2022 Cryptozoic CZX Crisis on Infinite Earths - CZX STR PWR #S09 - David Harewood as J’onn J’onzz Printing Plate Black

It's pushing 5 a.m., I'm glad that I'm at least attempting to catch up on my rest while waking up in the 3 o'clock hour with full intention to catch a few more hours of Zs this morning, and I'm in No-Fs mode on today's post. I put a bunch of long eBay URLs in a text doc while researching those live action trading cards, and now I'm deleting the last of them specific to that research. This is the same image as CZX STR PWR #S09, but news to me, they started throwing the actual printing plates for individual cards into packs as chase variants. It makes me wonder why comic books never got around to putting color guides into blind/black bags-- probably because the dimensions are too big to fit without folding. No disrespect to colorists, but I never "got" color guides as a collectible, though this amuses me in a "use everything but the squeal" way. I assume these are one of a kind, excepting that there are individual plates for black, cyan, magenta, and yellow. I guess the biggest surprise to me in the age of laser printing is that we're still using individual color plates in the process at all. Is that a necessity for the holofoil?

2022 Sanshu DC Extended Universe Series 1 #DC-C-024: Martian Manhunter

I had intended to do another Amalgam blog today, but the Zoltar profile accidentally posted on the draft date rather than on the 9th, so some of you may have missed it. Also, Wonder Woman in The Amalgam Age of Comics: The DC Comics Collection (1996) was waaaaaay more involved than I had anticipated. So here's another fancy live action J'Onn J'Onzz from the Supergirl TV show in trading card form instead. It's a fun holofoil card with bonus comic book imagery, but if I'm being honest? It does not look legit to me. The undated copyright notification doesn't pass the smell test, and it's giving Temu vibes. If I'm being overly suspicious, hit me up with deets in the comments.

2018 Cryptozoic Supergirl Season 1 Authentic Wardrobe Dual Relics card #M05

Last in the immediate series of "is it though" trading cards featuring David Harewood as J’onn J’onzz (there are a few more) is this chase card with an unspecified snippet of presumably screen-worn wardrobe. The card pictures the Martian Manhunter, and references "J’onn J’onzz," but the actual source is unspecified. Maybe there was a heroic costume that was all worn out, but it's just as likely this was some DEO uniform, or his drawers for all we know. The thing is, this is one of 49 such cards produced-- so rare that few could reasonably expect or afford to complete a set. That can of artificial scarcity maybe puts the lie to this being a "trading card" when it's more a piece of memorabilia that was barely circulated alongside trading cards.

2016 WBEI San Diego Comic-Con Exclusive Supergirl Martian Manhunter Foil Promo Card

I'd pretty much decided that I wasn't going to do a post late on a Friday night, knowing that there'd be few interested in reading anything over the weekend. However, Kevin from New Orleans asked about whether there were any other trading cards featuring David Harewood as J’onn J’onzz in Martian form, and I figured a quick peek wouldn't do any harm. As it happens, the answer is kind of yes and no. For instance, the Supergirl TV show began in 2015, with the Martian Manhunter reveal coming in December. The season wrapped in April of the following year, with the physical media set released in August. The San Diego Comic Convention occurred on July 21–24, and this metallic foil trading card was given away at that event. It's got many of the key points of the Invisible Sleuth's role in that season on the back of the card, but it's just a free promo divorced from any set. Does it count as a trading card if it was never circulated as such?

2022 Cryptozoic CZX Crisis on Infinite Earths - CZX STR PWR #S09 - David Harewood as J’onn J’onzz

I took a powder after dinner, and want to take a few days' break from the Vulture-era content that I'll be generating over the next few weeks. Trading cards seemed to be an expedient way to go, but they've become so micro-niche that I can barely decipher what to call individual cards/sets. This one was apparently devoted to the CW television adaptation of Crisis that crossed over into several of their Greg Berlanti "Arrowverse" TV series. Obviously, COIE would require a budget likely well in excess of Avengers: Endgame-levels to accurately recreate, and a fifth-rank pseudo-network's entire seasonal slate would be priced at a fraction of that. I actually watched most of these, and mostly just remember the regular casts of all the shows pairing off to talk a lot on various common sets in plain clothes. Then occasionally a bunch of them would stand around in a warehouse space in full costume, punctuated with a handful of awkward cameos that hope you can at least recognize a 70-something portly Burt Ward with a theme song flourish, or still get a tingle from that one actress that played a version of Helena Wayne twenty years earlier. I was amused enough to finish it, if they hadn't broken the event up with a winter hiatus, and I never came back. It didn't help that the only one of these shows that I ever watched repeatedly and on purpose was Supergirl, and the crossover was at least two seasons removed from my having bailed on that. So, if you ever felt cheated by a lack of coverage here, just imagine 22 variations on this type of dismissiveness across multiple seasons. Or better yet, take the win and don't.

