Did you know that the concept of a 'staged team-up' began in Vaudeville? You see, for a comedian to get himself heard properly in that non-technological age, he needed a 'partner' to mirror his words, so that the audience could hear him properly in the auditorium. Funny enough, the hero's in this 40-minute cartoon made in 2002 need to make themselves heard too.Justice League - Legends
THE STORY:
Now I know that this may sound corny, but due to a brash
encounter with the criminal mastermind, Lex Luthor, four members of the Justice
League find themselves on a world populated by a team of old-school comic-book
characters, named 'The Justice Guild'. Moreover, not so long after these two
teams get better acquainted with each other, a gang of colorful bad-guys
decide that this is the right time to cause havoc within this cheesy lo-cal.
Holy Moly! So what do you think the good guys do about it, huh?
Make cake? Have some tea! Watch an episode of 'Super Friends'? No! Of course not! They team-up of course.
Green Lantern and the Streak do their best to put a dent in
the Magicians horrible hocus-pocus. Hawkgirl and the Green Guardsman fly off to
prevent Fiddle-Sticks from stealing an antique airplane. The Flash and Black
Siren attempt to halt the evil machinations of Doctor Blizzard. Plus Martian
Manhunter, Catman, and Ray, try to nix the Sports Master from running away with
a prized possession.
Wow! All sounds pretty cool, I am sure that you'll agree.
However, I am sorry to say that not everything works out very coolly by any
stretch of the imagination. Well, both the Flash and Black Siren get captured
by their arch-rival. Whilst the Green Lantern stumbles upon a sordid secret
about 'The Guild' that shatters his dreams to smithereens.
Still, I suppose that is why what next transpires is one for
the four-colour funnies. Right? As naughty men take a dive - illusions yearn to
stay alive - mascots go on the turn - and memories finally crash and burn.
THE REVIEW:
Now at the very end of 'Justice
League - Legends', their is a caption that dedicates this cartoon to a Mister
Gardner Fox. OK, I am sure that some of you out there in cyber-space might be
wondering who this man is, correct? Well, Gardner was one of the pioneers in DC
Comics from back in day, and without him, it is pretty safe to say that their
would be no Justice League, no Justice Society, no Golden Age, no Silver Age,
and no Bronze age of comic books either. Heck, I'd even wager that if it wasn't
for Mr Fox's foresight, 'team-ups' would have taken a lot longer to gestate in
the colorful world of superheroes too.
Hey! While I am on the subject of 'team-ups', let me splurge
some trivia about some of the strangest celebrity team-ups the heroes of the
DCU were ever involved with. (1) In the late nineteen-forties DC Comics helped
to promote the 'Citizen Kane' actor / director, Orson Welles, by inserting him
into an issue of Superman where he gives the last son of Krypton a hand with
'Black Magic in Mars'. (2) Woody Allen made his comic book debut in 1967, where
he appeared with 'The Inferior Five' in an issue of Showcase. (3) The legendary
comic book creator, Jack Kirby, included legendary king of the insults, Don
Rickles, in two issues of Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olson. (4) In 2004 the
'Outsiders' received a special visitor when 'America ’s
Most Wanted' host, John Walsh, helped them track down a runaway. (5) There were
a number of prestige format books in the nineties where Batman co-starred with
Marylyn Monroe, Houdini, Elliot Ness, Jack the Ripper, Dracula, and an
apparition of Bruce Lee. (6) When Mort Weisinger became the Superman group
editor in the nineteen-sixties, the Man of Steel had a number of celebrity
cameos appearing within his books. Such as President John F. Kennedy, comedian Steve
Allen, the host of 'This Is Your Life' Ralph Edwards, plus there was a tie-in
with 'Candid Camera' too. (7) The Justice League teamed-up with the characters
from the 'Looney Tunes' universe, within the mini-series labelled, 'Superman
and Bugs Bunny'. (8) Superman’s Girlfriend, Lois Lane ,
did a duet with the musician, Pat Boone, in a 1959 issue of her very own comic
book. (9) In the early-sixties, the fab-four, the Beatles, featured in an issue
of 'Batman' with the dynamic-duo, Batman and Robin.
B
OK. I know. I have to calm down on my trivia splurges, don't
I? Or else I may not have enough time to review this class-cartoon, 'Justice
League - Legends'.
However, whilst saying that, I am not too sure if I can
actually review this piece. I'm biased. I'm enraptured by Golden Age folklore.
And I just can not bring myself to say anything bad about this smashing
escapade!
Well, maybe one thing. 'The Justice Guild' was obviously a
homage to the 'Justice Society Of America', so I would have preferred them in
this animatic-adventure much more than a bunch of colourful facsimiles.
Nonetheless, apart from that little gripe, this flick was just super.
For example: (1) The cheese-ball tone of this tale was very
apt to convey what the fifties 'hey-day' of comic books was really all about.
(2) The inclusion of John Steward being the hero who read comic's back in the
day, harked back to Barry Allen doing the same thing when he met his Golden age
counterpart, the Flash. (3) The pastiche's within this piece was a blast to
piece together. Obviously the Streak, the Green Guardsman, Black Siren, Catman,
and Tom Turbine, was meant to be the Jay Garrick Flash, the Alan Scott Green
Lantern, Black Canary, Wildcat, and Mister Terrific respectively. Plus I am hundred percent positive that the
Magician, Fiddle-Sticks, Doctor Blizzard, and Sports Master were supposed to
represent Sargon the Sorcerer, the Fiddler, Killer Frost, and...errr... Sports
Master too. (4) The design of 'the Guilds' logo made me smile because it was
the same as the old JSA logo. (5) How the Flash and Hawkgirl slyly commented on
'the Guilds' cheesy manner was a real hoot for me, because it showed the
juxtaposition of the 'simplistic old' compared to the 'cynical new'. (6) This
was an uncomplicated story that followed a very similar pattern of an old JLA /
JSA team up tales. Heroes meet - Heroes clash - Heroes team-up - Heroes save
the day. However, the twist at the end of this yarn gave it that very
modernistic twist that I like a lot.
Overall 'Justice League - Legends' is a great-great-great
cartoon to watch. It's shows pathos. It harks back to simpler times. Plus it
has a way about it that is just a blast to follow from beginning to end.
Wouldn't you agree JSA?
Cool!
THE RATING: A