Justice League America Annual

ARTISTS

Writers: Dan Jurgens, Dan Mishkin
Penciller: Dave Cockrum
Inker: Jose Marzan, Jr.
Colorist: Gene D'Angelo
Letterer: Clem Robins
Editor: Brian Augustyn
Cover Artists: Dave Cockrum, Dan Jurgens

return to top

CHARACTERS & SETTINGS

heroes: Bloodwynd I, Blue Beetle II, Booster Gold, Bruce Gordon, Fire, Guy Gardner, Ice, Maxima, Starman V, Superman, Wonder Woman
villain: Eclipso

Settings: 20th-century Diablo Azur Nuclear Waste Facility, DCU, USA; 20th-century New York, NY, USA

return to top

ISSUE SUMMARY

Cover Description: Blue Beetle runs from Eclipso as the disembodied heads of, from left to right, Guy Gardner, Superman, Wonder Woman, and Booster Gold watch.

Brief Synopsis: A divided Justice League must handle both Eclipso and the possessed Maxima simultaneously in two different locations.

Booster Gold's role in this story:
Featured (Booster Gold plays a prominent role)

Costume Worn: MARK I power-suit

Issue Notes: The story in this issue ties into the summer-long "Eclipso: The Darkness Within" storyline running throughout the 1992 DC annuals.

return to top

ISSUE ANNOTATIONS

Page 4, panel 1
Booster Gold attends a meeting of the Justice League in the new Justice League Headquarters called by Superman in order to discuss the re-emergence of the villain Eclipso. Others in attendance at the meeting are Bloodwynd, Blue Beetle II, Booster Gold, Fire, Guy Gardner, Ice, Maxima, and Bruce Gordon. This is the first appearance of Gardner since he abandoned the League and was dismissed from the Green Lantern Corps. Gordon is the world's specialist on Eclipso. This is the first meeting between Booster and Gordon. Fire is inexplicably wearing her old costume, replaced with a more modern look in Justice League America #63.

Page 5, panel 1
SPOILER WARNING!: A character that the league believes to be Metamorpho arrives at the Justice League meeting acting oddly enough to bother Bloodwynd. It will turn out that this character is not Metamorpho, but since no character controlled by Eclipso retains any memory of their activities during Eclipso's possession, there is no reason to include the character's true identity for the purpose of these annotations. Reveal

Page 15, panel 1
Wonder Woman arrives during Gordon's explanation of Eclipso's powers. She joins the rest of the Justice League America, including Superman, who arrived earlier. Wonder Woman's arrival causes some tension between the more emotionally unbalanced Leaguers, notably Maxima and Ice, both of whom feel challenged by Wonder Woman for Superman's affection. It is this interaction that allows Eclipso to gain control of Maxima.

Page 21, panel 4
Booster makes a pass at Wonder Woman that is met with more hostility than is probably necessary. In the past, it has been Beetle obsessed with Wonder Woman while Booster tried to restrain him. In this instance, Beetle is otherwise occupied showing off his solar-powered Flash Gun.

Page 23, panel 1
In a panel reminiscent of the animated Super Friends' Trouble Monitor, Booster draws the assembled Justice League's attention to a giant sized video monitor tuned to CNN. CNN (Cable News Network) gained worldwide acceptance during its 24-hours-a-day broadcast of the Persian Gulf War in 1991. In 1996, CNN would be purchased by Time/Warner, the same parent company that has owned DC Comics since 1969.

Page 25, panel 1
The Justice League America arrives at the Diablo Azul Nuclear Waste Facility in order to prevent a disastrous occurrence. The Spanish name of the facility translates to the English "Blue Devil," which is also the name of an unusual DC character with a truly cult following that for years pushed for the character's inclusion in the Justice League.

Page 46, panel 6
For the third time in his career, a mind-controlled Booster Gold attacks a fellow hero: Wonder Woman. This time the controlling culprit is Eclipso, who directly controls Maxima and is indirectly using Maxima's psychic powers to manipulate Booster's actions (thereby pulling off the dreaded double mind-control!).

Page 47, panel 5
POWER DOWN: Freed from Eclipso/Maxima's control, Booster is surprised as Maxima uses her mental control over metal to "melt [his] blaster's surge protectors!" This apparently leads to an overload that causes minor damage to Booster and unknown damage to his left bracelet.

Page 54, panel 4
HIS STORY: Guy Gardner asks Booster for details about the future of Superman. Booster dodges the question. It has yet to be definitively revealed if Booster knows what becomes of Superman, or any other DC Universe hero of the twentieth century or beyond, for that matter.

Page 55, panel 1
Booster returns to the Justice League Headquarters along with the rest of the Justice League America only to find that it has been destroyed along with Blue Beetle's Bug. The Bug pictured is Beetle's original DC Universe Bug, not the redesign shown in Justice League America #63. (Apparently writer Dan Jurgens forgot to tell artist Dave Cockrum about the changes to Beetle's Bug and Fire's costume that happened two months earlier in Dan Jurgens' Justice League America title.)

return to top

ISSUE REVIEW

Boosterrific Review: Thematically, this annual is similar to first in this series: both are an excuse to pit familiar heroes against one another. Both issues have something else in common: they're good. The largest weakness of this issue is the fact that the story ends on a cliffhanger that is resolved in other annuals. However, there is still plenty to enjoy in this tale of the Justice League's battle against Eclipso.

Boosterrific Rating:

• Currently 4.0/5 Stars.

return to top

return to top