Legion World Forums LEGION CLUBHOUSE The Legion of Super-Heroes Personalities of Legionnaires

That would be awesome, I would love to read them. I have never heard of Wizard magazine, what is it?

PG, Wizard is a monthly magazine about comic book pop culture stuff. I bought the issue only because I knew it had a Legion article in it. I'll try to copy them tonight.

Thanks, I'll be watching the site. I'm on duty tonight! Sigh! When will the Leadman ever give me a night off!

From "Legion Roll Call" by Kevin Mahadeo in "Wizard" #204 (October 2008), p. 52-55

Overview: "Wizard chatted with Goeff Johns to familiarize ourselves with these key characters we'll be flying with as the six-issue miniseries continues."

Note: I'm ignoring info on Superman, Superboy-Prime, Starman and Green Lanterns and some other stuff because they don't contribute anything new or useful to this discusion, imo, and I don't want to be accused of copyright infringment. I've taken the liberty of adding my own admittedly biased comments after each character profile.

--------------------------------

COSMIC BOY
One of the Legion's founders (along with Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl), Cosmic Boy represents "the American Way" as the de facto leader of the team. Johns explains that Rokk Krinn's magnetic powers reflect his desperate desire to keep the team together and unite the universe against intolerance and hatred.

"He's the cornerstone of the Legion. He strives to fill the role that Superman has whenever Superman isn't there. They all look to Superman for inspiration, and Cosmic Boy struggles with trying to keep that inspiration together."

[Comment: Cos being "de facto leader" underscores the disarray of the Legion organization -- they haven't had an election recently. This is not the first time Comic Boy has been compared to the other black-haired, square-jawed Boy Scout. No word about his relationship with Night Girl.]


LIGHTNING LAD
As wild and uncontrollable as his powers, Garth Ranzz's sense of Justice inspired that aspect of the Man of Steel's mantra. Lightning Lad's quick temper and tendency to become easily agitated cause quite the lightning storm as the rest of the world slowly loses faith in the Legion.

"He reminds me of a Clint Barton-type character or a Hal Jordan. He's got a lot of bravado. He doesn't hold back, he tells people what he thinks. He strikes back hard. But he probably laughs and smiles more than any of the other founders because he does enjoy who he is and what he does."

[Comment: Clint Barton is (or was) the Marvel archer, Hawkeye, a fiery, brash, physical hero type. And in comparing LL to Hal Jordan (the love of GJ's life), the writer betrays he has a little man-crush on Garth, too. Johns' LL actually seems more like 'Toon Garth than original Garth or anyone else. We can take the writer's comparisons and personality-tweaking as tacit confirmation he's ignoring the abhorrent 5YLL Garth/Proty retcon -- not that anyone supposed he'd do otherwise. Johns doesn't say if his twin Ayla is "wild and uncontrollable" too, though the scene where she blasted Brainy's Phantom Zone projector implies she's not all that level-headed, either.]


SATURN GIRL
The final member of the Legion's big three, the telepathic Imra Ardeen provides a counter balance to her lightning quick temper of her husband, Lightning Lad. Her good nature and kind heart keep the Legion's path strong and true.

"She's the soul of the Legion. She believes there's good within people because she's literally seen it within their minds. Superman's right: They have the potential for great good. They just need to be shown the way. And because she can tap into that and see it, everyone believes her. She embodies truth."

[Comment: I pause here to vomit uncontrollably for five minutes. Soldering Cos's and Garth's personalities to their powers is bad enough, but it sounds like John has leeched every last ounce of ambiguity and complexity out of Imra. Her flat oh-so-noble personality matches her boring and sexless appearance -- a fate worse than death for her, imo. Johns confirms that Saturn Girl and Lightning Lad are married in this continuity, but has completely changed the dynamics of their relationship with his personality-jiggering. Hey, maybe he wants Garth for himself. He doesn't say if the couple ever retired to have children.]


