Coordinates	45°30′″N73°40′″N
currency name in local	Schweizer Franken franc suisse franco svizzero franc svizzer
Image 1	CHF Banknotes.jpg|100px
image title 1	Banknotes
image 2	CHF coins.jpg|100px
image title 2	Coins
iso code	CHF
using countries	Switzerland Liechtenstein23px ''Campione d'Italia (Italy)''
Unofficial users	16px ''Büsingen am Hochrhein (Germany)''
inflation rate	0.7% (2010)
inflation source date	''(de) Statistik Schweiz''
subunit ratio 1	1/100
subunit name 1	Rappen centime centesimo rap
symbol	CHF, ''SFr. (old)''
plural	Franken francs franchi francs
plural subunit 1	Rappen centimes centesimi raps
used coins	5, 10 & 20 rappen, ½, 1, 2 & 5 francs
used banknotes	10, 20, 50, 100, 200 & 1,000 francs
nickname	Stutz (1 CHF coin), 2-Fränkler (2 CHF coin), 5-Liiber (5 CHF coin) (Swiss German), balle(s) (≥1 CHF) thune (5 CHF)
banknote article	Banknotes of the Swiss franc
coin article	Coins of the Swiss franc
issuing authority	Swiss National Bank
issuing authority website	www.snb.ch
printer	Orell Füssli Arts Graphiques SA (Zürich)
mint	Swissmint
mint website	www.swissmint.ch }}

The franc (sign: Fr. or SFr.; German: ''Franken'', French and Romansh: ''franc'', Italian: ''franco''; code: CHF) is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein; it is also legal tender in the Italian exclave Campione d'Italia. Although not formally legal tender in the German exclave Büsingen (the sole legal currency is the euro), it is in wide daily use there. The Swiss National Bank issues banknotes and the federal Swissmint issues coins.

The Swiss franc is the only version of the franc still issued in Europe. The smaller denomination, a hundredth of a franc, is a ''Rappen'' (Rp.) in German, ''centime'' (c.) in French, ''centesimo'' (ct.) in Italian, and ''rap'' (rp.) in Romansh. The ISO code of the currency used by banks and financial institutions is CHF, although "Fr." is used by most businesses and advertisers; some use SFr.; the Latinate "CH" stands for Confoederatio Helvetica.

Given the quadrilingual populace, coins are language-neutral. Only Latin, as the last commonly spoken language on the territory of Switzerland, is used for inscriptions.

History

Before the Helvetic Republic

Before 1798, about 75 entities were making coins in Switzerland, including the 25 cantons and half-cantons, 16 cities, and abbeys, resulting in about 860 different coins in circulation, with different values, denominations and monetary systems.

See Basel thaler, Berne thaler, Fribourg gulden, Geneva thaler, Geneva genevoise, Luzern gulden, Neuchâtel gulden, St. Gallen thaler, Schwyz gulden, Solothurn thaler, Valais thaler and Zürich thaler.

Franc of the Helvetic Republic, 1798–1803

In 1798, the Helvetic Republic introduced a currency based on the Berne thaler, subdivided into 10 ''batzen'' or 100 ''rappen''. The Swiss franc was equal to 6¾ grams pure silver or 1½ French francs.

This franc was issued until the end of the Helvetic Republic in 1803, but served as the model for the currencies of several cantons in the re-formed Swiss Confederacy. For these cantonal currencies, see Aargau frank, Appenzell frank, Basel frank, Berne frank, Fribourg frank, Geneva franc, Glarus frank, Graubünden frank, Luzern frank, St. Gallen frank, Schaffhausen frank, Schwyz frank, Solothurn frank, Thurgau frank, Ticino franco, Unterwalden frank, Uri frank, Vaud franc and Zürich frank.

Franc of the Swiss confederation, 1850–

Although 22 cantons and half-cantons issued coins between 1803 and 1850, less than 15% of the money in circulation in Switzerland in 1850 was locally produced, with the rest being foreign, mainly brought back by mercenaries. In addition, some private banks also started issuing the first banknotes, so that in total, at least 8000 different coins and notes were in circulation at that time, making the monetary system extremely complicated.

