We finally get the official “origin” story of the JLA. But it’s extremely overwhelming. Thus far, Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky have approached these comics fairly formulaicly: A member sees a threat, radios the others, the team assembles, then breaks off into pairs or singles and takes on elements of the threat, then they all come together at the end for the coup de grace. And then we get a final panel where they’re laughing and congratulating each other. This issue is not different. Aliens invade and turn heroes into sticks, but it ends with a song…
The “birthday” reference is cute—it’s a nod to the fact that 12 issues have gone by so far (9 issues of JLA plus three issues of Brave and the Bold).
I have to confess that DC continuity makes absolutely zero sense to me, since they seem to reboot at least once every five years, but this particular story seems to remain largely intact—even if some of the characters change—in future retellings like JLA Year One and JLA Incarnations.
