Overall this issue is a bunch of foreshadowing about what is to come. There were ways it could have been creepy, but Billy’s desire to keep his identity secret prevented The Flash from fully understanding what was happening. It’s a really interesting idea to explore and I think Johns handled it well. The Flash is unaware that the hero is Billy Batson, a peer to Stargirl. He witnesses Captain Marvel resign from the JSA after The Flash voices concern about the Captain’s relationship with Stargirl. Degaton is close to DC Comics’ version of Kang the Conqueror, but he hasn’t been developed as much though Johns is currently using him as the central antagonist in his current Justice Society maxi-series.ĭegaton appears to be going on a non-linear tour of the lives of the JSA members, sometimes directly confronting them and others simply watching from a distance. As a result, he became a more confusing character when he appeared in the latter part of the 20th century because it took some time to figure out from what point in his timeline he came.

He became obsessed with using the time travel technology he helped develop to become the ruler of the Earth. Per Degaton was a classic Golden Age villain whose whole schtick was focused on time travel. Before that, though, Johns gives us a teasing episode told from the perspective of Per Degaton. He’s aware that JSA is going to be wrapped up by 2006 for a reboot, so the stories at this point are focusing on a character or two and delivering some really satisfying conclusions to their arcs. Geoff Johns was the primary writer of Infinite Crisis and led the team around it all. There are great moments, but it’s sparse as a cohesive story. I also re-read Infinite Crisis around that time, and it holds up better.

Unfortunately, having re-read and reviewed it a few years ago, Zero Hour doesn’t hold up. For the 10th anniversary, the company released Zero Hour: A Crisis in Time, a book which, as a kid, I loved because I bought every issue as it came out on the grocery store stands. Art by Sean Phillips, Don Kramer, Tom Mandrake, Jerry Ordway, and Dave Gibbonsīy May 2004, the plans for DC Comics’ 20th-anniversary celebration of Crisis on Infinite Earths were well underway.

The flash by geoff johns book six