(See the previous threads on Archives #3, Archives #2 and Archives #1 and feel free to add in your two cents on those stories. It's NEVER too late! )

For the next few weeks we'll be reading the stories from LSH Archives #4, with a discussion of a single new story every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Archives #4 covers Adventure #329-336, Superboy #124, Adventure #337-338, Superboy #125, and Adventure #339--in that order.

LOTS to look forward to including Dynamo Boy, the LSV, Starfinger, Insect Queen, Kid Psycho, two-parters (!) and the one, the only Super Moby Dick...of SPACE!!!!


First up? Adventure #329: "The Bizarro Legion"!!!

Some primo Legion stories in this volume. I think writer Edmond Hamilton started to hit his stride at this time. Can't wait to dive in!

OK, it's midnight in my time zone and I'm not the least bit tired, so I'll dive right in:

Adv. 329

Let me preface this by saying I'm not a fan of the Bizarros. Their humor, I think, works best with pre-adolescents and, really, Mr. Mxy is more fun since he is deliberately menacing while the Bizarros are just screwed up.

Because it focuses on the Bizarros, this story is serviceable and competent, but not particularly memorable. What is most grating is that Siegel spends two pages telling us how screwed up things are on Bizarro World. We're treated to entries in a Bizarro dictionary, a statue of the great Bizarro hero Benny Dick Arnold, and an alarm clock that goes off when it's time to go to bed. Okay, we get it. The Bizarros do things opposite of us regular humans. But Superboy has already explained this, so the two-page exposition was unnecessary.

The premise of this story is as follows: a 30th century Bizarro Superboy shows up without explanation and, after being rejected by the Legion (for which he is grateful), he uses the flawed duplicator ray to create duplicates of the Legion. (It's not clear how many Legion Bizarros he creates--only five are seen initially, but more appear as the story requires.) The "Legion of Stupor-Bizarros" then goes about creating emergencies instead of solving them as the regular Legion would. This leads to a showdown on the square Bizarro World in which the Bizarros too easily take the entire Legion captive and then are tricked into disbanding by some slight of hand performed by Superboy, Saturn Girl, and Element Lad (the latter two proving they make an effective team by saving the day two issues in a row).

This story is played for laughs, but it isn't that funny. However, since the Legion has already met Luthor and a Mxyzptlk descendent, I guess it was inevitable that they would meet another recurring Superboy adversary, the Bizarros. Like the Luthor tale in 325, this one is largely forgettable, but it is more satisfying since the Legionnaires have to work for their victory and sweat it out instead of manipulating the villain from the Phantom Zone.

As a plus, though, we are once again treated to Jim Mooney's naturalistic artwork. I wish he had drawn more of these stories.

Two other things of note:
-- The flight rings are at last introduced early on, but they play no role in the rest of the story.
-- Likewise, the dangling Time Trapper plot thread is mentioned but not advanced.

Not a great story, not a bad one. Just a solid average tale.

The ending where Superboy and Element Lad fool the Bizaroos seems unsatisfying, somehow. I find it silly that none of the other Legionnaires seemed to guess that it was Jan who transmuted the coal.

The Bizarros are so absurd thar I can't help but laugh a little (Biz Saturn Girl drawing what's in Bizarro's head, oh boy). I just find it a bit worrisome that there was no final resolution for the Bizarros - they leave, but is there really anything stopping them from coming back?

I also find it a bit jarring that more Bizaroos inexplicably appear as the story requires. Oh well, why not right?

As I recall, this story was written in response to readers' requests for a team-up between the Legion (who began regularly appearing in Adventure in #300) and the Bizarros (whose own regular feature had been replaced by the Legion).

Agree! Having read ahead a bit, I'm delighted at how strong so many of these stories are.

Adventure #329

Here at last is one I definitely have not read before. We only recently got this issue in the last few years. Cool!

Throughout most of my comic book reading life I've found Bizarro and company pretty unenjoyable (I even started a thread on it here somewhere). The Bizarro Reboot story is what I consider the absolute nadir of the entire reboot and I was so disappointed when it came out. It's only within the last few years that I've come to see the feature in a different light, mainly thanks to LW's Rhino, who rightly explained that its nothing more than absurdist comedy--when done in that way it works; when applied to different types of stories it usually fails.

Regardless, a Bizarro Legion was bound to happen. Though the LSH replaced the series in Adventure, it remained a hugely popular feature in the Superman books. By now it was slightly on the decline, though it had a few more stories to go before the concept went away entirely. Though Bizarro is a classic Otto Binder creation (building on past themes of his in Captain Marvel and his sci-fi work), its Siegel who liked to use him the most.

Love the continuing nod to the Time Trapper!

And I'd love to learn more about this untold tale of Vanishing World!

Even better: flight rings! So this is where they show up! I'd never read this before!

Once Bizarro shows up, it becomes a strait up Bizarro tale with little of Re Legion in part 1. There are some amusing parts but even 5-6 pages of this is too much. Though I could see someone like Giffen having a field day with crying hyena. And Imra drawing a brain to see what's in their heads is pretty hilarious!

In part 2, the alien reacting to the destruction of Paradise Planet is too much! Hates them? Wishes they drop dead? Bah! He deserved being picked on for harboring all those ill thoughts!

The ending to the story is surprisingly satisfying. A classic Siegel ingenious solution with the proper pacing of a showdown.

I think I actually like this story! While not my favorite, its certainly the best Bizarro story I've read so far. And keeping in mind its a comedy, it kind of works.

Bonus letters page review: Mort reveals many readers didn't get the cloud emblem on Ayla's costume so they changed it.

Major bonus "Know Your Legionnaires"! This one page excerpt, which may have inspired all the TMK excerpts, provides a plethora of information! First names, home planets, origins, firmly establishing the Espionage Squad, even the origin of Vril Dox and Brainiac I. Someone should definitely repost it.

Actually, Jan's use of his power in the resolution was a bit of a head scratcher to me. I've always figured his power was to change one element into a different element. Here, he's able to change one aspect (diamond) of the element carbon into another aspect (coal) of the same element . I'm not saying that I'm correct in that's not how Jan's power works, but it's the way I've always understood it to work. In fact, the way it is shown here reminds me more of how Condo's power works.

So based largely on my confusion about the resolution, right or wrong, I felt pretty unsatisfied by the story, even taking it for the kind of silly story it was supposed to be. Kind of an unearned deus ex machina ending with his power being misused.

The interesting idea to that would be, I suppose, if he had to transmute it to something else (silicon, say) and only in the process of changing it back could he turn it into diamond.

[Probably not in practice though - that idea would work with a "pure" implementation of his powers, but the moment he gets to form more complex substances than just plain elements, the "pure" form pretty much goes out of the window.]


I dunno... if Chemical King's power was just to speed up and slow down reactions, he'd need the (sustained) help of Star Boy (probably Sun Boy too) to turn graphite into diamond, since that could never happen at standard temperature & pressure no matter how long you waited (especially if you want a "gem" rather than industrial diamond powder!).

There's a caption on page 3, panel 2 of the second part that explains, "returning to his own planet, Bizarro-Superboy busily creates additional Bizarro-Legionnaires...", so the appearance of more of them IS explained, albeit not listing which Legionnaires or how many.

This just goes to show that Condo's power is just that difficult to explain! However, I don't think any of the changes he makes should be contingent on other factors (such as temperature and pressure) being present, or he'd be unable to do anything by himself---or at least not in the vitually instantaneous manner in which the changes are presented.

Again, I don't know that Condo could cause diamonds to turn into coal, but it would be more plausible with his powers than with how Jan's are traditionally depicted.

^Good catch about the caption explaining the additional Bizarro Legionnaires, Lardy. I've found myself skimming over most the captions in these stories as few contain useful information.

^Good call, also, about how Jan's powers are depicted in these stories. The powers of most Legionnaires have been tailored to fit whatever the story needs pretty much throughout the Adventure run so far that I just rolled with it.

Interesting that such an important part of Legion lore as the flight ring is introduced here in a throwaway panel without so much as a subsequent panel of one of them flying under its power and thinking, "gee, this flight ring is swell!" or something. Oh well, at least Garth mentions how 'cumbersome' the flight belts were in comparison.

Flight Belts? Cumbersome? Oh, Garth, it wasn't that long ago you were wearing a jet-pack, you spoiled brat!

The flight belts would be a bit harder to use, though. IF someone cut it off while the wearer was in flight... flight rings at least seem more secure and are harder to remove.

As Postboot Wildfire would say, "Huh. Point."



I'm reminded of one late Adventure-era story where the Legion fights some elemental humanoids. Jan transmutes some of them into magnetic lodestone, water, and tissue paper (and I think even sand). I remember thinking that he shouldn't be able to do that, unless he affects multiple elements at once and in the correct combinations; but that certainly seems like a terribly advanced application of his powers. Granted, he was exhausted at the end of that story, but it wasn't clear whether it was from pushing his powers in ways he hadn't before, or just because of the sheer number of times he used it.

I think that, in terms of characters with ill-designed powers, Element Lad's probably up there. Even besides the energy implications (which would be slightly churlish, with the likes of Superman/boy around), it's a very complex power - basically, quantum telekinesis. Remember what Kinetix originally did, manipulating metal into snakes and stuff. That, but throwing around billions of subatomic particles at the same time in super-precise ways (not least to prevent any of them escaping as radioactivity and harming those nearby!).

And on your list, once you get past that initial complexity... water and sand are fairly simple compounds (dihydrogen monoxide and silicon dioxide - the latter of which has a similar structure to diamond), but tissue paper is a step up in molecular complexity - it's made of cellulose, a mix of long, complex carbohydrate molecules layered in a very specific way. Even if you make exactly the right proportions of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, get their arrangement wrong and you can have anything from an explosive mix of hydrocarbons & oxygen, to sugar, to the wrong sort of paper!

As for magnetic materials, you're getting back into sub-atomic precision of a whole new level, where you must not just get the number and arrangement of particles correct, but also their spin.

It's ridiculously complex stuff for a character rarely portrayed as the brightest bulb in the box. At least the original concept for Firestorm had an expert working full-time on this stuff in the back of his head and "banned" him from manipulating organic molecules (which are some of the most complex), and even then it stretched credulity.

Legionnaires 55 provided a good example of what you said. Element Lad accidentally caused an explosion while playing around with elements that could form explosive mixtures. With your explanation above, even with Brainy coaching Jan via telepathic link from Imra, he shouldn't have been able to affect such complex changes in the middle of a war zone, and while he was exhausted.. It would have been far more believable for him to have just changed one element in the humanoids' makeup to mess them up.

Actually, I think the opposite in a way. He's unlikely to be fully aware, consciously, of the complexity of what he's doing, after all, and doing something like your suggestion - e.g. isolating the oxygen in someone's lungs - is damn complex too, still moreso when it's buried below or mixed in with flesh.

I think the way his powers "should" work is that he can make anything, even super-conplex stuff... with enough practice. And that while once he's perfected something it's easy, learning new stuff to that point is NOT easy, and his bag of tricks is actually very limited as a result - he can't transmute reliably *from* something he's never tried to change, and he can't transmute *to* anything without careful study of the substance followed by practice (i.e., no improvising any new substances on-the-spot any more than you could design a working plane with pencil, paper and a couple of hours!).

The reason I say he shouldn't have been able to do that in the war zone was because he'd never encountered said humanoids before, and Brainy had only been able to give him their chemical formula a short time before. I agree with you on the whole "practice" thing, as it was mentioned quite a few times in the Postboot that Jan had an easier time transmuting elements that he'd practiced before.

The power to 'just' transmute elements, such as turning all the free oxygen in the area to nitrogen, and therefore causing anyone not wearing a transsuit or having similar life-support options, to keel over, or to turn the nitrogen in the air into titanium (imprisoning everyone in the area in a foamed titanium aerogel) is *crazy* powerful.

I would very much prefer to leave it at that, and not give Element Lad even more crazy power (that will, if his current power is any indication, never be used to it's full potential by the writers anyway...) to create complex compounds, or affect the dozens and dozens of different elements in an organic life form in some bewilderingly complex manner that would require *trillions* of minute calculations to perform, and would quite possibly be beyond even Brainiac Fives ability to calculate.

Some immortal reboot Jan who has had millennia to practice his powers can maybe get away with that sort of thing, but classic Jan is already crazy powerful, IMO, and lacking only intelligent writing.

I'm really not sure a chemical formula - even a structural one, rather than a simple H2O-type formula - would do him much good. It's like Kid Quantum II - she didn't know how her power worked, she just knew that by thinking in a certain way, time slowed down in an area. And, similarly, I don't see how much good a mindlink with Brainiac 5 would do - he would know what was needed, but not how to make it with Jan's powers. Imagine a potter being told how to make a pot by a chemist who had only ever analysed the final result, not the process or raw material, and you should get the idea!

Jan should probably be able to "analyse" stuff (in a similar way to Chameleon scanning stuff to copy later) as the first step on the process of learning, but not in such a way that he would automatically know the chemical structure, except with reference to having learned it already. So he might know what pure graphite "feels like" when he scans it, and from that be able to tell when he encounters it, as opposed to something carbon-like, but if you toss him a new plastic he wouldn't be able to draw the structural chemical formula on a diagram!


I'd go further than that though - there was a hint of it early on, with the suggestion that only Tarn & Jan Arrah knew how to make tarnium for R.J., but I'd carry that through further. Why should he know how to make X, Y and Z? Why would the Trommites have practised knockout gas or whatever?

There are some interesting possibilities that have never really been explored - he could affect pressure pretty simply in a closed system like a spaceship by "condensing" air onto surfaces as metal or vice-versa, for instance...


There's not enough mass in the air, even if you take in everything, to make any sort of metal structure. Remember just how light air is - where a litre of titanium is 4.5kg, a litre of air is ~0.00123kg! And that an atom of titanium is over three times heavier than an atom of nitrogen to boot, meaning that 1 mol of nitrogen would make only 0.293mol of titanium, so you'd have even less to work with than that comparison suggests.

In the event you could transmute the air in an attempt to make such an aerogel, there would be *so* little titanium that it wouldn't imprison anyone unless they succumbed to simple hypoxia almost immediately. More likely, you would create titanium dust so fine that anyone who breathed it in would be at risk of something like silicosis!

[And, yes, Polar Boy - or Iceman, FTM - creating any sort of ice sculpture without an immediate source of *liquid* water is entirely ridiculous too!]

I think the Brainy mindlink would have worked in the sense that Brainy could have helped him recognize the elements comprising the humanoids - assuming they were elements Jan had already encountered. And I recall several instances both Preboot and Postboot where Jan mentions needing to "get a sense of what he has to change"; once in LSH 121 when he and Zoe were battling the Emerald Eye, and another time there during the story I mentioned. So I think you're right, in that he only needs to know the chemical formula inasmuch as it helps him identify the elements. So Brainy's role would be to help Jan identify the elements, but not guide him through the actual transmutation process.

Valid points. We've really never had any description of how his power actually works. Does he turn atoms of, say, nitrogen, one for one into atoms of titanium, or does his power disassemble dozens of nitrogen atoms to free up the protons and neutrons he needs to assemble them into a single atom of titanium?

I kind of assume that he creates (or destroys!) as many protons, neutrons and / or electrons as are needed to shift the present atoms into the new atoms he's trying to 'make,' without those sub-atomic structures having to be pillaged from other atoms, or without creating a bunch of hard-radiation-like free-range protons and neutrons whenever he 'downshifts' a larger-atomic-number element (like lead) into something atomically 'smaller' (like hydrogen).

But even that, the atoms of nitrogen changing to titanium one for one, wouldn't really account for the density issue.

Meh. Science is hard!



Word. I hate in particular when Iceman (or Polar Boy) creates a ton of ice in an enclosed area. Where does all that moisture come from? He'd probably rip the moisture out of anyone in the area as 'fuel' for his ice, killing them instantly. I could see Brek not making such a mistake, since he's got an entire race of Tharrans to have learned this stuff from, but Bobby's always been a dunderhead, and he would probably have learned how deadly his ability to swoop up all the moisture in a half-mile radius is the first time he murderdeathkilled a small city.

But, comics. I pretend in my head that he reaches into the para-elemental plane of ice and pulls it from there.

Same with Sun Boy creating 'fire' in space (where there's nothing to burn), or how Wildfire can open his faceplate and create a nuclear-bomb-strength anti-matter explosion, but if his containment suit is breached, abso-freaking-lutely nothing happens for some utterly inexplicable reason, or Violet being able to still breathe when an individual atom of oxygen is too big to fit in her mouth.

Magic! It's all magic!

And all that radiant energy being nullified whenever Shadow Lass uses her power to 'create darkness?' It's being mystically transported to the molten heart of Talokk VIII, an old world that may remain geologically 'alive' for centuries longer than expected, due to the regular infusions of energy into it's core due to the work of its 'Shadow Champions.'

Where all the heat energy that Polar Boy is negating goes remains a mystery. Perhaps it fuels a star somewhere (perhaps even Tharr's sun!). Perhaps it heats Bgtzl, which may not have a sun of it's own. Perhaps it's shunted into another dimension, and a race of energy creatures have no idea that the Tharrans are the 'gods' that created their species, and continue to regularly spawn new members of their race, as they shunt heat-energy into that universe. Perhaps someday, fanatics among them will build a 'Tower of Babel' that crosses over into this universe and come face to face with one of their 'gods' when they try to kidnap Brek Bannin and bring him back with them...

Hulk's....head....hurts....

rofl....I was just about to post exactly the same thing

Thank goodness the lack of actual science in these stories does not in any way impact my enjoyment of them

Adventure #330

Just two issues after Command Kid, we get another similar story, also by Siegel and Mooney. Er, okay? Anyway, I like this story much better for a few reasons, the main one being the ultimate double cross the LOSV pull on Dynamo Boy. And also, how Dynamo Boy is such a snot--perhaps the single most unlikable character in Legiondom yet. (Ever? Until Jamm?)

Of course, this story is enhanced by being the first Legion story to be a true two issue two parter! Oh, how comics were changing! First Mort and company do the first "full length" stories a few years earlier, and here they begin pushing it even further. So many multi-parters in the Silver Age really were able to jam pack stories with stuff. Too bad all these decades later when stories are so padded I would kill for single issues again.

This issue also (for me) marks another shift in the artwork itself. Although Mooney had been around for a few issues, his artwork begins to change as the 60's move onwards; in fact comics in general begin to change, especially as DC picked up a few tricks from Marvel (re: Kirby), such as panel sizes getting bigger. Also, its hard to pinpoint it, but as the early 60's gave way to the mid 60's and beyond, the Legion artwork became more modern. Regardless, I still love Mooney's art throughout his long career--he's become a big favorite of mine.

Dynamo Boy is introduced...by committing the first outright murder in Legion lore?! Veeeery intense.

The Pirate Planet is also a cool concept, and a continuation of themes extending to ancient times.

Ol' gullible Star Boy falls for another one!!

Two of the lamest--er, oddest applicants yet: Eyeful Ethel and the Mess! Honestly, I didn't ever remember the Mess until a post from Lash or Eryk early on LW made me curious about what they were talking about.

From there in part 1, much like several Siegel stories, the same situation plays out again and again, and not in an enjoyable way for the reader as various members are expelled. And for some reason, Cos is being a real dick! Later we see him lamenting. And where's Imra? She's getting the shaft as leader again.

Luckily in Part 2, things get much better fast. Siegel presents the best action sequence yet in Legion history, as a variety of Legionnaires use their powers with ingenuity and charisma.

The subsequent mass expelling brings back the unenjoyability though. I'm just not a fan of these types of stories, I think. If I was one of those Legionnaires, as a teen or now, I'd simply give Dynamo Boy a punch right through the teeth. Only then would I discuss rules and constitutions.

I do appreciate Gim's moxie in pushing for another shot.

Only on the last page do we get an alarming cliffhanger as Dynamo Boy has accomplished his plan. I wonder if readers were going nuts? It's certainly quite a shock to see this issue end here. I do like the general plan of his filling the LSH with other crooks--now that's a great evil plan.

I guess all in all, this particular issue isn't all that great. It's the second issue where the story gets good. So while in general I like the story, this first half was only okay.

Hulk use avocado's number. One mole guacamole + 2 mole peyote. Get smashed with bad guy.

Quick calculations: proton/neutron density of diamond is about 4000 that of air? Ouch, probably messed that up but it's only been 25 years since chemistry/physics class. I used 29 for "molecular" weight of dry "air" at sea level, 60 degrees (found on-line).

So a diamond prison would suck a lot of air but not really all that bad. Need the energy to reconvert the bonds. Pull the old, got it from another dimension, out of the hat and presto-chango, it's explained.

Of course, there's some extra-dimensional beings being deprived of their guacamole and they are pissed about it. Maybe they can cover that in the next re-boot?

I'm about one more Archive away from my first issue I think.

Adv. 330

This issue is better than I remembered and, in many ways, it is superior to the Command Kid story, as some have said. The stakes here are very high: Dynamo Boy commits murder in order to win the honor of infiltrating the Legion--and that's just in the first two pages! He is evil through and through, and, more, he's smart. He gets a job where he knows he'll be in proximity to Star Boy (whose reputation for gullibility seems well known), finagles his way into the Legion, and then systematically expels everyone else. Yes, this guy's a snot, but he's a formidable snot.

The biggest weakness in this story is that the Legionnaires take everything lying down. Colossal Boy's expulsion is believable, particularly in these days when companies and the government bend over backwards to avoid being sued. A powerful device has gone missing in Gim's care. Of course, it's going to look like he took it. (The weakness here, however, is it calls into question how long the Legionnaires have known each other and worked side by side. Why did no one stand up for Gim?)

Mon-El's expulsion is hard to swallow, primarily because he does in fact turn coward and run, leaving millions to perish. So, you couldn't see the ray zapper tucked in your belt, Mon? You didn't even try to do something . . . anything? I'm used to the idea of heroes--especially Legionnaires--putting everything on the line to save a life. Mon just turns and skedaddles. Maybe his expulsion should have stuck after everyone else was readmitted.

The mass expulsion following the bad driving episode is a shorthand way for Siegel to dispense with a whole mess of Legionnaires at once, but it isn't believable. Depending on how these ships operate, I can see the pilot, the navigator, and possibly the rest of the flight crew being expelled, but not the several Legionnaires who must have been passengers.

And then Superboy, Saturn Girl, and Brainy get the boot for tampering with a device that switches their powers. This scene made a great cover shot, as did the illusion of Superboy attacking the Legion in 328, but, unlike the latter, this one is forced into the story and over too quickly. It's very hard to believe that seasoned Legionnaires would allow their club to be taken over by a newbie without an investigation.

But in spite of a shaky premise, the story unfolds very well and the pacing is measured and effective. The scene of the Legionnaires corralling the escaped animals is one of the most action-packed episodes yet and profiles several members. It also provides us with a deliberate distraction from Dynamo Boy, which makes his expulsion of those members even more sneaky and shocking.

I imagine fans reading this story in 1965 must have been pulling their hair out waiting a month for the story's resolution. A two-part Legion story hadn't been done before, and the quick, neat, even rushed ending we've come to expect isn't there. Cobie's right: This story does feel more modern than previous efforts. It also feels more mature: We've got a truly evil villain and high stakes, and we have to be patient to see how it turns out.

The scene with Mon-El was, frankly, idiotic. An inhabited world dies on his watch, and he doesn't even seem morose. He was very matter of fact - "oh, I couldn't see the weapon". And wait, he couldn't see it but surely he could have felt it?

Cosmic Boy, who is the one who turns Colossal Boy away, gets the tables turned on him when he has to explain to Dynamo Boy why they didn't see the traffic signs. I agree with your comment - nobody even said a word to defend poor Gim. What's going on?

