Legion World Forums LEGION CLUBHOUSE The Legion of Super-Heroes Re-Reading the Legion: Archives #7

While we're waiting to start Adventure #362...

Here's the really good stuff you could get if you bought the first edition of Adventure #361 off the spinner rack:

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And finally, on the back cover:
*** The Thunderbike. If you don't already own a Model Motoring set, here's another great reason for getting one. It'll mean you're ready for the wild one. It's got it, so get it! $3.98

Ah, ads. Almost as fun as the comic itself.

Agh! I was all prepped tonight to read Adv 362 only to learn that...I don't have it! And I was wondering why I didn't remember part 1 all that well...

So, while this collection oversight will need to be addressed eventually, I'll try to check out an electronic copy tomorrow and review.

So here we go again! I’m hoping everyone gets a chance to weigh in and kick the Archives back off. But as we talked about, I definitely think a slow & steady approach is the way to go, so we can let everyone have some time to read the issue and post a review.

Adventure Comics #362
It’s good to be back—and right in the middle of the real “meat” of a young Jim Shooter’s run, where I feel he is really firing on all cylinders. So many of these stories that are sandwiched between the first Fatal Five story and the first Mordru story are often unmentioned in broad reviews, but for me, most of them have been fantastic. Picking things up where we left off, we see Shooter utilize a lot of his favorites: Invisible Kid as leader; Karate Kid & Projectra front & center; continued heavy use of Sun Boy and Cosmic Boy, etc. And actually, there are quite an array of Legionnaires in this story. In the first half, many are just doing something here or there, but the larger group in the latter half is pretty large in comparison to the “old days”.

Mantis Morlo is not exactly the greatest LSH villain of all time, but you have to hand it to Shooter for yet another creation. His “look” is very Dr. Sivana-ish to. What sets him apart is that he’s actually given more personality than one would think at first glance—the Legionnaires are disrupting his life’s work and that causes him to get on the defensive. He goes to extreme measures, yes, but how often have we seen people in real life become threatened, go on the defensive and suddenly play the role of the villain a bit? Later we find out about yet another untold tale of the Legion’s past documenting Morlo’s first run-in with the Legion. In a way, this lessens what I just said though, so I wish it hadn’t been included; it shows a pattern of villainy on Morlo’s part and makes him much less empathetic.

The Chemoids, and Gorn are pretty meh, except for Gorn having four arms.

Shooter pencils the issue with Mike Costanza, who also does the inks. Once again, Shooter shows his wunderkind nature with a wide array of skills. The art is actually pretty good too—not as good as Curt Swan and George Klein who I recall from our last archive reviews were producing work better than I had ever seen it in 1966-67; but still really good. Projectra has never looked more like Grace Kelly, which obviously inspired her creation.

(I swear on the bottom right panel of page 15, Projectra looks like she was drawn by Johnny Romita Sr., or at least 1970’s Jim Mooney)

There’s lots of nice little moments that reminds me why I missed doing these rereads. In the beginning Tinya & Luornu are being besties—like we’ve always theorized in the pre-Shady days. It’s cool to see Brainy & Lyle working together in multiple scenes. Page 6 shows Cos, Ayla, Thom and Dirk all using their powers as Shooter makes sure to utilize action sequences as much as possible. A few pages later he even remembers to have Dream Girl contribute—a rarity until around 1980!

We get our first glimpse of Orando! The dialogue is a bit clunky during this part but the fast action pace is appreciated. With a very middle-age feel to it, Orando stands out. That is nicely done, even if the best depictions of the planet are not for another 15 years. Shooter does make a great decision with his dialogue by having Jeckie lie to her father and call the Legionnaires ‘nobles’. Karate Kid picks up on it, and appears to be slightly offended or annoyed. A few panels later, KK is the only Legionnaire who doesn’t realize he’s supposed to bow to the king. All of this adds a great bit of depth to the sequence, and it sets up ongoing Jeckie / Val interactions. We don’t have to wait too long for the payoff either—at the end of the issue, after some great interaction with underpinnings of strong mutual respect, Jeckie gives Val a nice “in”, and Val plants a wonderfully depicted kiss on her. It’s a great little moment, and it’s heightened by Val admitting the way she handled herself earlier in the story impressed him so much that he couldn’t help thinking about doing it. Though still the two newest Legionnaires, their relationship already feels deeper and more full than a lot of others.

