Legion World Forums LEGION CLUBHOUSE The Legion of Super-Heroes Re-Reading the Legion: Archives #5

Marilu Henner's character on the Taxi TV series was named Elaine Nardo.

I forgot about Elaine Nardo! She was much better looking than ol' three-eyes.

Good point. The problem I have with the Legionnaires not using their powers in this story is that they are just too darned passive. Your point is well taken that they wanted time to figure out how much Nardo knew and where the girls were, but in the Plant Lad scene, they have an immediate indication of danger--and they do nothing.

As I alluded to in my post, this would make sense if the Legionnaires were non-powered soldiers who truly could do nothing. But these are heroes with powers as part of their physical beings. And no one tries to do anything.

Why, for example, don't the Legionnaires and the other heroes form a plan to simply gang up on Nardo and his androids? Why bother with all the escape plans? It's incredible that no one considers this.



I agree completely. There comes a point where, if the characters are behaving in such a way that merely serves the needs of the plot, then you (the writer) have to ask yourself if the story springs naturally from the characters actions and reactions. If not, you need to ask yourself if this is the story you need to tell.

Adventure #345

The Super Stalag of Space continues, and it marches on with the same high quality and tension of Part 1 in Part 2.

Recognizing that the readers might actually be more apt to spread the word on the story, Mort doesn't mind outright referencing Hogan's Heroes. Like other Legion adaptations of movies of the time, though, there's very little resemblance with that particular work, IMO, though it certainly draws on a whole number of different "prison camp" inspirations.

After a quick recap, the issue opens with the tragic death of Blockade Boy! The most heroic of the Stalag heroes, it's a noble end.

From there, Brainy's suspicions prove correct and he exposes Weight Wizard as the stool pigeon. I love the random blue costumed hero who yells "Kill Him!". Things are getting savage in the barracks!

Trying to make up for it, WW escapes, and then...soon enough...meets his end. It's actually my favorite death, if that isn't too crude. The sequence, of course, also further references the Phanders for later.

The next sequence features Lyle making his escape, being caught and then being shrunken to flea size...to come face to face with a spider, then a mouse. It's a tension filled scene, though I have to admit I'm wondering why it's included.

The girls get involved at last and once again we see Imra and Brainy having their little grudge. And Imra is proved right as Luornu has perhaps her single greatest moment in the Silver Age by saving the day!

It seems like the perfect end, complete with Jan using his powers in a clever way and Brainy being equally clever in returning the favor by freeing the girls. And then, out of nowhere we get the last two pages which really don't have a place here! Supes, Mon and Jo show up to save Tenzil (ugh, again) and then in a weird bit of science, Tenz becomes super-fat! Obviously this entire sequence is a last minute effort to add in the scene on the cover.

Cow-towing to readers demands for an overweight Legionnaire, they get it wrong by making it Tenzil, which is as dumb as making Star Boy black or Projectra a snake.

Notwithstanding the final 2 pages, part 2 was an action packed romp that delivered on a variety of levels. Using a smaller group of Legionnaires--though still a lot of them--Hamilton combines strong characterization with great action for a very solid finish to his run. A Silver Age classic, and it's adieu to Ed, who very shortly now enjoyed a nice retirement with his equally talented wife, Leigh Brackett.

Why didn't the Legionnaires use their powers to escape or take over? Were the reasons depicted or not? Did they need to be? Interesting topic.

Legionnaires weren't the first powered beings/heroes on the asteroid. Those heroes apparently hadn't been able to or decided not to escape or take over the prison.

To continue the earlier parallels, much the same was said about the Jews gathered up and contained, while watching themselves be massacred. There were plenty of heroes in those camps and ghettos. They had superior numbers and strength.

Someone recently asked me why people in the neighborhood I teach don't just up and leave to someplace safer? Why don't they fight back?

Why didn't the heroes escape? Why didn't they take over? History says, hard to do even when numbers and power are superior.

To ME, the writers did depict Nardo's power. They depicted the nuclear power, the weapons, the androids, the eye.

More importantly, the writers IMO, depicted how organized and ruthless he was. They depicted his psychology: what happens to those that tried to escape, those left behind, and the fear instilled in the camps. He had chosen an asteroid rich with dangerous plants and animals. There was nowhere for an escapee to go. No way to get off asteroid. No way to get food and shelter. Given how easily Nardo found those that escaped, I would conjecture he allowed some to escape so that he could kill them in front of the other prisoners.

