Remembering Artist Rich Buckler

Remembering artist Rich Buckler on his birthday (February 6, 1949 - May 19, 2017) with a couple of his covers for Secret Society of Super-Villains (#13 and #14, March and April-May, 1978), where Captain Comet, the hero dedicated to fight the villains, gets thrown off the dimensional path, so instead of following them to Earth-2, ends up on Earth-3, where he fights the villains who looked like heroes, the Crime Syndicate of America, specifically Johnny Quick, Superwoman and Power Ring.

JLA JSA Sixth Multiple Crisis

A last look at the collection of JLA/JSA team ups, and it is a big one!

True, it is only two team-ups of the teams, but each of them carry over more than two issues, and involve more than just the Justice League of America and Justice Society of America.

Here's a look at the special meetings....

Targets On Two Worlds

Justice League of America #195 (October, 1981) by Gerry Conway, George Perez and John Beatty starts with Brainwave recruiting villains (Killer Frost, Signalman, Cheetah and Floronic Man) from Earth-1, and Monocle, Psycho-Pirate, Rag Doll and the Mist gotten by the leader of this new Secret Society of Super-Villains....the Ultra-Humanite (one of the Golden Age Superman's very first villains).

After Brainwave brings the four to his home Earth and the Ultra-Humanite's headquarters, that villain explains his plan....that, if 10 heroes from the JLA and JSA can be sent to limbo, either Earth-1 or Earth-2 will lose all its heroes as the cosmic balance readjusts itself!

Meanwhile, at the JLA Satellite on Earth-1, the JLA (missing only Martian Manhunter for a complete membership) and JSA have an uneventful party, even with Green Arrow there (he had quit recently, but came to see friends...and Black Canary).  Black Canary was the last on the satellite, when a sudden hum....brought her foe, the Mist, who defeats her.  Monocle defeats the Earth-2 Hawkman at home, and Cheetah defeats the Earth-1 Wonder Woman, and the villains all report back to Ultra-Humanite of their success (as the body-switching villains dwells on his real plan....that he knows which heroes will be eliminated...those of Earth-2!).

Lots of JSAers only in this issue, most from the last JLA/JSA team-up, but Superman and Robin came from World's Finest Comics #271, Hourman and Atom came from their solo features in the Whatever Happened To...? back-ups in DC Comics Presents, and Power Girl and Huntress came from Huntress' back-up in Wonder Woman.  Sandman, Spectre, Dr. Mid-Nite, Starman, Wonder Woman of E-2, Wildcat and Star-Spangled Kid did not attend.

Bonus:  the George Perez JLA/JSA pin-up!

Countdown To Crisis

The Ultra-Humanite imprisons the first three heroes and summarizes his plan to start Justice League of America #196 (November, 1981) by Gerry Conway, George Perez and Romeo Tanghal.

Then, the plans continue, with Psycho-Pirate taking Hourman on E-2, Signalman taking Batman on E-1, Rag Doll getting the Flash on Earth-2, Floronic Man besting Atom on Earth-1, Brainwave besting Johnny Thunder and his Thunderbolt on E-2, Killer Frost capturing Firestorm on E-1, and the original Superman confronting his now simian bodied Ultra-Humanite, and losing on E-2.

The villains place the 10 heroes in Ultra-Humanite's special cells, and transport it to limbo......

Crisis In Limbo

With Justice League of America #197 (December, 1981)  by Gerry Conway, George Perez, Keith Pollard and Romeo Tanghal (and cover by George Perez and Mike DeCarlo), the heroes end up in limbo....and the Earth-2 villains rejoice as their reality warps, losing their heroes....and the Earth-1 villains realize they were set up (that the Ultra-Humanite knew what would happen).  Ultra-Humanite sends them back to Earth-1, so his villains can now plunder their heroless world.

Killer Frost, Signalman, Cheetah and Floronic Man find Green Lantern on Earth-1, defeat him, and take the transporter tube to the JLA Satellite, defeating Elongated Man there....and then use the JLA's Transmatter Machine to go to limbo to free all 10 heroes....who then go to Earth-2, and toss the Earth-2 villains all into limbo as well (and, when they return to reality, Earth-2 gets its heroes back).

