JSA/Hawkman Black Reign + JSA #59-66 Review

 [JSA : Black Reign]

• JSA #56 - Black Reign, Part I : "Men Became Gods Overnight" = THIS JUST GOT REAL! Loved this first chapter even though most of it was Black Adam giving expo on the members of his task force and stuff we already knew. The focus on Al and the "true" justice of murder and vengeance is fascinating, and brings forth a significant amount of thought and discussion to the entire "do superheroes kill" debate. It's going to be argued to death for the end of time, and Johns has already spent a huge amount of his run dealing with that theme, but man does it bring some good stories! Let's see how the JSA (and especially my boy Carter) respond to the liberation of Kahndaq.
• Hawkman #23 - Black Reign, Part II : "No Rest In St. Roch" = The JSA takes St. Roch! Power Girl hinting, Pieter giving out doctor's notes, Rick getting over his genetics, and Carter severely maiming a D-List villain; what's not to enjoy! I loved Jay's expression as he noticed Courtney and Billy, while Ted recounting the glory days is always hilarious. I wonder what Nabu said to Hector? You can definitely tell this is moving at a breakneck pace, and Carter taking over is great but also pretty alarming. Onto the next one!
• JSA #57 - Black Reign, Part III : "The Liberators" = From bad to worse! Civil war in the JSA! The handling of the no kill stuff is actually really interesting, and the entire scene inside the meeting room before they invade Kahndaq was fantastic. You can tell everyone cares about each other, and they hold their code to the highest standard. Who or what is plaguing Al's mind? What is Brainwave Jr's true purpose? What is Carter's job for Pieter? The dichotomy they're creating between Adam's faction and the JSA is interesting, and the lines drawn with conflicting perspectives brings some compelling pathos. The Nabu sequence was great as well, with Nabu, Carter, and Adam all relics of a bygone era; each with possibly antiquated moralities in relation to today's world.
• Hawkman #24 - Black Reign, Part IV : "The Invaders" = YOOOOOOO! Rex Tyler is freaking back! This was a great chapter, and now that we're past the halfway point, the endgame's design starts to come together. Is the voice in Al's head Ray Palmer? After the T-Sphere scene I'm definitely starting to think it's him. Nabu hijacks Hector, Courtney's staff gets sliced, Al stomps on everyone, and Billy gets smacked to oblivion. What is the secret within Carter's mind? Is it just the fallout from the fight with Headhunter that has him messed up? The final gambit Rick makes is crazy: time runs out!
• JSA #58 - Black Reign, Part V : "Judgement Comes From Inner Voices" = Holy mess! The Venusian Worm is back! Easily the best reveal of this storyline so far. This issue was a standout, WTF comics all day - every day! Love that Hector uses the Fate pantheon against Nabu, and the struggle between Jay and Carter was compelling as mess. What sets apart the JSA from other super-teams is that they are veterans of the war to end all wars, they've seen combat and the horrors, which is why Jay and Carter's argument maintains so much weight. The deaths of Nemesis and Eclipso caught me off guard; god's wrath plays the long game and Alex was stupid to think he could truly master the Black Diamond. The Billy/Adam sequence was fantastic as expected, and I love the taunting Adam does to cement his purpose and place in this world. I'm happy I got the Ray Palmer reveal but Mister Mind coming back was something I had no way of expecting. Is that Brainwave's true purpose: to be used as a vessel for Mister Mind? Did Mister Mind cure him of his troubles like Adam mentioned in the earlier chapters? 
• Hawkman #25 - Black Reign, Part VI : "Sunrise in Kahndaq" = What a crossover! Very interesting how everything ended up going down, I could definitely feel this was analogous to the then-current wars in the middle east. Sometimes America (and in this case the JSA) can't and shouldn't be the world police, and sometimes westerners have no business trying to force their vision of prosperity onto a culture that they have no understanding of. So the JSA does the right thing: there's been too much bloodshed, it's time to pull out. When an unstoppable force meets an immovable object, the only outcome is for one of them to surrender. I do think it's the right move for Carter to leave the Society, and I hope he gets his stuff together. Very sad to come to the end of Johns' time on this title, though I can confidently say this goes up there as one of the best explorations of the character I've ever encountered.

