Justice League Quarterly

ARTISTS

Writer: Elliot S! Maggin
Penciller: Tim Hamilton
Inker: Trevor Scott
Colorist: John Cebollero
Letterer: Clem Robins
Editor: Brian Augustyn

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CHARACTERS & SETTINGS

heroes: Blue Beetle II, Booster Gold, Fire, Ice, Martian Manhunter
supporting: Maxwell Lord

Setting: 20th-century New York, NY, USA

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ISSUE SUMMARY

Cover Description: The Justice League faces off against the second Conglomerate. Pictured are, from left to right, Flash, Fire, Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, Ice, Maxwell Lord, Frostbite, Deadeye, Scarab, Fiero, and Slipstream. The cover is in homage to Marvel Comics' X-Men #100, also drawn by Dave Cockrum. The story of that book pits the original team of X-Men against their replacements, the All-New, All Different X-Men. Booster Gold stands in the place of the X-Man Angel.

Brief Synopsis: The Justice League conspires to reunite Maxwell Lord with his college sweetheart.

Costume Worn: MARK I power-suit

Story Notes: An editor's box describes this story as occurring prior to the long-running "Breakdowns" storyline beginning in Justice League America #53. Several mentions are made to Claire Montgomery, who was revealed to be Max's ex-wife in that issue.

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ISSUE ANNOTATIONS

Page 45, panel 2
Booster Gold is shown reading a small periodical in the den of the Justice League's New York Embassy. It is unlikely that Booster is an active member of the Justice League at this point. Other Leaguers pictured are Blue Beetle II, Fire, Ice (in a mis-colored costume), Martian Manhunter, and Maxwell Lord.

Page 53, panel 2
On a later day, Booster is again present in the JLI New York Embassy as Fire's interview with reporter Sylvia Duani is broadcast. For a reserve member of the Justice League, Booster is spending a lot of time around the JLI Embassy.

Page 56, panel 6
Booster Gold, Martian Manhunter, Fire, Blue Beetle II, and Ice stand outside the New York restaurant Malone's, where Fire has manipulated events so that Maxwell Lord and his first ex-wife, Sylvia Duani, would cross paths.

For more annotations from this issue which occur at different points in Booster Gold's chronology, click here

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ISSUE REVIEW

Boosterrific Review: The cover of this issue advertises "4 All-New Adventures!" Only two of those stories include Booster Gold, so nothing further will be mentioned about the Thunderbolt story "It's...It's...A Ballroom Blitz! (Or, The Rook's A Crook!)" or the Global Guardians story "The Real Return of... The Global Guardians!", both average stories showcasing some rather minor characters.

Booster Gold joins the Justice League against the new Conglomerate line-up in "Double Trouble!" It should come as no surprise that a story written by Mark Waid would mine Justice League history for story ideas. Waid revives the pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths concept of the Qwardian Crime Syndicate as a means to pit the League against darkly reflected counterparts. This premise is a recurring favorite for fans of all ages, and it doesn't disappoint here.

Less satisfying is "Yesterday's News," a tale of JLI past and the love life of Maxwell Lord. As usual, an Elliot S! Maggin story isn't a slave to continuity and probably would be quite enjoyable if it had been coupled with better illustrations. As printed, the story struggles to achieve mediocrity.

Boosterrific Rating:

• Currently 4.0/5 Stars.

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