Flash Jay Garrick (along with Dr. Fate) show up next in Flash #305, the Golden Age Superman is next in DC Comics Presents Annual #1, the Earth-2 Hawkman is next in Wonder Woman #291, and Hourman and Johnny Thunder show up next in the JLA/JSA team-up after the next one, with the Earth-2 villains all showing up next to accidentally help form Infinity, Inc.

Crisis Times Three

The JSA (Dr. Fate, Green Lantern, Starman, Power Girl and Huntress) is coming to the JLA Satellite in Justice League of America #207 (October, 1982) by Gerry Conway, Roy Thomas, Don Heck and Romeo Tanghal (with cover by George Perez), except they don't quite make it, with Superman, Aquaman, Hawkman, Zatanna and Firestorm meeting the Crime Syndicate of America!

The JSA found themselves in the limbo prison that the CSA was in, while Power Ring, Johnny Quick, Ultraman, Owlman and Superwoman fight the JLA, and leave the JLA Satellite.  The JSA break free from their extradimensional prison, but end up on an Earth-Prime destroyed by nuclear war!  The JLA use their Transmatter Machine to go to Earth-2, to find the JSA HQ unused since January of 1942....and Earth-2 now ruled by Per Degaton.  So, they go back in time to the JSA's HQ in January of 1942....and meet...the All-Star Squadron?

Head down to the All-Star Squadron issue for a little back story.....  

The 'Mystery Men' Of October

All-Star Squadron #14 (October, 1982) by Roy Thomas, Gerry Conway, Adrian Gonzales and Jerry Ordway (cover by Joe Kubert), starts with Per Degaton ordering the members of the World War II hero group, the All-Star Squadron to kill each other....but, this was just another dream of Per Degaton's....which was enough to revive his memories of his previous time travels, and start trouble again.

This time, he ends up in limbo and finds the Crime Syndicate of America (from Earth-3), frees them, has them take Cuban nuclear missiles from Earth-Prime's 1962 Cuba (during the Cuban crisis), then sends them to replace the JSA during their transmission from Earth-2 in 1982.

Meanwhile, All-Star Squadron members Johnny Quick, Liberty Belle, Commander Steel, Robotman and Firebrand fight Nuclear (an Earth-2 Wonder Woman foe) in front of the JSA Brownstone, but he escapes.  The heroes go inside to find...the five JLAers!

The Bomb-Blast Heard 'Round The World

The JLA and All-Star Squadron have a quick fight to start Justice League of America #208 (November, 1982) by Gerry Conway, Roy Thomas, Don Heck and Sal Trapani (cover by George Perez).  The teams realize the are both heroes, the JLA catches the All-Stars up, and both teams head to meet FDR at the White House....where Per Degaton had delivered a VCR and TV....where he recorded his plan, that he wants total world control or he will use his atomic bombs (taken from 1962 Cuba) to destroy the world (Hitler and Churchill also got a tape and TV).  Meanwhile, on Earth-Prime, the JSA fight mutated men, and find out that Kennedy and Khrushchev had World War III, because of the implausible story super humans had taken Cuba's hidden nuclear missiles (Earth-Prime had no super heroes in the 1960s).  The JLA and All-Stars watch Degaton launch one missile as proof (with the JSAers showing up right before the blast)...and Degaton feels that at least the Allies will surrender to him to save the world!

Master Of Worlds And Time

The JSAers explain they followed Per Degaton's trail back to January, 1942 in All-Star Squadron #15 (November, 1982) by Roy Thomas, Gerry Conway, Adrian Gonzales and Jerry Ordway (with Joe Kubert cover).  The heroes head to the White House, and Per Degaton again broadcasts, telling President Roosevelt and the world's leaders, of his orbital stations that will launch the nuclear missiles.  The heroes split into teams, with Superman, Dr. Fate and Robotman facing Ultraman at a satellite, finding three missile sites of Degaton; Aquaman, Starman and Liberty Belle facing Superwoman on a Pacific Island launch pad; Hawkman, Huntress and the All-Stars Johnny Quick face Power Ring in the Midwestern United States...then Degaton boasting the heroes will not find the last site as we head into.....

