1:1 8:4 You can tell by the teenage-tiny words that this panel was simply shot down from the cover. Oh, also, it's Swan swapped in for Forte. I can't think of another example where the cover of a comic was reprinted as a panel of the story.
I can't either, but the John Forte-drawn characters in this scene from Adv. 318 were rearranged and placed into Lois's earrings in Lois Lane's Luckiest Day (LL #50), which was drawn by Kurt Schaffenberger, which is kind of funny, given their poses. It looks like they're trapped in her earrings and looking for a way out.
Tuesday morning is deadline day for me at the paper, which makes that and Monday hella-hectic for me. So, I hope you'll forgive me for posting my Adventure Comics 312 re-read early...
ADVENTURE COMICS #312
PERSONAL BACKGROUND: Purchased in 1983 at a used book store in Bingham, Maine for $3 when I was 15, this was only the second issue of the Legion's Adventure Comics run I ever owned. I remember being really taken back by John Forte's art. Between the stiff poses, the expressionless eyes and more profiles than I'd ever seen in any comic, I was less than impressed once I got the book home and opened it up. I've since grown to appreciate Forte's facility with a brush, as well as his draftsmanship and story-telling ability, but at the time I thought this was some serious cave-wall artwork.
STORY SYNOPSIS: After searching the cosmos for a cure to help Lightning Lad get over a bad case of deathitis, the Legionnaires discover one of their own holds the answer, but he's holding back because reviving one dead hero will require the death of another in, "The Super-Sacrifice of the Legionnaires!"
HISTORICAL NOTES: So, it's the end of the original Lightning Saga. Having read the last chapter first, it's hard to imagine how readers at the time must have felt as Lightning Lad's return was teased issue after issue. Of course, his death was not mentioned in issues 306 and 307, which leads me to suspect the resurrection was not planned from the beginning. Sure, an atypical editor's note hinted at Lightning Lad's eventual "surprising" return, but Uncle Mort had a habit of teasing stories that he'd never get around to publishing. Issue 305 did remind us of Lightning Lad's, but then, as noted, no mention of him at all for the next two issues. Given the delay between production and publication, I tend to believe the plan for issue 308 was to simply replace Lightning Lad with his sister and be done with it. It was probably while that issue was in production that letters began to remind poor Mort of a certain Lightning MAN. Issue 309 is, like 306 and 307, curiously bereft of Ranzz siblings and I wonder if it might have been written first, with issue 308 rushed into production as the first letters of reaction to Lightning Lad's death came pouring in? Subplots, of course, were practically unheard of in those halcyon days, and, really, the run-up to Garth's return isn't quite the run-on we imagine. Ayla appears briefly in issue 310 then not at all in 311, before returning in #312, by which time Garth's lifeless corpse has finally been moved out of the clubhouse to "lightning world."
TROPES AND THEMES: Although the nominal point of this story is the return of Lightning Lad, it's really a full-length examination of one of the early tropes of Legion comics. While the Bizarro World feature it replaced featured nominal plots wrapped around the wacky things Bizarros do, early Legion stories built on a similar structure, using the plot as a filler following what DC must've figured would really engage young readers - the wacky things future people do. Usually, this was accomplished in the first few panels via use of way-out future tech, or receipt of strange gifts from other worlds. In this issue, however, we actually get to visit those other worlds in a full-length space opera search for the secrets of everlasting life. As an aside, it does surprise me, give the play the Subs were getting at this time, that we don't visit Stone Boy's world in hopes of discovering how to pull someone out of suspended animation. I mean, for Lightning Lad, rigor mortis must have set in by now. Anyway, this is about it for the far-out space stuff trope. With then Legion having taken over the lead feature in Adventure with issue 309, Hamilton gets more room for his plots and, perhaps counter-intuitively, devotes less space to science-fiction show-and-tell, choosing from here in on to weave the whiz-bang more naturalistically into his tales.
