As we continue to see the face of the New 52 Universe develop, you can feel a rumbling in the Justice League's corner. In the pages of JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA, we know that Amanda Waller has her own plans set in motion.

With issue 19, we're seeing some developments and repercussions that will shake things up for the team. There are also some that answer questions we may have had since the New 52 changed the DCU.

There will be some spoilers for JUSTICE LEAGUE #19 so make sure you read that to see everything else that happens.

The Batcave has a Batcave

We know Batman loves his secrets. We know he keeps things from others for their own protection. What we haven't seen before is a secret room hidden deeper in the Batcave.

When a mysterious stranger infiltrates the Batcave, the individual somehow is aware of a hidden room. The Batcave is already a well-kept secret. What could Batman possibly want to keep from others? And more importantly, how will the discovery of this by a questionable foe affect the rest of the team?

Batman Has More Secret Plans

As this person enters the secret room, we see Batman has a some plans on a bulletin board along with some files. We know Batman wouldn't keep a computer in here because then Cyborg would know what he's up to.

You have to wonder how much time Batman spends in here. Do the others know about this room? How does Batman explain to Alfred or Robin where he's at when he's missing for hours? Plus with all the missions he's on, when does he find the time. What could be in that file that gets picked up?

Batman Still has Protocols Against the League

Apparently Batman didn't learn in Tower of Babel. As the stranger gains further access to Batman's secret stash, we see several specially marked containers.

As shown on the cover (sort of) and in the issue, the Superman container does contain the Kryptonite Ring. There was some doubt whether or not the ring existed in the New 52 timeline so now we know. The bigger question here is what could Batman possibly have in the other cases to take out the rest of the team?

The Justice League Watchtower Teleporter

Another question was did the Watchtower have a teleporter? We know they heavily rely on Cyborg with his Boom Tube tech infused in him. There is the chance that relying on him could result in a wonky trip on rare occasions. What happens if Cyborg is not available? Would they be trapped in the Watchtower?

When the new Atom arrives at the Watchtower, she does so via a teleporter. We don't know when they got this or who made it. We can assume some of the original pre-New 52 tech still exists.

Batman Confronts Superman and Wonder Woman

This scene doesn't play out like we see on the cover. Superman and Wonder Woman have connected recently. Even though they've been spending time together, they haven't been public about it. But we know that Batman was aware that they were getting close. Their recent actions in this issue is going to shake things up with Amanda Waller and others.

Batman's confrontation lets them know they can't necessarily hide anything from him. He also opens their eyes to the possible repercussions of their actions. They may have been questioning what tactics they should take in trying to make the world a better place but Batman has the perspective to see the bigger picture.

Overall it looks like Batman was heavily involved in this issue. We'll have to see why the 'thief' only took the Superman case, if that's all he took. Will the rest of the League find out or do they already know that Batman is prepared for them all?

I wonder who the masked thief is? And why where they working for the "person" on the last page? Great issue, cant wait for the next one!

I think the masked thief is either Tim or Bruce. The retinal scan makes me lean heavily toward it being a batfamily member. Dick is Chi town, Alf and Jason are knocked out, Damian is gone, so that really just leaves Tim & Bruce, IMO, and we know something's up with Tim lately.

The thief reminds me of one of the Others from Aquamans book .

Theif looks like the Insider.

Yeah gman, there is definately some stuff going on. I really liked issue 18 because of all the new characters introduced. This arc is definatly departing from the original 7 idea and is on the verge of really expanding out into all known parts of the DC U.

Haven't been reading Justice Legue but this article has me intrigued. I'd like to think the thief is someone unlikely like Thomas Wayne Jr. He kind of looks like a sandman from Earth 2.

I like the conversation between the trinity, especially from Batman side. He was reasonable and was trying to explain what consequences SM/WW actions could have. WW was maybe a bit hot headed though.

it seems that Batman is everywhere and it's kinda pisses me off !

The hidden part of the batcave reminds me of the mysterious Sub Level 7 of the post no-man's land batcave.

I'm thinking its the first appearance of Owlman in the new 52. Instead of being Bruce's big bro though, he's an evil version of bruce himself or Martian manhunter sneaking in with intangibility/invisibility shifted into Bruce's form, either way explains the hand and eye ID confirmations.

It appears Bruce is already repeating his biggest mistake ever and is building/planning another Brother Eye satellite judging from those blueprints.

@arthurized: i get that feeling as well..

he has already built brother eye

I thought it was Batman in the insider suit then I was like can't be that suit looks nothing like it.

@squalleon: When did this happen?

Tower of Babel part 2! And looks like superman is bringing his beard from MOS.

The reveal came at the end of Justice League International Annual 1, and before that hints were dropped throughout the short lived OMAC series. As to when in the new continuity i have no idea.

Wonder if it's

one of the Batfamily from the future.

a clone

Martian Manhunter

One of those fake JL from the Secret Society

the list goes on and on

can any1 explain to me why it's such an issue to Bats that Supes and Diana are dating?I just don't get what the " repercussions" are/would be.it makes no sense to me..where is this going?

So it's Tower of Babel again? (Sigh) At least Reis' artwork is gorgeous to look at. Damn I love his art.

I'm more interested in who's the mysterious theif.

I haven't had a chance to read the issue yet, but could the masked "thief" be Bruce himself?

I know, I know... that would be too paranoid even for him... or would it?

EDIT: The thief's utility belt looks an awful lot like Batman's too, or a variation on Batman's.