Action Comics 2023 Annual #1 (February, 2024)

Thy foes sought slaves, to scrape and kneel.
Not fighting men of hell and steel.

I swear, you bring The Demon Etrigan into a story arc to spout a couple lines of doggerel and then get taken out by a super-kid with a sword? What are you even doing? And I have to cop to not knowing, because I only grazed the first three chapters of this serial to make sure that I wasn't missing any other Bloodwynd content. Like for instance, I though Blue Earth were just domestic super powered xenophobes, but are they from an actual Earth-Blue in the multiverse? I mean, this book starts on "Earth Al Ghul," a quasi-medievel fantasy setting and the base from which the "Empire of Shadows" conquered countless worlds in the "Dark Multiverse." I put quotations not because these aren't real things in the current DC continuity, but to speak of them mockingly from a place of ignorance, as elders do. All you nerds to brayed about how you weren't confused by multiple Earths before the Crisis? I hope you're lapping at this like a pig in slop. Then as now, you can have at it. I have always, will always, side with the Anti-Monitor on this anti-matter. That's a pun, son. Y'see, stories should matter, but when there's infinite variations on the same old crud, it's the opposite of mattering. Get it? You're a lost cause, boy.

Superman, Bloodwynd, and Etrigan saved a family from execution for defying the bad guys, hence the pull quote. Then Bloodwynd and Superman ran interference against the evil forces while The Demon advanced to the castle to save The Man of Steel's adopted daughter from being corrupted/possessed by the alternate universe granddaughter of Ra's al Ghul. *sharp inhale* But see, Etrigan stabbed in the back with Cloud Strife's ridiculously outsized sword (that's a Final Fantasy VII reference, dear child. This dumb visual had a clear cultural origin point.) by *checks Wiki* Otho-Ra. It's a lousy name, but don't worry, they recite the same Kryptonian fable twice here after having done it last issue and I saw at least once before with full visuals in a prior issue to let us all know her handle will be Starchild and her twin brother's Red Son by the time this is all over with. Nothing like completely exhausting a trademark. Just ask Strange Visitor.

There's a bit in here where Otho-Ra's arms are wrapped in chains that are said to be formed of links derived from each fallen foe, which I guess is where the new Bloodwynd also gets it from, since he's vaguely tied to Janan al Ghul's access of Earth-Zero via Hell. I didn't realize Earth-Zero was the new Earth-One, or Earth-Prime? I can't even keep track of something as basic as which Earth the name brand heroes are supposed to be on anymore. Thanks DC. It's like how I don't know if Blue Earth is an actual Earth, because those guys were also in the first three issues of the new Power Girl series starring a Gen-Z author-insert with no personality traits in common with the character I used to know, and I'm not checking for Bloodwynd there. What I do know, is that the chains hurt the minimalist Space Ghost indebted design that is arguably the best thing about the Bloodwynd concept. Kind of like how being a brash feminist with over the shoulder boulder holders was Power Girl's trademark, rather than crippling insecurity. These clouds aren't going to shout for themselves.

Giant energy portal in the sky unleashed massive space vessel flanked by faceless invaders and Man-Bats, in case things weren't already Marvel Phase Four enough around here. Blue Earth saw their two-faced leader Laura Ingraham "Norah Stone" was really Sister Shadow, and rather than doubling down by buying merch under the new branding, were convinced to repel the actual invaders alongside the Superman Family. Least realistic story element, based on our current political hellscape? After contributing little more than poor rhymes, Etrigan and Bloodwynd-- like-- gestured at the portal and made everything incoming on our side of it burst into flames? Maybe lead with that, guys. Also, The Demon claimed Janan al Ghul's soul for Hell, because something something her portal had left her indebted something infernal. Also, Bloodwynd and Etrigan stopped appearing at this point. I don't know what their deal was in this story, overall and specifically at this point.

