JLA: Year One #1

The Justice League's earliest days take center stage in this January 1998 twelve-issue maxi-series from DC, with Barry Kitson's cover bursting with the founding lineup mid-battle — the Flash streaking forward in a blur of red and yellow, Black Canary in fierce combat stance, Aquaman pressing into the fray, Martian Manhunter looming in green overhead, and a full chaos of heroes and villains tumbling across a newspaper-collage backdrop. Writers Mark Waid and Brian Augustyn frame the whole thing with a clever in-universe tabloid framing device, snippets of breathless "GOTHAM" wire-service copy visible at the cover's edges. It's a confident, kinetic opening chapter that promises a grounded, street-level look at how this legendary team first came together.