By Brian Eason & Justin Eger

"We could use a little more Justice in the world." - The Flash

Welcome to TRINGENUTY, CBR's ongoing commentary of DC Comics' weekly superhero series, "Trinity." The title is divided into two features; the first focuses on Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, while the second feature portrays background or tangential events that relate to the ongoing lead storyline. "Trinity" is a weekly series that is promised to be epic in scale and help define the trio of heroes' mythical place in the DC Universe.

PREVIOUSLY

In ancient Egypt, dark powers overcame the benevolent rule of Prince Khufu. The changes wrought to the world did not come before Khufu laid plans for the future, however, leaving clues to provide heroes to come with the knowledge he had gleaned from the gods: this world needs a Trinity. Among those items, the scroll provided to Tarot by Alfred Pennyworth.

Carter Hall (the former Hawkman), leader of the JLI, ordered his forces to engage Morgaine LeFey and Enigma. In Gotham, Green Arrow and Speedy disappeared as the universe attempted to correct the changes made by the Troika. Taking the roll of the caped crusaders, Ragman and Tatters suddenly found themselves the caretaker's of Gotham. Gehenna escaped the JSI using teleportation, but was reacquired by Tomorrow Woman. Confusion reigned as it appeared that Tomorrow Woman was in two places while the Universe attempted to right itself again. And the android appeared in Metropolis, battling the Ultra-Humanite.

TRINITY #23

From the JLI’s main headquarters at the United Nations building in New York, Carter Hall is informed of a series of changes happening in his world. In Europe, the JLI was crushed by a transformed Morgaine Le Fey, while an assortment of cities back home receive protection from a handful of transformed and transported heroes. Gotham’s newest protectors, Ragman and Tatters, have arrested the Catwoman, while Tomorrow Woman, no longer a JLI member, saves Metropolis. And in Washington, D.C., Black Adam does battle with the forces of Ares, all while The Flash, a member of the underground Justice League, saves people caught in the crossfire. All this signals something wrong with Hall’s established order in the world, though some clues are provided by a mindscan of the captured Firestorm. But, back in Europe, Morgaine has returned, has sets Paris ablaze.

In deep space, John Stewart continues to battle the Void Hound trapped inside his Green Lantern ring and the Hound opens a wormhole. Meanwhile, we learn how the escaping Kanjar-Ro managed to impersonate Despero and join the Troika. Ro discovers John's wormhole and that it leads straight to Despero. For his part, Despero seeks bloody revenge against Ro and has assembled any army of planetary sized proportions to handle the task. His plan is to invade Earth using the quickest route: the newly created wormhole. The feature closes as Krona observes this strange series of events with great interest.

COMMENTARY

Justin Eger: Looks like the advanced powers of Moragine and Enigma made short work of more than a few JSI agents, eh?

Brian Eason: Well, they are "nearly" gods. But, yes, surprisingly short work.

JE: I have to wonder if it could be in part of a lack of organization on the part of the JSI.

BE:Â They seem to have too much organization and lack strong independent decision making skills. After all, they never had the Trinity as a model for that.

JE: The exact opposite of the "too many cooks" scenario? Interesting. I have to say, Mark Bagley is really getting a nice grip on all these characters.

BE: He does, and his art style is become a much more familiar look for these folks. Either his Marvel style is evolving or I am just getting used to it.

JE: I like the look of his DCU. Our theory about the world resetting itself has some merit. Tomorrow Woman in Metropolis, Ragman is now covering Gotham, and even Green Arrow is back at home in Star City.

BE: And what of Wonder Woman's stomping grounds in Washington D.C.?

JE: We get Black Adam, and he's not happy at all.

BE: Is he ever? This is a perpetually angry character.

JE: No arguments here, but he was also kind of in the middle of something when he got shifted to D.C., which makes me think that he's somehow partially immune to the changes (witness G.A. later in the issue).

BE: At the risk of over-analyzing these reactions, I believe the Universe is making "course corrections" as it sees a need, if there is a sentience behind the Universe (as Krona indicates) then it is correcting things as they crop up. In this case, there is a protector for Washington that is missing and that protector has the powers of the gods, so it grabs Black Adam. He has no logical reason for being there (unlike Green Arrow and Star City) and therefore is confused by the sudden shift. It could be that or simply a literary device on the part of Busiek.

JE: You were right on Tomorrow Woman filling in for Superman, (complete with secret identity).

BE:Â Clara Kendall? When the Universe does a re-write, it stays pretty close to the mark.

JE: I'm interested to see the interaction between "Clara" and Lois Lane.

