In 2011, DC Comics decided it was time to reboot their comics line once again. First up in this New 52 were the obvious retooling of the adventures and origins of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and the Justice League. A few months later, there was an announcement for a new addition that left many of us doing a double-take. Returning to print was those junior tycoons, The Green Team after a nearly 40 year absence from store shelves.
Created by Joe Simon and Jerry Grandenetti, The Green Team was first featured in the May, 1975 issue of DC 1st Issue Special #2. The Green Team originally was a group of child millionaires that sought out adventures by investing in new and exciting projects for the investment sum of a flat one million dollars. The 2013 reboot took into effect inflation. To be a member of the 2013 Green Team, you had to have a trillion dollars or in the case of leader Commodore Murphy, the promise of such. Murphy will inherit a trust fund of $64 million dollars upon reaching his 21st birthday.
Modern day Green Team members also were teens instead of pre-pubescents. Comprising the new team was superstar actress Cecilia Sunbeam and oil tycoon J.P. Houston. J.P.'s twin sister Lucia Lynn is an honorary member. There's a fourth member of the team, the Arab prince Mohammad Qahantii. But as of the first issue, the prince isn't a member yet.
The debut issue starts off with Prince Mohammad searching out the Green Team. Eager to proof himself to his wealthy father, the prince secretly travels to a pop-up expo of scientists and researchers eager for Green Team backing. But instead of impressing the Green Team, Mohammad accidentally alerts a team of madmen eager to kill Murphy and his wealthy pals.
That's where issue #1 ends. I don't own the remaining 7 issues of this short-lived series. I also wasn't expecting to be a fan of this book. But despite the millennial take on the Green Team, I enjoyed this book. Social media wasn't something anywhere on the horizon in 1975. But the excessive of use of Wi-Fi is a natural progression of events in this comic. What I didn't expect is for Commodore Murphy planning on becoming a superhero. But once the madmen attack the expo, the Green Team leader activates a digital set of armor a la Iron Man.
The 2013 series was written by Art Baltazar and Franco (Tiny Titans). This is one of the duo's few Teen rated works. Normally, the pair are known for their all ages family fun. On art duty was the Brazilian Ig Guara (Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers) with regular covers by Harley Quinn's Amanda Conner.
The original Green Team was supposed to garner at least 2 issues. But editorial retooling and the DC implosion made it a scraped project. The modern cousin was hoped to run 52 issues. It only made it to 8, one of the first casualties of The New 52's second wave. So far, the reboot has never been compiled into a trade paperback or hardcover. So for collectors and interested parties into the rest of this story, such as I, we'll need to test our luck in the bargain bins for a good deal!
Worth Consuming!
Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.
Completing this review completes Task #1 (With a Color In The Name) of the 2022 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.
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