The balance of the story revolves one two other tropes, the one-of-us-is-a-traitor theme we see so often, and the right to hold the title of "The Bravest Legionnaire," most often expressed via the presumed nobility of sacrificing oneself for the benefit of another. It's worth noting, however, that Mon-El reserves the sacrifice for himself presumably because he doesn't think the lightning will actually kill him, while Saturn Girl seems motivated more by guilt than love. In fact, other than a throw-away, "Hey, that's my wife line" in one Adult Legion story, when Superman gets frisky with Imra under the mistletoe, we have yet to see romantic pairings among the Legionnaires.
PANELOLOGY:
COVER — I remember buying this comic not just because it was the oldest issue the dealer had, but because it had a truly awesome and eye catching cover. At a time when comic book covers were full of bold contour lines and bright, primary colors, this nearly all back cover, with the glass casket, the evocative lighting bolts and the bright, teal logo was about as compelling to a teen as one could imagine. Even though I was familiar enough with the Legion to know all present survived this mission, I remember barely being able to contain my curiously as I rushed to rip this issue out of its protective polyethylene bag to see which member's wand took the life-giving bolt.
1:1 — For a moment it looks like the title ends in a period, until you notice there was not enough room in the text box for the entire, and in this era mandatory, exclamation point, which spills over into the shadow of the moopsball stadium.
Notice that none of the glass caskets have lids? Clearly, it never rains on this world, at least not while it's orbiting the orange sun, otherwise everybody would drown. On the other hand, maybe it does rain. Being rusted in place is the only reason I can think of for that monorail train being mid-track while the planet's entire populace is fast asleep.
2:1 — Doesn't this clock look a little rushed to you? I'm betting Forte did the lettering on this. I wonder if all seven worlds are on a.m. or p.m.? To my knowledge, none of these worlds was ever mentioned again, save for Aarok which, by accident or design, was recycled in the postboot as the homeworld of XS.
2:2-2:4 — It appears the Legion is still dealing with the after-affects of Rainbow Girl's tryout. Either that, or the meeting table is currently hurtling through the Silver Age time barrier.
Also, relish those nameplates Legion fans, you won't be seeing them for much longer in this series.
2:3-2:4 — Ah, Proty can assume the form of a human in such detail as to be utterly undetectable from the original. This, kids, is a literary device known as foreshadowing.
2:4 — Why, I wonder, does Mon-El need a spaceship? Oh well, nice of Superboy to let us know what's happening off panel. He's super-helpful.
3:1 — Classic stick-up-the-butt poses of the era. John Forte would've drawn an awesome First Officer William Riker!
3:2 — Today, I think we presume this "strange world of eternal lightning" is Korbal.
3:2-4:4 — Nothing random about this lighting. Notice how it always points directly at the characters?
3:2, 3:4 — To this day, I can't eat popcorn at the movies without fearing in the back of my mind that the kernels are going to sprout Proty legs and dash madcap all over the theater.
3:3 — In the Archive edition, as in the original printing, Superboy's hair is colored a reddish brown, which makes it seem for a second as if Lightning Lad is narrating his own death.
Lightning Lad's death pose is about as limber as a John Forte figure gets.
While not an exact replication, this panel is strikingly similar to the one from issue 304 in which Garth bit the dust, although, at that time, he had the good sense to keep his space helmet on. What's unclear from this single panel is that the red thing above Garth is Zaryan's ship, while what looks like a beam of light falling on Saturn Girl's helmet is the freeze-ray. The yellow background is supposed to be the dark purple that in comics stands for the black of outer space and the clouds are . . . well, clouds . . . in space.
Last issue the Legion faced Zyzans. This issue they deal with the works of Zaryan. Z is the most evil letter, especially when accompanied by a handful of Ys, As and Ns.
3:5 — Would you look at the super-grip on Saturn Girl? Just look at it! Gee, good thing Mon is invulnerable.
4:1 — I think EDE's right, it looks like they're going to kiss!