BB mentioned a few comments above that the Unkillables story did something few of us commented on: it established a 10 year war proceeding that story, which means a war was ongoing throughout all of the earlier LSH adventures. Shooter clearly had a different view of the future, and the classic “bright future” so many of us think of when we think of the Legion may not really apply all that much from here on. This story, with its focus on Orando, follows that story by showing very clearly a planet that still exists in the 30th century that has kings and nobles on one hand, and uneducated, superstitious peasants on another one. Clearly, the 30th century had a lot of depth to it, and couldn’t be colored so uniformly by the “bright & shiny” image.

Also noteworthy: Jeckie says “Because Orando never had small countries to compete against each other, scientific advancement stagnated!” That’s a pretty strong endorsement for capitalism right there!

The issue ends with not the most alarming of cliffhangers but I’ve enjoyed the story well enough to want to read #2. To be honest my expectations were absurdly low for this story since I’ve never cared much for Mantis Morlo, but I have to say I’m surprisingly delighted by how much I enjoyed it. And that’s all basically because of a young Jim Shooter.

Special Note – we get a “Meet the Legionnaires” page in the issue which gives the most up to date line-up. Add in Shady, Brin and Condo and you’ve got the classic Adv line-up complete.

Letter’s Page – the ongoing heated debate continue as yet another young boy calls out Liz Kane for her comments issues earlier. It’s the 1960’s message board but moderated by Uncle Mort!

Direct Currents – this may be the first “Direct Currents”…or at least, it says it is. Obviously stealing the idea from Stan Lee and Marvel, it’s nonetheless an awesome inclusion for many years hereafter.

Adventure #362

After the Legion chain gang, Otto Orion and the Legion of Super villains in recent previous issues, I always felt that this issue was a weaker offering. On the reread:-

The cover and splash page abound with alliteration as we see Superboy get smashed by the Plastic Men of Garguax moonlighting for the Legion’s Savana look-alike winner. Morlo’s maniacal cackling doesn’t win many points, as it was a tired cliché even when this saw print.

The story opens with some down time in Legion HQ. Karate Kid shows his Japanese upbringing and reminds the male readership that flower arranging and painting are as important as martial skills. Dirk reads a book on law; presumably the chapter on paternity suits ahead of avoiding them in later years.

In the lab, Lyle and Querl interrupt their techno-romance as they detect a toxic threat to the atmosphere.
Now here’s an interesting change of gear. Morlo’s plans for discovering the secrets of the universe are interrupted at the end of page 3. No lengthy hunt. No protracted conflict. There’s a threat. The Legion locates its source, and confronts it. It’s a plotting decision that makes a huge impact on the issue.

Morlo shows interesting depth by trying to convince the Legion he’s doing the right thing. If only he had been employed by a toxic dumping large corporation, the legion would never have got the authority to stop him.

But Morlo is stopped by the Legion, following a fun and successful fight against Morlo’s creation: Gorn. Forewarned and certainly four-armed, but still taken out in a very satisfactory way by the seasoned pros of the Legion. A mad scientist’s henchman should pose little threat, so it’s nice to see this efficiently shown.

Chameleon Boy absorbs information on Morlo’s form. It’s probably going to pay off later. Either for the legion or, since he does it so readily, for Cham’s secret plan to take over the galaxy by impersonating its leaders.

Unfortunately, the Legion trusts Brainy to tell them that Morlo’s threat has ended. Brainy, who can’t wait to get people out of his own labs and for whom highly dangerous experiments are tremendous fun. So it’s no surprise that he whisks his team mates away, leaving Morlo with most of his experiments intact. Brainy also tells his colleagues that Morlo’s last prison sentence was short because experimenting on the minds of his human guinea pigs didn’t damage them physically. So that’s all right then. It says a lot about Brainy’s outlook, even if the three human subjects did go on to star in Minority Report decades later.

