Justice League 100 Page Super Spectacular

Time for a little gathering of heroes, and a special collection of stories of the Justice League in some of their most pitched battles against some of their greatest villains....


....all for 50 cents back in June of 1973, under a cover by Nick Cardy, was the 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-17!


Here's the special issues contained with this book....

Justice League of America #23

The JLA become "Drones Of The Queen Bee" in Justice League of America #23 (November, 1963) by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky and Bernard Sachs.

This story introduces the Queen Bee, Zazzala of Korll, as she directs her Bee-Men against the members of the JLA (whom she hypnotizes into doing her will, and doubles down with the threat of a doomsday device that will destroy the Earth if they don't do as she says...which is to find an immortality serum in three vials that must be collected and combined to work).  Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman and Flash and Green Lantern and Green Arrow are the 3 teams that retrieve the vials (and defeat threats along the way)....but they find a way to thwart the Queen Bee from getting the serum (and save the Earth, and get free).  The team goes back to their cave headquarters, where they meet Superman, Batman, Aquaman and Atom, and hear of Atom's battle against Dr. Light (which was related in Atom #8 of August-September, 1963)  

All-Star Comics #37

The Justice Society of America (the predecessors of the JLA) first meet their evil counterpart team, "The Injustice Society Of The World" in All-Star Comics #37 (October-November, 1947) by writer Gardner Fox, and artists Irwin Hasin, Joe Kubert, Carmine Infantino, John Belfi and Alex Toth.

Here, as the villains gather, Hawkman is captured by Vandal Savage, Flash caught by the Thinker, Brain Wave apparently kills Green Lantern, Atom tracks the villains down (but is captured by the whole ISW team), Dr. Mid-Nite is taken by Per Degaton....and both teams gather (with the JSA, minus Green Lantern) are on trial by "prosecutor" Wizard, with the Thinker as the judge....at least until the trial starts, where Green Lantern reveals he took Thinker's place, and the JSA capture the ISW, finding them guilty!  

Adventure Comics #65

One of the JSAers not in the above story was Sandman, so he gets a reprint of one of his original stories in this issue, from Adventure Comics #65 (August, 1941) by artist Paul Norris, with "The Sandman At Sea".




Sandman (in his original gas mask costume), stops a scientist from being kidnapped by foreign agents on a yacht...


...with a little help from the U.S. Military and Dian Belmont.

Justice League of America #43

Last, but not least, is the story from Justice League of America #43 (March, 1966) by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky and Bernard Sachs, where the JLA get clubbed by the Royal Flush Gang for the first time with "The Card Crimes Of The Royal Flush Gang".

The Justice League members are vexed by the Royal Flush Gang, with the Jack of Clubs making Hawkman fight with his wife (currently non-member, Hawkgirl), Flash gets vision problems thanks to the King of Clubs, and the Queen of Clubs robs Wonder Woman of half of her powers.  The villains do this with the help of stellaration energy discovered by old JLA foe, Professor Amos Fortune (who appeared earlier in Justice League of America #6 and #14)....and who takes the guise of the Ace of Clubs to take on Superman and Batman.  The League looks to be in trouble, until the Royal Flush Gang is defeated by a Joker in the deck....not THE Joker, but honorary JLAer Snapper Carr, who trains the stellaration energy on himself...and defeats the Gang with it.  How ironic this would be is revealed later on (in Justice League of America #77).

All in all, a great collection of JLA stories (as well as a few more)...

...coming out at a time after the Justice League had many issues of reprints within their own title as well!