Eyeful Ethel is just odd, but the Mess sounds like comedy gold. I can see him bringing down some criminals with terrible allergies!

Besides Dynamo Boy's sneakiness, he's also formidable because of all the varied powers his device has. He also plays it smart by not revealing everything he could do. I definitely prefer his story to Command Kid's.

To be fair, as depicted, it's hard to see what Mon-El could have done to save that planet. I don't know what he could have possibly accomplished by sticking around after the fact. Plus, he looked pretty despondent to me flying away. However Dynamo-Boy's power worked, we just have to take it at face value that Mon couldn't detect the gun.

What's harder to swallow is that DB is so ruthlessly evil that he would be willing to kill millions just to get Mon-El expelled! It's one thing to kill another pirate, but THIS?!?!

I honestly don't think Siegel thought through the implications of that scene. At the very least, it seems like the Legion should've been immediately galvanized to stop those creatures before they could destroy another world. And why would they send just one Legionnaire (albeit, one of the most powerful ones) on such a high-stakes mission? Like at all the ones they sent for animals amuck in the same story!

Otherwise, it was a pretty effective story, though you'd like to see the Legionnaires put up much more of a fight against the expulsions. Mooney's art was very striking and is among the better work to grace the series to that point.

True, but I'd like to have seen him try something: fry the ghosts with his heat vision, fly through them to distract them, engage them in dialogue . . . something.



Because animals are more important than friggin' aliens.

Or maybe the zoo animals are more important to the commerce of the UP than those no-account aliens were. (Now I've got an image of an entire world being on UP welfare. That's what happens when you're on the dole: heroes put in only a half-hearted effort to save your ass--assuming you have an ass.)

But, yes, the scene is not well thought out. The Science Police later launched an investigation that cleared a Legionnaire of killing a single villain; where's the investigation into Mon-El's actions here?

I'm surprised nobody has commented on the fact that the Mess was visually a cross between Pig-Pen and Alfred E. Neuman.



Meanwhile, I'm looking forward to Wednesday's reviews of the first comic book I ever purchased.

Re the planet destruction scene, it could have just as easily been an uninhabited planet and still fit into the story. In the scene, it felt as though Mon just flew away the moment he saw the planet destroyed.

On the other side, I agree with Lardy that it makes Dynamo Boy that much more heinous. What a creep!

I suppose the Legionnaires wouldn't have had much reason to care if it was an uninhabited world--unless the world were vital to commerce, agriculture, or such.

By the way, did anyone else notice that Imra violates her pledge not to pry into her fellow Legionniares' minds when she tries to read Superboy's mind? She practically gives Dynamo Boy an excuse to expel her.

And wouldn't it have been funny if Superboy weren't thinking of leaving the Legion at that moment? Perhaps he was thinking, "I could use a sandwich" or "Gee, Imra sure looks sexy since she's the only girl left."

Based on their reactions, I think it would have made more sense for the world to be vital but uninhabited. I mean, if I had been one of the Legionnaires I sure would have taken the destruction of an inhabited planet a lot harder! For my own personal enjoyment, whenever I reread that story I pretend the world was uninhabited

Saturn Girl and Cosmic Boy both have had moments of hypocrisy. For Saturn Girl, it's having the end justify the means. For Cosmic Boy, maybe hypocrisy is too strong a word - but notice that he's the one explaining to Dynamo Boy that they simply didn't see the traffic signals. Yet, he doesn't bother to give Colossal Boy the benefit of the doubt when he fails the test. I'm reminded of how he acted towards Karate Kid, and also Timber Wolf, in the animated series.

Good point about Cosmic Boy's inconsistent approach to following rules. Let he who is without sin cast the first magno ball.

Adv. 331

There are times when the Adventure run doesn't feel like a Legion series at all. We've had the Subs, the Super-Pets, and even Luthor star in individual stories, relegating the Legionnnaires to supporting roles. And in this issue, Dynamo Boy and the Legion of Super-Villains feature as the main characters while the Legionnaires put in only a brief (but decisive) appearance at the end.

Oh well, since Dynamo Boy and the LSV were Legionnaires in this story, it did feature the Legion--technically, at least.

Continuing from 330, DB holds tryouts for new Legionnaires. But in addition to having a useful power, applicants must possess one other quality to gain admission into his club: they have to be evil or capable of being swayed to evil.

After being frustrated by applicants who are either incompetent or incorruptible, DB is approached by the members of the adult LSV, who have traveled back from their own time and claim to have reformed. But DB has the ability to see their true intentions and so he accepts them into the Legion. He then tells the LSV his grand scheme: they will act like heroes during the day and plunder by night, robbing the universe blind. The villains cackle, like villains do.

All goes well until DB returns to Pirate Planetoid to receive an honor from the pirate leader. The wily leader isn't as wily as DB, though, and the latter sees through an effort to get him out of the way. Unfortunately for DB, he's not as wily as the LSV. When he returns to earth, they destroy the belt that gives him his powers and trick him into entering a time machine, leaving him stranded on a barren, lifeless earth trillions of years in the future.

Choke.

Only then do the Legionnaires return to confront the LSV in a clever turnabout--the story's third major deception.

So, the recurring theme of this story is that villains can't be trusted (duh!) and that even heroes have to resort to deception to win. Siegel and Mooney illustrate this theme perfectly by having the Legionnaires (or, technically, ex-Legionnaires) threaten to leave the LSV on a planet to die unless they surrender. But, hey, it works.

This is an effective resolution to the Legion's first two-part story. DB serves as our protagonist and, even though he's such an evil snot, I admired his cleverness in dealing with the pirate leader and sympathized with his gullibility in trusting the LSV. In a revealing moment, DB, about to rush into the time machine, tells the LSV they’re the best friends he’s ever had. Growing up on Pirate Planetoid, he never had a chance to make friends, one supposes, so he was doomed from the get go. And now he’s doomed to spend the rest of his life lonely and isolated. Poor Vorm.

There are nits to pick. The dialogue is hopelessly old fashioned even for 1965. When the Subs confront the LSV, Polar Boy threatens to “get tough” with them. Really? This exchange reminded me of Radar O’Reilley on M*A*S*H, who, when confronting someone stronger than he was (which was everyone), would say, “If you don’t [fill in blank], well, I’ll have something to say about it!” My, how threatening.

And Dynamo Boy turns into a stereotypical gangster on Page 9 of Part 1. Not only does he look the part, he says things like, “Here’s the pitch, pals!” and “We’ll do good deeds, see?” Later, he even says “You double-crossing rats!” All he needs is a fedora and a tommy gun.

Also, while it’s not a weakness of the story (in fact, it’s a strength given the limited space left for the Legionnaires to appear at all), it’s somewhat annoying that the big showdown between the Legionnaires and the LSV features only three Legionnaires—Superboy, Mon-El, and Element Lad—all of whom have figured prominently in the last few stories, as well. Note that Element Lad’s power once again does what the story requires, even though altering the atoms of an entire planet to make it explode gives him Progenitor-like abilities and seems far too complex for his power description of transmuting one element into another.

I also think Siegel missed a great opportunity to introduce a teen-aged LSV in this story. There’s no reason why it has to be the adult LSV who joins DB’s club. Why not introduce a young Mekt, Cosmic King, and Saturn Queen here? The story would have played out exactly the same.

But the pluses of 331 far outweigh the minuses. The stakes in this story are very high indeed, and the Legionnaires use their brains to rebound from total defeat. It’s good to see them start to act like heroes.

I really liked Jim Mooney's art on this particular story--imo, some of the best art to grace a LSH story to this point. His work with Dynamo-Boy is particularly strong. His facial expressions and detail show significant progression from Silver Age toward the Bronze Age. Maybe Grell, Cockrum, Adams and company had been influenced a great deal by Mooney? This certainly makes me curious to see a lot more of Mooney's Supergirl work than I have. I sure wish he'd done a LOT more Legion!

I agree about Mooney's art. I'm reading these stories in black and white (the Showcase Presents collections), and, in this format, I'm impressed with how naturalistic his art is. The sequence of Cosmic King's origin (pages 4 and 5 of Chapter 1) takes us through a range of emotions and makes us care for this character and all he goes through. Forte and even Swan did not have this much skill in conveying emotion.

Yeah, if I had problems with the use of Jan's powers in recent issues, they were compounded greatly by their use in this one! There were a coupla references to him transforming parts of his body in addition to the planetary-scale stuff he used to defeat the LSV. Specifically, he transmutes his arm into a lightning rod, is referenced by Superboy to "transmute himself into a chemical form that can survive space" and is able to alter the atoms of the world they're on to somehow react to the LSV's powers cataclysmically! Really?!?!

It stinks of Siegel running out of pages and pulling a resolution out of his ass! I'm sure he could have done better.



That's always confused the hell outta me! I think the reason they kept the LSV as adults, rather than just kind of ignore or rewrite that fact as they did other things, is that the LSV were recurring foes for Superman, rather than just the LSH. That's how I understand it anyway.

In any case I wonder exactly when or ever did we meet younger versions of them? I have to think that those instances where Mekt appeared as a solo threat, that was probably not future-Mekt. I've often heard that Saturn Queen never made a n-older version appearance (until Paul brought her in in the retroboot). So, presumably, Cosmic King in the LSV War was the younger version?

I'm sure some of this is possibly due to my incomplete Legion knowledge, not having read most of the Superboy&LSH/early-v2 era. But I suspect much of this remains unanswered in-story. Any clarification, of course, would be appreciated!

Presumably, that's Vorm's final fate...to die in the far future. No mention of trying to rescue him after the LSV are caught. Maybe the LSH don't even know? Or....could they possibly not care after all they've been through? Of course with the Iron Curtain of Time blocking their way--well, it didn't seem to affect the villains' trap for Vorm, so...?

Mekt first appears as a teenaged villain in Adv. 372, the origin proper of the Legion of Super-Villains (the "School for Super-Villains"). He next appears solo in SUP 172 and 207.

The LSV does not actually appear as teenagers until SUP 208. The lineup in that story (IIRC) is Mekt, Nemesis Kid, Sun Emperor, Chameleon Chief, Radiation Roy, and Spider Girl. We don't see a young Cosmic King until LSH v. 3, and Saturn Queen doesn't appear until even later, as you mentioned.

Adventure #331

It's here in part 2 of the Dynamo Boy story that things become so memorable. And that, of course, has a lot to do with the very concept of the LOSV versus the LSH itself. It's an exiting premise and one that "had to happen", but what makes it all the more interesting is this is the LOSV that is enemies with Superman and the Adult Legion of Superheroes. There's a thread somewhere around here I started years ago tying to line up their continuity, which is when I discovered the TMK Mayfair Sourcebook.

While I actually like the younger LOSV stories better, there's something to be said about the Legion battling their grown up counterparts from the future.

Meanwhile, before the ultimate double cross, Dynamo Boy tries to fill his Legion with various others, some of whom are destined for villain hood. You have Golden Boy, who Vorm actually gives a good reason for rejecting, though it doesn't explain how that still won't happen if he isn't a Legionnaire. Polecat, who in addition to smelling bad is also ugly, Animal Lad, whose powers are pretty bizarre even for Legion standards and Tusker, who is about as lame as they come. So in the this issue and last we get 6 rejects at once--not bad! Funny how these are some of the least memorable rejects...remembered only by Legion World and then surprisingly Geoff Johns. Johns either really likes this story or he trolled LW for ideas.

The LOSV show up and one of the first things done is the destruction of the statue of Proty I! They go too far! How dare they! Ironic, of course, that Mekt destroys it...since Proty I is now his brother!

Also, notice the dark shadowing in the Cosmic King flashback. Art styles are definitely changing.

Saturn Queen outclasses Dynamo Boy by a mile!

And then: the Subs show up! Good for them!

I see Vorm amended the Constitution so Adults can join. After Hamilton just wrote it, he's already messing with it. I wonder, does it stay amended? Just in time for Mon and Gim to turn 18?

From there, the new LSH does some good deeds while Vorm impresses me by scrambling the brains of the leader of the pirate planet! This kid has no morals! I'm starting to like him.

And then, the double cross! Awesome! Also awesome is the LOSV being able to pierce the Iron Curtain of Time. Perhaps because they come from an era where the LSH already broke it?

Anyway, this leads to the greatest of all the Eryk Davis Ester theories: the Time Trapper is Dynamo Boy! It makes so much sense that it has to be true! There's at least more than one thread around here laying out his compelling arguments. As he once said "if you introduce a loaded gun in act one, it needs to be fired before the end of act three."

And from there, after a multitude of trickery and double crosses, its the LOSV versus the LSH. I really wish we could see an epic battle but those days are still not upon us. Element Lad gives a hint of the full extent of his power--by destroying a planet! Oh, how could he not be the Progenitor in future continuities? A pissed off Superboy also threatens to kill the LOSV if they don't surrender. The stakes are super high on this one.

Benefitting from being two issues long, this definitely has the feel of the biggest threat the Legion has had to overcome yet. All in all, a very enjoyable story.

Btw, the Superboy backup in this issue is one of the best ones I've read of the whole 50's! By Otto Binder and artist Joe Sikela (who draws Clark looking about 13 years old), it is full of charm and ingenuity. Great little read!

It truly is a shame that Legion writers didn't think to connect Dynamo Boy to the Time Trapper. That would have made a lot more sense than the "living embodiment of entropy" or Rokk Krinn theories about TT's identity.

Not sure what you mean here. Legionnaires were not expelled after turning 18, so it doesn't matter if the constitution was amended in this regard or not. I presume, though, that any changes DB made were undone by the Legionnaires once they returned to the club. DB may also have been "shitting" the Subs when he said he'd amended the constitution. He doesn't strike me as the kind who cares what the rules say.




Details? Maybe even a mini-review (even though it's not Legion-related)?

Regarding the 18 thing, I just meant as the Legion aged, its more likely new characters would age along with them. So if Mon-El is 25, few new legionnaires will be introduced at 16 years old. In the Lettercol, someone actually asks Mort strait out about the "current members turning 18" thing and he answers exactly as you have.

Lardy, regarding the LOSV, you're right that the reason the adult LOSV was include was because by now they had recurred at least 5-6 times against Superman and / or the Adult Legion. I bet Siegel simply hadn't thought of using the teenage version since it didn't exist yet. Which is ironic because Siegel loved and excelled at fitting little pieces if Superman history together like this (see: Pete Ross and Lois Lane knowing each other in college).

Btw, I actually started a thread asking about when in the LOSV timeline--in the continuity of TMK--they would have went back in time to fight the younger LSH. I was pretty surprised to find there is an actual place where they did in the 5YG.

HWW gives a good overview of the LOSV history once the teenage version arrives. It's notable that Jim Shooter was part of a second wave of DC writers that probably knew a whole lot more about DC history than the first wave who actually developed it. These guys did a lot of continuity finessing to make sure everything was coherent ("retconning" being too strong a word). The classic case is a young Marv Wolfman explaining how Wonder Girl in the Titans wasn't actually a teenage Wonder Woman...years after this had been a lingering question. Shooter, in that vein, went ahead and started to explain the LOSV, complete with Mekt. The very next Mekt story, 2-3 years later, explains how he got the white hair.

The original LOSVers, beyond the unnamed students and teachers were Mekt, Spider Girl, Radiation Roy, Nemesis Kid and Ronn Karr. In the very next appearance, a young Sun Emperor is introduced. While certainly a bit megalomaniacal, he's not the stone cold killer of Levitz / Giffen.

Cosmic King showed up in the Levitz era war for the first time though without little dialogue. TMK would retcon him as the one who was really pulling the strings, not only here but at Tarik's Academy. I believe Chameleon Chief first showed up here as well.

Saturn Queen doesn't show up at all prior to Magic Wars. In TMK, they posit that Saturn Queen of the Adult LOSV is actually much younger (possibly a teenager). She's actually younger than adult / TMK Imra. Between this depiction, and the Silver Age depiction, I found Levitz recent use of her to be wholly out of character.

Saturn Queen's an interesting case. The TMK version was hardly at the same level of villainy as this adult Saturn Queen.

How do they explain Saturn Queen turning evil again, when Superman did the whole "keep a piece of Saturn's rings with you so you'll always be good" bit? I suppose all anyone had to do was steal it away from her while sleeping, and she'd go back to being evil.



It does seem very out of character for them not to at least try to retrieve him. I wish there'd at least have been a line on that.

Chameleon Chief appeared earlier, in SUP 208.

By the way, according to the Legion Handbook, both Sun Emperor and Chameleon Chief appeared as adults in Jimmy Olsen # 63.

They do indeed. They don't exhibit much in the way in personalities, but one has to wonder what might have been if the writers kept going. I think we have a thread from a few months ago where we speculated on their names!

The reason they couldn't retrievek Vorm from the far future is because Vorm is the real TIME TRAPPER!!

This was explored somewhat with the induction of Dawnstar, who was said to be 16 at the time, and, at least at first, was portrayed as being much less mature than the veteran legionnaires. Although later inductees such as Blok, Mysa and Jacques were also assumed to be under 18 when they joined, not much was made of the fact.

Yeah, that theory just makes TOO much sense! When Cobie mentioned it as an EDE theory on the previous page of this thread, it blew me away! It actually makes me wonder if Siegel eventually intended to reveal the Trapper as being Vorm with that set-up at the end. Probably not, but it would have been AWESOME!

I wonder if it ever occurred to Levitz, Giffen the Bierbaums, etc., but they wrote it off because most readers wouldn't even know who DB was? As brilliant as Edie is, I've gotta wonder if he's the only one to ever think of it.

In any case Vorm's being stranded is an oddly hanging plot point for these generally tidy Adventure-era stories.

Adv. 332

"The Super-Moby Dick of Space" is one of the most iconic Legion stories of all time. Like two previous iconic stories we've reviewed—304 and 312—this one centers on Lightning Lad. Unlike those stories, this one lives up to its hype and holds up on re-reading.

Responding to an emergency in space, Lightning Lad encounters a giant, green, whale-like creature that eats metal. When LL tries to stun the creature, his lightning bolts rebound and strike his right arm, infecting it with a green poison. The arm has to be amputed and replaced with a bizarre yet cool looking robot limb. Angered at being maimed, LL vows to track down the creature (dubbed the Super-Moby Dick by a too helpul scientist named Dr. Lanphier) and kill it, even though doing so would violate the Legion's code.

LL commandeers a mission to hunt down the creature and, assisted by Dr. Lanphier, cooks up a powerful new weapon with his robot arm. However, the other Legionnaires fear LL has suffered a concussion due to his injuries and plot a mutiny (my, that sounds familiar). But it all turns out all right in the end, with LL having regained his senses, deciding upon a different fate for the Super-Moby Dick, and—proving what a good sport he is—not cluing his teammates in on the secret to preserve Dr. Lanphier's reputation.

Okay, maybe that last decision was a bad call on LL’s part, but it did lead to several dramatic scenes, including one in which Superboy blocks LL’s lightning blasts so they won’t kill the creature. Also, Superboy and Colossal Boy team up to capture the beast (one of CB’s first really good scenes in the entire series so far), but their scheme fails when an enraged Lightning Lad interferes.

Much of this could have been avoided, of course, if LL had said, “Screw it with Dr. Lanphier’s secret!” and told his fellow Legionnaires what was going on—their need to know was much more important than the doctor’s shame of having created the Super-Moby Dick. But if we grant the story this one lapse into idiot plot logic, it holds up exceptionally well.

Lightning Lad may be the first ever super-hero to lose a limb—a chancy move that shows how the Legion could get away with developments like this whereas other super-hero series couldn’t. Even with so many other Legionnaires to focus on, it was still a bold move for Mort and company to maim one of their most popular characters. The story resonates even more loudly today, with wounded war veterans getting a lot of deserved media attention. (At the risk of sounding flip, LL’s robot arm even looks like it might fit in with some of the wheelchair-like devices used today—though modern artifical arms are more much more advanced and natural looking than LL’s.)

This story clearly illustrates the price real heroes often pay, and how they can continue being heroes in spite of physical loss.

The story also works because, even though it features very few Legionnaires, they are well utilized. Colossal Boy’s big moment (hah!) has been mentioned, and Ultra Boy also gets a solo shot at the creature. UB demonstrates that he has perhaps been hanging out with Mon-El too much as he impulsively runs off to stop the creature alone, leaving behind a note for his teammates to find. But this scene gives UB an excuse to recount his origin and a memorable story moment: He survives being swallowed by the Super-Moby Dick by jamming his flashlight into a tooth cavity.

Saturn Girl and Brainiac 5 are featured throughout, though they don’t do much. However, Saturn Girl worries endlessly about LL’s behavior and pleads with him not the kill the creature, planting hints about her budding romance with Garth. Sun Boy, once the most prominent Legionnaire, is reduced to cameo appearances, and Superboy figures into the action without hogging the glory.

The story also ends on a hopeful but realistic note. LL does not get a new human arm—not in this story—but he is left with hope that science may one day provide one. And because he has hope, he’s willing to live with his artificial arm. That’s perhaps the most heroic message any story can convey.

Adventure #332

First off, before we get into the Super Moby Dick, I should mention that I have not read Moby Dick the novel since high school, despite glowing recommendation by Eryk and a thread years earlier where a few of us lamented reading it in our teens years.

Second, the very coolest of all Graemlins remains:

:supermobydick:

The Super Moby Dick story, despite obviously owing a ton to the famous novel, and a kind of tongue in cheek silliness of its antagonist, is actually a really solid story. Hamilton returns after a brief absence and provides one of the better character pieces of the first half of the Legion's history. Garth goes through a true literary cycle here and emerges a changed man: not only physically, though this is surely dramatic for contemporary young comic book readers, but also changed in his willingness to let go of vengeance.

One can't help but feel there is so much of Garth overcoming his death and resurrection also at play here. Severely traumatized, he's at last dealing with those emotions too. In the stories immediately following his return he's a steadfast, prolific member yet eerily silent. It's not a stretch to make the connection of him brooding. And here, that all finally bubbles to the surface. Which then sets the stage for his romance with Imra to really begin hereafter, later in the Archive.

Btw, there's a FANTASTIC blog about this particular somewhere on the Internet that I read years ago. When I'm not posting from my phone I'll look for it.

The opening pages are done quite masterfully. The monster debuts in a fury; Garth responds heroically; the horrifying aftermath; the Legionnaires intense worry; the shock!! of Garth losing his arm; the tragedy of what's happened and his grim reaction as Imra worries. Hamilton smartly uses only a few characters here. This is one of the best paced few pages thus far.

The moniker "Super Moby Dick" is explained rather nicely.

Another great job is done is highlighting the tension with Superboy failing, the cosmic panicking, others failing and then Ultra Boy heading off on his own bravely.

Part 2 is full of space opera and adventure. Glad to see Colossal Boy get some good screen time! All the Legionnaires have a chance to play a nice part, actually.

Imra being the one to stand up to Garth makes it all more dramatic. The somber tone is ever preset and well done. This is underscored by another Hamilton lost civilization, the World of Dead Robots, which has a really powerful little story.

The climax works for me in a big way, as Garth proves them wrong and resolves the threat while saving the beast too. I'd like to think perhaps he didn't know whether he'd save or kill it right until the end. His attitude at the end is positive and hopeful, despite the loss of his arm.

What a terrific story. One of the best so far I'd say.

Bonus Lettercol Review: the highlight is a letter from a young Cary Bates! Very cool! He praises the presentation of "Know Your Legionnaires" extra in the Bizarro issue.

Few things:

Great comment Hermit on Dawny being younger than then-current Legionnaires. That was touched on only ever so briefly a few times.

Lardy, there's at least two threads were Eryk really sells his TT = Vorm theory that to me leaves no room for argument. It simply is! I'd look for them and link and all...but well...you know me...

