Everyone is all a-twitter about the announcement that Keith Giffen is returning to work with Paul Levitz on the upcoming Legion of Super-Heroes Annual.
As far as I'm cocnerned, Keith Giffen has ruined just about everything he's touched for the past two decades. I really dislike what his art has become, and I believe his storytelling skills are definitely sub-par.
Yes, the Annual will sell tremendously, because of all the fanboys who will buy it for Giffen's name. And perhaps Levitz will be able to keep a firm lid on Giffen's excesses, so it might be a passable story. And perhaps they'll have the sense to team Giffen with a competent artist or two, so readers will have some chance of telling which character is which.
In fact, I think the best way to make sure that this is a good comic is to restrict Giffen's contribution to a few preliminary conferences and the appearance of his name on the cover. The more DC can prevent Giffen from having anything substantial to do with this comic, the better story it will be.
Or maybe I'm wrong, and we'll get to witness the return of the nine-panel grid, murky pictures, obscure storytelling, ultra-violent psychopaths, and maybe even the long-awaited reveal of the (retconned) decades-old marriage of Kid Quantum and Laurel Gand.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Friday, September 17, 2010
Week of 15 September 2010
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comics.)
DCU LEGACIES #5 (2010/11)
"Crisis!"
ROLL CALL:
Bouncing Boy, Brainiac 5 (cover only), Colossal Boy, Cosmic Boy, Dawnstar, Lightning Lad, Mon-El, Shrinking Violet, Star Boy, Supergirl, Ultra Boy, Wildfire
This series on the history of the DC Universe revisits Crisis on Infinite Earths, with cameo appearances from many Legionnaires.
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Also, although there is no Legion connection, how can you pass up this week's Tiny Titans #32 (2010/11)? It features a new student at Sidekick High. Three words alone should convince anyone to take a look at this comic: Lunch...Lady...Darkseid.
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DCU LEGACIES #5 (2010/11)
"Crisis!"
ROLL CALL:
Bouncing Boy, Brainiac 5 (cover only), Colossal Boy, Cosmic Boy, Dawnstar, Lightning Lad, Mon-El, Shrinking Violet, Star Boy, Supergirl, Ultra Boy, Wildfire
This series on the history of the DC Universe revisits Crisis on Infinite Earths, with cameo appearances from many Legionnaires.
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Also, although there is no Legion connection, how can you pass up this week's Tiny Titans #32 (2010/11)? It features a new student at Sidekick High. Three words alone should convince anyone to take a look at this comic: Lunch...Lady...Darkseid.
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Saturday, September 11, 2010
Week of 8 September 2010
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comics.)
ADVENTURE #518 (2010/11)
"Whispers of Doom"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Phantom Girl, Saturn Girl, Superboy, Ultra Boy, High Seer Beren, Nura Nal, Zaryan
CUTE BOYS: Brainy, Dirk, Garth, Jo, Kal, Rokk, maybe one or two of the Naltorians
This issue picks up a while after the last one left off. The Legion has added some more members (including Superboy), and Zaryan has grown more powerful. A team consisting of Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Sn Boy, and Ultra Boy is chasing Zaryan's forces, trying to track down the big guy himself. Their quest takes them to Naltor, where they manage to repel Zaryan's troops but one ship of bad buys slips away.
Meanwhile on Naltor, the High Seer's apprentice Nura Nal (who will become Dream Girl) has a vision in which an unidentified Legionnaire dies in combat with Zaryan. High Seer Beren decides to dispatch a confidential message capsule to Legion headquarters bearing news of the vision.
Back on Earth, Phantom Girl tells Superboy that she's been investigating the source of strange voices that some Leigonnaires have been hearing in the clubhouse, a source that they're calling a "ghost." Superboy visits the Superman Museum, where he sees a display that tells him Superman died at the hands of Doomsday. He also hears the voice of the "ghost" urging him to go home.
Brainy insists that Superboy has to go back to his own time ("We have to synchronize these trips carefully...we can't upset time itself.") Phantom Girl mentions that the Legion has decided to elect a new Leader. Then the time bubble vanishes, and the "ghost" says, "Good...at least you'll be safe."
I'm struck by the masterful job Paul Levitz is doing in setting up the events of Adventure #304. In that story, Saturn Girl witnessed the arrival of a capsule bearing a message from "The Trylop Council of Planet Mernl." The message read: "Our computer-machine predicts a Leigonnaire member will die soon while using his, or her, power to battle an invasion of Earth by 'Zaryan the Conqueror'! Our Our machine can't reveal which Legionnaire will die!"
Saturn Girl destroyed the capsule, then telepathically influenced the other Legionnaires to unanimously vote her in as Leader. We learn of Zaryan the Conqueror, "An interplanetary criminal from the planet Brok. Once Zaryan offered the Legion a fabulous bribe not to oppose him," but the Legion rejected the bribe.
Saturn Girl went on to put the Legionnaires through a series of tests, which she used to disqualify each of them for duty. Unbeknownst to them, she had also stolen all of their powers. When Zaryan attacked, she set out alone to face him, determined that she would be the Legionnaire to die. Lightning Lad went after her and foiled her plan, getting struck by Zaryan's weapon instead.
With his dying breaths, Lightning Lad explained that Mon-El (from the Phantom Zone) had witnessed everything, and warned him of Saturn Girl's plot so he could foil it.
See how it all fits together, 204 issues later: Zaryan offers his bribe, which Saturn Girl rejects. Naltor (not the Trylop Council of Planet Mernl) sends a message capsule to Earth, warning that a Legionnaire will die in combat with Zaryan. And the whispers of a mysterious ghost are heard; a ghost who tells Superboy to go home and seems relieved that Kal, at least, is safe. Isn't it obvious that the "ghost" is really Mon-El?
And notice the theme of fated death. Superboy sees that Doomsday will kill him in his own personal future; Nura Nal sees that a Legionnaire will soon die.
CHRONICLER'S ERROR?:
Wasn't Zaryan a Khund? In the post-Levitz years, Zaryan the Conqueror was retconned as a Khund. I'm going to consider that part of the Glorithverse Legion.
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BOOSTER GOLD #36 (2010/11)
"This Man...This Chipmunk"
ROLL CALL:
Vril Dox
CUTE BOYS: Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, Rip Hunter, Vril Dox
Booster Gold winds up on the Starlag during Invasion, along with Blue Beetle (who has been turned into a chipmunk; don't ask). They encounter Vril Dox before the escape that led to the formation of L.E.G.I.O.N.
Fortunately, Booster Gold no longer seems tied in with Brightest Day. (Has anyone else sworn off buying any Brightest Day tie-ins? Life is too short to waste any of it.) Unfortunately, Keith Giffen is still writing for the comic.
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ADVENTURE #518 (2010/11)
"Whispers of Doom"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Phantom Girl, Saturn Girl, Superboy, Ultra Boy, High Seer Beren, Nura Nal, Zaryan
CUTE BOYS: Brainy, Dirk, Garth, Jo, Kal, Rokk, maybe one or two of the Naltorians
This issue picks up a while after the last one left off. The Legion has added some more members (including Superboy), and Zaryan has grown more powerful. A team consisting of Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Sn Boy, and Ultra Boy is chasing Zaryan's forces, trying to track down the big guy himself. Their quest takes them to Naltor, where they manage to repel Zaryan's troops but one ship of bad buys slips away.
Meanwhile on Naltor, the High Seer's apprentice Nura Nal (who will become Dream Girl) has a vision in which an unidentified Legionnaire dies in combat with Zaryan. High Seer Beren decides to dispatch a confidential message capsule to Legion headquarters bearing news of the vision.
Back on Earth, Phantom Girl tells Superboy that she's been investigating the source of strange voices that some Leigonnaires have been hearing in the clubhouse, a source that they're calling a "ghost." Superboy visits the Superman Museum, where he sees a display that tells him Superman died at the hands of Doomsday. He also hears the voice of the "ghost" urging him to go home.
Brainy insists that Superboy has to go back to his own time ("We have to synchronize these trips carefully...we can't upset time itself.") Phantom Girl mentions that the Legion has decided to elect a new Leader. Then the time bubble vanishes, and the "ghost" says, "Good...at least you'll be safe."
I'm struck by the masterful job Paul Levitz is doing in setting up the events of Adventure #304. In that story, Saturn Girl witnessed the arrival of a capsule bearing a message from "The Trylop Council of Planet Mernl." The message read: "Our computer-machine predicts a Leigonnaire member will die soon while using his, or her, power to battle an invasion of Earth by 'Zaryan the Conqueror'! Our Our machine can't reveal which Legionnaire will die!"
Saturn Girl destroyed the capsule, then telepathically influenced the other Legionnaires to unanimously vote her in as Leader. We learn of Zaryan the Conqueror, "An interplanetary criminal from the planet Brok. Once Zaryan offered the Legion a fabulous bribe not to oppose him," but the Legion rejected the bribe.
Saturn Girl went on to put the Legionnaires through a series of tests, which she used to disqualify each of them for duty. Unbeknownst to them, she had also stolen all of their powers. When Zaryan attacked, she set out alone to face him, determined that she would be the Legionnaire to die. Lightning Lad went after her and foiled her plan, getting struck by Zaryan's weapon instead.
With his dying breaths, Lightning Lad explained that Mon-El (from the Phantom Zone) had witnessed everything, and warned him of Saturn Girl's plot so he could foil it.
See how it all fits together, 204 issues later: Zaryan offers his bribe, which Saturn Girl rejects. Naltor (not the Trylop Council of Planet Mernl) sends a message capsule to Earth, warning that a Legionnaire will die in combat with Zaryan. And the whispers of a mysterious ghost are heard; a ghost who tells Superboy to go home and seems relieved that Kal, at least, is safe. Isn't it obvious that the "ghost" is really Mon-El?
And notice the theme of fated death. Superboy sees that Doomsday will kill him in his own personal future; Nura Nal sees that a Legionnaire will soon die.
CHRONICLER'S ERROR?:
Wasn't Zaryan a Khund? In the post-Levitz years, Zaryan the Conqueror was retconned as a Khund. I'm going to consider that part of the Glorithverse Legion.
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BOOSTER GOLD #36 (2010/11)
"This Man...This Chipmunk"
ROLL CALL:
Vril Dox
CUTE BOYS: Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, Rip Hunter, Vril Dox
Booster Gold winds up on the Starlag during Invasion, along with Blue Beetle (who has been turned into a chipmunk; don't ask). They encounter Vril Dox before the escape that led to the formation of L.E.G.I.O.N.
