posted
I've bought and read every Legion story for the past 40 years. That's the longest relationship I've had with just about anything other than my family. And I'm not a comics geek -- I've read a few other books for short periods and then let them go -- so I don't know how to explain this relationship with the LSH.
This story, had it been only a single story, would not be the worst Legion story I've read. But to be the conclusion of a storyline...AND the conclusion of a series...AND during the celebration of the Legion's 50th anniversary...well, all that makes it sickeningly appalling.
Unless this had something to do with the Superman lawsuit...if DC was counting their Winathian chickens before they hatched, and some didn't hatch in time...then I can't imagine a reason for this. And even so, there had to be a classier way to resolve this story. Do like Astro City and just wait until it's ready! I'd have much more respect for that.
How many potentially fine DC stories are being strangled by these crossovers? I have no idea what's happening with this multiverse business, and I don't care..and I sure don't want to buy 52 books every month to understand it. Just give me a good story for my money, dagnabbit!
Beyond this series ending being disrespectful to the readers, it's terrible business to offer such a bad product at such an auspicious time for the franchise. It's like Budweiser bottling cat urine during Super Bowl week. Well, maybe not quite to that extent...more like bottling cat urine for one of their little boutique products.
That t-i-n-y little sentence on the last page -- "We greatly appreciate the support of our loyal readers!" -- felt like spit in the face. Or perhaps they meant it as a desperate plea for the suckers among us not to leave DC. There was not a word of hope for their "loyal readers" about the future of the Legion. The message seemed to be, "We had to pretend to create a passable ending, but we've flushed it for good. Too bad for you."
Brainy's words on the bottom of the fourth page from the end grabbed my attention as soon as I read them. He had seized control of the matrix and was sitting in his force field surrounded by fallen aliens. "That goes for ALL of you, from the heart of the universe to the furthest reaches of space. Thanks for trying to 'save' us, but we'll be 'keeping it real,' nonetheless."
It had the ring of a writer's message to someone outside the story. An "F-you!" to the powers? Or to critical fans? Or was it a real "thanks" to someone?
I'm a big boy and I know this is just a comic book. I've been disappointed with the way DC has handled my friends before, but hey, it's not all about me. I'll still keep looking for the Legion to show up somewhere. After this time, though, I'm sad that I'll have to support DC to find them.
-------------------- "Been killed--didn't like it." (Duplicate Damsel, Legion of Super-Heroes #10)
From: Groga | Registered: Aug 2003
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future king
Excuse me but can you please direct me to the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles?
posted
quote:Originally posted by fjm: I realize that the situation was less than ideal but I hope you guys follow me into my upcoming projects as I think you guys will be very pleasantly surprised. Again thank you all so much for the support you guys and gals have given and hopefully I can count on you guys to continue doing so.
You're welcome, and yes you definately have my support. I will check out your up-coming projects and see what you've been up to since leaving the Legion. Thanks for a VERY NICE run on the series. You were truly amazing and I'm proud of the accomplishments as a fellow Canadian.
Hopefully we'll see you on another Legion title in the near future?? Heh, heh, heh..... That would totally rock, and would be a kick-ass payback to the bad nightmare that is #50.
Did you happen to read it by any chance?
From: ontario | Registered: Feb 2007
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posted
Look at the positive side-- this issue'll provide *years* of grist for Legion-related fan joke threads. Dr. Mayavale, Ze Tongue, Legion on the Run, this issue...
From: Knoxville, TN | Registered: Jul 2003
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quote:Originally posted by Tromium: The only thing Didio has accomplished by his latest act of fraud is to confound, enrage and alienate fans more than ever before, and eliminate any chance the Johnsboot mock-original LSH ever had of being accepted as the definitive Legion. By screwing Shooter, he also screwed himself, Geoff Johns and the very future of the franchise.
How do you figure? I mean, I'm in no position to either criticize or defend, not having read the comic yet, but I don't see how LSH v5 #50 reflects on Johns's retroboot at all. What's the connection?
The connection is that since Shooter started his run, Johns' been trampling (true, with Dan Didio's blessing) over whatever the main book was doing. First it was that dreck called The Lightning Saga, one of those typical Johns plots that meander a lot to leave you hanging but it actually goes nowhere, but to another "big event". Then, Legion of 3 Worlds - in which the writer of one of those worlds was again trampled down. I never saw a single acknowledge to Shooter (or Waid) from Johns. In fact, he seems simply not to care.
