The series spins off from Johns' previous works, including Doomsday Clock and Flashpoint Beyond, and begins with a one-shot prelude title, The New Golden Age, that launches into this series and Stargirl: The Lost Children. The relaunch is not only the JSA's first monthly title since Flashpoint, but also marks Johns' grand return to the team over a decade after ending his 2000s-era tenure.
Nearly three decades into the future, Batman is dead, Catwoman is retired, and their daughter Helena -- the Huntress -- leads a new iteration of the Justice Society of America populated largely by the supposedly-reformed children of the old team's greatest nemeses. However, when someone murders Dr. Fate and then kills the rest of this makeshift JSA, Helena is sent back in time to the era of the original team to find out what went wrong with history.
This series contains examples of:
- Ambiguous Situation: It's not clear how villainous the "second generation" members of Helena's team ever were; even the TV report decrying the idea of former villains in the JSA seems to be insisting it's In the Blood rather than referring to anything they've actually done.
- The Atoner: Helena's JSA is made up of former villains who are all trying to go straight, though exactly how sincere they are in these efforts remains to be seen - Ruby chafes at Huntress' no-killing rule and Harlequin's Son refuses to say where all that money in his apartment came from.
- Back from the Dead: While both female Wildcat and Dr. Midnight had been resurrected back in Doomsday Clock, issue #3 reveals that they were revived thanks to an earthquake as a precursor to the events of Lazarus Planet.
- Bedlam House: Turns out Gotham's not the only place in the DC universe with a spooky-ass gothic mansion repurposed as an insane asylum. Ivy Town has its own, where one Jean Loring is currently enjoying an extended stay. In fact, it looks pretty much identical to Arkham.
- Big Bad: The main villain of this run appears to be longtime JSA foe Per Degaton, who's trying to erase the Justice Society from the timeline.
- Boom, Headshot!: In issue #1, Degaton zaps Power Girl with kryptonite before shooting her between the eyes.
- Boxed Crook: In the seventh issue, the JSA makes a deal to have Cameron Mahkent released to their custody in exchange for him working for them.
- The Bus Came Back:
- After not being seen in over 10 years, Kyle Knight, the son of Jack Knight and the Mist, returns as a member of the new JSA.
- The fifth issue shows the future where Degaton's doppelgangers have decimated the Legion of Super-Heroes. However, the Legion shown is the Retroboot Legion and not Brian Bendis's version. The ending of the issue has the future Justice Society from The New Golden Age, who were explicitly shown to not be associated with the future Bendis's Legion comes from due to the different versions of Doctor Fate, having been restored. It's thus implied that the Retroboot Legion has been restored and now exists alongside the Bendisboot. The implications only grow stronger in the seventh issue, when Khalid is approached by the Retroboot Legion of Substitute-Heroes (Rainbow Girl, Stone Boy, and new member Animal Lad).
- On a Meta level, while the JSA had finally returned to modern DC during Doomsday Clock, the team finally returns to a monthly book for the first time since the end of Marc Guggenheim's run just before Flashpoint in 2011. The advertising for the series even explicitly notes that it's the team's first series in over a decade.
- Call-Back: The snowglobe that figured in Flashpoint Beyond plays a role here, as Selina throwing it at Helena is what sends her back in time.
- Came Back Wrong: Something is going on with Beth Chapel and Yolanda Montez that they're keeping secret from the Justice Society. They have to regularly take Lazarus Pills, or else Yolanda mentions that she's begun to hear Eclipso's voice (Eclipso being the one who killed them both). In the seventh issue, Beth reluctantly consults with Jean Loring, one of Eclipso's few surviving hosts, for insight about what happens when you're possessed by him.
- The Cameo: Jack Knight is briefly shown in the eighth issue with his five year old son Kyle, making it the first time Jack's appeared in a comic since Identity Crisis (2004).
- Cassandra Truth: Selina Kyle never believed Helena about the mysterious ginger man she constantly saw through her childhood, until it was too late.
- Character Shilling: Helena looks up to Yolanda Montez, saying she was one of the few people Selina Kyle ever praised.
- Child by Rape: The future Mist is Kyle Knight, who was conceived when his supervillain mother raped Jack Knight, the 90's Starman.
- Comic-Book Time: Zigzagged all over the place. The JSA being founded in 1942 is still there, while Infinity, Inc. was founded in 1972. Meanwhile, the encounter with Extant was eight years ago (when Zero Hour was published in 1994), and Catwoman's start (as depicted in Batman: Year One) was thirteen years ago. Kyle Knight, who was born in 1998 in real time, is five years old.
- Continuity Overlap: Despite the time travel elements, JSA is still running in tandem with the Stargirl mini-series. So, there is overlap as events in the latter have ripple effects here (such as Kent Nelson's restored sidekick Salem).
- Covers Always Lie: Issue #4's cover has Power Girl attacking Huntress while Alan Scott tries restraining her. Nothing remotely close to this happens in the issue.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Degaton utterly annihilates the future JSA during their first battle, with only Huntress managing to survive thanks to her mother's intervention.
