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Posted by He Who Wanders on :
 
The topic for today is Legion of Super-Heroes (v. 4) Annual # 7, published in 1996.

As usual, I’ll present a plot summary to explain what the story is about, followed by my general observations of the characters, plot, theme and (relevant for this story) setting, and then a verdict to gauge whether or not it still holds up after 11 years. I make no attempt to hide SPOILERS, though I do invite all to share their thoughts as the thread progresses.

Although the story is entitled “One Shot,” it is probably better known as “The Last Legionnaire” for its cover blurb. This blurb, incidently, completes one of the most effective covers I’ve seen in awhile: Wildfire, looks up at the reader, his fists blazing with energy, and a screaming skull visible in his faceplate. The ground behind him is littered with skeletons and a torn Legion belt. (This scene, ironically, is the most disturbing shot in the story, despite a number of deaths that happen therein.)

The relevant credits for the story are as follows: Tom Peyer (co-plot and script), Mike Collins (pencils), Mark Farmer and Robin Riggs (inks), and Tom McCraw (co-plot and colors).

[ June 17, 2007, 03:17 PM: Message edited by: He Who Wanders ]
 

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Posted by He Who Wanders on :
 
I. Plot Summary

In the 75th century, long after earth has been destroyed, the immortal Wildfire leads a group of raw Legionnaires on the planet Rimbor. The new team consists of Nervosa, a Bismollian; Graft, a Durlan; Phase, a Bgztlian; Metrox, a Coluan; and Membrain, who apparently is one of the Brain Globes from Rambat. Their first mission is to stop the mysterious, planet-sized cannon that appears every century to destroy a star and whose creators have disabled communications throughout the former United Planets, causing member worlds to distrust one another. The Legionnaires fight the robots that guard the cannon but cannot overcome their own mutual distrust. Their mission fails – and only Wildfire and Membrain survive.

With help from Membrain, Wildfire enters a trance to recall his origin and the Legion in their 30th century prime in order to remember how they worked together as a team. He then recruits another batch of Legionnaires from former UP worlds, but this time decides to go Noah’s Ark by selecting two of each, a teen-aged male and a teen-aged female: Magno-Boy and Lodestone from Braal; Triad III and Triplicate from Cargg; Argent and Silverwing, who are “Reniians”; and Shape and Shift from Durla. He orders them not to fraternize with each other, knowing that they will disobey him; soon, he spies the Reniians kissing.

The new Legionnaires stop a water pirate, but this success prompts the UP’s hooded enemies to send the star-destroying cannon to Rimbor’s sun 97 years ahead of schedule. Although Wildfire had hoped that it would be the descendants of these Legionnaires who would face the cannon, he marshals his troops anyway. As Wildfire and the Legionnaires approach the cannon, they are attacked by robots, as before. But this time Wildfire realizes that the robots are actually Durlans, and that the two Durlan Legionnaires, Shape and Shift, are spies. While Membrain and the other Legionnaires distract the Durlans, Wildfire destroys the cannon from within.

On Winath, 75 years later, a long dormant viewscreen is activated as Wildfire announces the Legion’s victory and the restoration of communication between UP worlds.
 

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Posted by He Who Wanders on :
 
II. General Observations

A. Use of Characters

1. Wildfire has always added spice to Legion stories, although he’s never been one of my favorite Legionnaires. However, this story illustrates why he is one of the most fully developed characters in Legion history. He demonstrates a range of emotions – he’s brash, vain, and dictatorial, but also smart, confident, and caring. He comes off as a fully realized human being and, therefore, I found myself caring about him in a way that I couldn’t care about Valor in Annual # 2. (Ironically, Valor and Wildfire share much common in these stories: Both are essentially immortal and indestructible; both have outlived loved ones; and both led troops in battle against a seemingly unbeatable enemy.)

2. In a way, though, Wildfire’s immortality stretches my suspension of disbelief to the breaking point. As a disembodied form of energy, I would expect him to lose his humanity over time, as happened to the original Spectre and to Dr. Manhattan in Watchmen. The Spectre (Jim Corrigan) was dead for about forty years when he started to lose touch with human qualities such as emotion and compassion; the atom-powered Dr. Manhattan started to do the same within ten years of his transformation. Yet Wildfire remains the same person he always was after 45 centuries? Had this story been set in th 35th century instead of the 75th, I might find Wildfire’s depiction and certain other things (mentioned below under Setting) more credible.

