Broken Frontier

The spotlight falls on Jesse Chambers and Damage, as two of the newest JSA members come to terms with their troubled pasts.

With Jesse "Liberty Belle" Chambers happily married to Rick "Hourman" Tyler, her life has never been happier. After years of feeling she was a disappointment to everyone around her she’s finally got it all. Not so for Grant "Damage" Emerson. Hideously scarred by Zoom during Infinite Crisis, the young hero is about to go completely off the rails when the Reverse-Flash drops by for another taunting visit. Having conquered her own demons, can Jesse help Grant beat his? Or is it far too late for the former Freedom Fighter?

After the hectic, and I have to say somewhat disjointed, pace of the recent JLA/JSA crossover, Justice Society of America #8 follows on from last month’s much stronger issue as a very welcome return to more character-oriented super-heroics. Focusing primarily on Jesse Chambers, the new Liberty Belle, it concentrates on her difficult relationship with her parents over the years as she comes to accept her past and move on. Jesse’s positive story is poignantly counterbalanced by that of Grant Emerson’s as, sadly, Damage has far further to go before he can start looking to the future.

The last couple of issues have been very much a return to form after the disappointing team-up arc. It’s a complete in one issue adventure (although I suspect events with Damage will be followed up on in the months to come) that’s full of enjoyable continuity touches for the longer-term readers that won’t intrude on the enjoyment for newer fans. I loved the nod to the Strazewski/Parobeck Justice Society of America run from 1992, the title that Jesse debuted in, while her strained relations with her mother date back to The Titans in the 90s. For fans of the Damage series there were more overt references to the character’s past and even a footnote! I know not everyone is as enthused by such things, but to me the shared universe ideal is something to savor. Top marks to Geoff J on that front.

Art team Fernando Pasarin and Rodney Ramos accentuate Johns’s deft characterization in fine style, hugely important in an issue that reminds us that this book has extended family at its core. There are some wonderful character moments in the flashbacks to Jesse’s home life with her parents, where the art team really captures the sadness of her childhood, particularly in facial expressions. This is echoed throughout the issue. Just look at Damage’s quiet despair near the issue’s end and tell me you don’t feel for him. Or look at Zoom’s maniacal glee as he goads the heroes. Top-notch visuals from Pasarin that display deceptively subtle storytelling.

Justice Society of America is the comic that feels like the very heart of the DC Universe at the moment. Without a doubt this is the premier team book of the current DCU and when it’s on form, as it is this month, there are few other titles to match it.