Review: Adventure Comics #520

I am sort of sad to see this run of Legion of Super-Heroes come to an end in Adventure Comics #520. I don't need a primer on the Legion but it certainly has been fun to see the Legionnaires in their youth, in their Silver Age costumes, and learning hard lessons on being heroes in the 30th century.

Much of this run has been focused on the Legion 'growing up' ... moving from curiosity, to questionable ally of the Science Police, to adjunct to the SciPo, to finally mourners as one of their own has fallen in battle. And, I have liked how we have seen those changes through the eyes of Saturn Girl who has had to do some growing of her own. She has gone from shy girl with low confidence to weary warrior in a short time and doing that while making some dubious decisions about the use of her powers. Imra has always been a rock in the foundation of the LSH, certainly a perfect counter-balance to Lightning Lad's irascible nature.

Paul Levitz shines here, building on definite moments in the Legion's history without leaving new readers behind. And Kevin Sharpe's art works well, showcasing a young Legion. Onwards!

Reboot: Legion Lost #12

Legion Lost #12 (April 2001)
title: "First & Last"

writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning

penciller: Olivier Coipel
inker: Andy Lanning
lettering: Comicraft
colorist: Tom McCraw

editor: Mike McAvennie
special thanks: Pascal Alixe and Martin Griffiths

cover: Olivier Coipel & Andy Lanning
reviewers: Siskoid & Shotgun

Mission Monitor Board:  
Brainiac 5, Chameleon, Kid Quantum II, Live Wire, Monstress (flashback), Saturn Girl, Shikari, Ultra Boy, Umbra, Wildfire

Opponents: 
Omniphagos, Progenitor (Element Lad), Progeny

Recap: 
The lost Legion has encountered the Progenitor and it is Element Lad, who has gone insane living through the birth of the universe and becoming an amoral god to a whole galaxy. He has a portal to get the Legion home, but plans to take the Omniphagos through and let it eat everything so he can start over. And he's just disintegrated Monstress...

Who's Who: Taurus Gang

Taurus Gang
by Russell & Siskoid

Members: Group consisting of Black Mace, Mystelor, Quanto, Rogarth, and Shagrek
Super-Power(s): Power (see individual listings below)

Planets of Origin: Various 

Relationship to Legion: Adversaries

L.E.G.I.O.N. '89 #4

L.E.G.I.O.N. '89 #4 (May 1989)
title: "How to Win Friends and Influence People!"
plot/breakdowns: Keith Giffen
script: Alan Grant
penciller: Barry Kitson
inker: Mark McKenna
letterer: Gaspar
colorist: Lovern Kindzierski
assistant editor: Art Young
editor: Karen Berger
cover art: Kevin Maguire and Al Gordon

Future L.E.G.I.O.N.airres: The Durlan, Garryn Bek, Lyrissa Mallor, Stealth, Strata, Vril Dox.

Their Opponent: Lobo

Recap: After escaping from the Starlog prison, Vril Dox tricked his companions into helping free his people from the Computer Tyrants of Colu. But now their society is in chaos as the Coluans experience free will for the first time. Disgusted with Dox's constant manipulation, Lyrissa Mallor and Garryn Bek depart the planet, but Bek's poor piloting results in him striking and killing a space dolphin. Lyrissa understands the danger this has placed them and the duo return to Colu to seek help from Dox. She realizes that the space dolphins share a special bond with the intergalactic bounty hunter, Lobo.

Legion Homages: "Hit Squad of Super-Teens"

Next on our round tour of Legion homages, parodies, and knock offs we'll be taking an in-depth look at the only time the old Wildstorm Comics imprint sought to feature their own Legion, way back in The Authority #27 by Mark Millar and Art Adams.

Don't hold your breath, because they appear for about all of three pages before they're totally decimated and killed off. In fact, their appearance was so brief that they aren't even mentioned in the online summaries, which makes sense since they aren't the main plot or subplot of the issue. They're just the opening act to showcase what the main villains are capable of.

Still, one has to admire is how the artist, Art Adams, went out of his way to give the majority of these guys interesting and unique character designs instead of mainly rehashing the Legionnaires' looks.

Review: Adventure Comics #519

Adventure Comics #519 continued the title's retrospective love-fest of all things Legion. It has been a lot of fun to go back and read these stories and see a very young Legion in their earliest adventures. You can really sense how they are unsure of just who they are and what their role is in the galaxy. They are learning on the job as they jump into one dangerous situation after another; they are struggling a bit, stretching their capabilities as they try to do what's right. For someone who started reading these characters way back in the Grell days, it is refreshing to see them in these greener days. They haven't been scarred yet by death or deception or danger; they are fresh-faced.

