  

I did like Despero coming back in L-Ron's old robot body.  Of course his mind had to go somewhere…like Beetle says.  And no one (left) in the League can take him down.  I am a little bit skeptical that a shotgun blast could take out the alien metals, but that Fire could not.  But that did make for a better story, and reasons for the last of the group to quit.  

The story is supposed to be continued in a Justice League Spectacular.  I wonder if I should find that in the Comic Book Vault before reading Justice League America #61.  I probably won't, as JLA 61 is the last thing I have pulled out right now.  I can read it, then visit the "vault" and pull out some of the JL Quarterlys that have been referenced, and this "Super Spectacular" issue.  One thing leads to another…   

Justice League Europe #35

Break Downs Part 14

"Presenting: THE ALL NEW EXTREMISTS!"

This is the last JLE issue by this create team.  There is one more JLA after this, then both books have new creative teams.  And I think they are different writers for both books.  

This really felt like a conclusion, and I guess it was, for JLE.  The New Extremists (controlled by Dreamslayer) attack the JLA.  The JLA doesn't like to fight against their friends (or their friends' bodies), but they do the best they can without actually trying to kill or hurt them.  At the same time, the Silver Sorceress lies dying on a KooeyKooeyKooey beach.  Dreamslayer has mortally injured her, and has slated half the inhabitants of the island.  He doesn't need them anymore, he has the JLA.  

Silver Sorceress apparently has the power for one last spell.  She conjures the old Extremists to go attack Dreamslayer.  She convinces Dreamslayer to leave Max's body, and draws him into her mind, where she can defeat him just prior to her death.  Once Dreamslayer is dead, all the JLA is restored, including Max Lord (do they wonder why they are dressed in KooeyKooeyKooey-ian native garb?).

There is a touching funeral for the Sorceress on the island.  The natives want to honor her for saving them (or at least half of them).  Max is real eased from the hospital in New York (not quite sure how he got there), and dwells upon what he did while possessed by Dreamslayer.  

What will happen to the Justice League now?  The votes are being counted, and we should learn the new line up soon.  I hope Booster and Beetle are both back.  I <3 Beetle and Booster!

Justice League Europe #33

Break Downs, Part 10

This issue feels fat.  It doesn't say it is an extra long issue, but it feels pretty big.  On the cover, Lobo is fighting Despero.  Blue Beetle, Flash, Fire and J'onn are all looking on.  If J'onn's weakness is Fire, how can he deal with Fire?  I never thought of that before.  Hmmmm.

Despero is ripping up Times Square, yelling for the Justice League to come out.  In fact, he is ripping apart DC Comics.  How meta.  Guy is sent ahead to try to contain Despero while the other fly in on the Beetle.  Despero is getting pretty good at taking them out.  Guy is just coming to from a big punch when Lobo shows up.  It might be a fight, but then Lobo says he has come for Despero.  Then we see the whole JLA flying away from Times Square, with J'onn calling someone a fool.  

Next page, Sonic the Hedgehog.  That explains the "thickness" of the comic.  A 16-page Sonic the Hedgehog comic in the middle of JLA.  That is longer than a lot of JLA stories now!  

It turns out that it was Major Disaster that J'onn was calling a fool.  Apparently, his powers are not that much under control.  He destroyed Times Square instead of making a diversion.  But L'Ron thinks he can rebuild the master control unit that will work Despero's thought control collar.  He gets Kilowog to help him.  Booster sees the news, and decides he needs to help the Justice League.  And finally, something is going on with Max on KooeyKooeyKooey.  

Justice League Europe #32

Break Downs, Part 8

So, the whole Justice League is now at the Justice League cave.  Those two little kids are running around again, but now I suspect they are Rocket Red's kids.  In the last issue, he said he had kids.  And Kurt Heimlich was talking about how Rocket's wife and kids were welcome at the JLE headquarters, so Ralph would be, too, as the spouse of Sue.  

Flashback to packing up the JLE headquarters.  Camus tells Cath Cobert that he will try to get Interpol to sponsor the JLE, but it will take time.  Is there a spark of something between these two?  Maybe.  They are throwing longing looks at each other.  

Sue is purging the computer systems, so sensitive information doesn't fall into the wrong hands.  Sue tries to rally the troops to run under their own command, using their own resources, from where else but the cave?  (Power Girl is being a b***h during this, griping about soda pop.  I like the most recent Power Girl better. And she is still a little snotty to J'onn at the cave.  Get over it, PG! 