In stories and in real life, power isn't the key to containment or to escape. Organization, psychology, mutual support, mutual agreement are the keys. I thought this was adequately, even well, depicted by the writers. It is ultimately what the Legion brought to the camps but first, the spy had to be found.

Why Nardo even bothered to enslave them was the puzzle left unexplained. I can only presume it fed his ego to have those law"men" under his power.


ADV 345

First off: DOH!!!


Obviously powers were quite helpful at breaking in as... it took U-Boy, S-boy and Monel only an instant to resolve the situation. And who doesn't keep their kryptonite ring gun that will kill anyone whether they are from Krypton or not, at finger's length? Definite plot hole.

There are hiccups all over the story but the heroes not using their powers to escape or take over? To ME, the reasons they couldn't do that are clear from history and were clearly depicted. It was chilling to realize, particularly at that time of our history that power wasn't the key.

The Legionnaires did not bring power to the equation. They brought organization. Organization sent the bottle. Organization took over the camps. Ultimately organization left the message that allowed them to be found.

Nardo was THAT powerful but ultimately he was out organized.

There were a number of acts of resistance and escape attempts and all were thwarted, followed by punishment. Nardo proved that he wasn't all talk; he executed prisoners. It took a while for the Legionnaires to find the chink in the armor and exploit it.

That Weight Wizard turned spy for extra food made sense in theory, but nobody looked very hungry - nothing like in the Nazi camps. It might have been better if Nardo had been holding his family or friends hostage. Well, maybe Weight Wizard was just a glutton. In the end, he who would eat was eaten, in a nifty little irony.

For all the "too dangerous for a girl" stuff that preceded this story, Hamilton redeemed himself by showing the females to be inventive, proactive, successful and able to co-ordinate with the male prisoners. It's just disappointing that the other female prisoners didn't get to show their powers as did the non-Legionnaire males.

The shrunken Lyle sub-plot took up 2-1/2 pages and really didn't accomplish much, except to make him look bad.

I was actually a bit annoyed that the three super-heavyweights arrived at the last moment to defeat Nardo; it would have been more satisfying had it just been the people taken prisoner.

Nardo's speech did detract from his evilness; he sounded more like Colonel Klink than the truly sadistic jailer he proved himself to be.

In the end, Nardo was returned to the planet that had exiled him. Would they incarcerate him this time, or just exile him again?

Maybe the story was considered too serious, despite its positive outcome, so they added the fat-assed Tenzil at the very end. I'm curious to know what the fan reaction was to that scene!

One of the reasons the Jews didn't fight back in the holocaust is because the Nazis didn't just start out wholesale slaughtering them. They gradually dehumanized them by taking away their rights little by little. They started with small things: No Jews were allowed to own bicycles. then cars. then carpeting in their homes, then they took their jobs away, etc. etc. If Nardo did that to the inmates of the super stalag we didn't see it.

A couple of other things bothered me about this story, aside from the heroes not using their powers or flight rings to escape. Where did the dozens of boy inmates depicted in part I go in part II? After BB and WW's deaths, the only one left is Shadow Kid (and he was miscolored from how he looked in part I). How exactly did DD improvise that ladder? She could've torn her cape into strips and used them to tie fallen tree limbs together, but she's never shown without her cape. I was disappointed in the big 3 coming to the rescue at the end after the other heroes had already escaped, but what else is new?

The Sannings came up with a good explanation for why ME Lad got fat on their website. IIRC, they theorized that Superboy's body deflected most of the power of the ray blasts, so that instead of killing Tenz, they slowed down his metabolism so much that the tons of earth and stone he'd previously been metabolizing made him obese.

So they're saying ME Lad

had rock hard abs?

lol, I amuse me.

I felt part two was pretty much superior to part one, mainly because it didn't have a big "wtf" moment like part one's death of Plant Lad as Legionnaires stood by and did nothing.

Lu's "improvised" ladder wasn't a big deal to me. The text makes it clear she didn't just find it, and who knows how much time elapsed between panels 2 and 3 on that page? No reason our girl Lu might not have some advanced outdoor survival skillz, right?

The last minute rescue by the Big Three didn't bother me that much. The explanation for their arrival was explained and made sense. Yes, I would have preferred that others'd all gotten out and beaten Nardo by their lonesome, but at least they'd made great strides before the cavalry arrived. If they'd just been licking their wounds, it would've irked me more.