The Legion then gets on with some other minor issues. In the hands of a Levitz, this story would be spread across a number of issues. The Legion would encounter Morlo across months in between other adventures. This is more focused. The legion takes part in some minor issues, before alerts come in from three of their home worlds, forcing the Legion to separate. The first team go to Orando and we get an early taste of a medieval world still existing in the 30th century.

The Legion are only worthy when introduced as nobles to her eager Teen Beat fan of a father. But graffiti isn’t the problem. There’s a toxic threat to the atmosphere. Must Mean Mad Maniacal Morlo.

Projectra knows her world is backward and prophecy led. But knowing this doesn’t mean she has any intention of changing it. The threat is terrible, not because it brings death, but because it blocks out the stars bringing bad omens. The deaths of the people of Palik Ramos mean less than the threat of the toxic cloud reaching her palace. The golden palace may be what Jeckie thinks is the pride of her world, but I wonder what the families of Palik Ramos would prefer.

With Superboy only able to affect the cloud briefly, the group agree to return to the palace. Jeckie says that there’s little else to be done. Superboy saving some of the vulnerable locals at super speed might have been a thought.

Unsurprisingly, the locals aren’t best pleased, but are put in their place by their princess. Projectra uses the sign of the Spirit King to subdue the mob, showing that the obscure Justice League villain lives onto be a major threat before the 30th century.

Back at the palace, Karate Kid uses his power of notebook & pencil creation to take some details about the planet. In the Princesses’ chambers, no less. A planet living in peace, yet strangely fearful of everything has turned Orando into a spiritualist version of Switzerland.

Karate Kid continues to be a writer’s favourite, wooing Princess Projectra and then causing nuclear fusion with his super karate in Briany’s experiment! Unfortunately I missed that week at my own club, and was unable to get anyone to teach me the following week from the smoking crater. It's a great Kid moment.

With Superboy present, we see the advantages of Karate Kid. It’s Val’s precision that sets him apart.
Brainy realises that their foe is Morlo. In a sensible reprise of the opening pages, the team have no difficulty in tracking the villain down. Since they can all fly, the use of the flying chariots is a little lost on me.

This time, Morlo has specially prepared Chemoids waiting for the Legion. Each is tailor made to offset their powers. Before any of the Legion can switch targets, they look almost defeated. There’s only time for Morlo’s Maniacal Monologue and it’s a cliffhanger until the next issue!

On first glance it could be a mixed issue. Morlo is an artefact from 1940s Captain Marvel comics. The use of the chemoids is also predictable. But that’s not the whole story. Morlo gets a fully fleshed out history as the issue progresses, and also a previous Legion encounter. He has a moment of sympathy too as the Legion fail to to be deterred by his incredible work.

The powers of the Chemoids are used consistently but have a completely different threat level at different points in the book. So, even simple ideas are used well and developed. Gorn is there to set up the readers into underestimating Morlo’s threat, and it works.

The plot structure is also excellent. The pace switch on page three is really well done, allowing for a different rise and fall of the tempo in the issue.

We see more on the charming fumbling relationships of Karate Kid and Projectra. We get into the mind of the Princess and also Brainy in his approach to science and villains like Morlo. The threat of smog is also useful as it’s something the Legion can’t attack directly. We also see Chuck as a creature of comfort, quite liking the idea of a life in a palace. It’s nice to see Chuck and Luornu together before she finally shakes off her Superboy crush.

[u][/u]

re the Morlo two-parter... some impressions I (still) have from my most recent re-read some time in 2013...

1) Loved seeing Orando, Daxam and Naltor. All interesting planets,especially Orando (which I recall was the most fully fleshed-out).

2) I thought it was odd that Dream Girl did almost nothing on Naltor! Projectra and Mon-El were able leaders on their homeworlds, but Dreamy just kind of stood there. What gives?!

3) Most of the Legionnaires had something to do, but this issue felt much more crowded than some of the recent ones like Universo etc. Maybe it was the pacing? I didn't mind so much though, I enjoyed seeing so many Legionnaires in action

4) Shrinking Violet and Supergirl absent! Come on, Supergirl. Soon you won't be able to understand any of the inside jokes!

