10 Times The Justice League Was In Over Its Head
The Justice League is a force to be reckoned with, an assemblage of the most powerful superheroes on Earth. Together, the team has faced threats like no others, battling supervillains, gods, and otherworldly horrors. The League has defeated them all, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. The League is stacked with talent, but the threats they face can be even worse.
The Justice League, by its very definition, takes on enemies that no other hero or team of heroes can face, like Darkseid or the Anti-Monitor. Many situations have seen them in over their head, before they figure out a way to turn the tide and win. There’s a reason they’re the best, after all.
10 Crisis On Infinite Earths
DC’s had many great crossovers, but none can match the scope of Crisis on Infinite Earths, by writer Marv Wolfman and artist/co-plotter George Pérez and Jerry Ordway. The Anti-Monitor’s attack on reality destroyed countless universes, and no force was able to stop him. The heroes of Earth-1, Earth-2, Earth-S, and Earth-X found themselves against an opponent who could defeat them easily.
Every time it seemed like they had made a plan to beat the Anti-Monitor, he was able to overcome it or trick them into thinking they won. It was a game of chess, where the Anti-Monitor was able to counter everything and raise the stakes with each move. It finally came down to a desperate battle that finally destroyed the Anti-Monitor.
9 Final Night
The Justice League can fight nearly any enemy, but there are some things that even their powers can’t help them with. Final Night, by writer Karl Kessel and artist Stuart Immonen, put the Justice League and the heroes of Earth into that situation. A Sun-Eater came to the Sol System and lived up to its name, eating the sun and dooming life on Earth.
The League and their allies could do nearly do anything, but reigniting the sun was beyond them. Nothing they did worked, and the team eventually resigned themselves to failure. However, Hal Jordan, then the villainous Parallax, sacrificed his life to reignite the sun.
8 JLA: The Nail
JLA: The Nail, by writer/artist Alan Davis, is an Elseworlds classic that took place on a world where the Kents never found baby Kal-El. The Justice League, sans Superman, found themselves in a terrible situation, as a secret enemy turned the public against them before picking them off one at a time. The team’s attempts to figure out what was going on were met with failure.
The master manipulator was revealed to be Jimmy Olsen. Experimented on by Lex Luthor and spliced with Kryptonian DNA found at the crash site of Kal-El’s rocket, Olsen finally faced off against the League at the Kent farm. They were saved by Kal-El, who had been found by Amish farmers. Soon after, Kal joined the Justice League as Superman.
7 Final Crisis
Final Crisis stands tall among the best DC comics of the 2000s. Written by Grant Morrison with art by J.G. Jones, Carlos Pacheco, and Doug Mahnke, the Justice League were blindsided by Darkseid and his servants working from the shadows. From the death of Orion to Hal Jordan being arrested by the Alpha Lanterns to Batman disappearing and Lois Lane being heavily injured, sidelining Superman, the League was inundated with losses.
With the League at their lowest, Darkseid made his move. Uploading the Anti-Life Equation to the Internet, he took over the half the planet in seconds. The heroes were on the back foot, until the returns of Superman, Hal, Wally West, Barry Allen, and more, turning the tide against Darkseid when all hope was lost.
6 JLA: New World Order
DC Unlimited has amazing Justice League stories, including the stellar JLA: New World Order, by writer Grant Morrison and artist Howard Porter. When a mysterious new group of heroes hit the scene called the Hyperclan, the League was suspicious. The Hyperclan gained public esteem by their showy heroics, which causes the League to distrust them even more.
The Hyperclan soon showed their real spots, attacking and taking the League hostage. They were White Martians the whole time and their plan was simple: soften up the Earth for invasion. It all would have worked if Batman hadn’t escaped, figured out their secret, and broke his friends free, with the help of Martian Manhunter.
5 Dark Knights: Death Metal
The Justice League has fought some brutal battles, with the fight against Perpetua and the Batman Who Laughs in Dark Knights: Death Metal, by writer Scott Snyder and artist Greg Capullo, almost hopeless. Perpetua had already defeated the League, as the people of the universe had chosen Doom. Unleashing the Dark Multiverse on the Earth, she was the undisputed ruler of all.
The heroes were completely demoralized and defeated, as Perpetua and the Batman Who Laughs held all the cards. The only one who was unbowed was Wonder Woman, secretly preparing to rebel against the world’s new rulers while she ostensibly worked for them. She rallied the remaining heroes and was able to turn the tide.
4 Infinite Crisis
Justice League stories are fill of twists, but one had dire consequences for the team. Infinite Crisis, by writer Geoff Johns and artists Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, revealed that Alexander Luthor, Superboy-Prime, and the Superman and Lois Lane of Earth-2 were returning to “fix” the DC Universe. While Superman was genuine, Prime and Luthor had their own plans.
Prime and Luthor had been coming to the DC Universe in secret for a while, manipulating events in their favor. The Justice League itself was at its lowest ebb, the team torn apart by internal squabbles. They came back together and triumphed, but the odds were completely against them.
3 Justice League America #69
Doomsday’s attack eventually cost Superman his life, as he gave his all to stop the monster before it got to Metropolis. The Justice League lent a hand in Justice League America #69, by writer/artist Dan Jurgens, but was stomped by the monster. There was a simple reason for this: the League was extremely underpowered.
Consisting of Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, Maxima, Guy Gardner, Fire, Ice, and Bloodwynd, Doomsday ran through them like they weren’t even there. The beast overpowered them in every way. While it was noble of them to try, they had no chance of even making a dent.
2 JLA: Rock Of Ages
The Justice League often surprises fans, but few stories can match JLA: Rock of Ages, by writer Grant Morrison and artists Howard Porter and Gary Frank. The story pit the team against Lex Luthor’s new Injustice Gang – the Joker, Circe, Ocean Master, Mirror Master, and Doctor Light. Lex had an ace in the hole, though, a powerful artifact called the Worlogog.
The Gang outsmarted the League at every turn, but the heroes triumphed. However, a jaunt to the future by Flash, Green Lantern, and Aquaman revealed that the League’s destruction of the Worlogog doomed the world, allowing Darkseid to take over. The trio was able to get back to the present and save the Worlogog right in time, but things were close.
1 JLA: World War III
The Justice League has faced the terrible threats, but few could match Mageddon. The battle against the Anti-God was chronicled in JLA: World War III, by writer Grant Morrison and artist Howard Porter. Mageddon was a weapon of the Third World, a universal destroyer created by the Old Gods. Unleashed from the Underverse, it made its inexorable way to the Earth.
Fomenting destruction in every destruction, it didn’t help that Luthor’s new Injustice Gang was spurred on to attack by Mageddon’s influence. The League defeated the Gang, but Mageddon proved to be too much for them. However, they made a desperate plan, using the Purple Ray to give everyone on Earth powers. The combined powers of every human were able to drive Mageddon back, saving all creation.