posted
I'm thinking they just wanted to show what badasses the Fatal Five were. Lyle wasn't really the most prominenet Legionnaire at the time but he still had enough of a fan base that his death would be shocking...
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From: Morganfield, KY | Registered: Jul 2003
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Eryk Davis Ester
Created from the Cosmic Legends of the Universe!
posted
Hmmm... I would have thought the Fatal Five's "badass" status was already established at that point.
One interesting point to note is the Lyle was one of the few Legionnaires whose fate was not a *given* at that point because of the Adult Legion stories.
From: Liberty City | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
I think Invisible Kid's death was just part of the general housecleaning that was done in the early '70s: Bouncing Boy and Duo Damsel got married, Supergirl resigned, etc. TPTB were obviously getting rid of characters they didn't deem necessary. With those three, it's somewhat easy to see why: DD and BB had limited powers that didn't fit in with the more adult version of the Legion, and Supergirl was superfluous in Superboy's mag. (Say that sentence three times fast.)
Lyle's death may be been included because, as Danny mentioned, it was so unexpected. Also, as Eryk said, since Lyle was not part of the Adult Legion, he was fair game for anything to happen.
-------------------- The Semi-Great Gildersleeve - writing, super-heroes, and this 'n' that
From: The Stasis Zone | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
I was hoping the Legion Companion would offer some insight into this, but it was not to be. There was a comment from (IIRC) Mike Grell to the effect that TPTB knew they were kiling off one of the more popular characters. But that was it.
posted
Yeah, this thread makes me wish even more that Cary Bates had agreed to be interviewed.
-------------------- The Semi-Great Gildersleeve - writing, super-heroes, and this 'n' that
From: The Stasis Zone | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
If memory serves, Cary Bates didn't really use Invisible Kid in any stories, until that one (although he used his "ghost" and Ferro Lad's soon after!). I suspect that Mr. Bates didn't care much for the character, or as mentioned above the Legion was purging some of it's weaker characters.
I'll never forget when 20-something issues later the SoLSH cover came out with the caption "one of these Legionnaires will die" in the issue. We hadn't seen Chemical King since Wildfire joined, so it was obvious who the victim would be!
-------------------- "My dance card was getting fuller than a contestant's at a Jandan shurg-off." - Exnihil, The Lost Klordny
From: Frederick, MD | Registered: Aug 2003
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quote:Originally posted by He Who Wanders: Yeah, this thread makes me wish even more that Cary Bates had agreed to be interviewed.
Agreed.
Given Lyle's cameo in the Magic Wars, I've also wondered if Paul Levitz had plans for the character in the back of his mind that he never got around to.
posted
Lyle also popped up earlier during Dream Girl's leadership from a Khundian negaton bomb (that sent Omen/Prophet away). Unfortunately, it later turned out to be some hoax created by a baddie in a dream dimension. I thought that was a great opportunity to bring him back, but Jacques was already on the scene and having two Invisible Kids in the Legion was impossible in those days.
-------------------- "My dance card was getting fuller than a contestant's at a Jandan shurg-off." - Exnihil, The Lost Klordny
From: Frederick, MD | Registered: Aug 2003
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quote:Originally posted by Kid Quislet: Lyle also popped up earlier during Dream Girl's leadership from a Khundian negaton bomb (that sent Omen/Prophet away). Unfortunately, it later turned out to be some hoax created by a baddie in a dream dimension. I thought that was a great opportunity to bring him back, but Jacques was already on the scene and having two Invisible Kids in the Legion was impossible in those days.
Plus, as I recall, this was an example of the artist running amok with the script. Bringing back Lyle apparently didn't begin with Levitz. It was Giffen's idea of a curve-ball to throw at the writer.
-------------------- The Semi-Great Gildersleeve - writing, super-heroes, and this 'n' that
From: The Stasis Zone | Registered: Jul 2003
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quote:Originally posted by He Who Wanders: Bringing back Lyle apparently didn't begin with Levitz. It was Giffen's idea of a curve-ball to throw at the writer.
True, but I always thought of that as just another instance of Keith doing something just for the hell of it. Levitz, with Lyle's appearances in two "Times Past" stories and the Magic Wars cameo, gave me the impression he might have had something in mind.
posted
But, rhino, DC (both the company and Dave Cockrum) had already gone to such lengths to create new costumes for most to the Legionnaires. Surely they could have given Lyle some more appealing duds.
-------------------- The Semi-Great Gildersleeve - writing, super-heroes, and this 'n' that
From: The Stasis Zone | Registered: Jul 2003
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When outsiders take over the title (and that's what Cary Bates and Murray Boltinoff were: the only reason Bates got the job was because of a few Legion scripts bought by Mort Weisinger. He was a struggling writer trying to get whatever work he could, and had no personal preference for the Legion) they don't view the series from the same perspective as Legion fans. They don't believe that each and every character is wonderful in their own way, and don't think that people will care when a third-tier, hardly seen Legionnaire is killed off. They just don't put a lot of thought into it. If anything, it's seen as an opportunity (since the Legion had a membership limit) to introduce a character which isn't as lame, and to put their own mark upon the title.
If you or I were to pick up a title which we usually don't read, I'm sure that we'd form our own opinions about the characters. If we were told to write that comic, we wouldn't bring any baggage into it and wouldn't have any emotional connection to the characters. Plus (and this is important) the Legion of Super-Heroes had long been the kicking boy of comic book fandom. It was considered to be a universal truth that the Legion of Super-Heroes was the stupidest comic published, and that all of the members of the group were inherently silly. Most fans turned pros (of which Bates was one, although I can't speak for him personally) viewed the Legion with little short of contempt, as the sort of comic book which gave comic books a bad name. By extension, they didn't hold the audience for that comic in high regard, so if they were to become briefly aware that anyone would even care if a character like Invisible Kid was killed off, they wouldn't care themselves about the audience's reaction since they didn't respect it.
Everything I've ever heard about Cary Bates is that he turned his back on comics ages ago, and could care less about the industry today. That's probably why he wasn't interviewed for the book. I doubt if he would reverse that decision for a comic which he didn't enjoy writing in the first place. He'd probably swear under his breath about Legion fans, having thought he'd gotten rid of those over-analyzing pains in the ass decades ago. Or maybe he wouldn't be as nasty as that, but imagine if you had a job which you didn't like thirty years ago, and suddenly someone wanted to talk with you about it today? I don't think you'd go out of your way to accomodate that person, especially since you'd closed that chapter of your life years ago.
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Registered: Jul 2003
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