Legion World
Everyone,

I just read this very nice article on CBR suggesting it is time for the Legion to return (where I read, it said it was 7 hours old as of 6:30 EST 01/16/2016, but who knows?)

how-dc-comics-can-help-the-legion-of-super-heroes-live-long


It seems efforts/enthusiasm to bring our beloved LSHers back have heretofore waned in recent months, but couple the above article with the fact that the LSH will get a LOT of exposure in the new DC Lego movie (as discussed on another thread), and this seems like an excellent time to lobby to BRING BACK THE LSH in 2016!!!

Of course, all the petitions that started when they were cancelled are now ancient, but there has to be something we can do to build on this momentum!...

any ideas?



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Thus, I would argue first that any new Legion series should emphasize the group's connections to the present-day DC Universe.


I think that the writer has a fundamentally flawed approach to the Legion right there. In my opinion, the only two ties to the current DCU that have properly worked for the Legion are Superman and the Green Lantern Corps, the former of which is important because he inspired the team in the first place. I love the Tornado Twins, but making characters like them the focus of the team only diminishes what makes the 31st century setting so unique in the first place. I think the Postboot Legion skirted this line pretty closely at times, ranging from mistakes like Thunder to intriguing concepts such as Ra's al Ghul, but it's a very difficult line to walk.
Yeah, I have about zero interest in a Legion that's heavily tied to the current mainstream DCU.

Our best bet for a *good* Legion title is something set in its own continuity.


I agree with your sentiment entirely, but I'm afraid some ties to 20C might be the "price of admission" as we currently have no book at all.

But I would hope they could do so without making it the focus, and I suppose it could be (i.e. I'd hope, but not expect) that merely their re-start after a long absence might boost sales.

I do think the Flash ties (Bart, Tornado Twin,s XS) could prove particularly valuable as the Flash TV show is very popular and they will soon be time-traveling with Legends of Tomorrow. Could be a new way to get exposure and start a new fan base niche.

Is the Flash comic really selling all that well, though?
I don't know if ANYTHING non-Bat related is selling well at DC (but I haven't been keeping track of numbers the way I used to when I went to the shop on Wednesday)

I do see the value of some connections to "present-day" DCU but the attempt to force EVERYTHING to inter-connect is where it gets problematic (and boring). I much prefer a vast future full of possibilities

The article does have an interesting point about having a few large scale epic issues before doing some of the character-driven bits. And I agree with that overall (as I find new series incredibly boring with their 6 issue set ups right now)
I stand by my assertion TPTB at DC consider the Legion a sad joke. Perhaps they consider all their properties only sorry jokes, but the Legion more than most.

Lego DC is their humor arm. Superman and Batman have basically the same personalities as in the 'How It Should Have Ended' cafe. Other characters are equally as silly. Kind of the Justice League version of the Inferior Five. The Legion should fit right in.

"Oh, no, wait. What if we want to use a plan that works?" -- The Brain
Originally Posted by Klar Ken T5477
I stand by my assertion TPTB at DC consider the Legion a sad joke. Perhaps they consider all their properties only sorry jokes, but the Legion more than most.

Lego DC is their humor arm. Superman and Batman have basically the same personalities as in the 'How It Should Have Ended' cafe. Other characters are equally as silly. Kind of the Justice League version of the Inferior Five. The Legion should fit right in.

"Oh, no, wait. What if we want to use a plan that works?" -- The Brain


Agreed 100%.
Originally Posted by Myg - Andy S
I don't know if ANYTHING non-Bat related is selling well at DC ...


Aha! Time for DC to dust off that Imaginary World's Finest story that ends up with Batman joining the Legion!

One of the themes from DCNu seemed to be to tie everything into Gotham as much as possible. The Jonah Hex title for example.

While, I can mostly take or leave Superboy in the Legion there's an obvious sales advantage from having him in. And if it gives us a Legion book then that's fine.

If this was post Crisis, rather than DCNu, I could easily have seen Barry Allen, younger due to his running in Crisis #8, survive and join the Legion. Or the Tornado Twins, revealed to be his kids, joining. With either linked back to the post Crisis Flash to provide a sales boost.
I'm all for having a Superboy connection in the Legion, but it's important to remember that back in the day, Superboy himself was roughly fifteen years removed from the main DCU.