Let Old Acquaintances Be Forgot...

The last of the team-up, with Justice League of America #209 (December, 1982) by Gerry Conway, Roy Thomas and Don Heck (with cover by George Perez), with the first three teams returning to brief FDR.  Then, Firestorm, Power Girl and Commander Steel are arriving in Geneva, Switzerland, to fight the CSA's Johnny Quick, stopping his missile.  The heroes, successful, go to find Per Degaton and stop him (hidden under the future site of the Pentagon), while Zatanna, Green Lantern and Firebrand travel to Earth-Prime in 1962, stopping the Crime Syndicate from even taking the Cuban missiles, and resetting time....resulting in everyone going back to where this all started, and the 5 JSAers coming over from Earth-2 to meet most of the JLA in their satellite, with Per Degaton going back to washing test tubes in Prof. Zee's time lab again (as he did every time that time reset....).

The JSA would show up next in the first issue of Infinity, Inc.....as Huntress continued her back-ups in Wonder Woman.

Big team-ups here for the last of the volumes that DC put out of the Crisis On Multiple Earths (Volume 6), with changes in the world started on one Earth, and major history changes involving heroes and villains from four worlds show how much bigger the Crisis would become, all from the time the first Flashes met, to the first JLA/JSA team-up, and even Legion's future and the past...and so much more.

Still, there are a few JLA/JSA stories that didn't get collected, and more than a few solo meetings of multiple Flashes, multiple Green Lanterns, multiple Supermen and more....and check back as the tale of the last JLA/JSA team ups will be told!

The Opposite of the JLA: Crime Syndicate of America

Back in the early days of comics, there weren't a lot of powerful villain groups around, certainly not any that could take on the combined might of the Justice League of America and the Justice Society of America....that is, until the introduction of the Crime Syndicate of America!

Bring On The Bad Guys

The Justice League were set on Earth-1, the Justice Society on Earth-2...so, the bad guys must come from Earth-3. a world where Christopher Columbus came from America to find Europe, England got its freedom from the USA in the Revolutionary War, actor Abraham Lincoln shot President John Wilkes Booth....all ideas introduced to the readers in Justice League of America #29 and #30 (August and September, 1964, in the stories "Crisis On Earth-Three" and "The Most Dangerous Earth of All!" both by writer Gardner Fox and artist Mike Sekowsky).

These issues also introduced us readers to the Crime Syndicate of America, evil versions of the most popular heroes of the two Earths introduced in previous Crises...

Johnny Quick, a speedster who seemed to have powers via his helmet; Superwoman, a renegade amazon with strength, speed and a magic lasso she could control; Ultraman, the mightiest villain of all, who gained a new power every time he was exposed to Kryptonite, Power Ring, possessor of a mystical ring with nearly limitless power that he got from a mad Buddhist monk called Volthoom; and Owlman, a schemer and plotter, with a plan for everything and a mind so powerful, he could dominate others without their knowledge.

The team was defeated by the combined forces of the JLA and the JSA, and imprisoned between dimensions...and mostly forgotten....

Bring Back the Bad Guys

With the Secret Society of Super-Villains #13 and #14 (March and April-May, 1978, by Gerry Conway and Mike Vosburg), three of the members of the team (Johnny Quick, Superwoman and Power Ring) were able to escape their prison.

The Crime Syndicate members ended up facing Captain Comet (who was pursuing the SSOSV, who were crossing between Earths at the time), and the Captain ended up on Earth-3, working to defeat the team, and in the second issue of the series, meeting the Lois Lane of Earth-3, who was actually happy to meet a man with power who was fighting the villains, and seemed to like the idea!

Taking A Super Detour

With DC Comics Presents Annual #1 (1982, by Marv Wolfman and Rich Buckler), Ultraman got a chance to shine as he was freed by the Luthors of Earth-1 and Earth-2, and the trio worked together against the Supermen of Earth-1 and Earth-2.