BE: Yes, I'm wondering if having Clark Kent's role filled by a woman will be enough to jar Lois into recognizing that there are inconsistencies.Â

JE: I would certainly think so, because it seems like without Clark around to keep her on the straight and narrow, Lois changed dramatically.Â

BE: Or, rather, she didn't change. She started off as the hard charging journo and just became more so.

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JE: To be honest, I'd like to see a Tomorrow Woman miniseries with Mark Bagley. How about you?

BE: I'd just like to see her return. I was a big fan. Bagley on the art would be a huge bonus.

JE: And we had figured Ragman was a nice new fit for Gotham, but Black Adam in the Wonder Woman role?

BE: Mystic origin powerhouse? Has to be.

JE: But so angry and vicious, i.e. so generally unlike Diana.

BE: But both are warriors with the powers of the gods, in a twisted way, it fits.

JE: "City sentinels," Carter Hall called them.

BE: A fitting description. The JSI has long outgrown hometown heroism in favor of globalism.

JE: It's a very technical way to look at it, which is quite the insight into Carter's current personality.

BE: And how Hawkman got where he is has yet to be told. Obviously, as Khufu, Hall was aware that the Universe was missing a vital component of reality.Â

BE: Oh, and it looks like we called it correctly, that was indeed Brainwave among the JSI members and he has uncovered memories of the Trinity from Gehenna.

JE: Hey, we're good. That was an interesting visualization. A big picture of what could arguably be our most important heroes, and Hall can only recognize one of them.

BE: Yes, Roy Harper, the "Crimson Arrow." Looking at the scene, this is a logical progression, Aquaman was never allowed to "invade" the surface world, Hal Jordan is not a Green Lantern and all the rest are directly tied to the Trinity.

JE: And now we learn that there is actually a Justice League around, not just the Justice Society.

BE: But was there a Justice League before the universe started righting itself? The Flash was regarded as an also-ran, now he's filling a bigger role.

JE: Good point. There seems to be an additional void being filled, here. Now, I have to wonder about membership, and if we'll see them all together in the near future. Now, Jose and Tarot have completed the next leg of their journey, arriving at the U.N. and the headquarters of the JSI. Any thoughts on who Tarot might be going to see in Opal City?

BE: No question in my mind: Charity, Opal City's resident mystic and Tarot card reader, from James Robinson and Tony Harris’ "Starman."

JE: Ah, very nice.

BE: It just seems like too good of a match to be anything else.

JE: Morgaine reappears as we close out the issue, giving the business to Paris and transforming the Crimson Fox. That's an ugly scene.

BE: It is and I am interested in seeing what sort of transformations that Enigma has in mind.

JE: That thought hadn't even crossed my mind, though I had been curious about where Enigma might have gone. This leads me to another question: Where's our Edward Nygma in all of this?

BE: Still seeking to clear his name and unravel the mystery of Enigma, I imagine, even in this upside down world. John Stewart seems to be losing control of the Void Hound.

JE: Very true. It almost looks like its sublimating him and then channeling his powers for its own use.

BE: Only John's will is keeping it from dominating him entirely.

JE: Better hope John's got a lot of willpower then.

BE: And this thing can open a worm hole. That's some power.

JE: Handy, at the least, for an interstellar traveler, though I'm now curious as to what else the combination of Green lantern energies and Qwardian technology can provide.

BE: Look no further than Sinestro for that answer.Â

JE: Very good point, and something else to consider, as well. At the risk of, as you said, overanalyzing the situation, what if the universe is trying to reestablish its evils through John Stewart?

BE: Interesting thought, I think it's likely that it is leading Despero right to the Troika, completing the circuit, as it were. Kanjar-Ro is the sneakiest little villain around, but darned clever.

JE: I was never a big fan, but he's getting some interesting use here. I'm excited to see where this all leads, and if Despero will get his share of the power on Earth. Speaking of Despero...

BE: Our worm hole leads to Despero. What a coincidence.

JE: There is no such thing as coincidence, just good plotting.

BE: And this is very good plotting, there seems to be a huge sense of destiny around the whole thing. Despero doesn't seem to be taking his ambush by Ro in stride.

JE: Would you? You're the baddest guy around, able to level populations with a few sweeps of the sword, and a snivieling little backstabber catches you unawares? I'd be madder than a hornet right now.

BE: Exactly. And Despero is not one for holding in his temper. Kanjar-Ro will pay the price and Earth will likely stand in the crossfire.

JE: And without a solid Trinity, that means things could get ugly.

BE: And watching it all from on high? Krona.

JE: Could all this be working its way right into his hands? Everything he's got handy could do some serious damage. John Stewart, Despero's army... that's a lot of firepower.

BE: Krona's plans have always been fluid. He has amazing power, but his plans never seem to work out, so he adjusts. I think that's more of what we're seeing here.

JE: And there will most certainly be far more of that to come, I would imagine.