I found issue 362 very enjoyable, echoing Cobie in how it was surprisingly so. As Cobie said, people tend to remember the big, significant milestones in Shooter's run, but this re-read is proving that there were plenty of other gems he wrote, even if the foes and concepts weren't as memorable. It speaks to what a talented young writer he was, producing what I think was the best run on the LSH until Paul Levitz came around.

One thing that hasn't been touched on in the reviews of this issue so far is how Shooter was adding a subtext to many stories in his run that related to contemporary issues. What's even better is that it was subtext and not outright preaching.

The subtext of the Morlo storyline is about pollution and how mankind is endangering the environment with their industry. Shooter didn't make this aspect up for the story; he used what he could see out his window and what was starting to show up in headlines for inspiration. Hell, it may have even been subliminal for teenage Shooter and may not have been intended as subtext, per se, but the muse was apparent. I almost think it wasn't intentional because there's nothing preachy about the story's presentation (even when you consider that the Legion was actually fighting smog for a good portion of it!). But I almost think it WAS and that young Shooter was just THAT good at such a tender age and could pull it off. Either way, I'm happy to read an issue presented with such subtlety, whether intended or not.

There was subtext in Shooter's previous story also with the Dominator story. Without being preachy, he shows two cultures who had been at war, try to relate and become humanized to each other in a few key scenes. When you think that the Vietnam War was in its most violent point at the time of that story's publication, this was a pretty progressive and insightful point of view to take. And again, it isn't used to knock you over the head--it's truly subtext.

While O'Neil and Adams get a lot of credit for putting social issues front-and-center during their legendary Green Lantern/Green Arrow run, let's not forget that a teenager took a good stab at it a few years earlier and still told a darn good yarn in the process!

That's a great point, Lardy! And as you said - it's subtle but visible, and not all in-your-face too!

Lardy, really fantastic point. Also some great speculation on whether it was Shooter's intent to be so subtle, or whether this was something he was subconsciously doing as he found his voice as a writer. Whatever the case, it definitely works, as you say. It's progressive and true subtext. One of the problems with any sort of reread of the O'Neil GL / GA issues is that they are so overt with almost no subtlety; at times its a little difficult to read without groaning.

"Preachiness" has become an almost unforgivable sin for me as a reader, and I suspect many comic book fans like most of us, who have read literally thousands of comics, feel the same way. I don't even care about good intentions anymore--if you're too preachy, I start rooting for the dark side.

IB, good commentary on the story from the viewpiont of reading both at once. Since this is a two-parter, I want to confirm for everyone that anyone can review the single issue or both at once. I plan to eventually get around to reviewing part 2 (which I've now read) but am waiting for some more possible commentary.

Thoth, that was a pretty awesome--and hilarious!--review! Please keep them coming as we move forward with the archives! I agree totally about the plot structure. It's unusual and that immediately drew me right in. So many stories rise and fall because of the plot structure and pacing, regardless of whether it was a good idea, great characterization or a great villain.

About the pollution angle, while I was typing away I was thinking about...



which was preachier than the Legion issue.

To my mind, Brainy & Jeckie are among the most likely to work against the legion to follow other ideals. This issue probably has a lot to do with that perception. Well done Shooter for adding such nuanced characterisation. Even if unintentional, some characters are products of their heritage.

I recall that even though she knew about the Legion conspiracy, Jeckie did not stop it perhaps recognising it's need.

In Adventure #362, when the King of Orando ends his audience with the Legionnaires, they all bow. Except for Karate Kid; Superboy has to nudge him and tell him to bow. Now, Karate Kid has studied all kinds of Eastern martial arts, and in this story he mentions that he has studied in Japan. He surely knows the traditions of bowing in respect. So why do you think he had to be schooled by Superboy?

