Legion World Forums LEGION CLUBHOUSE The Legion of Super-Heroes Long Live the Legion! Legion of Super-Heroes 38 ***Spoilers***

Because a third of us would bitch and complain for all eternity that THEIR three-boot Legion ended with the 5MG, and no matter how brilliant the stories SnM and any of their successors tell, the best that this can be considered is three-boot.1 or whatever version we're calling this now.

I'm sure I'm right, because I've heard it all before.
Over time the 5YL stories have become my favorite era, and a great many people here give them little or no respect. I was bored with the Legion during the Baxter run. SOOO much exposition, With the loss of Kal (admittedly, not their fault) and Mon being put back into the Zone,it wasn't fun anymore. I didn't think Conspiracy was heroic, and gave up soon afterward. I actually thought the book had been cancelled, soon after, because I never saw it in my local CBS.

Two or three years later, in a Waldenbooks, I saw an issue of the Legion where Furball was in the sewers and loved it. Wow, was this different, and yet, here were all my old friends. I bought it and, in th next few months, found the back-issues to the beginning of the gap. Years later I went back and filled in the missing issues from the original series. I was kinda glad I had missed the end of Magic.

I thought the issue was good, but not overwhelming. Lightning Lad's central dilemma was a little too forced -- are there really no light-speed or near light-speed capable vehicles that the Legion could beg, borrow or steal? (I did the calc and Neptune is, on average, about 4 light hours from Earth.) I guess you could argue that the events on Triton are happening within that timeframe, so it wouldn't help (the SP ships show up in about that time). Still, it reminded me of the Star Trek episode where Sulu and others are stranded on a rapidly freezing planet, the transporter is splitting people into good and evil twins, and Kirk can't rescue his crew on the planet because Gene Roddenberry didn't have the budget yet to show the shuttlecraft.

Still, this issue had lots of great and fairly unexpected character moments. Iron-Butt Imra is back, baby, and she's packin' heat! Seriously, This is one of Saturn Girl's coolest moments EVER, as far as I can recall. I know we've seen Lightning Lad "fail" as leader before, but really not like this -- the Legion leadership post is really beyond him (or most of us) and his anguish at the end is touching, as is Light Lass's recognition of it. Giselle was very cool, and I completely agree it was great to see the Legion's affiliation with the UP hurting their street cred with the young'uns (BTW, I thought Giselle's line about every underager knowing who Saturn Girl is a clever nod to Waid's Legion movement without hitting us over the head with it). I'm sure Shooter is building up here to some sort of change in the status of the Legion/UP relationship, perhaps one involving an idealistic old industrialist, by damn? I liked the tryouts and I like Popoff even more. I loved the cabowabo fruit -- Garth could really use some by the end. Finally, I was delighted that Brainy DIDN'T appear to save the day. One has to wonder, could he have helped more, but want to set Garth up for more of a fall, or could he really do nothing to help? Either way, thanks to Jim for 2 Brainy-free issues.

I wouldn't mind seeing these Legionnaires care for each other a little more. While I find the tone of the Action/Superman Legion a little too sentimental at times, I think my main problem with the 3Boot is that the Legionnaires still don't seem very friendly with each other.

As I've said elsewhere, I love the 5YG stories - they're what hooked me into the Legion in the first place. What they showed was that this group of individuals were friends and family and they cared about each other WHILE they were doing great things in the galaxy. Like doublechinner says - the present group just don't seem to LIKE each other very much. There doesn't seem to be much shared history with them.

I suppose the obvious guess is that Shooter is leading up the Legion splitting away from UP sponsorship in the near future, and becoming kick-ass again...

(a thought occurs: a telepath with a gun? Is Imra turning into Cable?? lol)

As I was reading the book last night, I had a similar thought. Fruit Boy probably has greater powers than he knows. He can control the aging process. In fact, he probably has control, even if he doesn't realize it yet, over organic and maybe other chemical reactions. Fruity has a lot of potential.

Fruit Boy + Triplicate Girl = Banana Split?

I thought L#38 had a good mix of action (on Triton) and character development (at HQ). The current creative team have gotten off to a great start!

I thought I read a post somewhere that Mr. Shooter is only signed up to do 16 issues - is this true? I was hoping he would have at least a 2-3 year run on this.

I agree!

Maybe he can turn his opponents into babies a la Glorith/Time Trapper. Who wouldn't want to see a battle of the Legion vs. the Natal Five?

i thought 'Spy' looked really cool (yay for Espionage Squad!). Fruit Boy is awesomely lame. I'm excited by the new characters and the art's looking cool - especially like Francis and the colorist together as a team. Can't wait to see Francis' take on the other Legionnaires in action...

I posted that over on Polar Boy's"Catch Me Up Thread", and I'm beginning to wonder myself if it is correct. I remember Shooter saying in one of the interviews after his run was announced something like ... People have come to expect epics from me, so I'll be doing a 16 issue arc.... I've been searching tonight and can't find that quote in any of the interviews. Does anyone else remember it?

Even if the quote exists, is it valid? If sales are good, they'll try to keep Shooter on the title. If not, then will they get someone else of will we see a 4boot?

I think this is the quote you're looking for:

"Shooter said the run will start with an epic 16-issue story -- pointing out that of course there will be smaller stories within the larger story. "
http://www.newsarama.com/dcnew/Baltimore_07/DCU_panel.html

After that:

NRAMA: How long are you looking to stay on the series?