4:2 — "I can't stand the sight of her terrible grief!" However, I could stare at her hot, rockin' bottom all day!!
4:3 — Rarely in modern comics do you find heroes, "inspired to a tremendous resolve."
You know who would make a great couple? Polar Boy and Lightning Lass. I mean, they're both about four feet tall.
4:4 — "Some of us . . . ?" The only character in this story not required by the plot, besides you, Superboy, is Sun Boy. And he was contractually required at this point to star in every Legion tale. So, really, I'd say most of the team has moved on.
4:5 — Not a computer librarian, this is still 1963 after all, so it's a "'mechanical-librarian' computer," no less. Either way, that's one honkin' big View-Master™.
4:5, 5:1 — AB-213 is both a "galactic sector" and a "galaxy."
5:1 — Interesting, uncharacteristic dry brush technique employed by Forte in the lower left corner.
6:1-6:5 — Years later, Mon-El would get nothing but grief for this mountain-to-Mohammed routine. He was all, like, "Sheesh, nobody bitched when Superboy did it!"
6:2 — It sometimes helps if you mix a little actual science in with the pseudo-science.
7:1,8:2 — Boy, Mon-El sure is a chatty-Cathy while flying through the vacuum of space. Remember that for later.
9:1 — Which came first, the comic page or the cover? Not only are all the characters in the same places and in similar poses, if you compare this panel to the cover, you see other striking similarities, from the profile of the mountain, to the grip each Legionnaire has on his or her wand, to the fact that Saturn Girl's forearm alone is drapped in shadow. Clearly, one artists was given the other's work for reference.
9:2 — It takes a lot of levers and dials to pilot a space ship. Also, apparently, a pipe organ.
10:1-10:2 — These two panels, far more so than this issue's primary let's-all-line-up-to-die-for-our-buddy theme, exemplify, to me, what it truly means to be a Legionnaire.
10:3 — "Great jumping suns" is just a fantastic exclamation, don't you think? I'm going to use it always.
Why, I wonder, especially when looking at the creature on the far right, would a space-serpent need to evolve legs? Or a nose?
10:4 — Sun Boy has, by this time, moved beyond "super-radiance," to generate heat as well as light. But note he's still a long way from hurling fireballs.
10:5 — Apart from wondering what hippie-freak designed that floor, I actually have no problem with an Interplanetary Post Office. Surely such a institution would not move physical mail, as was the intent here, what with the Venus-to-Pluto et. al. mail chutes, but it does make sense that some sort of substation would be needed to boost and relay interplanetary email. Personally, I don't think the U.S. Postal Service will last another 10 years, let alone 1,000, but I'm certain, as we saw in the threeboot, the U.P. will have need for such an organization to snoop on communications.
Notice the mail chute the the far right. What planet starts with "H-E?" Could the letterer have been screwing with Mort? Is this the Jupiter-to-Hell chute?
11:1 — Surprising the bodies didn't get sucked out by the vacuum of space. I presumed that was a known phenomona, even in 1963?
11:2 — You didn't know this, but before he got rejected from the Legion and turned to a life of evil, Radiation Roy was an interplanetary postal clerk.
11:5 — I'd volunteer to be frozen to death and revived if it'd turn my white hair blond!
These capsules are powered by radium. The city of the lost Luna race in the last issue was lit by radium. Edmund Hamilton LOVED radium.
12:1 — Sometimes, as elsewhere in this issue, the bolts on Lightning Lad's costume just touched. Most of the time, especially later on in the Adventure run, they didn't. But sometimes, as here, the artist crosses streams.
12:3 — Note to editor's note: Were you totally not paying attention earlier when Mon spoke in space sans radio helmet?
12:6 — I'm pretty sure the whole idea of Daxam being a world of super-advanced medicines, later advanced by Paul Levitz, stems from this one panel.
13:3-13:5 — Sure would've sucked for Mon's demonstration if one of the androids he borrowed from Zoon had been Brin Londo!
