posted
Here's why. In this incarnation, Ultra Boy is about as dumb as a dumb jock can be. He has heart and muscle, but no brains, and definitely no leadership ability. M'Onel, on the other hand, keeps on getting his ass handed to him by Sensors and Ras Al Ghuls and whatnot. He has the leadership ability, but it's like he doesn't want to try at times. And of course, Amdromeda is a space-happy space nun!
None of these characters postboot have been shown to be anywhere near Superman as far as "the full heroic package," and if they can't deliver the goods, perhaps it's time to showcase someone who can?
-------------------- White. A blank page or canvas. His favorite. So... many... possibilities.
From: Birmingham, AL | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
I'd agree if we weren't getting Clone-El. He doesn't have 'it' either. We need the original Kal as boy back.
From: Utah | Registered: Jul 2003
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...but that's the Legion, isn't it? Everybody has their strengths and they work together to apply them to the best possible effect. Sum greater than the parts, etc.
(Of course, this may be colored by the fact that Superboy has never interested me much. I neither like nor dislike him.)
Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
I would prefer to see Jo balanced out, to either gain some depth to his character or exhibit something more than streetsmarts - there is a lot of potential there.
Same thing with Lar - resolve the power problem; I believe he has all the hero characteristics, personality and history-wise, one could hope for.
I didn't dislike Superboy in the old Legion, but I don't think this hopping back and fort between the centuries to help the Legion would work for me. And I wouldn't want to see him as a permanent part of the team, because they already have lots of power and heroics; they maybe just have to grow into some hero personalities.
From: Café Cramer | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
I don't have too many of the old Superboy issues, but was Kal really a leader in any way? The others respected his powers and opinion and he was considered the end-all, be-all of superheroes, but it was his mystique more than his personality that dominated the stories that he was in (and even so, there were times he was just there like everyone else). I'd much rather see Jo show some of the smarts we know he's capable of or for M'onel to step up and get over whatever's holding him back (be it physical or psychological).
And even if they don't, there are other memebers more suited for leadership anyway like Cos, Kid Q, Triad, Cham or Invisible Kid
From: New York, NY | Registered: Jul 2003
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Eryk Davis Ester
Created from the Cosmic Legends of the Universe!
posted
Kal was more of a leader in the "inspiration for the others" mold rathan than as someone who actually told others what to do. He was the one people said stuff like "If they can take out Superboy, what chance do the rest of us have?" and stuff. He's the one they expect to save the day in the end.
Does anyone fill that role now? It's hard to say. Cos actually might be a good choice, now that he's stepped down from the actualy leadership role.
From: Liberty City | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
Although I was kind of happy to see him leaveall those years ago there is a small part of me that misses Kal .... just as long as the stories don't all revolve around him again
It would be nice to see him being a bit dazed by the high tech 30th century and be treated with vague disdainful familiarity as a 20th century hero - sorta like a z- list celeb, y'know, think big brother three, what were their names again?
Cos and Monel would most probably want to hang out with him but that doesn't mean he would be popular with all the rest of the group, would Umbra care as her ancestry is at least 2 thousand years old? Would T-wolf or Ultra Boy really give a crap? It will be nice seeing if the cliques already in the Legion get a bit of a jolt by his arrival.....
And hopefully sales will go up as the Supes geezers come on over to our patch to see what they're missing too....
From: home sweet home... unless i'm posting from work | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
If Superboy's inclusion leaves an open door between the 31st and 21st century, I wonder if it'll have any implications for Ferro. There's got to be unresolved feeling for his mom and I don't imagine he'd be the type to completely write her off and never want to see her again if time travel somehow becomes a lot easier.
Then there's also the fact that all this time travel will *have to* attract the Time Trapper's attention in some way (could this be another big game of some kind?).
From: New York, NY | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
I don't want to see Superboy return. I would rather see some new events in the Legion rather than reinventions of what's gone before.
The way Mon and UB are portrayed I chalk up to limited writing skills and/or interest on DnA's part. They've done a lot of good for the Legion, but I think they have difficulty developing very powerful characters on a team crowded with heroes. I don't believe that they would handle Superboy any better.
As others have pointed out, Superboy was never really a leader in the Legion. But he was the star of the book, and that's why he was usually the focus of the stories.
Being a leader does not equate with being the most powerful hero. In fact, the Legion has a tradition of less powerful heroes (Saturn Girl, Brainiac 5, Invisible Kid and Dream Girl) frequently calling the shots.
-------------------- The Semi-Great Gildersleeve - writing, super-heroes, and this 'n' that
From: The Stasis Zone | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
I agree, I don't want Superboy in the Legion either, there are just too many other characters that I'd rather see return. And I've never liked the Legion to be too connected to the present-day DC Universe.
Having said that, if having Superboy in the Legion is going to bring new readers into the title (this is, I assume, the reason for doing this), then, by all means, bring him in. It is of course difficult to foresee whether the presence of Superboy will help sales of the title, but DC obviously thinks it's worth a try. I do think that everything should be done to attract more readers to this title, it's too good a thing to lose because of feeble readership. So maybe we'll just have to compromise and accept Superboy. At least for a while.