Legion World Forums LEGION CLUBHOUSE The Legion of Super-Heroes Long Live the Legion! Karate Kid's series

Is this any good? This is one of the few DC things that I have absolutely nothing of.

What's it like? Who stars in it besides Val? Any cool villians? It's in the twentieth century, right?

Does Val meet up and then beat up any DCU Heroes? In other words, does he kick Batman's ass?

Karate Kid No. 1
March-April 1976
Cover: Saturn Girl, Lightning Lad, Superboy, and Mon-El in time bubble, Karate Kid vs. villains //Mike Grell (signed)
Story: "My World Begins In Yesterday" (17 pages)
Editor: Joe Orlando
Writer: Paul Levitz
Penciller: Ric Estrada
Inker: Joe Staton
Feature Character: Karate Kid (last appearance in SUPERBOY #216)
GS: Legion of Super-Heroes (Mon-El (between SUPERBOY #208 / 217), Brainiac 5 (between SUPERBOY #216 / 217), Saturn Girl, Lightning Lad (both between SUPERBOY #215 / 218))
Supporting Character: Iris Jacobs (first appearance)
Villains: Nemesis Kid (last appearance in SUPERBOY #208; next appears in LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES (3rd series) #2) and his gang (first and only appearance for all)
Comment: Superboy appears on the cover of this issue but not in the story.
Synopsis: Karate Kid trails Nemesis Kid back to the 20th Century to apprehend him, and, once there, decides to stay.

Karate Kid No. 2
May-June 1976
Cover: Karate Kid and Iris Jacobs vs. Major Disaster and his henchmen //Mike Grell
Story: "The International Dooms of Major Disaster" (17 pages)
Editor: Joe Orlando
Writer: Barry Jameson (David Michelinie)
Penciller: Ric Estrada
Inker: Joe Staton
Feature Character: Karate Kid
Supporting Character: Iris Jacobs
Intro: Charlie, Fred (only appearance for both)
Cameo appearances: Mon-El, Brainiac 5, Sun Boy, Lightning Lad, Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl
Villains: Major Disaster (last appearance in GREEN LANTERN #57; next appears in issue #11), Herb, Artie, Carstairs, Nurike (first and only appearance for all)
Synopsis: Major Disaster is being paid a million dollars to destroy the United Nations, and Karate Kid must stop him.

Karate Kid No. 3
July-August 1976
Cover: Karate Kid and Iris Jacobs vs. The Revenger and a hood //Mike Grell
Story: "The Revenger" (17 pages)
Editor: Joe Orlando
Writer: Barry Jameson (David Michelinie)
Penciller: Ric Estrada
Inker: Joe Staton
Colorist: Carl Gafford
Feature Character: Karate Kid (next appears in SUPERBOY #218)
Supporting Character: Iris Jacobs, Emily Geichman (first appearance)
Intro: William J. Grant, a jeweler (both die in this story)
Villain: The Revenger (Dr. Norman Grimes; first appearance; dies in this story)
Synopsis: Karate Kid encounters a villain named the Revenger, who is armed with a whip and an exo-skeletal arm.

Karate Kid No. 4
September-October 1976
Cover: Karate Kid vs. Master Hand and his assassins //Mike Grell
Story: "The Rage of Yesterdays Lost" (17 pages)
Editor: Joe Orlando
Writer: Barry Jameson (David Michelinie)
Penciller: Ric Estrada
Inker: Joe Staton
Letterer: Milt Snapinn
Colorist: Carl Gafford
Feature Character: Karate Kid (between SUPERBOY #218 / 223)
GS: Legion of Super-Heroes (Lightning Lad, Brainiac 5, Mon-El (all between SUPERBOY #218 / 219), Princess Projectra (between SUPERBOY #210 / 222))
Supporting Character: Iris Jacobs, Commissioner Earl Banner (next appears in issue #8)
Intro: Perkins (only appearance)
Villains: Master Hand and his men (including Tsutomu; first and only appearance for all)
Synopsis: An Asian villain named Master Hand takes Iris Jacobs hostage, and Karate Kid must save her.

Karate Kid No. 5
November-December 1976
Cover: Karate Kid vs. soldiers //Ernie Chua / Mike Grell (signed)
Story: "The Tomorrow Thief" (17 pages)
Editor: Joe Orlando
Writer: Barry Jameson (David Michelinie)
Penciller: Ric Estrada
Inker: Joe Staton
Colorist: Liz Berube
Feature Character: Karate Kid (last appearance in SUPERBOY #224)
Supporting Characters: Iris Jacobs, Emily Geichman
Villains: Commander Blud (Frederik Sanguine) and his troops (first appearance for all)
Comment: Story continues in next issue.
Synopsis: Iris Jacobs is kidnapped by a militaristic villain who wants to force Karate Kid to give him information about wars of the future.

