WARNING! MY CUP RUNNETH OVER WITH SPOILERS! CLEAN UP ON AISLE FOUR!
Title: The Bigger They Come...
Release Date: March 1999
Writer: Mark MillarPenciller: Mark PajarilloInkers: Walden Wong and
Marlo AlquizaJLA Members: Superman,
Batman,
Wonder Woman,
the Martian Manhunter,
the Flash,
Green Lantern,
Aquaman,
Steel,
Plastic Man,
Huntress,
Zauriel, and
Oracle.
Guest Stars: The Atom,
Firestorm,
Power Girl,
the Creeper,
Fire,
Green Lantern (
Jenny Hayden),
Black Lightning,
Booster Gold,
Blue Beetle,
Captain Atom,
Aztek,
the Ray,
the Elongated Man,
Obsidian,
Mister Miracle,
Lightray,
Animal Man, and others I couldn't recognize.
Bad Guys: Amazo and
T. O. Morrow.
Cameos: Captain Marvel,
Starman,
Dr. Light, and the
Doom Patrol (mentions only).
So what happens?To kick the story off, Green Lantern and the Flash go visit Professor Ray "The Atom" Palmer to offer him JLA membership, but he turns them down--he says he's happier now teaching classes at
Ivytown University...
Meanwhile, in the
Florida Everglades, a tip from mad scientist T. O. Morrow leads Wonder Woman, Steel, and Huntress to the upgraded-but-deactivated Amazo
android, which is scheduled to wake up in an hour with all the powers of the Justice League. Steel gets to work trying to keep Amazo from waking up...
And in
Tokyo,
Clark Kent,
Bruce Wayne, and
J'onn J'onzz (shapeshifted to look like a
Japanese reporter) meet to discuss the future of the JLA. Supes wants to
expand the League's membership, but Bats thinks the current membership levels are fine. Much
witty repartee ensues...
Back in the Everglades, Amazo switches itself on a whole half-hour early. Turns out Morrow couldn't stand the idea of helping the JLA, so he lied about how much time they had. That
heel! Anyway, Amazo has all the powers of the current incarnation of the League, and he's stomping on everyone, even when Superman, Batman, and the Martian Manhunter get on the scene. Desperate to stop the killer android, temporary JLA membership is extended to another 20 superheroes. Unfortunately, Amazo is now displaying all of the new members' powers, too--his
upgrade allows him to assume the powers of any JLA he goes up against, no matter who the members are. But the Atom figures out how to beat him--he pops over to the Everglades and has Superman announce that the JLA has been
disbanded. Result: Amazo no longer has any powers at all, and he shuts down. Recognizing that the Atom's most useful ability lies in his
scientific knowledge, the JLA gets him to accept a position as the Justice League's part-time
science consultant.
Cool Moments!Again, not exactly a "moment", but this issue has the
second-coolest JLA cover...
Cool Quotes!The Atom on his
microscopic office at the
university: "It's interesting how enthusiastic the students get when you include super-heroics in the
syllabus. The
dean doesn't like my methods, but I told Third Year the answers to their
optics paper were sitting on my micro-desk if they could figure out a way to read them."
The Atom on the benefits of being a
professor: "Four students have a
crush on me. Three of them are
girls..."
Clark Kent,
sternly, to Bruce Wayne: "Frankly, I think you should know that these constant
adolescent displays of independence are getting
tiresome. Your
peevishness is starting to have an adverse effect on the team."
Bruce Wayne, surprised: "Hh. I almost thought you were
serious."
Clark Kent, grinning: "I've been practicing."
Power Girl, to Plastic Man: "No, I don't want to know why they call you '
Eel,' Mr. O'Brien."
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