Legion World Forums LEGION CLUBHOUSE The Legion of Super-Heroes Long Live the Legion! "The Lad Who Wrecked the Legion" -- Revisited

The recent discussions over the Adventure-era stories have got me feeling nostalgic, so I decided to go back and re-read my very first Legion story, "The Lad Who Wrecked the Legion."

This story was originally published in Adventure # 328, Jan. 1965, but reprinted in LSH v.1 #1, Feb. 1973. It was written by Jerry Siegel and drawn by Jim Mooney.

As usual, there are three parts to this review: a plot summary, general observations, and a verdict to see how the story still holds up. This time, I’ve inserted a fourth part dealing with the extra features of the reprint. SPOILERS are freely spoiled. Please add your own comments, insights, and arguments as the thread progresses.

A. PLOT SUMMARY

Alerted to a bank robbery, the Legionnaires find that another youth has arrived and stopped the criminals by creating a frightening illusion of the getaway car turning into a monster. The youth introduces himself as Command Kid and, though he’s evasive about his origin, the Legion invites him to join anyway. They soon regret this decision as Command Kid behaves arrogantly and upstages his teammates every chance he gets. Feeling demoralized, the Legionnaires express a desire to have greater powers such as Command Kid’s. He gives them each a pill that places them in suspended animation and tells them that when they wake up, they will be just like him .

However, Saturn Girl and Element Lad, though away on a distant mission, have been monitoring what’s been going on and do some checking on their own. They discover that Command Kid is possessed by a demon and secretly plans to turn the Legionnaires into hosts for other demons. Saturn Girl and Element Lad arrive in time to stop him: Element Lad transforms Command Kid’s console into gold, the demon’s weakness. The demon leaves, and the now powerless Command Kid resigns from the Legion

B. GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

1. Coloring/Art Errors. The first thing I noticed upon rereading this story was the huge number of coloring mistakes and how they influenced my initial impressions of the Legionnaires.

a. Sun Boy’s collar is red on page 4, but yellow in his thought image in the same panel. This led me to believe that Dirk was out of uniform! Perhaps he didn’t like to wear it, I thought, unless he was on duty.

b. Mon-El’s collar is blue, as is the space on his tunic between the buttons that attach his cape to his tunic, on page 7. I rather liked this unintentional design; it made Mon’s costume seem even more distinct from Superboy’s.

c. Lightning Lad’s costume is miscolored on pp. 5 and 7. When I first read this story, I recall thinking he was a completely different character!

d. Star Boy’s costume changes from purple to white on page 8 (actually page 1 of Part 2, but I’m using a simplified numbering system).

e. Element Lad’s costume is colored red, the same as Saturn Girl’s. This led me to believe that it was Saturn Girl’s hand that was transmuting Command Kid’s machine to gold on page 12, panel 2. (Saturn Girl, by the way, is bear-legged in panel 3.)

f. If the colorist wasn’t paying attention, Mooney seemed to have lapses as well. On page 8, Command Kid is wearing white shoulder ornaments for the only time in the story. He seems to have borrowed them from Cosmic Boy, who is missing his shoulder ornaments on the following page.

2. Use of characters.

Before Jim Shooter, Legion writers weren’t too keen on characterization, which made some characters seem interchangeable. This is particularly true for this story, as Legionnaires pop in and out at will.

a. Cosmic Boy, Triplicate Girl, Invisible Kid, and the non-powered Bouncing Boy are all introduced and spotlighted on the first two pages, but they have very little to do in the story. Cos, Lu, and Lyle never use their powers; nor does Shrinking Violet (who, in spite of this, does a lot talking throughout the story).

b. Star Boy doesn’t appear in the story until he is tricked by Command Kid into taking a pill.

c. Apart from Superboy, the only Legionnaires who do anything interesting until the ending are Ultra Boy (who saves Superboy from a gold kryptonite meteor) and Phantom Girl (who phases through a force field to capture some crooks, only to be upstaged by Command Kid).