One thing that I like about this title, and this issue, is the running theme on these young heroes making checklists of things they hope to accomplish. From (in this run of Adventure's earlier Superboy stories) Conner's 'what did Superman do?' list to Clark's list of things he never has been able to do like play baseball  without holding back to here - Brainiac 5's list of what to do in the 20th century. It is such a tradition ... adolescents making lists as they try to figure out who they are. To see that activity from the viewpoint of these young heroes is a nice little literary hook.

It is also pretty cool to be revisiting these 'early adventures' when a new Legion book is right around the corner.

On to the story by Paul Levitz and Eddie Pansica.

Reboot: Legion Lost #11

Legion Lost #11 (March 2001)
title: "One Billion Years of Solitude"

writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning

penciller: Olivier Coipel
inker: Andy Lanning
lettering: Comicraft
colorist: Tom McCraw

editor: Mike McAvennie

cover: Olivier Coipel & Andy Lanning
reviewers: Siskoid & Shotgun

Mission Monitor Board:  
Brainiac 5, Chameleon, Element Lad (flashback), Kid Quantum II, Live Wire, Monstress, Saturn Girl, Shikari, Ultra Boy, Umbra, Wildfire

Opponents: 
Omniphagos, Progenitor, Progeny

Recap: 
Several Legionnaires have been lost in a spatial rift, winding up in an unknown part of the universe. The first to wake up was Element Lad, but he had to leave his friends behind in stasis to find a way home. They woke up to find him gone. Now, captured by the xenophobic Progeny and brought before their leader, the Legionnaires are shocked to find the Progenitor is none other than Element Lad...

Who's Who: Starlight and Starbright

Starlight and Starbright
by Russell & Siskoid

Real Name: Unknown

Super-Power(s): Both sisters can fly and are super-strong; Starlight shoots black light beams of destruction; Starbright drains the energy of her antagonist via her "star shield." 
Planet of Origin: Unknown; found by Starfinger II in the desert of Mars

Relationship to Legion: Adversaries

L.E.G.I.O.N. '89 #3

L.E.G.I.O.N. '89 #3 (April 1989)
title: "How to Win Friends and Influence People!"
plot/breakdowns: Keith Giffen
script: Alan Grant
penciller: Barry Kitson
inker: Mike DeCarlo
letterer: Gaspar
colorist: Lovern Kindzierski
assistant editor: Art Young
editor: Karen Berger
cover art: Kevin Maguire and Al Gordon

Future L.E.G.I.O.N.airres: The Durlan, Garryn Bek, Lyrissa Mallor, Stealth, Strata, Vril Dox.

Their Opponent: The Computer Tyrants of Colu

Recap: After escaping from the Starlag prison during the Invasion! series, Vril Dox manipulated his fellow escapees into helping him free his people from the Computer Tyrants of Colu. While successful, Vril fears how the almost childlike Coluans will react to having free will for the first time in their lives.

Karate Kid #12

Karate Kid #12 
"The 'Time' of Your Death!"
script by Bob Rozakis
art by Juan Ortiz and Bob McLeod
lettered by Milt Snapinn
colored by Anthony Tollin
edited by Al Milgrom
cover by Rich Buckler (penciller) and Jack Abel (inker)
cover date: Feb/March 1978
review by Russell "Bilingual Boy" Burbage
dedicated affectionately to Glenn "Continuity Kid" Walker

Well even though this issue starts, literally one moment after the end of last issue, we are in a very different 1977 New York City, folks. Not only do we have a new cover logo (did you notice?) but we have a brand new creative team. New writer Bob Rozakis kicks the story off with a bang, and new artists Juan Ortiz and Bob McLeod hand in a more-than-capable job. The cover this time is by Rich Buckler, who was doing a lot of DC covers at around this time.

Clearly DC was trying to sell this book as a super-hero book and not as a karate or kung-fu tie-in. And you know what? It worked, because this is the first issue of Karate Kid that I actually bought off the stands!  I got it because of the Legion and because of the art inside.

Review: Adventure Comics #518

Adventure Comics #518, written by Paul Levitz with art by Kevin Sharpe, continues to turn back the clock and look at the earliest stories of  Superboy and the Legion.

