Who Drew It Better? Tales vs. Baxter #16-19

By Siskoid and Russell
Continuing our comparison of the covers to the Baxter version of The Legion (volume 3) and their reprints approximately one year later in Tales of the Legion of Super-Heroes. The stories were exactly the same, but each issue had a brand new cover. So we go back to the age-old question: Who drew the better cover?

Reboot: The Legion #24

The Legion #24 (November 2003)
title: "After Dark"

writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning

artist: Steve Lightle
lettering: Comicraft
colorist: Jason Wright
seps: Digital Chameleon

editor: Stephen Wacker

cover: Steve Lightle
reviewers: Siskoid & Shotgun

Mission Monitor Board:  
Kid Quantum II, Umbra

Guests: 
Kwai guide, Science Police, Shadow Maven

Opponents: 
Grev Mallor/The Shadow

Recap: 
While lost in another galaxy, Umbra mysteriously lost her powers. When the Legion returned, she left for her homeworld of Talok VIII to deal with the issue...

L.E.G.I.O.N. '91 #30

L.E.G.I.O.N. '91 #30 (August 1991)
title: "Welcome to the War!"
plot: Alan Grant & Barry Kitson
writer: Alan Grant
penciller: Barry Kitson
inker: Barry Kitson
letterer: Gaspar Saladino
colorist: Lovern Kindzierski
editor: Dan Raspler
cover art: Adam Kubert
review by: Mike "Nostalgic Kid" Lane

Recap: The L.E.G.I.O.N. successfully captured a doomsday device being built by the Khunds to use in their war against the Dominion. It turned out that there was a flaw in the device, but Dox kept that to himself and used it to force the Dominion and Khunds to stop using free worlds in their war. Stealth continued her exile and gave birth to a son, but the experience almost killed her. Dox sent Lobo to deal with some smugglers and freed Lydea Mallor from the brainwashing that led her to kill her mother, Lyrissa Mallor. He then asked Phase to take over for Lyrissa as his second-in-command. She was shocked at the offer since she believed Dox resented her for the Durlan's disappearance, but she did accept.

Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #9: The Return of ----!?!

Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen by Matt Fraction and Steve Lieber has been consistently considered one of the funniest comics DC's released in years and it's a much needed breath of fresh air among the company's deluge of dour books.

I, unfortunately, haven't paid much attention to the Jimmy Olsen maxi-series despite my friend Alec's approval of how hilarious it's supposed to be. It simply hasn't flown onto my radar lately and my store's frequently selling out of the new issues.

I recently pulled the ninth issue upon remembering it boasted the surprise return of a beloved minor Legion character who hasn't been seen in over a decade.

Not Rainbow Girl.

Not Miss Terious.

Certainly not Unknown Boy.

It's ARM-FALL-OFF BOY!

Reboot: The Legion #23

The Legion #23 (October 2003)
title: "Dream Crime: Part Five"

writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning

penciller: Chris Batista
inker: Mark Farmer
lettering: Comicraft
colorist: Jason Wright
seps: Digital Chameleon

editor: Stephen Wacker

cover: Tony Harris and Tom Feister

reviewers: Siskoid & Shotgun

Mission Monitor Board:  
Apparition, Brainiac 5, Chameleon, Cosmic Boy, Ferro, Gates, Gear, Invisible Kid, Karate Kid, Kid Quantum II, M'Onel, Saturn Girl, Sensor, Shikari, Spark, Star Boy, Timber Wolf, Triad, Ultra Boy, Umbra, Violet, Wildfire, XS

Guests: 
Aven, Cub Nah, Dr. Gym'll, Dreamer, Kinetix,Pasgassi-Master; visions: R.J. Brande, Shvaughn Erin, Tenzil Kem