HWW, looks like we're both in agreement of the quality of Super Moby Dick. While "Mutiny" remains my favorite, I would say this is a contender for best story so far. Hamilton makes some bold choices and never lets the story get bogged down with anything that isn't driving home his themes and plot.

I've never read the Melville novel, but I have seen two film adaptations of "Moby Dick." What impresses me here is that Hamilton takes the basic idea of the story and makes it his own. In some previous stories, such as 318's "Mutiny of the Super-Heroes," Hamilton, I felt, shoehorned the characters into the story to make it work. Here the action flows logically from the characters and their motives.

I like your extrapolation that Garth was working through some post-resurrection issues up until now, though one does not need to know anything about Garth's past to understand his motivations in this story. Losing an arm would be traumatic for anyone.



Great minds think alike.

What I liked most about this story was how realistically the Legionnaires acted. They were concerned about Garth while simultaneously upholding the Legion Code; at the same time, unlike with some recent issues we reviewed they were much more compassionate for their fellow Legionnaire (contrast with them tossing Colossal Boy out in the Dynamo Boy story!)

Poor Moby needs a space dentist!

Ultra Boy must spend some time thinking about getting trapped inside space-whales. Since Moby affected Lightning Lad so badly, the beast might have given Jo some different powers, but Hamilton didn't go down that route. (It would have distracted from Garth's story, but Jo could have had some dormant effect that we only saw later.)

Everyone was very heroic and the story was more focused than most previous Legion stories.

I liked the anxious Dr. Lanphier's story. People goof, try to cover it up, then try to fix it and confess to what they've done. All good!

It would have been a nice ending to see tiny Moby Dick of Space fly off to join a swarm of other little space-whales. Perhaps people could keep them as exotic pets.


And on the previous story: Vorm as Time Trapper - excellent!

If anyone's interested, I expanded upon my thoughts concerning Adv. 332 and how it can help us cope with senseless tragedy in my latest blog post. I even linked to LW and to this thread.

Interesting blog post. Thanks for sharing. I appreciate how you've made this old Legion tale revelant for today's news worthy debates.

Thanks, Leather Wolf.

Nicely done, HWW. And you are right - people are too quick nowadays to jump to conclusions and be judgmental.

Thanks, Ibby. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

This story is definitely better than I remembered it. It's even better for the mostly unstated undertones: Garth's PTSD, Imra's growing feelings for him, etc.

You have to think that Hamilton's choosing of Garth for this particular trauma wasn't random. Since Garth had already been killed and brought back, he could've chosen any other less-spotlighted Legionnaire to suffer the injury. I think Hamilton wanted to show someone who had already suffered have their heroism tested again.

To me, Garth is the definitive Legionnaire of the Adventure era for all he'd been through and come out on the other end so impressively. This story is one of the big staples of my case. (Another staple begins in just three issues.)

But for all that's good about this stories, there were a couple of elements that were too cheesy (even by Silver Age standards) to keep me from scoring it too highly:

1) The way the injury was afflicted. So we've got this big honking, menacing whale charging Garth, and how does he lose his arm? Garth's lightning somehow bounces off the whale, reflects back with some poison and hits Garth square in the arm? Really? Those big, sharp teeth tell me a more logical way this could have happened! Yeah, I know it's the Silver Age, and I'm not saying they should have shown blood and gore--but there are tasteful ways to portray this without really showing anything. Heck, an issue of Robert Kirkman's "Super Dinosaur", an all-ages book, had a character lose a limb tastefully in a manner similar to how I described it.

Even taking how it happened at face value, I don't understand why the creature would have stopped charging. I realize it was not interested in eating people, but a bite or a tailswipe would've made sense. Also, the precision of the strike and that the infection didn't spread to more of his body as Garth's ship travelled a presumably long distance to Earth on autopilot was kind of silly. Maybe the whole arm (including Garth's sleeve! ) shouldn't have been shown to be green so quickly, maybe?

I will give the story props for the green coloration of the arm, though. It really did make for a stunning visual that made the mind thing of RL gangrene, albeit in an exaggerated fashion. I've no doubt this was brave, pioneering territory for superheroes vis a vis loss of limb, so extra props for that.

2) Did anyone else notice the inconsistency in how the size of the SMD was depicted? I mean, this thing dwarfed a city at one point! (And, no, there was nothing to indicate this was a planet of tiny people! ) He was depicted as ranging anywhere from a normal, larger Earth whale to Godzilla-sized to the size of several Godzillas! I can't be argued that he grew as the story continued because he was smaller after the city-making sequence! And if he kept growing and shrinking back and forth, that should've been referenced in-story.

Scale and perspective are basic artistic staples, and Forte failed to consistently depict the SMD's scale here, for sure. Some of that is surely on Hamilton as well by devising a story in which the threat must menace a city and individuals at the same time. Forte probably did the best with what he had with the available space, but it distracted me from the story repeatedly. A definite no-no for good storytelling.



But otherwise, it was a pretty good story!

Re the way Garth lost his arm, I guess one possibility for why they didn't have the Super Moby Dick bite it off was its size - it could just as easily have gulped Garth down whole!

I read it that Garth was more of a curiosity to the creature than an actual threat. Since Garth's lightning bolts did not hurt the creature, it had no reason to eat or tail-swipe him.

Good call, Lardy, on the inconsistency in the creature's size. In all the times I've read this story, I never noticed that. I'll have to go back and see how glaring it is.

I didn't notice the size variations either! Artist's excuse: the creature suffers size instability resulting from Lanphier's experiment.

This could also result in SMB becoming giant and menacing again in the future. Not something I'd like to see; one SMB story is enough. Unless he's the fifth member of the Fatal Five....

Adventure #333

Jerry Siegel returns, and being chief mythos-builder, he uses this story as a great opportunity to further establish the history of Krypton and Atlantis with Superboy and the Legion.

There's always something so enjoyably pulpy and adventurous to the trope of discovering a secret artifact pertaining to a mysterious unknown history. It's even cooler when the Legion can just go investigate it--which they unanimously vote to do. Ah, youths who can time travel.

I also love that 10 Legionnaires are featured, plus Luonru's small role.

The ancient past of Krypton being a time of intense anti-science sentiment is really just brilliant. Great idea by Siegel, and oh so appropriate for today. The Space Ark inspiring Noah's Arc, the origin of dinosaurs, the origin of Atlantis...it's all just so epic and grandiose. These days, this would be a weekly 52 issue series with 10 writers and artists.

Leta Lal is yet another classic Forte beauty. Stunning!

Headstrong Imra and headstrong Brainy sure are quick to draw lines in the sand. Some better effort could have been made to show how events were going in this direction despite their efforts, not because of them.

The Legion versus Legion sequence is fantastic! Some of the best action we've seen so far, complete with two armies and dinosaurs on top of it all. And then things get serious.

Superboy really shines in this story. It's one of the few stories where he is a lead character without totally hogging all the spotlight.

The ending is a mixed bag of some strong conclusions, such as Brainy helping the Atlanteans become their better known selves (good) and Mon-El showing up to save the day (meh).

Even more interesting though is the final panel revealing the final fate of the Kryptonians! Wow! Talk about bad luck! There's a ton of story potential here though that could be explored. I wonder if this was *ever* followed up on?

All in all, this was one of Siegel's best Legion stories IMO. It's sheer scale and continued forward momentum work very well.

Bonus Lettercol Review: Mort explains for the first time that Supergirl (not Saturn Girl) plants a post-hypnotic suggestion on Superboy whenever they have an adventure together.

Furthermore, if tiny SMD breeds with other tiny SMDs, his offspring will inherit his unstable genes, and . . .

Well, let's say a Fatal Fifteen Thousand may be on the horizon.

Hm. The Archive credits the story to Hamilton. It does seem more like a Siegel story, though. Was Hamilton possibly mis-credited?

Adv. 333

“The War Between Krypton and Earth” was the second Legion story I ever read, and, like 328’s “The Lad Who Wrecked the Legion,” I have strong, positive feelings for it. I understand why others may dislike this story, as there are significant weaknesses in the telling and contradictions with established DC lore. It also borrows heavily, plotwise, from classic Hollywood films, as do too many of these stories.

On balance, though, "War" is a superior story that broadens the scope of the Legion’s universe while providing us with some of the best action we’ve seen yet.

On re-reading it this time, I came away thinking it really should be a two-part story. The scope of the story is very large—encompassing ancient Krypton, ancient earth, Atlantis, and even dinosaurs. It also makes use of a very large number of Legionnaires—ten play an active role with two more cameoing—perhaps the largest gathering in a single story so far in which each character has something vital to do and is not simply disposed of in a spaceship crash or expulsion.

But the sheer scope of the story and number of characters results in some rushed and contrived plot developments, and interactions that go unexplained.

The story begins with a excellent premise. Superboy arrives in the 30th century to find several Legionnaires on an archaeological dig, where they have uncovered an ancient tablet. Superboy recognizes the language as Kryptonian and translates: the tablet is a declaration of war between Superboy’s homeworld and the people of earth.

Neither Superboy nor the Legionnaires knew of such a conflict, so a mystery beckons and—after voting to pursue the matter—they divide into two teams. Half of the Legionnaires present take a time bubble back to ancient Krypton while the rest go back to ancient earth. The stage is set for a grand adventure on two fronts.

This setup reminds me of Star Trek and it’s mission to “boldly go where no man has gone before”—ironic since this story was published the year before Star Trek debuted. It’s also an excellent setup for children to read, I think (I was nine when I first read it), as it illustrates how important and exciting history can be. The Legionnaires are shown to be very smart and curious—Superboy already knows his native language, and he teaches it to the Legionnaires who accompany him. The Legionnaires know enough about history that they can spot an anomaly that needs investigation.

What is understated but present nonetheless is that fact that Superboy (Kal-El) did speak another language when was a toddler. This, I think, should resonate with readers today who enter the United States and learn English as a second language. Some are taught, unfortunately, to be ashamed of their native language and culture, or to ignore them. Superboy’s matter-of-fact attitude shows us why it’s important to know where we came from, and how ties to our ancestors influence us today.

Superboy and his team of Legionnaires—Saturn Girl, Lightning Lad (now sporting his robot arm, of course), Element Lad, and Colossal Boy—journey to ancient Krypton, where they discover people still lived in pre-scientific villages and lacked the capability of space travel. But as they journey further, they discover a band of outlawed scientists living in the Jewel Mountains (an imaginative visual!) and planning to build a rocket ship to earth, where they will be free to pursue their love of science.

Violating one of the tenets of time travel stories, the Legionnaires interfere with history by pitching in and helping the scientists complete their rocket ship and then accompany them to earth.

Once they arrive, Superboy is dismayed to discover that earth’s young sun is still red, meaning neither he nor the Kryptonians will have super-powers. More, the Legionnaires find an advanced city has already been built on the supposedly uninhabited earth. The city, they learn, was completed with help from the other team of history-interfering Legionnaires, led by Brainiac 5 and consisting of Chameleon Boy, Phantom Girl, Light Lass, and Star Boy.

It would have been logical had the two Legion teams compared notes and stepped back to observe history take its course. But logical interactions don’t always make for good drama, and this is the Legion’s story, so they can’t be mere observers. Instead, the two teams argue over who has the right to colonize earth, the Kryptonians or the other star-traveling aliens, the Vruunians (who have built the city, which they call Atlantis). The shouting between Brainiac 5 and Saturn Girl appears to get quite personal. I suspect it’s the culmination of their feud, which began back in 309, when he said a mission was too dangerous for a girl, and which continued in 319, when she openly defied a similar proclamation of his.

Furthermore, no one amongst the Legionnaires or the two groups of aliens bothers to consider that this uninhabited earth is big enough for both colonies. Why not postpone the war for a generation or two, to see if they can come to a mutually beneficial arrangement?

But war does come, with Superboy’s group agreeing to fight alongside the Kryptonians and Brainy’s group supporting the Atlanteans. The Legionnaires do convince each side to use non-lethal weapons to avoid violating the Legion’s code against killing (the second story in a row in which the code has played a crucial role), and the fighting begins.

This is the best part of the story—the battle itself. Legionnaire vs. Legionnaire. These scenes give us a good sampling of what each hero can do. Phantom Girl uses her ghost-like powers to spook the Kryptonians’ dinosaurs, which escape their pens only to be driven back by Lightning Lad’s lightning bolts. Colossal Boy sets down a bridge so Kryptonian soldiers can cross a river, but Light Lass makes the bridge super-light weight so the soldiers on her side can upend it. Star Boy even attacks Element Lad directly, making the latter too heavy to stay aloft with his flight ring. And Chameleon Boy’s spy abilities have alerted the Atlanteans to the invasion, so the Kryptonians have to fall back.

At this point, the story takes a very dark and realistic turn. The weapons the Atlanteans use—and which were supposed to only stun—have killed some of the Kryptonians. The Kryptonian leader, Zat-El (a possible relative of Superboy’s) demands revenge, and the Kryptonians build a missile to destroy Atlantis.

Saturn Girl, at this point, picks a fine time to relegate herself to the role of observer. Why she doesn’t simply call the whole thing off—she is the Legion’s leader, after all—goes unexplained. Instead, she leaves it up to non-powered Superboy, who has snuck into Atlantis to be with a girl he’s infatuated with, to somehow save the day.

Here comes the story’s weakest moment, though at least it is foreshadowed in Triplicate Girl’s dialogue at the beginning: Mon-El arrives to play deus ex machina. In yet another depiction inconsistent with other stories, he retains his powers under earth’s red sun and catches the missile before it hits Atlantis. More, he has time to borrow Superboy’s costume so it looks as if the latter has saved the enemy, bringing everyone to their senses.

Everything is resolved very quickly. The Atlanteans can’t stay on the surface of the earth because of a virus in the atmosphere, so Brainy finds a way to turn them into mer-people, and Star Boy (performing a herculean task that somehow fails to cause buildings to collapse) sinks Atlantis below the sea. A footnote tells us that these Atlanteans become the ancestors of Lori Lemaris’s people.

The Legionnaires also conveniently forget their feud and return to their own time. On his own, Superboy tracks down the cave where Zat-El and the other Kryptonians left written accounts of their history. He discovers that the war and the subsequent rebellion of the once tame dinosaurs doomed the Kryptonian colony.

There is so much in this story that I think it could justifiably be a six- or twelve-part mini-series today. In fact, Peter David explored the history of Atlantis to great effect in the twelve-part Atlantis Chronicles, which develops similar epic themes, back in the early '90s. The biggest failing of “The War Between Krypton and Earth” is that there’s too much story for the pages allotted here.

And yet the story’s considerable strengths still shine. The ending has always left me feeling sad. While it conveniently explains away what happened to the Kryptonian colony on earth, it also conveys a sense of deep tragedy, of how the hopes and dreams of these renegade scientists came to nothing, and how the futility of war ultimately doomed them.

The fact that the Kryptonian deaths were not deliberate but caused by differences in biology has also seemed very realistic and sobering to me. This development makes good use of science fiction as well as psychological aspects of war. Conflict can easily escalate, and there is no such thing as a contained war. When passions reign supreme, people die. It’s that simple.

Other aspects of the story are iffy. The Superboy/Leta Lal romance appears to have been borrowed from any number of Hollywood films and could never really go anywhere, given the confines of Superboy's character. However, it does provide the story with a humanizing element and gives the non-powered Superboy something heroic to do. He risks his life to swim into the city and is even wounded for his trouble.

As for the contradictions between this origin of Atlantis and others, I’ll leave that for others to work out. As a kid, I loved the idea of the history of Atlantis—and the origin of dinosaurs, to boot!—being woven into the story. Both ideas certainly add to the grand scope of the tale.

"The War Between Krypton and Earth" is a flawed masterpiece, but a masterpiece nonetheless.

I find it interesting that the Legionnaires seemed so willing to participate/interfere in history. And Brainy was one of the key instigators! I won't even go into all the implications of what the LSHers did here, but I sure hope they put some new clauses in their code or constitution about time travel etiquette!

Wow...Superboy's in LURVE! I wondered a little with how they left that panel of he and Leta together if maybe something...sensual?...happened immediately afterwards--even if it was only some smooching or heavy petting!

So...Mon-El. Don't his powers derive from a yellow sun as well? So why was he able to take care of that missile? Maybe Ultra Boy would've been a better choice?

Gotta think that the Legionnaires who sided with Atlantis were more in the right than the ones who helped the Kryptonians, mainly because the Atlantians were there first and had already started building their settlement. But why didn't the Kryptonians simply go elsewhere on Earth? I suppose each wanted the entire planet for itself. But, you know, they were willing to fight a no-fatality war like happens so often in history, right?

And didn't it seem like the idea to go to war started with the Legionnaires? In a way they're responsible for those Kryptonians dying from the weapon blasts because they instigated the conflict, aren't they? Impetuous teens!

I'd say that if Hamilton (Siegel?) had thought through the time travel/interference quandaries and the Mon-El rescue, this would have been a nearly perfect Legion story. Great use of powers and exciting Legionnaire-on-Legionnaire battles. I just wish more of these stories would have better internal logic in the writing.

Yeah, and I also suspect that Tinya's spooking the dinosaurs and Garth's shooting lighting bolts at them played a role in the dinosaurs turning wild, which means these Legionnaires are partly responsible for the doom of the Kryptonian colony.

Adv. 334

Interoffice Memo
From: Mort Weisinger
To: Edmond Hamilton
Subject: July issue of Adventure
Date: January 4, 1965

Ed, it's time to discuss the plot of the next Legion story. Here's what I want to see. Fans have been clamoring for more of Supergirl, and we haven't featured her since 325, so you better find some way to include her. It doesn't have to be brilliant or spectacular. In fact, it might be a good idea to include her without including her, if you know what I mean. Maybe she's suffering from amnesia and doesn't know who she is, and the Legion has to help her figure out it out. Kids like that kind of mystery, as they really dug the Legion leader contest we did awhile back.

I'll leave it up to you to decide how she loses her memory. One thing, though: Don't use Red Kryptonite again. We've done that with Supergirl twice already. On second thought, go ahead and use Red K. Fans who remember the earlier stories will notice this and think there's a pattern. They'll start to wonder if Kara is jinxed every time she visits the Legion, and maybe that's why she won't visit the Legion more often, so we won't have to deal with her. With Superboy, Mon-El, and Ultra Boy, we've got too darned many powerhouses already, and it's getting old to send them away on special missions all the time. Last thing we need is a girl who can clean house with every other Legionnaire.

You must, however, include a mention that Superboy forgets Supergirl whenever he returns to his own time. Fans love those trivial details, and they will gripe if we don't mention it at least once an issue.

John's come up with a design for a character with a lead mask that looks something like those statues on Easter Island. (See the attached sketch.) Kids will think he's creepy since he has no eyes, so let's include him in the story. No, I don't know his name. That's for you to figure out.

As to which Legionnaires should be featured, let's stick with a formula of a small, rotating cast with Saturn Girl, Brainiac 5, and Sun Boy as the core, and, of course, Superboy. Use one or two of the Legionnaires who haven't been featured in awhile, maybe Cosmic Boy and Phantom Girl. And include Chameleon Boy, as he's an alien and immediately establishes that the story takes place in space/the future. No, he doesn't have to actually do anything. In fact, since we've got Proty II, we don't need two shape-shifters, so find some way to get rid of Chameleon Boy's power for awhile.

Whatever you do, Ed, don't make it a heavy handed story like the last one you did. Look, I'm all sympathetic to your anti-war feelings, but a story in which Kryptonians go to war with Atlanteans and then get wiped out by dinosaurs at the end?! This is a children's book, for crying out loud. We snuck that one past the code, but don't try it again. Make this one just a simple fun mystery. Keep in mind, I've got a thirteen-year-old kid in the wings who can do your job if you screw up!

Your first draft of the full script is due next week and, as always, there won't be time to do a second draft, so make it perfect!

Give my regards to Leigh.

Mort.

Adventure #334

The first thing to say about #334 is wow, what a fantastic cover. Obviously inspired by the statue of the unknown soldier in D.C., it makes an imposing and moody opening.

Here Hamilton ties up one of his two great outstanding subplots, that of the Proteans. Though all these various Protean stories are connected only peripherally in the Silver Age, the brilliant Tom & Mary would weave an amazing tale of Kid Quantum out of them--perhaps the single most brilliant retcon / build on continuity ever.

Related to that, its also worth mentioning the brilliant thread started by Kent Shakespeare some years back positing that in TMK continuity Unknown Boy *must* be Kid Quantum.

It's also worth noting Supergirl plays a big role in this story. That's noteworthy because by now these have become few and far between. In fact, about once an archive does she show up--which is too bad! Meanwhile, Superboy has now settled into his recurring lead status which he is able to share with the Legionnaires rather than dominate the story.

This story also contains an editors note explaining how Superboy and Supergirl can interact in the future via post hypnotic suggestion. This follows one month after Mort might have decided this on a whim on the Lettercol.

The story opens with a some fun whimsy of the Legionnaires recalling an old story. This is a nice change of pace.

The Protean story is full of mistrust and tension, though it does come with some repetitiveness. I was thankful Unknown Boy showed when he did to relieve the possible boredom.

We see the origin of the Proteans again with the Llorn -- for like the third time. As Eryk mentioned before, this underscores how critically important it was in LSH lore. TMK were right to hone in on it.

Like many of the past issues, there is a nice balance of action and subtlety. The Marvel influence is well felt here.

Hamilton does a good job leaving clues for the reader. It's easy to forget that so many readers knew just about every facet of the Superman mythos and could piece this together.

"Million to one chance..." - wait, didn't this already happen when Supergirl became Satan Girl? Jeez, talk about bad luck!

All in all, another pretty good one! Archive #4 is shaping up to be full of good ones and the very best so far.

Bonus Lettercol Review: Mort explains John Forte missed a few issues because of illness. This is sad to read knowing that illness would hit back hard in a few months and Forte would pass.

Mort also clarifies that 18 is the age limit or admission to the LSH but once you're a member, you're not expelled or anything if you turn 18 or older.

HWW--

"Give my regards to Leigh"! Love it!

Wait, you didn't know about the freakish mutation of statistical chance that occurs around the 1:1000000 mark?

I hadn't thought about the statue of the Unknown Legionnaire being inspired by the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Good call, Cobie.

I like Unknown Boy's costume, but that color scheme doesn't work for me. The white shirt, those white boots: Ugh. At least I'm reading it in black and white so I can imagine a more complementary color scheme, say a metallic purple with grey highlights.

HWW, your "memo" said it all!

So, where are all the other reviewers who have been reviewing these stories? Lardy? EDE? stile86? I know life gets busy, but you all have some catching up to do!

Random thoughts on War:

Boy, the Legionnaires sure learn fast. Maybe Saturn Girl helped them learn it with her telepathy. Unless they started studying ages ago.

Funny how Ayla and Garth have no qualms about being on opposing sides.

Why does Imra need to call a vote just to decide whether to help Superboy investigate? If it was out of caution of time travel, then they sure threw caution to the winds later on.

Even Brainy is engaging in fisticuffs. "Try it! You forget I'm as strong as you are under a red sun!" That's telling 'em, Brainy.

Thankfully, the Legionnaires on the Kryptonian's side had the sense to realize that their teammates wouldn't intentionally abet killers.

Triplicate Girl's staying behind was the key to solving everything. But of course that would turn out to be important!

I'm a bit surprised the Kryptonian scientists didn't think to build anything that would keep the dinosaurs in check. Oh well!

Siblings often take opposite sides. My brother and I see the world very differently and agree on very little when it comes to politics.

It's a missed opportunity, though, that Hamilton didn't mention that Garth and Ayla are siblings. This could have represented the real-world brother-against-brother tragedy of the U.S. Civil War.



This is probably why she wasn't elected to a third term. She could be darned indecisive at times.

Excuse moi? I've commented on EVERY story since the last story in Archives #2! Just cuz I haven't said anything about the Unknown Boy story, don't mean I'm behind. It's Thursday, after all!

