Legion World Forums LEGION CLUBHOUSE The Legion of Super-Heroes Legion Of Super Heroes #1

If Geoff Johns had written the scene in question, cries of rascism would be all over the internet!

No! I just love grilled fish!

heh!

I don't think a TK Imra invalidates Tellus, anymore than Garth and Ayla both having lightning powers invalidate each other, or the -Els invalidate each other.

Imra and Tellus can still have plenty of differences. This isn't the 70s, with writers who cannot see beyond a Legionnaire's power.

Is it too soon to start the 'save Tellus' letter-writing campaign or the proliferation of 'bring back Tellus as a Black Lantern' threads?

I would suggest sending thousands of frozen fishsticks to the DC offices to protest the death of Tellus, but I'm pretty sure that all of that rotting food might constitute a biological terrorist attack...

Okay, okay...one time he and I were on this diplomatic mission, and I accidentally let an SBD go. All Mr. Methane-breather had to do was claim his helmet had a leak to avoid a major diplomatic incident, but NOOOOOOO! "I am sorry, Lard Lad, but nothing I breathe could ever smell so putrid!", he teeped.

Fishy bastard!

I'm going to de-lurk again for my second post in a day...

I've been reading the LSH since Superboy #199 in 1973 (the ONLY feature I've read continuously) and I've enjoyed all three (or four) Legions to one extent or another. And I've read several debut issues for the LSH...

Not only did I thoroughly enjoy Legion of Super-Heroes v6 #1, I don't think I've enjoyed another comic as thoroughly all year. And I think I'd rate it as the best Legion debut issue yet (for an ongoing series).

Some observations:

Coming just two weeks after the destruction of New Krypton in War of the Supermen #1, LSH #1 depicted the destruction of a world in a way that's much more palatable. Titan's destruction actually took some time, the heroes had a chance to evacuate much of the population and save lives, and for once, no major supervillain was responsible.

I really enjoyed the focus on a small number of Legionnaires. I've always enjoyed Legion stories like that. Some good characterization of both Imra and Brainy. Maybe not completely consistent with what's gone before (especially in Brainy's case), but I still got a kick out of it.

I'm bemused by the comments about Saturn Girl's apparent TK. The thought never occurred to me when I was reading. Instead, I was more struck by the reference to Garth's "folks". I still vividly recall them hitting an asteroid back in Superboy #207.

Thoroughly primed by this issue, I'm looking forward to the Legion in LSH and Superboy(!) and the Legion in Adventure Comics in the coming months.

Welcome home, Mr. Levitz!

Feel free to de-lurk more often, Spiderboy!!

Agreed! We need a monthly review from you at the very least!

It sounds like Imra lost parents and Garth gained some.
Works for me, since parents don't usually make much of an impact on the Legion.
Well, not the original Legion, anyway.
Go Levitz!

And I love Tellus.
He is SO different from Imra, it's astounding to me that anyone would compare them in any way.
They both have TP and it's never mattered.
If they both had TP AND TK, no difference to me.
They're still worlds apart!

The addition to Imra might actually be good for Tellus' development.
Especially if the writers think that he needs something added to make him 'valid' in the Legion.

Like 2 telepaths with TK would somehow be a bad thing.

If I were the Legion, I'd want 5 or 6, just like I'd want 5 or 6 heavy hitters and 5 or 6 with energy powers and . . .

Even though I still rate LoSH #1 as just 'above average' as far as stories go - damn if it hasn't gotten me absolutely jonesing to read the next issue already!

It feels great to be super-excited about the ongoing adventures of my favourite team again!

Had Saturn Girl "retired" from the Legion when Tellus was admitted? I seem to remember the founders retiring, but can't remember if it happened before or after Tellus's recruitment. Anyway, having a telepath is pretty darned handy, so it can't hurt to have 2 around. Just don't send them both on a suicide mission where they get stranded without food on an ansteroid...

Saturn Girl retired before Tellus joined (he won out over Mentalla as her "replacement"), but she rejoined later on in v3.