d. The deus ex machina ending features two Legionnaires who haven’t appeared before arriving to save the day. It also isn’t made clear that Saturn Girl is the leader at this point, which would give her a valid reason for monitoring things at HQ,. I thought she was just being nosy.

e. Command Kid is clearly the star of this story and, in spite of his attitude (or maybe because of it), I liked the character and even identified with him on some level. CK boldly refuses a gold bracelet from the Science Police commissioner because he says he doesn’t need trinkets for rewards. Later, when he overhears the Legionnaires talking about him behind his back, he plays a practical joke on them by creating an illusion of Superboy beating up Mon-El and Ultra Boy. Although we later learn the real reason he refused the gold bracelet, I admired CK’s moxy and his ability to get even with the kids who were talking about him.

f. Superboy, along with Mon-El and Ultra Boy, is tricked by CK into leaving on a wild goose chase. Interestingly, Superboy doesn’t return in time to save the day. I was surprised, as I thought Superboy was the main hero. But the message is clear: the Legionnaires are equal, not sidekicks, and they were capable of fending for themselves.

g. Despite Siegel’s unorthodox means of moving characters in and out of the story, it actually works in creating a “classroom” or “club-like” feel for the Legion. At the beginning of the school year, children don’t always know who all the other kids are, and sometimes kids seem to disappear at random (when they are absent or move away, for example). This story has very much the same feeling.

3. Evaluation of Plot

a. Unlike the character-driven stories of later eras, this story is very much plot driven. That is, the characters serve the plot, instead of the other way around. (This is most evident in the fact that the Legionnaires pop in and out of the story, as described above.) The plot, however, is well done, particularly as a mystery story: It sets up a situation (the Legion admits a new member), introduces complications (the new member gets on everybody’s nerves), builds a mystery (Why does CK act the way he does?), and contains clues that become apparent in hindsight (CK’s aversion to gold). The only major weakness is the deus ex machina ending. It would have been more effective, I think, had Saturn Girl and Element Lad been introduced earlier – perhaps Cosmic Boy could have been talking to them on the monitor instead of playing around with his “ancestor visualizer” on page 2.

b. The plot also offers an effective introduction to the Legion (which is probably why this story was chosen to lead off the LSH’s own series). On pages 2 and 3, we meet some of the Legionnaires, learn that they are from various planets, and get a sense of their world and technology. Then, on page 4, we get a more complete explanation as Superboy fills Command Kid in. We also get to see the team in action for the first time, as they finish building an amusement park!

4. Themes

a. Although it’s never stated overtly, the major theme of this story is envy. CK upstages the Legionnaires at every turn, causing them to question their own worth as heroes and long for greater powers. He then takes advantage of their insecurities by trying to turn them evil. Isn’t this the perfect metaphor for kids who envy those who are popular, good at sports, and so forth? Kids who try to live up to someone else’s standards often pay a heavy price, sometimes in the form of real-world “demons” such as drug abuse and eating disorders. In the end, the Legionnaires defeat Command Kid through teamwork, research, and using their own abilities, not by becoming something they are not.

b. Related to the above theme is a secondary theme of idols. CK seems to be a forerunner of a rock star: Arrogant and flashy, he seems more powerful than everyone else. Yet that persona masks a darker side and, as with many such celebrities, CK ultimately isn’t all he’s cracked up to be. It’s fitting that his super-power is casting illusions; that’s exactly what most celebrities do.

5. Errata

a. Although Siegel mentions twice (on pages 1 and 2) that the Legionnaires are in the 30th century, I wasn’t sure what this meant. I knew Superboy as a 20th century hero who was the younger version of Superman. So, I thought this story took place in some fantastic version of the present day. It wouldn’t be until the next issue that I would realize that the setting was the 30th century, and it wouldn’t be until LSH # 4 that I would see Superboy traveling through time.

b. Although several members are seen wearing flight belts (the precursor to flight rings), the purpose of the belts isn’t identified, so it is unclear that all Legionnaires can fly. This led me to misinterpret page 12, panel 1, wherein it looks as if Element Lad is lunging toward Command Kid and Saturn Girl is leaping on top of the energy field (the “xral energoid”) surrounding her teammates

C. MISCELLANOUS FEATURES

1. The Legion of Super-Heroes Membership List

This text feature by Cary Bates (then writer of the Legion’s new adventures in Superboy) lists all 27 Legionnaires to that time, along with their real names and home planets, and summarizes their powers and origins. I’ve often thought that this feature, more so than the main story, played a crucial role in my becoming a Legion fan. It lists several members who do not appear in this story, so I had to use my imagination to draw what Ferro Lad, Princess Projectra (misspelled Projectora), or Timber Wolf might have looked like. When these characters later appeared in stories, I learned how wrong my interpretations were. However, it was still a valuable exercise that led me to create my own characters.

Equally important, though, is that Bates tells us in just a few sentences everything we need to know about 27 individual characters. The ability to summarize is often taken for granted by writers (and particularly students of writing), but, here, Bates shows how it’s done and why it’s important. Summary distills a complicated idea down to its basic elements and presents that idea to readers in a fashion that is both appealing and easy to grasp. Summarizing is an essential skill for any writer to master, and Bates shows how it can apply to anything, even something “fun” like comics.

But, in addition to misspelling Projectra’s name, Bates makes some interesting errors:

a. Superboy is incorrectly identified as one of the Legion’s “early charter members.”

b. Triplicate Girl, who appears in the story, is not listed as a member. Duo Damsel, who is listed, does not have her home world identified (Cargg, which is mentioned in the story), so I had no way of connecting the two characters. Because she wasn’t listed here, I remember thinking that Triplicate Girl must not be a “real” Legionnaire (perhaps she was their secretary?).

c. More misspellings: Karate Kid’s name is “Val Ammorr”; Cosmic Boy is from the planet “Brall” (which is spelled correctly – “Braal” – in the story); Ultra Boy is from “Nimbor”.

d. Ambiguous wording hinders Mon-El’s bio:”Because of a fatal weakness to LEAD, Lar was quarantined in the PHANTOM ZONE for 1000 years” [caps sic]. I thought this meant that he had a fatal weakness to leading instead of to the element lead. Perhaps this is where I first got the idea that he was never comfortable as a leader.

e. Not really an error, but another example of ambiguity: The image of Colossal Boy looming large over a city encased in glass made me think that this Legionnaire was Brainiac 5! In the Superman cartoon series of that time, the original Brainiac was famous for shrinking things with his shrinking ray, including the Bottle City of Kandor.

2. The Legion Constitution

Selected passages from this document are presented. What strikes me now is how “official” the wording sounded, and how closely it mirrors the U.S. Constitution in some of its complicated rules (i.e., 3/4 of the active membership must be present to vote in a new member, and 2/3 of those present must vote to accept the new member).

Also, the sentence “Absolute loyalty must be required of all members” resonates with Superman’s statement in“The Lightning Saga”: “Our devotion to each other was unexplainable” (JSA # 6) – no, it wasn’t; it was demanded in the constitution.

3. “Big News from DC”

This house ad includes an image of LSH # 1 and several other comics that were on sale at the same time. What’s most interesting to me is that the blurb “On Sale in December” identifies the month I bought this comic – December 1972. What a Christmas present!

DC must have had a thing for giants that month as three of the other comics advertised show giant figures on the cover:

– Doom Patrol features the looming and grotesque figure of the Animal-Vegetable-Mineral Man.

– Challengers of the Unknown shows a giant hand scooping up the Challs in a giant butterfly net.

– The Metal Men are being grabbed and pulled by another giant hand (or maybe the same one, for all I know)!

Other comics on sale that month were Johnny Thunder (the Western hero), Four Star Battle and a Batman 100-Page Spectacular, featuring Blackhawk, the Atom and Doll Man, Wonder Woman, Wildcat, and Robin – all for a measly 50 cents!

4. Other features include a science text (“Our Strange Universe”), a cartoon (“Professor Eureka”), and a six-page Tommy Tomorrow reprint (“The Riddle of the Space Rainbow”). This science fiction offering has some interesting images but a weak story. It lacks drama or significance beyond solving the “riddle” and is more what I would expect from a kiddie comic book (for very young kids, at that). Rereading it makes me appreciate the subtle sophistication of the Legion story even more.

D. THE VERDICT

In some ways, “The Lad Who Wrecked the Legion” is both dated and timeless. It certainly reflects a simpler era, in which the Legionnaires all got along (except for the villainous Command Kid), and where we didn’t need to know much about them, other than here’s who they are and this is what they do. There’s no complicated back story to learn, no psychological profile to understand, no stats and pseudo-scientific rationale for their powers. The story itself is fairly cut and dried and tells in 14 pages what modern writers would take 14 issues to complete.

But the timeless quality of the tale rests in its universal themes: of having the Legionnaires be wowed and then cowed by their new star member, who then turns on them. This is an excellent example of why some stories live on and others don’t, in my opinion. Most readers (especially children) are savvy enough to realize that there is a significance to this story that goes deeper than the events depicted, and also deeper than the gosh-wow enthusiasm of characters who have super-powers. The reader can readily see parallels in this story with his or her own life (or at least this reader did), and can also pick up on the subtle messages being conveyed: Don’t envy others; don’t become too taken with those who appear popular or powerful. These messages resonate whether the reader is in grade school or the adult world.

And what about those characters with super-powers? Siegel doesn’t spend a lot of time on any one Legionnaire (not even Superboy), but there is nevertheless a feeling of community in this story, of the Legion having a collective identity. Despite his prominence on the cover, Superboy is just one of many Legionnaires, and the team doesn’t even rely on him to save the day! Rather, they do so out of teamwork and loyalty to one another. (There’s that word, loyalty, again!). Their powers seem almost an afterthought in the story’s resolution. However, Siegel also shows how wonderful it would be to have super-powers. Lightning Lad uses his lightning to summon forth clouds in order to cool a hot day. Superboy, Mon-El and Ultra Boy use their powers to speed-finish construction of an amusement park. Not only is it great to have these powers, but the Legionnaires seem to enjoy using them to help others. As such, the Legion stood in marked contrast to Captain America, the Fantastic Four, the JLA, and other heroes I was reading about at the time. These heroes were so caught up in the problems of whatever mission they were on that they didn’t seem to enjoy just being heroes. The Legion did.

Although “The Lad Who Wrecked the Legion” was first published more than 40 years ago and seemed somewhat dated even when I read it eight years later, it provided me with a marvelous introduction into the world of the Legion and comics in general (I had read only a few comics before). Even now, I think I was blessed to discover this comic when I did. With a story that celebrated community and a text feature that sparked my imagination, it had an incalculable influence on the way that I thought, the things I wanted in life, and even in choosing writing as a profession.

Not too many LSH tales make use of demons... perhaps wisely. But I'd have liked to see the idea explored a bit more.

HHW, your description of your young self thinking that Imra was just being nosy instead of being the leader made me laugh. I recall thinking, on occasions, that she should mind her own business.

Your description of the story as being both dated and timeless is such an accurate contradiction. It applies to my feelings for the entire Adventure run.

The potential was surely there to do more with the demons or with Command Kid. For example, his last statement -- "... since my super-power vanished when the demon left me ..." made me wonder if his power came from the demon, of if the demon's departure destroyed a power he already possessed. If the latter, then it opens up an interesting possibility: How did he get his powers in the first place and what would he do to get them back?

Of course, Command Kid's illusion casting became superfluous once Princess Projectra was introduced. But I like the idea of him returning as a rival or member of another hero team.

Imra was often portrayed as somewhat bossy or strong-willed. in the Adventure run. Her refusal to accept the idea that bad luck had affected certain Legionnaires in # 343 comes to mind. In fact, I remember thinking that a young Loretta Swit would have been ideal to play Saturn Girl.

...and here I thought this thread was about Waid!

Well, I don't think Waid qualifies as a "lad."

Does anybody else remember this story fondly (or not so fondly)?

This is probably the most simplistic of the "False Pretences" storylines that were becoming of staple of the Legion about the time it came out. It's a solid but unremarkable storyline in my opinion.

One of the really interesting things is the way it foreshadows the very similar Dynamo Boy storyline from just a few months later. I've always assumed that the pirates must've gotten the idea for their plan to infiltrate/takeover the Legion from the failed takeover of the Legion by the demons. Apparently they did their homework, right down to who the easiest Legionnaire to dupe was. Note Star Boy's role as the patsy in both stories. Guess we can blame it on the meds.

Interesting, Eryk -- I never thought of the story as simplistic. A simple idea, yes.

To me, this story succeeds where the Dynamo Boy story does not because Command Kid preys on a very common insecurity of teenagers (even Legionnaires): the fear that they aren't good enough. He also does so subtly, first by becoming someone they admire, and then by showing off to prove he's better than they are.

(It may be a bit much that every single Legionnaire at HQ falls for his scheme, but I chalk it up to peer pressure: nobody wanted to get left out.)

Dynamo Boy, on the other hand, takes advantages of loopholes in the Legion Constitution by getting members expelled for minor infractions. You would think that the Legionnaires would catch on after a time or two, or would put such expulsions to a vote, as they later did with Star Boy. But no, the story makes it far too easy for Dynamo Boy to get rid of everybody else.

You make an excellent point that the pirates (# 330-331), the aliens (# 337), and the Khunds (# 346-347) probably all learned something from Command Kid's actions.

And yes, Star Boy does look like a patsy in both stories.

By "simplisitic" I just meant that it lacked all of the convolutions of the other stories of its type. No LSV showing up mid-story, etc. The Dynamo Boy story certainly has its plot holes, which you point out, but it's a "bigger" story.

To me, there's something really fightening about the idea of a gradual takeover of the Legion by a villainous member joining and then systematically eliminating each member and replacing them with members with similarly villainous motives. It plays on the theme of the changing dynamics of an organization, and how any group can become corrupted if the wrong person starts gaining too much influence in the group. I guess I find that more realistic than "I'll trick them into thinking I'm boosting their super-powers but really I'll replace their minds with my demon comrades!"

In a sense, I agree that the Command Kid story is more successful, but I think that's because the Dynamo Boy story is dealing with a much more ambitious and complex set of themes, ones that the storytelling conventions of the time were probably not adequate to deal with.

By the way, I like patsy-Star Boy a lot. Which is why I don't like schizo-Star Boy, because it makes his patsyness seem like something much less... pleasant.

I had to go back and reread this. It was entirely absent from my memory.

It's strange how much Command Kid and Dynamo Boy physically resemble one another, as well as in terms of attitude.

Envy was a big part of the story, although what came to mind with the pill-to-make-you-more-powerful scene was greed. It was setting up to go all Faustian until Saturn Girl and Element Lad turned up.

Goofy objects were something of a fixture in these stories, but I thought it was interesting that the legionnaires were using their powers for frivolous/entertainment purposes. Not just completing the amusement park - which was a recreational benefit to everyone - but the displays which Triplicate Girl and Invisible Kid worked on, Cosmic Boy looking at his ancestors were sort of self-involved. The award given by the SP - the gold arm band - and the trophies disdained by Command Kid ... it was as if the legionnaires were obsessed with trinkets and the trappings of their fame, and very insecure when that fame was threatened. Only Superboy was working on something to help another person, temporarily restoring Bouncing Boy's power.