A for the current story, I'm sad to say that it didn't really do anything for me at all. I mean, even as mystery-lite, it didn't work for me, mainly because it cheats.

"Cheats", you inquire? Well, yes, it does. Basically, it's not a fair mystery because of the seeing through lead thing which was the crux of the Unknown Boy identity. I'd have preferred some way around that that did not involve Red K with clues as to how it was bypassed. How is a reader supposed to fairly infer this is Supergirl otherwise? Were there any clues that Red K was involved? No. Just crappy writing. With what we were given, Duplicate Boy would've made more sense, other than his not being a Legionnaire. If the Lallors made a cameo toward the beginning, that could have worked.

The Protean stuff would have redeemed the story, but it just made them look so hapless. I dunno, if any of them had been more than cyphers here, it would have worked better. Or even if they were shown to distrust the Legion somewhat because of what happened to Proty I, y'know?

It's a shame they brought Kara back for a rare appearance for a story like this one. Like Cobie mentioned, it's basically a repeat of the Satan Girl story in essence, though she's not evil in this one. I'd rather her be front and center, saving the day as herself in a big epic than see her as the solution to a half-baked mystery.

Worst Hamilton story I can remember reading!

stile86, we can give a pass because he's (?) new, but Edie? He may be the worst person in the galaxy right now for disappearing from this discussion!

My apologies. I'm just anxious to read your thoughts.

Agreed on all counts. It's mighty convenient that Red K gave Supergirl the ability to see through lead.



In a way, it's nice to see the Proteans again since so many worlds and alien races were introduced in these stories and never seen again. It's good to have some continuity with past stories and a continuation of previous plot lines.

That said, there's nothing in this story that really advances the Proteans subplot. This story could be forgotten and we would not miss anything.



Again, agreed. As I alluded to in my "memo" review, this is a story that features Supergirl without actually featuring her. She's in disguise for virtually the entire story and isn't revealed until the end. Cover featuring her (as well as Light Lass, who doesn't even appear in the story) seems like another cheat.

There are quite a lot of stories by now with fairly similar plot elements: Unknown boy and Satan Girl; Command Kid and Dynamo Boy (Legion admits someone they didn't foresee would betray them); later on we'll have the Thora of Taltar story and the Queen Azura of Femnaz story.

And even later on (getting ahead of myself here), I noticed that both the Fatal Five/Sun-Eater story and the Fatal Five/Talok VIII story have two of five cast members the same: Superboy and Cosmic Boy.

Now back to Supergirl, I don't understand why they couldn't use her more. They had the romance with Brainiac 5 to differentiate her from Superboy, after all. Did someone in editorial feel that she'd make the boys look bad? Saturn Girl does that often, and Night Girl arguably does that to the rest of the Subs!

Re: Adventure #334 HWW's excellent memo sums it up pretty well. If only... the story wasn't half bad otherwise. It was good to get the history of the Antareans and curious to see the failure of the Llorn civilization attributed to solar-induced climate change. In addition, they suffer some consequences of over-population. How very topical!

There's some arrogance, perhaps, to the original Llorn civilization. Like most colonizers, they intended to impose their civilization on the natives rather than let the Antareans develop - or exist - naturally. When things got bad, the Llorn used an evolution ray on the Antareans so they could adapt to the changed world, but not on themselves. Nor did they develop something specifically targeted to Llorn physiology; they just left.

In order to avoid using Supergirl, I would have had a renegade group of Llorn who refused to leave, but found some way to adapt themselves to the changing climate - different from the native Antareans, but suited to the planet and living in peaceful co-existence. One of them would have been "Unknown Boy".

Another aspect of this story that might have gotten more attention today is Brainy's sloppiness, spraying Chameleon Boy by accident. Not fatal like Computo, but still indicative of the unintended consequences of scientific invention. Brainy was also pretty lax in not having his force field on at all times.

There seem to be a lot of mushrooms on alien planets. These were Antareans in disguise, but mushrooms appear to be the vegetation of choice to indicate strangeness. One has to wonder if the artists were consuming them as an aid to imagination, or if there's just a tradition linking mushrooms and fantasy in stories.

Belated comments on Adv. #333, The War Between Krypton and Earth

This really could have been expanded far beyond one issue; there were so many different elements and, writing today, a lot more attention could be given to the personalities involved, not to mention all the ethical considerations.

The big stumbling block for me was to explain why the two races couldn't share a big planet like Earth. But you've got to have a story, so it's best to just overlook that.

It struck me as particularly ironic that Brainiac 5 was on the side opposing the oppressed Kryptonian scientists.

Phantom Girl panicked dinosaurs by passing through them. Usually she's just shown passing through somebody without effect, but it would make sense that one would feel something creepy and unnatural. I'm surprised, now that I've read this, that such an effect wasn't overtly used in later stories.

The scene between Leta Lal and Superboy under the full moon certainly does leave plenty of room for speculation!

Was there any follow-up to this origin of Lori Lemaris' people? Legends of people from outer space who changed them into merpeople? It could explain Lori's friendship with the Legion, if she discovered this ancient history and wanted to meet the people who essentially created her race.

Wow, no one's commented on "Starfinger", yet? Surprising!

Let me start by saying that I thought this was quite an excellent Legion tale, even as part 1 of a 2-parter! Lots of great usage of Legionnaire powers and a cunning, powerful foe at long last! It's kind of a shame that--well, I won't spoil it just in case anyone doesn't know, but the last page makes it clear that this story has something in common with last issue's Unknown Boy tale and the Satan Girl story further back.

I thought the coolest visual of the issue was that scene where Colossal Boy stops Sun City from falling off its track to its doom. Honestly, that was one of the best shots of Colossal Boy using his power I've ever seen! If this were a modern story, that would have been a two-page splash! But even as presented, it was effective and stunning.

Speaking of visuals, I'm finding that I really enjoy Forte's pencils more with other people inking him. The Archives credits Sheldon Moldoff doing the honors this issue. Though I hate that the reason for this was, sadly, that Forte's health was declining, I really like the increased texture or depth and the less generic facial features that Moldoff's inks seem to add to Forte's work.

It's funny how the cover actually references the James Bond villain Goldfinger as a way to build reader anticipation for the menace within. It's odd from the standpoint alone of it being on a book set in the 30th century referencing a 20th century film but even more so because the two characters have nothing in common. Well, I suppose they were both after a valuable substance, but you don't see the titular villain being called "Rejuviumfinger" here, do you?

I guess my only beef here is Starfinger's costume. Basically, 's a combination of a Michelin Man motif with a Black Manta-type helmet---except, you know, Starfinger's helmet has BOOB-eyes! I think Madonna and Lady Gaga got the boob-cones idea from him subliminally decades later.

I'd go so far as to say part 1 of the Starfinger story is the best one for me so far in this re-read, albeit with the caveat that I didn't re-read most of vols. 1 & 2. Obviously, I know who Starfinger is, but I'm hopeful that part 2 lives up to the promise of the first. I've found my memory is pretty sketchy on the details and nuances of these stories for which many of these are only my second read. I remembered "Starfinger" as one of the goofier, forgettable stories, but this particular re-read is proving a revelation for me!

Let's hope Hamilton sticks the landing next ish!

Re Starfinger, it's nice to see Invisible Kid and Matter-Eater Lad get some good use. It's also a good formula for juggling a huge cast: the old split up into teams plan. It's also a good way to reveal more of the 20th century to us.

Boy, Nila sure is clingy! wouldn't it be creepy if this were her first date with Dirk?

Cos' mom says the Legion has had more than one casualty already. But wait! Triplicate Girl's third body hasn't died yet, so only Lightning Lad has died before, right? Am I missing something? Is she counting traitor Dynamo Boy?

Oh, Thomas Keene. What if that fantastic element had been poisonous to humans? Oh well, scientific discovery and all that. Ditto Sun Boy's desperate act; what if he'd melted the rejuvium? Still, better I suppose to have it destroyed than to have it in the hands of criminals.

I wonder how fast Tenzil eats. He must be pretty speedy, to eat a hole through a ship in time to save whomever's trapped inside!

Apparently the Sun has healing powers in the 30th century, because they took the time to build a city for sick people that follows the sun!

Starfinger shows that he's one step ahead of the Legion all the time. And Saturn Girl's reveal, uh-oh! I wonder how many readers back then did a mental checklist of all the Legionnaires who weren't present? Brainiac 5 and Invisible Kid would have been my first guesses, but there they are in plain sight at the same time as Starfinger.

The cover of Part 2 clearly shows it's a male, so there goes my Supergirl theory as well.

The future Espionage Squad members are put to good use by searching for Starfinger. Suspicions abound!

And inertron makes an appearance! Wonderful! It feels somehow historic, seeing its first (? not sure if it's appeared earlier) appearance.

I'm a bit surprised that the government capitulated.Yes, losing most of the 7 Wonders is terrible, but from all accounts they all could be repaired (except perhaps the fusion powersphere, whose destruction would be disastrous). Superboy even says so at the end! Although I suppose losing all 7 in such short order while Starfinger is still on the loose would be tough to handle.

Starfinger's hiding place is brilliant, frankly. And the Legionnaires were too busy to even consider that.

I seriously have to hit the library and see if they have or can inter-library loan these archives! (Also the collected works of Edmund Hamilton!)

This stuff sounds so awesome. I've always had a fascination with old stories, like the one about the Murran spies, but have had little chance to actually read any of them.

^ Some free Ed Hamilton (audiobooks) at librivox.



Trying to catch up, shining knighted one!

Perhaps this is the very first reference to Kid Quantum?

Casualty is often (especially today) intended to mean 'dead,' but the actual definition includes people who are wounded in combat, generally so severely that they are taken out of the fight.

Unfortunately that doesn't entirely fit here either, as Garth's lost arm is the only injury that would typically fit that definition.

Oh! I also noted that "space fatigue" was mentioned again as being, apparently, the primary reason that the Legionnaires were being examined! Nice acknowledgement of what happened to Sun Boy well over a year ago. Note that Sun Boy, though his prior affliction is not mentioned, is prominently being examined in the background as we get some exposition in the foreground. Nice work, Hamilton!

As is well known, Sun Boy used to regularly fake relapses of 'space fatigue' so that he could get him some hot nurse action.

That doesn't happen any more. Gym'll was having none of it.

Ah, thanks for reminding me of the expanded definition of "casualty", Set. It also seems unlikely she's referring to Bouncing Boy losing his powers, since that happened out of action. (I wonder why BB was written out in the first place! Were his powers deemed too silly? They provide a good visual though, and aren't too hard to use in a story - if there are henchmen, BB can easily take em down!)

Maybe Sun Boy's space fatigue counts him as being a casualty?



Oooh. An extremely early retcon!

These days, they would change the name to Skin Cancer City.

I like the idea of Sun City, but more as a resort than a healing place. (I imagine the skin cancer concern would be dealt with in 1000 years.) I like the idea of a domed city travelling around the world for that purpose. Definitely a utopian future kinda thing, which the Legion totally is.

Oddly, the name kept making me think of the resort in South Africa that musicians boycotted (complete with a protest song) to show their opposition to apartheid.

Oh, no! Starfinger is really . . . Supergirl!

Drat that Red K.



Agreed. It's a stunning visual.




I've always thought the connection was simply with the "finger" part of the name. Mort and company knew what movies their audience were likely to see, and they deliberately included references such as this to draw attention.

What's great, though, is that Starfinger is a wholly original character with little connection to Goldfinger. In fact, Starfinger takes his name literally by having a different power in each finger! Cool concept.

Adv. 335

Glad to see so many others discussing this story; I was starting to worry that re-reading the archives had run out of steam.

I agree that "Starfinger" is one of the best Legion stories so far, though it's not quite my favorite. (I still favor 333.) This is the most straight-ahead, action-filled story we've seen yet. A new villain is in town, and the Legion cannot stop him. More, he anticipates their every move.

In fact, this story is so well done that only two things irked me, so I'll get them out of the way early.

The first thing is the by now routine manner in which Legionnaires are dropped in and out of the story. This was a common feature of the Adventure run, but it's annoying here. A reader who is only casually familiar with the Legion might justifiably be confused as to who all these characters are and what they can do, the size of the Legion, etc.

For example, the second page introduces us to a manageable number of Legionnaires--Sun Boy, Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, and Brainiac 5--but then Star Boy and Ultra Boy appear without explanation on pp. 3-4. Even more Legionnaires pop in randomly throughout the story.

This is rather like setting a story on an alien planet, but not bothering to tell the reader it's an alien planet until the end. It's cheating when the writer doesn't establish story parameters early on.

Fans have sometimes complained that Superboy hogs the glory in these stories. This may be true, but his absence until this story's end leaves a hole in terms of who our main character is. Without Superboy, there is no clear Legionnaire to focus on, no one who becomes the "protagonist" (although Saturn Girl seems prominent in a few key scenes.) With most of the Legionnaires popping in and out of the story, it's hard to know who to root for.

Related to the first problem, notice that Mon-El is once again brought back just to be sent away. While the revelation that Star Boy can be recharged by the rays of a sun is interesting, I can't recall it ever being mentioned again. In this story, it's sole purpose is to give Mon-El an excuse to miss out on the action. Mort really should have given Mon a more useful weakness than lead (which is countered by his lead serum), it seems.

Otherwise, "Starfinger" is masterfully written. At the beginning, we're introduced to the Legionnaires as they undergo routine medical examinations--a scene that doesn't seem to accomplish much at first, but later turns out to be key to Starfinger's identity!

The best part of the story is that, in spite of the lack of proper introductions, several Legionnaires get to shine. In addition to Gim saving Sun City, Star Boy goes one on one with Starfinger and loses! (In a brilliant twist, it's because Thom has to neutralize his own power to save the villain's life that he opens himself up as a target.) Sun Boy, Cosmic Boy, and Invisible Kid all get a shot--but their powers are turned against them.

The girls don't get to do much, unfortunately, but Phantom Girl does assist with a rescue, Light Lass is turned super-heavy, and Saturn Girl telepathically receives the clue that will keep us hanging for a month (or until Monday, at least).

This story is tightly paced with each scene building upon the previous and pushing us headlong into a surprise ending. And even though it's continued, it leaves the reader feeling like a lot had been accomplished and that the journey has been worth the ride.

I fell behind because I've been on vacay and part 2 is the last missing single issue, so I've got to read that online (at work ;)). Hope to review both by Tuesday and catch up on everyone's comments. I've never read part 2 before.

So keep it going peeps!

By the way, Adv. 335 marks the second time Element Lad is knocked out of flight by a fellow Legionnaire. The first time was by Star Boy in 333.

I guess that makes Jan the Legion's fall guy.

These Legion stories are becoming more focused, with fewer to no extraneous scenes. No more bouncing with friendly bouncy alien creatures, while the rest of the team waits to get on with the mission. As a result, the stories read less like silly kiddie comics and more like real adventure tales. The Legion is growing up!

Even today, I find Starfinger's metal eyes really creepy, like a giant fly's head. Lardy gave me a good alternate image, though, with his suggestion that they were the inspiration for Madonna's metal bra (somewhat more menacing than Red Sonja's chainmail bra).

There are a number of foreshadowing scenes that make the story more interesting: the mention of space-fatigue (even though it doesn't develop, you're just waiting for someone to go haywire), the prisoner in the dark room (a real tip-off if you look at the bed frame), Saturn Girl's declaration that Starfinger is a Legionnaire and the confusing array of Starfinger's powers.

Rejuvium did appear in a later story: according to the Help File, it was LSH #56, in which the Emerald Empress dispatched the Inquisitor to find the key to immortality. Rejuvium had been banned by the U.P., but was used illegally on the planet Verzwei. However, I thought it was also used in a Levitz story explaining why the Legionnaires still used "Boy" and "Girl" and something about keeping it all secret from Superboy - but I can't find the issue at this point (and IIRC, Levitz himself said it wasn't a very good story).

S/LSH # 235. Rejuvium is not mentioned. Dr. B'Relden created a serum that prolongs life.

And I'm not sure why Levitz felt it wasn't a good story--I disagree. It's controversial, and it doesn't portray the Legionnaires in the best of light, but it shows the difficult moral choices people sometimes have to make. The Legion kept brainwashing Superboy so he would never get wise to how the Legionnaires in their 20s could still be called "Boy" or "Kid". They were afraid even he couldn't handle the temptation to prolong the lives of his loved ones in the 20th century.

Did the Legion make the right choice? Probably not, given their lengthy history with Superboy. But the story shows how a remarkable invention that can solve problems, cure illness, or create wealth can be a source of uncertainty even among those who possess it. Who can they trust? What is the best way to avoid the invention falling into the wrong hands?

These questions are echoed in the subplot involving the Sklarian raiders, who claim they have to resort to piracy because the UP has given their world some technological benefits, but not enough to satisfy their desire for more. They Sklarians got greedy. It's easy to see how the Legionnaires might be cautious about who should have access to what secrets they possess.

It's a very mature and unsettling story, and one that stays with readers a long time.

I vaguely recall one of the Science Police mandates being to keep dangerous technology (such as time travel) under control, and even to suppress some technology outright. That's a pretty unusual role, and yet, even by the '50s, thanks to nuclear technology being 'out of the bottle,' probably a timely one. As we learn about more and more ways technology could lead to possibly catastrophic fates (runaway nanotech 'grey goo' scenarios or fears that a supercollider could spark a new big bang or even that a new explosive device could set fire to the atmosphere), and in a setting where crazy planet-destroying (or even *sun*-destroying devices actually do exist, that sort of mandate both makes sense in-story, and, as a tool to explain why the 30th century is even recognizable to a 20th century reader, perhaps a useful 'meta' tool for storytelling.

Sharing life-extending technology with a race or culture that isn't ready for it could seriously mess them up. If they continue to reproduce like a race that has a much shorter lifespan, they will quickly run out of resources and be forced into an expansionist phase, threatening everyone around them while simultaneously 'cheapening' life itself, in the eyes of their people, since they are swimming in 'too many people,' many of them resource poor, hungry and desperate, leading to a lack of empathy, as those who have enough are just fighting to hold onto it, and those who are suffering are trying even harder to seize what they need to survive. Combined with a older traditionalist caste of leaders who never grows old and gets replaced, their society would stagnate, and any innovations or cultural evolutions that might save them from this fate would be stifled or ignored by an increasingly out of touch leadership that has grown calcified and resistant to change. We see the results of that sort of thing to a much lesser extent today, where our political leadership is, on average, already past retirement age, while our population trends much younger, explaining why it is literally impossible to pass regulations supported by 80% or even 90% of the population (or even simple majorities *of their own political parties*), because they are almost inconceivable to a political body that is almost two full generations older than the average. People who think computers are 'fads' are making laws to regulate the internet... In a world with rejuvium, things could be much worse, as their political and cultural and religious leaders could be centuries old, and maintain views (and impose laws) that are completely out of touch with newly recognized realities.

The S-LSH #235 story was bad because it tried to explain away a comic book convention. It's like saying that in the 30th century, they put a special serum in all the water that is absorbed into the brain, and that for that reason, people in the 30th century can get their heads knocked around by superheroes without getting concussions.

It also meant that we could no longer just explain it away by saying "well, let's just assume that not a lot of time has passed" (without ignoring the story.)

Furthermore, it was pretty much a certainty that no writer would be willing to examine the implications of giving a society reduced aging.

Adventure #335

I'll be playing catch up today...

Starfinger arrives with the potential to be the first great proper super villain for the LSH, and fits that role perfectly...until, as Lardy mentioned, the story went in another direction. That's too bad. However,
some clever writing would bring him back a few times--and if 1970's comic writers knew one thing, it was bringing back 1960's villains. Very soon the Legion will start getting some memorable villains, and that trend really begins here.

Also notable that the cover doesn't even hide the fact that Goldfinger was an inspiration for Starfinger, at least in name.

The story opens with some nice personal insights. Sun Boy is shown to be truly dedicated to the Legion which fits his personality thus far to a "T"; yet it also sets up his ladies man persona in how easily he ditched Nila. There are a few ways to read this. Cos' family is introduced, establishing that important aspect of the Krinn boys.

Note Cos' mother mentions the Legion has had more than one casualty. Say what? This could either refer to: (A) one of those stories where everyone dies, though I wonder how Ma Krinn knows about that; or (B) Kid Quantum *and* Lightning Lad!

Rejuvium being found via exploration of unknown territory continues a long literary tradition of the Fountain of Youth.

Dirk shows some good thinking on his feet once the action starts. Jo, Tenz and Tinya also use their powers nicely.

Part 1 does a nice job establishing the villain and now part 2 gives a more elaborate plot for how he'll battle the Legion. It's silly yet fun, and it also allows for a lot of Legionnaires to be used.

Star Boy's coma is an excuse to get Mon off the board, but it does a nice job heightening tension and showing the heroes reacting to a fellow Legionnaire in peril.

The story benefits from being a two parter by ending on a big cliffhanger. Starfinger reveals the full array of his powers by taking out a variety of Legionnaires and accomplishing the second part of his threat. Superboy arrives in the story in the same way so many Legion stories have had "last minute saves" except this time--he fails! When read in context with all the other stories, this is quite a twist!

Bonus: "Meet the Legionnaires" begins as an extra, beginning with Brainiac 5. This 1/3 page text extra is chalk full of information! We get the full origin of Brainiac, Vril Doz (Brainiac II), info on Brainiacs III and IV, and of course our Brainy. Plus an explanation of the long lives of the Brainys...though no clarification yet on Yod / Colu.

It's worth noting again that Star Boy's extreme avoidance of breaking the no-killing policy led to his being in a coma, near death.

Surely this must have influenced his future decisions, including his killing Kenz Nuhor to avoid being killed?

Interesting point of view, Ken, and it brings up the fact that, in the 1970s, Marvel and DC both sought ways to explain how their heroes were not aging. One Fantastic Four story had Reed, Ben, and Sue exposed to a Skrull ray which retarded their aging. Cap had his super-soldier formula and Nick Fury his elixir of youth, etc.

This was all part of the idea of making super-heroes as realistic as possible.

The Legion was in a special situation in that the characters had noticeably aged during the 1970s--two had gotten married. However, Superboy (going by established DC history) was still a teenager who had yet to lose his foster parents or go away to college. He was, in a sense, stuck in time while the Legionnaires moved forward.

The story's explanation for this discrepancy isn't wholly satisfying or convincing. It leaves a lot of unanswered questions. (For example, does Superboy ever notice that the calendar changes in the 30th century each time he visits? How does he know "when" to come out of the time barrier? Why couldn't he continue to visit the Legionnaires while *they* were still teens?) But I think 235 was a bold attempt to do two things: 1) explain away an inconsistency that fans had noticed, and 2) use the science fictional setting to deal with real-world themes, such as the United States providing aid to lesser developed countries--our obligations, how much aid is too much, and what happens when lesser countries demand more? Levitz injected similar real-world themes in the political tensions between Imsk and the UP a few issues earlier.

In some ways, I think this story was an attempt to acknowledge that not only had the Legionnaires changed, but that the audience was growing more sophisticated, as well.

The conclusion in 336 was really nice and didn't let down the strong opener. I liked how Brainy came up with the idea for the inertron shields and that their numbers simply overwhelmed Starfinger with that advantage. Lots of continued good work with facial expressions and a generally satisfying resolution to the mystery and finally nabbing the real bad guy behind it all.

Probably my biggest complaint is the scene where M-E Lad "eats" the steam! Say whuuuuut?!? I suppose it's possible, given Tenzil's power, but it seems he'd also have to have super-breath/inhalation to pull that off, right?

All in all, this story is one of the big pieces in my assertion that Garth was arguably the featured Legionnaire of the Silver Age (or at least pre-Shooter) with all of the big stories and milestones that centered around him.