Actually, if I were plotting a strategy for bringing back the Legion, my first step would be to create a modernized take on the classic Superboy, then introduce the Legion once again as a spinoff of that concept.
Originally Posted by Eryk Davis Ester
Actually, if I were plotting a strategy for bringing back the Legion, my first step would be to create a modernized take on the classic Superboy, then introduce the Legion once again as a spinoff of that concept.


I like this. I think you should e-mail it to DC.
Originally Posted by Klar Ken T5477
I stand by my assertion TPTB at DC consider the Legion a sad joke. Perhaps they consider all their properties only sorry jokes, but the Legion more than most.

Lego DC is their humor arm. Superman and Batman have basically the same personalities as in the 'How It Should Have Ended' cafe. Other characters are equally as silly. Kind of the Justice League version of the Inferior Five. The Legion should fit right in.

"Oh, no, wait. What if we want to use a plan that works?" -- The Brain


I don't find the Lego humour mean-spirited though, more in the vein of the Art Baltazar/Franco stuff (but not as awesome).

I think I can live with a few more years of smaller appearances, as I get the sense one way or another DC's in for another sea change soon, and I wouldn't want to launch it prior to that in an environment that it would fail in (ALL the new DC books are getting murdered right now).
Originally Posted by Eryk Davis Ester
my first step would be to create a modernized take on the classic Superboy, then introduce the Legion once again as a spinoff of that concept.


The Founders go back in time to recruit Superboy. They discover that he has not yet obtained his powers-- so they create a "battlesuit" for him, intending to train in the 31st century the greatest hero of the 21st century.

But the historical records are inaccurate... incomplete... instead of Clark Kent, they return with Tom Tanner, an ordinary Earth boy...
Guys... I don't know.

Because I don't think I want another Legion book if it means getting another reboot with new designs and backstories.

I just want the Legion to pick up where they left off.
The reason Dan Didio keeps turning down the Legion pitches that come to his door is because apparently they're "dated." Like Paul Levitz's Legion was.

Just, just figure out a way to make the Legion look like they are from the future instead of overhauling everybody's backstories again.

Does anyone here want to wait another 20 or 30 years before we get Shrinking Violet and Lightning Lass back as a couple again? Or endure another 20 or 30 years of writers dumbing down the characters by making them "young" and "hip" like they have with every character DC owns for the last five years and going? Because at the bottom line, it doesn't matter what anyone pitches to them. If a Legion book happens, all that will come out is what the editor tells the team to put out, and we ALL know how brilliant editors have handled books at DC.

I'm on the verge of tears typing this, because I'm scared. I don't want the Legion back with DC the way it is. The idea of the Legion becoming like any book DC has right now makes me uncomfortable and sad. And I don't want anyone working at DC right now to get anywhere near the Legion, even people like Marguerite Bennett or Gail Simone. I don't trust any of them.
Sarcasm Kid, I honestly would not worry. I honestly don't think the Legion is coming back, at least not in my lifetime. Read the last issue. Look at what Levitz puts in the mouths of the Legionnaires. Essentially, "We have the archives. Fifty years of stories. That's all folks."

Occasional cameos, such as in JLA United, Multiversity and the videos.. but no more full-fledged Legion stories, no Legion book, and certainly no consistent Legion history.
I'd like to believe that. Sadly, every time I've ever hoped for something from DC regarding my favorite characters, well... I, I can't think of a way to answer that.
Ah. I'm sorry. I'm sounding like there shouldn't be a Legion book just because I wouldn't like it. That wasn't my intent.
It may be that the future for the Legion lies in media other than comic books.

This year will mark ten years since the Legion cartoon premiered. And a heck of a lot more eyes watched that than have read any recent Legion comic. How long before one of those kids is in a position to resurrect his childhood favorites in some form?
Eryk, I would completely support Kids WB replaying the first two seasons of Legion of Super-Heroes, then running an all-new third season. And a fourth.

The companion comic, Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st Century (seriously under-rated by fans, IMHO) featured, on occasion, a Teen Lantern (Jordana Gardner), a 31st-century teen-aged Amazon princess (Xenobia), and an entire issue dedicated to a funny but affectionate look at Arm-Fall-Off Boy (Floyd Belkin).
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