This is "How Can I Explain?", which is a feature spotlighting inexplicable comic book plots.

Today,based on a suggestion (well, question that could not be answered), from reader Fraser B., we take a look at the strange way that Mister Miracle joined the Justice League in 1987.

Okay, so Justice League of America #261 was the final issue of the original volume of Justice League of America. The final issue had two notable ads in it. One was for Justice League #1, featuring Mister Miracle....

The other was an ad for a Mister Miracle Special, which specifically cites Mister Miracle being in the Justice League...

Okay, so the issue ends with the Justice League breaking up because most of them are dead. Vixen and Martian Manhunter are the only ones left, and Vixen can't be a superhero any more (since she just tried to kill the villain who killed her teammates), so with him being the only member left, Manhunter decides to break up the team...

This leads directly into Legends #6. However, first in Legends #5, we see the superheroes finally having a coordinated response to Glorious Godfrey turning the entire world against sueprheroes. Doctor Fate put together a new team of superheroes...

In the final issue of the series, Martian Manhunter shows up and joins the fight, as well. They work well together...

In the end, most of the heroes there decide to band together to form a new team. Since the Justice League name was not being used, they figure that they might as well become the NEW Justice League...

Here's the thing, though, see the membership here? Superman, Flash and Changeling are all either too busy for teams or are already on another team. So that leads to the membership being what we see in Legends #6 - Martian Manhunter, Captain Marvel, Batman, Black Canary, Doctor Fate and Blue Beetle.

However, look at what the lineup is in Justice League #1...

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Yep, sure enough, Justice League #1 opens up with the team coming together for the first time and Mister Miracle is in there out of nowhere...

So, when, exactly, did he decide to join the team?

As noted before, there was a Mister Miracle Special solicited. Mark Evanier and Steve Rude was the creative team on the book, but no, it had nothing to do with Mister Miracle joining the Justice League...

Here's how it ends...

So, yeah, there never actually was an explanation for why Mister Miracle joined the team. I mean, don't get me wrong, Doctor Light was also propositioned to join the team off panel, but you would think that someone as notable as Mister Miracle would have been explained...but nope.

Okay, that's it for this installment! Thanks for the suggestion, Fraser!

If anyone has a similar inexplicable comic book plot (it can be any comic book plot that did not have a good explanation for it, like the X-Men never letting anyone know that they were alive after surviving the explosion of Magneto's Antarctic base despite multiple opportunities to do so), then drop me a line at brianc@cbr.com!