DC COMICS
WRITER: Garth Ennis
ARTIST/COVER: John McCrea

Hitman returns to save the JLA's bacon in this flahback tale from the days before Tommy Monaghan got killed. It seems the monsters who first created the BLOODLINES characters are back and the League needs a sample fron one of the heroes they infected in order to fight them. They could have gone to Geist or Hook but since HITMAN was the only real success that came out of the whole BLOODLINES event, they went to him. Continuity is not forgotten as the creative team links this story with the tales that appeared in the now-cancelled HITMAN comic where our favourite gun-for-hire encountered various JLA members. This tends to slow the action down a bit as the heroes and Monaghan have to explain how they met and then reflect on what to do with the armed killer in their midst. Ennis, whose dislike for superheroes is well-known, shows some restraint by not making the JLA out to be complete boobs who Tommy easily outsmarts. While the first parts of the tale are rather 'talky', there is a real sense of danger in the latter half when it becomes apparent that the monsters have a way of neutralizing the heroes' powers. The art however is rather lackluster. It is competent but doesn't really show off the spectacle of the League and their amazing moonbase. Perhaps McCrea's style isn't really suited for sci-fi and superhero settings. Two and a half stars out of three.