The Justice Society of America makes its live action debut. So how does the small screen treat the Golden Age heroes?
As a child in the 1970’s, I became a fan of the Justice Society of America (JSA) when they were revived for a run by DC Comics. Back then, they hailed from an alternate Earth and there would be crossovers between the heroes created in the 1940’s and their modern counterparts in the Justice League of America. There was something about these old fashioned character that I immediately took too and over the years wondered why others didn’t.
That all changed with the new century, as a revived and revised JSA became a top title in comic books. Still, I never imagined I’d see a live action version of these heroes. They came from an era of bright primary colors and spandex costumes. But with the success of comic book writer Geoff Johns episode featuring the Legion of Super-Heroes in season 8 of Smallville, the producers of the show wanted him to come back. His treatment of the JSA was so well received they expanded it from one episode into two, then ran them back to back as a special “movie” event.
Expectations ran high and I was eagerly awaiting the episode… And dreading it.
Absolute Justice: Episode 1
Things begin with resident super hero coordinator Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack) on her cell phone leaving a message for Clark about tracking down the Kandorians (Kryptonian refugees and the main storyline of the season) while walking down a dark street. Something begins interfering with the cell and all the lights in the street flicker before extinguishing. Being an old pro at the whole danger thing, Chloe doesn’t hesitate to run when she spies a man holding a glowing staff on a fire escape watching her. As she runs, a bright light follows her and then corners her in an alley.
The light dims and a scruffy man wearing a star spangled blue shirt is revealed. He introduces himself as Sylvester Pemberton and that he shares something in common with her – they both are trying to put a team together. Still uneasy, Chloe listens to the strange man as he explains that he knows her code name is “Watchtower” and how easy it is with modern technology to find out about people and that she is lucky that it was a friend who found out. Not relaxing, Chloe makes a retort and notices that it is suddenly very cold.
With one hand, Pemberton picks her up like she weighs nothing and deposits her in a dumpster. With the cover down, Chloe tries to watch through the mesh vents but only sees blinding flashes of light and sounds of violent fighting. An icicle rams through the steel side of the dumpster as the chaotic sequence continues and eventually a scream of pain is heard. The battle has ended.
Emerging from the iced over dumpster, the young woman finds a mortally wounded Pemberon on the ground. With his dying words he warns her the people who came for “us” are coming for you next. “Check…” he gasps and expires. “Check what?!” an upset Chloe exclaims.
Cue “Save Me” by Remy Zero and the opening credits for Smallville.
You are probably wondering why I went into so much detail. This two episode event is filled with everything but the kitchen sink and I might have seen one momentarily for that matter. Suffice it to say that watching Absolute Justice precludes doing your favorite hobby or chatting on the side. For an old comic book fan, the references are nirvana. But for new comers they will seem to be an organic part of the story and I really enjoyed how well that was executed.
The rollercoaster ride continues after the credits end and picks up with Chloe and Clark Kent (Tom Welling) talking in the emergency room of the local hospital. As they discuss what happened, a blonde teenage girl shows up in tears trying to find out about Pemberton’s death. In a moment that is very typical of Clark on the series, he tries to comfort the distraught girl. The Daily Planet press badge catches her eye and tears turn to anger as the girl storms away. Meanwhile, Chloe’s hacking skills are used to copy all the data from the deceased man’s cell phone. The last call made was to a Wesley Dodds.
Cut to the apartment of Dodds. It is cluttered with clocks of all types ticking away and Wesley is revealed sleeping in a chair. He is dreaming the battle where his friend was killed and awakes with a weary look on his face. Donning a strange gasmask, trenchcoat, and gun he looks in the mirror when the killer enters his apartment. That is the last time we see The Sandman alive.
We’ve hardly begun and two members of the Golden Age JSA are dead! While there are momentary flashes of humor in Absolute Justice, the tone is very dark. As the story progresses, the themes of loss, regret, and sacrifice become more pronounced along with another theme that I will mention later.
Clark and Chloe separate to make investigations into what is going on with Miss Sullivan being assisted by Oliver Queen aka Green Arrow, an archery based super hero. They find out Pemberton had a long criminal record and the teenage girl is a sophomore named Courtney Whitmore. With Clark’s finding of Dodds’ body two further clues are discovered. One was written by Wesley with his own blood, the letters “JSA.” The other is found in the wounds of the victims – the melting ice has human DNA mixed in it.