Again, I skimmed most of the story line, so I don't know if I'm supposed to know who the construction worker who used to be a super-villain and his son are supposed to be, except the guys who tell us how awesome the Superman Family is as a capstone to the lauded recent run of the title. Which based on what I just read, was either well past the point of ending on a high note, or the kind of people willing to pay $4.99 for a monthly comic are so beaten down that this junk rates. You guys, am I just too old for corporate super-hero comics? Am I the one who needs to leave?

"New Worlds: Part Five: The Conclusion" was written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson with art by Max Raynor. It's funny how for decades artists lusted after paper quality that would allow for true blacks, and today they happily turn them back into limp grays with lame digital effects meant to make up for their inability to properly ink their own work. The visuals are otherwise fine, though necessarily a comedown from a relatively name talent like Eddy Barrows, big enough to rate actual embellishment by other hands. One thing I do find deeply annoying about both creators' work though is a tendency toward double page spreads... of narrative. Double splash pin-ups were a nuisance in the '90s, but this is horizontal multi-panel narratives throughout the books. Since it bridges writers and artists, I have to assume this comes down to editorial, or maybe a trend in the mainstream comics I don't read anymore. There's a lot of this in Rogue Sun, an Image title I was following, so maybe the latter. I hate it, because it leaves everything on a flat, narrow plane like a newspaper Sunday strip. I think they're shooting for Hitch-style "widescreen," but it has the exact opposite effect. Nothing pops, there's no surprises, plus I have to read into the staples. It's anti-comics, seemingly made for a sideways slung tablet, and even then that shrinks the image. I want nothing to do with any of this. Too much exposition and running snark this time, so no room to discuss Bloodwynd II's vague red energy zapping abilities and general pointlessness. Next week, then...

Action Comics #1060 (February, 2024)

A drunken, belching John Constantine was hanging out at a bar during a punk show when Superman walked in to plead for him to help find his daughter.

Wait. Stop. What? If this was a '90s comedy, there'd be a record scratch and voice over explainer, now a meme.

I gave up on DC in the first year of the New 52, although my connection had been on life support for years to that point. I never finished reading the 2015 "DCYou" Martian Manhunter series drawn by the swell Eddy Barrows, and barely bought any of the following volume in 2019. I was so divorced post-Rebirth that I don't even know if that maxi-series was part of a greater publishing initiative. G5? But one of the few DC things that I have bought in recent years was the Warworld mega-arc that ran for over a year and across some spin-offs. I have it in trade paperback. I haven't actually read them, but I've heard good things. While Kal-El was off in space, his rapid-aged late teens son Jon took over as the Superman of Earth. At the time, it felt like DC had finally given up on the original Man of Steel, and were transitioning to a younger model whose bisexuality made him hipper and less Übermensch-y. Except, again, everyone seemed to be loving the Warworld stuff, and Jon occasionally kissing another boy was somehow the less sexy product of the two for readers. So now the Man of Tomorrow is still your grandpa's, but he's the lead in a Superman Family title. The Kryptonian Supergirl, the Son of Superman, the Superboy from the '90s/Young Justice, the Chinese New Superman, and the armor-clad Steel with surname "Irons" offered with or without y-chromosome, as you choose. They even have matching uniforms liked an X-team. No need for a trial run, because I hate it on premise. Isn't the biggest complaint about Superman that he's overpowered, and now there's nine of them working together out of one Metropolis?

