Formerly Known as the Justice League
“Dead Man's Hand”
Volume 1, Issue 3, November 2003
Released September 3, 2003
Cover Price: $2.50
Guide Price: $2.50 (as of 2011)
Estimated Issue Sales: 40,371
Writers: J. M. DeMatteis, Keith Giffen
Penciller: Kevin Maguire
Inker: Joe Rubinstein
Colorist: Lee Loughridge
Letterer: Bob Lappan
Assistant Editor: Stephen Wacker
Editor: Dan Raspler
Heroes: Blue Beetle II, Booster Gold, Captain Atom, Elongated Man, Fire, Mary Marvel
Villain: Roulette
Supporting: L-Ron, Maxwell Lord, Sue Dibny
Settings: Queens, NY, USA, 21st-century; Roulette's House, DCU, 21st-century
Cover Description: A disheveled Mary Marvel hoists Captain Atom over her head. (No Booster Gold.)
Brief Synopsis: The Super Buddies are abducted by Roulette.
Booster Gold's role in this story:
Featured (Booster Gold plays a prominent role)
Costume Worn: MARK XII armored power-suit
Issue Notes: This mini-series re-unites the characters of the original Justice League International in the hands of the original writers and artists. It was a critical and sales success, spawning a sequel. Events of the Infinite Crisis mini-series have possibly erased some or all of the events in this issue from history.
Story Notes: The title to this issue's story is a reference to a hand of poker containing two pairs, one of aces and one of eights, traditionally of the suits clubs and spades.
This story has been reprinted in:
Formerly Known as the Justice League (2004)
Page 1, panel 6
Booster Gold appears in the place of Aquaman in a parody of the familiar television "Super Friends" title screen during Maxwell Lord's promotional video for the new Super Buddies hero team. Characters and their original counterparts are from left to right, L-Ron (as Wonderdog), Booster, Fire (as Robin), Blue Beetle II (as Batman), Captain Atom (as Superman), Mary Marvel (as Wonder Woman), Sue Dibny (as Wendy), and Elongated Man (as Marvin).
Page 2, panel 3
In the same advertisement continuing a parody of the "Super Friends" intro, the team of Blue Beetle and Booster Gold are called "a hetero dynamic duo for the new millennium!" The advertisement goes on to call the Super Buddies "Heroes for the Common Man," listing the groups toll-free telephone number as 1-800-SUPERBUDDIES, which is much too long for an American telephone number.
Page 5, panel 4
The newly formed Super Buddies have been abducted by modified versions of the trademark T-Spheres of Mr. Terrific II. Mr. Terrific is an active member of the Justice Society of America, and his artificially intelligent T-Spheres contain technology so advanced that it has been copied by a number of heroes and villains in the DC Universe, including Batman. These T-Spheres have been created for the purpose of abducting the Super Buddies by...
Page 6, panel 1
...Roulette, the manager of an underground gladiatorial contest pitting drugged super powered individuals against one another for profit. Roulette is the granddaughter of the first Mr. Terrific, first appearing in JSA Secret Files #2.
Page 8, panel 2
Trapped in a cell in Roulette's House, Booster and Beetle argue about their recently soured relationship. Beetle's reference to "that guy in armor" is an allusion to Marvel Comics' Iron Man. Despite the recent JLA/Avengers crossover between the Marvel and DC Universes, Booster insists that Iron Man is a comic book character.
Boosterrific Review: At last the Super Buddies face a real threat, and to no one's surprise, the threat comes from within. This series has managed to get better by the issue as the create team returns to form.
Boosterrific Rating: Boosterrific!
Average Fan Rating: (1 vote)
I never cared for Roulette or the House but this does not take away from a fun issue.
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