Legion World Forums LEGION CLUBHOUSE The Legion of Super-Heroes Reboot Re-read: DnA Legion

Bookending the week - I had this one in the can for a while.

The Legion #13

Released October 23, 2002
DC Comics, Color
23 Pages


Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning - Writers
Kev Walker - Art
Jason Wright - Colors
Mike McAvennie - Editor

Synopsis

Brainiac 5 and Computo continue their parley. We get another recap of Computo's history, with the callout to LSH 98-100. A history that conveniently omits the part about him trying to murder Triad.

On Legion World, Jazmin gives the order to attack. Triad orders Chuck to open fire. Warworld appears in orbit next to Legion World. Star Boy keeps everything light so as to not interfere with Earths' gravity. RJ and Brin have a nice discussion where RJ offers Brin Legion membership.

Computo tells his story after the LSH 100 - he was apparently restarted during the Imperiex war and afterwards drifted for a thousand years at the edge of what would be UP space.

Our next "meanwhile" moment has us visiting our friends in Credo. They are facing off with a creature called a Psiclone, who easily takes out the initial Credo toadies until Singularity shows up. The Psiclone's society is sheltering Progeny and is therefore the enemy of Credo. Singularity takes him out with little problem.

Back to Earth, we're still going down the Computo history lesson and we learn about the Great Shutdown of the 25th century and the Metallo virus making all sentient machines shut down so a cure could be found. But no one looked for a cure. And that is why Computo created Robotica.

Switch to Colu - two Coluans died trying to compute the Earth shield weaknesses. Orn Fex reiterates the exposition that Sharn must inject some code to kill the Robotica/Computo AI. The exposition shows that the Coluans were responsible for the aforementioned Metallo virus.

Back to Metropolis, Shvaughn and Kinetix sneak around avoiding Robotican patrols as well as techno-terrorforms. Kinetix explains that because humanity is no longer the prime species on the planet, the Terrorforms are aligning their evolution to the new one. Kinetix is as well in a creepy shot.

Back to Brainy and Computo - Computo expounds that he created Robotica from rejected technology and he views himself as some sort of savior. He attacks Brainy.

On LW, the attack continues, but no progress seems to be made. In fact, the fleet comes under fire from the planet. Legion World gets hit, then boarded by robotic terrorforms. In the Titanet node, Imra calls to tell the bridge they are under attack and are shortly attacked by a mecha.

Kid Quantum is eager to attack but is losing hope.

Computo whinges that techology is just disposed of easily and suggests that this is a revolution of technology. Brainy posits that organics are afraid of the tech because they do certain things better to eventually replace organics. Computo is trying to make techs as equals to organics. Brainy finally answers that Computo is his son.


Commentary

The streamlined efficiency of the prior two Robotica issues ends with this issue. This issue, which chronicles the attack on the Earth, has a metric ton of exposition and it kind of stops the story momentum dead in its tracks to explain everything. We jump to so many different locations and hear so much explanation for every detail, the book became a chore to read. I guess some of this was necessary, but most of the explanation is a history lesson that is designed to justify Computo being an angry adolescent who wants his daddy. He creates the island of misfit toys then wants to exact revenge. Or something. Then we even go to the Kwai galaxy as we need to know what's going on with Credo for some reason. I'm really surprised that they didn't really bring up the fact that Computo almost killed Triad. There are important story beats through these items, but the flow is all over the place, which I guess is to be expected by a book named "Meanwhile". I was very reminded of the V'Ger story from Star Trek The Motion Picture, but this wasn't as interesting.

We have yet another guest artist. The art here is not as good as we've been getting used to with Coipel.

The RJ/Brin scene was nice. I enjoyed it a lot, from Brin's complete lack of recognition of Brande to RJ recognizing what Brin did to take care of Tinya. Fun little turnaround with RJ using the Think Fast tagline, but it kind of didn't work.

Was the Imperiex War a thing in the DCU? I don't remember if that's real or not, but there is no editor call out on it, so I don't know if this is a correct reference and if Computo participated in some way.

Kinetix's thought bubbles are different from before. The evolved terrorforms are creepy as hell. Kinetix's transformation was FAST.

So Gates says they are being boarded, then Imra calls to say the same thing. That could have been much tighter, story-wise.

Also note - this is the last issue where Mike McAvennie has solo editor credit, as he gets fired from DC around this time. He then went to ply his amazing storytelling and editing talents to the WWE.

Overall Grade - C+. Too much exposition stops the story dead and not much really happens, but I'm kind of interested in the AI wanting itself to evolve. Art was substandard for me.

I also remember hating the art AND thinking that this broke the momentum of the story. sigh.

I finally had a chance to catch up with #10 and #11. Both are well done for multiple reasons.

I love how #10 pays homage to the Legion's past--the meeting, the mission monitor board, the election--while moving things in new directions. Jazmin is one of the very few women to be elected leader (If I remember right, she follows Saturn Girl (in both boots), Dream Girl, Sensor Girl, and Shrinking Violet (though the latter was under control of the Emerald Eye). She is also the first dark-skinned leader. The story doesn't make a big deal of these things, and rightly so (one would hope that gender and race would not be barriers for progress in the future). But in an era when the US now has its first dark-skinned and female vice president, this achievement resonates more strongly.