(a) He had just finished chopping a marble pillar into pieces and was walking back to the group. He hadn't heard what the king said.
(b) Princess Projectra's cape had swept to the side as she knelt and he was checking out her butt.
(c) He was looking around for a computer on which he could feed his mission report into the auto-log.
(d) Since the princess had introduced the Legionnaires as nobles, he thought bowing wasn't necessary by someone of their status.
(e) Since the Legionnaires had just carried off the queen's throne, tossed around some armor, broken some weapons, torn up the marble floor, and destroyed pillars, he thought the king probably would want to bow to them.
(f) Having discovered that the queen was a "Teen Beat" fan, he figured they were, like, groovy pals with the royal family.
(g) He was playing the naive newbie role to stay in good graces with the other Legionnaires.

Seriously, this was an interesting little moment which was unnecessary for the plot. Why do you think it was there?

Smog is the danger in the first half of the story, while in the second half Morlo uses weather disruptions and food contamination. In the 1960s smog was in the headlines; weather and food problems not so much. Now here in the early 21st century...well, we can say that if Shooter wasn't preachy, he was prescient. Legion World, Mantis Morlo is out there somewhere!

I think it was to re-enforce the cultural disparity between the royal Princess and the pauper street orphan, K Kid and show that their budding love transcends social morés.

^ This, plus (B), checking out her royal backside!

As we continue to review this story, I’ll add in some additional comments for…

Adventure Comics #363

As with most 2-part stories, comments on this one are briefer as we’ve already gotten a lot out of the way with the first issue. I enjoyed seeing the blurb on the title page: "All the legionnaires except Shrinking Violet and Supergirl". Oops. Sounds like someone forgot and then remembered at the last minute.

When I first got into the Legion, Karate Kid was one of my favorites. This issue, along with the next Fatal Five story and the issue where five Legionnaires have 24 hours to live, are the reason why. He's the ultimate badass for a kid to want to be (if that kid also wanted to be part of a group of cool teenagers with superpowers). I also like early on that Val inspires Brainy to get free which in turn gets Ayla to do the same, ensuring it's not just the boys. That progressive pacing makes Shooter's action sequences stand out.

As a second part of a two part story this issue needs to up the ante, which it does. We get to see the referenced other two squads on Daxam and Naltor, and thus get a megaload of Legionnaires--as I suspect the positive fan mail from the Universo story clued in Mort and the Shooter Kid that fans dug the big cast.

I love the idea for Naltor's problem. It's such a normal, almost mundane but clever problem for a population where everyone can see the future.

The choice to show one planet after another is interesting, and very in line with the earlier straight forward Legion writers. Shooter, who was more "Marvel" than any writer DC had yet, seems like he might choose the Kirby Marvel method of 6 different stories going on at once. You almost think Shooter hadn't written and done layouts, you might think the "days later" and other references to time passing were added in later to explain the narrative choice. I say almost though because we eventually see Shooter had a plan all along and was holding it from us--there really is 3 different Morlos! It’s amazing that he was such a clever storyteller at this age.

One might expect the whole crew of Legionnaires to gang up on Morlo but I don't mind the smaller, almost-espionage squad finish. I do wish however they used the perfect chance for Jeckie to trick Morlo into thinking he'd blown up the Earth rather the hard to swallow Jo / Supes / Mon explanation. Considering Jeckie’s earlier role, it would tie the story together nicely. Instead, I wonder if there was a little push to have Superboy doing more than just being one of the minor players.

Morlo gets progressively more and more vicious during the course of the story. By the end he is trying to destroy a whole planet! It almost feels unbelievable at that point, though Shooter carefully shows Morlo has upped the ante throughout the 2-part story. Still, it’s a long way from that opening sequence in the prior issue that gives the reader a reason to feel some sort of understanding or empathy for the character; sadly all of that is lost by now.

I admit I didn't enjoy part 2 as much as 1, though it's hard to pin down any reason why. I liked it well enough—it was solid action and fun. But I could have used more of the characterization that Shooter has been giving us. This definitely felt in the vein of the pre-Shooter issues.

As I reread this story, I couldn't remember how it ended. When the Legionnaires revealed that the Earth was not really destroyed, I immediately anticipated that it was one of Projectra's illusions. Maybe Shooter didn't go that way because it would be the expected solution...and the creation of a fake Earth was a more incredible feat. (But, like Cobie, I would have preferred that it was a Jeckie save, not the far-fetched thing we saw. Wasn't that an incredible waste of time and resources when you have an illusionist handy? But hey, it's a super-hero comic. Go big or go home.) By the way, it was Jan, not Jo, who helped Superboy and Mon build the fake planet.