Fortunately, Booster Gold no longer seems tied in with Brightest Day. (Has anyone else sworn off buying any Brightest Day tie-ins? Life is too short to waste any of it.) Unfortunately, Keith Giffen is still writing for the comic.
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Monday, September 06, 2010
Week of 1 September 2010
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comic.)
R.E.B.E.L.S. #20 (2010/11)
"Sons of Brianiac Part 3: Brain-Drain"
ROLL CALL:
Lobo, Lyrl Dox, Pulsar Stargrave, Vril Dox
CUTE GUYS: Lyrl Dox, Vril Dox
Lobo keeps Pulsar Stargrave busy while the Doxes attack Brianiac. Vril defeats Brainiac by infusing the bad guy with all the dark, terrible emotions that Vril has kept bottled up within himself. In the end, Brainiac and Pulsar Stargrave flee with Colu's data-core.
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R.E.B.E.L.S. #20 (2010/11)
"Sons of Brianiac Part 3: Brain-Drain"
ROLL CALL:
Lobo, Lyrl Dox, Pulsar Stargrave, Vril Dox
CUTE GUYS: Lyrl Dox, Vril Dox
Lobo keeps Pulsar Stargrave busy while the Doxes attack Brianiac. Vril defeats Brainiac by infusing the bad guy with all the dark, terrible emotions that Vril has kept bottled up within himself. In the end, Brainiac and Pulsar Stargrave flee with Colu's data-core.
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Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Week of 25 August 2010
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comics.)
LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #4 (2010/10)
"That Which is Purest Among You"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Colossal Boy, Cosmic Boy, Dawnstar, Dream Girl, Earth-Man, Gates, Lightning Lad, Lightning Lass, Quislet, Saturn Girl, Sensor Girl, Shadow Lass, Sun Boy, Timber Wolf, High Seer Beren, Garridan Ranzz, Graym Ranzz, Doctor Li, Sodam Yat, Darkseid (telepathic image)
CUTE BOYS: Dirk, Garth (intense, but cute), Gim, Rokk
On Avalon, a cult of Darkseid has grown up around an unnamed wizard who aspires to become a "true servant to the darkness." Using traces of Mordru's power and residue of Darkseid's, he has brought the Ranzz boys ("the children touched by our lord") to Avalon for nefarious purposes.
Ayla, Garth, and Imra do a masterful job of kicking ass, and recover the boys alive & well.
Meanwhile, Earth-Man meets with Human supremacists who want his help eliminating the Titanian refugees. He refuses, saying that he will save humankind his own way. Oooo, scary.
On Naltor, Dream Girl (with Dawnstar and Gates) talks High Seer Beren into accepting thousands of Titanian refugees to live on Naltor. The possibility of having the Time Institute established on Naltor is a good part of the deal. The Naltorians want the Institute in order to see further into the future than their visions allow them. Doctor Li, from the Time Institute, charms Beren.
Legion elections are set for next month; Sensor Girl seems displeased with Cosmic Boy's leadership.
Dyogene returns to Oa and tells Sodam Yat he has failed, since Earth-Man rejected the power ring. Yat seems intent upon beginning the new Green Lantern Corps with an Earth person, so he sends Dyogene back to live among humans until he finds a candidate.
Finally, Earth-Man and Shadow Lass are leaving Headquarters at the same time, and seem destined for some kind of hook-up...and Earth-Man has a nasty look in his eye.
A busy issue with a lot of excitement.
BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS:
Imra: Over in Adventure, young Imra worries that she will never be able to compete with the boys physically. She should see Full-Page Kick-Butt Imra on page 11: wow!
Inactive Status: Cos says there are 26 active Legionnaires. He says that Matter-Eater Lad "resigned yesterday to go back to Bismoll." Timber Wolf points out that he is counting Blok and Mysa out; Cos says that "they wouldn't come in when we called."
Mission Monitor Board: The Monitor Board shows the familiar symbols of the active Legionnaires. Earth-Man's symbol is a stylized Earth showing the Western Hemisphere. Gates' symbol is obscured by speech balloons (Ken points out in comments) represented by a blank square, so we don't yet know what it is.
That Which is Purest Among You: The title recalls Darkseid's curse at the end of the Great Darkness: "The curse of darkness growing within you, destroying you from within...and that which is purest of you shall be the first to go." In the immediate aftermath of the Great Darkness, Ayla resigned from the Legion...so everybody thought she was "that which is purest of you." Later, we assumed that Garridan was the purest, and Darkseid's curse was fulfilled by turning him into Validus. Eventually, it turned out that the "purest of you" was Paul Levitz, and Keith Giffen began the process of destroying the Legion from within."
Now it seems we're back to the Ranzz kids.
Which raises a question of continuity. Darkseid stole Garridan, sent him back in time, and transformed him into Validus. Later, Saturn Girl appealed to Darkseid's mercy, and he turned Validus back to Garridan. Since the return of the Legion, however, we've seen Validus in action. How can the simultaneous existence of Validus and Garridan be reconciled?
Easy. Validus, as far as we know, is ageless and eternal. So when Darkseid turned Validus back into Garridan, he probably took a version of Validus from the far future, after the Ranzz family was long gone.
Legion Elections: In the past, readers voted on the Legion's leader and Levitz and his team worked the result into the narrative. I hope he'll find a way to start that tradition up again. It was part of what made the Legion so special. (Note to DC: If you guys do this, please don't limit voting to people at Comic Con or something like that. Open it up to all Legion fans.)
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SUPERMAN/BATMAN #75 (2010/10)
"Resurrection"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Cosmic Boy, Dawnstar, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Shrinking Violet, Superboy, Superman, Ultra Boy, Batman
CUTE BOYS: Garth, Jo, Kal (Superboy), Rokk, "Bite Me" Boy Outside Luthor's Limo
In the 31st century, a kryptonite-laced clone of Lex Luthor breaks into Legion Headquarters and steals a time bubble. He goes back to Superman's time and beats the crap out of Supes, then digs up a lead box and vanishes in the bubble. The Legion comes back to enlist Batman's help; Brainy builds an anti-clone gun, and the Legionnaires follow the clone back to Smallville in Superboy's time. The clone is attacking Superboy; Brainy's gun works and they save Kal. Saturn Girl erases Kal's memory of the incident, and also the memories of the Smallvillians. Garth points out that they don't know who sent the clone, and maybe there will be others.
There are a lot of unanswered questions and dangling threads...I sense a sequel coming up. I hope it will be soon.
BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS:
This was like an old-time Legion story. The Legion popping back in time to Superman's time, interacting with Batman, and finally showing up in Superboy's Smallville to save the day. Kal/Clark is dressed in his Superboy costume in downtown Smallville, out in public and everything. I suppose it's too much to hope that John Byrne is turning in his grave, but I can dream, can't I?
When Superboy sees the Legionnaires, he thinks "...at least, they sort of look like the Leigon. Except they're kind of old...and scruffy." In the olden days, the teen Legionnaires often visited Superman, and the adult Legion visited Superman...but as far as I know, the adult Legion never visited Superboy.
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LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #4 (2010/10)
"That Which is Purest Among You"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Colossal Boy, Cosmic Boy, Dawnstar, Dream Girl, Earth-Man, Gates, Lightning Lad, Lightning Lass, Quislet, Saturn Girl, Sensor Girl, Shadow Lass, Sun Boy, Timber Wolf, High Seer Beren, Garridan Ranzz, Graym Ranzz, Doctor Li, Sodam Yat, Darkseid (telepathic image)
CUTE BOYS: Dirk, Garth (intense, but cute), Gim, Rokk
On Avalon, a cult of Darkseid has grown up around an unnamed wizard who aspires to become a "true servant to the darkness." Using traces of Mordru's power and residue of Darkseid's, he has brought the Ranzz boys ("the children touched by our lord") to Avalon for nefarious purposes.
Ayla, Garth, and Imra do a masterful job of kicking ass, and recover the boys alive & well.
Meanwhile, Earth-Man meets with Human supremacists who want his help eliminating the Titanian refugees. He refuses, saying that he will save humankind his own way. Oooo, scary.
On Naltor, Dream Girl (with Dawnstar and Gates) talks High Seer Beren into accepting thousands of Titanian refugees to live on Naltor. The possibility of having the Time Institute established on Naltor is a good part of the deal. The Naltorians want the Institute in order to see further into the future than their visions allow them. Doctor Li, from the Time Institute, charms Beren.
Legion elections are set for next month; Sensor Girl seems displeased with Cosmic Boy's leadership.
Dyogene returns to Oa and tells Sodam Yat he has failed, since Earth-Man rejected the power ring. Yat seems intent upon beginning the new Green Lantern Corps with an Earth person, so he sends Dyogene back to live among humans until he finds a candidate.
Finally, Earth-Man and Shadow Lass are leaving Headquarters at the same time, and seem destined for some kind of hook-up...and Earth-Man has a nasty look in his eye.
A busy issue with a lot of excitement.
BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS:
Imra: Over in Adventure, young Imra worries that she will never be able to compete with the boys physically. She should see Full-Page Kick-Butt Imra on page 11: wow!
Inactive Status: Cos says there are 26 active Legionnaires. He says that Matter-Eater Lad "resigned yesterday to go back to Bismoll." Timber Wolf points out that he is counting Blok and Mysa out; Cos says that "they wouldn't come in when we called."
Mission Monitor Board: The Monitor Board shows the familiar symbols of the active Legionnaires. Earth-Man's symbol is a stylized Earth showing the Western Hemisphere. Gates' symbol is obscured by speech balloons (Ken points out in comments) represented by a blank square, so we don't yet know what it is.
That Which is Purest Among You: The title recalls Darkseid's curse at the end of the Great Darkness: "The curse of darkness growing within you, destroying you from within...and that which is purest of you shall be the first to go." In the immediate aftermath of the Great Darkness, Ayla resigned from the Legion...so everybody thought she was "that which is purest of you." Later, we assumed that Garridan was the purest, and Darkseid's curse was fulfilled by turning him into Validus. Eventually, it turned out that the "purest of you" was Paul Levitz, and Keith Giffen began the process of destroying the Legion from within."
Now it seems we're back to the Ranzz kids.
