5YL Supplemental: Zero Hour

Zero Hour #3-1 (September 1994)
title: "Zero Hour"

writer: Dan Jurgens

penciller: Dan Jurgens
inker: Jerry Ordway
lettering: Gaspar Saladino
colorist: Gregory Wright
assistant editor: Mike McAvenie

editor: KC Carlson

cover: Dan Jurgens and Jerry Ordway
reviewer: Siskoid

Mission Monitor Board:  
Cosmic Boy (three versions), Lightning Lad, Live Wire, Saturn Girl (both), Ultra Boy

Guests: 
The rest of the DC Universe

Opponents: 
Extant, Parallax

Threeboot: Legion of Super-Heroes #15

Recap: The United Planets is recovering from the war against Praetor Lemnos and his Terror Firma. The Legion is also recovering, picking up the pieces of their destroyed headquarters, bunking at family homes, and ultimately signing on with the UP for funding. But remember, the Legion is just the team ... it's a movement. How are the followers coping?

Writer Mark Waid had a difficult task ahead of him when he signed up to write the Threeboot Legion. Who would dare recreate the Legion, satisfying the die-hard continuity-loving older fans while being fresh and accessible enough to bring in a new fandom. It couldn't have been easy. And frankly, I wasn't following things on social media back then enough to really know what the reaction was.

Legion of Super-Heroes #15 was something of a retro issue, perhaps throwing a bone to the older fans. It was obvious, just based on the cover, that this was going to be something different than the usual Threeboot book. There is Dawnstar, Blok, and Tyroc ... all nowhere to be seen in this new continuity ... standing proudly, front and center. And those are some flashback uniforms too. Behind them are thernew Legionnaires. One thing I can say from this, cover artist can draw a great Dawnstar.

I don't if this was considered a tease or an homage. But it at least showed that Waid was trying to reconcile old histories with new.

The art on the book is done by Pat Oliffe, Adam DeKraker, and others. As I have said before, Kitson's art was definitely a big part of this book's appeal and feel. To see him off the book for another issue was something of a letdown.

Looking ahead, this was the perfect 'rest issue' before the bold new direction we see next issue, both a look back and a pause before the future.

The Legion of Super-Heroes v1

As we here at Legion of Super-Bloggers have finished our reviews of the third volume of Legion of Super-Heroes and gear up to start profiling the second volume, we thought we should stop and talk about the unheralded and often forgotten FIRST volume of that title...

Who's Who: Earth-Man

 

Earth-Man
by Siskoid

Real Name: Kirt Niedrigh

Super-Power(s): Absorption/mimicry of other super-humanoids' powers.
Planet of Origin: Earth

Legion Seniority: Earth-Man was the second Legion recruit after the Retroboot.

Good-bye to Legion of Super-Heroes (v3)

The Legion of Super-Heroes (v3) made its debut in May, 1984. I was in college when it came out, and I distinctly remember walking more than 10 blocks from campus to the closest book-store I knew to pick up my copy.

This first issue was a big deal because it was one of DC's first "direct market" comics. That means that it would not be available via the then-regular distribution system that got comic-books into places like 7-11s, grocery stores, Targets, or, yes, news stands. So if I wanted a copy, I needed to go to a specific store to find a copy.

By the time the series ended in 1989, "direct market" was the acceptable mode of distribution, and "news stand" comics were a thing of the past.

SUPER ZEROES

Remember Zero Hour?
    Indeed, some fans would probably prefer to forget it. The series was done with the best of intentions, aiming to clear up various inconsistencies caused by the landmark Crisis on Infinite Earths. It promised to consolidate the inconsistent future timelines of the DC Universe into a new unity.

5YL: Valor #23

Valor #23 (September 1994)
title: "Infinite Valor"

writer: Kurt Busiek

penciller: Colleen Doran
inker: Dave Cooper
lettering: Bob Pinaha
colorist: Dave Grafe

assistant editor: Mike McAvennie

editor: KC Carlson

cover: Stuart Immonen
partners in time travel: Mark Waid and Tom McCraw
reviewer: Siskoid

Mission Monitor Board:  
Alchemist, Bouncing Boy, Brainiac 5 (both), Celeste, Cosmic Boy, Dream Girl (both), Duo Damsel, Element Lad, Ferro, Ferro Lad, Gossamer, Inferno, Light Lass, Lightning Lad, Live Wire, Matter-Eater Lad (both), Phantom Girl, Saturn Girl (both), Shadow Lass, Shrinking Violet (both), Star Boy, Sun Boy, Triad, Ultra Boy (both), Valor, Wildfire/N.R.G.

Guests: 
Night Girl, Superboy (pocket universe)

Opponents: 
Glorith, Mordru, Time Trapper

5YL: Legionnaires #18

Legionnaires #18 (September 1994)
title: "Changing Times"

writers: Mark Waid and Tom McCraw

penciller: Chris Gardner
inker: Dennis Cramer
lettering: Pat Brosseau
colorist: Tom McCraw
assistant editor: Mike McAvennie

editor: KC Carlson

cover: Stuart Immonen
reviewer: Siskoid

Mission Monitor Board:  
Alchemist, Bouncing Boy (both), Brainiac 5 (both), Celeste, Chameleon, Chemical King, Cosmic Boy (both), Duo Damsel, Dragonmage, Dream Girl (both), Element Lad, Inferno, Invisible Kid (SW6), Kono, Live Wire, Matter-Eater Lad (SW6), Polar Boy, Projectra, Reflex, Saturn Girl (both), Shrinking Violet (both), Star Boy (both), Timber Wolf, Ultra Boy (both), White Witch/Jewel, Wildfire/N.R.G

Guests: 
Amethyst, Night Girl, Rond Vidar, Science Police, Superman

Opponents: 
Glorith, Mordru, Time Trapper; evil Legionnaires pulled out of time to fight for them, including Blok, Brainiac 5, Chameleon Boy, Chemical King, Cosmic Boy, Dawnstar, Element Lad, Invisible Kid I, Karate Kid, Saturn Girl, Shrinking Violet, and Ultra Boy.

"Magic" Defeated; Legionnaire Dies

Threeboot: Legion of Super-Heroes #14

Recap: The war is over! The Legion using some brilliant strategy and a little luck, was able to defeat the machination of Praetor Lemnos and his Terror Firma. But war has its casualties and the Legion wasn't spared. Dream Girl has died, sending Brainiac 5 into a bit of a obsessive quest to save her, her body kept in complete suspension in his lab. But the big questions is 'what do you do the day after the war?'