Who's really the 7th Member of the JLA's "Big Seven"

[TheRay]

I think it’s easily Martian Manhunter. The only case for it not being him is that “he’s too similar to Superman”, but that’s just not true. At least not true enough to discount his place with the League.

[Riv86672]

Yep,most have picked J'onn. But if I were going to make a cartoon with 7 members it would probably be Robin.

^^^A kind of updated Superfriends is what you made me think of.

Wonder Woman is one of the big members on the JL based on lipservice only. She is treated like useless trash most of the time. So i would ask who is the real sixth big member first.

^^^You should start a thread/poll for that.

[Laser_Man]

Wonder Woman is one of the big members on the JL based on lipservice only. She is treated like useless trash most of the time. So i would ask who is the real sixth big member first.

Exactly. I struggle to think of even one JLA story where WW had any substantial role ("League of One" is a WW story to me so it doesn't count).

WW is reduced to just being the "girl" in the team. She will either be flirting with one of the other members or being hit on by everyone else. New 52 was especially bad in this, but its not like things are better outside. Even Morrison's accliamed JLA run barely had her do anything at all.

I remember JLA: Earth 2 which has her on the front cover with Batman and Superman, but in the actual story, she is pretty much non-existent. Every other Leaguer gets their moment to shine, but WW just hangs around without doing anything.

[Riv86672]

[Jim Kelly]

From reading the 1960s comics, I think I prefer Wonder Woman in the JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA (prior to when she gave up her powers) to her own comic from the same timeframe. Not that I have anything against Bob Kanigher, Ross Andru and Mike Esposito--but her adventures with the Justice League were more my style of super-hero comics.

[The Darknight Detective]

From reading the 1960s comics, I think I prefer Wonder Woman in the JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA (prior to when she gave up her powers) to her own comic from the same timeframe. Not that I have anything against Bob Kanigher, Ross Andru and Mike Esposito--but her adventures with the Justice League were more my style of super-hero comics.

I tend to agree, Jim.

[Rac7d*]

I think it’s easily Martian Manhunter. The only case for it not being him is that “he’s too similar to Superman”, but that’s just not true. At least not true enough to discount his place with the League.

Then where is my Martian man hunter sneaker?

https://x.com/dcofficial/status/1720...jJ3z6TXVzl8ksw

[Riv86672]

Then where is my Martian man hunter sneaker?

[Jim Kelly]

I have no proof of this, but I've always thought the real reason Martian Manhunter was gotten rid of in 1968 is that he no longer made sense to fans and writers. By then there was a certain wave of skepticism sweeping over comic books and the idea of a man from Mars just seemed too ridiculous. In the mid 1950s, people thought that there could be life on Mars--by 1968, it might not have been proven there was no life (still hasn't) but it was certainly clear there were no green men on Mars--and we were going to the Moon, it was only a matter of time before we reached the red planet.

So J'Onn J'Onzz was sent packing. What I can't understand is how they've been able to justify his existence since then. Given that I like the Manhunter from Mars, I'm willing to issue him an artistic license, so we can keep having stories about him. But in order to do that I've had to smelter certain head canon balls. I don't know, maybe there is some explanation for it in the actual comic books. And most fans seem to be cool with the Martian Manhunter, even when they aren't cool with other things like men and women who could be in their nineties still looking like they are in their thirties (which has been explained in many different ways in the comic books, yet fans still are complaining about it).

[Godzilla2099]

Superman
Batman
Wonder Woman
Green Lantern
Flash
Aquaman
Martian Manhunter

That's the Magnificent 7

[The Darknight Detective]

I have no proof of this, but I've always thought the real reason Martian Manhunter was gotten rid of in 1968 is that he no longer made sense to fans and writers. By then there was a certain wave of skepticism sweeping over comic books and the idea of a man from Mars just seemed too ridiculous. In the mid 1950s, people thought that there could be life on Mars--by 1968, it might not have been proven there was no life (still hasn't) but it was certainly clear there were no green men on Mars--and we were going to the Moon, it was only a matter of time before we reached the red planet.