Yeah, as we're now in 1968, the kind of oddball last minute saves will become increasingly rare. This one kind of jumped out at me since I thought we were kind of past that.

We're almost to AC#369, the first appearance of my favorite Legion villain, Mordru!

We're also almost at Adventure #365-366, the first appearance of my favorite Legionnaire, Shadow Lass. I'll definitely chime in on that story.

We’re almost at my review of Adventure 363. Why, here it is now…

Adventure #363

The United Planets is a big place. That’s why Mantis Morlo isn’t too worried about where he’s going to find an optician and a dry cleaners as he sets fire to Earth on the cover. Visi-Lad’s Optic Emporium is only a few systems away. Once again, Superboy is on the cover in a dual role. Firstly, to sell the book and secondly to show the level of threat posed by Morlo.

I wonder if the “Black Day” in the title inspired the later Black Dawn incident in the TMK run, with the Earth threatened with being set alight there too. The shadow of chemical warfare is as pertinent today as it was when this was released.

We pick up directly from last issue’s cliff-hanger in the splash page, but then get a summary of the previous issue before we can continue. There’s something to be said for a small previously box/inside cover. But the argument would be that is takes away an ad or isn’t as visual as a lovely splash page. Superboy states that Krytponite is his one weakness, forgetting red solar radiation and, much later, any emotional drama that would blind him with tears.

Karate Kid gets more excellent exposure, showing he’s the master of many fighting skills. His success inspires Brainy to defeat his foe, while Light Lass defeats hers in a clever way. The trio rescue the other Legionnaires and capture Morlo ending his plans on Orando. But the madman escapes into the forests of Orando, with Superboy having to explain why he can’t catch him.

We meet up with the Legionnaires as they save the other two worlds under threat. Superboy isn’t the only own who has to make an awkward explanation. Mon-El has to let the readers know why he can still use his powers under the red sun of Daxam.

Lovely Daxam, with weather control, science labs and oceans. Just remember to set your time bubble to before the great darkness saga. Or even before this issue, as the cities are being destroyed by some very violent weather. Shooter really shows how bad this can be with the Legionnaires attacked directly and the population forced underground. No tame red skies and lightning effects as seen in Crisis here.

Despite the emphasis Daxam places on science, it hasn’t taken much for society to fall apart and there is widespread rioting. It’s another nice touch from Shooter in an excellent segment. The Legionnaires are forced underwater to confront Morlo. It’s an environment that’s used sparingly outside an Aquaman comic and it makes perfect sense that Morlo would be based there. All of the group get their time in the spotlight and make more headway than the first team. Mon -El doesn’t have Superboy’s weaknesses, and is the more powerful. Shooter does not hold Element Lad back and Imra’s powers extend to a form of psychometry. Although beaten, Morla escapes again.

We then get to see what a planet would be like where everyone could predict the future: Naltor. The background here would set the standard for all future (or foretold if you’re Naltorian) issues. Again, Shooter shows both positive and negative sides of the society.

As everyone is precognitive, their society is strangely structured to prevent foreknowledge ruining everything. It seems quite desperate, caged world, with rules forcing society in to a pattern in spite of the powers available. Morlo has given the Naltorians visions of impending doom and they are terrified.

It’s interesting that there are no future Utopias in these Legion issues. Earth has recently been rescued from the fascistic Universo; Orando is superstitious mediaeval back water and both Daxam and Naltor are only ever days away from rioting and looting.

Morlo has infected the food chain of Naltor, causing the disruption. The fear of dogma & superstition; climate change and infected food chains are all issues we see in today’s news. Shooter uses them all effortlessly, decades ago, as solid preach-free plot devices.

Ultra Boy is the star in this segment, using his penetra powers to find Morlo in the depths of the planet. For the sake of future stories, Ultra Boy doesn’t use his power to this extent much following this issue. A Dawnstar/Ultra Boy team up would leave villains with nowhere to hide in the universe.