Which raises a question of continuity. Darkseid stole Garridan, sent him back in time, and transformed him into Validus. Later, Saturn Girl appealed to Darkseid's mercy, and he turned Validus back to Garridan. Since the return of the Legion, however, we've seen Validus in action. How can the simultaneous existence of Validus and Garridan be reconciled?
Easy. Validus, as far as we know, is ageless and eternal. So when Darkseid turned Validus back into Garridan, he probably took a version of Validus from the far future, after the Ranzz family was long gone.
Legion Elections: In the past, readers voted on the Legion's leader and Levitz and his team worked the result into the narrative. I hope he'll find a way to start that tradition up again. It was part of what made the Legion so special. (Note to DC: If you guys do this, please don't limit voting to people at Comic Con or something like that. Open it up to all Legion fans.)
CHRONICLER'S ERROR?: (added 26 Aug 2010) On page 10, Garth says to Ayla: "If we're identical twins, how'd you get such a smart mouth?" Actually, male-female twins are fraternal, not identical. Unless...maybe Ayla has always been a boy, but she's been talking Pro-Fem to make her a girl all these years....
(Time out for gagging.)
Way, way back in the early days of the Legion, it was Garth and Mekt who were twins, and Ayla was their younger sister. In that case, I think the retcon (Ayla and Garth twins) makes much more sense.
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SUPERMAN/BATMAN #75 (2010/10)
"Resurrection"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Cosmic Boy, Dawnstar, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Shrinking Violet, Superboy, Superman, Ultra Boy, Batman
CUTE BOYS: Garth, Jo, Kal (Superboy), Rokk, "Bite Me" Boy Outside Luthor's Limo
In the 31st century, a kryptonite-laced clone of Lex Luthor breaks into Legion Headquarters and steals a time bubble. He goes back to Superman's time and beats the crap out of Supes, then digs up a lead box and vanishes in the bubble. The Legion comes back to enlist Batman's help; Brainy builds an anti-clone gun, and the Legionnaires follow the clone back to Smallville in Superboy's time. The clone is attacking Superboy; Brainy's gun works and they save Kal. Saturn Girl erases Kal's memory of the incident, and also the memories of the Smallvillians. Garth points out that they don't know who sent the clone, and maybe there will be others.
There are a lot of unanswered questions and dangling threads...I sense a sequel coming up. I hope it will be soon.
BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS:
This was like an old-time Legion story. The Legion popping back in time to Superman's time, interacting with Batman, and finally showing up in Superboy's Smallville to save the day. Kal/Clark is dressed in his Superboy costume in downtown Smallville, out in public and everything. I suppose it's too much to hope that John Byrne is turning in his grave, but I can dream, can't I?
When Superboy sees the Legionnaires, he thinks "...at least, they sort of look like the Leigon. Except they're kind of old...and scruffy." In the olden days, the teen Legionnaires often visited Superman, and the adult Legion visited Superman...but as far as I know, the adult Legion never visited Superboy.
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Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Week of 18 August 2010
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comic.)
TINY TITANS #31 (2010/10)
"The All Super Issue"
ROLL CALL:
Tiny Brainiac 5, Tiny Chameleon Boy, Tiny Cosmic Boy, Tiny Lightning Lad, Tiny Saturn Girl; Beppo, Krypto, Proty, Streaky
The Brainiac Club pulls up to the Fortress of Solitude just in time for a birthday party. Suddenly, some new guests arrive: The Legion of Super-Heroes.
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TINY TITANS #31 (2010/10)
"The All Super Issue"
ROLL CALL:
Tiny Brainiac 5, Tiny Chameleon Boy, Tiny Cosmic Boy, Tiny Lightning Lad, Tiny Saturn Girl; Beppo, Krypto, Proty, Streaky
The Brainiac Club pulls up to the Fortress of Solitude just in time for a birthday party. Suddenly, some new guests arrive: The Legion of Super-Heroes.
(click to embiggen)
If you're not reading Tiny Titans, you're missing an awful lot of fun. And the cutest version of the Legion ever. . . .
Monday, August 16, 2010
Teenagers
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comics.)
A further thought about Adventure 517, after reading a lot of blather on the Internet.
At the time of this story, Rokk and Imra were about the same age as Romeo and Juliet.
The beliefs and mores of our time are not universal; other eras might have their own ideas of when someone is considered adult. Would everyone stop being so provincial?
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A housekeeping detail: Our home internet connection is back, and I've been busy updating my lists of Legion appearances. There's still a long way to go, but take a look. It's easy to tell where I left off....
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A further thought about Adventure 517, after reading a lot of blather on the Internet.
At the time of this story, Rokk and Imra were about the same age as Romeo and Juliet.
The beliefs and mores of our time are not universal; other eras might have their own ideas of when someone is considered adult. Would everyone stop being so provincial?
----------
A housekeeping detail: Our home internet connection is back, and I've been busy updating my lists of Legion appearances. There's still a long way to go, but take a look. It's easy to tell where I left off....
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Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Week of 11 August 2010
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comics.)
ADVENTURE #517 (2010/10)
"Saturn Rising"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Superboy (image), S.P. Sergeant Esquivel (died)
CUTE BOYS: Brainy, Garth, Rokk (In bed. Naked. Asleep. What more can I say?)
A nice little story from the very beginning of the Legion, showing Imra's uncertainties and feelings of inferiority in comparison to the boys. In S.P. Sergeant Esquivel, Imra finds a mentor and combat instructor. When Imra distracts Esquivel during battle, Eaquivel is fatally wounded. Imra, blaming herself, swears "I am never, ever going to let anyone die in my place again."
Rokk and Imra go out to a bar, and when Imra wakes up in the morning Rokk is there in her bed. She telepathically erases his memory of the event, and starts her reputation as the Ice Maiden. At the end of the story, Brainiac 5 (not yet a Legionnaire) calls from the Time Institute to tell her that the Time Bubble is ready for a test voyage to the 20th century.
BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS:
Esquivel: As far as I know, Esquivel has never appeared in Legion comics before. It's nice to see a woman of color (a wise Latina, no less!) playing a prominent role in the early Legion.
Zaryan: The offstage villain of this story is an offworlder named Zaryan, who is raiding technology companies for parts. This will be the same Zaryan who menaces Earth in Adventure #304 (1963/01). Learning that whoever goes up against Zaryan will die, Saturn Girl steals the powers of the other Legionnaires and expels the other members, so that she is the only candidate left for the mission. However, Lightning Lad finds out about her plan and goes after Zaryan himself -- and dies. (Yes, once again someone has died in Imra's place.)
Later, when a way is found to revive Lightning Lad, Imra is prepared to sacrifice herself so that he can live. This week's story adds a bit of background to her feelings and her motivations at that time.
Zendak: While Sgt Esquivel accompanies Cosmic Boy and Saturn Girl to Taiwan, Lieutenant Zendak goes to Silicon Bay with Lightning Lad. Kimball Zendak will later rise to the position of Science Police Chief.
Flight Belts: In this era before flight rings, the three Legionnaires use "overpriced fly-belts." This is consistent with early stories (although in the very, very early ones, the Legion used rocket backpacks).
Imra & Rokk: The affair (or at least one-night-stand) between Imra and Rokk recalls the Earth-247 Legion, in which Imra and Rokk were a romantic couple for a while.
In classic chronology, Rokk left Braal when he turned 14 (that being the legal age for a Braalian to begin work). Even allowing a generous amount of time for the trip to Earth, the founding of the Legion, and some training, he can't possibly be more than a very young 15 at the time of this story. Imra, you cradle-robber! (And I guess Braalians are mature at 14.) Lucky, lucky girl.
Ice Maiden: They really did used to call Imra that. Also, the phrase "Iron-Butt Imra" is floating through my head, although I don't know from where.
CHRONICLER'S ERROR?:
Flight Belts: The Legionnaires' flight belts keep appearing and disappearing in the heat of battle. On page 13 (panel 2) Rokk is clearly wearing a flight ring instead of a belt (Imra's belt is still visible). One can suppose that flight belts have a built-in invisibility circuit (like flight rings do). And that ring Rokk's wearing? Just a standard-issue Legion secret decoder ring. (When Brainiac 5 developed the flight ring, he obviously modeled it after the secret decoder ring.)
31st Century?: In Legion of Super-Heroes, it's the year 3010. From the death of Esquivel to the destruction of Titan was only ten years? Really?
Yes, I know, I am the only one in the universe who is disturbed at this. What can I say? I'm a science fiction writer -- I do this sort of thing professionally. Take a look.
And I know it won't matter in another five or ten years, when the "current" Legion year is 3015 or 3020. Interestingly, there was the same kind of confusion in the first few years of the Legion's existence -- sometimes the Legion was in the 21st century, sometimes in the 30th.
Why does the Legion's time have to be exactly 1,000 years from the present? Why can't it be anchored on an exact year (2958 or 3010 or whatever)? It's not like Superman or Batman, which always take place in "today." With an appropriate time differential, the Legion's time could pass slowly enough to allow decades of adventures to be chronicled in today's comics.
Sigh. I know, I know, I'll try to get over it.
----------
Special:
ToyFare Magazine #158, October 2010
Cover story on Mattel's upcoming Legion of Super-Heroes action figures 12-pack (for only about $180, so start saving now). Due date, probably April or May 2011. In addition to the 12 figures, there is also a Proty and a flight ring (which I assume has the same inhibitor circuit as the others they've sold -- but those circuits are easy enough to disable).
The 12 figures, in Cockrum-era costumes, include only one female: Saturn Girl. Come on, Mattel, get with it! From the very beginning, the Legion has been all about gender equity. In fact, right after Tinya and Luornu joined, girls outnumbered boys 5-2 (I'm counting Luornu as 3.)
I understand that toy buyers and collectors in general don't go for lots of female action figures...but "this is really aimed at those hardcore Legion fans." I would guess that the average "hardcore Legion fan" would love to have a few more female figures. (Besides, a lot of hardcore Legion fans are women; doesn't Mattel think women want action figures they can identify with?)
Ah, well. I'll have to be content with my own figures.
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ADVENTURE #517 (2010/10)
"Saturn Rising"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Superboy (image), S.P. Sergeant Esquivel (died)
CUTE BOYS: Brainy, Garth, Rokk (In bed. Naked. Asleep. What more can I say?)
A nice little story from the very beginning of the Legion, showing Imra's uncertainties and feelings of inferiority in comparison to the boys. In S.P. Sergeant Esquivel, Imra finds a mentor and combat instructor. When Imra distracts Esquivel during battle, Eaquivel is fatally wounded. Imra, blaming herself, swears "I am never, ever going to let anyone die in my place again."