As for the rip-off and coward-writing of LSH#50, it seems very clear that this was done to allow Johns to retrofit anything he wants from the Threeboot. However, if L3W #1 is to be taken into consideration, this ending does not fit with the team presented on LSH#50, but to the team left behind by Mark Waid. But, hey, this has never stopped Johns before: he killed all JLI and transformed Max Lord into a crazy jackass for nothing but "good storytelling"...
The Lightning Saga was over and Superman and The Legion of Superheroes had already been announced in June of 2007.
Shooter agreed to return to the Legion in September of 2007.
The first issue of Superman and the Legion of Superheroes came out in December of 2007.
Shooter's first story was produced in January of 2008.
Sorry, but Geoff Johns didn't trample on Shooter...if anything Shooter attempted to trample on Geoff Johns.
[ January 29, 2009, 09:17 PM: Message edited by: Superboy ]
Registered: Mar 2006
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quote:Originally posted by MLLASH: Well, thank space I decided to read the spoilers because I was bored....
I was all ready to avenge you all by declaring that for the first time ever, I was going to intentionally NOT buy an issue of LSH.
But then Blocks' review got me thinking. Is this a case of something being so awful that it is actually good? Is it a case of one man's "Desperate Living" being another man's "Schindler's List", or what?
I'm leaning toward it being a steaming pile I won't buy, but I'm open to other points of view.
Well as far as continuity from the previous issue, you get better carryover continuity in the typical epiosode of Sesame Street.
I have never seen such a blatant disregard for existing plotlines at the conclusion of a story, probably ever. Not this many, not this blatantly.
There is nothing clever about that. I mean they just ignored everything except for 2 plotlines.
As others have noted, a white event is actually a step up from this in some ways.
That said, it actually does have a Silver Age feel to much of it(except where Garth says Lyle can't get any) and the behavior of the characters is this surreal Silver Age parody type thing...bordering on bizarre.
I did laugh several times at just how ridiculous some of it was.
I guess you'll just have to read it at least and give us your review.
I'm not returning my issue, this one might have some value someday.
IMHO the Zero Hour whiteout was still worse.
Registered: Mar 2006
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quote:Originally posted by Superboy: Sorry, but Geoff Johns didn't trample on Shooter...if anything Shooter attempted to trample on Geoff Johns.
Ok, so Johns trampled over Waid first, then Shooter. My bad.
And I don't see the connection between LSH #50 and a Silver Age book. For once, those used to be self-contained stories with an opening, some development and a conclusion. This one has nothing like that, it was just a bit of nonsensical junk, a bunch of action (hahaha) scenes and a slap on my face in the end. Characters were harder to be distinguished than Edmond Hamilton typical two-dimensional rendering (hey, at least we could understand Curt Swan's art!).
From: Brasil | Registered: May 2008
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posted
Thanks for the replies Superboy - really helpful. I often feel very ignorant as to what goes on in comics when I hear you guys talking about it as you obviously know more about it - it's really interesting to get another perspective on it. I guess no institution is exempt from the curse of politics! This feels like a political move of some sort, and they (whoever 'they' are) misjudged the reaction of the fans badly.
From: Kent | Registered: Jan 2004
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posted
wait so if shooter left instead of finishing... isn't this his bad? he left a bunch of other people holding the bag so that they had to write something else at the last second?
ahhh. jeez. like sorry i can't help feeling bad for these people. as i said over on the omnicomm, making comics is HARD. it's really really hard and legion is as hard as it gets with the most impossible to please fans. literally, impossible.
try finishing up someone elses work sometime and see how well it goes. it does NOT go well sometimes. usually, when it DOES go well? you can't tell and no one knows it happened. but you mess up, and there is a nightmare! but sometimes you have deadlines, you HAVE to get the book to the printers and that's all you can do!
being an editor is HARD. being EIC is harder. now imagine being the EIC of a company with the most judgmental and tempermental and IMPOSSIBLE TO PLEASE consumers in the world. i seriously cannot think of anything with more of a crazy fan base than comics, just think about how freaking huge and insane SDCC is and how there's like NOTHING else bigger. I get dizzy just thinking about it.
so your writer jumps ship on a book after spoiling the intended ending an interview, the solicits have already been published, your artist is working on a more important project (considering he's doing all the legwork on the book plus that back up in adventure and plus some covers....).