On right, the math. Yeah, there's two more. Otho-Ra and Osul-Ra are fraternal twins with powers comparable to Superman's, whom he saved from Warwold and has now adopted. If you're saying to yourself "didn't they do that with the new Flamebird and Nightwing during the 'New Krypton' period," I'll note that ended fifteen years ago. Like Chris Reeve, that thought makes me feel like catching a bullet in my teeth. I did reference the Superman Family title from the '70s, and closer to my peak fandom, the "Team Superman" that included versions of many of these properties in the '90s. Nothing ever ends or is ever truly new in mainstream comics, so instead of starting a pressure campaign against "thet queer Super@#$" like a Comicsgater, I just read more satisfying comic books elsewhere now. It's less work and stress, but you can't pretend your homophobia, racism, and misogyny are about "reverence for continuity," so it's a trade-off. And psst-- don't tell EVS, but I quietly like some of those indie comics with the non-white, non-binary, non-male characters, because they're just stories about people. Nobody's broken down my door to peg me yet. Having signaled my virtue, I can now comfortably restate that I hate most of these Super-people and they can all die painfully. But hey, I did pre-order Steelworks. I'm not a complete CIS-het monster!

Now that we're mostly caught up, I can move along to other things I hate. Like a mainstream DCU Constantine that is written as a cartoonish chav. That an adult-oriented character from a Vertigo title is in a Superman book. That of all the world class mages Superman knows, he goes to lower-tier dirty dealing gutter trash like John Constantine. That Superman spends most of the issue so distraught over a daughter that I just learned he had that he sounds like the woman screaming "my baby" at a fire and it turns out to be her cat. That the antagonists of the arc are a bunch of super-xenophobes given temporary powers, like the Everyman Program in 52 or the White Triangle Daxamites from Archie Legion, and are able to swiftly turn the populace against well-established heroes, as did the Hyperclan and G. Gordon Godfrey (but with metahuman powers of provocation.) That the big bad leading them is the parallel universe daughter of Batman and Talia al Ghul seeking revenge for a plot that was foiled in an earlier spin-off special involving a version of The Authority that is no one's favorite. Hystericalman with super-speed and hearing fails to heed a warning from Constantine, accidentally smashes the McGuffin that allowed the bad guys to travel to Earth via Hell, and releases the new team of Bloodynd and The Demon Etrigan back to our world... only to continue in a wrap-up annual. All that, just to explain how Bloodwynd's wynding arc leads to this nonsense.

"New Worlds, Part Four" was written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson. I was today years old when I realized that he and Daniel Warren Johnson are not the same guy, plus he's the new hotness giving me "next Tom King" vibes. Not a compliment, if there was any doubt. It was drawn by Eddy Barrows, who was once to Ivan Reis as Bryan Hitch was to Alan Davis, but also like Hitch, is adopting a more "realistic" looser illustrative style that I'm not as into. I thought he was just doing this for one horror story, but I guess it's for keeps. There's a bunch of other artists listed that may be drawing other pages, or just a squad of inkers, but I don't care enough to write or parse it out. I still have to read a whole ass annual of this tripe.

Action Comics Presents: Doomsday Special #1 (October, 2023)

There's a bunch of equivocating mumbo-jumbo about how in the multiverse, the collective subconscious, through the power of belief, can create a metaphysical simulacrum of yadda-yadda... but the simple truth is that the Biblical Hell exists in DC Comics, and thanks to the breakdown of the Vertigo partition, The First of Fallen from mature readers Hellblazer comics still runs it.

At the end of Dark Crisis, Doomsday was physically destroyed. In Lazarus Planet: We Once Were Gods (March, 2023), it was able to manifest from the collective memory of the city of Metropolis mumbo-jumbo yadda-yadda. Martian Manhunter confronted Doomsday, but it ultimately took the mortal sacrifice of a young man named Raphael Arce to stop the revival. However, Doomsday continued to exist in Hell, where it was building back the power necessary to break down a door to return to physical reality. This power was partly derived from the belief of the denizens of Hell that Doomsday was capable of the feat, and this faith challenged the reign of The First. So, a vision of Doomsday in Hell was sent to Martian Manhunter based on their recent interaction, J'Onn sent the vision to Supergirl so that she could interpret Kryptonian elements, and they were both suck(er)ed into Hell to serve The Fallen. With reservations, Supergirl ultimately suited up in a special armor that recalled her old foe Satan Girl, while the Sleuth from Outer Space (sorta) rallied the denizens of Hell to strengthen the barrier from Hell with their own distorted and traumatized bodies. This was all done to spare their mutual loved one Superman from having to deal with Doomsday yet again, but back in Hell, it just kept pounding away at that barrier.

