Does the Justice League really "work" as a group?

That's specific to the Silver Age, though; I'm talking about overall throughout the entirety of comic book history.

I think any group can work as long as the story is good.

The current run? No. The whole silly little "Avengers World" concept is built around Iron Man and Captain America's Wolverine Publicity so there is not a lot of character interaction or development at all.

But usually it's the opposite case. There tends to be a lot of focus on the people without books like Scarlet Witch or Luke Cage so you get a greater deal of growth and interaction. When the JLA tried that with the Meltzer run a few years ago, it didn't work because there were simply way too many characters. They tried to have their cake and eat it too by including lesser-known heroes like Red Arrow and Vixen alongside the A-listers but that just led to a bloated cast.

Which again is part of why I like JLI so much. There were a ton of characters in Giffen's JLI&JLE that didn't have their own books at the time, (or even if they did, had them cancelled not even halfway through the run like Beetle and Booster,) and while the cast was large, it was split among JLI&JLE, so it never felt bloated. It was probably the most Avengers-like the League ever got, even considering the humor.

Yeah that's exactly why it worked. You had Batman there as an anchor character and could play him off the others, but it was the smaller guys who got the bulk of the development.

I actually liked Mark Waid's run on the JLA title more than Morrison's, especially the Tower of Babel arc. After Infinite Crisis the books haven't really been that great, and Robinson's run after Cry For Justice was awful, in my opinion.

I disagree that the team doesn't fit well, though. I guess it depends on the lineup, and it definitely depends on the writer, but Batman and Superman work well together, and Hal, Olly, and Barry also have enough history to work well together. I agree JLI seemed to have a stronger bond though, as did the JSA.

edited 16th May '14 2:49:50 PM by supergod

For that matter, Morrison made the Kyle, Wally, Connor combination work really well. Connor needed to stick around that team longer, it was a shame he left after just one arc.

You know, I almost forgot that Connor was on the team. I really should reread those some time. I definitely agree that Wally and Kyle worked well together, though.

Connor's mini-arc of joining the team is brilliant. The plot makes very little sense, but as a character showcase for Connor, it's beautiful.

In fact, have the best bits:

http://lightningspiral.tumblr.com/post/29415681796/image-description-connor-hawke-aka-green-arrow

http://lightningspiral.tumblr.com/post/76569175492/comicsverse101-never-underestimate-silly

Ah yes, I remember that story now. That was a great period for DC.

edited 16th May '14 3:18:34 PM by supergod

Yeah, that was a rater brilliant little Aborted Arc. Was there ever a reason given for why Morrison cut Kyle from the team? This wiki claims Grant cut him to replace him with Huntress in order to fix the team's crappy gender ratio, but is that just speculation?

So, is it agreed that all big-name teams only work if the members are all comprised of people who don't have their own books?

It doesn't have to be all members, but I think that having the majority not have their own books does make for a more enjoyable reading experience. You get some good character development without having to read 7-8 different books, and even if a few members do have their own books, a talented writer can still have such characters play off their other teammates, and focus on the problems and situations that arise when working in a group.

Unfortunately, what many people expect from big-name teams is just their favorite heroes teaming up to kick @$$. That's what the majority of the Justice League's tenure has been, and it also seems to be what the main Avengers book is turning into under Hickman's tenure. It's not that bad if you're actually reading all of those books with all of those characters, but if you're not, then the experience is kind of hollow as a result. When I'm reading a comic, I want to be able to enjoy it without having to buy so many different titles, and I think that's what an ideal Shared Universe comic should be; part of a larger universe, but not necessarily wholly dependent on it.

I've never felt I've needed to read any of the other books to fully appreciate the Justice League books. The Batman and Superman books tend to be in their own little bubble most of the time anyway.

The World's Finest is certainly a team that gives a lot of character value to its members, though it probably stems from it being comprised of two people.