Continuity wasn't a big issue back then, unfortunately. It would have been a good story if the legionnaires, when confronted by Dynamo Boy, had been able to say, "Didn't we go through something like this before? Let's not let this one troublemaker split us up."

The departure of the demon was certainly left open-ended. I'm surprised it was never picked up for a later tale.

A final point is the role of gold in the story. I believe gold was often used in silver age comics, while seldom seen today, just as it has diminished from our financial consciousness. That's just a point of personal interest, however.

Actually, I would think that somebody would've said: "Hey, this is like when Dream Girl joined and got us all expelled because she was trying to save our lives! I bet this Dynamo Boy is doing the same thing! What a guy!"

I see your point, though I remember feeling that the LSV angle made the story rather unwieldy. We completely lose sight of the real Legion until the very end of the second part, the entire focus of which is on Dynamo Boy and the LSV. The Legionnaires come in at the very end and save the day; their victory seemed almost as easy as their expulsions.

Agreed. Not only does the Dynamo Boy story play on the theme of organizational dyanimics, but also on the imperfection of laws and rules, which can be subverted to suit someone's personal ends.

I dunno. The themes in the Command Kid story seem just as complex, although they deal more with psychological and social issues than organizational ones.

Good point, Cramer.

I remember suggesting on another thread that the Legionnaires were like rock stars of the 30th century. They certainly had all the trappings that go with celebrity, including -- as you point out -- self-indulgence and greed.

Here's some trivia: Commander Wilson of the SPs, who was awarding the gold arm bands, was mentioned again in LSH #306 - Spotlight on Star Boy - in a flashback featuring Lieutenant Zendak and newly-minted Officer Cusimano.

Good catch, Cramer.

I just wrote (for fun) a screenplay of the Legion's origin, and I had to decide whether or not to use Chief Zendak or Commissioner (not Commander) Wilson as the SP head. I finally decided to use them both for different reasons.

One thing I noticed was the difference in their titles. Zendak is a chief; Wilson is a commissioner. In most police departments, I believe, a commissioner outranks a chief. (At least Commissioner Gordon outranks Chief O'Hara in the old Batman TV series.) Also, the Legion Constitution, as printed in LSH # 1, specifies that the leader of the Legion answers directly to the Science Police Commissioner. While in later stories the term chief seems to have replaced commissioner, it's interesting to speculate that Zendak had a superior officer.

I think the LSH should have investigated that mountain where the demons supposedly live on Preznor (Preztnor?) A follow-up would've been desireable.

Command Kid, himself, still seems suspicious to me. Why was he rummaging around on a mountain with stories about demons on it?

I didn't completely buy his turnaround.

Just as I didn't buy so many Legionnaires agreeing to take a pill provided by someone they only grudgingly tolerated. One, OK. Maybe two- if Command Kid had really concentrated on undermining their confidence. But the whole gang? Bah!

Another potential plot that could've been used in later stories was the intro of those androids designed to impersonate villains the LSH had beaten-- with all the 'rebelling robots' the team's fought, you'd think they would've been naturals!

Dynamo Boy-- "Lad Who Wrecked the Legion" is a tighter, more successful plot- but lacks the great one-off debuts of Eyeful Ethel, Tusker, Golden Boy and Animal Lad (who I'll always contend *deserves* a chance to be a Legionnaire-- cool power, uniform and hairstyle! *And* he's incorruptible!)

I would've liked to see what color aura the actual Legionnaires projected, when exposed to DB's ray.

I also think the writers missed a real opportunity here-- they could've created a teen LSV with new bad boys and girls, rather than bringing in Lightning Lord, Saturn Queen and Cosmic King for surprise turns.

I noticed on rereading that here's one of the few preboot instances in which Element Lad's ability to turn himself into another element is mentioned (but not displayed).

Interesting that he's part of the 'solution' for both the 'false pretense' villains.