Honestly, I'm trying to remember why I used to think this story SUCKED?!?!?

Okay, so just about there catch-up wise though I may be delayed slightly on the next one…

Adventure #336

It occurs to me that the covers of both Starfinger issues are really great. Particularly, this one on #336 is fantastic, and would be even without the background roster which just puts it over the top.

Also, I’ve got to agree with a comment Lardy made earlier about Forte as inked by __. It really just ‘pops’ more with the inks, adding some additional depth. He did the same for Swan’s work as well.

I love the old way of telling flashback’s, with the narrator’s face side by side with the narration. Hamilton also employs an effective series of panels showing the Legionnaires dragnet for Starfinger, which combined with Vi’s distrust of Cham, really heightens the tension. Starfinger is really shining as a big villain in this story!

The Global Tunnel is a cool concept, even if the science needs to be a lot more sound. There is at least three stories to be told of Legionnaires finding trouble there! Perhaps in the More Fun Comics adventures?

Er…Ultra Boy must only be in the American / European section of the Giant Hall of Fame. Yeah, that’s it.

Great opening splash to part 2!

The Fusion Powersphere reappears! And Inertron debuts in Legion lore after being used pretty prolifically in other sci-fi mediums…including quite often by Hamilton himself.

Tenzil devouring steam (since it is technically matter) is interesting. I’ve never considered that before and somehow, it doesn’t feel right.

The Reverse Falls are also pretty cool! Wild!

Sun Boy stays behind so boyfriends Lyle & Jan can go join the fight! Lyle must still not have broken Jan’s heart.

Great panel of the Legionnaires surrounding Starfinger with the inertron shields!

Things come to a conclusion with Starfinger revealed with a gasp!; then the real story being told; and then confrontation with the great realization that the Legion having been guarding his base all along! Though I’d have loved for all the Legionnaires to bring him in, I still felt satisfied with his defeat.

All in all, not the most perfect story but a very enjoyable 2-parter. The two parters are showing that a little extra breathing room can go a long way with these stories!

Bonus House Ad Comment: love the Enemy Ace house ad in the back!

I see we both can't quite accept the steam bit!

I agree on your Garth assessment. In fact, ever since "Code of the Legion", he's become a bit more of the main male lead (not counting Superboy) much like Sun Boy was before him.

In a way you can really track or recount the early Silver Age by what happened to Garth. Not to mention that he even had one sibling become a Legionnaire and another become a Legion foe during this period!

Adv. 336

A worthy followup to Part 1, Part 2 sees the Legionnaires battling Starfinger and getting trumped at every turn. Knowing that Starfinger is really one of them stirs suspicion amongst the Legionnaires, but this plot line isn’t really developed. No matter: What’s delivered is an exciting story that builds to a climax of the Legionnaires ganging up on the villain, forcing him to the ground, and then unmasking him.

Of course, the big reveal is not as shocking as it was then; however, it's set up nicely with Saturn Girl giving the Legionnaires a briefing at the beginning (one of the few times exposition has been integrated naturally into these stories). Knowing her eventual destiny with the Legionnaire in question makes her reaction all the more compelling (“It can’t be . . . him!”).

After the big reveal, unfortunately, the story runs on a flat tire or two. The brainwashed Legionnaire’s reaction is so blasé, one might think he’d merely overslept and missed his turn at monitor duty. And wouldn’t it have been great if he had been the one to go after the real Starfinger—the man who used him? But no, Superboy once again goes it alone under the pretext that he’s invulnerable and the other Legionnaires are not. One almost wishes they would get tired of him molly-coddling them and boot his ass back to Smallville.

(It surprises me, though, how little Superboy really has hogged the glory so far. He defeats the villain alone in 310, 320, and 336, and collaborates with other Legionnaires to prevail in 325, 329, 331, and 333, but, otherwise, he’s either absent, sent away on missions, or blends in with the crowd.)

I will say that the resolution is very well done. Don't play poker with Superboy!

Product of Its Time Dept.: The statues Ultra Boy fails to save represent historical figures the series’ readers would have studied. While this is a nice connection to school, it would have been even nicer if some of these statues had represented non-whites, women, or even aliens!

What Was He Thinking Dept.: Exactly how was impersonating Starfinger supposed to draw the real villain out, Chameleon Boy? This subplot, however, does foreshadow the suspicion heaped upon Durlans in later stories, and it made me feel sorry for Cham, who is now the object of suspicion among his own teammates.

Hamilton seems to be getting the hang of using the Legionnaires' powers. Light Lass is used to great effect here, and the drawbacks of Ultra Boy’s one-power-at-a-time restriction are made vividly clear. I rather enjoyed Tenz sucking up steam. This falls under the heading of "Why not?"

A better-than-average wrap-up, but it could have been great.

Several stories have implied, if not outright stated, that M-E Lad can eat at super-speed. He'd have to in order to accomplish some of the things he does. His teeth, jaw, tongue, and the inside of his mouth must also be super-strong if not invulnerable, so I don't think it's much of a stretch for him to have super-sucking ability, as well.

(Now, I can imagine Imra or another Legion leader saying in battle, "Tenz, you suck!" --and meaning it as a command. )

Although Ultra Boy's power has drawbacks, it is nice to see him using them so intelligently in this story. It's good, as he certainly has to be more careful than fellow powerhouses Supergirl or Mon-El.

Also nice to see Phantom Girl going out and continuing the search even while trapped in phantom form.

I do wish more had been done with Triplicate Girl's triplicating ability - so she can search in three directions at once, I wish it had been taken a step further by... by.... I'm not really sure how. Some kind of mindlink like how her powers were developed later on, so her three selves could share information?

Superboy #124

I’ve never read the Insect Queen origin story before, so it was fun to check it out. It’s purely a Superboy / Lana Lang story so the fact that it was a brief 8 pages was something I didn’t mind at all. Lana is really enjoyable in this story, much more so than usual, and shows character traits of courage, ingenuity and compassion. I think Exnihil would love this one!

An alien randomly landing in Smallville is exactly the type of thing later writers would retcon into being “an alien tracking Superboy for a mysterious reason”. Thus, this tale could have had a great 1970’s type larger story sequel.

Grasshopper Girl is pretty gross looking! Though Lana in a tennis outfit is pretty darn cute!

And wow—Centipede Lana is even grosser! Bug powers are pretty far out, and pretty damn disgusting! I can see this being just the type of story to disturb Alan Moore, Grant Morrison and others.

I love how despite herself, Lana can’t help it and uses an emergency as a chance to find out if Clark is Superboy. That selfishness ever comes to the surface! Oh, Lana.

The oddest thing about the story is that Lana actually keeps the ring—after dozens of instances where she gained super-powers only to lose them at story’s end. Poor Lana…instead of super-strength or flight or any other power, she gets to keep the insect ones.

All in all, this was a pretty okay story that stands out because of the gross usage of insect related tropes. For that, its kind of cool.

Superboy # 124

Technically, this is not a Legion story—the LSH isn’t even mentioned—but it’s included in the Archives and Showcase Presents because it features Lana Lang’s transformation into Insect Queen, who will eventually become a Legion Reservist and appear in at least three Legion stories as such.

“The Insect Queen of Smallville” is a charming tale that relies on a lot of kid logic to make it work. For example, young kids might take it for granted that an alien just happens to be trapped under a tree and needs rescuing. Young kids might also think that adults would behave the way they do in this story: Bank guards allow a strangely transformed girl to carry their stranded armored car full of money to the bank. Mothers would pick up telepathic messages from their children in school and, on command, read their forgotten homework assignments to them. Neither the teacher nor the other students notice the girl in the back of the class has suddenly sprouted antennae.

If one appreciates the comedic logic in such scenes, the story works nicely until the end. Lana, through an act of kindness (rescuing said alien), is given a ring which grants her the powers of an insect when she needs them. There are limitations to this power, though. Lana cannot use a power merely for her own amusement, and she cannot adopt more than one insect form twice (at least not in this story; later stories appear to ignore these limitations). But, even with these restrictions, Lana accomplishes a lot—foiling a robbery in her own home, helping the armored car, turning in her homework, and even writing a word she misspelled on the board 100 times with multiple caterpiller arms. The story makes imaginative use of insect capabilities and would help teach children the different things insects can do.

From a modern perspective, though, the story contains one outright howler of dialogue and a climax that inexplicably turns Lana from protagonist to villain.

The howler occurs when Lana rescues the alien. He responds by telling Lana to follow him to his spaceship so he can give her something. Now, Lana! Didn’t your mother teach you not to follow strangers—even strange aliens—to their vehicles? Ah, the good old days when kids could trust aliens!

The transformation in Lana’s character comes when she and Clark hear a news report of a building collapsing. Lana, who has until now demonstrated the selflessness it takes to be a hero, suddenly falls back on her desire to expose Superboy’s secret identity. Instead of rushing to save the building herself, she envelops Clark in a cocoon so he can’t save the building either without betraying his secret identity.

In typical fashion, Superboy finds a way to outwit her, and Lana puts aside her Insect Queen costume and ring until she can think up some more insect forms to adopt.

(By the way, notice that the building—a pizza parlor—serves Metropolis. Why its impending collapse made the news in Smallville is not explained.)

The climax of the story ruined it for me. There was an opportunity for Lana to ditch Clark and run to save the building, just as he’s ditched her so many times. Perhaps she could have come to appreciate what it’s like to lead a double life and lie to her friends, as Superboy must. But no, she endangers a building and perhaps the lives of others to prove Clark is Superboy.

Lana is such an obsessive stalker and snoop that one wonders why Clark continues to hang out with her. Maybe he has self-esteem issues.

This story, by the way, was written by Otto Binder, the Legion’s co-creator, who makes a rare contribution to the Legion, though he probably didn’t know it at the time.

Looks like we're in total agreement. It was a nice, charming little story with an ending that totally derailed the whole thing. Too bad--Lana being the hero is something I'd really like to read once in awhile!

I really wish there was a well-done Superboy (Superman when he was a boy) series today that could really give Lana and Pete their due on a recurring basis.

Nice, cute little Silver Age yarn but not a Legion story by any stretch. Yes, she later joins the Legion reserve or whatever, but I betcha, without even looking, said story probably gives you at least a brief recap of how Lana became Insect Queen, whether thru dialogue or flashback. Even if it doesn't, I still fail to see why this had to be included in the Archive.

Honestly, Silver Age Lana and Lois are barely tolerable as characters, given their primary purpose and usage seems to always be to expose Clark as Superboy/man. On that front the post-Crisis versions of those characters are really far superior as three-dimensional personalities. I think both finally got fleshed out more in their last decade or so of that continuity, but they were great from the get-go starting with Byrne's reboot. Lana, particularly, knows Clark's secret early on and proves a great confidante for him.

Luckily, this one was only a half-lengther, so it's not a huge deal. And the story is not completely without charm. The goofy/gross insect powers are entertaining, as is Lana's short-lived foray into heroism.

We'll see how her Legion story works on a re-read when we get to it.....

Although Lana was annoying, she could show courage and ingenuity which made some of her stories interesting. Nevertheless, Insect Queen is one of my least favourite characters in the Legionverse. There is something creepy and disturbing (to me) about a human head on an insect body.

It is curious why this story was included in the Archive.

The notion that having insect powers is creepy may have been part of the appeal of Insect Queen. Like Bouncing Boy, she challenges our ideas of what a hero is supposed to look like or be able to do.

One of the positive qualities of this story is that it shows the many different things insects can do and how they are useful in nature--carrying objects heavier than they are, having multiple arms to perform tasks quickly, etc. (Though ladybug shells being bullet proof is a bit of a stretch.)

Lana could have been a very powerful hero: she has all of Spider-Man's abilities and more.

Quite true - and I tend to forget how appealing creepy and icky stuff is to children.




Like Dial H for Hero, the frequent insect changes could overwhelm the story. I wonder if a series based on Insect Queen might have had some staying power if Lana had assumed one insect form per issue, with fewer stunts and more plot and character development.

Also, it's curious, on reflection, that the Legion didn't have an insect-based hero at some point. Well, there was Spider Girl, but that's pushing the insect analogy a bit much, IMO.

I was never clear on whether or not 'Insect' Queen could only gain insect powers, or could also gain arachnid / arthropod powers (like spider webs or a scorpion stinger or pincers).

Adding other 'bugs' to the list could make her even more powerful and versatile, although if she was limited to only actual insects, that would require her to be a bit more creative (and lead to more of a fun learning experience for the reader, as she shows off abilities we might not otherwise know about, like a clicking beetles sonic snap or acid-squirting or glue-generation or acrid toxic clouds).

Of course, if a writer chose to include made-up 'alien insects,' then her power pretty much becomes 'whatever I feel like pulling out of my butt today,' and that's dull.

Yes, it seems that the alien ring made no distinction between insects and arachnids; perhaps earth classifications are not observed by whoever made it.

Cramey's point about Dial H for Hero is well taken. However, since Lana's power is confined to insects, the range of abilities she can demonstrate is much more defined than Robby Reed's. More, since she seems confined to earth insects (perhaps the only type of insects she's familiar with), her power ties in nicely with what student readers would be studying. (If you can throw an educational value into a super-hero story, all is good.) I like Set's idea of sonic snaps, glue generation, etc. With some research and imagination, writers could have turned Insect Queen into an amazing character.

As for insect-based Legionnaires, there was Gates. (He was a bug; I'm not sure of what variety.) Of course, his power of teleportation had nothing to do with being a bug.

Adv. 337

“The Weddings that Wrecked the Legion” marks two significant developments in Legion history. It’s the first clear indication of romance between Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl and between Ultra Boy and Phantom Girl, apart from the Adult Legion stories. It also marks the transition from Saturn Girl to Brainiac 5 as Legion leader.

While the story itself is not one of the Legion’s most memorable adventures, it integrates these developments into the plot quite nicely. The story flows naturally from the characters and their choices, unlike certain previous stories, and suspense escalates as the spies appear to be one step ahead of the Legion at all times. Then we learn the whole thing is a hoax—but a well played one.

After Saturn Girl has picked up a thought of an alien invasion, Brainiac 5 convenes a meeting to thwart the invasion by executing “Plan R”. He scolds Ultra Boy and Phantom Girl for paying more attention to each other than to the meeting. Saturn Girl and Lightning Lad also have trouble keeping their hands off each other and, when Saturn Girl is nearly kidnapped by the aliens, she and Lightning Lad decide to pack it in as Legionnaires and get married. UB and PG follow suit, and a double wedding is performed featuring traditions from both Saturn and Bgztl (but not Rimbor or Winath, oddly).

To replace the departed newlyweds, the Legionnaires hold tryouts and select three new members—Blackout Boy, Size Lad, and Magnetic Kid, not knowing they are really alien spies. The three infiltrators lure the Legionnaires away from the clubhouse so they can search for Plan R, and, finding a coded document, return with it to their own planet, Murra.

However, the Legionnaires have been following them all along and show up on Murra with the “newlyweds” in tow. They reveal that the whole wedding was a sham to get the aliens to reveal themselves, and Plan R is nothing but gibberish. After learning that the aliens give themselves temporary super-powers through a pill-creating machine, the Legionnaires destroy the machine, chase off the aliens and return to earth, where the two couples express a desire to get hitched for real someday.

This is a very satisfying story with a tight focus and no extraneous bits. Even Proty II and the Substitutes have a role to play.

As an added touch, two subplots from previous issues are developed and expanded upon. In the first, Ultra Boy refers back to 316, when the other Legionnaires thought he was a renegade and only Phantom Girl believed in him as the start of their romance. In the second (perhaps unintentionally), Saturn Girl accuses Brainiac 5 of not being able to understand love because of his “cold, unemotional computer mind”—this appears to be the apex of their rivalry which began back in 309 and was referenced in 319 and 333—and then apologizes when she hurts his feelings.

I can’t tell if the rivalry between these two strong-willed characters was intentional on Hamilton’s part, but it’s fun to pick up on these things while reading the stories in sequence. Of course, Imra and Brainy may have been acting in order to fool the spies, but I like the idea of their exchange being buttressed by a genuine personality conflict.

Brainiac 5 proves he’s going to be a very different leader than Saturn Girl. Whereas she seemed almost not to be the leader in most stories, he’s proactive—and he brooks no foolishness. Of course, his brusque manner is going to lead to serious problems in the long run.

Only a few problems undermined this story for me, and two are art-related. The ape-like appearance of the Murrans plays upon stereotypes—they have big ears, big noses, overbites, and appear hunched over in some panels. Once again, Mort and John do nothing to challenge perceptions that bad people look bad.

Second, Forte and the colorist could have been more imaginative in how they depicted Blackout Boy, Size Lad, and Magnetic Kid. They have different colored skin and the most boring costumes ever. Even without Proty II to sense that they were shielding their thoughts, I would have suspected them of being spies.

The third problem is the lengthy flashback in which Brainy reveals the hoax. This could have been summarized in a panel or two and perhaps even should have come at the end of the story. It’s a standard expectation of mystery stories that the detective will catch the killer and then explain how it was done, not explain first and then catch the killer. Reversing the order removes much of the drama and suspense.

But—speaking of the art—Page 3, Panel 3, may be the first panel in the series to feature no dialogue or narration whatsoever. And it doesn’t need any. It’s good to see the art tell the story for a change.

So while 337 is not one of the Legion’s most memorable tales, it is competent and fun to read. In bringing out the romances and changing the leadership, it also moves the Legion into new directions.

I thought it was fun to see the Legion couples sharing some enthusiastic smooches! Makes me wonder if maybe things didn't go further during their fake "honeymoons"...

Seriously, though, I think that's what's so significant about this story. It brings some Legion romances out from under the umbrella of speculation and into fact. In a way it's the first real sign of character growth and of the Legion growing up a little. These are relationships that will endure for three more decades and lead to some iconic moments, both exhilarating and tragic. So though in many ways, it's a cute, silly story, it's one which is more significant in hindsight.

I thought that Tinya/Jo actually come off a little more passionate and earnest in their love than Imra/Garth. I think it was Jo and Tinya's mutual admission that they wished the marriage was real. Imra, in contrast, mentioned how nice it was to pretend. I guess she's a little too strong-willed to open up completely. Ironic that Tinya and Jo never walked down the aisle in the pre-boot (though the one annual in v4 showed it was supposed to happen before Tinya disappeared).

Otherwise, the story was fairly well told. I, too, would have liked to have seen the villains look more imaginative in both of their guises. I always thought the sticks the Legionnaires held up were really silly, but the explanation of their being a tradition of Bgztl's culture was actually pretty satisfying. And, like the Starfinger story, there was nothing to major to take me out of the story like many others before in the Archives.

So another decent read--and this one, more significant than it gets credit for!

Essentially, another story of deception and infiltration. Fortunately, there's more to it to make it memorable.

K.C. Carlson, in the introduction to this Archive volume, called this "a story of upheaval". There was upheaval in the four Legionnaires leaving, not only the first time anyone quit, but so many at once. Furthermore, they were going through what society considered to be an adult transition, the marriage. Even though it turned out to be fake in the end, there were two solid, serious couples in the Legion now. This is quite an emotional distance from the kissing games in Revolt of the Girl Legionnaires. The couples chosen for the deceptive marriages are naturals; their relationships have been nicely developed throughout earlier stories. Would any others have been so believable?

Brainy plays his part to perfection, no doubt with sincerity as he lambasts the romantic couples. Saturn Girl responds with a slam of his cold computer mind, which nicely sets up Brainy for years of crippled emotion stories. Of course, she apologizes, but truth is spoken in anger. I like to think that those words just burst out of her rather than have them been part of the pre-scripted deception that she and Brainy developed. Imra will be accused of being emotionally cold herself in the future, so I found this to be an interesting little scene.

The Saturn Girl-Brainiac 5 relationship has always been a bit of a hot button. Two mind-based powers, two very serious people, often at odds with one another, but never a hint of romantic attraction. Their relationship operates on a different level from most others in the group.

There's a Legion fan (active in the APAs) who has compiled a count of all appearances of each character; I'd be curious to see a count of how many times Brainy and Saturn Girl have shared a panel, whether on a mission, discussing Legion business or bickering.

We do get some eye-rolling explanations with the machine that produces super-power pills. Too easy!

I liked the scene with strange books from other planets. Inconsequential, but something I'd never thought of before: entirely different forms for recording words.

I kind of love this about them. There's not been, to my mind, a hint of romance between them, and yet they have a very understated sort of relationship going on, which is crazy rare in comic books between a non-gay male character and a non-gay female character.

I remember the 'Trial of Brainy' after the death of Jaxon Rugarth, when Brainy has decided that he's leaving the team regardless of the outcome of the vote, and he gives Imra a hug and she's kind of shocked, because in all those years, she's never seen him do something like that.

Chameleon Boy may have a similar non-romantic friendship with Tinya and / or Violet, as part of their Espionage Squad activities, but I don't recall seeing much made of that.

The Legion could definitely have done with more friendships. The Founders seemed to clique together, and Mon & Shady and Jo & Tinya had their own clique, Brin & Blok, as well as Sun Boy and whomever he was friends with this decade (Thom, then Brek), but, other than couples (Brin & Ayla, Gim & Year, Ayla & Violet, Blok & Mysa, Drake & Dawny, Brainy & Kara, Chuck & Lu, Thom & Dreamy) there haven't been a lot of notable friendships, and barely any cross-gender friendships.

One of many things I liked about Superboy's Legion is that they had time to squeeze in some other friendships or relationships, like tying Cham, Jo and Tinya together, or Garth, Ayla and Jeckie together, or making Brainy & Lyle sort of brothers, and Chuck, Val and Ferro all friends, as well as Gim & Dirk.

Of course Mark Farmer and Alan Davis had two whole issues to work with twenty plus characters and establish characterizations and relationships for most of them, so it's easy to understand why lesser writers can't seem to accomplish half that in two *years* worth of issues...

Adventure #337

When I was a kid and first decided to read through all the Adventure issues my Dad had, this one always stood out as one of my favorites. It not only stood out as one of the more soap opera issues, which is great, but it stands out because of the depiction of Brainiac 5, who is he wasn't already one of my favorites would certainly have become so after this issue. The scenes where Brainy acts so coldly--and at times in a really funny way--and the subsequent reactions, especially Imra, are just great. I often have my own LMB character, Cobalt Kid,
insulted in the same way Imra does Brainy, calling him a "cold, calculating person who could never understand love"--and it's always a callback to this issue.

This issue is also the real start of true romance in the Legion. While we'd seen brief hints and spurts of romance before, I always felt this issue takes those "referenced and forgotten" elements and firmly makes them a recurring, integral part of understanding the franchise. Garth and Imra are of course the premier couple in Legiondom, but this issue also firmly recalls the other great Silver Age Legion romance, Jo & Tinya, which has always been my favorite since I was a wee lad.

Forte, whose style is finely suited to romance comics, works well here.

The cover is also one of Swan's finest. Wedding covers are traditionally very good, and DC particularly had a lot of great Silver Age weddings and fake outs. This is definitely included among those. (My favorite is probably Aquaman & Mera's wedding cover). I love seeing Imra's parents and Ayla shedding a tear for her brother in a rare Silver Age display of sibling affection.

The premise is another strong Weisenger idea that plays on childish fears: when you're pals get girlfriends or boyfriends, will this slowly pull them away from you? Those feelings, no matter how childish, never really go away. As always, Mort & Co. knew how to tap into those primal anxieties.

We've already seen a few stories where we think things are in dire straits, but it ends up being a ruse by the Legionnaires all along. To me, this is the quintessential using that bit.

This issue begins by establishing another turning point: Brainiac 5 has now been elected leader. (I can't recall who is later retroactively made Deputy; Superboy?). He's a fitting follow to Imra given his role thus far. As the first non-founder to be leader, that's a small milestone.