So J'Onn J'Onzz was sent packing. What I can't understand is how they've been able to justify his existence since then. Given that I like the Manhunter from Mars, I'm willing to issue him an artistic license, so we can keep having stories about him. But in order to do that I've had to smelter certain head canon balls. I don't know, maybe there is some explanation for it in the actual comic books. And most fans seem to be cool with the Martian Manhunter, even when they aren't cool with other things like men and women who could be in their nineties still looking like they are in their thirties (which has been explained in many different ways in the comic books, yet fans still are complaining about it).

You might be right, Jim. The moon people story in Dick Tracy disappeared basically overnight around the same time after Apollo 11, FWIW.

[Riv86672]

Sounds like GA was, at best, as popular as MM by the time the JLA was formed, so he lost out for whatever reason.

^^^Saw this and thought of the MM/GA conversation here.

[HsssH]

I have no proof of this, but I've always thought the real reason Martian Manhunter was gotten rid of in 1968 is that he no longer made sense to fans and writers. By then there was a certain wave of skepticism sweeping over comic books and the idea of a man from Mars just seemed too ridiculous. In the mid 1950s, people thought that there could be life on Mars--by 1968, it might not have been proven there was no life (still hasn't) but it was certainly clear there were no green men on Mars--and we were going to the Moon, it was only a matter of time before we reached the red planet.

So J'Onn J'Onzz was sent packing. What I can't understand is how they've been able to justify his existence since then. Given that I like the Manhunter from Mars, I'm willing to issue him an artistic license, so we can keep having stories about him. But in order to do that I've had to smelter certain head canon balls. I don't know, maybe there is some explanation for it in the actual comic books. And most fans seem to be cool with the Martian Manhunter, even when they aren't cool with other things like men and women who could be in their nineties still looking like they are in their thirties (which has been explained in many different ways in the comic books, yet fans still are complaining about it).

I think it is a combo of him being classic JLA member and being used in adaptations as a fake representation.

But if we look at his ongoings? Something like 75 issues over 5 volumes, abysmal numbers when compared to other JLA founders and regulars.

[Adekis]

I love Cyborg, and I'm a big fan of him being on the League.

But it's Martian Manhunter.

[Jon Clark]

I have no proof of this, but I've always thought the real reason Martian Manhunter was gotten rid of in 1968 is that he no longer made sense to fans and writers. By then there was a certain wave of skepticism sweeping over comic books and the idea of a man from Mars just seemed too ridiculous. In the mid 1950s, people thought that there could be life on Mars--by 1968, it might not have been proven there was no life (still hasn't) but it was certainly clear there were no green men on Mars--and we were going to the Moon, it was only a matter of time before we reached the red planet.

So J'Onn J'Onzz was sent packing. What I can't understand is how they've been able to justify his existence since then. Given that I like the Manhunter from Mars, I'm willing to issue him an artistic license, so we can keep having stories about him. But in order to do that I've had to smelter certain head canon balls. I don't know, maybe there is some explanation for it in the actual comic books. And most fans seem to be cool with the Martian Manhunter, even when they aren't cool with other things like men and women who could be in their nineties still looking like they are in their thirties (which has been explained in many different ways in the comic books, yet fans still are complaining about it).

Remember this is a medium where you get more complaints about Lois not being able to recognize Superman disguised as Clark than you get complaints about Superman being able to fly out of black holes or shrug off anti-matter.

For some we accept certain things like a hidden civilization on Mars easier than we do things that challenge the everyday ("A Martian, I can buy, getting a new identity established after coming from Mars, not so much")

Others are more conditioned by years of reading. I can accept X, Y, and Z about Superman and Batman who I've been reading since i was a kid, but I have problems accepting it with a brand new character now that I'm older (like over 13) For them having read J'onn either pre-1968 or post-1984 the idea of Martians (or Thanagarians, Kryptonians,...) by passes the part of the brain that would question it.

And lastly you have the people with axes to grind. They feel threatened by certain characters (they will outsell my favorite or replace them on some team) or have to push the collness badge cred (I can read Character X but how could anyone read THAT). And for all his (deserved) fans he manages to stay just low enough on the radar not to catch the attention of either type very often.