True to form for new Legion leaders, Jazmin is thrust into the deep end on her first day. The Robotica invasion happens much sooner than expected, and she finds herself confabbing with the interim president and leading a team of Legionnaires and military battalions into battle. This is one of the few points that threw me as a reader--and I guess it's because I've lived long enough to realize that age, experience, and politics play a huge part in who gets to lead what. The notion that any of the Legionnaires--who are still teenagers or 20ish at most--would get to lead an army into battle while taking directly with the president and coordinating efforts from another world (Colu) is pure fantasy--but it's one of those disbeliefs we have to suspend in order to buy into the story.

In that context, the events of the story work very well. Jazmin is appropriately nervous and unsure of herself but readily takes command. She maintains control even when unexpected events happen, and she's thinking ahead. For me, the scene that most clearly established her credibility as leader is when she explains to Spark (excuse me, Live Wire) that Jazmin has ordered Imra to scan for life in Robotica because they don't know the machine invaders' inner workings. As a good leader, Jazmin covers all the bases.

I also enjoyed the bantering between Jazmin and Gear and the antagonism that's developing between her and Spark (excuse me, Live Wire). It wouldn't be a very interesting story if everyone got along famously, and some people will not accept a change, no matter what it is. I'm not sure why Ayla objects to Jaz becoming leader, but I loved it that Jaz couldn't remember to call Ayla by her new codename. This increases the tension between the two and reveals so much about them. Ayla is acting rather childish by insisting on a name change under these circumstances, and Jaz rightly reminds her that they've got more important things to focus on.

Issue #11 keeps the twists and turns coming as Brainy, Shvaughn and hyper-Kinetix find themselves trapped in Robotica's makeover of Earth. Then--surprise, surprise!--Brainy is captured. The scene of him being wrapped in mechanical cables and dragged away as Shvaughn tries to hold onto his hand is well done. You can feel her desperation: The one person who had a chance of getting them out of this mess is gone. Now it's just Shvaughn and whatever Zoe has become. All they can do--as she says--is keep moving.

The battle scenes are also well done. Shifting the narrative among different players (first Kid Q, then Star Boy, and then Shikari) was an effective touch. These scenes are short but allow us to view the events from different characters' perspectives. Star Boy's narration reveals how obsessed he is with stopping Robotica from doing to earth what it did to Xanthu. (M'Onel's intervention was very well done.) Curiously. Shikari's viewpoint lacks narration. Are her thoughts too alien to process, or is she just focused on finding the path? The Kwai who guides Ayla to Winath reveals that his people have personal reasons for acting as the Legion's guides--for them, seeking new pathways is an almost religious or drug-like experience. Shikari, too, may be entranced with the experience of exploring new paths. In any event, it was effectively eerie that we didn't get into her thoughts.

A few things I didn't like:

The cliffhangers. I had to do some research, but this issue came out six years after Star Trek: First Contact, in which the Borg transform Earth into a machine planet. This idea has been done, and while DnA's take on it has some fresh angles, it still feels like a second-hand blockbuster movie.

Likewise, the appearance of the JLA (who will be revealed to be simulations of some sort) threw me back to all those stories in the '70s and '80s when another super-hero team showed up unexpectedly and we're meant to look forward to "battle royale" next issue. But I've been there and done that. For me, the whole point of rebooting/relaunching something is to go in new directions, not re-tread old ones. I felt much the same way when Venge was revealed to be Computo.

The other thing that (partially) threw me out of the story was Sensor. At the time, I didn't really mind a giant, talking snake being a Legionnaire--I just accepted it along with the other reboot changes under the pretext of "Why not?" But every time Sensor appears, I'm reminded that this is an element that would appeal to young children in a story that has much more serious implications. Throwing Bugs Bunny into the Alien movies just wouldn't do. I've become more aware of the importance of audience in stories, and genres have certain built-in expectations for a reason. If you throw the audience a curve, they may lose interest in the story. Comics have always been a polyglot of genres, and fans are often forgiving for incongruous elements, but here I find myself being less forgiving.

Thanks HWW for highlighting some of the parts I also felt were well-done:

1) conflict between Ayla and Jaz. And Ayla's building resentment /attitude towards Jaz felt realistic: at first, she just acts like "well, I'm not particularly impressed, it should be a founder". then she gets increasingly snippy as Jaz keeps forgetting her code name.

Jaz dealing with Ayla was well done, and I liked her thoughts (I don't need this attitude right now!

2) DNA continues to use Shvaughn Erin well. She's a competent "normal" and non-meta, she does her part, and her indeed trying to save Brainy was excellently done - could feel both their desperation as Shvaughn grabs Brainy, while Brainy tries to hold on.

the one thing that did NOT work here, was hyper-Kinetix passively standing and doing nothing... yeesh, why?

3) the invasion of Earth scene. Jaz was appropriately nervous and making jokes to herself to get over it - it helped with my suspension of disbelief for sure. The scale of the invasion, Star Boy and Shikari trying to break through, and M'Onel calming Star Boy down while explaining some of the other things they tried... all helped add to the sense of scale and stakes.

On Sensor, I always felt that Coipel drew her appropriately snake-like. Though I wonder if DNA also felt she was incongruous, and therefore set her up to evolve later on?

I wondered why Ayla thought the leader should be a founder. In a way, this is a conservative attitude (and I mean "conservative" in the sense of being averse to change and holding to traditional values). But I think Ayla is also still processing her own trauma of losing Garth--twice. It's interesting that she takes his codename--as if she's trying to take his place as a founder, perhaps? (Ironically, this is a very subtle callback to Ayla's first appearance in the preboot, when she did in fact take her brother Lightning Lad's place in the Legion.)