So Beetle (looking rather more portly than the last issue -- he is gaining some weight) and Ralph go exploring, mainly looking for the Doom Patrol, who might or might not be sharing the cave.  Apparently there is someone called "The Scarlet Harlot" in the DP at this point.  Flash hears this and decides to join the boys in looking.  They end up in a very weird sort of hallucinatory booby trap, talking to a bureau head (literally, a bureau for a head) and seeing giant noses.  Yes, this must be that weird Grant Morrison Doom Patrol.  Flash vibrates them out, and they eventually find the head of the Doom Patrol, but he yells at them, so they leave and are going to put it in J'onn's hands.

Other things that happen: 

Manga Khan hires Lobo to retrieve Despero.  That can't be good.  

Camus is investigating the disappearance of the Extremists.

Max wakes up while Major Disaster is standing guard. 

Now go read the Justice League America #57 entry!

Justice League Europe #31

Break Downs, Part 6

In the first three pages of this issue, it appears as though Captain Atom is attacking some random woman.  I am not sure who that is.  The rest of the JLE is mourning his death, but is he dead?  Again, I am confused.  The JLE is called out by the JLA to go help Ice and Fire (apparently there is yet another miniseries going on called "War of the Gods").  Ice is trying to protect her "people" from Loki,Thor and maybe some other Norse gods.  There is lots of fighting, and eventually all of the heroes are turned to wood!  They make lovely statues.  Rex (Metamorpho) manages to break free, then helps the others escape their wooden prisons, and then it is suddenly back to normal.  Ice declares that the "ice people" are now safe, and that is what counts.  

The JLE goes back to headquarters and is starting to settle down and discuss the weirdness going on, when…

The UN revokes the charter, and JLE doesn't exist anymore.  

Oh, and by the way, Despero has escaped from his confinement after being sold by Khan to some other aliens.  They had Despero destroying a planet, but then they were destroyed, so Despero got loose.  Guess where he is going now.  Oh, I don't have to guess, because I already read Part 7!

Justice League Europe #29

Yes, that is JLE, not JLI.  I have managed to pull the Break Downs issues from the Comic Book Storage Vault so that I can get the whole story.  I would have started from the first issue of JLE, except it is in a different box than JLI and I didn't want Mark to get worried about TWO boxes open at the same time.  (Just kidding, Mark, really!)  

So, go back and review the first issue of Break Down (Justice League #53).  Now, here is what happens in Break Downs #2.

I find out that Camus is actually an Interpol investigator. That makes more sense than a reporter.  He finds out the gun/bullet that Max was shot with came from Bialya and he is going there.  Captain Atom wants to go take out the Queen Bee right away, but Cath stops him.  (I don't know who Cath is, other than maybe the liason in Europe?)  They all have to go to New York (via teleport, I assume) to meet the new UN liason.

Kurt Heimlich is meeting the assembled JLA in NY and wants to interview all of them.  He gets very sensitive when Captain Atom brings up fascism.  Ah, this must be based on Kurt Waldheim!  I knew he seemed familiar.  And he fires Captain Atom.  He proceeds to insult Power Girl, Flash, Rocket Red, Metamorpho and ... the Silver Sorceress? And to practically make a pass at the Crimson Fox.  He makes Blue Jay (huh?) the leader of the group.  He lets Catherine Cobert stay on as liason and administrator.  I think Ralph is fired.  

So, after Captain Atom is fired, he feels he can go off to Bialya and do something.  The others are talking about what to do, when Kurt says he'll take care of it and makes a mysterious call, basically saying he really doesn't care what happens to Captain Atom.  Flash to Bialya.  We see the Jack O'Lantern talking to someone (I know it is Sumaan, since I have read ahead) about how they set up the evidence of who shot Max (that would have been helpful to know in the issues I have already read), and why didn't the JLI come?  And, in fact, Kurt had called them to warn them about Atom.  They agree (as do the JLI members) that there is something weird about Kurt. 

Ralph was fired, but Kurt wants Sue to stay.  That answers another question I had in a previous post.  And Ralph can stay at the Embassy, but only as adjunct personnel.  Family of Sue and all.  Power Girl's cat is shown not to like Kurt.  But is Power Girl's cat not a cat?  It seems to have a camera in its eye.  And what is Metawave?  Argh.  I need to read 1-28 apparently. 

Captain Atom, meanwhile, has flown into Bialya and been captured by the Global Guardians (who are being mind controlled by Queen Bee).  

Next, part 4 of Break Downs.