The two Supermen needed help, and they got it from scientist Alexander Luthor, who against his will decided to use his science to become Earth-3's first super-hero!

Along the way, he also met that world's Lois Lane (as Lois will usually end up with the Earth's hero), and the two of them quickly fell in love...

Reunited

The entire Crime Syndicate of America was back together again for the 20th Anniversary of JLA-JSA team ups, that spanned Justice League of America #207-#209 (by Gerry Conway and Don Heck) and All-Star Squadron #14 and #15 (by Roy Thomas and Adrian Gonzales) in October to December, 1982, as the team was freed by time-travelling Per Degaton in an attempt to end the JSA once and for all, and this five issue mega-epic even involved Earth-Prime (the world where we readers all lived in), with John F. Kennedy, and the nuclear armageddon of the Cuban Missile Crisis (though everything ended up okay....).

The team was given a name check in Justice League of America #232 in November, 1984 (dealing with the Commander, and summarizing the multiple Earths with the Monitor and Lyla), and leading into....

Crisis On Infinite Earths

With Crisis On Infinite Earths #1 (April, 1985, by Marv Wolfman and George Perez), the team was seen for what seemed to be the last time, as Luthor himself freed the team to try to save Earth-3 from the approaching anti-matter walls, but the villains weren't able to (leaving Alexander Luthor and Lois Lane Luthor to launch their son, Alexander Luthor, Jr.) to another Earth, hoping that there, he would find love and a chance at life (paralleling Superman's origin from Action Comics #1, and starting a chain of events that would touch the life of everyone in the DC Universe as worlds would live and worlds would die...).

...and Beyond

The Crime Syndicate of America came back, altered a little by the changes in the DC Universe (with everything being shrunk down to one Earth).  The team got a little name check (and their status in limbo confirmed) with Animal Man #23 and #24 in 1990, when Animal Man was looking for his creator (really just current writer Grant Morrison); the original team was revealed to be Qwardian as of Justice League Quarterly #8 (Autumn, 1992, by Mark Waid and Rod Whigham), and new members that looked like other JLAers were introduced as a new Congolmerate...

...and a whole new, alternate Earth (the new Earth-2) was introduced in JLA: Earth-2 (2000, by Grant Morrison and Frank Quietly), that was a little closer to the original team, as the Crime Syndicate of Amerika, with Ultraman (Clark Kent), Owlman (Thomas Wayne, Jr.), Superwoman (Lois Lane), Johnny Quick and Power Ring...but also plotted against each other quite a bit, and used an enslaved Brainiac to help them out.

That team returned for Adventures of Superman #603-#605 (June through August 2002, by Joe Casey and Carlos Meglia, in the Mirror, Mirror 3-parter, echoing Star Trek's Enterprise evil grouping), revealing quite a dysfunctional trio (as Ultraman and Superwoman were married, yet Superwoman and Owlman were having an affair), and all five members returned with JLA Secret Files 2004 and JLA #108-114 (in January to July 2005, though, like in the JLA, the identities of Power Ring and Johnny Quick changed in an epic by Kurt Busiek and Ron Garney).

Change is Constant

With the newest changes to the DCU, making it a New 52 Universe, the Crime Syndicate returned as well, with Justice League of America #23 (October, 2013, by Geoff Johns and Ivan Reis), and the team added a few members beyond Ultraman, Superwoman, Power Ring, Johnny Quick and Owlman, evil version of the Atom (Atomica), Firestorm (Deathstorm) and the Aquaman (Sea King).  

These villains were the focus of the Forever Evil seven issue mini-series of November, 2013 to July, 2014 and its spin-offs...

...proving that evil never quite goes away....

...yet these weren't quite the original team.

The originals weren't quite gone though....

But It All Stays the Same

The original Crime Syndicate returns with Convergence: Crime Syndicate #1 and #2 (this week and on 5/27/15), with the original team (more or less) facing off against the JLA-type heroes of DC One Million in stories by Brian Buccellato and Phil Winslade.

So, evil keeps coming back like a bad penny!