In the first five issues Iris was kidnapped twice. Sounds about as lucky as Silve Age Lois. If you want the rest of the synopsis' (sp?) let me know and I'll post them.

Let me put it this way... I own the KK series (I use to be an AR collector), and I read them, but I'm not proud of it. I'd put it just below The Wanderers series and I didn't care much for that one at all.

I think there was talk about the series being reprinted in a future HC Archive Volume, but that may have been pared down to the first issue only. I can't remember.

I have some (but not all, as they just dont seem to surface in the UK) as i am becoming an AR collector. but I would disagree with minesurfer, the Wanderers series was MUCH worse that the KK stuff. The KK series suffered from poor art (imho) and it was not a great story, but it at least told a story. The Wanderers stuff was just dumb.

I'm with Darden on this one. I have both (BIG AR collector here) and would never re-read the Wanderers. KK was typical 70's that doesn't hold up but did provide a story.

And I think we've been limited to just issue 1 being reprinted in archive #12. I don't think we'll see any others in future editions.

I've only read the first issue from the Archive and one of the later issues where he's fighting Superboy. I thought it was pretty groovy in the later issue when you get the play-by-play of the martial arts of space that he's using.

Ya gotta get to the best part! Iris IS...

<font size="6">DIAMONDETH!</font s>


...

If Faraway's going to disagree with me, then I'm going to agree with him.

Both series have problems (can you tell I'm trying to be nice to the authors?)... Let's put it this way... an appearance by Jamm in either series would have made them better, especially if Lori Morning was riding his skate board in the next panel with the thought balloon "Yippee, this is fun" over her head, and Jamm was ordering Koko to shave off all of his monkey fur.

I remember picking up the first few issues of this series when it first came out and then dropping it. Didn't care for it at all. KK was one of the more popular members of the LSH at the time so he was a natural for a spin off but it just didn't play well, IMHO. I always thought that the concept of Val having to travel back to the 20th century to prove his worth as Jeckie's suitor was dumb (which was the explanation in the LSH storyline but then I don't recall it being mentioned much in the KK series, though I didn't read enough of it to know if it was developed later.

I wouldn't bother picking it up unless you absolutely must have every appearance by Val (or the Legion) that has ever been printed.

SAY!

You might be ON to something there...!

...OR, you might just be on something...

<carney voice>

Get your monkey fur. Free monkey fur. All you need is your own broom. Get you monkey fur.

Hey Kid, watch where yur goin wit dat skate board. Got no respect for nobody I tells ya.

</carney voice>

Hey, fellow AR Legion fans, you all have a copy of Brave and the Bold #198, right? Batman teamed up with Karate Kid, who returned to the 20th century to invite Iris Jacobs to his wedding.

Classy move, Val!

And how can you go wrong when they brought back Pulsar too?

The whole Legion was in an issue of B&B, I have that one. Was that the issue before?

It was B&B #179, October 1981. Came out at the same time that Superboy rejoined the Legion in LSH #280. One of the Legionnaires (Cosmic Boy IIRC) tells Batman it is an odd coincidence that Batman showed up in the 30th Century at the same time that another group of Legionnaires had gone back to the 20th Century with Superboy.

For truly AR Legion collectors, you also want the previous issue, #178, as there is a Legion "Easter Egg". In the middle of the issue as Batman is lurking in an alleyway, in the sky overhead is a Legion Cruiser (in shadow only). Apparently B&B often put a teaser or clue as to the next issue's guest star(s) somewhere in each issue.

Oh, and B&B #198 was cover dated May 1983 in case anyone needs to know.

Ya' gotta view the Karate Kid series in light of its times. Martial Arts films were just hitting big. The Legion was in it's rock-star outfit groovy bellbottom days. Val was the DCU's answer to Bruce Lee. The art was awful. The writing was thin but barely DC '70's average-ish. I recommend powering up with the beverages of your choice, popping "Everyone was Kung-Fu Fighting" in the CD player and trying to memorize all the "space-fu" styles. Comicbook kung-fu karaoke!

It wasn't that bad when Bob Rozakis became the new writer and Juan Ortiz became the new artist. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your point of view) it was cancelled pretty quick after the turnover, so they were there for an eyeblink and then gone.

The two-parter with the silver age Legion is easily of passable quality. Even if you don't like the series, you should still have those two issues.

Oh, and let me go on the record as saying I liked the Wanderers series. The mystery of their deaths, the clones, the new costumes... I thought it was all pretty neat.

It wasn't all that good, let's be honest.

it had its okay moments, but too much waste like Major Disaster and even lamer foes.

i used to havethe whole run. got rid of em during a collection downsizing 14 years ago. still rebuilding.

Now that I agree with

Any issue with a bald Koko is fun

Got both does that make me sad or what

I've got that two part SA Legion appearance and the team-up with Robin.

Can't say I thought those issues were great, but they weren't embarassingly awful either.