Yeah, she rejoined at the close of the Universo Project.

Absolutely.

At least twice a month OK? There are two Legion books (or is that one Legion and one Superboy/Legion?), so perhaps at least that often.

One other observation regarding LSH #1:

I recently completed a (re-)read of the Superboy/Legion series and the Baxter series (along with various stand-alone issues and mini-series), which I followed up with a reread of the Lightning Saga, Superman and the LSH, Legion of Three Worlds, and the first several issues of the revived Adventure Comics.

Each time Levitz took the original S/LSH series, first in #225 and then in #284, I was impressed again with how he picked up existing plot threads and ran with them, all the while laying down his own plot threads in the process. He was much better (and far more experienced) at doing so in #284 than in #225, and I think he was at least as good, if not better, in LSH #1. That was perhaps the single best part of this issue. But I also think that anyone who has read only the recent stories (especially Superman and the Legion and L3W) could pick up this issue without getting lost.

And also count me as one who liked Yildiray Cinar's artwork quite a bit.

Yilday Cinar's work better here than in his stint on Teen Titans. I'm still on the fence, I want to see more of what he can do. Let's see him draw some of the less human aspects of the Legion, then I'll start praising him.

I'll echo what some others are saying and point out how much better and more detailed any of Cinar's uninked pencils looked than those inked by Wayne Faucher in the finished product. Faucher's generally a solid inker, but it certainly seems he's doing Cinar an injustice and leaving out too much of the fine, exquisite detail I see in the pencils.

^Agree.

I also feel like Faucher 'softened' up some of the pencils as well. That's within an inker's judgment but I don't think it did Cinar any justice. The uninked pencils looked very sharp.

Not just sharp--they were GORGEOUS! I was very disappointed in the final product after having seen the pencils! It's like Faucher was trying to make Cinar's pencils look like Alan Davis's or something. The inker's job is to make Yildiray Cinar's art look like Yildiray Cinar's art! I don't want to bang on Wayne Faucher, but from what I've seen, I feel pretty strongly about this.

Finally got to read it - and I would give it four stars out of five.

Levitz did manage to tell a good story, he gave us three important plotlines to work with (Titans destruction by tampering with time - again, Earth Man becoming Green Lantern and Legionnaire, Imras children being abducted) and introduced the Legion to a larger audience by focussing on a smaller group of heroes. Lots of time to get to the other heroes like Jacques, Brek, Wildfire, Violet ... The book was heavy on the action, which left me wishing for some more characterisation (something which until now, this Retroboot was not too strong with anyway). But all in all, it was a very good read. The Green Lantern elements took a surprising turn quickly, which I liked.

The artwork was solid, as was to be expected by Cinar. He is no superstar(yet), there was no eye candy to hope for. But he did a decent job.

Question about the fallen Legionnaires statues: There was Ferro Lad and Invisible Kid, but who was the third one - was it Chemical King or Karate Kid? Both going with the high collar, I was not sure about that.

All in all I am very happy with this #1, considering its extra length, after months of 8 page backup features we now are finally getting some space for the Legion to blossom. This could be the revival many of us hoped for. Thank you, Paul Levitz!

Regarding the interpretation of Saturn Girl's telekinesis... it is the panel where there's a rock apparently hovering over several fleeing Titanians, with Imra flying a few yards behind-- hand to head?

Could it be that she's telling the runners which way to run to avoid the impact of the falling rock?

The window scene-- the art *does* make it look like the window is crashing from a point that could be a result of TK... though her knee's up with glass (or whatever) shards all around it, so I think interpreting the break as caused by her padded knee the more likely one.

The third one was KK...and Levtiz has been on record recently as stating he probably would not kill Condo if he had it to do over again.

Hmmmm...


I was pretty impressed with Cinar's art and think this guy has superstar written all over him. He's already got a very nice polish and layout sense.

I firmly believe Chemical King's return is coming.

Yildiray's original pencils from Legion #1: