JSA Legacies Project Day 3- The Flash & The Boom #JSApril
What is JSApril?
The Justice Society of America made their debut in All-Star Comics #3 in 85 years ago. In celebration, the folks over at Fire and Water Podcasting Network have assembled bloggers, podcasters, and many more creators to honor the world’s first superhero team. Find the full list of participants and more over at Fire and Water Network’s webpage and I truly encourage you all to check out some of the amazing things people have been creating.
For JSApril, I have decided to contribute my art skills to honor the team that means a lot to me. Alongside the X-Men, the Justice Society is my favorite superhero team. The main things I love about the team is that they are a family. As much as they may bicker and squabble, at the end of the day they love and respect each other. Additionally, I find the JSA exemplifies my favorite part of DC comics and that’s LEGACY. So for fifteen days this month I will be posting watercolor art showcasing members of the Justice Society alongside their notable legacy character.
Today brings us to one of the original members of the JSA and his long lost daughter
The Flash and The Boom
When I was planning the JSA Legacies Project for JSApril, I knew early on I wanted to not only include the original Golden Age members (and later retconned in members) but also the newer members that would join the team in Robinson and Johns’ JSA run. It quickly became evident that I could pair an original member of the JSA with their respective legacy. This is great and works well. I have most of the original JSA paired with their respective legacy.
However, as I begin to pair character becomes a problem with a couple members with Jay Garrick being one of them. To me, Jay never really had a legacy member in the JSA. He obviously has a legacy with Barry, Wally, and Bart, but they never were on the JSA. I considered Johnny Quick or Jessie Quick but Johnny was more contemporary of Jay and Jessie is a legacy of her parents.
Then I remembered that DC recently introduced Judy “The Boom” Garrick, the long, lost daughter of Jay and Joan. While Judy hasn’t been on the JSA just yet, it is hard to ignore Jay’s literal legacy. Plus, I think she’s neat and there needs to be more art of her in the world.
The Flash (Jay Garrick)
I absolutely love Jay. He’s one of the few heroes that seems to enjoy being a superhero and loves being a mentor to younger heroes. Almost every single time he shows up in a comic or tv series, I get excited. That said this piece took a LOT of work.
The Process
Above are some of the earlier sketches. Drawing convincing motion is a challenge for me as I have trouble wrestling with foreshortening. It’s getting better but I always feel it looks stiff in the early, awkward stage. It took even more passes on the watercolor paper to get it right to the point I was worried that I was destroying the delicate paper. Luckily those fears were unfounded.
The Boom (Judy Garrick)
Judy is somewhat a controversial character in the JSA fandom because she is the kid of Jay and Joan, a couple that has notably never been able to have children over the years. Geoff Johns decided to retcon Jay and Joan to having a daughter that was lost with all of the other sidekicks from the Golden Age. Personally, I understand the significance to having a notable couple struggle to have children. It’s powerful to see someone like you in media. Yet, I like how they made Judy apart of this lost history. I am a sucker for a cool retcon. Also, we could use more female speedsters.
The Process
The Boom was a lot easier to draw. I had an idea of what I wanted to do early one. Her sweatshirt was a bit of a problem getting folds just right but it wasn’t that bad.
That’s a wrap for this edition of JSA Legacies Project. Check back next time for my painting of Alan Scott and his two children, Obsidian and Jade.
Social Media
You can follow along with JSApril all of the other creators on social media with #JSApril. You can always find me here or over on Bluesky and I contribute weekly to The Beat. If you are new here be sure to check out out the archives. Personally, I’m quiet proud of my History of Heroes Reborn posts. You can see my other JSApril posts here.
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