Last weekend, I rearranged my figures in my Nerd Cave to enjoy a change of pace. Also, last weekend featured a sale at a LCS and since it's been a while since I bought an figures, I decided to go nuts and pick up Kyle Rayner and Harpoon Aquaman to complete the Morrison JLA line-up --



While I know many of you hardcore DC fans probably look on this era of DC with some disgust because of the marketing gimmicks that created Kyle and grim 'n gritty Aquaman, for me, it's the definitive JLA -- mostly because Grant Morrison's JLA is the first I ever purchased and got excited about. In fact, the only other line-ups that get me nearly as pumped are the Timm/Dini animated version (and even though I have a John Stewart, it doesn't look like DC will crank out a Hawkgirl) and the Super Powers Team (which isn't technically the JLA as they were never called that during the series).

I think we all tend to think of the line-ups we first encountered a team with as the "real" or definitive versions...

So, what's your "real" versions?

JLA is already up there for me, but I encountered the Avengers first in a paperback Marvel Masterworks, so for me --

Captain America
Thor
Iron Man
Giant-Man
Wasp

And I first "met" the X-Men (and Jim Lee) through a three issue gift-set at a supermarket that collected the first three issues of 1991's X-Men --

Cyclops
Storm
Jean Grey
Wolverine
Archangel
Beast
Gambit
Rogue
Psylocke
Colossus

You get the idea? What say you?

Since it was made of WIN, anyone holding that opinion would be full of lame and FAIL. Sorry, it's just simple Aristotelian logic.

My X-Men would also be Jim Lee's Blue Strike Team.

I don't have an Avengers lineup I particularly like.

Wait, if Hanzo's theory holds true, then my Avengers would be the team with Spider Man and Wolverine. Kick ass.

I'm fine with Grant Morrison's JLA lineup.

For me, the JLA is the classic late '70s Dick Dillin line-up:
Superman
Batman
Wonder Woman
Aquaman
Green Lantern
Flash
Hawkman
Atom (on Hawkman's shoulder)
Green Arrow
Black Canary
Red Tornado
Elongated Man (in the pseudo-Plastic Man outfit)
and later Hawkwoman, Firestorm and Zatanna.

Avengers? Hmm. I was never a big fan, never really read it with any regularity. I suppose it would be
Captain America
Iron Man
Thor
Wasp
Ant-Man? Giant-Man? Goliath? Whichever. It doesn't matter. Hank Pym.
Vision
Scarlet Witch
Wonderman
Beast

I don't know if that was ever an actual line-up, but that sounds right to me.

If I have to pick an X-Men team, I suppose it'd be the Claremont/Cockrum-Byrne-Cockrum-Smith era line-up, since that's what I've read. So that'd be
Cyclops
Storm
Nightcrawler
Wolverine
Colossus
And either Banshee or Kitty, depending.

And I like the X-Men when they're 2nd tier, can't always beat everything they fight, always on the run X-Men, rather than the Invincible Ass-Beaters Who Are The Focus Of The Marvel Universe™ that they became.

Similarly, my era of Teen Titans is the Wolfman/Pérez line-up
Robin (later Nightwing)
Kid Flash
Wonder Girl
Cyborg
Starfire
Changeling
Raven

And I'm not going to list the Legion entire, but I like the '70s Levitz/Grell and later Levitz/Giffen lineup.

Our "definitive' lineup or the one we first encountered? It's not always the same, is it?

What's the question?

I think the biggest thing old school fans would probably dislike is the presence of Kyle Rayner -- but to me, he was a key part of what made the team cool. The rest of the team was made up of experienced superheroes that walked the Earth like Gods.

Kyle was the guy we could relate to -- "Holy shit, I'm in the Justice League! ME! Woo! Omigod, there's Superman! And Batman! They want me around! HELL YEAH!"

As Kyle said, "It's like playing with the Beatles."

If they're not the same, just list the one you'd prefer to.

Why are you being difficult?

I concur. In fact, it was that portrayal of the character that made me a fan. Up until then I had a very "meh" attitude towards him.

Kyle unfortunately was never blessed with good writers, first the very plain Marz and then..ugh..Winnick. Morrison was the only one who did a good job portraying the character as rising up to his legacy.

"Woah, you look like a Green Lantern"

"starting to feel like, too"

I've never read JLA, my line ups for The Avengers, The X-Men, and Teen Titans is the same as Twitchys. I'm pretty sure Hank Pym was Yellowjacket during that period.

My Teen Titans would be the Young Justice lineup: Conner, Wondy, Bart, Tim, Arrowette and Secret.

Really?

I read GL as a teenager when Kyle took over for 1 or 2 years and really liked him... felt the characterization under Marz was pretty consistent with the JLA version.

My Avengers:

The have 6 Members, as was the rule when I started reading.

Cap, who is the chairman
Thor
Iron Man
Wasp
Hawkeye
She-Hulk

I liked the concept and idea of the character a whole lot, but Marz writing never did much for me. He is an ok, but unremarkable writer. I liked some of his stories, but the character never felt truly great until he was in the JLA.

Yeah, I wasn't saying he's some brilliant writer -- I just meant that Kyle's portrayal of insecure superhero in training was already in place before JLA.

Well, that's what I was saying, it was in JLA where I started to believe he could be a great Green Lantern, not merely an insecure hero with a power ring.

+1

Like I said before, I wasn't one of the Kyle h8t0rz -- I thought the concept was fine but the execution was "meh". In JLA I grew to really like the character.

When first started collecting, there was "Classic X-Men" coming out which had the Byrne lineup:

Cyclops, Wolverine, Storm, Colossus, Nightcrawler and Banshee.

Then there was the team in Australia.

Storm, Wolverine, Colossus, Rogue, Dazzler, Longshot, Havok, Psylocke.

They kind of both impressed upon me simultaneously. And I had only started collecting because I'd seen that 1987 cartoon pilot, which was:

Cyclops, Wolverine, Storm, Colossus, Nightcrawler, Kitty Pryde, Dazzler


So all those permutations were equally "real" to me.

Kyle, of course being Stu Sutcliffe.

And Hulk, but I don't think they were all on the team at the same time. I'll go with yours.


The originals:
Marvel Girl
Cyclops
Iceman
Beast

(I liked the Blob too and wish he had accepted Professor X's offer to join the team.)

JLA:
Batman
Superman
Flash
Atom
Green Lantern
Wonder Woman
Aquaman
Green Arrow
Hawkman
Martin Manhunter

Can't remember anymore if they were all on the team at the same time. I also liked Dan Jurgens' JLA.

This line up was possible from when Hawkman (IIRC) joined until the Manhunter left Earth, which includes the period where I bought my first comic book.