And it begins with the Brainy I know and love! I remember being in Jo's exact position in middle school! Nothing like "being embarrassed" about canoodling when you really want everyone to know about it!

*choke* The romance is in full effect. I need to set up some rare scarlet spiral coral at my house!

Brainy breaks up the necking and ol' "Admiral Awkward" Superboy knows just how to make things even more awkward.

That House Pet from Planet Kavoon looks stuffed. Are we sure Orion the Hunter didn't send that?

One thing I really dislike about the issue is the Subs trying out again and then failing, just to show there were other applicants. Hamilton was probably just trying to keep them in the readers minds but I find that totally unnecessary. At this point, the Subs are in a much different place from when they first started out. They don't need to be Legionnaires. At the end, we learn they're in on the ruse, which makes total sense and puts them in a good light...however, I can see many readers forgetting that little tidbit.

That being said, I can't help but laugh my ass off at the biggest Dick moment thus far as Brainy tells Chlor: "That's fine gardening kid...but you can't fight crooks with daffodils! Next!" Bwahahahahahahahaha

The three spies from Murra are all based on fan suggestions, and IMO, are only so-so. They don't play a huge role in the story...and that's a good thing.

Once we start to learn about the Legion's plan, I see Brainy starts talking like my Dad during the 1960's when he was a greaser. "It'll be a fake wedding, natch." I'm going to start saying natch more.

In the end we get the most romantic thing possible: Lightning Lad calls Saturn Girl by her first name, Imra! We haven't seen that at all yet--that's how you know it's true love! *choke*

Bonus lettercol review: Mort talks junk about Stan Lee!

Bonus Bits of Legionnaire Business Review: Mort reveals the spies were reader suggestions, much like Polar Boy once was. He then prints a bunch, including Color Kid and Blockade Boy! Plus, two readers suggest girls with the "Damsel" moniker, which surely led to Hammy & Mort using that for Lu in a few issues.

The obvious answer is no. Assuming Mort and Ed wanted to build upon what had previously been established, the pool of romantically attached Legionnaires was very small. Shrinking Violet, Light Lass, and Star Boy were smitten with people who were not Legionnaires. Their beloveds would have had to have been "imported" into the story, resulting, no doubt, in another clunky explanation.

The more I think about it, though, the more I find it interesting that Mort and Ed chose to focus on *two* couples in this story. It would have worked just the same if only Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl or only Phantom Girl and Ultra Boy had decided to leave and get hitched. The departure of four Legionnaires, however, heightens the tension of the team being understaffed for the alien invasion.

Saturn Girl's departure also suggests this is the reason why she's no longer the leader in this story.

From a writer's perspective, these were intelligent choices and show a lot of thought went into this story.

Marriage sucks. Romance ruins everything. Love brings down the Legion.

ooo there is some catiness from Jo on page 4 "remember to call me if you spot any lead shielded places that looks suspicious ... my penetra-vision can see through lead."

I think Superboy would probably just rip the lead apart ... or he could call Jo so Jo can show him up, in one of the few situations he can.

Superboy should've made some crack about Jo only using his powers one at a time.

This mysterious Valvalla coral gets a lot of product placement, giant pears and scarlet spiral kissing traditions. say ... how do giant pears grow on a water planet?

... and what looks to be a stuffed house pet from Kavoon as a wedding gift. thanks. thanks a lot.

Cham is crying at the wedding! He is such a softie!



Who's those random middle aged red haired women at the wedding? relatives? or VIP fans!

Those wedding veils are atrocious btw, they look like they were picked up from the 30th century dollar store!

I think Aarl and his friends are just doing these crimes to save up for orthodontic work. I feel bad for them really.

Can't wait until 338!

And I totally missed the Clark has BUTTERFLY WINGS issue!

He never looked better!

2nd part of 337:

they disguise themselves by all being a different color ... maybe one of them should have stayed human color ... seems suspicious to me when a band of rainbow applicants come charging through the door.


I will leave the Size Lad jokes for now.

I love how sassy Brainy is "Stow the nostalgia Mon-EL!" he he

I find myself agreeing with him! Bunch of sappy children on that team!

disk books from Uranus? they totally looks like a colon!

I am surprised Brainy didn't have some zingers for Cosmic Boy and Element Lad when he revived them.


Meanwhile, Saturn Girl almost lost her lunch when brainy suggested she get married ... "GOT MARRIED? YOU'RE KIDDING!" ... her icey face risked some wrinkles with that outburst!

She is a career woman ... no time for dopey Garth to slow her down ... she's got a team to run! I mean she can't leave poor Brainy in the lurch on this team of saps!



Also, we get a glimpse of the inequality robots faced ... they are so oppressed they can only have certain jobs and perform certain functions, weddings NOT being one of them. That capacity is for humans only! sorry robot you must apply elsewhere! There might be a lavatory for you to clean!

I like it when Brainy calls the spies fools. heh heh

Wow. In that panel where lightning Lad runs off the spies ... it sure looks like there were a lot of them .. I can't help but think he is just shooting lightning into a crowd of innocent Murrans ... (Morans?) ...

I bet Element Lad was being sassy when he changed those super pills to Aspirin! "HAH! I'll change those pills to something archaic and useless! Every 5 year old in the 30th century can make their own Aspirin!!! HAHAHAHA"


and ... it ends with more mushiness.

I actually really liked this issue, I liked how Brainy and Imra developed a plan and Supes and Element Lad even came off as capable and smart.

It's funny how stories like this one and the Starfinger one have aged better than expected. Both are stories I didn't care for the first time(s) around!



Are deputies established as canon at this point in Legion history? I don't recall one being mentioned for Saturn Girl in the earlier leadership contest--the one administered by Proty--or did she have a pre-established deputy that carried forward from her prior term?

I assume, btw, that reader elections weren't established yet? When exactly did that start? Post-Adventure era, perhaps? I'm pretty certain that Wildfire's election was reader-determined. Was it done prior to that?

The funny thing about the "humor" (like Brainy's various put-downs, etc.) in this story is, even just re-reading it yesterday, that I took them at face value and not a attempts at humor by Hamilton. I don't know what it was. Maybe just the overall dry style of this era makes me think that any humor is unintentional and just a product of our viewing these things with backwards-looking irony. I'll have to make an effort in the coming re-reads to look for and examine the humor moving forward....

On the Legion leadership elections:

A bit of quick research turned up that the first election readers voted on was the one in which Ultra Boy won (he took office in Adv. 371). The lettercol of Adv. 368 mentions that a reader in a previous issue had suggested the election and provides the results:

--7,810 votes were cast.
--UB won with 1,262.
--Mon-El came in second with 1,160, making him Deputy Leader.
--Every Legionnaire got votes, except Shadow Lass, who hadn't joined yet.

The other vote-getters:
Element Lad--893
Karate Kid--879
Lightning Lad--615
Phantom Girl--525
Chameleon Boy--420
Sun Boy--388
Superboy--316
Matter-Eater Lad--300
Supergirl--267 (ironic, since she first met the Legion in Action # 267)
Duo Damsel--144
Princess Projectra--139
Colossal Boy--111
Brainiac 5--96
Star Boy--84
Bouncing Boy--73
Dream Girl--68
Light Lass, Cosmic Boy, and Saturn Girl--32 ea.
Timber Wolf (who hadn't joined the Legion yet)--23
Shrinking Violet and Invisible Kid--15 ea.

Also of note: Adv. 348, which features the election of Invisible Kid as leader, also mentions Superboy being elected Deputy Leader. I don't know if this is the first mention of a Deputy Leader or not.

Well, I'm thinking you may be right on the humor. Hammy may have intended it to be somewhat over the top, but for me it just reads as hilarious.

Regarding Deputy Leaders, I'm certain the first several are retcons and even a little controversial. Leadership elections did begin shortly though I think? I think the first one is Mon-El, and it's still during the Silver Age.

I see HWW clarified things!

I have a really dry and sarcastic sense of humor and found it really funny.

Re Weddings that Wrecked the Legion - the Murran spies were quite silly. They could have just manufactured pills that gave them telepathy or precognition or tracking powers to find out the Legion's "secret plan", instead of questioning some Legionnaires. They could have gotten what they wanted without forcing a direct confrontation!



More proof that it was really the SW6 era and the Postboot era that made Lyle more popular!

Cos and Imra way down on the list? Maybe it's because voters wanted something new.

Not too surprised that Projectra is way high up. Besides being new and recently featured, she had some good key appearances (the Fatal Five story, for example).

Hmm...add up those numbers and you almost get the total readership of the current run

Phantom Girl got a lot of votes, which is surprising! (Almost twice as much as Supergirl, the second-most-popular Legion lass.)

At least she didn't win. Bad things happen when she wins

It should be noted that Invisible Kid was leader at the time of this election. In his editorial comments, Mort expressed surprise that former leaders even got votes, suggesting he expected fans to vote for someone new.

Invisible Kid's low turnout may be understandable in this context, but it's somewhat disappointing. Of all the leaders shown thus far, I thought he demonstrated the most effectiveness, calling the shots in action without being overbearing and even standing up to Ultra Boy in 351.

Fans probably voted for whoever their favorite character was. I remember when I first read these results, I was delighted that Mon-El, my personal favorite, came in second. In fact, the top vote getters mirror the most popular or most commonly featured Legionnaires in the stories we've been reading, even though those stories were published three or more years before the election.

Mort wryly comments that Lyle and Vi got so few votes because "they're harder to see."

It's sad to be reminded that nearly 8000 readers voted in this election. This figure was probably only a fraction of the total readership in the '60s.

This was also before the Internet, so fans actually had to buy *stamps*, write a letter, put it in an envelope, and mail it in order to vote.

I just had a thought ... seems perfectly reasonable the Legionnaires could take pills to give them extra powers ... like for example:

There could be an all shrunken issue where Shrinking Violet leads a team of artificially shrunken Legionnaires to solve a mystery on Imsk!

(Gym could lead a team to the Giant Planet)

The other Legionnaires could be out of sorts when they are first shrunk, having to get used to being super small, what Violet deals with easily.

Of course Violet's power would surpass the artificial shrinking pill's effects. (she could shrink smaller etc.)

"Violet's Day"

IIRC, there was an awesome bit in the Legion cartoon where the Legion have to get shrunk to go into the Bottle City of Kandor for some reason, and Violet is like, 'No thanks' to the shrink ray, since she can use her own power, which means that, in Kandor, she has the power to 'un-shrink' a tiny bit and become the Kandorian equivalent of Colossal Boy!

I love that idea.

Several Legion worlds offer up unique possibilities.

A Titanian adventure could be entirely inside someone's mind, dealing with 'monsters of the ID,' manifestations of their own fears, or of some entity that is possessing them, etc.

An adventure set on Sorcerer's World might involve all sorts of beasts and creatures of myth and legend, like dragons and gorgons and basilisks. Flights of harpies, hydras, and even beasties from more obscure (I.e. non-Greco-Roman) mythologies, such as Japanese Yuki-no-Onna (snow maidens) or African Mokole-Mbembe or whatnot. Most of the Legionnaires, even those well versed in actual xenobiology (like Chameleon Boy) might be ill-prepared for yeti and manticores and chupacabra.

The team being translated into a state of pure energy, whether in a Teall-like dimension, would create a scenario where Wildfire and Quislet are at home, and everybody else is dramatically out of their element. Being 'virtualized' into a computer might give people like Brainy and Gear an advantage over the others, unfamiliar with the 'rules' of virtual existence.

An aquatic adventure might have it's own unique circumstances, hindering Sun Boy and Lightning Lass (and forcing them to adapt and find new ways to make a difference or cleverer ways to manifest their powers), while Tellus, even though not technically 'aquatic,' might have an advantage in adapting his thinking to the environment.

Obviously, a Bgtzln adventure or one in the Phantom Zone, might give Tinya a home court advantage, or, ironically, a *disadvantage,* since she isn't really 'super-powered' in Bgtzl!

The super-power pill idea certainly opens up a lot of possibilities, but there would have to be some limitation on it, or they'd just be popping pills all the time.

Addictive? Who cares? That's the problem of addiction.

Temporary? Okay, just take another pill.

Makes you vomit? That wouldn't stop a legionnaire, would it?

Nullifies your own personal power? That might have some restraining effect.


RE: The Weddings that Wrecked

Raymond McDaniel (Special Powers and Abilities) wrote a poem about this story, a selection from which I'll quote:

Four Legionnaires lost
thought Brainy was out of sorts before? Holy cats!!
"Your cold emotional computer mind can't comprehend what love is!"
Et tu, Saturn Girl?
Still, she says she's sorry
but B5 just rolls his eyes and seeks to fill the ranks

Especially if there were some evil Kandorians with super powers and then violet grew super sized and put the smack down while the other Legionnaires were running for cover!

But, talking about limits... What's to stop her using the shrink ray set on reverse (since, logically, the other Legionnaires wouldn't use it if the effect was irreversable) to grow to giant-size, then shrinking back to 'normal' under her own power, effectively giving her the full LeViathan "both grow AND shrink" power set?

[Speaking of Vi stunts, I love that bit in the DnA issue where they're fighting the JLA holograms, Atom sees her in giant-mode and cockily goes for her inner ear, when suddenly she turns the tables, gets small and after saying some size-changers are more versatile than others, does that to him!]

"Now, you were saying something about messing up equilibrium?"



That scene between Brainy and Imra was amazingly effective and oh-so realistic!



I'm not too surprised that that's the case. The recent stories would have put these characters near the top of most fans' minds, especially since they each had their own "moments" in the sun in recent issues.

Yeah! With all the powers apparently at their disposal with the pills, they should have taken the pill for the "defeat the Legion" power and been done with it! Silly Murrans!

Heh. I didn't even mean the "dry" kind of humor you refer to but rather the perception of a lack of humor. The adventures are so earnest and sincere generally that I just don't expect Ham or anyone else to try to inject much humor, unless it's something obvious like Bouncing Boy's antics. Most of what I find funny in these stories is general corniness and some of the goofy resolutions.

The discussion over humor reminds me of the frequent accusation that there is very little character development in these pre-Shooter stories.

The accusation is partly true. What character development there is must be inferred by the reader or is so subtle it can only be brought out through careful scrutiny of the stories and the series as a whole. The Brainy-Imra feud is one such example. Matter-Eater Lad shooting his mouth off at the wrong moment (341 and a few other places is another). Sun Boy's need to hog the glory seems to be one of the more prominent individual character traits.

Whether or not these glimpses into the Legionnaires' personalities were deliberate or not is unclear. I like to think they were intentional, if only a product of the writer's unconscious mind. Hamilton and Siegel were, like later writer Conway, too interested in defining the characters by what their powers could do (hence the limited focus on Triplicate Girl, whom Hamilton couldn't figure out what to do with) and not by who they were as characters.

Ironically, as we are now approaching the end of Hamilton and Siegel's tenure--they have a total of eight issues left--they start to finally flesh out the Legionnaires' personalities and relationships with each other, or to subconsciously allow the characters to express themselves.

One pill makes you larger
And one pill makes you small . . .

Sorry, couldn't resist.

One might suppose there are reasons why the Legion never considered using Murran technology to augment their powers, perhaps because of the terrible side effects--giving the user big ears, a big nose, an overbite, and a hunched over posture.

^

Btw, I don't see Sun Boy so much hogging the glory but rather wanting to get things done and thinking he's just the man for the job. That's a good leadership quality though it can come across as arrogant and glory seeking. It can also get one into trouble, as we saw with "Mutiny".

HWW, I agree about your assessment that we get more character development in Archive 5, Hammy and Siegel's final LSH stories. I like your way of putting it: "allowing the characters to express themselves". Through a combination of design and accident, the Legionnaires personalities are now more clearly emerging and it's fun to see.

Maybe it wasn't glory seeking. I think you pegged it with "arrogant," though. It is very arrogant to assume that any mission can't succeed without him calling the shots, or to insist on taking the lead on so many missions, as he did earlier in the series. Perhaps Dirk had a natural take-charge personality; however, he's been more subdued since 318. I like to think he learned a lesson.




I just read 338 and, without giving away too much, one of the things I liked was the opening, with Invisible Kid dodging Markita's marital scheme and Element Lad helping M-E Lad create a gift for his mother. On one hand, these scenes are a throwback to scenes in earlier stories which had nothing to do with the plot. On the other hand, we're finally getting to learn more about the Legionnaires as individuals.

This is the first time I ever saw anyone make an assumption that the 2 civilians on the cover of 337 were Imra's parents. What makes you think that? I think a reader at the time wrote in assuming it was Jimmy Olsen and Lucy Lane and the editor didn't deny it. I think they were just intended to be onlookers, but always wished they'd squeezed in 2 more Legionnaires instead.

This story is a personal favorite of mine, as it's the first Legion story I ever got my hands on. It just made me hungry for more and I had to beg, borrow, and steal them from other kids in the neighborhood, as the LSH had already lost its Adventure spot at the time. I immediately started making lists of all the Legionnaires and their powers and couldn't wait to learn them all. Been hooked ever since.

I was wondering why people thought they were the Ranzzes as well.

Really? I don't remember that being stipulated in later, Levitz-era elections.

I think most of us have a soft spot for our first Legion comic. Mine was published quite a bit later:

I was wrong, which is why I deleted the post, but you were too quick for me. I just checked and that stipulation isn't stated until the NEXT fan election, which was announced in Adv. 378.

^ To be perfectly honest, though, I'm not completely sure whether I bought 286 first or if I bought 287 first, then went back later and picked up 286 which was still on the spinner rack.

P.S. Imra's parents would be the Ardeens, not the Ranzzes.

Hm. I must have a similar syndrome to the one Levitz had when he returned for the retroboot and had issues remembering stuff about their families!

Mine was 301. What a great great start to my Legion fandom!

^ I remember being so excited and surprised to see all those new costumes debut at the same time! (I love how Vi/year is leaning against the UPC box!)

I wonder if the Mutiny story prevented Sun Boy from ever winning a term as leader. With so many of the guys getting elected, it seems odd that Sun Boy was not one of them (except for a short term as deputy in v2, I think).

I think he was deputy during that LSV story in the Grell era. SLSH 208 I think.

Adventure #338

The cover of #338 proclaim "The Showdown with the Time Trapper everyone's been waiting for!" And unfortunately, the issue never lives up to its hype, nor all the great build up for the last two years. For that, this issue never really works for me.

I'm not sure how Hamilton had envisioned the big confrontation going originally but I agree with past sentiments that this probably wasn't it. Like Eryk suggested it, I believe it probably had to do with Dream Girl. Regardless, we get a second super-babies story, which again isn't my favorite.

The issue isn't all bad, as we get introduced for Glorith for the first time. Glorith is really a great villainous, and a real femme fatale. She also has one of the most sudden and crazy deaths ever. It makes me think of Lash and all the "splorp!!!!" posts over the years. I love that TMK took this random character and made her one of the most essential parts of Legiondom, creating one of the all time great villainess for the Legion. We could have used her in recent years, for sure.

The Time Trapper, with his great look and immense power, deserved better. But no worries--he'd get it! He'd just have to wait 20+ years.

As always with the weaker stories, there are a few random scenes to enjoy: such as golddigger Markita trying to seduce Lyle! I think you picked the wrong Legionnaire, Mar! Meanwhile, Jan bails out Tenz when Ma Kem is fishing for Mother's Day gifts! And Cham is playing actor by chasing around Elizabeth Taylor XIV.

Following last issues usage of Imra's real name, we see a few instances here. The series is definitely maturing.

The Fountain of 1,000 chemicals appears again...and really saves the day! Yay chemicals!

The Superboy / Brainy trip to the distant future is too quick. It makes me think if this was a two parter, something more could have been made of the story with additional time travel sequences.

While most of the super babies are scared or goofing off, ol ironbutt herself shows why she's the #1 badass of the Legion by calling the Time Trapper "bad man"!

Once the Trapper has them start robbing banks and wrecking property, the story really start to head south.

Not to dwell on it, but the ending itself leaves me really unsatisfied. The Trapper stranded and the Legionnaires laughing...it's nowhere near as serious as it needs to be.

All in all, probably my least favorite story thus far--maybe more so than Adv #267.

Bonus House Ad comment: A Bob Hope Ad featuring Super-Hip!

Bonus Lettercol review: a younf reader describes how he and all his friends play Legionnaires. Man, I wish I was 8 and I could play too! (Oops...I'm 32 and I do that anyway with LMB).

It just seems like the most logical choice to me.

Parents have been attending their children's weddings since, well, Anthro and Eva tied the knot (literally) all those millennia ago!

The guy also doesn't look like Jimmy, and isn't wearing Jimmy's usual Silver Age identifiable style of dress. And why would Lucy be there?

They're also on Imra's side, and the mother is blonde. With all the Ranzz's hair being red (to later become white for Mekt), one would think using Silver Age logic that their parents would have red hair. The same logic would apply to Tinya, plus we've come to know her mother as a brunette over the decades. If its anyone's parents, it's surely Imra's! And we also know they're still alive.

The other option is "random bystanders" but that seems even less likely to me for a cover. Since Camera Eye, it's been quite rare for a walk-on cover cameo!

Lets just remember that while she's a tough, capable and über-heroic leader in the Legion, Imra is a wholesome girl from Titan who surely has a great relationship with her parents. Natch they'd be there!

My friends and I used to play Legionnaire when we were kids too, Cobie.

Adv. 338

“The Menace of the Sinister Super-Babies” can’t make up its mind what sort of story it wants to be—humor or horror. The premise of the Legionnaires being reduced to infants, which has been used before and will be used again (in 356) is intended for humor. It provides silly (but not necessarily funny) scenes of toddler Legionnaires frustrating the Time Trapper, stealing a real train, and robbing a bank.

On the other hand, the Time Trapper is truly a mean SOB who tricks an underling and Glorith into devolving themselves (that's murder), kicks Invisible Infant in the rear (that's child abuse), and nearly smashes Chameleon Baby against a pile of rocks (that's attempted murder).

As a reader, I’m unsure how I’m supposed to react to this story: with laughter or disgust.

It comes as no surprise, perhaps, that this story was written by Jerry Siegel, not Edmond Hamilton. Of the two, Siegel’s stories are the least thought out and rely more on concidience or convenience to move them along.

For example, it’s a mighty big coincidence that the Fountain of 1,000 Chemicals happens to be there, and it’s mighty convenient that the chemicals retard the Legionnaires’ de-evolution.

The story is also very sloppy. Even minor references such as whether the story takes place on Mother’s Day or Halloween are distracting. (One might suppose that in the 30th century, the dates of these holidays have been moved, but that’s merely an excuse for sloppy editing.) Why would *all* the Legionnaires present need to touch Glorith’s hourglass? Wouldn’t only one or two need to examine it? Also, the climax of the story rests on Star Baby finding a “toy” and Brainy manipulating the “toy” in order to trick the Time Trapper, but at what point does Brainy have time to do this?

Another sloppy feature (and one Hamilton shared) is the tendency to drop Legionnaires into the story at random. Invisible Kid, M-E Lad, Cham, and Saturn Girl are given clear introductions, but then Star Boy pops in at the meeting and Ultra Boy joins them (apparently) en route to the amusement park. Light Lass doesn’t show up until it’s time to devolve. As I mentioned earlier, it’s distracting and confusing when the reader does not know which characters to expect to be present.

And I had to laugh when Ultra Boy said, “One mere girl withstand the entire Legion? Impossible!” Where’s Mon-El, Shrinking Violet, Triplicate Girl, Colossal Boy, Phantom Girl or even Sun Boy? But perhaps Jo was trying to sound intimidating.

For all his meanness, the Time Trapper cowers and begs Superboy not to hit him. Villains, like bullies I suppose, aren’t so tough. But, even so, he’s dangerous. It’s unbelievable and irresponsible for the Legionnaires to leave him stranded on an alien world, where he’ll have plenty of time to figure out how to shut off the force field. Why not ask the Science Police to pick him up?