man it sucks to be nameless writer compendium and then it sucks more for that bachs guy, whom everyone is going to be pissed at because he's not up to par but he can draw a 22 odd pages in time. hey he MIGHT be good! i can show you some really really bad crap i've made when a deadline was tight. and i mean REALLY bad.
case in point, i can't help thinking about how BAD sanford green's LOSH issue was but how NICE his LOSH31 issue was, and how much i LOVE his sketchbooks and art but how breathtakingly horrific that issue was.
yeah this was bad. it was REALLY bad. super hella mega bad bad. BUT... all things considered...
1) it got out on time 2) no one died! (sort of) 3)do you guys remember that last ending?! where it just like weren't querl and mon-el rambling at each other?! and then it ACTUALLY ended in TT?!!! 4) dream girl got her body AND POWERS back. 5)we found out what those freaky monster things were 6) DID I POINT OUT THAT NO ONE DIED?
it ended the arc... messily, but there it is. it tied up the plot lines that _I_ cared about so... hahaha, i can't be too upset.
i wonder if i would feel more warmly towards this if it'd been drawn better. my cohort's reading of what i read has led me to realize i have this crutch where i'm very forgiving of "well-drawn" thing. i will accept a lot of idiocy if it's well paneled and the people look awesome.
ok. so. that was a lot of talking but what i really wanted to say was, remember how the LAST legion didn't really end IN legion? so...maybe this isn't really the ending. i mean, i dunno if you guys remember this other little thing called Lo3W where our heroes appeared? maybe that's another reason why this was put on the back burner of the importance stove, that's what makes logical sense to me.
oh and anyways, don't worry about it that much, in final crisis Click Here For A Spoilersuperman just miracle wished them all away so it never happened <3. anyways, BE STRONG! MAYBE THE NEXT THING WILL BE BETTER! that's our real mantra, right next to "long live the legion", right? i keep thinking of that movie "what dreams may come" and the legion is sort of like that, let's go meet our precious future friends again and again! <3
posted
Thanks, FJM, for coming on this site to explain what happened to the ending of this particular Legion series.
I would have personally preferred if the story had been left unfinished. It actually was as it were. The ending that was presented to us, the followers of this title, was NOT the actual ending for Jim Shooter's legion story.
As I mentioned earlier, I have been following and collecting the Legion of Super Heroes for nearly 50 years. I don't post on this site as a rule, but I was so upset over what happened and I knew others would be as well, because it felt like my home had been broken into and something I really liked was stolen.
Often over the years I have considered writing a letter of comment to a particular comic I was enjoying but never did. Well, today is the day. DC comics will be getting a hand written letter addressed to Mr. Paul Levitz expressing my extreme disappointment about the way this situation was handled. I will not be returning my copy of Legion #50 as I did enjoy Francis' double cover. I will probably never look at the interior again.
I look forward to reading more comments on this subject over the next few days. If Dan DiDio has any courage whatsoever, he will come here personally or to one of the comics review sites and offer an apology for what transpired. Good Lord, the least they could have done was remove or alter the January solicitation so it wouldn't have been such a shock!
From: New Brunswick, Canada | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
I'm stunned. Stunned that we're all so united! Like FC said, this is probably the most universally condemned issue ever in Legon history! Even moreso than the Jamm issue!
I'll be getting it, as I have just about every other Legion story, but I'm not sure 'so bad its funny' will even apply.
Damn DC; I've been saying for sometime we should get pitchforks and start a slaughter
PS - Francis, you rawk and I'm following your artwork to wherever you go next (can't wait for your Superman/Batman story).
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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posted
Very, i cannot agree with you. We are hard to please because we expect quality. We may not always agree, and will endlessly debate, but this is nigh universal condemnation. Its not one or two people that autamatically say "this sucked".
Reasons are given. Solid, valid, provable reasons.
I do not have any empathy or sympathy for them because we are hard to please. I cannot accept that we, the customers, are to blame in this instance. There may be other instances where a customer is to blame, but this isn't one of them.
Sorry. I respect your postings, and that you obviously put thought into them from your perspective, but this is a DNC that should not have taken place.
They could have ended it with 49 and been much better off.
-------------------- Damn you, you kids! Get off my lawn or I'm callin' tha cops!
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