In order to solve this problem, the new Swiss Federal Constitution of 1848 specified that the Federal Government would be the only entity allowed to make money in Switzerland. This was followed two years later by the first Federal Coinage Act, passed by the Federal Assembly on 7 May 1850, which introduced the franc as the monetary unit of Switzerland. The franc was introduced at par with the French franc. It replaced the different currencies of the Swiss cantons, some of which had been using a franc (divided into 10 ''batzen'' and 100 rappen) which was worth 1½ French francs.

In 1865, France, Belgium, Italy, and Switzerland formed the Latin Monetary Union, wherein they agreed to value their national currencies to a standard of 4.5 grams of silver or 0.290322 grams of gold. Even after the monetary union faded away in the 1920s and officially ended in 1927, the Swiss franc remained on that standard until 1936, when it suffered its sole devaluation, on 27 September during the Great Depression. The currency was devalued by 30% following the devaluations of the British pound, U.S. dollar and French franc. In 1945, Switzerland joined the Bretton Woods system and pegged the franc to the U.S. dollar at a rate of $1 = 4.30521 francs (equivalent to 1 franc = 0.206418 grams of gold). This was changed to $1 = 4.375 francs (1 franc = 0.203125 grams of gold) in 1949.

Between mid-2003 and mid-2006, the franc's exchange rate with the euro was stable at a value of about 1.55 CHF per euro, so that the Swiss franc rose and fell in tandem with the euro against the U.S. dollar and other currencies. In March 2008 the Swiss franc traded above one U.S. dollar for the first time. In March 2011 it climbed past the US$1.10 mark (CHF 0.91 per U.S. dollar). In June 2011 the franc climbed past US$1.20 (CHF 0.833 per U.S. dollar) as investors sought safety amidst the continuation of the Greek sovereign-debt crisis. Continuation of the same crisis in Europe and the debt crisis in the US propelled the Swiss Franc past US$1.30 (CHF 0.769 per U.S. dollar) as of August 2011.

The Swiss franc has historically been considered a safe-haven currency with virtually zero inflation and a legal requirement that a minimum of 40% be backed by gold reserves. However, this link to gold, which dates from the 1920s, was terminated on 1 May 2000 following a referendum. By March 2005, following a gold selling program, the Swiss National Bank held 1,290 tonnes of gold in reserves which equated to 20% of its assets.

Coins

Coins of the Helvetic Republic

Between 1798 and 1803, billon coins were issued in denominations of 1 rappen, ½ batzen, and 1 batzen. Silver coins were issued for 10, 20 and 40 batzen, with the 40 batzen coin also issued with the denomination given as 4 franken. Gold 16 and 32 franc coins were issued in 1800.

Coins of the Swiss Confederation

In 1850, coins were introduced in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, and 20 rappen and ½, 1, 2, and 5 francs, with the 1 and 2 rappen struck in bronze, the 5, 10, and 20 rappen in billon, and the franc denominations in .900 fine silver. Between 1860 and 1863, .800 fine silver was used, before the standard used in France of .835 fineness was adopted for all silver coins except the 5 francs (which remained .900 fineness) in 1875. In 1879, billon was replaced by cupro-nickel in the 5 and 10 rappen and by nickel in the 20 rappen.

Both world wars only had a small effect on the Swiss coinage, with brass and zinc coins temporarily being issued. In 1931, the size of the 5 franc coin was reduced from 25 grams to 15, with the silver content reduced to .835 fineness. The next year, nickel replaced cupro-nickel in the 5 and 10 rappen.

In the late 1960s, due to their linkage to the devaluing U.S. dollar, the prices of internationally traded commodities rose significantly. A silver coin's material value exceeded its monetary value, and many were being sent abroad for melting, which prompted the federal government to make this practice illegal. The statute was of little effect, and the melting of francs only subsided when the collectible value of the remaining francs again exceeded their material value.

The 1 rappen coin was still produced until 2006, albeit in ever decreasing quantities, but it did not play any great role in the monetary economy in the fourth quarter of the twentieth century (circa 1975 to 2000). People and groups who could justify the use of 1 rappen coins for monetary purposes could obtain them at face value; any other user (such as collectors) had to pay an additional 4 rappen per coin to cover the production costs, which had exceeded the actual face value of the coin for many years. The coin fell into disuse in the late 1970s and early 1980s but was only officially fully withdrawn from circulation and declared to be no longer legal tender as of 1 January 2007. The long-forgotten 2 rappen coin, not minted since 1974, was demonetized 1 January 1978.

