Legion World Forums LEGION CLUBHOUSE The Legion of Super-Heroes Preview for ADVENTURE #529...

...can be found at:

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Three pages plus the cover.

With so few pages per issue now I just can't justify looking at previews. With the price of gas, it is getting harder to justify driving 40 miles to pick up these slender titles followed by 40 miles back to the house.



I'll try to figure out how Cosmic King is able to jump back and forth between mags much, much later.

Now let's wait and see how Paul explains Cosmic King and Black Mace's appearance
in LSH 15

Cosmic King's power seems oddly depicted. What did he do to Comet Queen, anyway?

He's a transmuter, and if he was, like Jan, anti-killing, he would likely create walls in front of people, cages around them, suffocating gasses, or even tweak their body chemistry to knock them out (changing the oxygen in someone's bloodstream could cause them to faint, for example).

Since he's not a pacifist, much deadlier options are available to him (that Chemical Kid might be able to stave off, in a few specific cases, but not at all if he decided to turn someone's body into methane or lead or something...).

Having him just generically shoot stuff at people (like any idiot with a blaster could do) sells him short, and also makes his foes seem like they are getting the kid gloves treatment, as if they couldn't handle him if he actually used his transmutation power.

I feel like I'm watching an episode of Heroes, lately, written by someone who has no idea how to write characters with super-powers. Timber Wolf didn't bother using his super-powers recently. Invisible Jacques and Phantom Girl have been forgetting to use their powers. Colossal Boy and Sun Boy have been using their powers, but Earth-Man has been showing them up and using them better. Element Lad's recent use of his powers injured him and didn't affect his enemy.

Is this the Legion of Super-Heroes, or what?

I kind of miss times when Legionnaires would use their powers intelligently or creatively (such as Cham's duel on Durla, where he assumed a hummingbird form to trick the other shapeshifter).

The visuals of CK using his power makes it look like they forgot he's a transmuter and instead have him doing magnetism like Cosmic Boy. Bad.

Was he ever a very good transmuter?

In the story where the LSV primaries ended up on a planet that Jan transmutes an element(the entire, planetary wide element, into a killing, radiation producing element, IIRC, CK couldn't change it back.
Or DIDN'T, anyway.

I actually don't remember him ever doing very much of anything, really.

Set, I know what you mean - I really get the feeling that if either the 247 Legion or the Archie Legion fought this one, the home team wouldn't stand a chance. They have been acting like total amateurs since this series started up again with very very few exceptions.

The thing that makes it more annoying is looking back on some of the awesome stuff they were doing back in the 80's; Shrinking Yera giving one of Darkseid's Servants a stroke, Gim punching a starship out, everything Sensor Girl used to do ever, Brainy outsmarting the Time Trapper, Imra taking down a mind-controlled Mon-El and Ultra Boy AT THE SAME TIME....the Legion used to do amazing stuff as par for course, and now they consistently have trouble with normal guys with guns. It's the same writer, so what changed?

I wish we could have the Paul Levitz from the 80's back, he was a pretty awesome writer...this guy we have now shows a bit of promise every now and then but I'm kind of getting over waiting for him to deliver.

To be fair, I think there is probably more editorial interference these days as well, but still...let's just hope the relauch injects some energy into the Legion's world again.

I am halfway through 529 ... and I'm really confused ... Cosmic King has some sort of force blasts and ... not only can he transmute the air to shards of glass or steel or something ... he can send them flying across the room at people ??

I think it might be a neat trick to make his power signature LOOK like Cosmic Boy's ... maybe that's why he chose his name but ... he's a transmuter. And his power signature is different later in the issue.

Also, I'm confused by the art .. it looks like Dragonwing burns off Cosmic King's head at one point ... only to have him turn off the oxygen after the fact .... and he's uninjured and able to roundhouse kick her.

Later, she blasts his face with her acid breath ... only to have him act like he got a small dose of pepper spray. and he promptly gives her a boot to the face.

