JLA/HITMAN #1 - Two for Flinchin' [Archive] - Comic Book Resources Forums

ultramandingo

09-19-2007, 09:32 PM

......."Bloodlines was an intracompany crossover that spanned all of the annuals published by DC Comics - written by Dan Raspler, with issue one at the beginning of the event drawn by Chuck Wojtkiewicz and issue two at the end of the event drawn by Sal Velluto."
- cant imagine why with talent like that

crap there were like 25 of these guys !!
- Loose Cannon: "super-strong ex-cop, a mood ring version of the Hulk whose color changes as he gets angrier"
- Geist: "ghostly night-hero, ironically only becomes visible in the dark." (dead)
-Jamm: "prodigious surfer-dude
- Anima: "Animus-summoning grunge rocker"
- Razorsharp: "sword-armed hacker" (dead)
- Edge: "blade-hurling community hero"
- Shadowstryke: "tragic hero, dark force energy
- Hook: "hook-handed former soldier
-Slingshot: "African-American heroine, power to give anything she touches an acceleration factor"
..........who says comics in the 90s sucked !

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloodlines_%28comics%29

Raker616

09-19-2007, 09:53 PM

When does this take place in the DCU?.

ultramandingo

09-19-2007, 09:58 PM

.......before hitman got killed slash canceled -back when the jla had that green lantern with the goofy mask

van_line

09-20-2007, 07:38 AM

while I was reading and enjoying the hell out of this book, i was thinking "i motherlovin love me so Ennis and Hitman". I thought John McCrea's (sorry if I misspelled it) art had a new maturity to it.

I thought Ennis really showed an excellent understanding of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman. The conversation between WW and Superman was just great.

Hitman should be a monthly title.

RogerMoore

09-20-2007, 08:41 AM

There's one thing I rave about Hitman to this day. It was the absolute capture of friendship the book had. Everytime the scene shifted to Noonan's you knew this was a group of guys who'd hung out forever. And the scenes between Nat and Tommy are still the best buddy scenes in comics so far.

I love that this issue shows the effect Tommy's crossovers have had on the JLA members. It's a nice take to have them question the morality of their short encounters with him. It's a side we don't see much in the black and white, good/evil world that the JLA commonly treads.

I miss Hitman. I'd love for DC to finish the trades, so I could share it with more friends. But for now, I cheered out loud like a retard when I saw this book had finally hit the shelves.

And one last thing. It looks like, from the dedication on the first page, that John McCrea lost his son, Luke. If that's the case, I'm really sorry that happened. Take one more second to flip through the book again and think a good thought for Luke. I did. If you ever read this Mr McCrea, I'm really sorry for your boy.

The Lucky One

09-20-2007, 11:18 AM

Great issue. Loved how it referenced all of the JLA members' individual meetings with Tommy (although wasn't he on the Watchtower once before? In issue 5, when they had their membership drive?), and the "Do the thing with the trunk again, baby" was worth the cost of the issue alone.

Would like to know what Wally's beef with Kyle is, though... I know there was some tension between them in the early days, but this seemed above and beyond anything they displayed back then. I'd imagine we'll get the explanation for that next issue.

Here's hoping this sells a ton of issues and DC finally gets around to trading the rest of the Hitman run.

-D

Brock

09-20-2007, 02:05 PM

So many laugh out loud moments

Natt's girlfriend

Green Lantern's memory of his "encounter" with Bueno Excellente

Six Pack deciding he wants to be called Parallax

Its great to see these characters back

Joe Rice

09-20-2007, 02:28 PM

I liked how affectionately Ennis used the big superheroes. Those that think all he can do is make fun of them got egg on their faces with this.

Bretlee

09-20-2007, 02:42 PM

Nobody does "guys sitting in a bar" dialogue better than Ennis.

cactusmaac

09-20-2007, 02:53 PM

I'm hoping for a Cat-Signal reference.

mgs

09-20-2007, 03:43 PM

Man, I checked this out, but decided against getting it, but....did McCrea's son die? O.o That's very sad. :(

Editing myself: I do kinda remember now, that maybe his son died a while back., I think. If so, it's an odd mention, time-wise.

StoneGold

09-20-2007, 04:08 PM

Heh, Kyle got raped by Bueno Excelente. Bueno.