14:3 — I Googled "duralim," thinking Hamilton must've based it on something, but struck out. I am surprised we never saw the metal used again as a defensive weapon against any of the Ranzzes.
14:4 — More foreshadowing, this time by Imra Drew and the Mystery of the Winding Caverns.
15:2 — There's enough room in this panel, I think, that Cham could have been depicted kneeling next to the protoplasmic puddle, grieving for his lost pet.
FINAL THOUGHTS: Oh, the pathos! Oh, the Silver Age goofiness! This is, without question, one of the all-time classic Legion tales. Though it has its flaws it surely must be included in any "Best of . . . collection.
RETCON REFERENCE KIT: I think we can presume that this story still exists in the 52boot. However, it seems the wonderful (I know I'm in the minority opinion here) Bierbaum retcon — that Proty's life force was transferred into Garth, who remained dead — never happened. That doesn't make sense as 52boot seems to pick up from Levitz' second run on the Legion, excising 5YL. However, while Proty-Garth is a 5YL retcon, it was based on prior events that should still stand.
THE GRADE: 7.5 super-hero clubhouses out of 10.
FINAL THOUGHT, PART TWO: Whether we use my scale above, or some other system, I think it would be fun if we all post a similar grade for each issue we review in this and future "re-reading" threads. That way, they could be averaged together and a "Legion World consensus" grade appended to each issue of the checklist.
Okay, this review was longer than I intended, but I had fun. Hope you did, too!
Jesus, PB! A panel by panel review? You might leave something for the rest of us to say! Just kidding. I enjoyed your in-depth analysis. All I've got is:
Ok, I just reread 312. It's hilarious and creepy that that one race all goes out and lies down in glass coffins once a year or whatever. And they appear to live in tiny little houses, barely big enough for one person to lie down in.
I'm sure Ayla would call Garth "Lightning Lad" when she breaks down and cries over his body.
At first glance, it looks like Mon-El is killing that pterodactyl creature. Thank goodness for silver age exposition to explain it isn't so!
I love Imra's green lacy nightie. I wonder if that's what she wears under her costume, or if it's standard hospital issue on Daxam.
I'm sure Mon-El went to the trouble to whip up a glass coffin for the lifeless android. Decorum is so important when dealing with dead androids.
Handy that Imra never leaves home without a can of steel-colored paint and a brush, not to mention a duralim wand! Those Titanian Girl Scouts sure taught her to be prepared!
I notice that Lightning Lad's bolts on his costume come to a point, but Ayla's bolts criss-cross each other.
Note there's no thought of using the life-transfer device to revive Proty. It would be kind of funny (and morbid) to see the Legionnaires using it over and over again with a different one being killed each time, while arguing over who should die for whom. They might never get off lightning world!
Note there's no thought of using the life-transfer device to revive Proty. It would be kind of funny (and morbid) to see the Legionnaires using it over and over again with a different one being killed each time, while arguing over who should die for whom. They might never get off lightning world!
Rofl
Yer a sick puppy, Jim
First comic books ever bought: A DC four-for-47-cents grab bag that included Adventure #331. The rest is history.
Note there's no thought of using the life-transfer device to revive Proty. It would be kind of funny (and morbid) to see the Legionnaires using it over and over again with a different one being killed each time, while arguing over who should die for whom. They might never get off lightning world!
It gets worse if you like the New Garth=Proty retcon of 5YL. Think how messed up the body-swapping would get before embarrassment (possibly from a gender-swapped someone) made someone actually admit "Umm... I'm actually..."!
[Incidentally, I like the Proty retcon myself because the whole idea of introducing "Someone must sacrifice themselves..." and then ultimately using the non-speaking extra rather than someone in a starring role is SUCH a huge cop-out!]
My views are my own and do not reflect those of everyone else... and I wouldn't have it any other way.