The designs of the coins have changed very little since 1879. Among the notable changes were new designs for the 5 franc coins in 1888, 1922, 1924 (minor) and 1931 (mostly just a size reduction). A new design for the bronze coins was used from 1948. Coins depicting a ring of stars (such as the 1 franc coin seen beside this paragraph) were modified from 22 stars to 23 stars in 1983; since the stars represent the Swiss cantons, it was updated to represent the 1979 expansion of the Swiss federation, when Jura seceded from the Canton of Bern and became the 23rd canton.

The 10 rappen coins from 1879 onwards (except the years 1918–19 and 1932–39) have had the same composition, size and design until now (2011) and are still legal tender and found in circulation.

All Swiss coins are language-neutral (at least with respect to Switzerland's four national languages), featuring only numerals, the abbreviation "Fr." for franc, and the Latin phrases "Helvetia", "Confœderatio Helvetica" (depending on the denomination) or the inscription "Libertas" (roman goddess of liberty) on the small coins. The name of the artist is present on the coins with the standing Helvetia and the herder.

In addition to these general circulation coins, numerous series of commemorative coins have been issued, as well as silver and gold coins. These coins are no more legal tender, but can be exchanged for face value at post offices, and at national and cantonal banks. Their material or collector's value equals or exceeds their face value.

{|class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%" !colspan="6"|Overview of current Swiss coins |- !Value !Diameter(mm) !Thickness(mm) !Weight(g) !Composition !Remarks |- |5 rappen |17.15 |1.25 |1.8 |Aluminium bronze |Made in Cupronickel or pure Nickel until 1980 |- |10 rappen |19.15 |1.45 |3 |Cupronickel |Made in current minting since 1879 |- |20 rappen |21.05 |1.65 |4 |Cupronickel | |- |½ franc(50 rappen) |18.20 |1.25 |2.2 |Cupronickel |In silver until 1967 |- |1 franc |23.20 |1.55 |4.4 |Cupronickel |In silver until 1967 |- |2 francs |27.40 |2.15 |8.8 |Cupronickel |In silver until 1967 |- |5 francs |31.45 |2.35 |13.2 |Cupronickel |In silver until 1967 and in 1969, 25g weight until 1930 |}

==Banknotes== In 1907, the Swiss National Bank took over the issuance of banknotes from the cantons and various banks. It introduced denominations of 50, 100, 500 and 1000 francs. 20 franc notes were introduced in 1911, followed by 5 franc notes in 1913. In 1914, the Federal Treasury issued paper money in denominations of 5, 10 and 20 francs. These notes were issued in three different versions: French, German and Italian. The State Loan Bank also issued 25 franc notes that year. In 1952, the National Bank ceased issuing 5 franc notes but introduced 10 franc notes in 1955. In 1996, 200 franc notes were introduced whilst the 500 franc note was discontinued.

Eight series of banknotes have been printed by the National Bank, six of which have been released for use by the general public. The sixth series from 1976, designed by Ernst and Ursula Hiestand, depicted persons from the world of science. It has been recalled and replaced and will lose any value on 1 May 2020. As of 2010, a large number of notes from this series have not yet been exchanged, even though they have not been legal tender for more than 10 years; for example, the value of those 500 franc banknotes still in circulation represents 129.9 million Swiss francs.

The seventh series was printed in 1984, but kept as a "reserve series", ready to be used if, for example, wide counterfeiting of the current series suddenly happened. When the Swiss National Bank decided to develop new security features and to abandon the concept of a reserve series, the details of the seventh series were released and the printed notes were destroyed.

The current, eighth series of banknotes was designed by Jörg Zintzmeyer around the theme of the arts and released starting in 1995. In addition to a new design, this series was different from the previous one on several counts. Probably the most important difference from a practical point of view was that the seldom-used 500 franc note was replaced by a new 200 franc note; this new note has indeed proved more successful than the old 500 franc note. The base colours of the new notes were kept similar to the old ones, except that the 20 franc note was changed from blue to red to prevent a frequent confusion with the 100 franc note, and that the 10 franc note was changed from red to yellow. The size of the notes was changed as well, with all notes from the 8th series having the same height (74 mm), while the widths were changed as well, still increasing with the value of the notes. The new series contains many more security features than the previous one; many (but not all) of them are now visibly displayed and have been widely advertised, in contrast with the previous series for which most of the features were kept secret.