I can understand why the Invisible Kid mini-(mis)adventure might seem extraneous, but I bet the kids who read it back in the day probably dug it. (Right, BB? ) Plus, it gave Lyle a fairly rare moment in the spotlight.

Two things that caught my eye as possible bloopers:

1) The duration of Ayla's power effect on the gate. It's not necessarily an error, but I can't recall her being able to keep the effect for more than a minute or so before or since. Maybe she usually just chooses not to maintain the effect, but I've always felt she would have to be present and maintaining the effect for it to last a long time. Same with Thom.

2) Why'd Jan need the dust to transform Nardo's armor? Maybe it was stated somewhere about Nardo's apparel being resistant to this sort of thing, and I missed it? I'm pretty sure Jan would normally be able to transform clothing, wouldn't he?

Neither of these affected my enjoyment of the story overall, but they did give me pause as I read.

After seeing Blockade Boy's sacrifice, I sure hope he got a memorial somewhere on Shanghalla! You could argue the same for Plant Lad and the Durlan (not so much Weight Wizard!), but BB came out looking especially heroic as he tried to save Tenzil. I liked the scene of Tenzil grieving over him. It was understated and not overwrought; it was just enough to show he was affected by the loss.

Overall, this two-parter was a strong way for Hamilton to go out. It could have been done better in places, but the story was tense and the stakes very high. This was one of the few instances in which the Legion looked really like they'd met their match to this point. It's too bad future writers didn't utilize Nardo ever again, but chances are the returns would have been diminished in subsequent appearances.

Mr. Hamilton and (belatedly) Mr. Forte, your contributions to our beloved Legion will never be forgotten by fans everywhere. Wherever you may be, I salute you!

That spider stuck with me, no kidding on that. And everything came back when I was reading it the other day.

Re Fat Tenzil, nothing really came of it. It didn't have any lasting effect on him. Was it set up so he could be written out if the next writer wished? (Oh, it's too bad our pal ME Lad got fat, now he has to resign so he can find a cure...!) Or was it set up as a possible way to get Bouncing Boy back (thank goodness Dr. Fatandthin invented a way to siphon off Tenzil's extra body fat to Chuck, so Chuck could get hsi powers back! Our two chums will be back soon! Choke!)

All good points, BB. However, the Legionnaires were not civilians going about their daily lives and being imprisoned by powers they had been conditioned to respect or fear their entire lives. They were heroes who were used to going up against bad guys.

I'm not saying the Legionnaires or the other incarcerated heroes should have openly defied Nardo. But it's odd that no one considers doing so. To me, their lack of acting like super-heroes is another instance of Hamilton shoehorning the Legionnaires into a plot that was perhaps meant for someone else.



The Legionnaires didn't know about the phanders and the man-eating plants until later--or at least the reader didn't. Likewise, Nardo's third eye heat vision isn't established until late in 345 (where it comes out of the blue).

You're right that Nardo is depicted as ruthless and organized. There are several scenes which show how efficient he is and how he exploits the prisoners' weaknesses and rebellion (such as the Invisible Kid scene). If one buys into the conceit of the Legionnaires becoming POWs, the story works very well.

It's just that I wish more effort had been expended into setting up that conceit.

I think Weight Wizard's escape attempt made the Legionnaires look worse - if he could try to escape by himself, why couldn't they at least try to intervene to stop Plant Lad from getting hacked to bits?

Adv. 345

One of the things I’ve enjoyed most about doing these reviews is the chance to revisit old stories and learn new things about them. I grew up on these mid-run Adventure stories, and they played a large role in forming who I am. Now’s the chance to enjoy them again but also to figure out why they had the impact they did and to come to a better understanding of aspects that either uplifted me or disturbed me when I first read them.

Sometimes looking at old comic book stories through adult eyes is like using a college education to outwit a second grader: doing so may make one feel superior, but it also leads to what Paladin called an unearned victory—something that’s too easy. It can also feel a bit like bullying.

Other times, these reviews can extract real gems. They demonstrate the universal importance of stories and their impact on us as human beings, as a culture, and as individuals. They help us understand why stories affect us the way they do and enable us to drill deeper into our psyches rather than settle for surface likes and dislikes.

Reviewing “The Execution of Matter-Eater Lad” leads to both results. It’s easy to pick on this story and its second-grader logic: a ray blast sliding around Superboy’s body somehow turns Tenzil super-fat. (The story even says “somehow,” as if it’s acceptable to just make up an ending and leave its cause mysterious.) It’s also easy to see that this story delved into some real fears I had as a child and, in its super-heroic way, tried to assure me everything was going to be all right—even if it did convey mixed messages.

