Crossover #4: Justice League Task Force

I maintain that the only man capable of pulling off a mullet was MacGyver... hell, even today Richard Dean Anderson still looks cool with that haircut when I find myself watching reruns. But, overall, it was a look that should never have outlasted the 70s that somehow has managed to limp along and provide me with a lot of mean-spirited entertainment over the years. For some strange reason, though, it was deemed a good look for Superman in the mid-90s when he was resurrected following the "Reign of the Supermen" story arc. Damn you, Dan Jurgens.

The only video game to feature this unfortunate hairstyle was Justice League Task Force, a 2-D fighting game developed by no less than Blizzard Entertainment (this was just after the first Warcraft had been published, so they weren't at the point of always making games they wanted to yet) that features a small cast of core Justice League members duking it out amongst themselves and going up against the villains Cheetah, Despero, and Darkseid.

The game's plot is extremely simple and the first of its weaknesses: Darkseid attacks a military base on Earth. The League member you play as chooses to investigate the situation, only to be attacked by their fellow heroes when they try to gather information. Eventually, the hero follows a trail that ultimately leads to a showdown with Darkseid in one of the most anticlimactic boss battles ever.

As fighting games on the SNES or Genesis go, Task Force isn't terrible. The graphics are certainly impressive for the technology they're displayed on (though, admittedly, the SNES version's visuals are far superior in terms of style and detail), and the sound is decent, but the controls are a little sluggish and opponents are incredibly easy to overcome once you figure out your heroes power moves.

What kills the game for so many comic fans is the fact that it pits a number of comic characters of vastly different power levels against one another with absolutely no explanation as to how someone like Green Arrow could beat the stuffing out of Superman or Darkseid with nothing more than a standard bow and arrow. Not that I had a problem re-enacting that climactic battle between the Man of Steel and the Dark Knight from The Dark Knight Returns, but it was a little frustrating if one applied any comic book logic.

I actually still have my copy of the game, sitting under the TV in a little box collecting dust. I'd recommend checking it out, provided you can find a copy, if for no other reason than to simply familiarize yourself with the novelty of it. I'll see if I can't capture some video footage over the next couple of days, just to show those of you who can't get a hold of it what it was like.