Rokk and Imra go out to a bar, and when Imra wakes up in the morning Rokk is there in her bed. She telepathically erases his memory of the event, and starts her reputation as the Ice Maiden. At the end of the story, Brainiac 5 (not yet a Legionnaire) calls from the Time Institute to tell her that the Time Bubble is ready for a test voyage to the 20th century.
BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS:
Esquivel: As far as I know, Esquivel has never appeared in Legion comics before. It's nice to see a woman of color (a wise Latina, no less!) playing a prominent role in the early Legion.
Zaryan: The offstage villain of this story is an offworlder named Zaryan, who is raiding technology companies for parts. This will be the same Zaryan who menaces Earth in Adventure #304 (1963/01). Learning that whoever goes up against Zaryan will die, Saturn Girl steals the powers of the other Legionnaires and expels the other members, so that she is the only candidate left for the mission. However, Lightning Lad finds out about her plan and goes after Zaryan himself -- and dies. (Yes, once again someone has died in Imra's place.)
Later, when a way is found to revive Lightning Lad, Imra is prepared to sacrifice herself so that he can live. This week's story adds a bit of background to her feelings and her motivations at that time.
Zendak: While Sgt Esquivel accompanies Cosmic Boy and Saturn Girl to Taiwan, Lieutenant Zendak goes to Silicon Bay with Lightning Lad. Kimball Zendak will later rise to the position of Science Police Chief.
Flight Belts: In this era before flight rings, the three Legionnaires use "overpriced fly-belts." This is consistent with early stories (although in the very, very early ones, the Legion used rocket backpacks).
Imra & Rokk: The affair (or at least one-night-stand) between Imra and Rokk recalls the Earth-247 Legion, in which Imra and Rokk were a romantic couple for a while.
In classic chronology, Rokk left Braal when he turned 14 (that being the legal age for a Braalian to begin work). Even allowing a generous amount of time for the trip to Earth, the founding of the Legion, and some training, he can't possibly be more than a very young 15 at the time of this story. Imra, you cradle-robber! (And I guess Braalians are mature at 14.) Lucky, lucky girl.
Ice Maiden: They really did used to call Imra that. Also, the phrase "Iron-Butt Imra" is floating through my head, although I don't know from where.
CHRONICLER'S ERROR?:
Flight Belts: The Legionnaires' flight belts keep appearing and disappearing in the heat of battle. On page 13 (panel 2) Rokk is clearly wearing a flight ring instead of a belt (Imra's belt is still visible). One can suppose that flight belts have a built-in invisibility circuit (like flight rings do). And that ring Rokk's wearing? Just a standard-issue Legion secret decoder ring. (When Brainiac 5 developed the flight ring, he obviously modeled it after the secret decoder ring.)
ABOVE: Rokk with flight ring (click to embiggen)
31st Century?: In Legion of Super-Heroes, it's the year 3010. From the death of Esquivel to the destruction of Titan was only ten years? Really?
Yes, I know, I am the only one in the universe who is disturbed at this. What can I say? I'm a science fiction writer -- I do this sort of thing professionally. Take a look.
And I know it won't matter in another five or ten years, when the "current" Legion year is 3015 or 3020. Interestingly, there was the same kind of confusion in the first few years of the Legion's existence -- sometimes the Legion was in the 21st century, sometimes in the 30th.
Why does the Legion's time have to be exactly 1,000 years from the present? Why can't it be anchored on an exact year (2958 or 3010 or whatever)? It's not like Superman or Batman, which always take place in "today." With an appropriate time differential, the Legion's time could pass slowly enough to allow decades of adventures to be chronicled in today's comics.
Sigh. I know, I know, I'll try to get over it.
----------
Special:
ToyFare Magazine #158, October 2010
Cover story on Mattel's upcoming Legion of Super-Heroes action figures 12-pack (for only about $180, so start saving now). Due date, probably April or May 2011. In addition to the 12 figures, there is also a Proty and a flight ring (which I assume has the same inhibitor circuit as the others they've sold -- but those circuits are easy enough to disable).
The 12 figures, in Cockrum-era costumes, include only one female: Saturn Girl. Come on, Mattel, get with it! From the very beginning, the Legion has been all about gender equity. In fact, right after Tinya and Luornu joined, girls outnumbered boys 5-2 (I'm counting Luornu as 3.)
I understand that toy buyers and collectors in general don't go for lots of female action figures...but "this is really aimed at those hardcore Legion fans." I would guess that the average "hardcore Legion fan" would love to have a few more female figures. (Besides, a lot of hardcore Legion fans are women; doesn't Mattel think women want action figures they can identify with?)
Ah, well. I'll have to be content with my own figures.
----------
Wednesday, August 04, 2010
Week of 4 August 2010
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comics.)
R.E.B.E.L.S. #19 (10/10)
"Sons of Brainiac Part 2: Name & Number"
ROLL CALL:
Amon Haak, Captain Comet, Lobo, Lyrl Dox, Pulsar Stargrave, Vril Dox
CUTE BOYS: Captian Comet, Lyrl Dox, Vril Dox, assorted Coluan boys
The cataclysmic meeting of the three Brainiacs continues, and the planet Colu is looking a little worse for wear.
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R.E.B.E.L.S. #19 (10/10)
"Sons of Brainiac Part 2: Name & Number"
ROLL CALL:
Amon Haak, Captain Comet, Lobo, Lyrl Dox, Pulsar Stargrave, Vril Dox
CUTE BOYS: Captian Comet, Lyrl Dox, Vril Dox, assorted Coluan boys
The cataclysmic meeting of the three Brainiacs continues, and the planet Colu is looking a little worse for wear.
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Week of 28 July 2010
Meanwhile, I've been revamping my LSH Stories Index. I haven't touched these pages for too many years, and I've been having a wonderful time cleaning up the HTML code, verifying listings, adding some comics I forgot or didn't have at the time...and putting in the all-important but stupidly-petty pictures of Legionnaires and other characters. This has sent me to the scanner a million times to get pictures of minor characters, family members of Legionnaires, etc. (Yes, I have no life.)
Problem is, right now we have no Internet service at home (boo, Verizon). A summer storm knocked out our Verizon landline and DSL service earlier this week, and we can't even get an estimate for when it will be back up. So even though I'm doing a lot of work and making things look really, really pretty, I can't upload any of the changes until service is restored.
Stay tuned....
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Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Who Are These Legionnaires?
I've been working on my Legion index, and I need some help. Here's a panel from Adventure #353, the Death of Ferro Lad story:
I'm trying to identify the Legionnaires pictured. Here's a closer view (click to embiggen):
The first two rows are easy: Brainiac 5 and Invisible Kid in the first row; Cosmic Boy, Superboy, Saturn Girl, and Princess Projectra in the second. It's those next two rows that are giving me some problems.
Here's a version with identifying numbers to the right of each figure:
#1 is pretty clearly Mon-El, and #6 is Colossal Boy.
#7 and #8 look like girls. The possibilities are: Dream Girl, Duo Damsel, Light Lass, Phantom Girl, Shrinking Violet, and Supergirl. #7 looks like Violet. #8 seems to have a cape, which means either Duo Damsel, Phantom Girl, or Supergirl...to me she looks most like Duo Damsel.
That leaves #2, #3, #4, and #5. The possible boys are Bouncing Boy, Chameleon Boy, Element Lad, Karate Kid, Lightning Lad, Matter-Eater Lad, Star Boy, Sun Boy, and Ultra Boy. We can eliminate Bouncing Boy on body shape. #5 has a distinctive collar that only Sun Boy and Invisible Kid have; since Invisible Kid is in the first row, #5 must be Sun Boy.
. #3 has a cape, which means it's either Lightning Lad or Star Boy. I'm going back and forth between the two, but leaning toward Lightning Lad (Thom has brown hair, about like Invisible Kid's: look how Invisible Kid's hair is darkened but #3's isn't.)
#2 is either Chameleon Boy, Element Lad, Karate Kid, or Matter-Eater Lad. He's clearly not Chameleon Boy or Karate Kid; M-E Lad has dark hair and it looks like #2 doesn't, so I'm inclined to go with Element Lad.
That leaves #4 as Chameleon Boy, Karate Kid, or Matter-Eater Lad (or possibly Star Boy, but I'm having trouble believing that #4 has a cape.) I want it to be Chameleon Boy: he appeared in the previous panel, so we know he's there. But there is no hint of antennae, and this figure seems to have hair. Cham has those funny sticky-out shoulder-things, but they could be obscured by the word balloon on one side and Lurornu's head on the other. And those two tiny lines just over Luornu's right shoulder might be meant to indicate part of Cham's costume.
I want to say we can leave out Karate Kid, based on the the hint of a collar around #4's neck. But we can also rule out Matter-Eater Lad because #4 has light hair and Tenzil's hair is dark.
So it's either Cham (without antennae and with a mistaken hint of hair) or Matter-Eater Lad (without his hair colored in).
So what do you think, loyal readers? Who's who in this picture?
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I'm trying to identify the Legionnaires pictured. Here's a closer view (click to embiggen):
The first two rows are easy: Brainiac 5 and Invisible Kid in the first row; Cosmic Boy, Superboy, Saturn Girl, and Princess Projectra in the second. It's those next two rows that are giving me some problems.
Here's a version with identifying numbers to the right of each figure:
#1 is pretty clearly Mon-El, and #6 is Colossal Boy.
#7 and #8 look like girls. The possibilities are: Dream Girl, Duo Damsel, Light Lass, Phantom Girl, Shrinking Violet, and Supergirl. #7 looks like Violet. #8 seems to have a cape, which means either Duo Damsel, Phantom Girl, or Supergirl...to me she looks most like Duo Damsel.
That leaves #2, #3, #4, and #5. The possible boys are Bouncing Boy, Chameleon Boy, Element Lad, Karate Kid, Lightning Lad, Matter-Eater Lad, Star Boy, Sun Boy, and Ultra Boy. We can eliminate Bouncing Boy on body shape. #5 has a distinctive collar that only Sun Boy and Invisible Kid have; since Invisible Kid is in the first row, #5 must be Sun Boy.
. #3 has a cape, which means it's either Lightning Lad or Star Boy. I'm going back and forth between the two, but leaning toward Lightning Lad (Thom has brown hair, about like Invisible Kid's: look how Invisible Kid's hair is darkened but #3's isn't.)
