A Quick(ish) Look at Justice Society of America #30

This is the second issue of the Matthew Sturges/Bill Willingham era of the JSA. Last issue gave us the shock ending where Mr. Terrific was literally stabbed in the back. What's in store for this issue? Let's find out! This issue is written by the aforementioned Matthew Sturges and Bill Willingham while Jesus Merino handles the artwork.

-This issue begins with Stargirl and the Flash as the only two members of the JSA standing after last issue's super-villain sneak attack. The large group of villains still refuse to attack Stargirl, so they all decide to team up and attack the Flash. Flash responds by running away, which leaves Stargirl alone with an army of super-villains who are apparently forbidden to attack her. Stargirl decides to attack the villains while they stand around dumbfounded as to what they should do about her.

-Flash returns to the scene along with Dr. Fate. Flash, Stargirl and Fate keep the villains occupied long enough for the rest of the JSA to regain consciousness. Upon seeing the team awaken, the villains panic and begin to flee. Magog wants to press the advantage and pursue the villains, but Dr. Midnite and Old Wildcat want to take the wounded back to base and find out why Mr. Terrific wasn't responding to them. After a heated argument, Power Girl decides to split the team into two squads, with one squad returning home with the wounded and the other squad hunting down the villains.

-Back at the JSA brownstone, All-American Kid washes Mr. Terrific's blood off of his hands and returns to the room he is sharing with King Chimera. Chimera asks where Kid went off to, and Kid responds that he never left the bedroom.

-Magog's squad of JSAers easily manage to capture most of the villains, while Dr. Midnite's squad returns home and discovers the body of Mr. Terrific. Midnite, Fate and Green Lantern immediately begin operating on the near-dead Terrific while Flash and the other members of the JSA look around the brownstone to see if they can find any clues as to what had happened. Unfortunately, after Kid stabbed Terrific, he destroyed all of the recording devices, erasing all evidence of his foul deed.

-Magog's squad returns to base and learn about what happened to Terrific. Magog and Old Wildcat start up their verbal jousting again, and this issue ends with Wildcat attacking Magog.

This was a very good comic that happened to end on a bit of a quiet note. This issue provided us with a lot of questions, but very little answers. First and foremost would be why were the villains so reluctant to attack Stargirl? Whoever sent them after the JSA obviously has some kind of deep connection to her. Next up would be what caused All-American Kid to attack/stab Mr. Terrific and then erase his mind of his actions? I doubt Kid is insane, which means something possessed him and used him as a pawn against Terrific. Was it the snobbish King Chimera? Again, I doubt it, but we know so little about him and his past, it's hard to say. And of course, the $21,000 question, who is responsible for all of the JSA's recent misfortune? Is it an inside job, is it a villain from their past or is it some kind of new menace with an axe to grind? I'm not sure, but I know I will be eagerly anticipating the next issue. For a score, I'll give this comic a 9 out of 10. I seem to be giving out a lot of 9+ scores lately... Am I just in a better frame of mind or are the comic books I'm reading getting better? I don't know, but whatever it is, I hope it continues!And this is why they don't call Jay Dr. Flash.