Opponents: 
Universo

L.E.G.I.O.N. '91 #29

L.E.G.I.O.N. '91 #29 (July 1991)
title: "Traffic In, Traffic Out"
plot: Alan Grant & Barry Kitson
writer: Alan Grant
penciller: Barry Kitson
inker: Barry Kitson
letterer: Gaspar Saladino
colorist: Lovern Kindzierski
editor: Dan Raspler
cover art: Barry Kitson & Lovern Kindzierski
review by: Mike "Nostalgic Kid" Lane

Recap: After the death of Lyrissa Mallor, Dox turned his attention to the Khundian Empire and learned that they were using a captured scientist to build a Doomsday weapon. The team successfully captured both the design plans and the weapon, but the captured scientist was killed. Dox then staffed the doomsday device with a crew from the planet Ogen and placed it in a location where it could strike at either Khundia or the Dominion if they tried to involve any more free worlds in their war. Meanwhile, Stealth continued her self-imposed exile. The birth of her child virtually tore her body apart, but the remains formed a cocoon from which she emerged in a new body. We learned that her violent attack on Dox is the natural manner for her race to reproduce and the men usually do not survive. We also learned that the women usually do not survive giving birth, but Stealth is revealed to be a mutant of her species. The child she delivered is a son and his physical appearances matches his father, Vril Dox.

The Brave And The Bold #198

The Brave And The Bold #198 
"Terrorists of the Heart!"
written by Mike W. Barr
pencilled by Chuck Patton
inked by Rick Hoberg
lettered by Todd Klein
colored by Adrienne Roy
edited by Len Wein
cover by Jim Aparo
cover date: May 1983
review by Russell "Bilingual Boy" Burbage
dedicated affectionately to Glenn "Continuity Kid" Walker

The last time we saw Karate Kid in a solo adventure he was leaving 1978 to head back into the future. He was desperate to try to cure Iris Jacobs, who had been transformed by Major Disaster and the Lord of Time into Diamondeth.

As we saw in several issues of Legion of Super-Heroes, he was successful in not only reaching the future but also in curing Iris.

However, we did not ever see another solo Karate Kid adventure, or any Karate Kid-centric Legion story that wrapped up his "banished into the past" story-line. Specifically, the confrontation between him, Princess Projectra, and her father, King Voxv, was never shown; that would have been a hugely dramatic scene that all Legion fans at the time were hoping for! Therefore we have no choice but to  imagine how Karate Kid and Projectra must have convinced His Majesty that this Earthling "peasant" was somehow worthy of marrying his daughter. Unfortunately, none of the Legion writers between 1978 and 1983 deemed that family drama worth sharing.

Then, in the winter of 1983, Karate Kid suddenly showed up on the newsstands again! This time he was a co-star with Batman in The Brave and The Bold....the only Legionnaire besides Superboy and Supergirl so honored! This was the last time Val Armorr ever got co-star billing in pre-Crisis continuity. So...what kind of conclusion do we get for Karate Kid? Let's find out!

Reboot: The Legion #22

The Legion #22 (September 2002)
title: "Dream Crime: Part Four"

writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning

penciller: Chris Batista
inker: Mark Farmer
lettering: Comicraft
colorist: Jason Wright
seps: Digital Chameleon

editor: Stephen Wacker

cover: Tony Harris and Tom Feister

reviewers: Siskoid & Shotgun

Mission Monitor Board:  
Apparition, Brainiac 5, Chameleon, Cosmic Boy, Ferro, Gates, Gear, Invisible Kid, Karate Kid, Kid Quantum II, M'Onel, Saturn Girl, Sensor, Shikari, Spark, Star Boy, Timber Wolf, Triad, Ultra Boy, Umbra, Violet, Wildfire, XS

Guests: 
Chuck Taine, Dreamer, Kinetix, Pasgassi-Master

Opponents: 
Universo

L.E.G.I.O.N. '91 #28

L.E.G.I.O.N. '91 #28 (June 1991)
title: "Mommy's Boy"
plot: Keith Giffen and Alan Grant
writer: Alan Grant
penciller: Keith Giffen
inker: George Pratt
letterer: Gaspar Saladino
colorist: Lovern Kindzierski
editor: Art Young
cover art: Keith Giffen, Malcolm Jones III, & Lovern Kindzierski
review by: Mike "Nostalgic Kid" Lane