You'd think if Proty (who is considered a "pet" at this point) works, then they could just grab some random space-squirrel or something and use it's life essence to revive Garth. (Yeah, I know, technically against the Legion code, but...)
You'd think if Proty (who is considered a "pet" at this point) works, then they could just grab some random space-squirrel or something and use it's life essence to revive Garth. (Yeah, I know, technically against the Legion code, but...)
For that matter, you'd think there'd be a big business in reviving dead relatives with, say, cows! (Which you could then roast on a spit and eat for a feast to celebrate their revival!)
My views are my own and do not reflect those of everyone else... and I wouldn't have it any other way.
I do like Garth/Proty. It was a total shocker, but yet it doesn't really change anything. "Garth" still served the Legion faithfully and heroically for years.
2:4 — Why, I wonder, does Mon-El need a spaceship? Oh well, nice of Superboy to let us know what's happening off panel. He's super-helpful.
I assumed it was so Mon wouldn't lose his powers under Daxam's red sun, but he later has no trouble flying to Daxam without a ship.
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Last issue the Legion faced Zyzans. This issue they deal with the works of Zaryan. Z is the most evil letter, especially when accompanied by a handful of Ys, As and Ns.
See also Dr. Zachary Smith of "Lost in Space." The evilness of the letter Z increases exponentially if the character is a doctor.
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4:4 — "Some of us . . . ?" The only character in this story not required by the plot, besides you, Superboy, is Sun Boy. And he was contractually required at this point to star in every Legion tale. So, really, I'd say most of the team has moved on.
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12:1 — Sometimes, as elsewhere in this issue, the bolts on Lightning Lad's costume just touched. Most of the time, especially later on in the Adventure run, they didn't. But sometimes, as here, the artist crosses streams.
My favorite version of LL's costume is the one on the cover of Adv. 267. In it, the lighting bolts extend above the shoulder panels, and there's no scrunched up shirttails/froofy belt or whatever that's supposed to be.
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12:3 — Note to editor's note: Were you totally not paying attention earlier when Mon spoke in space sans radio helmet?
Thanks for a thorough and fun-to-read analysis, PoFo Boy.
I considered grading each issue, as well, but since I just finished submitting final grades for three English composition classes, I think I'll take a pass for now.
I do like Garth/Proty. It was a total shocker, but yet it doesn't really change anything. "Garth" still served the Legion faithfully and heroically for years.
Agreed. I thought it was a wonderful retcon that provided a new perspective on Garth without diminishing anything he had accomplished in any way.
The Resurrection of Lightning Lad is almost as iconic as his death, and its hard not to see this story in that light. The first real return of a dead character, it is firmly in place in comics history.
Even more for me, I can't read the story without keeping TMK in mind the entire time. I find the Proty / Garth twist to be hugely ingenious and this story here firmly plants all the seeds needed, right from page 3 with Proty running to Saturn Girl, who he is so devoted to.
The story certainly has its "tough to swallow" moments, beginning with the entire resurrection process. However, seeing beyond that to the smaller bits, there's a lot going on here and a lot of subtle emotion. I like that every Legionnaire included has a specific reason to be: Imra, of course; Ayla, his sister; Dirk, his best friend; Mon, who made a solemn vow to restore him to life; and Cham so Proty can play a part.
And naturally Superboy plays a role. It's here that he once more starts taking the lead in a lot of Legion stories.
I really like the cat and mouse game Imra and Mon are playing with one another here. This trope is commonly done wrong these days.
It occurs to me if Superboy Prime pulled the blue sun trick in Infinite Crisis, it would have been game over in panel 2, page 2.
Part 2 opens with nice space opera, Hamilton's forte. Sun Boy is so leading man heroic here. And though she's shown to be perhaps too emotional, I do like Ayla's unflinching devotion to her brother. (Years ago, I started many threads about Ayla was an emotional train wreck and tornado; flash forward and I realize I like her that way and find her characterization very attractive. I think I've lost it over the years).