{|class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%; margin: 1em auto 1em auto" !colspan="8"|8th (current) series of Swiss banknotes |- !colspan="2"| Image !!rowspan="2"| Value !!rowspan="2"| Dimensions !!rowspan="2"| Main Colour !!rowspan="2"| Obverse !!rowspan="2"| Date of issue !!rowspan="2"| Remarks |- !Obverse !! Reverse |- |align="center" bgcolor="#000000"| |align="center" bgcolor="#000000"| |10 francs |126 × 74 mm |Yellow |Le Corbusier |8 April 1997 | |- |align="center" bgcolor="#000000"| |align="center" bgcolor="#000000"| |20 francs |137 × 74 mm |Red |Arthur Honegger |1 October 1996 | |- |align="center" bgcolor="#000000"| |align="center" bgcolor="#000000"| |50 francs |148 × 74 mm |Green |Sophie Taeuber-Arp |3 October 1995 | |- |align="center" bgcolor="#000000"| |align="center" bgcolor="#000000"| |100 francs |159 × 74 mm |Blue |Alberto Giacometti |1 October 1998 | |- |align="center" bgcolor="#000000"| |align="center" bgcolor="#000000"| |200 francs |170 × 74 mm |Brown |Charles Ferdinand Ramuz |1 October 1997 |Replaces the 500 francs banknote in the previous series |- |align="center" bgcolor="#000000"| |align="center" bgcolor="#000000"| |1000 francs |181 × 74 mm |Purple |Jacob Burckhardt |1 April 1998 | |- |colspan="8"| |}

All banknotes are quadrilingual, displaying all information in the four national languages. The banknotes depicting a Germanophone person have German and Romansch on the same side as the picture, whereas banknotes depicting a Francophone or an Italophone person have French and Italian on the same side as the picture. The reverse has the other two languages.

When the 5th series lost its validity at the end of April 2000, the banknotes that had not been exchanged represented a total value of 244.3 million Swiss francs; in accordance with Swiss law, this amount was transferred to the ''Swiss Fund for Emergency Losses in the case of non-insurable natural disasters''.

In February 2005, a competition was announced for the design of the 9th series, planned to be released around 2010 on the theme ''Switzerland open to the world''. The results were announced in November 2005, but the selected design drew widespread criticisms from the population.

Circulation

As of March 2010, the total value of released Swiss coins and banknotes was 49,664.0 million Swiss francs.

Value of Swiss coins and banknotes in circulation as of March 2010 (in millions of CHF)
! Coins	! 10 francs	! 20 francs	! 50 francs	! 100 francs	! 200 francs	! 500 francs	! 1000 francs	! Total
2695.4	656.7	1416.7	1963.0	8337.4	6828.0	129.9	27,637.1	49,664.0

Combinations of up to 100 usual Swiss coins (not including special or commemorative coins) are legal tender; banknotes are legal tender for any amount.

Reserve currency

The Swiss Franc is used as a reserve currency around the world and is currently ranked rarely 5th or 6th in value held as reserves after the US Dollar, the euro, the Japanese Yen and the pound sterling.

Current exchange rates

See also

Banking in Switzerland

Economy of Switzerland

Hard currency

Iraqi Swiss dinar - A common name for the old Iraqi currency but not related to Swiss currency.

Liechtenstein frank

Notes

References

Lescaze, Bernard (1999) ''Une monnaie pour la Suisse''. Hurter ISBN 2-940031-83-5

Rivaz, Michel de (1997) ''The Swiss Banknote: 1907–1997''. Genoud ISBN 2-88100-080-0

Wartenwiler, H. U. (2006) ''Swiss Coin Catalog 1798–2005''. ISBN 3-905712-00-8

Wenger, Otto Paul (1978) ''Introduction à la numismatique'', Cahier du Crédit Suisse, August 1978 (in French).

Swissmint.ch, ''150 Years of Swiss coinage: A brief historical discourse''. Last accessed 2 March 2006.