I think you're right about Sensor's eventual evolution. Her new humanoid design was certainly striking and more fitting for a "serious" super-hero comic, though I remember thinking it wasn't handled in an effective way.

Great comments as usual from both of you!


I thought the same. I also thought it was a great choice given the Legion's kind of bad track record on diversity throughout its history, so I give major kudos to DnA here.


Yes, I think you're right here, and I did not have that feeling reading this story, as I'd been reading this reboot since May or something like that, pretty much straight on through - but I DID remember thinking that a) when I first read these books in the 90s and b) again back in May, both at the beginnings of this run in their first year or two dealing a lot with the White Triangle and president Chu.


Yes, while I didn't think Ayla put her best foot forward, I do enjoy seeing friction between the teammates. In a group of about two dozen, there are bound to be heads butting, and it adds a layer of realism and drama to the team.


Good insight there - the silence of the scene. I was very caught up in seeing Shikari's perception of her pathfinding I didn't even notice the lack of real dialogue.


For me it was "OK Earth is getting transformed yet again - second time in a couple weeks, and third or fourth in the last few years." So not only were DnA cribbing from other shows, but from themselves again. I really hope that after the Computo story is done, the Earth gets a bit of a rest.


And we apparently will be again in a few months.... As for Computo, I didn't have a problem with this reveal, as DnA had done such a horrible job to this point in calling back to ANYTHING that came before LotD. The Legion had been around this point for six or seven years, so having villains re-visit is totally fine if done with enough gaps between.


I never really minded Sensor, per se, as when I started reading the Legion, I started with the reboot, so I didn't really have a good understanding of the Projectra character. I very much do now, but to me the two are completely distinct. That said, the DnA sensor was little more than a switchboard operator, at least up to this point. She has powers that were effectively used, but we were always TOLD that she used them, we never saw her in action, which tells me that Dan & Andy didn't know how to write her, similar to Kinetix. And DnA seem to have a habit of completely upending something if they don't understand how to fit that thing into their story and style.


Agree on Shvaughn. And good call out about Kinetix just standing around. I didn't think of that at the time, but you're right.


This is an excellent observation. I had chalked Ayla's views up simply because of her greif over Garth. I hadn't thought of her assuming his code name as taking his place as a founder, then using that pretext as justification to run for leader.

I read the issue of Sensor's introduction long after I'd started reading the reboot, so I was already familiar with the character. However, her introduction was a classic bait and switch. We're introduced to her just like we were in the preboot--at an audition. But there's a twist: The human girl is an illusion, and the character is really a snake. It's like a joke that should have been left behind after one use.

I don't know if DnA didn't know how to write such a character or if they chose not to focus on her. Perhaps they sensed that every time she appeared, she undermined the seriousness of the story they were telling.


One thing DnA did that continues to shine for me was to treat the Legionnaires as complex individuals with inner motivations that can't so easily be discerned. I see this a lot in Lyle, who is clearly annoyed by Sharn Nux. Granted, the Coluan theorist is condescending and dismissive, but I wonder if Lyle is transferring some of his own rivalry with Brainy to Sharn Nux (not that she's biting.)

I also noted Brainy's comment in wondering why Sharn Nux is there. Does he think the Legion might be replacing him with another Coluan--one who is more capable of handling social relationships (or so Sharn Nux says)? I love this sort of complexity that makes us wonder what's really going on between characters.

right back at you, GL, re great comments!

Looking back at Kid Quantum's rise to leadership. She had her moments as early as Widening Rifts (with Element Lad, refusing to abandon their mission AND succeeding in stitching up the rift). And Legion Lost 2, she's the one who tells Cham and Umbra to stop squabbling - "we need each other: literally!" So her election felt organic. (Also, a leader being elected without even accepting the nomination: happened to Invisible Kid in Legionnaires 45, so there's precedent and continuity!)

Great points re the complexity going on. Ayla taking Garth's code name, and becoming MUCH closer to Imra (Ayla and Imra had quite a bit of friction before when they were stuck in the 20th century, especially when Imra was carrying on with Rokk - even after they returned to the 30th century they didn't become super close, though they did become friendlier). So yes, perhaps Ayla is in a way trying to become Garth to honor his memory

Sensor: GL has a great point re the pre-DNA writers wrote Sensor's powers effectively in-story. That is, DNA definitely know how to use illusion powers (to cloak Legion World, to make Legion World appear destroyed). But in the Reboot, we have such bait-and-switch moments as Sensor pretending to be humanoid Projectra (only dropping the illusion once accepted into the team, Legionnaires 43), or my personal favorite = making the Legion and allies appear to have died during the Mordru battle, and I frankly believed it for a moment before realizing it was an illusion, the battle was so well-scripted. And the reveal was amazingly well done, with the panels slowly showing us the illusion fading while XS makes Mordru's talismans disappear one by one... (Legionnaires 50). We have not YET seen anything like this with Sensor to date (We will later on in DreamCrime at least).

Brainy wondering why Sharn Nux is there. Nice counterpoint to Sharn Nux earlier introducing herself, and saying "I have THE optimum intelligence level, one that comes with healthy social skills!" Unknowingly annoying Lyle... ah, what a moment that was.

My thoughts on #12 . . .

The cover is a callback to all those '60s. '70s, and '80s covers that featured a team of super-heroes facing off against another team of super-heroes, each member choosing an appropriately powered opponent. This is one of the oldest tropes for both Marvel and DC. I mentioned before that I wasn't looking forward to the JLA's appearance (or the appearance of JLA "constructs"), but the battle scenes here were handled very well. The Superman construct is established as someone who is willing to talk, but then he slugs M'Onel for giving the wrong answer. Well, he is a construct programmed to defend Warworld, after all.