#2 is either Chameleon Boy, Element Lad, Karate Kid, or Matter-Eater Lad. He's clearly not Chameleon Boy or Karate Kid; M-E Lad has dark hair and it looks like #2 doesn't, so I'm inclined to go with Element Lad.
That leaves #4 as Chameleon Boy, Karate Kid, or Matter-Eater Lad (or possibly Star Boy, but I'm having trouble believing that #4 has a cape.) I want it to be Chameleon Boy: he appeared in the previous panel, so we know he's there. But there is no hint of antennae, and this figure seems to have hair. Cham has those funny sticky-out shoulder-things, but they could be obscured by the word balloon on one side and Lurornu's head on the other. And those two tiny lines just over Luornu's right shoulder might be meant to indicate part of Cham's costume.
I want to say we can leave out Karate Kid, based on the the hint of a collar around #4's neck. But we can also rule out Matter-Eater Lad because #4 has light hair and Tenzil's hair is dark.
So it's either Cham (without antennae and with a mistaken hint of hair) or Matter-Eater Lad (without his hair colored in).
So what do you think, loyal readers? Who's who in this picture?
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Thursday, July 22, 2010
Week of 21 July 2010
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comics.)
LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #3 (9/10)
"Earth-Man's Choice"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Colossal Boy, Cosmic Boy, Earth-Man, Element Lad, Invisible Kid (Jacques), Lightning Lad, Lightning Lass, Phantom Girl, Saturn Girl, Sensor Girl, Shadow Lass, Sun Boy, Tellus, Tyroc, Ultra Boy, Wildfire; also Aven, Saturn Queen
CUTE BOYS: Brainy, Dirk (looking stunning in his full-page appearance), Gim, Jacques, Jan, Jo, Rokk, Tyroc
Two covers this time, and Legion completists will want both.
There are three plotlines, plus two setups for the future.
Earth-Man is driven by the Green Lantern Ring to rescue sapient insects on the planet Ozifer. He is assisted by a mission team led by Sun Boy. Disgusted, Earth-Man gives up the Power Ring (or does he?)
A mission team led by Sensor Girl defeats Saturn Queen in the wreckage of Titan.
Lightning Lad and Lightning Lass retrieve Saturn Girl from her stalled time bubble. The three of them follow Imra's telepathic image to the planet Avalon, where they meet a big surprise.
Meanwhile, in a Titanian refugee camp, Aven comforts Doctor Li (who was one of the scientists responsible for destroying Titan...although that fact is not common knowledge yet).
And remember that ship full of Durlans? Seems they are on a mission to avenge the death of R.J. Brande.
BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS:
Titan and the Lanothians: Saturn Queen says that her ancestors left Earth for Titan long ago, and she refers to a time "before we went to Titan and met the Lanothians." That removes the question of why the current Titanians seem to be human. Presumably the Lantohians somehow gave telepathic powers to Saturn Queen's ancestors (or perhaps there was interbreeding). One obvious question: are there any Lanothians left in Legion times? (Or were there, before Titan blew up?)
Tyroc and Marzal: Saturn Queen says to Tyroc: "You took your people away from Earth when they didn't understand Marzal." In classic continuity, Marzal was an island which existed in another dimension and appeared on Earth for a few years every two centuries. It was settled by African slaves who revolted on a slave ship in the 1700s. It appears that the current version of Marzal may have a different (and possibly more interesting) story.
Green Lantern Earth-Man: The Power Ring transforms Earth-Man into a Green Lantern complete with a green-and-white version of his costume (which also recalls Rond Vidar's Green Lantern uniform).
Avalon: Avalon is a medieval world once dominated by Mordru (under the rather transparent alias "Lord Romdur"). It appeared in Legion of Super-Heroes #276 (8/1981) "Lord Romdur's Castle," and again briefly in the Great Darkness Saga. It was a world with great untapped magical potential, which Mordru sought to exploit and Darkseid also took advantage of. Lightning Lad says, of Avalon, "It was during my term as Legion Leader..." Oddly enough, Lightning Lad was not among the team on Avalon in LSH #276, although we can probably assume that he saw mission monitor tapes.
Aven gets a first name in this issue: Preem. This is probably a reference to Preem Palver, a character in Isaac Asimov's novel Second Foundation.
Around Saturn, Tellus weakens Saturn Girl's hold on Brainy and Tyroc, while Sensor Girl seems to remove everyone but Saturn Queen from their perception, so that they attack Saturn Queen. I love Jeckie's line: "The temerity of this commoner to call herself a Queen." Jeckie should know, being Queen of Orando.
Incidentally, it is only within the last few years that I came to realize that all of the original (adult) Legion of Super-Villains used titles that meant "leader": Saturn Queen, Lightning Lord, Cosmic King, Sun Emperor, and Chameleon Chief.
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LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #3 (9/10)
"Earth-Man's Choice"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Colossal Boy, Cosmic Boy, Earth-Man, Element Lad, Invisible Kid (Jacques), Lightning Lad, Lightning Lass, Phantom Girl, Saturn Girl, Sensor Girl, Shadow Lass, Sun Boy, Tellus, Tyroc, Ultra Boy, Wildfire; also Aven, Saturn Queen
CUTE BOYS: Brainy, Dirk (looking stunning in his full-page appearance), Gim, Jacques, Jan, Jo, Rokk, Tyroc
Two covers this time, and Legion completists will want both.
There are three plotlines, plus two setups for the future.
Earth-Man is driven by the Green Lantern Ring to rescue sapient insects on the planet Ozifer. He is assisted by a mission team led by Sun Boy. Disgusted, Earth-Man gives up the Power Ring (or does he?)
A mission team led by Sensor Girl defeats Saturn Queen in the wreckage of Titan.
Lightning Lad and Lightning Lass retrieve Saturn Girl from her stalled time bubble. The three of them follow Imra's telepathic image to the planet Avalon, where they meet a big surprise.
Meanwhile, in a Titanian refugee camp, Aven comforts Doctor Li (who was one of the scientists responsible for destroying Titan...although that fact is not common knowledge yet).
And remember that ship full of Durlans? Seems they are on a mission to avenge the death of R.J. Brande.
BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS:
Titan and the Lanothians: Saturn Queen says that her ancestors left Earth for Titan long ago, and she refers to a time "before we went to Titan and met the Lanothians." That removes the question of why the current Titanians seem to be human. Presumably the Lantohians somehow gave telepathic powers to Saturn Queen's ancestors (or perhaps there was interbreeding). One obvious question: are there any Lanothians left in Legion times? (Or were there, before Titan blew up?)
Tyroc and Marzal: Saturn Queen says to Tyroc: "You took your people away from Earth when they didn't understand Marzal." In classic continuity, Marzal was an island which existed in another dimension and appeared on Earth for a few years every two centuries. It was settled by African slaves who revolted on a slave ship in the 1700s. It appears that the current version of Marzal may have a different (and possibly more interesting) story.
Green Lantern Earth-Man: The Power Ring transforms Earth-Man into a Green Lantern complete with a green-and-white version of his costume (which also recalls Rond Vidar's Green Lantern uniform).
Avalon: Avalon is a medieval world once dominated by Mordru (under the rather transparent alias "Lord Romdur"). It appeared in Legion of Super-Heroes #276 (8/1981) "Lord Romdur's Castle," and again briefly in the Great Darkness Saga. It was a world with great untapped magical potential, which Mordru sought to exploit and Darkseid also took advantage of. Lightning Lad says, of Avalon, "It was during my term as Legion Leader..." Oddly enough, Lightning Lad was not among the team on Avalon in LSH #276, although we can probably assume that he saw mission monitor tapes.
Aven gets a first name in this issue: Preem. This is probably a reference to Preem Palver, a character in Isaac Asimov's novel Second Foundation.
Around Saturn, Tellus weakens Saturn Girl's hold on Brainy and Tyroc, while Sensor Girl seems to remove everyone but Saturn Queen from their perception, so that they attack Saturn Queen. I love Jeckie's line: "The temerity of this commoner to call herself a Queen." Jeckie should know, being Queen of Orando.
Incidentally, it is only within the last few years that I came to realize that all of the original (adult) Legion of Super-Villains used titles that meant "leader": Saturn Queen, Lightning Lord, Cosmic King, Sun Emperor, and Chameleon Chief.
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Saturday, July 17, 2010
Week of 14 July 2010
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comics.)
ADVENTURE #516 (9/10)
"Brande Speaks"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Chameleon Boy, Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Superboy; also: Circadia Senius, Marla Latham, Pheebes, R.J. Brande, Universo
CUTE BOYS: Garth, Kal, Rokk (and don't miss Ray Palmer in the Atom story)
Brianiac 5 (of the current Legion) arrives in the 20th century to bring Sueprboy to a special Legion meeting. R.J. Brande speaks, via recorded hologram, and retells the story of how he escaped from Durla, became the richest man in the universe, and bankrolled the Legion. He leaves three specific bequests: he leaves Chameleon Boy and the Legion as much money as they need, and he gives Brainy a "nice endowment for new time laboratory."
BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS: Superboy is in the 20th century; Brainy takes him to the 31st century. That's what I've been saying for the last few issues. It all hinges on Superman's age (traditionally mid-30s). If Superman is 33 (a Christlike age) and Superboy is 15 (he's in high school), then Superboy's time is roughly the mid-1990s (i.e. the 20th century). Along about 2018-2020, Superboy's time will have been in the 21st century, and I'll stop nattering about this.
While Pheebes is a new character, notice R.J. Brande's assistant Marla Latham in at least two flashback panels. Marla was the Legion's "adult advisor" for a while.
Also, in the panel where Brande is giving away grants for time-travel research, notice Universo standing there with a scowl on his face. We know that Universo had an interest in time-travel -- and that his son, Rond Vidar, invented the time cube and worked at the Time Institute.
Interesting that it's Superboy and not Superman who comes to Brande's presentation. Pheebes seems to think that it would be Superman; the Legion corrects him. On the surface, Sueprboy's presence would seem to cause problems: he learns of Brande's death before it happens in his own timeline, he learns other details of the Legion's "future," and we are to assume that Brainy has been working on the destruction of cockroaches for many, many years without success.
I don't really have a problem with this. Due to Saturn Girl's telepathic influence, Clark will only retain a hazy memory of this encounter. I see the choice of Superboy as an act of respect for Brande -- after all, Brande didn't know Superman, he knew Superboy.