BRAINIAC 5
Once deemed the most intelligent being in the universe, Brainiac 5 lost the leadership of his homeworld Colu to Brainiac 6, an act that prompted the Coluans to turn their back on the slightly egomaniacal Legoinnaire. The act fuels Brainiac 5's desire to save the universe and prove his worth not only to his people, but to everyone else in the universe."

"He's the engineer as far as plans go and experiments and also contingency plans. The lightning rod he's been carrying around since [2007's JLA/JSA arc] The Lightning Saga is going to be a focal point in what he does."

[Comment: "Slightly egomanical? Heh. Johns has more to say about the lightning rod in a sidebar: "If you like my Teen Titans and Flash and you like lightning a lot, you need to read Legion of Three Worlds. You will see lightning strike in this book." Johns couldn't telegraph more loudly that Brainy captured Bart Allen in the rod and will release him in LO3W.]


SUN BOY
Essentially, Dirk Morgna's flame has been extinguished since the recent Action Comics arc. "Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes", leading him to quit the team he once loved.

"He's burned out. His powes are burned out. His passion for the Legion is burned out. His hope for tomorrow is burned out. He's just fried. Over the last three years, he's seen the downside of [being a Legionnaire]. He's become a little jaded. He lost the reason why he became a Legionnaire in the first place. Was there anything else there beyond the women and the fame? Why did he join the Legion of Super-Heroes?"

[Comment: Yeah, I get the "burned" puns. Enough already. Johns effectively replaces the original, pre-Crisis Dirk Morgna with the post-Crisis/5YL Dirk persona, though his death in the 5YLL is obviously not part of this continuity. GJ implies it's been only "three years" since his Legion last saw Superman at the end of the first Crisis. So why do some of them look so geriatric?]


POLAR BOY
This one-time Legion of Substitute Heroes leader longed for years to be a part of the A-team, and now that he's entrenched, it'll be a cold day in hell before he splits.

"Polar Boy is like that kid who finally got on the team and he never thought he'd be part of. So, every day he wakes up and looks at that ring and goes 'I'm still a Legionnaire!' Every time he puts that ring on, it feels like the first time again. I never gets old. He's always been know as the over-eager Legionnaire. He's always in awe about everything. 'What's this room in the headquarters? Oh, it's the gym. It's amazing!' He feels very honored to be there, so it hurts him a lot when people don't understand the value of it."

[Comment: Johnsboot PB's personality is similar the over-eager post-Crisis Brek written by Levitz in the late 80s, but Johns doesn't mention he was ever elected leader or screwed up the job. So I guess that part is out, too.]


WILDFIRE AND DAWNSTAR
This pair of star-crossed lovers could never make their romance work, mostly because she's a human with navigation powers, and he's a bag of anti-energy housed in a containment suit.

"Dawnstar's a pathfinder. If she needs to get somewhere, she knows exactly what path to go down, whereas Wildfire lost his humanity. He became a being of pure energy, so he holds onto everything that reminds him of what being human is -- and that includes the people he cares about. He's struggling with that right now because Dawnstar is focusing on everything but the people."

[Comment: I pause here to have a mild stroke. The return of the "star-crossed lovers" shtick is bad enough, but Johns has given freakin' Dawnstar (a tracker) Shikari's pathfinding powers! What an ... (self-censored). ]

.
.
.
.
.

Allowing for a brief period in the recovery room, on to the Villains.

The Villains of LO3W

"They're all psychotic, says Johns, "They're all revenge-driven and are hateful beings. They're criminals, plain and simple. There are no redeeming qualities among any of them."

[Comment: Ugh. Unambigious bad guys are no better than Saturday morning cartoon villains with greasy moustaches. What a terrible injustice to some of the richest Legion characters ever created.]


LIGHTNING LORD
The older brother to Lightning Lad and Lightning Lass, Mekt Ranzz lived his life as an outcast, which caused him to become as mentally unstable as the powers he wields.

"Lightning Lad and Lightning Lass are twins, and everyone else on their planet is twins. Lightning Lord was born solo. He's always been an outcast of the family and of the planet. He's insanely jealous of his younger brother and sister."

Johns says he especially likes the personal connection of Lord's vendetta against the Legion.