I couldn't help remembering that in the preboot Mon was Kal-El's "big brother," but here he and Superman come across as strangers. I don't know if they ever met in other stories, but I couldn't help feeling a twinge of sadness for their relationship missing from the reboot.

Mon also mentions the Justice League of Earth and the "Pre-Unified Age," giving us some clues about a possible future of DC Earth.

The other fight scenes are also well done and brief. I don't mind Cham being taken out quickly by "J'Onn J'Onzz," and Jenni likewise is beaten by the "Wally West Flash." These constructs are modeled after the greatest heroes of the modern age, so they should be formidable. For balance, Shikari proves to be equal to Batman, and Vi gets the best of the Atom and figures out what's going on. My only complaint is that I wasn't clear who was talking in panel 7 of Page 4. The Atom is the only one who'd been speaking, so the tailless word balloons looked like more of his speech instead of Vi's.

Another standout feature of these scenes is the first-person narration of the Legionnaires, a device also used in the previous issue. This device affords us a quick glimpse into everyone's perspective. I note that Shikari's viewpoint once again lacks narration.

Gear's viewpoint is odd. He talks about choosing the right emotional display to get a certain response from others. He seems to be like Computo, who can only simulate real emotion. Gear also describes himself as a non-combatant. But this is a Legion comic; there's no such thing as a non-combatant. In any case, he really shines as the one who stops the conflict, reaches out to the Warworld's operating system, and uses logic to convince the OS to join the Legion's cause. Captain Kirk would have been proud.

The rest of the issue proceeds at a moderate pace as the Legionnaires get ready to enact their plan to invade the Robotica-controlled Earth. There are plenty of character moments, such as Thom and Nura being reunited--only for her to give him the brush off. This echoes the decline of their relationship under Levitz in the preboot, but it also seemed odd. Nura thought Thom would be dead because she foresaw his gravestone. Why isn't she jumping for joy that he's still alive?

The only part about these scenes I didn't like was Tinya coming across the unfinished letter Jo wrote to Imra. We know how this letter turned out--Jo told Imra he loves his wife. But Tinya can't know this and is appropriately heartbroken. The scene is well written, but I can't escape the feeling that this is a cliched manner of introducing conflict into their relationship. Jo still doesn't know he's a father, and his reaction a few issues ago when someone mentioned him reuniting with his wife suggested he was only just now remembering that he had a wife. Yet he tells Imra in no uncertain terms that he loves Tinya. For right now, I'm chalking this up to the complex inner motivations DnA have infused in most Legionnaires. It could be a sign that Jo has outgrown his co-dependency with Tinya, which has always been s character flaw we've discussed for both of them. On the other hand, once he came back from being lost, I'd think the first thing he'd want to know is, where is his wife?

I also mentioned previously that I wasn't thrilled about the leader of Robotica being revealed to be Computo. However, Computo's scenes with Brainy are exceptionally well done. Computo wants to evolve--as all sentients do--but (as Brainy points out) he's willing to sacrifice a planet of billions of people to do so. For his part, Brainy is in denial about his "parenthood" and responsibility towards Computo. The Khund scientist mentioned earlier that the Roboticans are in denial about their servitude to Computo. Denial seems to run in the family.

As the issue ends, we now know Sharn Nux's purpose in the story. She is no mere theorist. She is an assassin--one who no doubt is going to gum up the works of the Legionnaires' carefully laid plans to stop Robotica. The revelation that the Roboticans are in denial about their lack of freedom gives the Legionnaires a way to reason with them. But Sharn Nux has one simple, violent purpose: to destroy Robotica at all costs, even the cost of Earth itself. What a cliffhanger! (And what a way of showing that Sharn Nux and her Coluan leaders are no different from Robotica.)

I think this is the DnA storyline I've enjoyed most. It's focused like their work on Legion Lost but contains plenty of fresh surprises. It's interesting to see them apply their storytelling skills on such a grand scale.

Great comments. I remember looking at the cover in context and thinking, "Ok. so its just some kind of projection." I wasn't disappointed in that, but also really enjoyed the encounter.


Good insight, there!


Thinking about things 20 years later, Gear was created *before* the Matrix had been released, but well after MANY cyberpunk properties had been on the market. That said, its interesting in hindsight how DnA had used Gear after The Matrix as well as after Gear's introduction into the DCU and Legion universe. With the video game release of Cyberpunk 2077, this kind of character definitely takes a bit of the stage when they appear, so I tend to look at them with the lens of both then (turn of the century IT) and now (ML and AI in the forms they are today) both in fiction and nonfiction. I really like what they are doing with Gear.


Again agreed - was she so beaten down by the Khundish training that she's lost her passion? That would be an interesting avenue to travel, and in line with DnA, tbh. (no more acronyms!!!)


You're touching on one of the things that really bothered me about this run. On one hand, we're promised that Tinya/Jo would grow up in the Moy illustrated DnA issue with Robotica at the end of Legionnaires. But then we get on the same goddamn treadmill at the end of Worlds and a year later in Legion. I don't know who the responsible party here is - DnA or McAvennie, but it was a damn cheat. And at this point, I rooted for the whole relationship to go down in flames because I felt cheated after six years worth of BS pining and co-dependency (and a child!!!), they kept walking a knifes edge for well to long and it ended up cutting their storytelling credulity for me. And honestly, I was never convinced of Jo telling Imra that he was absolutely in love with Tinya, and I don't think Imra believed it either based on the upcoming arc. Shoddy up and down, if you ask me, for a reader after two years on this rollercoaster.


Agree here as well - although as you've seen this changes as of the next issue.

yeah, I agree that the Nura/Thom scene was weird.

Also, Thom knows about her visions. was she worried that his gravestone is a vision of the future yet to come? but i think this is a case of poor communication. it shows a gravestone, there could have been one erected somewhere with someone thinking Thom was dead (unlikely, as I think all those who knew were on the Khund convoy with Nura). or maybe a far future gravestone. who knows. but still. I agree, Nura's reaction was completely weird, especially seeing how in Legion Worlds 4 she was screaming and begging him to return to the ship for takeoff. Thom's reaction is understandable to be sure.

also agree about the Tinya/Jo drama. And great point that in Legionnaires 78, just before Damned, we see Tinya and Jo taking steps to mature their relationship by not always being stuck at the hip. Ugh.

finally, I hate that we never actually see Tinya and Jo talk about all this. Jo's later jealousy of Brin is also stupid. Brin helped Tinya, he's doing it out of gratitude for Tinya saving his life... why is Jo so threatened? especially as Tinya here has more reason to be jealous, after seeing the letter Jo wrote to Imra. stupid, stupid, stupid.

conflict is fine, but not when it's set up so poorly IMO. conflict that can be cleared up by a heartfelt conversation between a couple who's shared everything before...

For me, the Jo being jealous and suspicious of Brin rings very true. But you're right - the setup has been horrible. And drawn out.

This actually is making me thing - we're 13 issues in and the only real inter-team relationship we see is Jo/Tinya. Maybe a quick flirt of Rokk & Jaz, but no real "day in the life/off duty" types of stories like we've seen in the past. Sorely lacking, IMO. Not that they have anywhere to really hang out given that Earth has been mowed over four times in a row.

and not counting that terrible issue 9 with Cub, Tinya and Brin stranded in space

And now for #13 . . .


I agree to a point. There is an awful lot of exposition. But I think for the most part it serves a purpose. Computo is drawing an analogy between machinekind and other disenfranchised groups, and I think it helps to view this as a long historical event, just as slavery, segregation, and racism were and still are problems. Much of Computo's dialogue could have been tighter; context is everything. Had these scenes been part of a TV show (any version of Star Trek) or a movie, I think they would work. On the comic book page, they did come across as tedious.

Also, too much time was spent establishing Colu as the secret bad guys of the last millennium. I get it that they hate machinekind and fear being dominated by machines (much as many racists fear being dominated by the people they've oppressed). But the two-page scene on pp. 12-13 struck me as unnecessary. We already know the Coluan leaders are cold-hearted and willing to destroy Robotica at any cost. "Villanizing" them further seemed redundant.

As for the momentum of the story stopping, I respectfully disagree. I think this issue increased the tension. Yes, there is a lot of jumping around, but most of this is necessary. We're not left hanging about what happened to Zoe and Shvaughn--and Zoe's Borgification is another shocker! Things keep going from bad to worse. And, despite their carefully laid plans, the assault team cannot crack Earth's defense shield. I felt Kid Quantum's sober realization that it wasn't going to happen. So much is riding on the Legion getting inside Earth's shield. So much is riding on her. Kid Q's first mission as Legion leader could end in a colossal disaster. This isn't stated, but I can infer it from what she's thinking and the art.

And the cliffhanger has Brainy see things Computo's way and appear to side with his errant "son." Is he really siding with Robotica, or does he have a plan up his sleeve? Knowing Brainy, it could go either way. I loved the uncertainty of this ending.


True, but Coipel has developed into a hard act to follow. I enjoyed Kev Walker's art. There are many standout images, such as Shvaughn's partial face on Page 14, Panel 3, and the hellish view of 25th-century Earth on p. 11.


I loved the scene, too, but I thought it was presumptuous of Brande to offer Brin a flight ring. Doesn't the Legion get a say in this? And just because Brin helped Tinya in difficult circumstances on Rimbor doesn't mean he's cut out to be Legion material. What happened to the audition process? To the physical and psychological evaluations? To being of good character? Brin is still unknown to virtually everyone.

On the other hand, I think this is Brande exercising his prerogative to do whatever he wants, by damn. I would have loved to see someone call him on it.


Don't know, but I appreciated this additional insight into the DCU's future/past (as with M'Onel's mention of the "pre-unified age" last issue). Legion stories didn't often make use of knowledge of the millennium between our time and theirs, so it's nice when it happens.


When ships are being boarded, buildings are being invaded, and whatnot, there is a lot of confusion, and a lot of people think they are the first to report the invasion--and, indirectly, cry for help. And, technically, Gates only says the robotic terrorforms are "coming hard and fast." It's Imra who confirms they've boarded.

All in all, I liked this issue. It advances the plot quite nicely and increases the tension. But I agree that Computo talks too much.

I agree that Coipel's art has really improved by now!

and agree about Brande and Brin. Brin also seems to have killed before, if only in self-defense. But still. Not the Legion way. Should have been a point worth addressing...

Yeah, it's funny that just a couple of months ago we were complaining about his art being inappropriate. I said he made everything look dirty and grimy. He sure has changed! I don't know how much of this is due to Lanning "cleaning up" the art--I don't know if they worked that way, where the inker also embellishes and corrects things. But I like the visuals of this series, even the guest artists.

Another change I've noticed is that the individual issues seem denser. Earlier I complained that the narratives seemed thin, as stories were spread out in order to be collected in trades. I'm not getting that feeling during the Robotica arc.

I also admire DnA for their long-range planning. They've clearly had the whole Ra's al Ghul, Venge, and Robotica developments laid out since LW #1.

yeah indeed, his art suddenly evolved to becoming more sleek - and IMO, more fit for the shining 30th /31st century that stands as a marvel of progress etc.

Good point re long-range planning. And indeed, Robotica (and Robotica's hatred for Brainiac 5) appeared all the way back in Legionnaires 78, even!

Quick note - now I'm the one who's behind! Apologies - its been a really busy week, work wise, so very little time to do much of anything else. I'll try to crank through a couple or three more this weekend!


I think that if they had tightened up this narrative a bit, I would have enjoyed this issue a LOT more. As Branford Maralis would say, "I Heard you twice the first time."


Kinetix's assimilation was well done, as is pretty much anything Jazmin - its very apparent at this point in the books that she's DnA's star (which is totally fine, don't get me wrong), so those bits I think ARE necessary, but the Credo and Colu diversions, as you point out, don't really help the story.


Definitely agree here; the ending here was well done.


Well its interesting, isn't it? They are not a UP organization anymore, so Brande is basically bankrolling and apparently has some degree of veto power.


Coipel certainly grew as an illustrator - I just wish that he hadn't been given the end of LSH v4 and Legionnaires to be his practice run with Lanning as inker. Its very interesting to me that we never saw Coipel's pencils without Lanning's inks. Lanning certainly helped Coipel grow as a penciler, which was very evident over Lost. He also had a decent amount of time to refine between LotD and the beginning of Lost, then didn't do much in the LW series, so had six months to prep for The Legion. I havent' followed him that closely since, but I've seen some drawings of his and he seems to be pretty good. At the time though, it seems as if there were consistency issues with regards to how quickly he could get work done given the volume of guest artists. But I'm just speculating.


Very true on the density - but it does seem to be a bit uneven. As to the planning, I think this is true, and they did at least as much planning as the folks who ran the initial Post-ZH reboot, so props definitely go to McAvennie and DnA. They did have a bit of an advantage with running Lost for a full year, then six months to further set up the universe with Worlds.

On Jazmin--it's great to see one of the non-founders and one of the non-traditional Adventure/'70s era Legionnaires emphasized for a change. The fact that she's a woman and non-Caucasian is a plus as it supports one of the Legion's core values, diversity.

On the Credo subplot--this was merely a reminder of who they are and a set-up for the next story. Although it added nothing to the Robotica story, it didn't bother me.


Good point about them not being a UP organization. I'm not sure where their authority to make arrests and intervene in any planet's situation will come from. Once the Legion has proven its worth--due to bailing everyone out from Robotica--presumably they will go back to the way things were from an operational standpoint. But it would be interesting if some planets (e.g., Colu) hold out and refuse to recognize the Legion's authority. I don't recall their new legal status ever being addressed, but it should have been.

As for Brande, he's just the rich guy who is using rich guy veto power. In an age when billionaires go into outer space and reap record profits during a pandemic, it makes sense that he lives by a different standard than anyone else. The Legionnaires aren't going to oppose him because that would be like opposing Big Daddy. But it's interesting that an issue or so ago, he chose not have a say in how things are done because it's the Legionnaires' turn to shine. However, he steps in to offer Timber Wolf a flight ring (and, therefore, Legion membership), proving he can do whatever he wants.

In some ways, I like Brande's increased presence in this series because he offers the father-mentor figure that was lacking for most of the Legion's history. But I also think opportunities for conflict were lost. I would love to have seen Kid Q or someone say, "Hey, you made Timber Wolf a Legionnaire? What about due process?"

I am quite happy that DNA continued using RJ Brande a lot. I liked having him around as Legion founder, and later UP President, in the pre-DNA Reboot. exactly for acting as a father-mentor figure.

The Legion #14

Released December 14, 2002
DC Comics, Color
22 Pages

Flesh is Weak
Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning - Writers
Oliver Coipel - Pencils
Andy Lanning - Inks
Jason Wright - Colors
Mike McAvennie and Stephen Wacker - Editors

Synopsis

We pick up at the end of last issue's attack on Legion World by Robotica, specifically the attack on the Titanet node. Saturn Girl appears to be the sole survivor of the adepts and appears to be toast when Timber Wolf comes out of nowhere and shreds the Robotican attackers. They do a quick intro of each other. Imra is pessimistic about their odds.

Suddenly, a breach appears in the Earth's shield, apparently courtesy of Kinetix, and the Legion jumps through a threshold. Kinetix is matrixed-into the Robotican construct and somehow Shvaughn was able to convince her to not go full Robotica. The Legionnaires begin to plan an infiltration when they are discovered and the fight begins. Cos and Jazmin handily take out the Roboticans.

Sharn and Lyle adcance the party further and find Brainiac 5 and Computo separated by a force field. Brainy pleads with the Legionnaires that allowing Computo to evolve is the only way to resolve the conflict. Sharn reflexively counters with the premise that allowing machines to evolve will enable them to annihilate life. Kid Quantum gives Brainy the go-ahead. Computo starts to get cold feet, spurring Sharn to action. She charges the force field only to be taken down by an Invisible Kid.

