DC's Best Justice League Grows Old In New Recreation of Iconic Cover Art
It's been quite some time since the world was introduced to one of DC's most beloved incarnations of the Justice League. To celebrate the 35th anniversary of Justice League International, series artist Kevin Maguire has recreated the comic's most infamous cover. In a fun twist, Maguire uses his new cover to provide a look at the Leaguers had they actually aged in the last several decades.
After Crisis on Infinite Earths, writers J.M. DeMatteis and Keith Giffen were partnered with artist Kevin Maguire to create a new comic featuring the Justice League. Unlike the previous series, Justice League International was a much more comedic book that added humorous characterizations to its members, such as Martian Manhunter's notorious love of cookies. DeMatteis, Giffen and Maguire's era was defined by its comedy and attitude right from the cover of the first issue, which featured Green Lantern Guy Gardner asking any doubting reader directly "Wanna make something of it?"
Now, over three decades later, Kevin Maguire is still delivering the jokes that made fans fall for the JLI so many years ago. In a Tweet, Maguire celebrated the anniversary of the fan-favorite series saying "Now that the JLI 35th anniversary passed, I got to thinking what they might look like now and I think they MIGHT look something like this..." The artist included a recreation of the cover, showing the Justice League International 35 years older. Save for Ice, age has come hard for the Leaguers, but much like Maguire, they take it all in stride as they faithfully recreate the cover known to millions of fans.
Maguire's post was an instant hit, not only receiving thousands of likes, but commentary from fellow industry figures. J.M. DeMatteis posted a selfie of the Justice League International co-creators together, ribbing Maguire for taking inspiration from their aged appearance. Tom King also expressed his love for the image saying "Haha. No wait. Bwahahaha! Love it," in reference to the notable laugh of Blue Beetle. Though other fans expressed a bit of angst at the painful reminder of time's constant march, most replies celebrated the recreation, some even demanding to see this concept explored in a book.
The response shouldn't come as a surprise since Kevin Maguire's cover has been lampooned numerous times since its publication. The number one issues for Justice League Europe and Justice League Quarterly both served as homages to their predecessor and even Marvel got in the action with the cover to The Pulse #11. Not one to be outdone, Maguire has also done several tongue-in-cheek updates to his cover, such as creating a socially distanced version the League's notorious group shot during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The longevity of Maguire's work speaks to how highly Justice League International is still received by fans today.
35 years on, Kevin Maguire is still bringing joy to fans everywhere by keeping the spirit of JLI alive with his jocular updates. DC readers might not like seeing the effects of time so bluntly, but if the Justice League International can bear it with a smile, anyone can.
Source: Twitter