As far as I am aware, it was not Batman that built the already existing Brother Eye that's been seen in OMAC, but I might be wrong. Then again, OMAC appeared recently in Stormwatch that got rebooted, so perhaps OMAC/Eye has been affected as well.

Love the Bearded Superman!!!

It's Hush.

@dondave: It was in the Justice League International series, though I don't remember which issue.

The thief is Martian Manhunter....tie into his own series real soon.

hmmm could be Hush, maybe the Martian Manhunter, or another cloned version of Damian. personally id like to see Hush show up

Well, seeing as Tower of Babel probably didn't happen in New 52, its more like ToB Part 1 (Third iteration, counting JL Doom)

@herrweis: his problem isn't them seeing each others. It is doing it publicly : if people see Superman and Wonderwoman "playing superheroes" together, they will think it is an action the Justice League approved (like rescuing hostages in Qurac)

@herrweis: I would imagine that people would worry that if the most powerful people in the world are romantically involved, that there is the risk that they could eventually reproduce, starting a race of young godlike beings.

This was a good issue.

Justice league international last issue, i think.
or the Annual

the same issue that Booster Gold dissapeared

It's not a bad idea if they have a son

Are you kidding me? Did you read this issue?

already happened in Kingdom Come

so Superman did give Batman the kryptonite ring...that means did lex luthor have it first.....why is luthor in jail anyway/?

The retinal and fingerprint scan acceptance makes me think Hush

@jawshco: weighs 180 lbs: I think Tim would be less (not sure of his age) and Bruce would weigh more than this. I like the Martian Manhunter possibility - maybe JLofA will show another angle to this and do a casual spoiler like Bendis' X-books.

Sure hope its Martian Manhunter. If it is it could possibly be an interesting lead up to the Trinity War.

@black_claw: MM would not need to use a diguise, he could just shape shift into bruce

Same here, man.

And the guy's a fucking creeper.

LOL

Are they really going to rehash Tower of Babel? Are they just going to end up using the New 52 label just as an excuse to retell old stories?

I don't see a valid reason why Superman and Wonder Woman can't have a relationship outside of the team or their secret identities. I don't think much of the actual relationship. It's more of a publishing gimmick. Public or not, you're basically telling them they can't live a life because of what other people may think about it. Lest we remember, they are all vigilantes to begin with.

Speaking of which. DC heroes never catch the kind of flack for vigilantism that Marvel characters tend to. We need that story, and also I would like to see what could develop from the Supes x Wonder Woman relationship in terms of "media fallout".

Maybe it's RED X!!! Haha jk

Couldn't have described it better myself.

Im hoping the mystery thief is a returned Damian Wayne. He would easily be able to get into the Batcave with his access. Maybe he was revived and genetically altered to be older and brainwashed to get the Kryptonite, or is from the future/parallel universe.

The biggest clue IMO is the fact that they mention the death of Damian at the beginning of the book. There is literally no reason Geoff Johns had to put that exchange between Alfred and Red Hood in other than to provide the readers with information that may be necessary in the future. He couldve written it so that the thief snuck in and knocked Alfred out while he was cleaning and the rest of the issue wouldnt have changed in any major way.

@g_man: Don't you think showing the other half of the Justice League Teaser Poster on the front page of Comicvine a huge spoiler for the people who haven't read it yet??? Since it just came out yesterday. lol.

Not exactly sure why anyone can't understand that Bruce is not telling Clark and Diana that they can't have a relationship in their secret identities. He specifically stated that Superman and Wonder Woman being so close together is the issue and will make people nervous. Which already happened.........read Justice League of America issue 1.

As for how DC is portraying everyone else's reaction........I think they've got it rather spot on. The new 52 has clearly established that metahumans, powerful aliens, and established superheroes are not 100% trusted by either the public or the world governments. Superman and Wonder Woman are two of the most powerful people on the planet and fall into that category of mistrust. Personally I think a lot of the hate towards the DC Universe reaction of this relationship stems more from a complete lack of reasoning and real world equivalent understanding with most people (consider how people/news organizations react when two national leaders get together, particularly if they are not well liked in the international community, or when two nations conduct wargames and training together) than the quality at which writers are portraying the relationship.

Though I would continue to categorize the portrayal and quality of writing Wonder Woman in the Justice League series as extremely poor, particularly when compared to her solo title. Though I haven't enjoyed all the changes made to her history as a result of the new 52, the immaturity by which she's written in Justice League is insulting compared to the level of maturity she has in her own title. Yes, its different writers, but at the end of the day both writers work for DC and should have enough respect for the character to collaborate on their interpretations and find a common ground rather than the two extremes.

However the issue did raise an interesting question on Amanda Waller and Martian Manhunter. I didn't read past issue 2 of the Team 7 title so I don't know how her character was overall portrayed but one has to wonder (especially given Steve's question) how much MM is influencing things because of his own beliefs?

As for the thief........it could be MM, which is more the way I wish he was portrayed rather than continuing to give him Superman-esque abilities coupled with telepathy/telekinesis and shapeshifting, but I don't think its Tim or Hush. For one the guy is taller than how Tim's been drawn even in the new 52. Also, why would Tim's biometrics been programmed to open that compartment? That seems too trusting of Bruce given what's in it. As for Hush a guy that tall and built would weigh more than 180 lbs. But MM could phase his body enough to have that weight. But it will probably not turn out that way and we'll all be smacking our foreheads at the leap of faith we'll be required to make to accept who it is.