"Doomsday in Hell" was by Dan Watters, Eddy Barrows, & Eber Ferreira. While Barrows had worked on the 2015 volume of the Alien Atlas' solo (maxi?) series, this version was much gawkier and vulnerable looking, suiting the Gene Colan/Tom Mandrake-inspired sketchy linework of this Halloween tale. It was nice to see J'Onn connected to Kara Zor-El again, as I tend to like their pairing more than either's with Superman (especially now that it means Supergirl has to wear a lame "team book" uniform with pants.) It still bothers me to mingle DC and Vertigo material though, especially on a darned Super-book. Feels too much like spiking the Kool-Aid at a children's birthday party. But hey, these weren't the only characters with a tale spinning out of that Lazarus Planet one-shot...

The spirit of Raphael Arce wandered the Fifth Circle of Hell, wrath, when he was discovered by a demon and attacked. Punishment was sought for the one who had brought Doomsday to Hell, and made it even worse than before. However, the demon didn't know that Arce had brought pieces of other beings to Hell with him, namely the Martian Manhunter and... Bloodwynd! Arce knew that he didn't belong in Hell, but also he felt that no one else did, either. So he had been moving from one circle of Hell to another and liberating the lost souls there with his new Bloodwynd powers. Even with them, he still needed to trick a demon in each circle to allow him passage to the next, as he Bloodwynd couldn't make the trip unescorted. See, besides the freedom trail, Bloodwynd also sought to have a word with the devil himself...

"Bloodwynd: A Superman for Hell" was by Dan Watters & Max Raynor. While implied in the first story, it's even more clear here that we now have a second confirmed member of a Bloodwynd legacy. Actually, that was even hinted at in the '90s origin story, and given that the premise is barely over thirty years old, I do find it a bit odd that a relatively new and underdeveloped property had to be put out to pasture for a new model who still bears the misfortune of being called "Bloodwynd." Heck, it would have been worth it if it meant that he would be called "Blood Gem" instead. Anyway, along with the strength and flight of O.G. Bloodwynd, the new model has chains wrapped around his wrists that he can animate Spawn-style, and he manages to take control of some Doomsday-infused giant hellhound besides. Also, all his teeth are canines? I'm not sure any of this adds to the design, and if there was one thing Bloodwynd had in his favor, it was that Space Ghost fashion.

Shirley Temple Supergirl art by Joe Phillips

Joe Phillips is probably best known for his early '90s DC work on titles like Mr. Miracle and Legion of Super-Heroes, as well as his provocative gay pride images. More recently, he's taken to alternate universe movie posters, like a 1940s Hope/Crosby JLI road picture, or my personal favorite, Clark Gable as Iron Man. Here, we have Martian Manhunter cast with Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, a noted entertainer and tap dancer, alongside his frequent co-star Shirley Temple. I remember seeing some of their features on UHF in my youth, but Robinson literally worked minstrel shows in his heyday, so he's a tad problematic by modern standards. The pairing is clearly meant to invoke the Supergirl TV show, but I'll be honest, if anyone but an African-American artist had concocted this, I'd have dodged it with all due haste. It's cute though, and Robinson had a history of advocacy to go with the... other stuff... so I figured the piece was worth a look here.

Joe Phillips

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Final Crisis: Requiem #1 (September, 2008)

Superman said the final words at the funeral of J'Onn J'Onzz, attended by Wonder Woman, Dr. Mid-Nite, Metamorpho, Zatanna, Wildcat, Grace Choi, Black Lightning, Mr. Terrific, Firestorm (Jason Rusch,) Hawkgirl (Kendra Saunders,) Starman, Booster Gold, Plastic Man, the Bulleteer, Beast Boy, Vixen, Robin (Tim Drake,) Nightwing, Green Lanterns Hal Jordan, John Stewart, Alan Scott, & Kyle Rayner, Green Arrow, Stargirl, the Arthur Joseph Curry Aquaman inexplicably in the original's costume, Starfire, Batman, Flash (Wally West,) Red Arrow, Geo-Force, Cyclone, Hawkman, Red Tornado, Steel, Huntress, Black Canary, Damage, Hourman (Rick Tyler,) Supergirl, Power Girl, Adam Strange, Ice, Gypsy and others in the background.