This story is a clunker. That it falls in the middle of a streak of very good to exceptional stories that began with 330, with the exception of 334, is disappointing. That it provides an anticlimactic resolution to the Time Trapper plot line begun two years previous is inexcusable.

Yeah, this one is a big clunker, and like you say, the fact that it appears when it feels the stories are really rocking and rolling, only makes it feel more so. Maybe Reboot can salvage this one like he did Adv #267?

I didn't bother to check who wrote it, but now that you mention Siegel wrote it I'm not surprised. The Time Trapper seen here is almost an entirely different character from the one in "Code of the Legion". In the prior story, he was incredibly powerful, mysterious and had elements of the abstract / grandiose villain we've come to know. Here, Siegel has him almost as a mob boss type that fits his typical view of villains and bullies being cowards when all is said and done.

Luckily for us, another string of great stories is about to ensue. Er, once we get through the Kid Psycho story.

Mob boss, yes. What does TT need with all that stolen loot, anyway?

Meh, it's a super-babies story. It would need more than a rescript to save it!

Generally annoying to read; I loathe the toddler talk. It's a mix of baby talk and adult observation. Me hate! Wah-hh! The later Legionnaire babies story (in the ophanage; the first Legion book I remember reading) is much more tolerable. At least Siegel could have made Imra a bossy kid.

Time Trapper as mob boss is a good description. For some reason, I see Dom DeLuise playing the part; it's that old school silly. Lots of evil laughter. Trapper is all too human; he is much better as a mysterious force.

Still, a few things I liked:

The destroyed future city with the Trapper's peculiar building

Another (?) future devastated by nuclear war, with only a few humans remaining.

Sexy, devious, evil Glorith (pre-splorp)

The word "splorp"

Since there's a chemical spray to reverse the de-aging, it does provide an explanation for Glorith's return. Who rescues her, why and when remains yet another an untold story.

Rejuv with Vitamin E and anti-splorping compounds. You can get it at Walmart.

I was completely prepared to hate it, but I kinda liked it instead! I mean, if you throw out the let-down of a 2-year build-up and how it ill befits the Trapper's awesome later storyline and just take the story on its own merits, it's a pretty fun read. I think that, more than the story itself, it is those expectations that are ruining the story for us re-readers.

I'm not saying that those criticisms are unfair and unwarranted. Certainly, the build-up was extensive and prominent. And it's impossible to marry this Trapper with the entropic threat who would become (IMO) the Legion's greatest nemesis. So I understand why the story's a massive disappointment in those contexts. In the latter case, however, it's later writers who took the character's potential and made (him?) great. Hard to hold Siegel responsible for not having that same vision at the outset. I'd say that very few, if any, DC villains of the Silver Age to that point really came across as all that menacing and dangerous. It was still a kids' medium, after all.

I simply LOVED the opening bits with Lyle, Tenz & Jan and Cham! Some fun glimpses into what our Legionnaires are up to in their downtime. I mean, Lyle ditching a date he wasn't into, Jan helping Tenz give his mom a nice Mother's day present ("...it looks good enough to eat!" ) and Cham (At first I thought Cham was just scaring that girl for kicks! ) starring in movies? Pure gold, my friends!

The infant Legion was cute and, imo, not that terribly handled. I found some of it pretty plausible with child behavior at that age. yes, I could've done without them talking like Bizarros, though!

Glorith comes across more diabolical than the Trapper. I am SOOOOO glad TMK would later revisit the character and make her a great part of Legion lore. It's too bad Siegel let her get punked by the Trapper like that. That was quite the ignominious SPLORP! (No one else noticed that the minion gets SPLURPed instead of SPLORPed? Maybe the sound effect differs according to gender? )

Anyhow, we get a lot of what recent stories have been commended for, especially getting to see Legionnires (albeit , mostly baby Legionnaires) effectively using their powers. We also get Superboy as a non-factor. Plus, memorable villains. Though the Trapper doesn't meet past or future explanations, it's hard for me to name many more memorable in the run-to-date, right?

That all adds up to a decent, above average early-Adventure era story in Lardy's book! So...

P.S. That low-cut blouse Markita was wearing--no curve going up? Is it possible Markita had a uni-boob? That may have been the turn-off for Lyle! It may have even been what turned him gay!!! )

I remember, even as a ten-year-old, somehow feeling that my intelligence was being insulted by stories like this one (and, as it turns out, most other Siegel tales).

Hamilton's work, on the other hand, tended to inspire my own imagination, much as Heinlein's youth-oriented novels from the early 1950s did.

You let Siegel off the hook too easily, Lardy. While your point is well taken that this TT cannot measure up to later versions and should not be expected to, the story is still sloppy and lacks a clear sense of whether it's supposed to be funny or serious.

But I'm glad you enjoyed it. Diff'rent strokes . . .

I dunno. It's not uncommon for "funny" stories in the Silver Age to have supposedly dire threats in them. In any case using the sound effects of SPLURP and SPLORP to kill bad guys off is pretty funny!

Superboy #125

This is the last Superboy story to be only slightly connected to the Legion that is included; there is one more LSH story in Superboy in the Silver Age but that's clearly an LSH story.

I've always liked Kid Psycho and wish we got to see him more than we did. There's this, a few cameos and his death. That's too bad since there is a great built in tension to any time he has to help out.

He's also the first with the "Kid" in front of name rather than at the end, which just sounds cool.

The plot structure is classic Otto Binder, who writes his last Legion-connected story here (which is always sad he didn't do more). Strait forward, with repetition, then a twist. For an 8 pager, it lends a certain forward momentum and charm.

While a standard Superboy story, the origin of Kid Psycho has some cool moments, such as the Monster Constellation. It's a great sci-fi origin...and then out of nowhere, his planet is destroyed!

Superboy # 125

And now we are introduced to the most useless character in Legion history: Kid Psycho.

It’s not the debilitating effect of his power, which shortens his lifespan by one year every time he uses it, that makes him useless. It’s that so little is done with him or with this potentially awe-inspiring premise.

Even this introductory story—which is really the only story to feature Kid Psycho before his death in Crisis on Infinite Earths twenty years later—fails to develop the enormous potential of a hero whose own power is killing him.

The cover tells us we’re supposed to “cheer” and “cry” for Kid Psycho, but I did neither, largely because no one in the story does. Even when KP learns of his own condition, he takes it in such stride that the Legionnaires can’t help but admire his heroic quality. But heroism means nothing if it’s not under-girded by humanity, and neither KP nor anyone else in this story exhibits much humanity.

The story begins earnestly, with a strange, turbaned youth appearing in Smallville and asking Clark Kent (of all people) for Superboy’s address. One supposes that not everyone in the 30th century knows Superboy’s secret identity, but they have enough historical appreciation to know in what town he lived and who to ask for directions.

In any case, when the youth finally meets Superboy, he demonstrates his force field power and keeps Superboy in the dark about how he got it. Here, Kid Psycho reveals an inkling of a personality. He sounds bossy and even condescending when he tells Superboy he can go ahead and repair the broken wire and, later, put the snakes back in their cage. Superboy plays along, and his patience is rewarded: Kid Psycho saves Superboy from a kryptonite trap (amazing how bank robbers have an endless supply of kryptonite in these stories) and then tells his story.

Kid Psycho’s origin is overlong and info-dumpy, but it provides some really cool illustrations of his astronaut parents going up against a space monster and nuking it into a constellation (!). Because of their exposure to “biogenic radiation,” their son is born with an enlarged head and a array of powers, including super-intelligence, telekinesis, and force field generation, the last developing in adolescence. And just in time, too. KP’s world soon collides with another planet (*choke*), leaving him an orphan.

We could have done without this bit of unnecessary pathos. Whether KP’s world lives or dies does not affect the rest of the story. Maybe we’re meant to feel sorry for him because, following his rejection from the Legion, he has nowhere to go. Or maybe Supeboy is meant to identify with KP since his world, too, was destroyed. But neither possibility is developed; instead, we’re given a pointless excuse to feel sorry for KP.

I say “pointless” because what follows really should give us an excuse to empathize with him, except it doesn’t. He tells Superboy that he tried out for the Legion and, though he impressed them with his force field power, they rejected him without explanation. Showing another glimmer of personality, KP reveals that he came back in time to ask Superboy to sponsor his next bid for Legion membership.

Good for KP! Instead of becoming a villain, he tries again. More, he takes the initiative of approaching the one Legionnaire every other member admires. This shows that the super-intelligence in that large cranium is not wasted.

However, when Superboy and KP (who can even travel through time on his own!) arrive in the 30th century, the Legionnaires reveal the medical diagnosis which prevents him from ever becoming one of them.

What could have been a heart-wrenching scene falls so flat even Bouncing Boy’s super-plastic formula couldn’t inflate it. KP is so detached from these proceedings he evokes the Progenitor of reboot fame.

The Legionnaires, however, admire his positive attitude and offer him a second consolation prize (the first was a Legion flight ring): membership in the Legion Reserve and the designation of “Secret Weapon No. 1”—to be called upon when needed.

Of course, the Legion never does call on Kid Psycho—not when Mordru or Omega or even Darkseid threatens the universe. He has no major appearances after this, and only one or two minor ones. (He’s in the crowd at Bouncing Boy and Duo Damsel’s wedding, for instance.) And then he’s killed off in Crisis, just one of many super-hero casualties during that series.

Putting aside the character’s wasted potential, it’s hard to ignore the wasted potential of this story. It could have taught readers that powers sometimes do come with a cost, and that sometimes our dreams don’t come true. It could also have taught them that the true measure of a hero is how one faces loss, defeat, and even one’s own death.

Perhaps Mort and writer Otto Binder felt these themes were too heavy for their audience (though, oddly, this story comes just as the Legion series itself is growing up and embracing themes of death and loss via Beast Boy, Triplicate Girl, and Star Boy's expulsion). Perhaps this is why they dialed back the emotional impact of the story.

And that’s a shame. This story, perhaps even more than “The Menace of the Sinister Super-Babies,” talks down to its readers when it could have uplifted them.

It might not have fit the era, but if using his powers caused him visible pain and injury, and we learned after the fact that 'using your powers puts such a strain on your body that it could kill you!' it might have felt a little more powerful.

I think it would have made his choices seem more heroic and noble and self-sacrificing if the danger and painwas visible in the scene, every time he used his powers, that it was traumatic and dangerous, instead of 'Oh, I used my powers, and I'll have to pay for that many years from now...'

(These days, it's more common to show someone using a 'risky' psychic power suffering a nose bleed, or bleeding from the ears or eyes, suggestive of some sort of brain hemorrhage happening every time, like with the father character in Firestarter. That sort of thing, hinting that using the power is risking a brain aneurysm or something, is perhaps more subtle than Kid Psycho's 'tell' should be, and might have been out of the question in a time period when you couldn't show blood in comic books.)

There are so many silly things about Adv. 338.

The Time Trapper has to whisper instructions to Glorith. Why? Is it a secret to all those henchmen? Does he think one of them's a spy for the good guys?

Oh, Lyle! This must be the time when he finally realizes he's gay. It makes me so happy.

It would be so funny if one of Tenzil's relatives accidentally ate his mom's gift.

Cham as an actor! That actually makes sense, and it's nice to see what some of the Legionnaires do on their down time. And who woulda thought Tenz had a bit of artist in him?

Superboy just wades into the dinosaurs. But! But! Doesn't the Legion have any rules about meddling with time in the future? What if they mess with the natural order of things?

Wait, the Trapper already has the Legionnaires stuck as kids. Why transport them off-world so they can regress fully? Why not do them in now? Someone THIS powerful is this stupid?

For that matter, the Legionnaires didn't do much better. We have two teams walking right into traps!

"Infant-ry" attack? Groan. You're not only not clever, Trapper; you're also not witty.

Ultra Baby thinks those jewels are jellybeans. If he grows up into a toothless adult, we know what happened.

And Glorith fell for it too. Oh well, that's that.

Wait, Tenzil wants candy even though he can eat the jewels. I guess candy still tastes better.

So the kids are eating pieces of candy which are the debris of Tenzil's eating. I hope his acid spit doesn't burn their tongues (assuming he does have acid spit in this version).

And the great Time Trapper cowers in front of Superboy. Oh, okay! So this story still doesn't make clear to me just what the Trapper's powers are. Are they all mechanical? Does he even really have control of time?

Like some others above, I ended this story liking Glorith much more than the Trapper. Oh well, she gets to come back in another 30 years or so!

RE: ADV 388. I thought it clever of Levitz to explain the inconsistencies in the Time Trapper's early portayals by retconning them as proxies rather than the real Trapper.

Definitely some wasted potential with Kid Psycho. I think, perhaps, if he had been created by Hamilton or Siegel or the story properly featured in Adventure Comics that KP might not have been so overlooked. Otherwise, he definitely should have been summoned for any number of dire emergencies to come. This could have eventually lead to a heartbreaking death scene within the Legion context. In Crisis he was little more than cannon fodder.

I think if we'd seen him more we could have maybe gotten better idea of what it means to lose a year of his life every time he uses his power. In this story alone, he would have lost several years, then. To me, this would manifest itself as KP appearing a year older each time. Maybe a year wouldn't be noticeable, but several years lost in one story should definitely cause an observable change in his appearance. And he definitely should have appeared markedly older over time that the Legionnaires might have remarked on. Again, this is another visual cue like Huey mentions above, otherwise it seems pretty abstract. I mean, who knows? KP's race could live to be 500 years old, right?

Another possibility occurs to me that might be more reading between the lines. What if the Legionnaires were just trying to make KP feel good and no intention of ever calling him in? This is thoroughly plausible and is perhaps even supported by Superboy's parting thoughts as he returns to the 20th century. I mean, the LSH obviously doesn't want to be responsible for KP killing himself. So why not just make him feel great, right? I doubt it was Binder's intention, but I kind of got that vibe when KP was given the "Secret Weapon No. 1" title. granted, it was hard not to flash-forward and remember his future disuse at that moment, I suppose.

Ironic, then, that ultimately KP wasn't killed by the use of his powers. While it was a heroic moment, I still feel it was disappointing that, if he had to die, that the premise of his origin story wasn't fulfilled.

Yeah, I thought of that, as well. I suppose that it was really the only way to explain the inconsistencies in the end.

Kid Psycho. Great story! Even better taken in the entire context. I probably read this in a reprint or found an old book when I was a kid but I remember all the emotions.

I couldn't find my copy of the Kid Psycho story, but I have to say he was really set up to be a hero. The fact that his use of power hadn't kille dhim yet was explained by his people aving naturally longer lifespans than the galactic average, I think. It really is too bad that nothing was done with it; I can just imagine scenes with several Legionnaires debating over whether they need to call Kid Psycho in for a particular threat. Is it justifiable? Do they have another choice? How does it stack up against the Legion code - to knowingly ask Kid Psycho to put his life at risk?

Actually I do think that was Binder's intention, and may indeed have been the moral of the story itself. In a way it makes me think of the Make-a-wish Foundation, which was created in the early 1980s.

Lardy, you're absolutely right: given the premise set at his introduction, KP really should have died through use of his powers. You don't set something up like that and not follow through.

I don't follow? If someone finds out something they do will kill them, they usually try and cut back. This is different? I think I'm missing the point.

Anyhow, as it worked out, he was there for any deus ex machina, kind of like a living miracle machine. I don't recall that he was ever used that way though, until Crisis. His use in Crisis was a high point for me.

I think it's a Chekov's gun thing. If you show off the gun and sort of 'foreshadow' it, but then it never actually plays a part in the story, it feels like a waste of time, narratively.

Kid Psycho living with the knowledge that any heroic use of his power will lead to his death is somewhat shortchanged by that never actually being the case.

All hat, no cat, and in Kid Psycho's case, even more disheartening because he spent a lifetime afraid to / discouraged from use his power to help people, and it totally didn't matter, since he died young anyway, making him kind of the ultimate failed hero.

I follow now. We just disagree.

I think a better use of Kid Psycho would have been to call him in during the worst crises (with lots of debate and angst on the Legion's part, and much ado being made of Kid Psycho's heroism) and NOT kill him off from overuse of powers yet. Keep us readers guessing - oh no, will the next crisis be the one that does him in?

From a narrative point of view, introducing Kid Psycho and having him die of old age in bed would have worked. There could still have been a lot of angst in terms of, "Oh Kid Psycho, if you hadn't helped out with the Great Metropolis Fire in 2025 you would have lived another 4 years!" type of thing.

I do agree though, that him dying in Crisis without even using his powers at all was a waste.

Crisis had some odd decisions, when it came to death.

The Crime Syndicate of Earth 3 was shown going down fighting with their world, too arrogant to admit defeat, and yet, even then, I thought it was weird that *they* were the one's who fought to the last, while Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters, the entire Marvel/Shazam family, some Earth 2 / JSA figures, and some 'Earth-Charlston' figures like Captain Atom and the Peacemaker all ended up on the new Earth, while the worlds they were supposed to be the heroes of all died in their countless billions.

Ultimately, the billions of people on Earth 3 aren't any less dead than the billions of people on Earth's 2, X, C and S (or whatever), but it felt a bit off to me that the 'heroes' of those worlds kind of skated free while all the people they should have been protecting got blasted to pieces by shadows or obliterated by walls of antimatter. (I kind of felt the same way about the end of the Reboot. Gosh, too bad about those countless hojillions of people who got blown up with that entire universe! Good thing most of the Legionnaires survived!? I'm sure they feel *awesome* about how everyone on Cargg, Winath, Titan, Braal, Talokk VIII, etc. are all dead.)

Other deaths felt like big deals (Supergirl's, for instance) while the Flash's death felt like a fake-out (he was running, and then there was a flash, and some clothing left behind) and for the next year or so I was waiting for Barry to just show up, missing some of his costume. I never imagined it would be twenty-some years later! Supergirl, whose death was pretty darn crystal clear, came back at least twice (and explicitly Kara, at least once), before Barry did!

By the time DC tacitly admitted (through Booster Gold) that the multiverse was not only 'back,' but had always 'still existed,' it felt to me like the only real lasting effect of Crisis on Infinite Earths is that some sacrificial lambs like Kid Psycho, Tula/Aquagirl and Kole remain dead, while others, like Psimon and Prince Gavyn/Starman inexplicably kept re-appearing.

The above is exactly why I prefer to read COIE as a stand-alone story. While rereading it, I just willfully ignore everything that came after so as not to lessen my enjoyment.

I remember reading an interview where Marv Wolfman admitted that Kole was created just so the Titans could have another death in Crisis, and so he could tell other creators that he gave up one of his own creations too. I always wished it had been that wimpy winged dork Azrael instead of Kole who'd died - we have so many winged heroes already, but very few crystal-powered ones. And Kole was infinitely more likable.

There's a pretty good discussion on COIE over on the Re=Reads thread btw.

re: Gnill Opral, last son of Hajor.

He is just too incredibly powerful. He is able to project force-shields and force-fields which can withstand the combined might of Superboy, Mon-El, and Ultra Boy. He can punch thousand-year holes in time with his mind. His telekinetic powers are likely at the same level as his force-field abilities, and his telepathic powers and super-intellect probably on par with the fully-evolved Evolvo Lad. As his powers are defined in this tale, he could cage Validus, or transport him through time and space to a secure location. He could defeat the remainder of the Fatal Five just as easily. This is a character who could take on Mordru single-handed, possibly even the Time Trapper. But he has- literally- a fatal weakness.
Could not 31st-century science and medicine ‘cure’ Kid Psycho or mitigate that weakness? From a literary standpoint, as a recurring character, he is too powerful for a hero.

He would have to be recast as a villain.

As a villain, one strategy to defeat him would be relentless attacks that forced him to use his power and use up his lifespan. Since this would be equivalent to murder, the Legion would have to find some other approach. Quite a challenge!

The character was wasted. His story could have taken many different approaches besides simple eradication in CoIE.

He could have had a Dorian Gray sort of effect; instead of just slicing off the years, he could have aged a year every time he used his power, thereby becoming an old man by the time he was 21.

There's something inherently tragic about Kid Psycho. Now that he knows the truth about his condition, he stops being a hero and only waits to get called on for extreme emergencies. He's cautious and everyone else is very reluctant to reduce his lifespan. As a result, he dies of old age, his potential wasted, like someone dying with millions of dollars that they could have used to help people.

Regardless, it's even worse that he died in Crisis without getting a chance to explore the possibilities.

Adventure #339

This story stands out for a few reasons but the most important is this is the final John Forte Legion story. The stalwart Legion artist since #300, he certainly made his mark on the franchise and helped build it into the juggernaut it had become. He remains my favorite Silver Age Legion artist and this reread reaffirmed that. It's especially sad, because very soon after he completed this story, he passed away. Yet, one of the great aspects of art is immortality. Though John Forte died 15 years before I was even born, and 35 years before I even learned his name, here I am now, a true admirer of his work.

The story itself is a sequel to the Heroes of Lallor story and to me is better than the first. In fact, this is one of the best Silver Age Legion stories, and conveys a powerful message. It is the quintessential Hamilton story, focusing on the outsider. And this time, unlike Lone Wolf or the Subs, there is no happy ending.

The opening premise of the planet Vorn is solid. It's a classic adventure / Jules Verne type concept.

I'm enjoying Lyle and Cham's working as partners. Their idea for Cham to pretend he's Lyle while Lyle is invisible is simple yet brilliant.

The charge of all the animals at once is especially effective.

Once Superboy goes to Lallor, the story really starts to take off. Beast Boy's story is tragic and easy to feel empathy for. "He had become brooding, anti-social, bitter towards all humans..." Who hasn't felt that way before? Who hasn't been an outsider at some point? Hamilton knows how to convey these things in just a few panels and brief words.

In part 2, the opening salvo between the LSH and Beast Boy is well done, with several segments to the action: tracking him; several Legionnaires caught; a rescue; a battle; chasing Beast Boy. Whew! The action has certainly improved as the 60's have marched on.

There's some strong irony in the scene following Beast Boy no longer helping the animals that the trappers are suddenly able to capture a great many of them. Was BB so wrong after all?

BB's escape is clever, leading to the Superboy v Mon-El sequence which is one of the more brilliant illusion sequences I've seen.

And then the conclusion is just genius. Beast Boy no sooner thinks "how I hate the humans", that he finds himself tired, hungry and chased...just in time for a young girl to give him aid. This moment restores his faith in humanity, and not a second too soon, as the Maw, an animal who had released, comes to kill the girl--and he chooses to defend her and do something heroic again. And in that action he dies and perhaps redeems himself. Fantastic.

All in all, a real high note to end the 4th Archive, which proved to be VERY strong.

Some interesting points. As a villain, how could Legion deal with him, knowing whatever they might do might lead him to "suicide?" A tricky problem. Anyhow, with all those skills, the one most likely to be able to find a cure, would be himself.

As is, I think it worked out for the best, storywise. Using my earlier comparison, except for that price to pay, he was a living, breathing miracle machine. And we know what they did with that and what trouble it did cause. Like the miracle machine, having him always in the background WAS the story, at least to this reader. I remember often posters and letters to the editors stating how the miracle machine could have pulled the Legion out of one particular problem or another. That's how I thought of KP.

As far as Crisis, I guess I always presumed he was using his powers, while flying people to safety and everything ever other heroic person was doing. That's exactly how I remember the story and until I was forced to go back and read it again, I would tell anyone saying otherwise that they were off their rocker.

With comics and their limited space, I guess it almost always comes down to what details are filled in by each individual reader.

Adventure #339 should be forced reading for every comic book company CEO/Director/editor that thinks the way to sell a product is 10 splash pages of people standing around or heroes repeating the same old pose, while not actually doing anything or 15 pages of fists flying in the same old way, with irregular and heavily bordered panels, which all looked good in Batwoman but has now become a poorly copied meme all designed to turn $4 into a 5 minute never to be read again page turner.

