JLA #38
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeJLA #38 is the third chapter of Grant Morrison's six-part 'World War III' finale to his landmark run on the series — the climax toward which his entire tenure had been building, in which the Mageddon threat (seeded across Morrison's tenure as the ancient 'anti-sun' war machine) finally arrives in full. The issue crystallizes Morrison's guiding thesis that the JLA are mythic 'forerunners' preparing humanity itself for a higher destiny, spelled out directly when Metron delivers a Mother Box to Oracle with the words 'You are only forerunners.' It also delivers one of the most quoted beats of the Morrison run — Batman turning the tables on Prometheus by quietly replacing the combat-program data in his helmet with the physical profile of physicist Stephen Hawking, reducing the otherwise unstoppable villain to helplessness — a moment that encapsulates Morrison's approach of matching cosmic-scale plotting with razor-sharp character wit.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
The issue was written by Grant Morrison, pencilled by Howard Porter, and inked by John Dell — the core creative team that had relaunched the Justice League as DC's flagship title in January 1997. Morrison stayed as writer through issue #41, with 'World War III' serving as his planned farewell arc, paying off long-planted story threads about the JLA's role as humanity's defenders against an existential, cosmos-spanning threat. Colors were by Pat Garrahy and Heroic Age (Separations), with lettering by Ken Lopez. The arc as a whole was subsequently collected in the trade paperback JLA: World War III (ISBN 978-1563896183), released in 2000, and later reprinted in JLA: The Deluxe Edition Vol. 4 and as part of the JLA by Grant Morrison Omnibus.
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- Published February 2000 (cover date); part three of the six-part 'World War III' arc spanning JLA #36–41.
- Written by Grant Morrison; pencils by Howard Porter; inks by John Dell — the same core team that launched the JLA relaunch in 1997.
- Features the pivotal Batman vs. Prometheus reversal: Batman had pre-booby-trapped Prometheus's helmet, overwriting its combat data with the physical profile of Stephen Hawking, instantly incapacitating the villain.
- Metron appears in Gotham City and delivers a Mother Box to Oracle, telling her humanity are 'forerunners' — the explicit statement of Morrison's overarching thematic thesis for the entire run.
- The Watchtower is destroyed by issue's end, with Zauriel sacrificing himself to defuse the bomb — the JLA loses its Moon base as a direct story consequence.
- Mageddon's arrival is confirmed; Martian Manhunter briefly touches its consciousness and confirms the ancient weapon is at hand, tying together foreshadowing planted across Morrison's full tenure.
- The issue marshals one of the largest supporting casts in the Morrison run: Titans, JSA, and Young Justice members appear as part of the global hero mobilization, alongside New Gods Orion and Metron.
- The story was collected in JLA: World War III (trade paperback, 2000; multiple printings), JLA: The Deluxe Edition Vol. 4 (2010), and the JLA by Grant Morrison Omnibus.
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