J'Onn J'Onzz had been lying on the floor in a villains' lair with over 300 pyro-tranq darts designed by Dr. Sivana lodged all over his body, immolating and sedating him. Perpetrators Dr. Light and Effigy lowered the so-called firewall so that they could carry him to another room under orders from the super-villain apostle Libra. Though groggy, J'Onzz began to regain consciousness en route. Libra wasted no time impaling him through the chest with his staff. The villains present in the room; Lex Luthor, Effigy, Dr. Sivana, Vandal Savage, Gorilla Grodd, Ocean Master, Dr. Light, and Talia al Ghul; were tormented by visions of a homicidal Justice League projected by J'Onzz in the throes. The Human Flame had cowered behind an armchair over the illusory sight of the Alien Atlas himself, though he was beneath notice as the Manhunter remained focused on Libra. The Martian Marvel pulled himself up from the ground by the spear and began choking Libra, but Effigy and Dr. Light blasted him with their energy powers. Burnt and exhausted, J'Onzz felt the killing cut dealt his heart by Libra from a borrowed knife from Vandal Savage. J'Onn forced a final grin.


At the moment of his death, various heroes were struck by a telepathic wave that notified them of his passing, including Superman, Batman, Dinah (but not her bedmate Ollie,) Hal, and in Detroit, Gypsy. Of all people, it was Dick Grayson who first reached the body, dangling impaled through the chest by a post driven into a large model of planet Mars. This was in New York City, after being reported by a security guard at the Rose Center for Earth and Science. It was a "Level One Omega," in super-hero parlance. The body was taken back to the headquarters of the Justice League of America, a team he was no longer a member of in a Hall of Justice that was long denied him. Hal and Ollie kept watch over him, with the former asking "Look how they slaughtered our friend. Of all of us... I can't believe he's gone." Jordan couldn't bear to close J'Onn's still eyes, but Ollie convinced him his soul was finally with his family, so Hal consented. Both were thirsty for rough justice. Later, the heroes touched by J'Onn's mind began "sleep authoring" a sort of hardbound autobiography by proxy called "Mars: A History By J'Onn J'Onzz" that recapped his 1998-2001 solo series, plus the JLA arc "Trial By Fire" and 52: WW III. Finally, Superman picked up J'Onn's pyramid ancestral home in the Gobi Desert, the Green Lanterns carted dozens of mourners, and Mars was the site of a destination funeral. The book was left on a translucent ruby coffin as the Manhunter on Mars was left lying in state. Batman, unmasked, added a Choco cookie. "Goodbye, old friend." A spectral vision of J'Onn reunited with his wife and child closed the book.

"Caretakers of Mars" was by Peter J. Tomasi, Doug Mahnke, Christian Alamy and Rodney Ramos. I didn't synopsize the story a decade ago because I knew I'd add extraneous details I easily cut today, and because I didn't want to express my anger at the book to mourning fans. Its excessively detailed yet frustratingly specific history of J'Onn J'Onzz was mostly limited to stories edited by Tomasi that I already had a difficult relationship with, coupled with a bunch of more recent material that I deeply disliked. From Hal & Ollie calling J'Onn their "favorite Martian" to the damned Choco, the whole affair felt maddeningly superficial, obvious, and corny. At least this time the significance of Gypsy in J'Onn's later life was acknowledged, and we got to see J'Onn put up some kind of fight against his murderers, instead of being put down like a whimpering dog in the core Final Crisis mini-series. The opening splash page of J'Onn in repose at the funeral was lovely, and while uneven, I enjoyed the art overall.

2017 DC Extended Universe film intro animation Martian Manhunter

I've so far been grateful that J'Onn J'Onzz has been spared involvement in Warner Brothers' lousy shared universe of motion pictures, but the hope is that Wonder Woman will mark a course correction. This is especially true now that the new animated opening from the DC films has been released, and pretty clearly features the Manhunter from Mars in a relatively prominent position.

If you look at the final Cinemascope view of the featured characters, there are roughly five groupings, with the center section dominated by the movie Justice League. Specifically, that's The Flash, Wonder Woman, Superman, Batman, and Aquaman, all of whom also got solo animation spotlights earlier in the clip. J'Onn J'Onzz's replacement as a League founder, Cyborg, also got a solo spot, but is inexplicably consigned to the fore of the second grouping at left of the JLA (subtext?) Green Lantern is also way in the background of the core group, flying upward, along with that classic icon... Atrocitus?
Ewww-kay.

