JLA #109 (February 2005)

"Syndicate Rules Part Three: Aftershock"

Credits

Character Appearances

Featuring

Villains

Groups and Henchmen

  • Thunderers of Qward (The army of Qward; long-time opponents of the Green Lantern Corps)
  • Weaponeers of Qward (The technicians and engineers of Qward; designers of Sinestro’s yellow power ring)

Story Details

Locations

  • Panopticon (lunar headquarters of the Crime Syndicate; a parallel of the JLA Watchtower)
  • The planet Qward - grpMatter Earth

Continuity

The Volthoom entity cannot lie. The Qwardian Empire once stretched across nine universes. Untold tales: The JLA battles a Water Monster near Madagascar and a monster comprised of seismic waves in the Arctic.

References

Johnny Quick’s Tailor’s Shop in Central City ia probably the Gambi shop - the long running establishment that supplies costumes to the Flashes Rogues Gallery. The poster Power Ring rips on the cover is the same one John Stewart is depicted in front on on the cover of JLA #103 (Early Oct 2004).

Comments

A little bit of Power Ring III’s back story is revealed. He had been in Amerika’s Slave Marines, but had won this freedom before joining “one of Malcolm’s attack squads” - possibly a paramilitary version of Malcolm X’s Black Panthers - by the time he was approached by Harrolds (presumably the first Power Ring) to be his chosen substitute.

Synopsis

On the mirror Earth of the anti-matter universe the Crime Syndicate have discovered that their universe has been destroyed and then imperfectly recreated without their apparent knowledge. They are alerted to the change by the presence of a different Power Ring - a John Stewart analogue rather than a Kyle Rayner analogue. The Volthoom entity explains the nature of change and that the epicentre was focused on the positive-matter Earth. The Syndicate automatically assumes that the Justice League was involved and make plans to infiltrate their world.

The Qwardians have also discovered the recreation of their universe, but First Weaponlord Varnathon is unwilling to directly intervene in the matter and would rather use Qward’s client empires to attack the Crime Syndicate. Commander Roval of the Thunderers can no longer abide Varnathon’s cowardice and he murders him before the assembled commanders of Qward. Roval makes an impassioned plea to them that it is time for a return to the old ways and seizing the Weapons of Rengar declares himself Highlord of Qward. His first act is to appoint Diataria Lysis as First Weaponeer - effectively neutering opposition from the Weaponeers.

Meanwhile in the matter universe the Justice League has been kept busy fighting a series of monsters that have been created as a side-effect of the cosmic realignment. The Crime Syndicate block the Watchtowers sensors and to go on an impromptu crime wave. They set the Matter/Antimatter Reversal Gate for a 36-hour count down - that givens then the advantage of 12 extra hours on the matter Earth before their League counterparts are sucked into the Antimatter Universe. Owlman quickly sets up bank accounts and identity records to cover their presence. Johnny Quick then has the idea of borrowing the Justice League’s identities so they can operate in public without raising suspicion.

Review

See JLA #107 for a complete review of this story arc.

(6/10)

Back to the: [JLA Index]