"To see the blackened corpse[s] of his brother and sister would bring him great pleasure -- and that's twisted."

[Comment: I'm weeping uncontrollably at the virtual death of my all-time favorite super-villain. Johns makes a radical change to the Ranzz family dynamics, and in doing so, transforms Mekt into a plastic monster. The Levitz (and reboot) Mekt did not want to see the blackened corpse of his sister. He wanted her to be his twin. He was capable of love -- twisted love -- but love all the same. Slim chance Johnsboot Mekt will ever go into Rehab or have a personality we can empathize with.]


SATURN QUEEN
A telepath like Saturn Girl also hailing from Saturn's moon of Titan, Eve Aries opposes everything her Legionnaire counterpart represents.

"She's the opposite of Saturn Girl in the way she knows the everyone is capable of evil. She can exploit that in people. Everyone's done something that they've regretted, and she can bring that back up to the forefront of their mind."

Johns also admits that the self-proclaimed royal villain's intriguing personality adds much depth to the character and her motivations.

"She just really enjoys the pleasure of looking at a Legionnaire and saying 'You're no better than I am. You just don't give in yet. You will, though.' There's something scary about that."

[Comment: Johns ignores both TMK Eve who married Tenzil Kem and the Adult Legion Eve who was rehabilitated by Superman. I hope Tenzil isn't too lonely these days. ]


COSMIC KING
Despite his name, Cosmic King bears no relation to the magnetic Cosmic Boy, even in powers. Instead, Laavar Bolto wields the ability to transmute any element into another, making him one of the most powerful members of either Legion.

"He's an enigma to a lot of them. We'll be exploring him a lot more than I think he's been explored in the past. He's a sociopath. He took the identity of Cosmic King not because he has any relation to Cosmic Boy, but because he wanted to be in power alongside Saturn Queen and Lightning Lord. He has immense power, and yet he's not satisfied. Power over elements means nothing to him. He wants power over people."

[Comment: Johns doesn't bother mentioning Element Lad, who has the same transmutation powers, and all but reveals the reason E-Lad is M.I.A from LO3W -- because he wants Cosmic King to cut loose without being hampered by any serious competion. Another personal disappointment.]


UNIVERSO
A long-time Legion villain with the potent power of super-hypnosis, this grand schemer started out with a heroic legacy.

"Universo was once a Green Lantern. He's actually a renegade in the same vein as Sinestro. SInce then, his son has taken his ring and become the last active Green Lantern. Like a lot of these guys, he has a power based on control,. He has a mystical jewel he uses for hypnosis that he uses to control e people. He's very militiant. He's very much the inheritor of Sinestro's legacy."

[Comment: His "son" is Rond Vidar, of course. Johnsboot Universo as the 31st century version of Sinestro confirms some people's worst fears that the writer is going to play Connect-the-Dots between the present and future DCUs. In a sidebar, Johns adds the cryptic comment "There's one Green Lantern and one Guardian of the Green Lanterns, and the Guardian is not a Guardian." Yeesh. By now it should be obvious I'm no admirer of Johns' writing.]


THE JUSTICE LEAGUE OF EARTH (portion only)
"[Radiation Roy and Spider-Girl] are back in the Legion of Super-Villains. They've been mainstays as Legion villains for years and years. Again, they're all just as twisted as we saw them in the Superman and Legion of Super-Heroes' story.... Golden Boy got his face melted by Fire Lad. It's still partially melted and he's pissed. Storm Boy also has a [grudge] with those guys."

[Comment: By "those guys" he means The Subs. Johnsboot Spider-Girl never reconsidered her life of crime. He doesn't mention Earth-Man, the Big Bad of the SM/LSH arc, who I asssumed was on Takron-Galtos when Prime freed the other villains. I guess not, because he's served his purpose and isn't needed anymore.]


That's all, folks.

WOW!!!!! TOTALLY AWESOME POSTS!!!!!! EXCELLENT TO WORK WITH!!!!!THANK YOU!!!!!

You're welcome, PG. I'm trying to fix all the typos now.