Nardo represents the oppressive authoritarian figure—the teacher, the principal, the policeman—who exerts absolute control over his young charges (who, fittingly, are all teenagers). He tells them what they do and when to do it. Rebellion is punished severely in creative and sadistic ways. The psychological message is clear: Obey or else.

Yet we also know Nardo is the bad guy and the things he does are not right. The Legionnaires can choose to simply obey—their lives will not be easy, but they will live at least for awhile—or they can resist and face immediate death.

But resist they must—because life is not about mere survival. It is also about self-determination, love, and fulfilling one’s own potential, things denied prisoners. So they resist. They learn the identity of the traitor. They attempt to take their anger out on him and fail. Invisible Kid tries to use his own abilities to escape and fails. The girl Legionnaires try to rescue the boy Legionnaires and—though they come closest to accomplishing their goal—fail.

Ultimately, it’s the last minute arrival of Superboy, Mon-El, and Ultra Boy which saves Matter-Eater Lad’s life and frees the others. Is it any wonder Mon-El became my favorite Legionnaire? He risks nothing personally in this story (he doesn’t even get hit by Nardo’s nuclear blast), nor does he bear any responsibility for M-E Lad’s sorry condition. He arrives, as do Superboy and Ultra Boy, like an angel and the cavalry rolled into one. This is the way things are supposed to turn out. Aren’t they?

Of course, not everyone is saved. Blockade Boy dies a true hero—he buys M-E Lad time. And Weight Wizard, for all his treachery, is not evil. Which of us in his situation could honestly say we wouldn’t do the same? In the end, WW redeems himself; yet he dies alone and unmourned. Posts on this thread paint him as a villain who got his just desserts. Yet I feel sorry for him. He was weak—who among us is not weak from time to time?

But here’s where the mixed messages come in. The Legionnaires, as the main characters of the series, are spared similar fates. They neither crack under pressure (Plant Lad) nor betray their teammates (Weight Wizard). They neither die in an escape attempt (the Durlan) nor sacrifice themselves to save someone else (Blockade Boy). The only consequence any of them faces is M-E Lad’s “super-fat-assing.” It turns out to be a temporary condition, but, to a child reader, it’s a fate worse than death. M-E Lad becomes silly looking, an object of ridicule. Even the ironcially named Weight Wizard suffered a better fate.

The mixed message? If you suffer a severe fate such as death or weakness, you must not be a “main” hero. And if you suffer a minor setback such as weight gain, you’re not as good as the other kids. Heck, unless you happen to have a multitude of super-powers and travel in a gang, you’re pretty much screwed. You need the gang to save you because your own efforts are not good enough.

From an adult perspective none of that makes sense. But these are children’s stories, as many have reminded us.

“The Execution of Matter-Eater Lad” makes a solid effort to reach out to its target audience, to engage them by using contemporary slang and baseball idioms. It also takes contemporary issues—at least those that would have been familiar to the audience through TV and movies—and uses them for entertainment value. This is not necessarily a bad thing. Stories such as this can show the reader what it is like to be a prisoner of war. They can expand the reader’s vocabulary with words such as “hoosegow,” “pessimist,” and “divulged” (all in the first four pages). They can even show how women can be valuable collaborators, despite their colleagues’ “masculine ego[es].”

Adv. 345 does all of the above. It is indeed a fitting swan song (heh) to Hamilton’s tenure, and it definitely had an impact on me as a young reader. Grade: 87.6 (B+)

There were a lot of red shirts in this story.

My first post on the subject, I commented that I thought this story would benefit a re-do. I think a lot of the things posters felt should have happened, are maybe more audience appropriate now-a-days. A REALLY spot on story would have been read differently by different ages and maturities but given how hard I imagine that is to write, I think this would be a better story written to today's more mature comic reader.

I'm not saying Legionnaires should have been killed left and right but reasonably IMO, several should have been physically and/or emotionally scarred, so much so that it would require future story telling to deal with.

I agree with HWW's assessment of Weight Wizard and also thought that was the part of the story, the writers did best. I think turning a traitor into a sympathetic character, is probably a difficult story to write. How much different are traitorous actions from evil ones? Or a traitorous person from an evil one? A good story doesn't have to answer those questions but it should set them up for debate and I think the writers were successful with that.

