Each month in the pages of JUSTICE LEAGUE we find out a little more about the team and information from the five year gap between the first arc and the present day in the "New 52." Jim Lee returns as he and Geoff Johns set things up for upcoming issues.
With a new arc, "The Villain's Journey," it's not the most cheerful of times for the team. There's a new and deadly villain coming their way. So while we're finding out more about the team, we're also witnessing the birth of what could be the end of the team (most likely not, though).
Be sure to read JUSTICE LEAGUE #9 if you haven't already. There will be some minor spoilers below.
== TEASER ==The Fate of David Graves
Who is David Graves? Don't click on his page unless you want even more spoilers revealed.
Graves is the guy first seen in JUSTICE LEAGUE #6, during Darkseid's attack. He witnessed the triumph of the team as he was certain he and his family were about to perish. He later wrote a book on the Justice League, Justice League: Gods Among Men. That's not the only book Graves wrote. It was in issue #3, we saw an excerpt from another of his books, The Secret History of Atlantis. He's also written several other with revealing titles.
The main thing here though is his present condition. In issue 6 he was fine. But somehow a year later, his condition rapidly took a turn for the worst. We don't find out how exactly he reached this condition but it's one that will soon be brought to the Justice League's attention
Steve Trevor has a Sister
This obviously isn't a major revelation. As far as I know, Steve never had any siblings. Originally his mother, Diana Trevor, flew and crashed a jet she was test flying onto Paradise Island. During her short time there, she became a hero but was killed, leaving her husband and son behind.
As Steve deals with the press trying to get any information out of him about Wonder Woman or the League, he heads over to his sister's for a visit. She also has some kids, adding to Trevor's immediate family. The fact that he has some family will have an effect on the League.
Thomas Wayne's Letter
Now again, this isn't exactly a startling revelation but it was great to see what became of the letter Barry Allen was given at the end of FLASHPOINT by Thomas Wayne to deliver to Bruce. There hasn't been any mention of follow up from that moment. Because that letter exists, Barry and Bruce know that things were not always as they are now. At the very least, they have to be aware of the Flashpoint timeline if not the previous DCU one.
Batman has Arkham under Surveillance
Batman has an invested interest in Arkham Asylum. That's where all his enemies go. He is constantly having to chase after them when they inevitably break out. There's always been the theory that enemies like Joker must know all the ins and outs of the place as he seems able to come and go as he pleases.
What we see here is Batman has a map of the place, courtesy of Cyborg, who is plugged into "every computer on Earth." Having a map may not give him complete access to every single scare inch and secret passageway at the Asylum. Superman notes that "Arkham's a labyrith. And the lead pipes are obstructing my x-ray vision."
To add to Batman's overplanning, he's also installed motion detectors and secondary cameras in certain areas. Yet, there are still break outs occurring.
The Team is There for Each Other
Something we don't often see in the members' solo titles is other heroes helping out when needed. Batman doesn't call any of the team during the Night of the Owls story but here he gives Superman a call, probably more so because he knows Superman would want to. Flash and Green Lantern are seen together and there is more mention of past team-ups they've had. Also when trying to get information from Weapons Master, they have no choice but to call Wonder Woman to get him to talk.
It's little touches like this that strengthens the bond they're supposed to have. They've been a tight nit group for five years so it makes sense that they work on non-Justice League missions as well.
The Rest
Of course there are other things that happen. As I mentioned, there's going to be some bad news for the team. You'll also want to see what happens in the SHAZAM back-up with Billy Batson. There's big things coming next month in both stories.