The DC Animated Universe united the world’s finest superheroes in the Justice League animated series: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, Martian Manhunter, and the Flash. Like the JLA of the comic books, the ever-evolving ranks of the animated Justice League would expand in the successor series Justice League Unlimited, which featured the founding members alongside almost every superhero in the DCAU — among them Green Arrow, Black Canary, the Question, Huntress, Supergirl — and many, many more.
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“Since there are so many of us, we have a chance to do more than just put out fires, both literal and figurative. We can be proactive. We can do some real good in the world,” says Superman to an assemblage of superheroes aboard the JLA Watchtower in the “Initiation” series premiere of Justice League Unlimited. “But we’re going to have to be organized.”
It was decided that J’onn J’onnz would coordinate and dispatch the newly-expanded Justice League: everyone from Aquaman to Hawk and Dove, Vixen, Mr. Terrific, Doctor Fate, Booster Gold, and Captain Atom. After 39 episodes over three seasons, the series ended with heroes and villains alike across the globe uniting to save the world from the Michael Ironside-voiced Darkseid and the invading forces of Apokolips.
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Two decades later, Justice League Unlimited begins much the same way. 52 days after the end of Absolute Power — where Oliver Queen suggested they reform the Justice League to be bigger and more coordinated and proactive — DC All In Special #1 revealed the new Watchtower, where the Justice League Unlimited would base the biggest roster ever. And where the Justice League Unlimited animated series ended with a fight to defeat Darkseid, the Justice League Unlimited comic book began with Darkseid’s end.
The new series, from the Batman/Superman: World’s Finest and Absolute Power creative team of writer Mark Waid and artist Dan Mora, opens with a homage to the JLU animated series: superhero silhouettes of the team cast in golden light. (Some might say the dawn of justice.) They include the trinity of Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman alongside the Flash, Black Lightning, and Star Sapphire.
“The Justice League has been reborn and it has a new purpose, new methods,” says Red Tornado in Justice League Unlimited #1. “For the first time, every hero on Earth is working together as an army of justice — constantly coordinating and pooling their abilities to shut down chaos and evil faster and more effectively than ever.” Welcome to the JLU.
“One of the things that comes out of Absolute Power is the heroes deciding that this whole event probably wouldn’t have happened had the Justice League not disbanded and they were still properly communicating with each other,” Waid told DC.com. “So now it’s not a matter of the traditional JL working together, it’s a case of enlisting everyone who has powers and wants to be on the team. There’s space for the Justice Society, for the Titans, and it will be Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman knowing based on any oncoming threats who is best to take that threat on.”
Having the largest Justice League roster ever makes it “virtually impossible to keep it all together,” Waid added. “For example, the lists I have for Absolute Power and trying to make sure who’s in prison and who’s not—I think we ended up with 92 heroes in prison at some point. Same with Justice League. With such a big cast, I get trading cards to help visualize who I have in play wherever I need them to be. If I didn’t have that visual in front of me, it’d be much harder to keep track of them all. But Dan loves these characters and loves the chance to get to draw them all, very much like George Pérez in how he wants to draw everybody.”
The planet Earth has long been home to individuals with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal humans. Now Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and more have united to offer sanctuary, resources, and leadership to all heroes across the galaxy. From high in Earth’s orbit in their Watchtower base, the world’s greatest super heroes unite to confront the threats too powerful for any single hero to face. They are the JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED.
Justice League Unlimited #1 is on sale November 27 from DC Comics.