In the group at right of center are a bunch of silhouettes that appear to resemble other Lantern Corpsmen, with (I think) Sinestro the most prominent but also (probably) involving Jessica Cruz and Kilowog. Less ambiguous are Nightwing (back to his blue chest symbol,) Harley Quin, and our own Alien Atlas!
...and the Green Lantern central battery. The DCEU is very invested in GLs.

How big of a deal is this? Difficult to say. J'Onn is clearer and more visible than many of the characters here, and the more obvious inclusions all have representation in films, television, and/or animation at present. His appearances on Supergirl (also included) would seem enough to qualify him, given the presences of DC's Legends of Tomorrow's Firestorm, Hawkgirl, and Hawkman (as well as Green Arrow and DC Super Hero Girls' Bumblebee.) Still, confirmed film stars like Mera, Batgirl, Shazam and Black Adam are of similar standing in the intentionally vague group shot (as is TV's Black Lightning, admittedly) so place your bets and we'll see how it pays out...

Podcast- John Ostrander & Mark Verheiden at Comicpalooza 2016

Episode #27

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Straight out of Comicpalooza - Texas' Largest Comic & Pop Culture Event comes new interviews with screenwriter/producer Mark Verheiden discussing his work on J'Onn J'Onzz and Zook in Secret Origins and Superman/Batman, then writer John Ostrander covering his three year run on the 1998 Martian Manhunter ongoing series.


We enjoy dialogue on the red planet, so here are our non-telepathic contact options:

• Tweet host Diabolu Frank directly, or probe @rolledspine as a group.
• Email Diabolu
• If the main Idol-Head of Diabolu blog isn't your thing, try the umbrella Rolled Spine Podcasts.

Podcast: Martian Manhunter's 60th Anniversary Special Part Two (1993-2016)

Episode #20

Martian Manhunter's 60th Anniversary Special:
A Celebration of the Alien Atlas, Concluded

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New York Times Program Synopsis:
A special which pays tribute to The Manhunter from Mars, the least popular co-founder of the Justice League of America and one of the greatest hanger-on associates to pop culture heroes of all time. The special interweaves memorable moments from J'onn J'onzz's television series, cartoons and comics highlighting his super powers, secret identity, acts of heroism, and personal life. Also included are comically inept text-to-audio vignettes featuring unrecorded guest stars discussing the best super-hero ever of Middletown, U.S.A.

• 00:01:38 Prelude: My Name is J'Onn J'Onzz
• 00:06:50 Reevaluating the Martian Manhunter with Grant Morrison
• 00:09:54 Justice League Task Force with Peter David
• 00:16:41 JLA with Grant Morrison, Howard Porter & Kevin Smith
• 00:30:20 Martian Manhunter solo series with John Ostrander
• 00:36:28 Elseworlds with Howard Chaykin, Darwyn Cooke & Mark Waid
• 00:47:47 Martian Marvel Media with Carlo Barberi, J. M. DeMatteis, Carl Lumbly, Phil Morris, Bruce Timm & Stan Berkowitz
• 01:02:35 Bold New Directions with A. J. Lieberman, Paul Cornell, & Matt Kindt
• 01:14:39 Commercial Interruption featuring rolled spine podcast & The Fire and Water Podcast Network
• 01:18:13 The Friends & Enemies of Martian Manhunter featuring Peter David, Phil Morris, Jim Starlin, David Harewood, Geoff Johns & Mike Carlin
• 01:55:17 Stay Tuned following messages from LanternCast, The Quarter Bin Podcast, Warlord Worlds, Pulp 2 Pixel Podcasts, Comic Reflections, King-Size Comics Giant-Size Fun
• 02:01:10 60th Birthday Party with Rob Williams, Geoff Johns & Mike Carlin
• 02:14:27 Supergirl with David Harewood, Chyler Leigh, Melissa Benoist, Kevin Smith & Andrew Kreisberg
• 02:30:50 Blue Planet for a Green Man from a Red World with Mike McKone, Peter David, J. M. DeMatteis, Howard Porter, David Harewood, Andrew Kreisberg, & Lance Reddick