Swissmint.ch; ''Prägungen von Schweizer Münzen ab 1850 — Frappes des pièces de monnaie suisses à partir de 1850'', 2000.

External links

CashFollow.ch, Swiss Franc Tracker Schweizer-Franken.ch, Information about the Swiss Franc

Colnect.com, Swiss banknotes catalog

Category:Currencies of Switzerland Category:Economy of Switzerland Category:Liechtenstein–Switzerland relations

als:Schweizer Franken ar:فرنك سويسري frp:Franc suisso be:Швейцарскі франк be-x-old:Швайцарскі франк bar:Schweizer Franken bs:Švicarski franak ca:Franc suís cs:Švýcarský frank de:Schweizer Franken et:Šveitsi frank el:Ελβετικό φράγκο es:Franco suizo eo:Svisa franko eu:Suitzar libera fa:فرانک سوئیس fr:Franc suisse fy:Switserske frank gl:Franco suízo ko:스위스 프랑 hi:स्विस फ़्रैंक hr:Švicarski franak bpy:সুইজ ফ্রাঙ্ক id:Franc Swiss os:Швейцарийы франк it:Franco svizzero he:פרנק שווייצרי ka:შვეიცარული ფრანკი kv:Швейцарияса франк la:Francus Helveticus lt:Šveicarijos frankas ln:Falánga ya Swisi hu:Svájci frank mk:Швајцарски франк mr:स्विस फ्रँक arz:فرانك سويسرى nl:Zwitserse frank ja:スイス・フラン no:Sveitsisk franc pl:Frank szwajcarski pt:Franco suíço ro:Franc elvețian rm:Franc svizzer ru:Швейцарский франк scn:Francu svìzziru sk:Švajčiarsky frank sl:Švicarski frank sr:Швајцарски франак sh:Švicarski franak fi:Sveitsin frangi sv:Schweizisk franc ta:சுவிசு பிராங்க் te:స్విస్ ఫ్రాంక్ th:ฟรังก์สวิส tg:Франки Свис tr:İsviçre frangı uk:Швейцарський франк yo:Swiss franc zh-yue:瑞士法郎 zh:瑞士法郎

The Justice Lords are fictional heroes-turned-villains who first appeared in the two-part ''Justice League'' episode, "A Better World" (airdate November 1, 2003).

Biography

The Justice Lords are an alternate version of the Justice League from a parallel Earth. The roster of the Justice Lords was the same as the original DCAU Justice League — an alternate Batman, Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, Martian Manhunter, Superman, and Wonder Woman — with the exception of The Flash, because the Flash from their universe had been killed.

The Justice Lords' world diverged from that of the Justice League when their Lex Luthor was elected President of the United States. The Flash was executed personally by Luthor for unknown reasons, and Luthor's policies eventually resulted in the country "being on the brink of a war that could destroy the whole planet". The alternate Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman decided to try and stop the impending war, storming the White House and confronting President Luthor. After Luthor goaded the alternate Superman, that no matter how many times Superman sent him to prison Luthor would find a way back into power all over again in an unending cycle, the enraged Kryptonian targeted Luthor with heat vision and killed him. This decision led to far-reaching consequences, as Superman decided he liked this new brand of "justice". Soon, the other Lords lost faith in humanity's ability to do what was right, as well as their own moral compasses.

The initial act of staging a coup eventually led to the Justice Lords taking over the world's governments and ruling with an iron fist. Using their satellite base for global surveillance, the Justice Lords went on to suppress free speech, outlaw elections, and eliminate all crime by lobotomizing all criminals and supervillains (to the point of having a man arrested for complaining about the food quality and incorrect calculation of cost at a restaurant). Although they justified their behavior to the masses as "temporary," and to each other as for the good of the people, it amounted to tyranny in the eyes of the Justice League.

''A Better World''

The Justice Lords learned of their normal Justice League counterparts when the alternate Batman came across the League while experimenting with a dimensional transporter he had built. Bored with their own largely domesticated world, the Lords decided to "assist" their counterparts by taking over the League's world. The Lords tricked the League into coming to the alternate Earth. Upon the League's arrival, they were trapped in a specially designed prison built by the alternate Batman. Later, they were transferred to cells that had been designed to neutralize their powers, except for Hawkgirl, who had suffered serious injuries trying to escape.