All in all, this was a very good story. I'm not ashamed to say that I shed a tear or two at the end.
CHRONICLER'S ERROR?:
The History of Durla: Brande's story has several inconsistencies -- although most can be explained away by his hint that he might not be telling the truth. The most serious inconsistency, at first blush, appears to be Durla's history. Brande claims that the Six-Minute War happened after Mon-El and the Legionnaires settled the bottled city of Durlans on New Durla (which they did just a little while ago in the DC "present," call it 2010). Only after that did the Durlans gain their shape-shifting powers.
This can't be right. There were shape-shifting Durlans in the DC universe a while ago (in Invasion, for example, and more recently in the Green Lantern Corps). Ciji, a shape-shifting Durlan, is a member of L.E.G.I.O.N. as we speak. In Superman/Batman, a shape-shifting Durlan recently appeared from "the ancient past." In Legion of Super-Heroes Annual #2 (1983), the Six-Minute War was placed in the second century BCE, and a tribe of shape-shifting Durlans existed before the war.
Once again, I don't have a problem with this seeming inconsistency. Brande is probably telling the story the way he learned it as a larva on Durla. On Durla, all these things -- the settlement of New Durla, the Six-Minute War, the race's shape-shifting powers -- are all legend, without any fixed time-frame. All of these things happened "long, long ago."
I suspect that classical continuity is correct: The Six-Minute War happened in the second century BCE and the only Durlans who were able to survive were those with pre-existing shape-shifting powers. Eventually there were various Durlan tribes scattered throughout the galaxy; one f those tribes was put in a bottle by Brainiac and later settled on New Durla. These are Brande's and Chameleon Boy's people.
But the point is, none of this matters in the Legion's time.
Brande's Style of Speech: In the past, Brande's Interlac has been translated as pretty standard English with a slight German flavor ("verdammt," one of Brande's characteristic expressions, is German). In this issue, his Interlac is translated as broken English with the flavor of a German (or possibly Yiddish) immigrant of the 1930s. In flashbacks he speaks the same way.
I've seem some complaints about this; people seem to think that it's some great retcon, or possibly proof that Brande is still alive and the person speaking here is an impostor.
I have a much simpler explanation. Remember that all the Legionnaires are "really" speaking Interlac. In the 1980s, the fashion was to translate Interlac into grammatical English, no matter what the original form. Now, a quarter-century later, our society has a greater consciousness of multiculturalism, so it's just natural that today's chroniclers translate Brande's Interlac into something more like the form he actually spoke.
Early Legion Membership: Brande's story telescopes the early days of the Legion. Specifically, in one panel it appears that Brainiac 5 and Superboy were both present (along with the three founders) when Brande unveiled the Legion Clubhouse. In reality, the clubhouse came first, then Brainy, and by the time Sueprboy joined there were additional Legionnaires.
For the last time, I have no problem with this. Remember, this is Brande telling the story. Have you ever heard your grandparents tell a story and get things wrong? Memory is fallible, especially in someone who has been through multiple illnesses and traumatic experiences. Maybe this is exactly the way Brande remembers it -- are you going to tell him he's mistaken?
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BRAVE & BOLD #35 (8/10)
"Out of Time Part Two of Two"
ROLL CALL:
Chlorophyll Kid, Cosmic Boy, Fire Lad, Lightning Lad, Night Girl, Polar Boy, Saturn Girl, Stone Boy; also Awkwardman, The Blimp, Dumb Bunny, Merryman, The White Feather
CUTE BOYS: Cosmic Boy, Fire Lad, Lightning Lad, Stone Boy, White Feather
The flip side of last month's Legion tale, as the Legion of Substitute Heroes join with the Inferior Five and answer that immortal question, "Whose pink and white fluff is that?"
A really fun story that treats both the Subs and the Five with respect while still being really, really funny. This is a hard trick to pull off -- too many writers have no respect for the Subs at all, and it shows.
I have always respected the Subs, all the more so since their never-say-die attitude commands respect no matter what their actual abilities. Remember that the Subs have saved the day on several occasions, and two of them -- Polar Boy and Night Girl -- have qualified for Legion membership. I don't have a problem with them being a source of comedy, but they should never be a laughingstock.
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R.E.B.E.L.S. #18 (9/10)
"Sons of Brainiac Part 1: Brainchild"
ROLL CALL:
Amon Hakk, Bounder, Captain Comet, Ciji, The Durlan (flashback), Garryn Bek (flashback), Lyrissa Mallor (flashback), Lyrl Dox, Pulsar Stargrave, Starfire, Stealth (flashback), Strata (flashback), Vril Dox, Wildstar
CUTE BOYS: Captain Comet (woof!), Garryn Bek, Lyrl, assorted Coluans
Lyrl Dox takes Pulsar Stargrave to Colu to conquer the planet. Meanwhile, Vril Dox goes to Colu to collect the bounty on Brainiac and to gloat over his "father." The three meet and hijinks ensue.
Meanwhile, Captain Comet goes to Earth to mourn and finds that he doesn't belong there; Starfire brings him back and they do naughty things on the ride home. Amon Hakk shares some philosophical reflections on the meaning and nature of L.E.G.I.O.N. membership.
BITS OF L.E.G.I.O.N.NAIRE BUSINESS: Vril Dox states that he is a clone of the original Brainiac, who is identified as "Vril Dox the Elder."
In Lyrl's flashback to the formation of L.E.G.I.O.N., The Dulan is clearly present. In classical continuity, he was the first of his people to leave Durla. Going back to the discussion above about the history of Durla, his presence proves that shape-shifting Durlans were abroad in the galaxy in the current DC "present."
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ADVENTURE #516 (9/10)
"Brande Speaks"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Chameleon Boy, Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Superboy; also: Circadia Senius, Marla Latham, Pheebes, R.J. Brande, Universo
CUTE BOYS: Garth, Kal, Rokk (and don't miss Ray Palmer in the Atom story)
Brianiac 5 (of the current Legion) arrives in the 20th century to bring Sueprboy to a special Legion meeting. R.J. Brande speaks, via recorded hologram, and retells the story of how he escaped from Durla, became the richest man in the universe, and bankrolled the Legion. He leaves three specific bequests: he leaves Chameleon Boy and the Legion as much money as they need, and he gives Brainy a "nice endowment for new time laboratory."
BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS: Superboy is in the 20th century; Brainy takes him to the 31st century. That's what I've been saying for the last few issues. It all hinges on Superman's age (traditionally mid-30s). If Superman is 33 (a Christlike age) and Superboy is 15 (he's in high school), then Superboy's time is roughly the mid-1990s (i.e. the 20th century). Along about 2018-2020, Superboy's time will have been in the 21st century, and I'll stop nattering about this.
While Pheebes is a new character, notice R.J. Brande's assistant Marla Latham in at least two flashback panels. Marla was the Legion's "adult advisor" for a while.
Also, in the panel where Brande is giving away grants for time-travel research, notice Universo standing there with a scowl on his face. We know that Universo had an interest in time-travel -- and that his son, Rond Vidar, invented the time cube and worked at the Time Institute.
Interesting that it's Superboy and not Superman who comes to Brande's presentation. Pheebes seems to think that it would be Superman; the Legion corrects him. On the surface, Sueprboy's presence would seem to cause problems: he learns of Brande's death before it happens in his own timeline, he learns other details of the Legion's "future," and we are to assume that Brainy has been working on the destruction of cockroaches for many, many years without success.
I don't really have a problem with this. Due to Saturn Girl's telepathic influence, Clark will only retain a hazy memory of this encounter. I see the choice of Superboy as an act of respect for Brande -- after all, Brande didn't know Superman, he knew Superboy.
All in all, this was a very good story. I'm not ashamed to say that I shed a tear or two at the end.
CHRONICLER'S ERROR?:
The History of Durla: Brande's story has several inconsistencies -- although most can be explained away by his hint that he might not be telling the truth. The most serious inconsistency, at first blush, appears to be Durla's history. Brande claims that the Six-Minute War happened after Mon-El and the Legionnaires settled the bottled city of Durlans on New Durla (which they did just a little while ago in the DC "present," call it 2010). Only after that did the Durlans gain their shape-shifting powers.
This can't be right. There were shape-shifting Durlans in the DC universe a while ago (in Invasion, for example, and more recently in the Green Lantern Corps). Ciji, a shape-shifting Durlan, is a member of L.E.G.I.O.N. as we speak. In Superman/Batman, a shape-shifting Durlan recently appeared from "the ancient past." In Legion of Super-Heroes Annual #2 (1983), the Six-Minute War was placed in the second century BCE, and a tribe of shape-shifting Durlans existed before the war.
Once again, I don't have a problem with this seeming inconsistency. Brande is probably telling the story the way he learned it as a larva on Durla. On Durla, all these things -- the settlement of New Durla, the Six-Minute War, the race's shape-shifting powers -- are all legend, without any fixed time-frame. All of these things happened "long, long ago."
I suspect that classical continuity is correct: The Six-Minute War happened in the second century BCE and the only Durlans who were able to survive were those with pre-existing shape-shifting powers. Eventually there were various Durlan tribes scattered throughout the galaxy; one f those tribes was put in a bottle by Brainiac and later settled on New Durla. These are Brande's and Chameleon Boy's people.
But the point is, none of this matters in the Legion's time.
Brande's Style of Speech: In the past, Brande's Interlac has been translated as pretty standard English with a slight German flavor ("verdammt," one of Brande's characteristic expressions, is German). In this issue, his Interlac is translated as broken English with the flavor of a German (or possibly Yiddish) immigrant of the 1930s. In flashbacks he speaks the same way.
I've seem some complaints about this; people seem to think that it's some great retcon, or possibly proof that Brande is still alive and the person speaking here is an impostor.
I have a much simpler explanation. Remember that all the Legionnaires are "really" speaking Interlac. In the 1980s, the fashion was to translate Interlac into grammatical English, no matter what the original form. Now, a quarter-century later, our society has a greater consciousness of multiculturalism, so it's just natural that today's chroniclers translate Brande's Interlac into something more like the form he actually spoke.
Early Legion Membership: Brande's story telescopes the early days of the Legion. Specifically, in one panel it appears that Brainiac 5 and Superboy were both present (along with the three founders) when Brande unveiled the Legion Clubhouse. In reality, the clubhouse came first, then Brainy, and by the time Sueprboy joined there were additional Legionnaires.