Computo enters the Hypertaxis field only to taunt Brainy as he begins to transform, saying that now that machine kind is evolving he WILL destroy organic life after all. But Brainy has something up his sleeve - when Computo evolves, he believes Computo will evolve beyond vengeance and develop morals, which indeed happens and Robotica disarms. Sharn revives and charges at Brainiac 5 specifically, stabbing him in the stomach and then Computo, who appears to dissolve Sharn.

In the denouement the next day, Robotica withdraws and apparently repairs all the damage done before settling on Pluto/Warworld as their new home. The UP recognizes sentient robots as, well, sentient. Jazmin ruminates about whether destruction of the machines prior to the evolution was killing. Computo and Nux vanished.

Leaving Brainy to recover, Jaz meets Tinya looking over cub. Tinya lets them know the doctors are researching to slow down cub's growth. Tinya and Jo finally reunite.

In the epilogue, at the Omega point at the end of the universe, a glowing figure crashes to the ground with an ominous shadow watching.

Commentary

This issue definitely pulls out of the nosedive of issue 13 by getting back to the linear story at hand and wrapping us up pretty effectively. However, I've noticed that DnA tend to suffer from a couple bad habits in this run of The Legion - They rely way too much on Deux ex machinae (in this case the Deus ex Kinetix) to advance the story (I thought it would have been much more interesting if the Coluans had been the ones to figure a way through), and they tell way too much of what happens in the denouement. Maybe the latter is more a problem with storytelling 22-page stories over several issues. But the issue overall was a mix that balanced more in the positive side of the equation. Brainy was very well presented during this story, as appropriate and Kid Quantum did a great job in leading the team. But we are left with a lot of questions at the end - what happened to Computo? If computo evolved, did all his machines evolve as well? What about other machines created by others in the UP? Those aspects of the whole thing didn't resolve the story to the degree I wanted. That's fine - life tends to not provide the answers we would like to have, but if I'm on Earth with a Roomba, I'd like to know if that's considered sentient or not. Maybe I've read too much sci-fi here, but I think they overstretched a bit at the end with their SF. Anyway, overall I liked it, but there were some nagging weird bits about the ending.

Also, I'm assuming the big bad at the end is Darkseid (Omega point...).

It should be noted that this is Coipel's last issue as a Legion penciler. I found his work in this issue specifically to be uneven - choppy at the beginning of the story, but really solid at the end. Nice little sign off at the end with Coipel and Lanning with the drawing of Jo and Tinya. Not sure what he's done after and how well he does with other inkers, as Lanning is the only one that I know of. As I said in the other message, he needs to be incredibly grateful for Mike McAvennie and Andy Lanning for essentially allowing him to learn to draw comics on the Legion of Super Heroes. As a fan, I don't know if I appreciate that from DC as a publisher, though.

Speaking of McAvennie, this is THE LAST issue with him as any kind of editor. Good riddance and don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Other comments:

Bad coloring on Triad - neutral's eye colors are the same, when they should be different. Tom McCraw leaves and the whole place goes to hell. Also - after 2+ Years we FINALLY kinda have a Chuck/Lu moment??? Sheesh!!! This is the kind of thing that has been bugging me about this run. 14 issues in and we FINALLY see SOMETHING of the relationships pre-DnA, but it ain't what it should be.

Has Sensor ever used "Grife"? She doesn't seem like that kind of character, but its good to FINALLY see her doing something.

Ayla's attitude is frankly annoying. You don't get like that in the middle of action.

An interesting observation on my reading this digitally - I had started with the guided view, but I found that I had to switch to page view in order to follow the action and dialogue better.

The choice given about Computo's evolution wasn't that hard - Robotica was making kibbles out of the Earth, so its not like evolution would change much.

I'm assuming we'll be addressing the Terrorforms next issue? Seems like a huge plot point that's unaddressed.

Overall - B. Good issue to resolve the storyline with some curious gaps and choices.

One MILLION Percent agreement on this point.


It did bother me, as we were dealing with a lot of exposition with Computo, and dealing with Colu and the Legion's actions, so Credo totally took me farther out of the story.


I think we find out somehow, but it likely won't be addressed on panel.



Great point about Brande with today's billionaires rolling around. But I totally would have loved Jazmin really getting into her job and confronting RJ like that.

I definitely agree with you and Ibby - its nice to see him around, but more as the rich mentor from the early 80s (when he went bankrupt) versus the President of the UP.

Ayla was being extremely unprofessional in the middle of the battle

This is the first time we see Kid Q speeding time up, rather than slowing it down. Neat! And I agree , I like seeing her being emphasised

Tinya and Jo meeting and kissing was jarring, especially considering last time we saw Tinya, she had read Jo?s unfinished letter to Imra and was crying?

On # 14 . . .

I found this to be a very satisfying and exciting resolution to the Robotica arc as well as a culmination of everything DnA have contributed so far. Had they stopped their Legion run here, I would have considered it a resounding success. In fact, it is still an impressive achievement although there were many missteps along the way. Their take on the Legion took some getting used to, but they were brought in intentionally to shake things up. They could be viewed as TMK-Lite. They didn't do anything quite so drastic as advance the storyline five years. However, they did disband the Legion and irrevocably changed several characters. Thematically, their "Big Story" is the same as Ketih Giffen's: The world needs the Legion, it needs heroes to show a lighter path through the darkness--and things can get pretty dark without the Legion.