[JSA : Lost]

• JSA #59 - "Time & Time & Time Again!" = Well dang! This was a wonderful issue, and I am really hoping it isn't a one off on Degaton's character. The non linear storytelling was a lot of fun to piece together, and the character interactions were super interesting. Sean Phillips art is great as usual, and the new dynamic post Black Reign is something I'm very eager to see play out in the following issues. How will Jay Garrick die? What will happen to Rick? Was it Daniel Hall who talked to Degaton through the mirror?
• JSA #60 - Redemption Lost, Part I : "Anatomy Of A Murder" = Terrific spotlight! Having Mandrake do the pencils for the flashback sequence was awesome, and I love the recontextualization of Spirit King/Sloane/Spectre dynamic that sets up this arc. Terrific and Mid-nite having back and forth is exactly what I want to see from this series. The debate is intriguing as well; Johns tackling some of these themes is so refreshing considering how bland his work throughout the 2010's is. The continuation of the Rex Tyler/Hourman stuff is great as well, and the pathos associated with this generational legacy brings you into the headspace of Rex, desperate and broken, distracting himself from his missing son with a d-list clean-up overload.
• JSA #61 - Redemption Lost, Part II : "Revenants" = Loving this! Kramer is killing it with his pencils, but Mandrake's renditions of the JLA/JSA crossover with the death of Terry Sloane had to be the highlight of the issue for me. The angle Johns has tackled with regards to the Spectre and Hal is very dynamic. No part of this arc has been dull so far, and it's break-neck action paired with quiet character moments are making this arc stand out as one of the best Johns has done for JSA. The real question is how Terrific can still be an atheist when God and the Devil have made their presences known through battles against superheroes over and over again. Denial is a heck of a drug?
• JSA #62 - Redemption Lost, Part III : "Vengeance & Judgement" = Johns has once again unveiled his grand design! This whole thing was merely a prelude setting things up for GL Rebirth!. The various pathos presented between the members of the JSA were so fun to witness: Jay is especially one character who's had some great moments throughout this entire run (Injustice Be Done, Black Reign), and the collusion with Spirit King brought forth some tragic growth for the golden age speedster. Mid-Nite and Terrific's dynamics are a delight to read as always, and I'm glad Mike got his full circle after this religion plot got set up in his All-Stars issue. Now that I think about it, this arc is also paving the way for Day of Vengeance too!

[JSA : Smoke & Mirrors]

• JSA #63 - Waking The Sandman, Part I : "Insomnia" = Neil Gaiman's Oneiromancer meets Gardner Fox's All-Stars! The weaving of the Sandman lore into the DC Universe is pretty god damn mind blowing. I simply can't believe we're getting this many concrete references. Granted, we did see Daniel in the first issue of the run, but this is still crazy! Jerry Ordway's art is a joy to look at, and the fact that he's still this good makes me so happy. Love the use of Cave Carson and the mighty mole squad, as well as the Fate pantheon putting Nabu in time-out. Development of Fury is super interesting, and finally resolving the Sand loose end is dope (I'm assuming that's him in the Kirby costume?).
• JSA #64 - Waking The Sandman, Part II : "Night Terrors" = Excellent! Return of Brute & Glob, references to the Endless, wholesome Fates, Power Girl/Wildcat banter, and Rex finally reveals himself to his wife! The icing on the cake is Ordway's art, who truly knocks it out of the park with every freaking page. Bringing back the Hawkgirl angle for Sand is a little out there in my opinion, but it works in the context of the story since she acts as his "lightning rod". Johns folding in the events of Sandman is awesome, and it really hurts to think that we might not have this wholesomeness for very long... for Day of Vengeance is waiting at the door! A wonderful obscure reference I caught was Cave Carson's mention of the 90's Resurrection Man series where Immortal Man and Cave team up with Mitch and Vandal to beat the cosmic Warp-Child. Love you for that Johns!
• JSA #65 - Out of Time, Part I : "Dead On Arrival" = Just when I thought I was going to be bummed out for good, Johns throws a curve ball to keep me guessing! Rick jumping in to take his father's place has me assuming that we'll see a redux of the Extant fight from Zero Hour, but how does Per Degaton factor into this? As of the time I'm writing this, Johns is using Degaton as the main villain of his new JSA series; will this build-up be put on hold and only followed up in the present JSA? The Rex reunion sequence was heart-breaking, but I'm glad that his internal turmoil was resolved and he can go out in peace like a champ. Hourman Android coming back was dope as well, and I hope to see more of him before this run ends. 
• JSA #66 - Out of Time, Part II : "Time To Die!" = Hype, Hype, Hype! Definitely did not expect Rex to survive this issue, and him getting a happy ending is a bright light in this endless cloud of grimdark fog leading up to Infinite Crisis. Hourman Android's sacrifice was epic, the recreations of the sequence from Zero Hour was on point, and the fact that Rex will spend his time rebuilding the Android makes everything come full circle. Don Kramer's art was spectacular, possibly even better than his work during Black Reign. The final sequence with Al and Rip Hunter has me super excited for the penultimate arc before Countdown (and I have hope that the Degaton stuff will be resolved too!).