Going back to #344 I notice that on page 13 Chameleon Boy is caught attempting to escape but on the next page his life is spared because, in the words of Nardo "I won't kill you, since you weren't trying to break out of camp".

FYI, I finally got around to reading Superboy #128, which is where Dev-Em and the Kryptonite Kid team up to battle Superboy. It turns out its just a bad dream story! So not a real appearance of Dev-Em, which is too bad.

Good catch! Why exactly did Nardo think Cham was impersonating him? To steal his three-eyed porn collection?

SOMEbody was peakin under the mattress!

I first saw this story in one of the Legion 100 page specials. Like others have said it didn't really make sense to me at the time how Nardo was able to hold the team in his camp. Nice grouping of legionaires though. Odd bit at the end with Tenz becoming fat. The explanation posted earlier about his metabolism being slowed works for me. Was this planned to be a short transformation as it ended up being or a more permanent change?

The ending sure made it seem like Tenz was supposed to remain fat!

I have a theory that Mort was, at this point in time, letting Nelson pretty much run Adventure without too much oversight (maybe deliberately giving him enough rope to hang himself with), which was why we were seeing Marvel-style changes in the Legion (Thom's expulsion, for instance). When Nelson attempted to write the Kryptonian cousins out of the strip, however, Mort decided that his assistant had gone too far and ordered him to change everything back to the way it was...immediately.

But that's a discussion for Archives #6. In the meantime we have perhaps the greatest writing debut in comics history coming up (with some additions to the roster that even Mort approved of).

Adventure #346

First thing I notice is that there are no word balloons on the cover. I had missed the Luck Lords issue, so this was pretty much a first for me (I had not yet discovered Marvel). There is, however, an intriguing cover blurb challenging me to see if I can spot the "double-crosser who sold out the Legion". How is any 13-year-old going to resist that challenge?

Before opening the book I decide it must be either the girl with the cape or the guy in the mask. They look pretty villainous to me. I guess I'll just have to buy the thing and find out.

At this point I, like many other readers, am a bit sick of Superboy hogging all the action in Legion stories, so I like Karate Kid right from the splash page. But anyway, on to the story.

We start with a nice bit showing Cosmic Boy being heroic on his way to a Legion meeting. He, of course, does the right thing and then gets chewed out for it by that creep Superboy. Who made him boss, anyway? I'm liking Karate Kid even more now, and he hasn't even made an appearance in the story yet!

(As an aside, this past winter I watched the car directly in front of me go into a spin and go off the road into a ditch on the way to work one day. I of course pulled off the road and got out to see if the driver of the car was OK, with some of my coworkers passing me by as I was walking along the road. When I finally got to work I found myself enduring some smartass remark about my lateness from one of the supervisors in front of my coworkers. Weird parallel, that.)

Oh, so Brainy appointed Superboy deputy, did he? I thought he was smarter than that. Nice touch acknowledging Star Boy's expulsion and Bouncing Boy's loss of powers, though. It's good to see some continuity in the strip.

Princess Projectra's demonstration gives even me a touch of vertigo. I find myself hoping she's not the bad guy, even if she does have a ridiculous hairstyle.

Although I don't usually notice particulars in the art, something about the inking of Nemesis Kid on page 6, panel 4 grabs me the first time I read this story. All these years later, it still catches my attention.

Wow! Cool power, NK. You'd better not be the bad guy.

At this point I'm sure the traitor must be Ferro Lad. Maybe that mask is covering up the face of a known villain. Whatever the reason, I'm not as impressed with him as I am with the others. We'll see...

Finally we have Karate Kid. Karate itself is just starting to become popular in the US (the Green Hornet TV series with Bruce Lee as Kato is still a few months away), so the character has a bit of cutting-edge coolness built into him. He gets nearly a full four pages to show his stuff (against Superboy, no less!), making him the focus for the rest of the story pretty much by default.

Before getting to part two we have a Cap's hobby hint (which I never tried myself, having stopped buying a building model cars the previous summer) and the latest Direct Currents, which of course I have to stop and look at. Hmmm...I think the only one of these I bought was JLA 46 (the annual JLA/JSA team-ups being my favorite issues of that title).