You can make MORE money with stories like ADV #339.

Adv. 339

Cobie did an excellent job of summarizing and reviewing the story, and I agree with his assessment for the most part.

What makes "The Hunters of the Super-Beasts" stand out is that it feels like a mature Legion story. It explores themes of alienation and heroes being shunned by the public they protect (one wonders if Mort had been keeping tabs on X-Men), as well as the ethical considerations of hunters trapping animals (though only Beast Boy raises this concern; the Legionnaires don't seem too bothered by it). We even have a sympathetic villain, one we've seen before as a hero.

The plot is well paced and full of twists and turns. That said, it could have used some tightening. For example, the episode with the volcano beast being endangered adds nothing to the overall tale. Presumably, it was added to insert some action into the shipboard sequence, which otherwise slows the story down. But the volcano beast and meteor could have been deleted without damaging the story.

The shipboard sequence, however, affords us the luxury of seeing more wonderful Forte animal creations. Stories like this (and 309) gave him him and Hamilton the chance to explore the wildlife of the future. I imagine kids would have loved this story just for the flasher beast, the maw, and the other creatures.

The ending is probably one of the best in the entire Adventure run. After impersonating various fantastic animals, Beast Boy tries to get away by impersonating a garden-variety puppy. More, he's injured and hungry. How far the mighty have fallen!

Ironically, it's this vulnerable condition that enables him to see that humans aren't so bad after all and to die a hero, a choice not given to his thematic predecessor, Jungle King.

Though the story is good, a few things keep it from achieving classic status, in my opinion. I've already mentioned that the plot needs tightening. Another flaw is the depiction of Brainy, who demonstrates very little of his 12th level intelligence. Why, for example, does he not have his force field belt on when he gets captured by the Dralgo? (Doesn't he keep it on by default?) At least Brainy sees through the illusion of Superboy and Mon-El fighting, but it shouldn't have taken a Brainiac to do that.

And while Superboy's presence is easily justified via the cover depiction of him and Mon-El getting into a good, old-fashioned donnybrook, this story, more than any since 320, supports the accusation that he hogs the glory. Once again, he spares the Legionnaires from endangering themselves because [cue Chevy Chase voice] "I'm invulnerable, and you're not." In the panel in which Saturn Girl talks to the hunter, Superboy seems to horn his way into the camera shot with one of those "I'm the classic hero, and don't you forget it" expressions. At least Saturn Girl gives him an order--to get him out of her face, I presume.

Why, though, is Saturn Girl calling the shots? Brainy's the leader now.

Despite its flaws, "Hunters" exhibits considerable strengths, including pairing Legionnaires we haven't seen work together before. Lightning Lad and Phantom Girl make a good team (and their scene reminds me of a later one, in Superboy # 201). Colossal Boy and Star Boy tackle a beast together, and Invisible Kid and Chameleon Boy twice show how their powers complement each other.

Another strength is that the villain not only earns our sympathy but demonstrates rare intelligence, as far as Silver Age Legion villains go. Beast Boy leads the animals to revolt, and then cleverly eludes capture by impersonating an animal and hiding aboard the hunters' ship. Kudos to Hamilton for not telling us which animal BB was disguised as until it was necessary to do so. Keeping the Legionnaires guessing kept the reader guessing, too.

Beast Boy also demonstrates his formidability by transforming into a Korbal lightning beast (a nice tie-in with Lightning Lad's origin, but not a gratuitous one, as the lightning beast gives BB the power to escape) and freeing the other animals to cover his escape. He shows a ruthless streak by endangering the lives of civilians, which makes him wholly believable as a villain who gives the Legionnaires a run for their money.

So, more kudos to Ed for not pulling punches, to John for giving this story, his last, his all, and to Mort for trusting the intelligence of his growing-up readership.

So, Beast Boy left Lallor months ago yet the other heroes didn't bother to go look for him? Tsk tsk. Whattabunch of friends!

At the very least, Beast Boy wasn't so angsty that he forgot that the other Heroes of Lallor are his friends. Boy, those Lallorian civilians sure are petty.

I wonder... couldn't Beast Boy have escaped even while the Legionnaires were under his hypnotic illusion? Seems like he wasted a lot of time while Superboy and Mon-El were fighting.

I wish we'd been able to see the aftermath of Beast Boy's death. Was there a memorial for him on Lallor? How did the Lallorians react to his deeds?

Now you've gone and made me feel sorry for Kid Psycho.

At the very least, you've made me wish we could have seen more of the character. Perhaps he could show up at Legion HQ, asking when he's going to receive that call that never comes. Perhaps he's been following the news (as everyone does) and demands to know why the Legion didn't call him to fight Darkseid, Mordru, etc. Perhaps he even sues the Legion for breach of contract or making false promises.

I'm getting a little ahead of myself here, but the promise of being a hero he exhibits in Superboy # 125 is never followed up on. Some have suggested that the Legion simply made him a reservist to make him feel better--and the story can easily be read that way. But even if his power had killed him, it would arguably have been a better fate than wasting away his potential, as you suggest.

Another (more hopeful) possibility is that KP realized that being a hero was only one of his many talents and possibilities. As the last survivor of Hajor, perhaps he decided a better course of action would be to repopulate his race or to educate others so Hajorian culture would not be lost.

We'll see a memorial to him on Shanghalla in Adv. 341.

Ultimately, KP *could* have had a much larger arc. Perhaps he "wastes away" for years, as its been said, and suffers the worst fate of all. This makes him bitter and angry. Finally, he decides to intervene even without the Legion's blessing and becomes more of a nuisance than a help. Ultimately, after some tension between he and the Legion, he does prove himself in a big battle(s) and saves the day...but takes off far too many years of life for the Legion to feel comfortable. Following all this, his next arc would be to find another reason to go on living other than being a hero--and in addition to repopulating his race, the larger part of that is falling in love. Perhaps he even gets married and has children? And it's then, when he's found a better life for himself than simply being a hero, that the Legion finds itself so up against the wall that they call in every reservist...and after struggling with whether to join, he ultimately does...and ultimately dies.

There really could have a series of story arcs for him over a period of decades that could have been incredibly grandiose!

One thing we do see in the very next story arc is Beasty Boy's memorial on Shanghalla, which is a nice bit of continuity! But we never do see the Lallorians react to his end.

I'm more interested in how his death affected people on his homeworld. Did they even care? Did they even feel bad? Definitely there would have been a memorial; the Legion wouldn't let him die like that without honoring him.

Well, there's no indication that the memorial on Shanghalla was created by the Legion. It's more likely that the Lallorians created it, since there are memorials to other heroes we've never heard of before. Someone must have a good monument for heroes business going.

By the way, looking at the image of Shanghalla (Page 4 of 341) reminds me of how odd Triplicate Girl's memorial is. Most the memorials surrounding hers contain images of the fallen heroes as they died, and all feature summaries of their careers and deaths. Triplicate Girl's memorial features only an image of her face (with eyes apparently closed) and signatures of all the Legionnaires who had not been captured by Computo.

Of course, the Legionnaires were in hiding when they hastily constructed this "rocket urn". Perhaps they later designed a more suitable memorial, or perhaps they left it as is, a grim testament to the circumstances under which it was made.

The next one had HUGE implications in the history of LSH and beyond! Beginning an amazing run of stories for me.

In other words, maybe--just maybe--KP got a LIFE after he learned his diagnosis! Who knows? Maybe he married and had kids at some point. Maybe he did something along the lines of what you suggested. Maybe he did all of that--and more! But when it came down to it, and the Crisis came along, his inner heroism came out, and he just had to try to get out there and help.

Yeah, this is all of us filling in KP's "untold" story, but Legion fans have done that for about as long as there's been a Legion of Super-Heroes! Makes me wish we could collaborate on a "Last days of Kid Psycho" web comic....

Thanks for the image, Reboot. These look like statues the Legion would have erected at their HQ, similar to those of Ferro Lad, Invisible Kid, and Chemical King. I was thinking more along the lines of modifying the memorial on Shanghalla, but either memorial shows how much the Legion honored its own.

It's easy to forget there's more to life than being a hero--particularly when the focus of super-hero comics is on heroes.

I've often wondered, for example, how the Subs made a living. Presumably, they were given a very small stipend as Legion Reservists (very small, as we were told at some point that active Legionnaires earned a modest income). So, what did they do in the large stretches of time when they weren't assisting the Legionnaires?

Being a Legionnaire is often compared to being a rock star, with the implication that there is no life outside of rock 'n' roll or being a Legionnaire. You either make the grade or you don't (which probably explains why so many rejected applicants became villains). The stories themselves do very little to support the notion that there is life outside the Legion or joining some other hero team such as the Wanderers, although the Adult Legion stories provide wonderful scenarios of Legionnaires in retirement and growing into different careers.

When rock stars fall of the map of public scrutiny and pop charts, it's easy to relegate them to has-been status. Many spend the rest of their lives playing the nostalgia circuit, trotting out the same songs they recorded 50 years ago, and trying to regain some shred of their former glory. But many others (those who don't show up on PBS specials) simply move on with their lives, find other careers, and raise families.

It's reasonable to assume that Kid Psycho, possessing of advanced intelligence, did the same.

While it's not brought up much, I would assume that food and water and a roof over your head is pretty much free in the United Planets (at least on fully developed worlds like Earth!), with credits only being needed to purchase less necessary items (like hairspray capable of holding up a foot high beehive!).

In theory, the Subs probably wouldn't *have* to hold down jobs, although they certainly might, to keep their cave-lair up to snuff.

In any case, Kid Psycho would probably be a big deal on his home planet (as would various Subs on theirs, as each of the original subs represented their worlds most noted hero, Legionnaire or not), and perhaps get some sort of pay as a deputized law enforcement person, even without using his powers.

...er...sadly not, since KP's planet went blooie before he tried out for the Legion.

Could be. Life in the 30th century was always open to interpretation. People did have jobs--the Science Police, tour guides, ice cream parlor servers, etc.--but it's not clear what relationship these jobs held to earning a living.

Rokk Krinn left Braal for earth so he could find a job. Braal, of course, may not have been as developed as earth.

Matter-Eater Lad's dad lost his job when the robot plant he worked at closed (Action # 381). He was left with a "crumby pension" on which to buy food and pay bills and rent. The same story mentions that the Legionnaires get a monthly living allowance.

The idea of the Subs being supported, at least in part, by their home worlds is an interesting one. But, as Lardy points out, that sadly wouldn't apply to Kid Psycho.

Actually this analogy can be applied to the retroboot, except that instead of trotting out the old songs they were trying new material that was completely unsuitable for them. Imagine the Rolling Stones putting out an album of hip-hop music. Nobody would take it seriously, because the Stones come from an entirely different background and have no credibility as hip-hop artists.

When the Legion was created there was an unspoken assumption that future society would be based on American values. The Legion we grew up with and are reading in the archives was very much a product of that assumption. The problem is that we as a society stopped believing in that kind of future many years ago, making the Legion and its world somewhat irrelevant to the current generation.

Just as some rock stars try to reinvent themselves every few years to stay relevant (Madonna being a prime example), DC tried, through various reboots and five year gaps, to reinvent the Legion from time to time, each time changing the future universe to make it more in line with current expectations. The problem was, it was not the right background for the Legion.

Finally DC realized that these reboots were never going to work and instead decided to play the nostalgia card with the Retroboot and the return of Paul Levitz. However, instead of putting the Legion back in its original element of a utopian future they saddled Levitz with the whole xenophobia thing, which is totally at odds with the real Legion universe.

It was like trying to recast the Rolling Stones as a hip-hop group.

Blooie? I barely knew ye!

Well then, I guess I won't be writing up a hero from Hajor for the Heroes of Other Worlds thread.

That's why I find scenes which show the Legionnaires' hobbies and interests outside of Legion-related matters to be so interesting. Brainiac 5's lab research aside (since that is arguably part of his job as a Legionnaire), we have scenes like Chameleon Boy taking an acting job just for fun.

I suppose their training in the Legion would make the Legionnaires very marketable if they chose to move on to other careers. Security, training, research, that sort of thing.

In COIE, a 30th century Suicide Slum area was shown briefly when Dawnstar was "summoned" by Harbinger. Even then I didn't see anyone who looked homeless; there were apartments (small, but still apartments) and only one panel showed what may have been scrap metal/garbage.

Coincidentally, today marks Mick Jagger's 70th birthday.

I can't imagine the Rolling Stones doing hip-hop, but they did dabble with disco ("Miss You").

You make an interesting point about the Legion reflecting the assumption that the future would be based on American values. However, I don't know that we've stopped believing in those values so much as our understanding of them has evolved. The Silver Age stories certainly reflected assumptions about race and sex roles that are obsolete. But, in other ways, the Legion anticipated a more cosmopolitan and multicultural future, one that has become a greater reality in America since the 1960s.

It was wise for DC to try to keep the Legion relevant to the times. It was not always wise for them to reboot the series to do so. (That said, I did like the first reboot.) If the Legion had been allowed to progress along its natural course, as it did in the '70s and '80s (and even during TMK), relevant changes could have been introduced naturally.

The artificial constructs imposed by Superboy's removal from the timeline and the reconstruction of the Legion's history without him were the beginning of the end of the Legion as we knew it. While I like your analogy of the Rolling Stones doing hip-hop, I've always envisioned these artificial changes, including reboots and the retro-boot, more like an operation in which too many organs and limbs have been removed and replaced. At some point, one has to wonder what is left of the original patient.

I loved the first Reboot as well, but agree it was pretty jarring of them to do so. Ah well. If they had left it at that, maybe things wouldn't have become so messed up. But then they had to do the Threeboot, and now back to the Retroboot which failed to capture much of the original Legion. So the operation analogy sounds quite apt.

Perhaps, but the cynical side of me likens the Legionnaires to certain military veterans of World War II. Men who did well as combat pilots or bombers or gunners found themselves without any employable skills in the civilian world.

"So, Mr. Morgna, I see you've fought Darkseid, Mordru, and the Fatal Five, and saved the universe fifty times. But can you sell underwear?"

Which leads to the question - the Legionnaires spend a lot of time getting knowledge transferred directly into their minds via hypno ray or telepathy or what have you. How then, does one differentiate themselves in the 30th century job market?

Although I suppose these things only transfer knowledge, but not the experience to use them or the skill that comes from repeated practice. But it still would mean there is a lot of pressure to keep improving oneself to keep ahead of the competition.

If by 'sell underwear' he can lounge around on billboards in them like that soccer dude Beckham, I suspect he could do that.

Working as a clerk at the Space-Mart? Probably not his speed...

Then again, his dad is a rich industrialist, so he's probably got better options than some.

Quite a few Legionnaires have some good options. Gim's parents are basically an ex-President and a retired admiral and likely not living in a 10 x 10 standard efficiency cubicle (although it says something about the living standards of the future that the times we have seen the Allons at home, their home has seemed kind of small and cramped...). Tinya's mom, at least, is also an ex-President. Reep's sitting on a quajillion space-bucks. Brin's got money that Val left him. Jeckie has her own planet. Jan also has his own planet, and can crash commodities markets with a wave of his hand. Dreamy's in line to be the next High Seer of Naltor, which, as far as we've seen, is pretty much the leader of Naltor. Tasmia's a planetary champion and seems to be the de facto heir of one of it's most notable families. At least some versions of Rokk are a former sports star, who may or may not be better-positioned to cash in on his Legion celebrity, due to his past life as a celebrity on Braal.

Garth and Ayla and Jo and Violet and Dawnstar and Brin and other interpretations of Rokk come across as more 'working class' than others, and might be better examples of people who might finds themselves adrift without the Legion, although Jo could likely go back to Rimbor and take over one or more criminal organizations pretty handily, and Dawnstar could have a bright future in expanding her original role as 'space finder' / navigator.

Drake might be in a rougher position than most, as he benefits not at all from a 'three hots and a cot' sort of government dole, and his containment suits probably don't come cheap (and seem unlikely to be the sort of thing one can just have spit out of a 31st century 3D printer for the equivalent of a couple of pennies worth of material cost, as with more normal clothing or basic tools / materials). A government that supplies food and shelter meets the most basic needs of organic life, but not a sack of anti-energy.

Rokk's a weird one. He's 'looking for work.' He's a sports star celebrity. In the Waid/Kitson half of the Threeboot, he says that if he leaves the Legion he'll probably have to go back home and work in the mines. In the Shooter/Manapul half of the Threeboot, Garth has his poster on the wall, suggesting that he was back to being a former celebrity athlete... Go figure!

That scene in COIE always makes me pause. I find it sad that Suicide Slums still exists a thousand years in the future. However, there has to be conflict in order for there to be stories. There is a Captain Marvel Jr. story where the title character travels to the year 2044 to find his future-self retired and crime is obsolete. I think that is the wish of many super-heroes. There has to be a reason for the heroes to exist or I begin to suspend disbelief.

I guess the 30th century can't be all that perfect, or the Legion won't have an end goal to work towards. No matter how "perfect" the future is, not everyone will have the same amount of resources and not everyone will be satisfied.

Yet, I don't think there'd be much disagreement that so much of what makes us better and has contributed to popular culture, comes from the "slums." Music, art, understanding, diversity... A slum is a place where people are nearly forced to work together, to get along in order to overcome and there's the additional motivation to "get out." So much of our industry has been started by people whose drive growing up was to "get out."

There's value even looking from the top end for those that have achieved economic success, to help others follow.

I'm sure we'd rather the disenfranchisement and fear and crime aspects not be there but I think as long as people migrate or look for new starts in their lives, there will always be ghettos and slums. I'm not sure that's a bad thing?

There's always the thought that by the 31st Century, planets don't provide anything to anyone, which is why so many races evolved superpowers to survive. No housing, no food, no healthcare, and if you resort to crime it's Takron-Galtos.

I've also wondered if Earth / Metropolis in particular is mainly made up of upper class and elites (serviced by a robot workforce) while the labor force of the UP economy exists on other worlds like Braal. With more than a little exploitation and inter-galactic politics keeping it that way.

That's an equally relevant and uncomfortable notion for the shiny 31st Century.

Different presentations have gone in very different directions.

In the Threeboot, Metropolis citizen 'Klar' hadn't left his apartment in *years* and had no idea who lived in the adjacent apartments. The head of the Science Police communicated with his aide *who was standing right next to him* over their communications screens, since the idea of turning around and talking to each other face to face wasn't even something either seemed comfortable with. But the Threeboot was hugely different. Daxam was a wasteland. Durla was a bustling transportation hub. Trom had a thriving population.

In the classic continuity, it always seemed like Titan and Naltor, when shown, were glistening artistic spaces, shiny and modern, and no signs of an underclass or poverty or hunger. Durla and Rimbor, on the other hand, were dystopian, in different ways, one a radioactive wasteland, the other corrupt and crime-riddled. As for Orando, one of the more detailed UP worlds, until the most recent annual, with the scene where a nobleman abuses commoners for his own pleasure, there was little hint of the world being anything other than a fantasy theme park.

I think the best way would be to say 'yes to all,' and have some developed worlds, like Earth or perhaps Xanthu, to be relatively utopian, with minimal hunger or corruption, while others, like Rimbor, are kind of cesspits, and places like Talokk VIII and Orando have very different systems (class / caste systems, commoners and nobles, etc.), and still others like Imsk and Braal perhaps being a bit more capitalistic, with permanent wage-slave underclasses that find that the only 'social mobility' is 'shut up or we'll send in the strikebusting mercenaries again.'

There's no reason for *all* of the United Planets to be sterile paradises, and there's *certainly* no reason for every single world in the UP to be a corrupt failed pessimistic craphole. Either option would be boring and stifle creativity, IMO.

Compare to the present United Nations - we have authoritarian North Korea or Zimbabwe and communist China and Russia alongside "enlightened" Norway and New Zealand, prosperous and highly industrialized Japan and Germany, small island states struggling against climate change (Maldives, Kiribati), "forgotten" and laidback nations like Laos or Bolivia, prosperous yet somewhat rural Brunei, growing Philippines and Mexico, stagnating Singapore...

Having the UP be as diverse as Set described above can help make it more relatable to modern day readers.

The UP tends to come across more like the European Union than the United Nations to me. Virtually every country in the world is part of the UN (all but Taiwan, Kosovo, Palestine, the Cook Islands, Niue and the Vatican are full members, and all but the last aren't only because they're still considered "in dispute" or part of another country by the UN), but major powers like the Khunds and Dominators aren't part of the UP, and the UP seems to be more interventionist in its members' affairs than the UN has ever been.

What Legion issue are we discussing again?

Yeah, I don't see the UP as similar to the UN at all. It's always appeared much more like the EU, or even more like a Federal Government for all it's member planets. I can easily see a case made for the UP being akin to the Federal Gov of the USA.

All that aside, I'm in definite agreement with Seth about the diversity of planets in all ways including economies and class issues.

I think we ran out with Adventure #339, which is coincidentally the most recent issue I still don't have a copy of. Time to start a new thread for Archive #5!

Ah, topic drift! But in this case, I've really enjoyed these discussions about Kid Psycho, economic disparity in the 30th century, and the set-up of the UP government. Every post has been amazingly on topic (even if the topics are subtopics of the main topic) and full of insightful commentary.

What a way to wrap up Archives 4.

Yeah, it is. Though, admittedly, I have very little interest in the socio-economic aspects of the 30th/31st centuries. Still, interesting to hear from those who do!

I was going to mention, regarding the Beast Boy tale, stuff like how Imra's boobs really seemed to get the spotlight early in the story as Forte shows her in profile in, like, three panels on the same page. And, my, doesn't she seem bustier than the other Legion girls! But, well, hard to fit that in when everyone's concerned about the slums and the downtrodden and all.

Good thing I never brought the boobs up, right?

Imra's bust size and Rokk's working class background have a direct correlation to their success as Leaders of the Legion, both officially and later symbolically!

See, that was Brainy's problem. He had neither a sizable bust nor a working class background.

So Lardy, will you start the next one? Once you do a good deed once and all that...;)

Sure! I'll do it some time tonight....

One last comment I had about the Beast Boy story...

I actually thought the depiction of his death was rather violent for a Silver Age story. I know there was no blood shown nor any descriptive sound effects, but essentially, Beast Boy gets his neck snapped in the jaws of a vicious wild animal. And the act is shown on-panel.

I'm not condemning the depiction, but it's a much more visceral depiction than Garth's death by freeze ray or Andrew Nolan's death by explosion, among others. I'd say it's perhaps even more graphic than Lyle's death by Validus, which is more Bronze Age. yeah, pretty tame compared to Superman being beaten to death, Pantha being beheaded, Damian Wayne being impaled, etc., but pretty aggressive for its time. Especially so because maulings are a very realistic and nightmarish way to get badly injured or killed.

^Good point, Lardy.

Two thoughts:

1. While the dog is shown in the mouth of the Maw, it's not a very explicit death scene, i.e., there's no SNAP! (Which leaves it ambiguous as to whether BB died of a broken neck or shock or a punctured jugular, etc.)

2. The death of Triplicate Girl in the next ish (and on the cover, no less) shows the times are indeed a-changin'.

Yeah, I tried to make it clear that it was explicit for it's time, even pointing out the lack of blood or sound effects. I think his neck was probably snapped most likely because of the quickness of his death and where the Maw had him in its grasp.

In terms of function, I absolutely agree with both of you. Just the creation of the Legion points to an EU or federal gov't set-up (imagine getting the present day UN to agree to the creation of a super-powered force that can intervene in affairs on any UP world!).

What I was trying to get at in my original post though was the diversity of planets in terms of economy, government and culture. The UN would be a more apt comparison than the EU or USA for that aspect.