"Flesh is Weak" delivers on that theme in surprising ways while adhering to a conventional story structure. The issue begins with Brin proving his mettle by coming to Imra's rescue. It's a well-executed scene made even better by their interaction. I loved it that Brin didn't realize the ring could make him fly! And as they walk through the rubble after the battle, we're given a good orientation of what's happening, and that leads into an awesome full-page spread of Legion World and the Warworld Dreadnought attacking Earth's shield. I'm truly sorry this is Coipel's last issue. He certainly grew as an artist. Whether this is due to McAvennie and Lanning I leave for others to decide. In the end, Olivier Coipel proved he had the chops. I believe he went on from here to draw Thor.

The narrative moves quickly from the assault team led by Kid Quantum to Star Boy's efforts to brace their orbital mass to Triad coordinating efforts and back to the away team getting through Earth's shield thanks to hyper-Kinetix. A lot of ground and characters are covered very fast, like in a good action movie. Yes, Kinetix once again serves a convenient plot purpose, but I'm willing to forgive this because it moves the story forward. And I think it's great that, despite her back-to-back transformations, Zoe is still devoted to the Legion's cause.

I loved the bit about Lu saying she could kiss Chuck. It's a callback to their preboot relationship but also a reminder that they are very different characters in the reboot. So, don't get your hopes up, boys and girls.

After the obligatory battle with Roboticans, the Legionnaires at last reach their destination: Brainiac 5 and Computo. But all is not as it seems. Brainy implores the Legion to have faith in him as he lets Computo do what Computo will. Given Brainy's history (both pre- and postboot), this is a tall order to ask, but the Legion stands down. This gives Sharn Nux the impetus to reveal her true purpose (and just how fanatical and fearful she is). I love this scene. Choosing to have faith in Brainy is the hardest choice the Legion makes--sometimes the hardest thing to do is nothing but trust in someone else to follow through. But Sharn Nux's fear and hatred blind her into believing that violence is the only solution. The parallels between her and Computo are quite startling.

I'm not sure it was necessary to reveal that Computo was only in it for himself--traditional bad guy motives. But it doesn't matter because Brainy is thinking ahead. He, too, has faith--faith that Computo's evolution will make him see the error of his ways. Brainy believes that as beings evolve, they naturally put aside their selfish and "primitive" emotions such as greed, hatred, and spite. For a character who has always believed in cold, hard science, this is quite a philosophical leap. But it works. It's better than the traditional "beat up the bad guy" ending.

Of course, Sharn Nux is there to beat up on the bad guy, anyway, but her desperate attempt to kill the evolved Computo ends with them both vanishing. Well, you gotta leave something open for future stories.

Kid Quantum tells us the denouement--and, yes, it's telling, not showing, but for me it works. The image of a new day dawning is powerful, and we're told that the Roboticans have moved to Warworld. I'm not sure why M'Onel thought it a good idea to give these powerful former enemies a planet that can turn into a dreadnought, but I guess the Roboticans had to go somewhere. Perhaps Mon has faith that the Operating System can keep them in check.

And then we wrap up with Jo finally being reunited with his family. It's a nice, understated scene. Not a lot is explained. Jo doesn't at all seem surprised to see the baby. And Tinya has (momentarily?) forgotten about Jo's letter to Imra. But, considering all they've been through for more than a year, a moment of peace and joy is welcome relief.

And, oh, yes, we have a cliffhanger, but so what?

Above, I said that if DnA had stopped here, I would consider their run a success. For the most part, I still do; though I don't remember much of the following issues, I do remember that they seemed anticlimactic. From Legion of the Damned through the end of Robotica, DnA had really written a novel--one with many twists and turns but a definable beginning, middle, and end. Sometimes writers really have only one story to tell.

re the action, I agree, it felt like an action movie. Big beat by big beat, lots of things happening at the same time, giving a true crisis feel

Kinetix being the one to open the shield: I also agree, though deus ex machina-y, it was not completely out of left field - the hijacking of Hypertaxis, Zoe's earlier transformation. Her line telling Shvaughn to run away earlier also set this up, and Shvaughn saying Zoe was hanging on to her "organic loyalties', barely, plus Zoe kneeling in determination / possible fatigue, all leant well to it. Also was great having Shvaughn play a key part; Zoe opened the shield, but Shvaughn talked her into doing it. This left Zoe and Shvaughn as key players in this bit. (One thing that felt weird, was telling Shvaughn to watch over Zoe and leaving her behind - but I did read it as having the Kwai guide bring Shvaughn to safety - maybe. I hope. Because what would Shvaughn and an untrained Kwai had done if Zoe had turned on them and killed them?

I did like the conflict and eventual trust in Brainy. I think after Legion Lost and everything up to know, Brainy has earned it. Earlier in the Reboot I would have said no, but Brainy has matured significantly since he first created COMPUTO

I do agree that it was overall good, I liked it, and I felt satisfied after reading all this. On one hand, the Tinya/Jo scene can be taken as a nice reunion and a sign of hope: whatever issues arose will be wrapped up. Timber Wolf has just joined. Zoe continues to be on the side of good despite her transformation. There are a few open points still left of course (Nura being weird to Thom, Tasmia's power loss, Val and Andy still stuck on Steeple, whatever happened to the little volleyballs and the terroforms that Ra's caused, Ra's stupid clones) but overall things are at a good stopping point for now.

I do like that Jazmin thought about, and was clearly troubled by, the implications of Roboticans being declared sentient. Especially as they were under the control of COMPUTO. It's a valid question, and good to have been discussed.