Back to the story. Boy, KK and Superboy really trashed the meeting room, didn't they? Once again we get some weird tech lag, as the Legionnaires watch a FILM! I'm sure my uncle with Kodak stock wishes that future had come to pass instead of the actual one where Kodak filed Chapter 11 a couple years ago. Anyway, the film itself is interrupted by the Khunds, who look an awful lot like TOS-style Klingons, with their vaguely Mongolian look. Nice of them to tell the Legionnaires that they had spies in the U.P. You'd think that, as long as they're being so helpful and all they could clue the Legion in that one of their new members is a Klingon, er Khund, spy as well, but no, our heroes are just going to have to learn that one the hard way.

Anyway, we are quickly introduced to the electro-towers that Superboy recently helped erect (apparently he doesn't sleep, as he manages to do all this stuff in the 30th century without missing a beat in his own time) and the legionnaires split into teams, with Superboy doing his familiar flyover patrol.

We get some good use of powers from both Tinya and Rokk in the next few pages. Tinya at first seems a bit bitchy, but then again, if I were the longest serving non-founder in the group and some rookie tried to tell me my job I'd probably react the same way. Guess I can't blame her for being a bit suspicious of KK's motivations. Sure enough, when the two of them return to the tower, they find it in ruins. Doesn't look good for the new kid.

The last few pages are among my favorites, as Rokk and Tinya go about gathering as much information as they can without alerting KK to their suspicions. Both legionnaires show more characterization in these three pages than in the entire Hamilton/Siegel run. I find myself thinking (even as a 13-year-old) that KK as the bad guy is a bit too obvious. I decide to stick with my theory that it's really the guy in the mask. At this point we have not yet been told about Ferro Lad's deformed features (we only have his own statement that he is a mutant) and I didn't learn the real behind-the-scenes reason for Ferro Lad's mask until many years later.

All in all this story engaged me as no previous Legion story had, and it was a long 30 day wait to see how it all turned out.

The letters page in this issue is of particular interest, by the way. The first letter is from a Jeff Greenberg, the reader who submitted the idea for Color Kid. Could this be the same Jeff Greenberg who did all the research for Crisis On Infinite Earths? The editorial reply is also interesting, as it acknowledges the creators of Weight Wizard and Blockade Boy from the previous story (your creator's name is Tom Kegley, BB). There are also letters from the prolific Irene Vartanoff (praising the change of artist from Forte to Swan) and a pair of decidedly hostile letters concerning the expulsion of Star Boy.

Finally, a reader named Trudy Jones points out that the two leaders so far (Saturn Girl and Brainiac 5) were both prominently featured even before their terms began and suggests that maybe its time for one of the lesser-used members such as Matter-Eater Lad, Duo Damsel or Invisible Kid to get a shot. Mort (or Nelson) does not contradict the first assertion, leading me to conclude that Rokk's turn as leader was actually a retcon, and replies that one of the three that Ms. Jones suggests will indeed be the next leader (as we all know it was IK).

This issue also contains a Meet The Legionnaires feature that is, to my knowledge, the only one that lists Star Boy and Dream Girl as subs (and Nemesis Kid as an active member), as well as the annual circulation statement, stating that the total average paid circulation of Adventure Comics over the past year had been 510,521 copies, including subscriptions. My, how things have changed.

Ferro Lad. I remember thinking he seemed to be the weak link of the four - sure, his power to turn into iron is mighty but it's nothing that Superboy or Ultra Boy can't already do.

Princess Projectra was mighty regal, as befits a princess, but she also struck me as being different from all the other Legionnaires save Saturn Girl! There's just something about her - stern but not cold. I think it was a combination of the art, dialogue and her amazing power demonstration that just made her stand out so well!

I agree that Tinya seemed bitchy, but I remember thinking that it wasn't an unfounded bitchiness and was forgivable.

All in all a great story, and the tension, conflict and mystery did not seem forced at all!

Adventure #346

Adv 346-347 is a major milestone in Legion history for a number of reasons. To me, the "Shooter 4" Legionnaires being inducted into the Legion is one the iconic moments ever in Legion history. This is enhanced by how these four characters would have such a dramatic history going forward, and how intertwined that would be. It's helped even more by the fact that this is an excellent story.

Something else else we didn't really note was that the Computo story was the last Legion story to feature Jerry Siegel in any sort of writing role; he'd soon leave DC a second time, file a lawsuit and take on a more antagonistic role. With Ed Hamilton and Otto Binder retiring, Mort was bringing in new blood, like E. Nelson Bridwell; and of course as all fans know--almost entering the realm of legend now--he brought in a 13 year old Jim Shooter. While the stories of cranky old Mort pestering a child to write the Legion are interesting, what's even more interesting is that the stories are so damn good! (And I'd say, his teenage stories remain Shooters best throughout his long career).

