JLA: The Tenth Circle [Paperback]

John Byrne (Author), Chris Claremont (Author)

Book Description

Series: JLA (DC Comics Numbered)

The Justice League of America is the ultimate dream team made up of the greatest heroes the world has ever known: Superman, the Flash, Wonder Woman, Batman, Green Lantern, Aquaman and the Martian Manhunter. A coven of vampires has set their sights on increasing their power base. With the League under attack from these mysterious beings, it is surely only a matter of time before one of them will fall...The celebrated fan-favourite team of Chris Claremont (X-Men, JLA, Fantastic Four), John Byrne (Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, X-Men) and Jerry Ordway (JLA, Superman, Wonder Woman) pits the JLA against the next generation of villainy.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Brentwood Gazette 23 Feb 2005, reviews by Matt Adams: " A first rate superhero tale.." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Chris Claremont is one of the best known writers currently working in comics. His work includes The Uncanny X-Men, Captain Britain, Fantastic Four and Gen 13. He is currently writing Excalibur. John Byrne is a veteran writer and artist, and has covered most major comic book characters, including Superman, Batman, The X-Men, Spider-Man, The Hulk and The Fantastic Four. He has also won almost every major comic book award! --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: DC Comics (December 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401203469
• ISBN-13: 978-1401203467
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 0.3 x 10.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 1.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #992,319 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Abysmal, January 1, 2005

By 

Mike Hall (Emporia, KS) - See all my reviews

This review is from: JLA: The Tenth Circle (Paperback)

Let me say up front that Byrne and Claremont were--in their heyday--two of the greatest creators in comics, and at one time I considered them the cream of the crop. Now? Well, as Tenth Circle so clearly demonstrates, now they are shambling dinosaurs apparently unaware of their own obsolescence. From embarrassingly bad dialogue to uninspired art to a story that didn't deserve to be a part of JLA history to begin with, these once undisputed masters of the medium show that inertia has rendered them irrelevant: whether through an inability to evolve or a simple refusal to do so, the creators haven't allowed their "game" to improve with time, instead attempting to mine the same vein they did in the early-to-mid 1980s. The problem is that in the 1980s they were producing state of the art material; in those pre-Watchmen, pre-Dark Knight Returns days, the audience didn't expect as much from the comics they consumed. The audience has come to expect better over the course of the years, and Byrne and Claremont would do well to get over themselves and figure that out. Neither one will ever have a hard time finding work (unlike a lot of pros these days, they at least know how to make a deadline), but unless they wake up and smell the decade, their work won't be worth reading.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Barely a JLA story, June 7, 2005

By 

Thomas Foss - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: JLA: The Tenth Circle (Paperback)

It's a shame that JLA went from Joe Kelly's generally good (and at times, excellent) arc to...this. Once upon a time, Chris Claremont was a top-notch storyteller and Byrne a fantastic artist. These days, Byrne's work looks sketchy and dated, while Claremont's writing is clunky, obvious, and blunt. The story revolves less around the Justice League and more around the "new" Doom Patrol, serving as a springboard for Byrne's revamped (or unvamped, if you read those reviews) version of that team. The implications on continuity of treating a well-established team like the Doom Patrol as if they were all-new players is never addressed, nor are any of the Leaguers' prior experience with vampires like the story's antagonist (Superman, for instance, just has a run-in with Dracula not more than a year before this story debuted). This story is uninteresting and poorly characterized (none of the leaguers are very distinct), and very much misses the high standards set by the series' previous writers like Grant Morrison (whose take on the Doom Patrol is still considered definitive and fantastic, rather than a rip-off of the X-Men, as they appear here) and Mark Waid. The Tenth Circle was an attempt to cash in on the nostalgia value of seeing Claremont and Byrne together again on an X-Men-like team. It's a JLA tale in title only, and a tale in the loosest sense of the word. Avoid this and the next book, Chuck Austen's abysmal "Pain of the Gods."

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars I wanted to like this, really I did, October 31, 2004

By 

J.D. Reichert "Comic Fanboy" (Tampa, Fl) - See all my reviews

This review is from: JLA: The Tenth Circle (Paperback)

Chris Clairmont and John Byrne reunite to try and capture the magic they had during their legendary Uncanny X-Men run. However, it was not be. This story revolves around the Crucifier, a vampire abducting children from all over the world. The JLA investigate, and soon Superman becomes a pawn of the cult. A mysterious new team emerges though, the Doom Patrol. Together they and the remaining JLA members must muster to stop the world from ending.

Some people blame John Byrne's plotting for this, others for Clairmont's scripting. I like to blame both. The story feels as though it was written 15 years ago, and was just buried away in some crypt until an adventurous DC intern unearthed it on expedition. Serving as nothing more than a springboard for the new Doom Patrol series, this was one disappointing reunion.

Should you buy this book? No, unless you're a hardcore Doom Patrol fan. Though I am, and I'm still passing. Not the worst JLA story I've ever read, but a huge disappointment considering who its done by.