- Dead Guy Junior: Kyle Knight derives his given name from his uncle, the son of the original Mist and brother of the second Mist.
- Deal with the Devil: Degaton's made a deal with the future Salem, now the last Lord of Chaos. He kills every version of Doctor Fate, and in exchange reality is rewritten in his favor.
- Distaff Counterpart: Michael Mayne as Harlequin's Son is essentially to Infinity Inc. what Duela Dent as Joker's Daughter was to the Bronze Age Teen Titans, an antiheroic clown-themed individual who is descended (supposedly) from another clown-themed individual.
- Dramatic Irony: In #8 Ruby reacts very badly to Alan Scott talking about her father as though he knew him personally, but when he backs down and says she's right, they were enemies, she can tell he's hiding something. The same week that issue came out, Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #3 revealed that Red Lantern was actually Alan's lover Johnny Ladd.
- Evil Counterpart: Ruby is basically an evil version of Jade from Infinity, Inc., complete with being born with her dad's powers inside of her, much like Jade was. In Ruby's case, she's empowered by a "Red Flame" as opposed to Green, being the Golden Age legacy equivalent of a Red Lantern.
- Fallen Hero: By Helena's time, Salem the Witch Girl has turned evil, but Helena figures she can redeem her. In issue #4, Degaton casually mentions she's his backer.
- Fingore: In issue 4, Degaton tries killing Power Girl with a chunk of kryptonite. Helena manages to shoot off his finger with a well-aimed crossbow bolt.
- Hero of Another Story: The Justice Society Dark, which apparently consists of Zatarra, Golden Age hero Johnny Diamond, and Mister Miracle, when they're not bickering with one another.
- Hidden Depths: It's revealed that part of Salem's Jerkass attitude is an attempt to keep people safe from her status as a magical Doom Magnet.
Khalid: You don't have to be so rude.
Salem: Actually, I do. Kent knew that. And he knew why.
- High-Class Glass: As with previous appearances, Gentleman Ghost wears a monocle.
- History Repeats: Downplayed, but much like the 1999 JSA volume, the plot is again kicked off by the murder of a classic JSA member. Doctor Fate's also again intrinsic to the murder-mystery.
- Inadequate Inheritor: The Huntress' iteration of the JSA has not had much luck recruiting the children of the previous members, so Helena started recruiting from the ranks of the other side, like Solomon Grundy, Icicle, and Ruby, the daughter of the Golden Age Red Lantern. Power Girl is the sole exception if only for Huntress' sake, as she barely tolerates all of the others.
- Kidnapped for Experimentation: Poor Boom was kidnapped by a mad scientist named Dr. Elemental, who used her in an experiment to replicate the accident that turned her dad into the Flash.
- Lineage Comes from the Father: As shown in mini-series Alan Scott: The Green Lantern, Soviet agent Crimson Flame absorbed the alien crimson flame which gave him his powers. His daughter Ruby also inherited similar powers.
- More than Mind Control: How Jean Loring explains what being possessed by Eclipso is like. He's not just controlling you, but giving air to your worst desires.
- My Future Self and Me: Issue #5 shows a gathering of Per Degaton's selves around a round table, among which a young/kid version and two elderly ones.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: During the ill-fated mission to recruit Solomon Grundy, Salem arrogantly tries to bring him under her control, but her spell is miscast and ends up incinerating him.
- No Challenge Equals No Satisfaction: Per Quiz Kid's description of his dead mentor, the original Mr. Terrific, the man "was so accomplished" he once thought of ending it all.
- Paradox Person:
- Much like Reverse-Flash before him, Per Degaton has become a living paradox, and therefore can't be killed by anything. He's ultimately dealt with by using a personal effect and the snow globe for a spell to apparently banish him to the Flashpoint timeline.
- In the end Helena makes herself one by telling Batman everything about her history to try and avert his death in her life.
- Remember the New Guy?: Ruby and Harlequin's Son are both treated like they're part of infamous lineages when in reality, they were both retconned into existence by Flashpoint Beyond.
- Sealed Evil in a Can: The Dr. Fate of present times, Khalid Nassour, uses the Time Masters' snowball to trap Per Degaton inside it.
- Time-Travel Tense Trouble: In issue #6, Bruce Wayne relocates his time-travelling daughter to New York. Helena looks at the window and remembers how she spent her Christmas there (in her past), then corrects herself and says she will (in reference to the future) or she "won't" (in regards to her timeline possibly being erased).
- Well-Intentioned Extremist: In the present, Michael Mayne, the Harlequin's Son, has been targeting abusive men. He claims to be trying to convince them to turn themselves in, but he's also injuring them and stealing from them.
- Wham Shot: The ninth issue ends with the Golden Age Legionnaire revealing their identity as a young Mordru.
- Who Shot JFK?: Per Degaton claims to have shot Kennedy with his Luger.
- Youthful Freckles: Per Degaton's kid self has freckles across his nose, to mark him as the youngest of Degaton's selves.