Man I hope Dogwelder shows up.

spidervenom

09-20-2007, 05:12 PM

I thought it was so funny with the "do the thing with the trunk"

ultramandingo

09-20-2007, 06:02 PM

Heh, Kyle got raped by Bueno Excelente. Bueno.
.

......you know whoever edited the book had no idea what that ment and let it slip throu . its in continuity now, hes dc's ned beatty , bwah!

CBikle

09-20-2007, 09:22 PM

I liked how affectionately Ennis used the big superheroes. Those that think all he can do is make fun of them got egg on their faces with this.

Aside from Green Lantern, Ennis seemed to treat the iconic DCU characters with a lot of respect, unlike how superheroes were portrayed on his run on The Punisher. The owner of my LCS thinks this is because DC was keeping a tighter rein on Ennis than Marvel was; personally, I think it's because Ennis has a nostalgic soft spot for DCU characters (maybe he was a Superfriends fan when he was a kid ?).

filthysize

09-20-2007, 10:57 PM

Ugh, I wanted to cry reading this. It's almost as if I don't want #2 to ever come out because once it does, there will be no more Hitman comic "coming."

Hitman = still the best book Ennis has ever written. Suck it, Preacher fans.

Desaad

09-20-2007, 11:51 PM

Aside from Green Lantern, Ennis seemed to treat the iconic DCU characters with a lot of respect, unlike how superheroes were portrayed on his run on The Punisher. The owner of my LCS thinks this is because DC was keeping a tighter rein on Ennis than Marvel was; personally, I think it's because Ennis has a nostalgic soft spot for DCU characters (maybe he was a Superfriends fan when he was a kid ?).

McCrea himself has said that Ennis "has a lot of time" for Superman.

Seems he's the only superhero that necessarily gets that pass. Wonder Woman is a cold hearted amazon warrior, Batman is a bit of a prick (which isn't abnormal), Green Lantern is shat upon by all, and Flash is almost as bad as Batman (at least when it comes to Kyle).

I absolutely adored this issue. I laughed, I loved, I cried for knowing that this is pretty much the last Hitman story we will ever get.

Everyone says it should come back, that they should do another, but of course Ennis ended it the way he wanted to end it. There aren't any more stories left for him to tell.

I wish to god that weren't true though.

Pól Rua

09-21-2007, 12:55 AM

I liked how affectionately Ennis used the big superheroes. Those that think all he can do is make fun of them got egg on their faces with this.

As someone who HAS said stuff like this before, I have to say that it's not the fact that this is all Ennis CAN do, but that it's all he CHOOSES to do.

I've read 'War Stories', 'Battler Britain' and 'True Faith'. And I loved 'Hitman', but let's be honest, I thought 'The Boys' was much better twenty years ago when it was called 'Marshall Law'.

zebop

09-21-2007, 03:11 AM

McCrea himself has said that Ennis "has a lot of time" for Superman.

Seems he's the only superhero that necessarily gets that pass. Wonder Woman is a cold hearted amazon warrior, Batman is a bit of a prick (which isn't abnormal), Green Lantern is shat upon by all, and Flash is almost as bad as Batman (at least when it comes to Kyle).

I noticed that too. Everyone knows how Garth Ennis despises superheroes, but apparently he has a little bit of a soft spot for Superman.

While he allowed Green Lantern to be ridiculed and possibly sexually molested and had Tommy vomit on Batman and slobber all over Catwoman, it was only Superman that Ennis showed any respect. Oh sure, he'd never actually write a Superman story, but Ennis gave us just a small hint that he wouldn't play Supes as a complete a-hole either.

Good stuff and a nice trip back down Memory Lane. :D

Desaad

09-21-2007, 07:19 AM

I noticed that too. Everyone knows how Garth Ennis despises superheroes, but apparently he has a little bit of a soft spot for Superman.

While he allowed Green Lantern to be ridiculed and possibly sexually molested and had Tommy vomit on Batman and slobber all over Catwoman, it was only Superman that Ennis showed any respect. Oh sure, he'd never actually write a Superman story, but Ennis gave us just a small hint that he wouldn't play Supes as a complete a-hole either.

Good stuff and a nice trip back down Memory Lane. :D

He DID write a Superman story in Hitman 34, and won an eisner for it.