When the Lords came to the normal Earth (posing as the 'mainstream' Earth's true heroes), they soon encountered Doomsday, a giant monstrous fighter. Doomsday had apparently come to challenge Earth's mightiest combatants, and went on a rampage. The Lords, particularly Superman, were more than happy to fight him (the Martian Manhunter being the only one skeptical on winning stating "IF we can stop it"). Attacking first and asking questions later, the alternate Superman predicted the Lords would win over the normal Earth people with their brand of justice. The fight ended with the Justice Lords beaten down and the alternate Superman held at Doomsday's mercy, however he managed to lobotomize Doomsday with his heat vision, to the shock of reporter Lois Lane. Lex Luthor, intimately aware of the real Superman's character (and what he would or would not therefore do) was the only one who figured out that the Lords weren't the League, stating "It's not them."

The League escaped from their prisons when the Flash, in an attempt to play on his status as martyr in the eyes of the Lords, sped up his heartbeat to trick the alternate Batman into thinking it had flatlined. The alternate Batman responded by releasing the Flash and was subsequently knocked out. The League then escaped. Most of the League went to Arkham Asylum to retrieve Hawkgirl, except for the normal Batman, who went to the Batcave to hijack the dimensional transporter. There, he engaged the alternate Batman in a fight. The fight ended abruptly with the alternate Batman playing off their mutual tragedy after Batman says the Lords have created a world without freedom or thought by seizing power, countering with, "And with that power, we've made a world where no eight-year-old boy will ever lose his parents because of some punk with a gun." The normal Batman was eventually able to convince the alternate Batman that the Lords' methods were wrong by (like the alternate Batman) playing on their mutual tragedies by sarcastically remarking, "They'd love it here, don't you think? Mom and Dad. They'd be ''so'' proud of you." The alternate Batman saw the error of his ways and saved the Justice League from the alternate Earth's security forces, and transmitted them back to their reality, presumably then going on to rebuild his world.

Back on the normal Earth, Superman approached Lex Luthor, offering him a presidential pardon in exchange for his help against the Lords. The Lords were defeated when the League engaged the Lords again to distract them long enough as Luthor used a power disruptor to strip them of their powers. The depowered Lords were then arrested, but it is not known what happened to them afterwards, save the alternate Batman, who never went to normal earth.

At the end, normal Earth Luthor said that he would go into politics.

Long-term effects

The Justice Lords' proposed alteration to the Justice League's world had repercussions in the first two seasons of ''Justice League Unlimited''. The events of "A Better World" added fuel to Amanda Waller's crusade against the destructive capabilities of the metahuman population if the government left it unchecked. Project Cadmus, which was originally created to counter Superman if he went rogue (as shown in the ''Superman: The Animated Series'' two-part episode "Legacy"), expanded its threat list to the whole Justice League. It also led to some increasing paranoia and distrust within the rank of the Justice League, including Batman and The Question, who feared that what happened to the Justice Lords' world would eventually happen to theirs when Luthor appeared close to winning the presidency as his counterpart had.

Further examples of the League's degeneration in the public eye — such as Superman’s fight with Captain Marvel over what turned out to be a fake emergency, staged by Luthor and Amanda Waller, and Superman’s later near attempt to lobotomize Doomsday in a similar manner to his Lords counterpart — cast the League, and particularly Superman, in an increasingly bad light.

Fortunately, the League had also taken precautions such as recruiting the ardently populist and politically astute Green Arrow as their political conscience. He in turn is critical in putting the role of Cadmus in a reasonable perspective for the League and thereby prevents them from falling into the same temptation that created the Lords.

''Divided We Fall''

As a major insult, Lex Luthor/Brainiac combined creating duplicate androids of the Lords in the ''Justice League Unlimited'' episode ''Divided We Fall''. However, Brainiac added an android duplicate of the Flash in a costume design almost identical to that of comic book villain Zoom, to distract the League from his and Luthor's ultimate goal of universal domination. Not only did the androids fight the League, but they also played on their worst fears at the time: Superman was confronted with the possibility of becoming a Justice Lord, Green Lantern and Hawkgirl played off their failed relationship, as well as Hawkgirl's pariah status on both Earth and Thanagar, and Flash confronted his role among the world's greatest heroes. However, the fears of Batman, Wonder Woman, and Martian Manhunter were not revealed (Batman was able to destroy his double the second quickest next to Flash, so that his double never even had a chance to mock him). Only Flash seemed unaffected by his replica's taunts, apparently due to his overpowering sense of self confidence, and also considering that, while he faced off against the Justice Lords themselves, he never actually had a Lord counterpart to begin with. The androids were destroyed after a short fight.