For the last time, I have no problem with this. Remember, this is Brande telling the story. Have you ever heard your grandparents tell a story and get things wrong? Memory is fallible, especially in someone who has been through multiple illnesses and traumatic experiences. Maybe this is exactly the way Brande remembers it -- are you going to tell him he's mistaken?
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BRAVE & BOLD #35 (8/10)
"Out of Time Part Two of Two"
ROLL CALL:
Chlorophyll Kid, Cosmic Boy, Fire Lad, Lightning Lad, Night Girl, Polar Boy, Saturn Girl, Stone Boy; also Awkwardman, The Blimp, Dumb Bunny, Merryman, The White Feather
CUTE BOYS: Cosmic Boy, Fire Lad, Lightning Lad, Stone Boy, White Feather
The flip side of last month's Legion tale, as the Legion of Substitute Heroes join with the Inferior Five and answer that immortal question, "Whose pink and white fluff is that?"
A really fun story that treats both the Subs and the Five with respect while still being really, really funny. This is a hard trick to pull off -- too many writers have no respect for the Subs at all, and it shows.
I have always respected the Subs, all the more so since their never-say-die attitude commands respect no matter what their actual abilities. Remember that the Subs have saved the day on several occasions, and two of them -- Polar Boy and Night Girl -- have qualified for Legion membership. I don't have a problem with them being a source of comedy, but they should never be a laughingstock.
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R.E.B.E.L.S. #18 (9/10)
"Sons of Brainiac Part 1: Brainchild"
Amon Hakk, Bounder, Captain Comet, Ciji, The Durlan (flashback), Garryn Bek (flashback), Lyrissa Mallor (flashback), Lyrl Dox, Pulsar Stargrave, Starfire, Stealth (flashback), Strata (flashback), Vril Dox, Wildstar
CUTE BOYS: Captain Comet (woof!), Garryn Bek, Lyrl, assorted Coluans
Lyrl Dox takes Pulsar Stargrave to Colu to conquer the planet. Meanwhile, Vril Dox goes to Colu to collect the bounty on Brainiac and to gloat over his "father." The three meet and hijinks ensue.
Meanwhile, Captain Comet goes to Earth to mourn and finds that he doesn't belong there; Starfire brings him back and they do naughty things on the ride home. Amon Hakk shares some philosophical reflections on the meaning and nature of L.E.G.I.O.N. membership.
BITS OF L.E.G.I.O.N.NAIRE BUSINESS: Vril Dox states that he is a clone of the original Brainiac, who is identified as "Vril Dox the Elder."
In Lyrl's flashback to the formation of L.E.G.I.O.N., The Dulan is clearly present. In classical continuity, he was the first of his people to leave Durla. Going back to the discussion above about the history of Durla, his presence proves that shape-shifting Durlans were abroad in the galaxy in the current DC "present."
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Sunday, July 11, 2010
Week of 7 July 2010
I did not see any Legion content in DC Comics this week.
That's okay; next week will make up for it. Adventure #516, The Brave & the Bold #35, and R.E.B.E.L.S. #18 are all due out on Wednesday. So life will be good again soon.
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That's okay; next week will make up for it. Adventure #516, The Brave & the Bold #35, and R.E.B.E.L.S. #18 are all due out on Wednesday. So life will be good again soon.
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Tuesday, July 06, 2010
Week of 30 June 2010
I did not see any Legion appearances in Dc Comics this week.
Remember that due to the Independence Day holiday, comics will come out on Thursday July 8, 2010 instead of Wednesday July 7.
Remember that due to the Independence Day holiday, comics will come out on Thursday July 8, 2010 instead of Wednesday July 7.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Week of 23 June 2010
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comic.)
LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #2 (8/10)
"The Day After Titanfall"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Cosmic Boy, Chameleon Boy, Colossal Boy, Dawnstar, Dream Girl, Earth-Man, Gates, Invisible Kid (Jacques), Lightning Lad, Lightning Lass, Mon-El, Phantom Girl, Saturn Girl, Shadow Lass, Sun Boy, Tyroc, Ultra Boy, Wildfire, also Saturn Queen
HONORARY MENTION: R.J. Brande (image only), Superboy (Kal) (variant cover only)
CUTE BOYS: Brainy, Dirk, Garth (looking somewhat haggard), Gim, Jacques (if he would only get rid of that stupid goatee), Jo, Mon, Rokk, Tyroc [I don't feel I know him well enough to call him "Troy." I think the appropriate word would be "Sir."]
Two covers. The variant one has a nice picture of Superboy (Kal) and Krypto with the Legion Clubhouse in the background, and a logo clearly inspired by the old "Tales of the Legion of Super-Heroes" logo.
A good follow-up issue after the series started with such a bang.
Brainy and a team of heavy-hitters clear rubble from Titan's destruction from traffic lanes, until Saturn Queen turns up. She's there to see the destroyed Titan in person (it was, after all, her home planet), but she takes time out to take over the minds of Brainy and the others, most notably poor Ultra Boy. She sends him to Earth to destroy Legion Headquarters, but eventually Phantom Girl stops him.
Gates takes Dream Girl and Dawnstar to Naltor to ask the Naltorians to harbor some Titanian refugees until they can be resettled. Meanwhile on Earth, Cosmic Boy sends a team to quell incipient race riots where Earth supremacists are protesting the arrival of refugees from Titan.
Saturn Girl, in her time bubble, returns to the point when the twins disappeared, and gets an image from their minds that may help her find them. On Winath, Lightning Lad interrupts his investigation of Mekt's birth to go after Imra and the boys.
While all this is going in, Earth-Man is learning more about his Green Lantern ring, whose existence he has kept hidden from the Legion.
Whew!
BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS:
Tyroc is back (and looking terribly butch). Dream Girl is back. If you're keeping count (and who isn't?), this completes the roster of the eight Legionnaires listed in L3W as missing. Chameleon Boy Element Lad, Matter-Eater Lad, Quislet, Sensor Girl, and Tellus were on Espionage Squad duty in the 21st century.
Tyroc explains that he is "fully recovered from Earth-Man's power-sucking tube." As sexy as that sounds, it probably just means Tyroc has been recovering since Superman & the LSH.
Dream Girl's absence (she was last seen in the Lightning Saga) and the reason for her return are unexplained. The teaser page in Adventure #1/504 showed her in the 21st century, bound into some kind of machine, repeating "The dream will die" over and over while Conner and Mon-El burst in upon her. In the background some monitor screens (or perhaps windows) showed futuristic cityscapes and planets.
Here's my guess: Dreamy was supposed to play some part in the Last Stand of New Krypton storyline. I'm guessing that she was going to be a prisoner on Brainiac's ship; that the images of planets and cities behind her related to the bottled cities and their future worlds; and that "The dream will die" referred to Brainiac's plan to kill Superman.
So why didn't Dreamy wind up in that storyline? It's almost as if some incompetent writer didn't read his notes carefully enough, or read them and then totally forgot to put Dreamy in, or just had his tiny little mind overloaded by too many characters and too many pointless pages. In Brande's name, let us all hope that this incompetent writer never gets his mitts on the Legion again....
Mon-El seems to indicate that he and Shadow Lass have broken up. I dearly hope this isn't permanent, because they've been one of the most stable Legion couples. The last time we saw them, in L3W, they seemed happy enough. What happened? Did Shady catch Mon and Sodam Yat in bed together and get all pissy about it? That hardly seems likely; Shady hasn't minded all the other boys that Mon has fooled around with. Maybe because Mon and Sodam are both Daxamites?
ADDITION (24 June 2010): I just caught this. That incipient riot, where the xenophobic people of Earth were protesting the arrival of refugees from Titan? Yeah, it's "Painted Desert Camp." And where's the Painted Desert? You got it: Arizona.
And what's going on in Arizona in the present day? Xenophobes protesting the presence of people who share 99% of their genes.
Political commentary in a Legion comic? Who'd'a thunk it? Refreshing, isn't it?
(The protesters carry a n Interlac sign that says "Go Home." Considering that the Titanians' home was destroyed, it's a pretty stupid sign.)
(Also, notice that the Medi-center at Painted Desert Camp bears both the Red Cross and Crescent. A nice multicultural touch. Do I sense the hand of our favorite Turkish artist?)
CHRONICLER'S ERRORS?:
Saturn Girl's "time sphere" is now a "time bubble." It was always "time bubble" before. Geoff Johns says "time sphere," Paul Levitz says "time bubble." Let's call the whole thing off.
Chameleon Boy says that Earth Humans and Titanians share 99% of their genes. In Last Stand of New Krypton, Titan was settled in the 21st century by an alien telepathic race called Lanothians. Perhaps in the ensuing thousand years, there has been an enormous amount of interbreeding between Humans and Lanothians/Titanians...but enough to share 99% of their genes? Perhaps there is some other explanation. A thousand years is a long time....
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LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #2 (8/10)
"The Day After Titanfall"
ROLL CALL:
Brainiac 5, Cosmic Boy, Chameleon Boy, Colossal Boy, Dawnstar, Dream Girl, Earth-Man, Gates, Invisible Kid (Jacques), Lightning Lad, Lightning Lass, Mon-El, Phantom Girl, Saturn Girl, Shadow Lass, Sun Boy, Tyroc, Ultra Boy, Wildfire, also Saturn Queen
HONORARY MENTION: R.J. Brande (image only), Superboy (Kal) (variant cover only)
CUTE BOYS: Brainy, Dirk, Garth (looking somewhat haggard), Gim, Jacques (if he would only get rid of that stupid goatee), Jo, Mon, Rokk, Tyroc [I don't feel I know him well enough to call him "Troy." I think the appropriate word would be "Sir."]
Two covers. The variant one has a nice picture of Superboy (Kal) and Krypto with the Legion Clubhouse in the background, and a logo clearly inspired by the old "Tales of the Legion of Super-Heroes" logo.
A good follow-up issue after the series started with such a bang.
Brainy and a team of heavy-hitters clear rubble from Titan's destruction from traffic lanes, until Saturn Queen turns up. She's there to see the destroyed Titan in person (it was, after all, her home planet), but she takes time out to take over the minds of Brainy and the others, most notably poor Ultra Boy. She sends him to Earth to destroy Legion Headquarters, but eventually Phantom Girl stops him.
Gates takes Dream Girl and Dawnstar to Naltor to ask the Naltorians to harbor some Titanian refugees until they can be resettled. Meanwhile on Earth, Cosmic Boy sends a team to quell incipient race riots where Earth supremacists are protesting the arrival of refugees from Titan.