These issues mark the start of a transitionary period for the Legion that basically separates the first part of the Silver Age from the latter part. This transition starts here with the intro of Shooter & the 4 new Legionnaires, continues for another two issues, and then continues with Bridwell's epic story that basically undoes much of the terrible tragedies that has befallen the Legion prior to Shooter--almost as if they were wiping the slate clean and starting from zero again. The following story, the Death of Ferro Lad, formally starts the second part of the Silver Age, which is decidedly different in tone and style, much more similar to Marvel Comics though still seeped in Legionness.

One of the most amazing things about Shooter is how many Legion concepts he created during this period that had major parts to play in the next 40+ years. Not only does he introduce "the 4", he introduces the Khunds in this story! He'll continue to introduce villains and alien races at an amazing rate.

Then there's so much to be said for "the 4" themselves. Nemesis Kid being the traitor, and then continuing on in future stories makes him incredibly interesting; Ferro Lad's death created a genuine mystique around his character. Princess Projectra, as a princess, added something different to the mix (and though only ever subtly implied character wise, brought an implicit element of sexiness in her look). And Karate Kid shines from day one--here and throughout the rest of Shooter's term. This era is why KK is one of my favorite Legionnaires, and it's amazing Shooter was ahead of his time, about 6 years or so before the Kung-fu craze really "exploded" in the US. What really makes them even more interesting is that they're all tied together: Nemesis Kid betrays them, after pinning it on Karate Kid; Ferro Lad dies with Princess Projectra on the mission; Val & Jeckie fall in love; NK and KK have a longstanding grudge; NK almost kills KK who then dies in the same exact way Ferro Lad did, Jeckie kills NK. It's almost Shakespearen!

The opening splash and subsequent Karate Kid scenes provide the perfect intro to the character as it applies cold, 13 year old logic: "how do I get the fans to like a karate based hero in the Legion?" "Have him kick Superboy's ass."

The story then opens with Cos rushing to a meeting, and in the process having to strain himself to save someone. Right here, we see the influence of Marvel. Almost all of their Silver Age stories started this way, which was the direct influence of Jack Kirby, who didn't like drawing quiet set-up scenes. Mort must have been thrilled.

Superboy is appointed Deputy here, which later fans and writers will interpret as being the start of Brainy's second term.

It's noteworthy that there's a big change in the depiction of the meeting room (previously a regular table) / tryout area (previously on the lawn outside). Now it's in a room with the Legionnaires up high on pedestals.

Projectra is introduced in one of the greatest sequences showing illusion powers ever. Highly effective by Swan & Klein!

Nemesis Kid is next, though his power has never made much sense without considering it magic. Still, great costume.

Ferro Lad is next and he gets by on look alone! Looking mysterious and almost scary-like, one can't help but want to know more about him.

And then of course KK, with the aforementioned whooping he gives Superboy.

The Khunds are introduced, and while nothing too ground breaking, we see the beginning of the infiltration plot. Waiting until now to introduce it is a good move, letting readers realize they've made a huge error.

As the action begins, Cos takes charge in his typical way, much to Tinya's chagrin. Well she ain't having that work Val--she gives that tenderfoot some what for and gets on with things. We then see both PG and Cos being heroic, especially Cos. I think Shooter always liked him quite a bit.

Both Tinya and Cos get more screen time as they argue over Val being a traitor--really great stuff! The dialogue is strait forward and combative, without being melodramatic. Part 1 ends with the tension cranked up and I can't wait for part 2.

Also noteworthy: this is the first full length Legion story! (Re: no back-ups). The extra room definitely helps enhance the experience.

Also: the Statement of Ownership shows 520,440 sold copies of the series on average in 1965, which is immense. The Legion was the best selling team book in comics in the 60's and very few series hit these numbers.

This issue also has a "Meet the Legionnaires" piece which is fascinating because it included Nemesis Kid!

Bonus Lettercol Review: Jeff Greenberg, creator of Color Kid writes in again, and Mort confirms Color Kid has joined the Subs!

Meanwhile, the controversy rages on about whether Superboy is hogging all the covers.

Mort then promises a reader the next Legion Leader will not be an overdone hero like Brainy or Imra, implying he's had many such complaints.