JSA #72Posted: Thursday, April 21, 2005
By: Jason Cornwell 
"JSA/JSA"
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artists: Don Kramer (p), Keith Champagne (i)
Publisher: DC Comics
Plot: As the 1950s JSA and the modern day JSA gather outside the White House in a bid to protect the President from Degaton's efforts to change the future, a full-scale battle erupts. Degaton arrives with his army of temporal assassins, and he looks to be quite confident that the outcome of this battle has already been written. However, the modern day Hourman's hourglass and the arrival of another temporal traveller allows the heroes to change the outcome of this battle, and Degaton escapes into the time-stream to lick his wounds.
Comments: On one hand, I'm a big fan of the big spectacle that this final chapter offers up as we get to see the two JSA groups battling to save the day, and how can you not have a big smile on your face as the golden age versions of the characters battle alongside their modern era counterparts? I'll also give the issue full marks for its work on Degaton as the character manages to deftly convey the degree of certainty that the story required to make one believe that there was a very good chance that the JSA were fighting a battle they couldn't win. Geoff Johns also employs a couple of clever tricks to secure the victory for the JSA, as it was great to see Atom Smasher get the opportunity to throw his weight around, and the scene where Jakeem and Johnny discover how to unleash the Thunderbolt was a great character moment. The issue also benefited from a pretty engaging narration as Stargirl's uncertainty that her actions are actually serving to improve her own situation was well presented, as was her sense of uncertainty when she arrived back in her own era. However, the issue suffers from the simple fact that there is an overall sense that Geoff John is simply going through the motions on this final chapter, as truth be told Degaton doesn't really bring anything to the table beyond his certainty that he was going to win this battle, and the ticking time bomb element he introduced never managed to deliver the proper sense of urgency. There's also a few too many moments where Geoff Johns's writing seems to be a little too self aware that he's crafted a fan pleasing scenario, and at times the writing felt downright self-congratulatory in its delivery, though I must confess the Starman fan in me did enjoy the little exchange that the character had with Degaton. The arrival of Starwoman felt a little too convenient though, and the loose ends all pulled together a little too neatly for my liking in the final pages.
I'm not quite sure what the deal is with this issue as the creative team is exactly the same as we had on the previous issue, but frankly the art looks much sharper and brighter. At first, I thought that DC had simply switched over to a higher grade paper on this book, but none of the other titles in the same price range look to have made the change, so I'm not quite sure what to make of it. Whatever the case may be this issue really stands apart from the crowd and whatever trick they used to pull off this new look I hope it moves over to the other titles as it really adds that extra visual impact to the art, in that Don Kramer's art really jumps off to the page, and John Kalisz's colours are really quite striking. This issue also benefits from some lovely big impact moments, from the double-page spread that opens the issue, as the two versions of the JSA battle side-by-side, to the wonderfully intense moment where Atom Smasher makes his big play. There's also a nice bit where the Thunderbolt enters the battle, and of course it's great to see Alex Ross as this title's new cover artist, as that's one lovely looking cover visual.
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