As I have said in prior reviews of the title, it is an interesting concept for a number of reasons. I think one of the major problems with any Legion reboot is the fear of isolating or offending the continuity-rabid older fan base of the characters. This title's concept is probably heaven-sent for that crowd, allowing the more seasoned Legion lovers to enjoy a look backwards. But this title also allows Paul Levitz to further define and refine this early period of the team while, in essence, teaching any new Legion fans what the team was all about back in the day. We haven't seen any frank re-telling of Legion stories but we have danced around some of the big events in Legion Lore. And outside of, in my opinion, one major gaffe (having Saturn Girl sleep with Cos and then mind wipe him in #517), it has accomplished those goals nicely.

For newer fans, this book also helps to build a foundation for the team which has a lot of history to cover. And it allows the reader the ability to look at a character closely from where they have been (in Adventure) and where they are now (in the Legion main book). Certainly the Saturn Girl in the main book is different than the one here, so contrasting those portrayals helps the reader see just how much these characters have grown.

My one concern as an older fan as I read this book is that I may not appreciate the context of the story if indeed it is meant to embellish a sliver of the Silver Age. I consider myself a huge Legion fan but my knowledge of their earliest history is okay ... not encyclopedic. And as a result, newer fans might be struggling more.

On to the story!

Reboot: Legion Lost #10

Legion Lost #10 (February 2001)
title: "Rosette"

writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning

penciller: Olivier Coipel
inker: Andy Lanning
lettering: Comicraft
colorist: Tom McCraw

editor: Mike McAvennie

cover: Olivier Coipel & Andy Lanning
reviewers: Siskoid & Shotgun

Mission Monitor Board:  
Brainiac 5, Chameleon, Element Lad (image), Kid Quantum II, Live Wire, Monstress, Saturn Girl, Shikari, Ultra Boy, Umbra, Wildfire

Opponents: 
Progenitor, Progeny

Recap: 
A team of Legionnaires is lost in a remote part of space, and perhaps time, having slept in stasis thanks to the intervention of the since-missing Element Lad. They've been on the run from the xenophobic Progeny ever since, but now the Progeny fleet has caught up to them...

Who's Who: Starburst Bandits

Starburst Bandits
by Russell & Siskoid

Members: No individual names ever given

Super-Power(s): Bursts of stellar energy from their palms
Planet of Origin: Unknown

Relationship to Legion: Adversaries

L.E.G.I.O.N. '89 #2

L.E.G.I.O.N. '89 #2 (March 1989)
title: "So You Want to be a Despot?"
plot/breakdowns: Keith Giffen
script: Alan Grant
penciller: Barry Kitson
inker: Mike DeCarlo
letterer: Gaspar
colorist: Lovern Kindzierski
assistant editor: Art Young
editor: Karen Berger
cover art: Kevin Maguire and Al Gordon

Future L.E.G.I.O.N.airres: The Durlan, Garryn Bek, Lyrissa Mallor, Stealth, Strata, Vril Dox.

Their Opponent: The Computer Tyrants of Colu

Recap: After escaping from the Starlag prison during the Invasion! series, Vril Dox has tricked his fellow escapees into attempting to free his people from the Computer Tyrants of Colu. Their attempt appears to have failed after they are seemingly killed in an explosion.

Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st Century #12

Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st Century #12 
(April 2008
title: Lone Wolf
writer: Matthew K. Manning
artist: Ethen Beavers
letterer: Sol Cirpiano
colorist: Heroic Age
editor: Jeanine Shaefer
cover art: Alexandra Serra

Mission Monitor Board: Brainiac 5, Phantom Girl, and Timber Wolf

Cameos: Bouncing Boy, Chameleon Boy, Colossal Boy, Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Shrinking Violet, Sun Boy, and Superman.


Villains: Random bad guys

Review: Adventure Comics #517

I wish I had a better sense for the overall response to the Adventure Comics reboot back in 2010. The comic had become a sort of flashback title for the Legion, looking back at the earliest days of the team, trying to rebuild and refine the group's history.

Who was this title's demographic? Old timers like me, hoping to rekindle our passion for the team, while updating the early part of their timeline? New Legion readers, who may be having a hard time grasping the current title and might need this book to build up a back story? Both?

The comic market has barely been able to sustain any Legion book for the better part of 2 decades. Could it sustain 2 books? And did having two titles at two different points in time make it more confusing for new readers? I suppose there are a ton of X-books out there at different times so maybe I am overthinking things.

As for me, I am enjoying this reread more than I thought I would. I feared that this book might end up reading like straight reprints of stories I had already read. What Paul Levitz was doing was adding nuance to well traveled Legion stories and themes, bringing new perspective for the older Legion readers while building a history for the newer readers. In some ways it reminds me of Geoff Johns and his ability to reintroduce Silver Age elements to the Superman mythos while updating them enough to feel fresh.