There is a nice thing for fans at the end


<span class="spoiler_containter"><span class="spoiler_wording">Click Here For A Spoiler</span><span class="spoiler_text">It's explicit! Gravity kid is indeed Power Boy's spouse .. as GK will be following Jed to Takron Galtos. Fans don't have to wonder at scraps of innuedo this time. I just hope we see them again and they're not exiled to Takron Galtos off panel. Now we know why GK isn't a new legion member. </span></span>

I do think the idea that the Legion Academy kids take on ONE member of the LSV is a cool idea for a done in one issue. (although this was two) One of the pros should be a handful for some trainees ... and they can see what being a Legionnaire is really like ... including fighting murderous villains.

The text is so light I read the issue while posting this post.

LOL!!!

Maybe the writers are under more time pressures nowadays ??

weeeeeell I remember that in Legion of 3 Worlds, he transmuted some kryptonite radiation into yellow sunlight to energize Superboy-Prime (that whiner). I didn't even know transmuters could do that...

I find it odd, too. Wasn't there a recent issue where Element Lad snuffed out a fire by transmuting the oxygen into xenon or some other gas, then quickly transmuted it to oxygen again so the people inside wouldn't suffocate? I think the writer was the same, and so we know they know how to handle the Legionnaires' powers...

That's one of those comic-book-isms, I think.

Iceman does it all the time, shooting icicles at people, even though his power is to create ice, not to telekinetically chuck it at people. (although, much later, he does gain that power)

It's 'wrong,' but, at the same time, something that's been done wrong so long that it no longer feels wrong.

It is amazing. Transmutation is an *insane* power. Element Lad wiped out thousands of Daxamites with a gesture. Sersi wasn't allowed to have any significant presence in JLA/Avengers, because she's the one Avenger who just scoffed at the power level dilemna, and, with a flick of her pinkie, could have turned Superman into a fancy hat and worn him around town.

When a writer is willing to play with that (as Levitz did in the GDS), it's kinda breath-taking.

Otherwise, we see Jan (or Cosmic King here) doing random crap (like shooting energy beams at people) and punching *FAR* below their weight-class.

Ugh. That bugged me. Wasn't he a matter transmuter? Making him also an energy transmuter seems unnecessary when the writer can't even handle his normal power...

Can he also transmute abstract concepts, like hope into fear?

And hey, if he can transmute matter and energy, he could probably turn this paperweight into the Emerald Eye of Ekron! Emerald Eyes for everyone! Buy one now and get an Atomic Axe!

Oh, that's cool. I hope we get to see them again, and they aren't being permanantly written off-screen, making it 'safe' to confirm that on-panel, but it's cool to have it no longer be something that one has to read between the lines because it 'dare not speak its name.'

I wonder if a lot of these problems are with the artist(s) rather than the writer. Say an artist gets the following instructions: Fight scene between Cosmic King and 3 academy members. Now if the artist is unfamiliar with Cosmic King and how his powers work he could very well end up drawing him as if he had Cosmic Boy's powers instead. Along comes Paul to dialog the whole thing and realizes that it is too late to do anything but write words that fit the existing pictures.

Really, how much do we know about the way modern comics are created? Do the writer and artist meet to discuss the books, or do they work independently of each other? Does the author give detailed page by page descriptions of what he wants (as Alan Moore is famous for), or does he (or she) give the artist the freedom to be creative (as Paul very obviously did with Keith Giffen when they worked together in the 80s).

If, as I suspect, it's the latter case, it would take a talented artist with a strong knowledge of the characters to do it well. One only has to read the Phil Jimenez issues of Adventure to see how Paul's writing is enhanced by such an artist.

Hmm. I actually liked this issue a lot. The artwork was greatly improved over last issue. I'm not bothered by the quirkiness of Cosmic King's powers. I really don't recall his powers ever being really well defined in past appearances. This is the most formidable he's ever been, which is fitting for a founding member of the LSV.