The others eventually get a chance to use their powers, even if Chameleon Boy looks a bit silly as an Air Conditioning Beast from Antares (Desk Fan). Chameleon holds his comrades back by becoming a Blockade Beast of Betelgeuse (brick wall) in another silly use of his powers.

We do get the pay off from his twitching antennae from last issue. Having absorbed information on Morla’s form, Reep knows that they have just fought an impostor. Reep confesses that he does this all the time, something that is conveniently forgotten about. When Batman finally joined the Legion, I imagine the first thing he did was come up with a contingency plan to stop Daggle.

In a lovely twist, the real Morlo has never left his orbital lab. I picture him having breakfast, watching a holo vid and creating a chemical death trap while the Legion chase their tails around the galaxy. As Gorn was a set up last issue, the duplicate Morlos are this issue’s decoys. As Morlo gets the detonator from a “finally” arriving Gorn, Morlo blows up the Earth.

Only he doesn’t. Such is Morlo’s self absorption, he failed to notice the Legion build an entire planet next to the Earth. It’s a duplicate Earth Slartybartfast would be proud of, whipped up at short notice by Mon-El, Super Boy and Element Lad. It’s presumably destroyed before its gravitational effects cause widespread catastrophe on Earth.

From the lovely weighted foreshadowing of “Gorn’s” reappearance, I had always thought that this ending was ridiculous. Three people have just created an entire planet out of space debris and spent time sculpting it into a decent duplicate of Earth. Instead of, you know, just capturing Morlo.

It makes no sense. Or, rather, it didn't hold up too well to scrutiny before this reread. The Legion have already beaten Morlo twice, before he sends his duplicates to their home worlds. They know another similar defeat will not make any difference. Morlo will be back. They have tried reasoning with him. They have tried simply shutting him down.

So they tackle Morlo in a different way, getting to the heart of the problem. They deal with his hubris. They openly tell him that he will get his fame, but as the man who blew up the wrong planet. Morlo will be a “standard joke on every planet in the universe before long.” Morlo’s arrogance, the conceit that he knew best, is gone and he will have to learn to work with everyone else, rather than laugh maniacally above them. The Legion could have stopped Morlo again, but they chose a more elegant solution, by giving Morlo hope of redemption.

Considering the numerous threats we have created to kill ourselves in the real world, let’s hope we can manage to deal with our own hubris without a Legion. Just to give an example of preachiness that doesn't appear in shooter's story.

The other aspect of the Legion’s solution concerns the ability to even create a duplicate planet. But this is the pre crisis Superboy. Along with the equally powerful Mon El, there’s no real limit to the mass they can move. Element Lad has already been shown in this story transforming atmosphere if only temporarily. Readers who doubt their capabilities need only look to later issues where they terraform Daxam following the great darkness saga. Or look further ahead to the reboot and the powers of the Progenator.

I thought Adventure 363 made for a pretty good conclusion, although the ending definitely went for the obligatory Silver Age fake-out. But the journey getting there was pretty interesting, especially the ideas Shooter had about Naltor and the inventive attack Morlo devised for its natives. The ideas were probably flawed, but it was entertaining to hear of such things as pre-incident lawsuits, stock trading a month in advance and not bothering to vote in elections because the outcome is already known. The idea of all of this being thrown out of whack because all were poisoned to have only nightmares is pretty interesting! Unlike the physical danger to Orando and Daxam, Naltor's calamity was social upheaval because their confidence in their very way of life was unhinged.

Honestly, it seems very few modern writers come up with plots that interesting--and this bit only comprised about a third of the story! Plus, if you want to, I'm sure there's a bit of subtext again if you look at the time it was written and make a connection or two.

It's too bad that Daxam wasn't as interesting as Naltor and, to a lesser degree, Orando. I'm not sure when it was established, but I was hoping to see some allusions to that world's later(?)-established status as a preeminent medical innovator or perhaps some visual cues that show its relationship to Krypton with its origins as its colony. So it was pretty generic an uninteresting in comparison to the other two as presented here.

