Week of 31 March 2010

(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comics.)

ADVENTURE #9/512 (5/01)
"Superman Last Stand of New Krypton Part Four: Namesake"
ROLL CALL: Bouncing Boy, Brainiac 5, Chameleon Girl, Colossal Boy, Cosmic Boy, Dawnstar, Duplicate Damsel (?), Gates, Gates, Invisible Kid (Jacques), Lightning Lass, Night Girl, Phantom Girl, Polar Boy, Saturn Girl, Shadow Lass, Shrinking Violet, Sun Boy, Timber Wolf, Ultra Boy, Wildfire, XS
ROLL CALL (L.E.G.I.O.N.): Lyrl Dox, Vril Dox
CUTE BOYS: Brainy, Chuck, Brek, Dirk, Gim, Jo, Lyrl (shirtless, but still needs a haircut), Rokk

NOTE: There are two covers: both of them have Legionnaires prominently featured.

Amid more exposition regarding the four previous Brainiacs, and a red wave of universal destruction approaching Earth, Briany works to pierce the time barrier and go back to the 21st century. All of the Legionnaires help him, each in their own way. At the end of the story, he vanishes into time, muttering "Long Live the Legion."

BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS: Notice how Lydda and Rokk are holding hands; it's good to see that their romance is back on again. I was worried; during L3W it seemed as if they were on the outs. It's nice to see Rokk happy, although one of the boys could probably make him happier.

I don't recognize those two indistinct figures sitting to the left of Gates. I suppose they could be Duplicate Damsel and Lightning Lad, who are otherwise absent from this story. Also unaccounted for: Blok and White Witch, who are probably still on the Sorcerer's World; Dream Girl and Tyroc, who are still among the missing; and adult Mon-El, whose presence in this storyline would be too confusing for the novice readers they're trying to bring aboard.

ADDED LATER: Brainy mentions that the original Brainiac may have "traveled through time to the 31st century to plague us now as Pulsar Stargrave." This is a reference to the villain who first appeared in SUPERBOY & THE LSH #233, and did indeed claim to be the original Brainiac. It's a nice nod to continuity.

Incidentally, this time around the original Brainiac does not seem to be an android any longer. They haven't said so explicitly, but it's implied -- and fits in with Geoff Johns' penchant for going back to the early versions of characters. (When he first appeared, several months after the Legion's debut, Brainiac was an alien but definitely flesh-and-blood. When our own beloved Brainiac 5 first appeared, he introduced himself as the great-great grandson of Brainiac. It was only later that they retconned the whole "Brainiac adopted a Coluan boy" dodge.

----------

ADVENTURE #512/9 (5/01)
"Superman Last Stand of New Krypton: Unify"
ROLL CALL: Chameleon Boy, Element Lad, Matter-Eater Lad, Mon-El, Quislet, Sensor Girl, Star Boy/Starman, Tellus (also Superboy [Conner], Supergirl)
CUTE BOYS: Conner, Jan, Kryptonian Laborer, Tenzil

None of the Legionnaires does much, except Quislet Tellus [what was I thinking?] -- who uses Supergirl's knowledge of Kryptonian society and his telepathic powers to unify some of the quarreling Kryptonians. Then they all dash off to save the bottled cities aboard Brainiac's ship.

----------

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #43 (5/10)
"Rise and Fall: All Along the Watchtower"
ROLL CALL: Mon-El
CUTE BOYS: Mon-El, Starman (Mikaal), Young Aquaman, Young Green Arrow

Know what Mon-El says in this issue? Nothing. Know what Mon-El does in this issue? Nothing. Know why Mon-El is in this issue? So that Legion fans will buy it, maybe?

There are two covers for this issue, too. Both of them features Mon-El. I'm not spending $25 for the alternate one. Even Get-A-Life Boy's insane completism has a limit....

(I'll pick it up later from the back-issue bins.)

----------