Regarding Chemical Kid's power and altering radiation. Well, again the powers have never been really well defined or used properly, but this is very much in line with past continuity. Condo was shown using his powers to slow the spread of radiation on a few occasions back in the day. As a matter of fact, that's exactly what he was doing when he died.

Um, speaking of death. Not much of a reaction here on the death this issue. Is that what comics have come to? We've gotten so used to death that it generates little to no reaction. At least there was a sense of sacrifice and some real mourning.

And yes, this was a historic issue for those of us who have been waiting for decades for innuendo to be replaced as the the status quo when dealing with gay characters. Tel is Jed's spouse. Say it loud. Say it proud.

So, the revival of Adventure Comics draws to a close. It's definitely been a mixed bag. The Johns/Manapul Superboy issues were top notch. The early Legion back ups were teasers with little substance. The Blackest Night and New Krypton tie ins were painful. Levitz return with untold stories of the past were sometimes interesting, but kind of messy at times. I got a kick out the Atom back ups, but felt like a minority of one. The Legion Academy has been great fun. Several of the kids are moving to the main team, and they are good characters. In spite of the bumpiness, it's been nice to have the title back. Hopefully we'll see a return sometime in the not to distant future.

NO ATTEMPT TO HIDE SPOILERS HERE:

More than anything, I felt relieved this issue's death WASN'T Gravity Kid, a character I am very much invested in, and was instead a character that I really didn't care two figs about. Sad and shameful, but that's the truth for me.

LOVED the wrapup with Tel and Jed. *dreamy sigh* This is akin to me finding out Chris Carmack or James Franco is gay... *dreamy sigh* Jed, all my dreams for you have come true *dreamy sigh*

I certainly enjoyed ACADMEY better than the main LSH title by far. I'll miss it.

Well, good! It's about time the Legion got a well-done, openly gay couple.

Say, would anyone care to spoil who died this issue? I have a hunch who it is, but won't be able to grab an issue until... well, I really don't know.

Even if writers and artists don't coordinate, and they really should, a quick google search will give all the information needed about the characters' powers.

Creativity is one thing, but isn't it important to adhere to established power/skill parameters?

This post made my day, Set! Wonderfully sarcastic of you

so who died?

Should I say SPOILERS ...........
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pretty much jaded.

Variable Lad and Cosmic King have pretty easy outs with their powers.

so yes jaded with the death as good sales drama, and yes them not being dead wouldn't be very far fetched in the grand scheme of comic deaths.

I'm more puzzled as to why they all think Variable Lad and the villain are indeed dead, considering their powers ...

Variable Lad?
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.
.
What an anticlimatic bit of hogwash.

Thank goodness for the #1boot.
Or will everything go on the same?
If they're all 5 years younger, except for the Academy students, who remain the same age, which is Legionnaire age, about, how is that going to work out for say, Lar and Shady or Chuck and Lu or Lydda and Rokk or Brande being dead or . . . .
sigh


I'm glad about Grav and Jed, though.

Deus ex machina Lad dies in a deus ex machina. Is anyone really surprised? And yes, he and Cosmic King could come back if their gaseous states are somehow collected and turned back into solids I suppose.... but why bother? They would just have to dispose of him again. Bet Dr. Gym'll is going to be really POed that his nephew bit the dust.... ummmm.... turned into dust/gas/whatever. This whole thing was badly written, mediocrely drawn and except for the brief confirmation of Power Boy's relationship with Gravity Lad, a complete waste of time and money.

Presumably, the assumption is that they can only be transmuted through conscious thought and that in their current state of being dispersed gasses they have no conscious (or unconscious) thought with which to transmute themselves back into organized solids. This may or not be true of either or both of them (after all, Variable Lad was shown in a sentient gasseous form just a few pannels beforhand, and who knows what the writers think Cosmic King is capable of?). I am guessing that this situation has never risen before with either character in this version of the Legion.
Of course, by assuming that, they have virtually guaranteed that at least the villian will indeed return.

Cosmic King can't be dead...he's in LoSH #15

I wish in Legion 16, Cosmic King fall to the revenge of Duplicate Girl.