Is anyone else disappointed by Johns' focus on those eight Legionnaires? I know people enjoy Dawnstar and Wildfire, but I always found Dawnstar pretty dull (despite a cool costume and powers) and Wildfire fairly one-dimensional. And we'll continue to see Polar Boy and Sun Boy as counterparts to one another.

I think the most disappointing thing is that for a story that is designed to be six issues bringing in Legionnaires from three different teams (dozens of Legionnaires), it looks like the focus is going to be on 8 of the Action Legionnaires.

I'd be fine with the focus being on only eight of the Legionnaires, if only it was on eight of the Legionnaires, and not on eight unrecognizable malformed caricatures of the Legionnaires.

Geoff Johns, IMO, has just proven what I thought during Lightning Saga. He has *no clue* who these people are. Imra is Truth? Garth is Justice? Rokk is *The American Way?*

And the Sun Boy 'burned out' and 'fried' anvils?

Kill. Me. Now.

Keep in mind that this interview was published in Wizard, meaning it's written at about a second-grade level. So this may well be an extreme oversimplification of what Johns really thinks about these characters.

The "Truth, Justice, American Way" cruk and power-centric personalities aren't new or unique to the Wizard interview. Johns has been trying to hammer in these stereotypes for quite some time now in the zillion or so interviews he's given in other places, and it's becoming ever more obvious in his writing they're supporting players designed to add value to his new/old Superman mythos. Whether Superman -- once he's out of picture -- has added enough value to the Johnsboots to allow them to be written as fully-realized individuals can only be answered later. But I suspect it's really Superboy-Prime, not Superman, who's the main reason LO3W is getting so much attention.

For mass consumption by second graders, we've had the "Toon and Johnnie DC versions, which (imo) contain truer and more deeply layered heroes and villains than Johns' remanufactured, pseudo-original LSH and LSV. Unfortunately the personality profiles of them that were entered on the board maybe two years ago no longer exist or I'd provide a link to them.

And that's what really bugs me. The cartoon had, IMO, *vastly* better, and truer, characterization, than Geoff Johns Action Legion, whom I have strongly resisted calling 'Classic Legion' or 'Pre-Crisis Legion,' because of how he's mischaracterized them.

I could give a rodent's backside if he resurrects Karate Kid or has Luornu able to triplicate again, *so long as he gets their characters right.* And, IMO, he ain't done that, which makes his Lightning Saga / Legion of Three Worlds Legion feel like yet another reboot or Elseworld, since they aren't the same people I remember, no matter what costumes they wear or what names they use.

They're all Skrulls!

It occurs to me that Johns is doing the exact same darn thing that Waid did, defining the Legionnaires personalities by their powers. Phantom Girl is 'not all there,' Dream Girl is living in a dream (with no Pseudo-Echo soundtrack), Sun Boy is 'hot,' Lightnin Lad is 'a live wire,' Cosmic Boy is 'magnetic' and 'holds stuff together.'

Blech.

I've often thought that a person's personality must adapt to their superpower. How could it not?

I suppose over-doing it is the problem ,though.

And yet one could 'adapt' in all sorts of ways. A telepath could be terribly manipulative, used to steering conversations, or even lines of thought, in whatever direction suits her agenda, and even do so unconciously. She could appear terribly shy, as she is uncomfortable with the constant barrage of non-mentally-shielded people thinking their too-loud thoughts and flaunting their utter lack of mental discipline. She could be jaded and bitter, hearing every ugly comment and uncharitable thought that every single person bites back and doesn't say, and regarding that as the 'true person,' not the surface person that everyone else sees and hears.

Similarly, a lightning wielder *could* turn into a gung-ho spaz, with a temper as explosive as his powers, believing that since he's got a 'big hammer,' every problem in his life should be solvable by blasting it with lightning, and growing frustrated when called upon to deal with a situation he can't just shoot his way out of. Or he could be extremely soft-spoken and confident, aware of the tremendous power surging through him, and it's devastating potential to cause death and destruction if he doesn't manage his temper and treat his power with the respect it deserves.