I'd argue that that issue was far more a Superman story than it was a Hitman story.

Also, its one of my fave Superman stories ever.

Magnificent Bastard

09-21-2007, 11:41 PM

While I applaud the sentiment . . . waiting for anything HITMAN-related to be collected just strikes me as tempting fate.

Especially, with DC's track record with collecting HITMAN books. So unless this thing sells out...

Aubergine~!

09-22-2007, 01:04 AM

Great read, God I miss Hitman.

Edit: And if by any chance this results in a Section 6/JLA team-up I will wet my pants.

IamtheRock3

09-22-2007, 07:45 PM

pretty funny stuff

yea some of super heroes were a bit off

Flash was total Ahole

But most of it was good old hitman fun with plenty of refrences for the fans

Sean Whitmore

09-23-2007, 05:23 PM

I liked how affectionately Ennis used the big superheroes. Those that think all he can do is make fun of them got egg on their faces with this.

I was honestly shocked at how straight he portrayed the capes-and-tights crowd. Especially since this series is not at all unlike his Kev stories, where a normal gunman shows up and makes the big superhero team all look like tits.

His handle on them is far from perfect...Wonder Woman came off way too cold, and Flash's hatred of GL seemed almost psychotic...and it jarred me out of the story just a little. But it's still a lot better than it could have been.

SEAN

filthysize

09-23-2007, 05:25 PM

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't this originally supposed to be an arc on JLA Classified? Could be that the editorial wouldn't allow him to screw the JLA in a major JLA title.

Sean Whitmore

09-23-2007, 05:30 PM

Could be, I suppose. But without knowing, I've got no problem crediting Ennis with simply showing restraint.

Especially in Superman's case, who he seems to have genuine affection for (between this and his Hitman appearance).

SEAN

CBikle

09-23-2007, 05:31 PM

His handle on them is far from perfect...Wonder Woman came off way too cold, and Flash's hatred of GL seemed almost psychotic...and it jarred me out of the story just a little. But it's still a lot better than it could have been.

I agree with you on WW, but the Flash-GL thing was pretty close to how Morrisson was writing them at the time (which syncs up timewise with the Hitman run).

Wally was initially pretty cold towards Kyle and did ridicule him on occasion (I think it was because Wally was in the Hal Jordan camp and saw Kyle as unworthy of the ring or something).

ultramandingo

09-23-2007, 08:00 PM

Flash was total Ahole

........he is a waaaaaay bigger a hole in "the boys"

Subotai

09-23-2007, 10:31 PM

Ennis - and Tommy - give credit to Superman for putting his money where his mouth is. Secret identities aside, he doesn't pretend to be anyone he isn't. Superman represents the best of what America is/should be.

Loved Natt's girlfriend - "Do the thing with the trunk." Hacken's little fake useless hand. And Superman signed Kyoto!

Subotai

09-23-2007, 10:34 PM

Wally was initially pretty cold towards Kyle and did ridicule him on occasion (I think it was because Wally was in the Hal Jordan camp and saw Kyle as unworthy of the ring or something).

So was Queen on his return, obviously.

Kid Kyoto

09-24-2007, 01:02 AM

Justin D.

09-24-2007, 01:05 PM

People have forgotten about Hitman #34, the issue where Hitman meets Superman for the first time that won an Eisner that year for best single issure, or never had the good fortune to read it. To this day, it's still one of the best Superman stories I've ever read. It really captured what it might be like for Superman, a superpowered alien with human sensibilities and emotions. Ennis may poke fun at superheroes, but he does have a real affection for some of them. Superman is one of them.

Perry Holley

09-25-2007, 03:41 PM

This was my favorite book of the week (beating out Ostrander's new Suicide Squad book by a hair). Great stuff, and a reminder of why I loved the original run of Hitman so much.

although wasn't he on the Watchtower once before? In issue 5, when they had their membership driveI think that was pretty much (by implication) retconned away in Hitman #34.

He DID write a Superman story in Hitman 34, and won an eisner for it.

I'd argue that that issue was far more a Superman story than it was a Hitman story.

Also, its one of my fave Superman stories ever.