Saturn Girl, in her time bubble, returns to the point when the twins disappeared, and gets an image from their minds that may help her find them. On Winath, Lightning Lad interrupts his investigation of Mekt's birth to go after Imra and the boys.
While all this is going in, Earth-Man is learning more about his Green Lantern ring, whose existence he has kept hidden from the Legion.
Whew!
BITS OF LEGIONNAIRE BUSINESS:
Tyroc is back (and looking terribly butch). Dream Girl is back. If you're keeping count (and who isn't?), this completes the roster of the eight Legionnaires listed in L3W as missing. Chameleon Boy Element Lad, Matter-Eater Lad, Quislet, Sensor Girl, and Tellus were on Espionage Squad duty in the 21st century.
Tyroc explains that he is "fully recovered from Earth-Man's power-sucking tube." As sexy as that sounds, it probably just means Tyroc has been recovering since Superman & the LSH.
Dream Girl's absence (she was last seen in the Lightning Saga) and the reason for her return are unexplained. The teaser page in Adventure #1/504 showed her in the 21st century, bound into some kind of machine, repeating "The dream will die" over and over while Conner and Mon-El burst in upon her. In the background some monitor screens (or perhaps windows) showed futuristic cityscapes and planets.
Here's my guess: Dreamy was supposed to play some part in the Last Stand of New Krypton storyline. I'm guessing that she was going to be a prisoner on Brainiac's ship; that the images of planets and cities behind her related to the bottled cities and their future worlds; and that "The dream will die" referred to Brainiac's plan to kill Superman.
So why didn't Dreamy wind up in that storyline? It's almost as if some incompetent writer didn't read his notes carefully enough, or read them and then totally forgot to put Dreamy in, or just had his tiny little mind overloaded by too many characters and too many pointless pages. In Brande's name, let us all hope that this incompetent writer never gets his mitts on the Legion again....
Mon-El seems to indicate that he and Shadow Lass have broken up. I dearly hope this isn't permanent, because they've been one of the most stable Legion couples. The last time we saw them, in L3W, they seemed happy enough. What happened? Did Shady catch Mon and Sodam Yat in bed together and get all pissy about it? That hardly seems likely; Shady hasn't minded all the other boys that Mon has fooled around with. Maybe because Mon and Sodam are both Daxamites?
ADDITION (24 June 2010): I just caught this. That incipient riot, where the xenophobic people of Earth were protesting the arrival of refugees from Titan? Yeah, it's "Painted Desert Camp." And where's the Painted Desert? You got it: Arizona.
And what's going on in Arizona in the present day? Xenophobes protesting the presence of people who share 99% of their genes.
Political commentary in a Legion comic? Who'd'a thunk it? Refreshing, isn't it?
(The protesters carry a n Interlac sign that says "Go Home." Considering that the Titanians' home was destroyed, it's a pretty stupid sign.)
(Also, notice that the Medi-center at Painted Desert Camp bears both the Red Cross and Crescent. A nice multicultural touch. Do I sense the hand of our favorite Turkish artist?)
CHRONICLER'S ERRORS?:
Saturn Girl's "time sphere" is now a "time bubble." It was always "time bubble" before. Geoff Johns says "time sphere," Paul Levitz says "time bubble." Let's call the whole thing off.
Chameleon Boy says that Earth Humans and Titanians share 99% of their genes. In Last Stand of New Krypton, Titan was settled in the 21st century by an alien telepathic race called Lanothians. Perhaps in the ensuing thousand years, there has been an enormous amount of interbreeding between Humans and Lanothians/Titanians...but enough to share 99% of their genes? Perhaps there is some other explanation. A thousand years is a long time....
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Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Week of 16 June 2010
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comics.)
THE BOYS #43 (6/2010)
"The Innocents: Conclusion"
ROLL CALL: Auntie Sis, Bobby Badoing (not-Bouncing-Boy), Kid Camo (not-Chameleon-Boy), Klanker (not-Ferro-Lad), Ladyfold, Malchemical (not-Metamorpho), Stool Shadow (not-Phantom-Girl)
CUTE BOYS: Hamish, Kid Camo, Malchemical (totally evil, but cute), Guy-with-Star-on-Cape
The Super-Duper storyline is over. Which means I don't have to buy this comic any more. And not a moment too soon....
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R.E.B.E.L.S. #1 (8/10)
"What Happens in Vega... Conclusion"
ROLL CALL:
Adam Strange, Amon Hakk, Captain Comet, Lyrl Dox, Pulsar Stargrave, Starfire, Tribulus, Vril Dox, Wildstar, Xylon
CUTE BOYS: Adam Strange, Lyrl Dox (new hairstyle, hooray!), Shreegar Val, Vril Dox, assorted Tamaranian and Rannian cannon fodder
Dox, for once, brings about peace. Tamaranians and Rannians will share the planet New Rann, also L.E.G.I.O.N. headquarters. Meanwhile, Lyrl Dox turns a pulsar into a sapient being.
BITS OF L.E.G.I.O.N.NAIRE BUSINESS: In a previous continuity, Pulsar Stargrave was a Legion villain who claimed to be part of the Dox line (possibly Brainiac 5's father, possibly the original Brainiac). This time around, it looks like we're witnessing the birth of Pulsar Stargrave as Lyrl turns Pulsar LGM-1 into a sapient construct. We don't know if Pulsar Stargrave exists/existed in the Retro Legion's timeline, but I'm betting he does/did, and this is his origin.
The Pulsar LGM-1 actually exists, and the story they tell is essentially true. Discovered in July 1967, it is now known as PSR B1919+21 (previously CP 1919, aka PSR J1921+2153). It's located about 2300 lightyears form Earth -- which means that even if Lyrl destroyed it today, the light from that destruction won't reach Earth until 1300 years after the Legion's time. Good work!
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THE BOYS #43 (6/2010)
"The Innocents: Conclusion"
ROLL CALL: Auntie Sis, Bobby Badoing (not-Bouncing-Boy), Kid Camo (not-Chameleon-Boy), Klanker (not-Ferro-Lad), Ladyfold, Malchemical (not-Metamorpho), Stool Shadow (not-Phantom-Girl)
CUTE BOYS: Hamish, Kid Camo, Malchemical (totally evil, but cute), Guy-with-Star-on-Cape
The Super-Duper storyline is over. Which means I don't have to buy this comic any more. And not a moment too soon....
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R.E.B.E.L.S. #1 (8/10)
"What Happens in Vega... Conclusion"
ROLL CALL:
Adam Strange, Amon Hakk, Captain Comet, Lyrl Dox, Pulsar Stargrave, Starfire, Tribulus, Vril Dox, Wildstar, Xylon
CUTE BOYS: Adam Strange, Lyrl Dox (new hairstyle, hooray!), Shreegar Val, Vril Dox, assorted Tamaranian and Rannian cannon fodder
Dox, for once, brings about peace. Tamaranians and Rannians will share the planet New Rann, also L.E.G.I.O.N. headquarters. Meanwhile, Lyrl Dox turns a pulsar into a sapient being.
BITS OF L.E.G.I.O.N.NAIRE BUSINESS: In a previous continuity, Pulsar Stargrave was a Legion villain who claimed to be part of the Dox line (possibly Brainiac 5's father, possibly the original Brainiac). This time around, it looks like we're witnessing the birth of Pulsar Stargrave as Lyrl turns Pulsar LGM-1 into a sapient construct. We don't know if Pulsar Stargrave exists/existed in the Retro Legion's timeline, but I'm betting he does/did, and this is his origin.
The Pulsar LGM-1 actually exists, and the story they tell is essentially true. Discovered in July 1967, it is now known as PSR B1919+21 (previously CP 1919, aka PSR J1921+2153). It's located about 2300 lightyears form Earth -- which means that even if Lyrl destroyed it today, the light from that destruction won't reach Earth until 1300 years after the Legion's time. Good work!
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Friday, June 11, 2010
Disguised 21st Century Legionnaires
(SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers. Don't read it before you've read the comics.)
Get-a-Life Boy did it so you don't have to: I sat down with two years worth of Superman Family comics to find the Legionnaires that were disguised in the 21st century. To recap, they were:
I will update my own listings of the pertinent comics; others may want to do the same. Note: I omit appearances by any Legionnaires except those listed above, specifically Tellus, Mon-El, Una, and Karate Kid. They were obvious the first time around.
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Get-a-Life Boy did it so you don't have to: I sat down with two years worth of Superman Family comics to find the Legionnaires that were disguised in the 21st century. To recap, they were:
- Chameleon Boy disguised as Science Police Supervisor Control (Rachel)
- Matter-Eater Lad disguised as restauranteur Mitch
- Quislet disguised as Science Police Hovercam MTSP02
- Sensor Girl disguised as Science Police Officer Wilcox
I will update my own listings of the pertinent comics; others may want to do the same. Note: I omit appearances by any Legionnaires except those listed above, specifically Tellus, Mon-El, Una, and Karate Kid. They were obvious the first time around.
- Superman 862 (1/09): Control (Rachel) [Cham]
- Action 874 (3/09): Wilcox [Jeckie]
- Superman 686 (5/09): Control [Cham], Hovercam MTSP02 [Quislet]
- Superman 687 (6/09): Wilcox [Jeckie]
- Superman 688 (7/09): Mitch [Tenzil], Wilcox [Jeckie]
- Superman 690 (9/09): Wilcox [Jeckie]
- Superman Secret Files 2009 (10/09): Wilcox [Jeckie]
- Action 880 (10/09): Wilcox [Jeckie]
- Supergirl #44 (10/09): Control [Cham], Wilcox [Jeckie]
- Superman 692 (11/09): Wilcox [Jeckie]
- Superman Annual #14 (2009): Mitch [Tenzil]
- Superman 693 (12/09): Wilcox [Jeckie]
- Superman 694 (1/10): Control [Cham], Hovercam MTSP02 [Quislet], Mitch [Tenzil, Wilcox [Jeckie]
- Superman 695 (2/10): Control [Cham], Wilcox [Jeckie]
One last word: Sometimes a storyline seems rotten when you read it one issue at a time over months; when you sit down and read the whole thing it one setting, it is better than you remember.
The whole New Krypton storyline is not one of those. It was just as awful this time around.
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Week of 9 June 2010
I did not see any Legion content in DC Comics this week. I suppose we can't complain, the last three weeks have been great.
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