There's no one 'right' solution for how a power is going to affect someone. But, after thirty plus years, there are 'wrong' ways to portray established characters. Saying that some alien represents the American Way and that his ability to float bits of metal around give him a 'magnetic personality' or make him a 'natural leader' is just lazy characterization and reaching, IMO.

Has Dirk always been portrayed as hot-headed or fiery-tempered? No. He's generally been very easy-going and laid back and fun-loving, more of a lover than a fighter, because the writers who have worked with him in the past haven't tried to shoe-horn him into some lame cliche of 'fire powers = hothead.'

Tying magnetic powers into 'holding the team together' is like saying that Wildfire must talk a lot and drone on because he's a 'gasbag' or that Colossal Boy must be expansive and talk with his hands and be shouting and excitable and the center of attention, because he's 'larger than life.'

It's certainly one way to go, but since the characters already have characterizations, it's not the *right* way to go, to try and strip away their histories and turn them into one-note caricatures of themselves.

Well, we'll see if the one-note characterizations in the above Johns descriptions actually become apparent. I would say that we definitely have a more hot-headed Garth than ever, which totally confuses me. Imra and Cos haven't come across as extremely different at this point. Nor the others, really. It's too early.

One of the things that I really like about Saturn Girl, at least in the preboot and reboot (but not yet evident in the threeboot), is that she has always been depicted as one of the most talented precogs in Titan's history and that her education and training has been a huge part of her life, which clearly has shaped her personality.

I wonder, based on Set's above comments, what would have happened to Imra if she was left to her own devices, without the training?

I agree with Set. I'm not at all comfortable with this trend of trying to match personality to powers. It's ambiguous and could potentially make the characters one dimensional. It seems like a gimmick rather than sincere writing.

I'm reading the John's Legion as another reboot, so changes in personality won't bother me too much if they are interesting. It does blast another big hole in the claims that his version is the return of the original. I assume it is disappointing to those who really thought a return of the original team was desirable or realistic. So far they've gotten additonal continuity flubs and confusion, costumes of questionable appeal, and now all "new and improved" personalities.

Why would it have to? Set does an outstanding job of showing how personalities might adapt to powers in different ways, but why would it be necessary or even desirable to assume that everyone who has lightning powers must have an "electric" personality?

To look at it another way, everyone on Braal has Cosmic Boy's abilities. Does this mean they all have "magnetic" personalities in some way?

To extrapolate this further into real life situations, do all Asians, Africans, Americans, or Swedes (for examples) have the same personality traits? There may be common cultural traits and values, but to focus solely on those is to deny each person's individual qualities. It also leads to stereotyping.

Even though Johns is writing about fictional characters from fictional worlds, his approach in describing the characters strikes me as overly simplistic.

No wonder they want to get off-planet so badly... Whole lotta people wanting to be top dog!

I think Cargg suffered the worst for this 'define character by powers' concept in the Threeboot. The whole planet is now Lu. Teeming masses of Lu's, all with the same personality, so similar in thoughts and feelings that Trip going off-world for a few months was enough to taint her so that nobody would touch her.

Boring!

Bgtzl didn't fare too well either. Instead of a planet full of 'phantoms,' we know have a mirror image of earth, with one girl able to move between them. Winema Wazzoo may or may not exist in the threeboot, but she'll never be a UP dignitary, or, possibly, never even know that the UP exists, unless Tinya happens to mention it.

It's just hugely limiting to have every character become a caricature of their power-set, as if they were lifeless drones with no personalities of their own, before getting powers (or are just one of a million plus identical power-defined-people on their homeworld, who also have no personalities of their own).

DREAM GIRL


Ditz... Flirt... Beauty.

Her somewhat shaky early days with the Legion has led to Nura being frequently overlooked and even looked down on at times. Whereas Saturn Girl is oft-requested for missions despite a mistaken beief by many that she is a "iron butt" or "hard-ass", Nura spent much time being ignored due to a mistaken belief that both she and her power were "too weak".

Of course Nura, and certain others, knew better.

The "science crew" of the team (Brainiac 5, Invisible Kid, Sun Boy) knows Nura to be valuable in that department.