Btw, those metal eating space dragons are pretty badass. So was the Taloc in part 1. Lots of cool sci-fi throwaway elements throughout.
I like Imra's underhanded play to ensure she is the one who makes the sacrifice. She is such a badass!
There are so many flaws in this story yet I can't help but really enjoy it. Surely, that's because of knowing the subsequent long history of the Legion, especially the aforementioned TMK story.
You'd think if Proty (who is considered a "pet" at this point) works, then they could just grab some random space-squirrel or something and use it's life essence to revive Garth. (Yeah, I know, technically against the Legion code, but...)
For that matter, you'd think there'd be a big business in reviving dead relatives with, say, cows! (Which you could then roast on a spit and eat for a feast to celebrate their revival!)
Considering his sometimes cliche role, surely Chuck would have suggested this if he was in the story!
Rarely has a story had so much potential to be great yet fallen so short.
Oh, sure, "The Super-Sacrifice of the Legionnaires" is iconic for the resurrection of Lightning Lad and the Legion's devotion in bringing him back. And it is certainly one of the linchpin moments in Legion history for reasons described above. Yet, as a story, it left me disappointed with how great it could have been.
The premise has all the right ingredients: The Legion scours the universe for a way to revive their comrade; Mon-El finds a way but he dares not share it with the others until Saturn Girl tricks him into revealing it. The Legionnaires then play a bizarre game of Russian roulette, knowing one of them must sacrifice himself or herself for Lightning Lad. Someone makes that sacrifice, but it's not who you expect.
It's a very simple plot in which the heroes have a goal, overcome obstacles, and succeed but at a cost. A story with this setup usually can't go wrong.
And yet I was struck by the lack of drama in the way the story was told. Even knowing that Lightning Lad would be revived, I still expected to be drawn in, to care about the heroes, to root for them to succeed, and to feel their conflicting emotions when they learn one of them must die to save their friend. However, the story plods along as if it's business as usual. I found myself growing bored and wanting to put the book down several times.
The plot, even though it has all the right ingredients, is very thin. We know Mon-El holds the secret to reviving Lightning Lad; everything else is just filler until Saturn Girl gets him to talk. The scenes of Superboy visiting AB-213, Mon-El fighting the Taroc (and kayoing it with one punch) and the other Legionnaires visiting the Interplanetary Post Office lack any sort of tension and are meant to keep us busy. I found myself wanting to yell, "Get on with it already!"
Hamilton makes a valiant effort to create tension--Saturn Girl knows Mon knows something, Mon guards his thoughts, Saturn Girl (in a wildly implausible scene) risks her life to make him spill the beans--but these scenes don't really build tension so much as prolong the minimal tension that's already there. The stakes are never raised in this story; they remain flat until Mon reveals the cost of reviving Lightning Lad. Even then, no one thinks twice about making the sacrifice. (Of course, these are Silver Age heroes--they never doubt!) Even Superboy, on whom much of history depends, goes along with a plan to put himself in a death-like coma. None of this seems plausible and, therefore, there's no conflict.
Here's an alternate scenario: Suppose Saturn Girl had learned immediately that the only way to revive Lightning Lad was for a Legionnaire to lose his or her life. The Legionnaires discard this idea because it's too horrible. Then they scour the universe to find other options. When they fail, they keep coming back to the original plan. They must weigh the cost: Is Lightning Lad's life truly more valuable than that of any other Legionnaire? (Someone should at least ask that question.) Perhaps time is working against them: If Lightning Lad remains dead for so long, he will pass the point where he can be revived (no need to go into gruesome details, though). Only when the Legionnaires weigh these risks and determine that there is a slight chance he can be revived do they proceed with the plan--which ends as it does in the story, with Proty's sacrifice.
Simply revealing what Mon knows early on could have made this a much tighter story with escalating stakes and tension.
You know, so far everyone of us has said we like Garth / Proty. Years ago, there were certainly a lot of posters who didn't.