JS: I'll probably still be sending in scripts a year after they stop paying me. Seriously, Mike Marts is a terrific editor, Francis is brilliant, Dan has been great...I'm having a ball. I see no reason not to stick round for a long time.
http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=128352

Seeing his 16 issue mega-arc is the "foundation" of the "top secret" 50th anniversary "centerpiece" event, I'm willing to bet Shooter and DC will see it through to its completion, come hell or highwater.

After Spring 2009, who can tell? All I know for sure is Fruit Boy will live on long after Shooter and all the rest of us are dust.

I noticed the colors look great also. I have a bad habit not to notice the colorists names. I remember I wasn't all that thrilled with the colorist earlier in the series. Has there been a change? I am guessing yes.

Heh.

Validus is already a big baby, and Sarya often acts like one, so it wouldn't be a stretch.

I tend to doubt they'd do a full Boot so soon. More likely, the focus would shift to something resembling Preboot, whether Johns or not.

Hmm. I was just thinking. Could Fruit Boy potentially be Chemical Knng???

I thought of that, too... but I doubt it.

I feel comforted by that thought!

so i just got my 38 and i have to say i love this new artist, i pray they can keep them on..as for the writing have to say i like it

i really like that lighting lad can't handle the job
I've always seen him as someone who is to shortsighted and just doesn't like taking orders, so he thinks that he can give them

i do like how 3boot makes the job as leader not just about leading the team but also have to worry about things like getting money to keep lights running and such, things i noticed that the other legion seams to lack

so far i like jim's writing, the curse words didn't bother me at all i know they can get bothers some but it's not like the reboot where they say sprok every other sentence, another thing i liked was that light lass wasn't i dont want to say stupid ...just more aware then she previously has been shown

Hey I liked this issue as well! I'm surprised myself. I thought #37 was rather lukewarm, but have been rereading it yesterday before the new one and it was much better the second time.

Many story elements have a very classic Legion touch for me: Lightning Lad being in over his head - we had this one before, it was a great time for the Legion comic - Legionnaires fighting together for their lives on some strange planet (or moon), government officials harrassing the Legion... and... at last... TRYOUTS!!!

Fruit Boy, oh my

The whole issue somehow felt right, something that Waid never seemed to manage for me. I really think that this book might be going somewhere. Only fact I really don't like: #41 will be drawn by a guest artist - that is definitely not good after only four issues of Francis drawing... if something like this happens, it often means that there's something going wrong behind the scenes - I really like Manapuls art and am sincerely hoping he does not feel just like Lightning Lad right now...

CK, I am SO glad you liked the recent issue! I look to you as the standard bearer of the "traditional" Legion, so it's significant that you liked it. Me, I'm just glad the Earth didn't explode! The "feel" of this issue reminded me of the early 1970s issues, where you had 2 stories in the book and a counterpoint of "action" and "character development." I think the book was bi-monthly then (?) so it was very important for the creative team to introduce the characters and premise anew in every issue.

I also hope you are wrong about the fill-in artist portending behind-the-scenes turmoil! Maybe Francis can post and reassure us. I have always assumed that no single contemporary comics artist could handle Legion all by her/himself.

it can be done, they just need to people who will get the job done on time, for example if it looks like some the main artist inst going to finish on time have him or her just draw the people/aliens and hire some on to do the backgrounds, if they need to hire more the one inker they should, pay some one to do all the flats and some on else to and the tones for the color that way color mishaps wont happen do to rushing, it is they can put books like legion out right ,dc is just to cheep to so

Hey, I'm glad that you're so glad I'm only here for about a year and a half now and already my traditionalist attitude seems to be legend

But hey, I AM a very vocal bearer of the traditional Legion - love their return in Action without asking about how or why - still that does not make me a Threeboot hater automatically... I had nothing against the Threeboot in the beginning but just thought Mark Waid did a very bad job at telling an actual story... now Shooter might be up to something, so I get a (kind of) classic and a (kind of) modern Legion story every month and that's wonderful...

... until the Action run is over, that is.

I finally read it today...

loving the art

HATING Virus. May Infectious Lass show up soon and give her the Rigellian Wretching Boils.

Quite enjoyed this issue, the art was fab, as were the colours, but I felt the story wasn't quite as good as expected. We have no real resolution to the problem of those big purple monsters - not even a name for them, though I imagine they are the life eradicators that Shady is going to have to fight in a future issue. I didn;t really think much of any of the try out characters. Was a bit disappointed that Gisselle didn't at least part on friendlier terms but am sure we aint seen the last of her.

On a more positive note Saturn Girl, Light Lass and star Boy were all written well, Garths imminent breakdown should be interesting and I'm sure Invisible Kid wasn't really knocked out cold for the whole issue - what could that little sneak have been up to?

The last "try-out" character will become the manager the Legion is looking for, I think. That's what his "power" is, organization.

I really enjoyed just about everything with my reread except Virus. Unless Shooter is up to something with the character, my impression is that it was a political mis-step. This board or the other has rarely liked a complete reinvention of a character, let alone an out-right rip-off so unless somehow this character develops into Infectious Lass, a big boo from me. Yes I'd agree that most of the other try-outs were pure throw-away, but that's the way it's always been. Throw the crap against the wall and see what sticks.

I also would have liked Giselle to leave on somewhat better terms but hopefully her final comments could lead to a real self-examination by Legion and hopefully a turning from the (IMO) very uncharacteristic plot-point upon which this boot was based. Hopefully quickly.