As I think about this story, I'm kind of surprised Mantis Morlo didn't become a prominent Legion villain. Lots of books had their "mad scientist" villains, and Morlo's debut here is actually impressive enough that I can see his potential. Kind of Brainiac-5's opposite number--or maybe writers had too much fun with Brainy himself occasionally filling that role? My DC Wiki search shows that he only ever appeared again in S/LSH 249. I suppose that's one more appearance than I thought he had, but I think he could have been about as big as other Shooter villains like the Fatal Five, Mordru and Universo. I suppose, maybe, it's that he looked so much like Sivana?

Anyhow, I'd have to say, overall, that this is another exceptional Shooter-era story and further evidence that he was clearly one of the better Legion writers.

I'm excited to get to "The School for Super-Villains" in Adventure 372!

Shooter does a great job showcasing the fear of perceived civilized societies digressing into chaos and rioting. It's interesting when you consider how different that notion is to the earlier Legion stories at the start of the Silver Age.

Of course, the date of this story explains a lot. It went on sale in October 1967. Just three months earlier in July 1967 there was the famous Detroit riot which left 40+ dead and over 2,000 buildings destroyed. It was one of the worst post-WWII riots; more importantly, while it was one of the worst, it certainly wasn't alone. There were many race riots around the country, with more civil disturbances (whether deemed "race" inspired or otherwise) to come.

There was a genuine fear among many Americans that the entire society could indeed collapse. That was certainly heightened in 1968 - 1971. And to many, that fear would encompass the entire youth culture of the USA.

Shooter, now 16, surely must have been wondering where his place in all of this would be.

Adventure Comics
As we start to get towards the end of the Silver Age, we start getting a lot of "last of" things. Adv #364 isn't the last Legion of Super-Pets story, but it's definitely the last prominent cover appearance; they appear twice more--just barely, and that's it. That says a lot about how serious comics started to take themselves.

That reminds me, we forgot another last--the last major Jimmy Olsen LSH story, in Jimmy Olsen #106. As Jimmy, the Super-Pets and other things became less involved with the LSH, it definitely marked the end of an era.

Anyway, this issue is special to me because for many years I didn't own it. It was next to impossible to find. When discussing that topic on LW back in the old days of 2004, a heroic poster decided to rectify that situation for me: Varalent, having a double of the issue, sent it to me as a gift! Knowing Vee well over the years, I can say that is only a small example of his generosity. He's definitely missed. And it's so cool I now am reading the copy he bought off the stands in 1968.

The story reads like a classic Hamilton or Siegel story but I don't mind it. 3 pages of origins in the beginning is a bit much, but I enjoy the personalities Shooter gives them, including the conflicting feelings about abandoning their post. Krypto, Proty and Streaky worrying about their "owners" is endearing. Ah, comics. You took yourself so seriously and laughed at these types of things. [disgusted] Now look at you. [/disgusted]

Admittingly it takes way too long to get to the confrontation but if the payoff is a Cham / Proty II battle of Rock, paper, scissors, HAMMER, then yes, I'll enjoy the prize.

The most memorable part, to me, is the identities they assume: Biron the Bowman and Blockade Boy. I wonder what the decision process was to reuse the Blockade Boy identity; yes, it was a good one the first time around but it's an interesting choice.

The ending is predicable. Which underscores the fact this is probably the weakest story in some time, considering the overall lack of depth to both plot and characters. However, I do think it has it's charms in places. It would take a long time after the Silver Age, but other creators would reclaim some of these sensibilities with a more modern twist, like Grant Morrison.

Elsewhere in DC
Lois Lane goes mod, ditches Supes and joins the feminist movement! The times are a'changin!

And I recall this being brought up during the Brainy trial in v3. Violet comments on it, and Tinya says her close friendship with Lu and Lu's 2nd body being killed by the Time Trapper are why she gave Brainy a guilty vote!



Thanks! You know, from these rereads I realized that the Adventure Era DEFINITELY lends itself well to commenting one issue at a time. Like with the Mantis Morlo story, each issue of the two-parter had so much content. I'm sure it's a bit of a "duh obvious" comment, but compared to v7 for example, the differences are stark.