This growing fear concerning the League somehow turning into their Justice Lord counterparts reached a climax in that episode when the Flash surpassed his maximum speed by tapping into the Speed Force in order to destroy the link between Brainiac and Luthor. This caused the Flash to vanish into the Speed Force, to which the defeated Luthor amusedly remarks: “What do you know? I ''did'' kill him.”

Unlike the Justice Lords' Superman, who killed the alternate Luthor, the League’s Superman, refused to succumb to such temptation and follow the path of his tyrannical counterpart and states that “''I’m not the man who killed President Luthor. Right now, I wish to Heaven that I were, but I’m not.''”

A few minutes later, the League succeeded in drawing the Flash back from the Speed Force, saving his life, and avoiding the path traveled by the Justice Lords.

Realizing that they had allowed themselves to become distanced from the very people they were trying to protect and fearful of becoming the Justice Lords, Superman publicly announced the immediate disbandment of the Justice League. After Green Arrow points out that the Justice League had grown to be far bigger than any individual hero and would continue even without the original seven members, and with public support, the League opted instead to open an embassy on Earth which would serve as a second Watchtower.

Toys

All the Justice Lords were eventually released in the Justice League Unlimited toyline in three 3-pack collectors sets and "the big three" were re-released later with a lava Doomsday variant in a 6-pack. The first set featured Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. One reviewer criticized for not standing on their own, but noted "represent one of the most popular episodes of the entire Justice League series." The next pack included Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern and, oddly the Flash. The final set had Hawkgirl and featured the Brainiac copies of Superman and Batman. The characters did not appear in the Justice League Unlimited series, except in flashbacks.

Inspiration and Similarities

As revealed in the DVD commentary on the second part of this episode the Justice Lords started out as a straight Crime Syndicate of America story but as the writers worked on it they decided that having it about a Justice League that went fascist had more story potential as the Crime Syndicate was simply evil.

This resulted in the episode being very similar to a saga that Dan Jurgens wrote during his run on ''Justice League America'' titled "Destiny's Hand". In that story, the Atom dreams about the original Justice League becoming the oppressive rulers of the world. Doctor Destiny tries to make this "dream universe" absorb the mainstream reality, and the modern Justice League fights the "evil" old Justice League.

The premise of a Justice League-esque superteam establishing a totalitarian state for what they see as the good of humanity has also been taken up in Marvel Comics' original ''Squadron Supreme'' miniseries, its recent re-imagining of that story, in Wildstorm's ''The Authority'', and the ''Titans Tomorrow'' storyline from the ''Teen Titans'' comic book. The idea of metahumans taking control away from humans, and of Superman leading them to make a better world, is also developed in the Elseworlds mini-series ''Kingdom Come''. According to the DVD commentary from Bruce Timm, that the plan for Batman's distrust on the League because of the Justice Lords was to have him form Outsiders as a counter-superteam to it, but the idea was dropped.

The idea of having criminals surgically altered to prevent them from returning to lives of crime seems reminiscent of ''Superman: Red Son'', which in turn was inspired by Doc Savage, who brainwashed criminals after his battles with them. It was also a plot point in the recent DC Comics mini-series ''Identity Crisis''- although in that case the alteration was magically-induced rather than surgical and primarily consisted of the heroes erasing the villains' knowledge of their secret identities, save in extreme cases, such as when Doctor Light raped Sue Dibny, wife of the Elongated Man- and in Marvel Comics' original ''Squadron Supreme'' miniseries.

References

External links

World's Finest Online biopage

"A Better World," Part 1, at tv.com

"A Better World," Part 2, at tv.com

Category:DC Comics supervillain teams Category:Fictional dictators Category:DC animated universe characters Category:Parallel universes (television episodes) Category:Fictional murderers

pt:Lordes da Justiça