I’m So Confused: JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL SPECIAL #1, MISTER MIRACLE v2 (JLI 48)

[tcampbell1000]

While some JLI members lost their solo series after getting into the JLI, Scott Free, AKA Mister Miracle, got his back in a second volume. (All unmarked citations here are for Mister Miracle v2.) J.M. DeMatteis wrote issues #1-8 with assistance from Keith Giffen and Len Wein; Wein took over for #9-13, and Doug Moench finished it out with #14-28. The series’ central conflict was Scott and Barda trying to live out the late-20th century version of the American dream: a home in the suburbs, a repair shop that’ll support them both (boy, those were the days), no crazy super-shenanigans.

The series had some undeniable high points for JLI fans early on, including a great Barda moment, a goofier take on the Ivo murder-bots, a running toaster gag (#6-7)…






…and an extended sequence where an old-style protection racketeer--er, “insurance salesman”--gets a taste of his own medicine from an unexpected guest star (#6).





“HELP! HELP! A GIANT DOG IS TRYING TO SELL ME INSURANCE!” *chef’s kiss*

As time went on, though, it got trickier to write an entertaining series around Scott and Barda when their main goal was to be as boring as possible (#8).



Usually. Mostly. Every now and then, Barda felt the call to protest Earth-flavor injustices like animal experimentation (#10)…



Or Scott got the itch to perform, either on his own or egged on by Oberon (#11).




Did Scott want a “normal life” or didn’t he? Did Barda want to embrace nonviolence or smash injustice? It can be good story fuel for each character to have multiple conflicting desires, but this series could feel disjointed, like it couldn’t remember Scott and Barda’s exact motivations from issue to issue (#12).



But one thing was clear: the more time Scott spent trying to be a “regular repairman” in Bailey or a sometime performer, the less natural it seemed for him to globetrot into high adventure with the JLI.



What brings this to a head is the cleaning product Scott accidentally invents when he isn’t looking. It doesn't just clean your body, it cleans your SOUL (sample from #18 explains this best, though the soap is introduced much sooner).



Oberon, whose desire for the road life is more consistent, brings in an investor: Max in one of his more capitalist moods.



This version of Max seems like he might’ve been into the Club JLI idea if Booster and Beetle had gone to him instead of going behind his back. But this is still the middle period of the Giffen-DeMatteis era, so Max isn’t really THAT morally fluid. The guy he hires, on the other hand…



Sleaze though he may be, Flashman does deserve a little credit for giving this product the perfect name:



What swerves Scott from his murderous rage is a super-battle that levels not only his own shop but the whole outdoor mall along with it. There’s only one way for him to make good:




Which brings us to the “Mister Miracle World Tour.” Justice League International Special #1 bills itself as the kickoff of said tour. And much like the tour itself, it doesn’t quite go as advertised.



Plotted and roughed by Giffen, scripted by then-current Mister Miracle writer Len Wein, and arted by Joe Phillips, it’s more like a Mister Miracle special that lets a lot of Justice Leaguers stand around and do nothing of consequence.

Points of interest include Fire putting up some flaming green flags...



Flashman enjoying caviar Oreos…




And the Huntress’s most relatable moment as a member of the team. It’s not exactly “fighting a man-o’-war with a crossbow” thrilling, but they also serve who only sit and perform monitor duty:





God, could you get us any LESS excited for this tour, Len? Maybe that’s deliberate, because Scott barely has time to do a single escape before he, Oberon, and Flashman get teleported off-planet.




Don’t get too mad at Guy: he’s the only reason this comic has any action in it.





Sure, Oberon, it’s all Scott’s fault for not “dropping” Flashman after signing a binding contract with him. Also, Flashman was brought in by Max Lord, who was brought in by…you.



So now the real tour kicks off in earnest.




Again, I feel more puzzled than I should about Scott’s motives here. Not the hate for his old trafficker or for Flashman, that part’s good. But does he REALLY hate escape artistry now, or does he just think it conflicts with his desire for a simple life? If the former, that’s kind of off brand, isn’t it? Like Superman wincing and saying, “I don’t think I care for blue anymore.” If the latter, has Oberon tried telling him that lots of showbiz people go back to a quiet life between tours or shoots? Not all actors live in Hollywood!

It seems like what draws his biggest shouts of protest is the commercialism of it all. But Manga’s promo is less huckstery than Funky’s. And I’m not sure Jesus Christ himself could find fault with Scott promoting a product he invented that purifies the souls of its customers. I mean, that’s practically charity work, compared to how other contemporary celebrities were cashing in on their fame:





And why does Oberon hate this WHOLE situation after he kept pushing Scott to get back into performing? It seems like not much has changed for him! Just like before, this tour has “business partners” he doesn’t and shouldn’t trust. But it accomplishes his primary goal: getting Scott back into the escapologist’s straitjacket.

Aside from questions of motive, there are more practical matters to consider…



Well might you wonder: how would Robo-Scott explain Oberon’s sudden absence on Earth? How would the robot impersonate Scott during the rest of his scheduled world tour? How could the robot fool the rest of the JLI for more than an hour? How could it fool Barda? In order, the answers are: it didn’t, it seemed to abandon the tour, we’ll see, and the robot went to such lengths to avoid Barda that most women in her position would’ve suspected Scott was having an affair.



This little charade stretched suspension of disbelief pretty far as it was, and it would have collapsed under its own weight if the next major JLA storyline hadn’t made Scott a lot easier to impersonate. But we’ll get to that in a few more updates.

Monday: A couple of uncostumed supers navigate the morality of using their powers to meet girls.

Comments

[iamrman]

Love J'onn's comfy sweater in the lasr few scans.

Thanks for posting the special. I am reading Mister Miracle at the moment, but don't have this one.

[thanekos]

The non " fine print " of Khan's contract appears to be a pitch for a Legion of Super-Heroes story.