For me its one of the--perhaps *the*--great "HOLY CRAP!!" Moments in comic history.
What made it work so well for me is that it explained perfectly why Lightning Lad was a bit of a minor player after his return, why his term as leader was such a disaster, and why he so often, especially in the latter part of the preboot, seem to be little more than Mr. Imra Ardeen.
I liked how Levitz and others had the Protean independance subplot running through the background of the Pre-Crisis runs, and this is almost like the touch point. Proty shows self-determination through his sacrifice, which kind of sets off the movement to stop keeping them as pets (culminating in MacCauley trying to get his telepathic pet back as it knows his secrets).
So this is another completely iconic issue, though, as Pofobo points out, the story itself is kind of thin, the issue really being an opportunity for Hamilton and Forte to go crazy on the sci fi stuff by showing different possible methods for resurrection across the universe. It is, of course, the culmination of the death and resurrection of Lightning Lad subplot that's been running most of a year now.
The opening panel, featuring the clock that show the time on different worlds, is actually one of those completely awesome Hamilton touches that he litters his Legion run with. Much like the "perpetual motion machine" that constantly generates lighting above LL's coffin, it's one of those scientific impossibilities that has apparently been conquered by the Legion's time, as according to Einsteinian physics, there is no way of synchronizing clocks that are distant in space. But apparently it is commonplace by the 30th century!
The clock also introduces the homeworld of one of the most important characters in Legion history! I'm talking, of course, about Yar, homeworld of the notorious Mudermaton! Oh, and I guess Aarok is kind of important as well.
Anyway, considering Mon-El suggested way back in #305 that there might be a way to revive Lightning Lad on his homeworld, it sure has taken him a long time to go back and check on it!
So, after Mon-El lies about not being able to find a way to revive Lightning Lad, the Legionnaires google resurrection methods on the space-internet... er... I mean they check with their mechanical librarian, and depart to check out different possible ways of reviving him.
That world of people lying in glass coffins is pretty crazy! This provides our science lessons for the issue, though, as Superboy teaches us about prominences!
The taroc is pretty bizarre looking! And while it is somewhat like a phoenix of old Earth legends, I'd think the more nature comparison is to... I don't know... a roc!
Okay, that's a pretty crazy plot by Imra to trick Mon-El into landing on Daxam. Couldn't she have just needed to go to the bathroom or something? I mean... that does seem to be the disadvantage of not taking a spaceship when flying through space.
Anyway, is Imra in her undergarments in the med-center, or what?
Okay, so it seems to me the obvious choice is to let either Superboy or Mon-El use the machine to revive LL. Sure, they'd be left in a death-like coma, but that's better than, you know, dying. And then the Legionnaires could look for a way to revive them. And, of course, that was Mon-El's plan all along, if that snoopy-snoop Imra hadn't interfered! Of course, Mon-El was trapped in the freaking Phantom Zone for a thousand years, after being trapped in suspended animation for fifteen years, so what's another period trapped in a death-like coma to him?
Of course, Imra schemes again to sacrifice herself instead of the other Legionnaires, and this time gets Proty killed to save her! Fortunately, Imra learns her lesson and will never deceive her fellow Legionnaires again! Or not...
Anyway, the ending is definitely a bit of a cop out as originally written, given that this is Proty's second appearance and given that he will quickly be replaced by a basically identical character. This is redeemed by the Garth-Proty revelation, however, as long as you assume that the revived "Garth" is a merger of the two, ala Mon-El/Eltro.
Anyway, there's definitely ways this story could be improved, but it's not bad as it stands, and a pretty good example of how these early Legion stories can be pretty interesting even without any super-villains showing up. In fact, except for Saturn Girl's telepath and Proty's telepathy and shape-changing, this story barely requires the use of super-powers at all, and could easily be a Hamilton story from Strange Adventures with the Legionnaires just plugged in.
Previous Thread
I think Proty truly loved Imra and wanted to protect her above all else. Proty shows us what love is really about.
