Thanksgiving 2014

Happy Thanksgiving 2014!

by Russell "Bilingual Boy" Burbage
Here in the United States, we set aside the last Thursday of November to get together with family and friends and take stock of all of our blessings. (Then the next day we go out in a mad rush to buy *more* stuff; that's how schizophrenic we are as a nation. Yeah, I don't understand it, either... )

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays. And as an adult, it is the time of year that I take time off and visit my family. So maybe that is why I hit upon the idea of making up a Legion of Super-Heroes version of Norman Rockwell's famous "Freedom From Want" painting. To me, the Legion is all about Family. They may not all get along all the time, but they would literally die for each other. Doesn't that sound like Family?

The other thing that made me want to do this drawing is this blog itself, and the sense of Community that I feel with my fellow Legion of Super-Bloggers. I love working with them, chatting about old stories or favorite characters with them, or dissecting some bit of Legion lore together. It's a great amount of fun in my high-stress low-enjoyment "real life."

So I asked my fellow Bloggers who their favorite Legionnaires were, and that is who I included in my picture. None of them wanted to pick just one or two, but they committed to these characters:
Kyle likes Mon-El and Ultra Boy (and Superboy, of course). David likes Ultra Boy and Timber Wolf. Dave likes Wildfire and Karate Kid. Shagg likes Cosmic Boy and Phantom Girl. Anj likes Lightning Lass and Wildfire (and Supergirl, of course). Siskoid likes Shrinking Violet and Lightning Lass. Tim likes Cosmic Boy and Shadow Lass. And my favorites at the moment are Tellus and Sensor Girl.

So looking at this list of favorites, it's pretty easy to imagine that history-buff Cosmic Boy would have an old-fashioned "Giving Thanks Day" at his apartment on Earth. He and Night Girl would get a turkey and plenty of vegetables for the vegetarians. They would invite Mon-El and Shadow Lass, Ultra Boy and Phantom Girl, Timber Wolf and Lightning Lass and Shrinking Violet (Ayla not sure who she's going home with!), and Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl to join the dinner party. Of course, Garth and Imra would demur, choosing to spend time with their sons instead. So Cos would invite Colossal Boy (the only actual Earthling American?) and his wife, Yera, and his best pal, Chameleon Boy, instead.

(Sorry, Dave, at this point Karate Kid is dead. And Wildfire doesn't eat, but he's there in spirit (as another Earthling American(?) he may know about Thanksgiving). If it makes you feel any better, my favorites didn't make the dinner invite, either)

After I decided on the guest list the picture came together pretty quickly. It made sense, the characters were correct, and the idea just seemed right. I hope you like how it came together. I call it "Giving Thanks Day 2986."
   
So here's to my fellow Bloggers! Thank you for making this blog so much fun! I may not have said it before so I'm saying it now, I love working with you guys.

And here's to our blog's fans: THANK YOU for being out there reading and enjoying what we're doing. We could do it without you, but it wouldn't be anywhere near as much fun!  ;-)

As extra gravy on your mashed potatoes, here's Norman Rockwell's original painting that I blatantly copied for my illustration.

Have a safe and happy (Thanksgiving) weekend...

and Long Live the Legion!