Recap: After the death of Lyrissa Mallor, Dox turned his attention to the Khundian Empire and learned that they were using a captured scientist to build a Doomsday weapon. The team successfully captured both the design plans and the weapon, but the captured scientist was killed. Dox then staffed the doomsday device with a crew from the planet Ogen and placed it in a location where it could strike at either Khundia or the Dominion if they tried to involve any more free worlds in their war. Meanwhile, Stealth continued her self-imposed exile to await the birth of her child.

From Beyond the Unknown Giant #1

From Beyond the Unknown Giant #1 (March 2020)
title: "Stealth Mode"

writer: Dan Jurgens

art: Dan Jurgens & Norm Rapmund
lettering: Ryan Christy
colorist: Hi-Fi 

editor: Katie Kubert

cover: Jose Luis Garcia Lopez
review by Michael "Nostalgic Kid" Lane

A few years ago, DC began an initiative with Walmart to produce exclusive comics. Their format matched the 100-Page Super-Spectaculars of the 1970s. The general pattern was one new story with several reprints, and those reprints were generally from the Modern Age of comics, i.e., post-2000. In 2019, the deal was no longer exclusive and DC also produced them for the Direct Market. My understanding is that the issues would first be released at Walmart and then become available in the Direct Market with different covers. This issue is one of their recent releases and one of the original stories features the Legion of Super-Heroes.

Reboot: The Legion #21

The Legion #21 (August 2002)
title: "Dream Crime: Part Three"

writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning

penciller: Chris Batista
inker: Mark Farmer
lettering: Comicraft
colorist: Jason Wright
seps: Digital Chameleon

editor: Stephen Wacker

cover: Tony Harris and Tom Feister

reviewers: Siskoid & Shotgun

Mission Monitor Board:  
Apparition, Brainiac 5, Chameleon, Cosmic Boy, Gear, Invisible Kid, Kid Quantum II, M'Onel, Sensor, Shikari, Spark, Star Boy, Timber Wolf, Triad, Ultra Boy, Violet, Wildfire

Guests: 
Chuck Taine, Cub Nah, Dr. Dreamer; Legion World staff, Science Police

Opponents: 
Universo; illusion: Apokoliptian Stormtroopers, Darkseid, Parademons

L.E.G.I.O.N. '91 #27

L.E.G.I.O.N. '91 #27 (May 1991)
title: "Deals with the Devils"
plot: Barry Kitson and Alan Grant
writer: Alan Grant
penciller: Barry Kitson
inker: Barry Kitson
letterer: Gaspar Saladino
colorist: Lovern Kindzierski
editor: Art Young
cover art: Dan Brereton
review by: Mike "Nostalgic Kid" Lane

Recap: After the death of Lyrissa Mallor, Dox turned his attention to the Khundian Empire and learned that they were using a captured scientist to build a Doomsday weapon. The L.E.G.I.O.N. located the base where the Doomsday device was being built and split into groups. Lady Quark, Bek, Strata and Garv battled the Khunds, while Lobo searched for the captured scientist, and Phase and Telepath searched for the weapon. They successfully obtained both the design plans and the weapon, but Lobo failed at his mission because there was a bomb inside the scientist set to go off if he was taken away.

LEGION TOYS: Lego Mini-Figures

Released in 2015 and 2016 respectively, Lightning Lad and Cosmic Boy are DC Comics Super-Heroes Mini-Figures from Lego. While Lightning Lad was released at Target as part of a retailer exclusive boxed mini-figure gift set, Cosmic Boy came with the DVD/Blu-Ray release of the animated feature, Justice League: Cosmic Clash.