Audio Source Credits

• Theme music "Blacksheep - alien" by Cyril.G Pereira from the album The Revenge of Glory (2007) with additional music from the album Diabolic (2012)
• Sal Velluto courtesy of Wizard Magazine #22 (1993)
• Christopher Priest courtesy of Digital Priest.com (2000)
• Howard Porter courtesy of Comics Coast To Coast #214 (2000)
• Grant Morrison courtesy of Fat Man on Batman Episode #27: Bat Christ (2013) & Multiversity Panel at SDCC (2015)
• Kevin Smith courtesy of Fat Man on Batman Episode #27: Bat Christ (2013) & Fat Man on Batman 103: Passion of the Kreisberg (2015)
• Kyle Rayner courtesy of Green Lantern #87 (1997)
• Wally West courtesy of Martian Manhunter #8 (1999), JLA #86 (2003), JLA: Scary Monsters #3 (2003) & JLA #92 (2004)
• Eel O'Brien courtesy of JLA #92 (2004) & DC One Million #1 (1998)
• Steve Vance courtesy of OverStreet Fan #21 (1997)
• Robert Greenberger courtesy of Millennium Edition: Detective Comics #225 (2001)
• Darryl Banks courtesy of Comics Continum.com
• John Ostrander courtesy of Dollar Bin Comics Episode 352 (2015)
• Mark Waid courtesy of Fantastic Forum (2013)
• Darwyn Cooke courtesy of Orbital in Conversation Episode 156 (2015), iFanboy - Episode 63 (2008) & ComicVineVideos SDCC (2012)
• Carl Lumbly courtesy of Sci-Fi Talk (2012), GNP Interviews (2015) & The Justice League interviewed at Comic-Con (2015)
• Bruce Timm & Stan Berkowitz courtesy of Warner Bros. Animation
• Phil Morris courtesy of SiDEBAR - COMICS, ART & POP CULTURE: Ep. 71 (2008)
• A. J. Lieberman courtesy of Where Monsters Dwell (2012)
• Paul Cornell courtesy of MTV Geek (2011), CBR TV @ CCI (2011) & Comic Book Road Show 163 (2012)
• Matt Kindt courtesy of Wayne's Comics Podcast #86 (2013) & PREVIEWSworld (2013)
• Geoff Johns & Mike Carlin courtesy of Warner Bros. Animation
• David Harewood courtesy of KSiteTV (2015), Whedonopolis Videos (2015), CBS.com (2015), Access Hollywood (2015)
• Jim Starlin courtesy of SiDEBAR (2008), Victor Rodgers (2014) and The Gorgeous Geeks (2010)
• Rob Williams courtesy of Word Balloon
• Supergirl Cast & Crew courtesy of CBS.com Supergirl Pilot (Behind the Scenes) (2015), Meet The Supergirl Cast (2015) & Stars Go Inside The Dept. of Extra-Normal Operations (2015)
• Andrew Kreisberg courtesy of Fat Man on Batman 103 & KSiteTV
• Chyler Leigh courtesy of KSiteTV
• Lance Reddick courtesy of IGN Keepin' It Reel Podcast
• Additional audio clips from the recorded programs Home Box Office, M.A.N.T.I.S. (1994), Justice League of America (1997), Justice League [Unlimited] (2001–2006), Smallville (2001–2011), The Batman (2004–2008), Robot Chicken (2005-2015), Justice League Heroes (2006), Justice League Heroes Original Soundtrack (2006), Justice League: The New Frontier (2008), Batman: The Brave and the Bold (2008–2011), Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths (2010), GraphicAudio DC Comics: DC Universe: Last Sons (2010), Young Justice (2010-2012), Justice League: Doom (2012), Injustice: Gods Among Us (2013), Lego Batman: The Movie – DC Super Heroes Unite (2013), Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League: Attack of the Legion of Doom (2015), Supergirl (2015-2016)

We enjoy dialogue on the red planet, so here are our non-telepathic contact options:

• Tweet host Diabolu Frank directly, or probe @rolledspine as a group.
• Email Diabolu
• If the main Idol-Head of Diabolu blog isn't your thing, try the umbrella Rolled Spine Podcasts.

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