3. Another aspect in which this story excels over Annual # 2 is in the use of supporting characters. Whereas supporting characters in “The Legend of Valor” are introduced primarily for plot purposes, Wildfire’s associates come off as more fully realized characters. Membrain gets some of the best lines (“Oh, do not be a baby.” “I believe it’s more likely that your excellence has rattled them.” “So. It falls to me. How distressing ...”). And, although the two Rimborians, Gizi and Ziga, serve primarily as Wildfire’s sounding board, their interaction with each other as well as with Wildfire seems authentic.

4. As for the new Legionnaires: Peyer, McCraw, and Collins cleverly use a a roll-call-type layout (a standard expository device in the reboot) to introduce us to several new members – and then immediately kill them off! This was unexpected and very effective. None of these Legionnaires, nor the ones who follow, are developed into interesting characters, but, in this case, it’s an effective strategy not to. This is Wildfire’s show, ably supported by Membrain. Too many well-rounded supporting characters might have proved distracting. (However, it would have made the new Legion seem more like a team if one of the others had recognized the Durlans’ betrayal instead of Drake. As it is, he comes off as hogging all the glory.)

5. It’s fun to search the montage of Wildfire’s memories for clues about the reboot Legion’s future: Brainiac 5 marries Andromeda; Cosmic Boy becomes president of the UP; new members join, including Quislet, Blok, Galaxy and Reflecto (who are both represented as statutes of deceased Legionnaires), a dark-skinned man in a purple costume and white cape, a dark-haired Caucasian man in a green shirt (Chemical King?), and a woman with white hair and a red band around her neck (a human Projectra?). None of these things actually happened in the reboot era.

[ June 16, 2007, 09:24 PM: Message edited by: He Who Wanders ]
 

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Posted by He Who Wanders on :
 
B. Evaluation of Plot

1. This story handles exposition much better than “The Legend of Valor.” Whereas the second annual begins with a “talking head” scene of the Dark Circle leader telling his people (and the reader) information that will be important later on, this annual fills us in as we jump head-long into action. The latter is a much more effective strategy, as the reader can see immediately why this information is important.

2. Economy of writing is also a standout feature here. The story tells us just what we need to know to make sense of it. We are not given many details, for example, on what caused the collapse of the United Planets and fostered suspicion among its races. We are told only that the builders of the cannon were responsible – and that’s all we need to know. (Perhaps more details were given in other “Dead Earth” annuals, if there were any, but it doesn’t matter.) A lesser writer would have scripted a two-page montage showing what had happened before. As fascinating as that might have been, it would have been irrelevant.

3. Another positive feature of the plot is that its goal is very clear and it accomplishes what it sets out to do. Once the Legion destroys the cannon, the story (except for a brief denouement) is over. One can easily plot this story on Freytag’s Pyramid of dramatic structure: exposition, inciting incident, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution, denouement. This type of structure works for virtually all dramatic stories. It shows how well paced the story is, and that there is no baggage.

4. No plot is ever perfect, though. Did I miss something? How did Wildfire know the robots that guard the cannon were Durlans?

C. The Setting

My only concern about the setting is that the technology and costumes shown do not appear to be much more advanced than those in contemporary Legion stories set in the 30th century. Even the star-destroying cannon, for all its size, seems a little too “nuts and boltsy” for something so advanced. (Compare it with the Death Star in Star Wars: a machine that destroyed worlds and looked like a moon.) One might suppose that the decline of the United Planets retarded Rimbor’s ability to advance as a culture, but, for a less conventional depiction of the 75th century, check out Mike Grell’s version in Superboy # 204, October 1974.
 

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Posted by He Who Wanders on :
 
D. Themes

1. The story relies on the tried and true theme of cooperation and trust versus isolation and mistrust. Nothing terribly new is added here, but the story works quite well with just this basic message: we must put aside our differences and work together to overcome adversity. A subtle message might also be inferred in that, if the once powerful United Planets could be reduced to isolated and squabbling worlds, then perhaps it could happen to any society, anywhere. There is also a connection between this theme and modern reality, when Wildfire says that “fear and distrust keep feeding bloated military budgets and starving entire species!” One doesn’t have to look very hard to find analogues in the real world.