People have forgotten about Hitman #34, the issue where Hitman meets Superman for the first time that won an Eisner that year for best single issure, or never had the good fortune to read it. To this day, it's still one of the best Superman stories I've ever read. It really captured what it might be like for Superman, a superpowered alien with human sensibilities and emotions. Ennis may poke fun at superheroes, but he does have a real affection for some of them. Superman is one of them.Seconding what Justin & Desaad said. Any Superman fan who has never read Hitman #34 ("Of Thee I Sing") needs to hunt down a copy, ASAP. It's pretty much tied with Alan Moore's "Whatever Happend to the Man of Tomorrow?" for my favorite Superman story.

hangmanjury

09-26-2007, 11:52 AM

Great comic; my one complaint is the treatment of Green Lantern... I was collecting JLA during the Morrison run, and the only timeframe this fits is well after Kyle and Wally had already established a friendly rapport. So the treatment was just too much, especially coming from Wally.

Other than that, great comic.

The Shadow

09-29-2007, 03:42 PM

I really wanted to pick this up, but I figured I'll just wait for it to be collected with the second issue.

Really hurt passing this...
While I applaud the sentiment . . . waiting for anything HITMAN-related to be collected just strikes me as tempting fate.

What ED said.

It's only $4 anyway... nothing to lose. If you want to read it all in one sitting... buy it and (get this!) wait for issue #2. Then read them both together. This way there's no risk in it not being collected.

DoctorDoom

10-01-2007, 10:16 AM

Freaking awesome.

Captain Smith

10-01-2007, 10:50 AM

X-ray vision look at Wonder Woman - classic funny! Like Big Boy Blue, Mr. Repressed, never scoped out all the gals of the JLA in their skin tight dudes.

hangmanjury

10-01-2007, 11:02 AM

Superman has one of the most easygoing personalities of anyone in the League, especially if you consider Batman, Diana, J'onn, and Orin are on the same team. He's been known to scope out girls with X-ray vision in his teenage years, but he just doesn't do it anymore. It's not repression, it's just respect.

Justin D.

10-02-2007, 02:17 PM

I read this the other day and loved it. It really is like a missing issue of Hitman, but Ennis and McRea have both advanced in their talents.

I didn't feel the hate for GL from Flash nearly as much as others in this thread though. Wally picked on Kyle all the time at the start of the League, and I can see him resenting the new guy being in the League because he happen to have a ring fall in his lap when Wally has been at it since he was a kid. Hell, Ennis even let GL have a moment to make Batman look stupid, and it led to this great moment of disappointment on Superman's face and guilt on Hitman's.

stealthwise

11-01-2007, 09:06 PM

Managed to grab both issues today and read them back-to-back. LOVED this story. Now I'm on the hunt to get the rest of those Hitman trades I don't have. I hope DC finishes collecting that series.

DWEarhart

11-01-2007, 09:10 PM

This was the first book with superheroes I've read in a long ass time, and I only got it because of one man - Tommy Monaghan. I feel that Garth Ennis did some damn fine writing with this book.

Really glad I have the entire Hitman run.

drwho

11-08-2007, 08:48 PM

Finally, read this. This mini was totally awesome. Not one complaint about the thing. Why haven't we seen Garth Ennis tackle the JLA before. After this, I think he could do a good job with them.

ultramandingo

11-08-2007, 10:10 PM

Why haven't we seen Garth Ennis tackle the JLA before.

.........someones not reading THE BOYS

Stressfactor

11-09-2007, 12:39 PM

I've actually been a little disappointed in "The Boys". It's all well and fun making fun of the capes and cowls set but in "the Boys" it just feels like Ennis takes it a little too far and it becomes mean-spirited. After all, he's setting up all the supers in "The Boys" just so he can shoot them down. It's too easy and too cruel.

While I loved "Preacher" there is something nice in that "Hitman" is more restrained. In some ways, I think Ennis works BETTER when he's forced to town things down for a less mature audience. I think there was a comedian once who said something about how easy it was to do profanity laced comedy and get a lot of laughs but, in the end, it was the cheap way out. It's a lot harder to craft something restrained. In "Hitman" it always shows. Less is more. Think about it, the "Do the thing with the trunk" line is a laugh riot particularly because we DON'T see anything. Would it really be that funny if we saw it all? Or if Natt spealled out what the trunk thing was in graphic detail? Bueno Excellente was funny because you never SAW him in action -- just the implications.