The "fighters" (Triad, Karate Kid, Timber Wolf, Violet) know Nura to be a top-notch unarmed combatant.

And her skills as a partying "It Girl" have always been admired by Bouncing Boy and Matter-Eater Lad.

As the daughter of Naltor's High Seer, Nura was valuable primarily in a political way during her early days with the team. Now she is seen much differently, as someone even the current leaders will defer to because of her premonitions. No planned strategy is put into motion without running it past Dream Girl first.

Through it all, Nura has always known her own value and tolerated others' misconceptions of her quite well and with good humor.

Her life's choices are dictated by the knowledge of the consequences, which still continues to frequently make her actions an engima to this day. Many of her teammates remain leery of her.

She knows how it's going to all end up, so why worry?

PRINCESS PROJECTRA


Another member valuable in a political way, Jeckie's 'flashier' power made her more prominent than Nura in the early days. Nura and Projectra became fast friends due to similar backgrounds.

By breeding regal, respectful and angered when misunderstood, Jeckie herself is not one to look down on others. She certainly enjoys creature comforts-- the posher and more lavish the better, and enjoys sharing those comforts with her friends. She uses her powers almost unconsciously in social situations, tending to subtly alter certain things about herself that will put others at ease.

She is not above a brawl when placed into the situation, and training with Karate Kid has actually made her quite skilled in that area. However, as her powers matured to the Sensor Girl-level, Jeckie rarely finds herself even required to use her fighting skills.

Jeckie has dabbled into the magical arts of Orando, and frequently invites Dream Girl to join in her dabblings, though neither is any kind of proficient in the area.

FERRO LAD


Disclaimer: For me, Ferro Lad only worked as he was originally presented and during the Bierbaum's LEGIONNAIRES stint. My bio for him will likely lean heavily on Tom and Mary's version and is written with the idea that he is still alive.


A brash daredevil, Ferro Lad never fails to both entertain and horrify his friends. If he were from the 20th century, his favorite TV show would almost certainly be MTV's "Jackass".

"The Legionnaire in the Iron Mask", Ferro Lad initially gave the story of facial disfigurement as the reason for wearing it. In reality, he wears it because he thinks it looks pretty damned cool and to a lesser extent to keep his ID as the son of a famous holoflick star a secret to the UP. But mostly 'cause it's cool.

And Ferro Lad likes things that are cool. His best bud is Ultra Boy. He started a band with Matter-Eater Lad and Sun Boy. He has ties through his family to the holofilm industry and tends to name-drop. His daredevil antics make him a favorite of the guys and bring out the maternal instincts of the girls and he tends to be fawned over. Which he doesn't mind a bit.

He is also close to the Legionnaires he joined alongside, and has rivalled Karate Kid for Princess Projectra's affections.

Jeckie even bases her Sensor Girl mask-illusion on Ferro Lad's.

I should clarify that I prefer my Legionnaires to be complex, well rounded characters, and I am not "voting" in support of one dimensional carboard cut outs assigned to particular powers.

The true preboot Legionnaires were not so easily categorized. Ignoring the Proty aspect, Garth was always shown as very loving and family oriented and devoted and a fun, friendly person. "Electric" or "livewire" were not particularly accurate descriptions for him.

On the other hand, Ayla was fairly guilty of acting like the power she had at the time. Light Lass was demure; the twin sister, the caring girlfriend. In battle, she'd be apt to say, "Oh no! That big villain is coming at me! I'd better make him feather-light so he can't hurt me." When she became more independant and got the lightning back, it became all about "Who can I blast?"

I suppose she is the most extreme example that comes to mind.

To follow up, I should also say that there has been a fairly sad lack of diversity of culture shown on the planets of this comic. The above question about Braal--- do they all have magnetic personalities? We don't know. Are they just like Earthlings? The answer to that would certainly shape the way Cos acts in the Legion.

One more post....

It occurred to me that it would be interesting to test the Legionnaires' true characters by switching or removing their powers.

What if Dirk shrank? What if Gim could create shadows? What if Tinya could hurl lightning? How much would they change?