2. The importance of family is a secondary theme. It’s no accident that Brainy and Andromeda are shown getting married in a flashback, and then Wildfire cleverly manipulates his new Legionnaires into falling in love, so they can have children who will carry on the fight. This theme of family has been integral to the Legion throughout its existence. I’ve long been arguing that the Legion is “meant” to grow up, marry, and have children of their own, be it Graym and Garridan Ranzz or Cub Nah. This is just the way the Legion’s story “goes” – even in the 75th century!

3. Related to the theme of family is the theme of passage of time. In the flashback, an older Rokk Krinn is shown becoming president. In the 75th century, three years pass between the first and second appearances of the cannon. Then 75 years pass before Wildfire’s message of victory reaches Winath. The latter is consistent with scientific fact: sound and light waves take time to travel great distances through space (particularly if the technology to send them instantaneously is a little rusty). But as a theme, these scenes underscore the necessity for time to pass in Legion stories. Unlike most other comics characters, the Legionnaires are also “meant” to grow up and have a long-term, meaningful impact on their universe. (I also felt that the ending was somewhat bittersweet. We are told that Winath doesn’t receive the message until 75 years later, yet our final shot is of Wildfire leading his second team of Legionnaires just as we last saw them. One can’t help but wonder what happened to them in the intervening decades.)
 

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Posted by He Who Wanders on :
 
III. The Verdict

Can you tell that I like this story – I really like it? Although not a tale that would set the world on fire by dealing with controversial or shocking matter; and although not an annual that features significant events or revelations about the concurrent Legion, Annual # 7 has all the charm, positivity, action, and imagination that lift up the best Legion stories in any incarnation. As such, I believe it holds up much better than most stories that try to tackle “relevant” or “controversial”subjects of the moment. The story subtly reminds us of what is good about the Legion without hitting us over the head with overblown space opera or getting mired in continuity. In short, this story accomplished what Annual # 2 attempted but could not.

As an example of how subtle these reminders are, this story is appropriately entitled “One Shot” – a tribute, no doubt, to Wildfire’s first appearance in Superboy # 195, June 1973, entitled “The One-Shot Hero.”

This title, by the way, is ironic in both cases. Drake does not get just one chance to join the Legion (he finally joins in Superboy # 202); nor does he get just one chance to stop the cannon that destroys stars. But his initial efforts in both cases lead to disaster. In the first story, Drake expends his entire energy force, leading the Legionnaires to believe he has perished. In the second, his failure to destroy the cannon means that it will strike again in one hundred years. But in both cases, Wildfire perseveres and turns defeat into a victory. This illustrates a theme that is essential to Wildfire own enduring popularity: Never give up.
 

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Posted by Invisible Brainiac on :
 
Great analysis, HWW! And I just realized how much I like Wildfire, for all those reasons you mentioned.
 

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Posted by He Who Wanders on :
 
Thanks, IB. After reading this story, I've come to realize I like Wildfire more than I thought I did.
 

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Posted by Eryk Davis Ester on :
 
I remember really liking this story when it came out, as well.

I never noticed it was set in the same century as Anti-Lad, though!
 

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Posted by Nightcrawler on :
 

 

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Posted by He Who Wanders on :
 
Cool graemlins, Gary!
 

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Posted by DrakeB3004 on :
 
Needless to say, I liked this story a lot - for all the reasons you mention. And yes, Wildfire is (and always has been, imo) complicated -- the hot-headed loudmouth who's also one of the most fiercely loyal and deeply caring members to ever grace the Legion roster. It was great to see Wildfire in the spotlight at this point in the reboot and great to see something done with the fact that he is essentially immortal.
 

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Posted by He Who Wanders on :
 
Another thing I noticed is that this version of Drake borrows his origin from the original timeline. But when Wildfire is eventually introduced in the reboot, his origin is very different (Drake and Burroughs started out as two different individuals!).

The simplicity of the first origin works best, in my opinion. Drake doesn't have to have a complicated origin in order to be a complex individual.
 

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Posted by Nightcrawler on :
 

 

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Posted by Reboot on :
 

quote:

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Originally posted by He Who Wanders:
3. Related to the theme of family is the theme of passage of time. In the flashback, an older Rokk Krinn is shown becoming president. In the 75th century, three years pass between the first and second appearances of the cannon. Then 75 years pass before Wildfire’s message of victory reaches Winath. The latter is consistent with scientific fact: sound and light waves take time to travel great distances through space (particularly if the technology to send them instantaneously is a little rusty). But as a theme, these scenes underscore the necessity for time to pass in Legion stories.

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