Word Balloon Comics Podcast Origins Of The Justice Gang With DeMatties and Maguire
Jul 13, 2025
52:43
Today, we’re throwing it back to a special conversation recorded in 2020 during the virtual Baltimore Comic Con. My guests are the legendary team of J.M. DeMatteis and Kevin Maguire, two of the creative forces—alongside Keith Giffen—behind one of the most beloved and influential Justice League runs of all time.
Their groundbreaking late-‘80s take on Justice League International reinvented the team book with heart, humor, and character-driven storytelling. It was a bold departure from grim and gritty trends, instead focusing on the humanity—and hilarity—of heroes like Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, Martian Manhunter, and Guy Gardner. And now, decades later, the spirit of that run has resurfaced in a major way, inspiring the tone and team dynamic of the Justice Gang in the new Superman film from James Gunn’s DCU.
Their groundbreaking late-‘80s take on Justice League International reinvented the team book with heart, humor, and character-driven storytelling. It was a bold departure from grim and gritty trends, instead focusing on the humanity—and hilarity—of heroes like Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, Martian Manhunter, and Guy Gardner. And now, decades later, the spirit of that run has resurfaced in a major way, inspiring the tone and team dynamic of the Justice Gang in the new Superman film from James Gunn’s DCU.