We then get a clear look at our killer. For some reason I immediately thought of Dieter on Sprockets, but I digress. This is the typical serial killer going through the photos of his victims scene but well executed due to an interesting choice of lighting and sound calculated to put the viewer on edge. Oh and a major clue is shown at the end of it.
Meanwhile, Clark and Chloe reunite in the archives of The Daily Planet where our intrepid reporter has unearthed more information about the victims. It turns out they were part of a group of people arrested for embezzlement, extortion, and a host of other crimes but refused to testify against each other. As they watch an old film reel (in B&W to evoke the 40’s feel though it looks to be the 70s or early 80s), Clark begins to suspect there is something fishy going on. These weren’t garden variety hoods, they were made up of CEO’s, professors, a heavyweight champion, and a woman who fed the homeless. [That last one is Ma Hunkel, the original Red Tornado in a really obscure nod to the comics.]
Almost all the core members of the Golden Age JSA are named in their civilian identities and there is a palpable feeling of history conveyed through the use of the archaic projector. That feeling of the past hangs over the rest of the story, adding depth to what would be just another super hero team up. It also shows Clark demonstrating more maturity than Chloe as he evaluates what is happening. His statement about the group’s loyalty, “This goes beyond honor” and growing suspicion shows how much the future Superman has progressed this season.
With information from Pemberton’s cell and the archives, Clark goes to the residence of Carter Hall (Michael Shanks), one of the surviving members of the group. It turns out to be a mothballed museum and Hall gives the reporter a very chilly reception. Also present is someone else from the film, Kent Nelson. Present in body, at least, for he is shown to be a randomly muttering wreck talking to his bowling ball bag. Curious, Clark uses his x-ray vision to check the bag out. A strange helmet is inside and to his surprise it turns in the bag to look back at him.
Hall gets rid of Mr. Kent and a discussion with Nelson follows. Shortly after that, Ollie has tracked down the glowing staff from the beginning and finds out that the cheerleader has stolen it. Confronting her on the street doesn’t go well and Ollie is left empty handed and astounded by what just happened. Rejoining Chloe, they find and search the car owned by Sylvester Pemberton, The Star Rocket Racer. Old school comic books at their most charming.
It turns out he knew everything about them and the upcoming generation of heroes. Not a good sign. Back at the museum, Courtney has shown up and is arguing with Carter over avenging their friends’ deaths. When guilt doesn’t work, the girl asks “What would Shayera have done?” That stops him in his tracks.
A terrified Nelson is told by Carter that "We need him.” For a moment, he is lucid and remembers that he had a wife and a family once. That being Dr. Fate took all that away. Still frightened, he pulls the helmet out of the bag and it wraps itself around his head painfully. Energy flows from the glowing helm and Nelson is transformed into Dr. Fate!
The costume is very close to the original comic book one and is surprisingly effective. Hall approaches a wall that opens up to reveal the armor,weapons, and wings of Hawkman. “It has been a long time since I made someone bleed,” states the archeologist.
This costume isn’t quite as effective but does remain faithful to the look of the comic book if a great deal more practical. Some may knock the small wings but they went for practical effects rather than CGI and there is a limit that a man can carry while remaining on his feet! It also hides the wire flying harness nicely.
All of this leads to a series of confrontations. The first is between Clark and Dr. Fate in the hospital room of the father of the killer.
The second is between the now costumed Courtney (calling herself Stargirl) and Icicle. This fight was very kinetic and one of the best in the nine years the show has been on the air.
The final confrontation is between Hawkman and Green Arrow that ends badly for Ollie.
With Clark missing and the JSA being far more capable than they realized, Chloe and Ollie decide they need reinforcements in a great little scene between the two. A phone call is made to Detective John Jones, the depowered Martian Manhunter!
So ends Episode 1 of Absolute Justice. It was fast moving and never relented for a minute. A sense of menace was ever present and the younger heroes seemed to be in over their heads. So now we have the set up, will the story deliver in Part 2?
A few more goodies from this episode:
Ma Hunkel, The Red Tornado was a truly comic comic book character who wore a pot with eyeholes cut out, red longjohns, and a blue blanket for a cape while fighting crime.
Jay Garrick, the Golden Age Flash.
Alan Scott, the Golden Age Green Lantern.