Adventure Comics # 517 continues that 'best of both worlds' feel, bringing us one of the earliest Legion adventures back when the team consisted of only the original three, but adding some characterization to Saturn Girl.

Reboot: Legion Lost #9

Legion Lost #9 (January 2001)
title: "Lost & Alone"

writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning

penciller: Pascale Alixe
inker: Andy Lanning
lettering: Comicraft
colorist: Tom McCraw

editor: Mike McAvennie

cover: Olivier Coipel & Andy Lanning
reviewers: Siskoid & Shotgun

Mission Monitor Board:  
Brainiac 5, Chameleon, Kid Quantum II, Live Wire, Monstress, Saturn Girl, Shikari, Ultra Boy, Umbra, Wildfire

Guests: 
The Barontyk, the Dr'pp'rr, the Sumal

Opponents: 
Progeny

Who's Who: Sklarian Raiders

Sklarian Raiders
by Russell & Siskoid

Planet of Origin: Sklar

Relationship to Legion: Adversaries

L.E.G.I.O.N. '89 #1

L.E.G.I.O.N. '89 #1 (February 1989)
title: "Homecoming"
plot/breakdowns: Keith Giffen
script: Alan Grant
penciller: Barry Kitson
inker: Mike DeCarlo
letterer: Gaspar
colorist: Lovern Kindzierski
assistant editor: Art Young
editor: Karen Berger
cover art: Kevin Maguire and Al Gordon

Future L.E.G.I.O.N.aires: The Durlan, Garryn Bek, Lyrissa Mallor, Stealth, Strata, Vril Dox.

Their Opponent: The Computer Tyrants of Colu

Recap: During the three part Invasion! series, a coalition of alien races invaded Earth. Humanity was deemed too dangerous because of the meta-gene that gave them the propensity to develop superpowers. Dissenters and other aliens were being held by the coalition at Starlag, but the Coluan prisoner Vril Dox and the Omega Men led a revolt at the prison. As the first issue of L.E.G.I.O.N. opens a ship full of surviving escapees from Starlag has arrived at the planet Colu seemingly to return Vril Dox to his home.

LEGION TOYS: Brainiac 5 (DC Direct 2002)

Now we're coming full circle and getting to the characters who have had DC Universe Classics figures, but who I didn't actually review the first time around. Inventor of the Legion Flight Ring! The man who created the anti-lead serum that allowed Mon-El to leave the Phantom Zone! The guy who created a villainous Computo before Hank Pym ever thought about creating Ultron! And of course the creator of his own signature device, his Force Field Belt, we're talking about Querl Dox a.k.a. Brainiac 5!

Review: Adventure Comics #516

The year was 2010 and DC had just put out a new Legion of Super-Heroes title, one picking up on Geoff Johns' restructuring and reverting the team's history to the Baxter series continuity. No 5YL. No Archie book. No Threeboot. We were back to old times. And as such, it made sense that DC would want to put out a comic that would review some of the team's history ... something to get the new readers up to speed to the old timeline. Writer Paul Levitz said that he was picking up the team's continuity after his 'Magic Wars' arc from way back in 1989.That was 20 year old history he was dusting off.

Adventure Comics felt like that recap book, a way for Levitz to make sure key historical points were reviewed and retold.

Adventure Comics #516 tells R.J. Brande's story which intertwines with Legion history pretty closely. There is a lot of exposition here, Brande appearing after his death as a holographic story-teller, retelling his life story to the Legionnaires present. Of course, they all know this story or most of it.

In fact, that was one of my own selfish concerns here. I know most of this story too. Would this issue be worth my time? Luckily Levitz throws in some new flourishes that I enjoyed. And the overall theme, that Brande is as big a hero as any Legion because of the changes he brought to the universe, is a nice one.

Reboot: Legion Lost #8

Legion Lost #8 (December 2000)
title: "Lost & Found"

writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning

penciller: Olivier Coipel
inker: Andy Lanning
lettering: Comicraft
colorist: Tom McCraw

editor: Mike McAvennie

cover: Olivier Coipel & Andy Lanning
reviewers: Siskoid & Shotgun

Mission Monitor Board:  
Brainiac 5.1, Chameleon, Kid Quantum II, Live Wire, Monstress, Saturn Girl, Shikari, Ultra Boy, Umbra, Wildfire; psychic images: Apparition, Cosmic Boy, Element Lad, Spark, Violet

Guests: 
Singularity

Opponents: 
Lorcan psionic imagers