Legion World Forums LEGION CLUBHOUSE The Legion of Super-Heroes Re-Reading the Legion: Archives Volume 12

It's good to see a dissenting opinion.

I'm not a fan of summer blockbusters, which is probably why this story does little for me. Like some blockbusters, it's a lot of action but little substance.



I do agree about Grell's art--for both of these stories.




I think we're going to have to chalk this up to a difference in generational outlooks, as we did with the Kara robot back in 204. I never saw this story then (or now) as being incest related. Laurel is a hot babe, and Superboy didn't know who she was. Even if he had, she's still a hot babe.

Men and women are meant to be sexually attracted to each other (as are some men to other men and some women to other women), and whatever programming of nature is responsible for this makes no allowances for family connections. It's only because our society has determined incest to be wrong (because it dilutes the gene pool) that we seem to have an automatic filter against expressing or even acknowledging sexual attraction to a member of the same family. But even if we acknowledge that attraction, there's a huge difference between doing so and acting on the attraction.

So, I was never creeped out by Luke and Leia's attraction to one another or by Kal's interest in "Elna." I thought the story was both innocent and mature for its time.

You're probably right. If there had been subplots and ongoing stories, there would be much more to focus on than what was presented here.



Another good point, but it's worth noting that in the examples you gave, hundreds or thousands of soldiers were involved. With only three Legionnaires, the effect, I imagine, would not only be muted but it would be difficult to keep up the assault if some of them became casualties.

I think you're right about it being a generational thing. Also, directly related to that, is how the two of us experienced this issue in different ways. You read this issue either off the rack or part of the earliest days of your LSH reading experience. For me, this was probably the last Laurel Kent story I ever read. Meaning, I had already read all of her Levitz era appearances, including the crappy Manhunter one. So I had a preconceived idea about who she was, and to me the stand-out element of her identity was her being Superman’s descendent. Self-reflecting a bit, I’ve clearly come to this story with a major bias.

(And in fact, growing up thinking the Luke / Leia scene was cringe-worthy has probably influenced me and my whole generation to keep an eye out for this type of thing).

I'm closer to liking than disliking The Charge of the Doomed story. We have some good character moments, especially from Timber Wolf, and the team works as a team.

The story would have been better with some prior issue build-up through sub-plots, to show that Lorca was indeed a great military strategist and that Brainy had studied him - or even faced off against him before this.

This is the dialed-down version of Brainiac 5: acknowledging the other Legionnaires' help and not so smart that he's forbidden to play in a chess tournament. (Also, not so smart that he can't figure out a way to override the hijacking of his communication.)

Some of the artwork was wonderful, that scene with the binoculars was very striking. I thought Lorca himself looked silly, especially spreading out a map on a card table, but maybe that was just 1976.

That must have been the first mention of Thanagar in the Legion comic. We're beginning to get a sense of an established fictional galaxy, instead of a series of one-off planets that the Legionnaires visit.

Reading the Elna story was a bit sad; she seemed to be so full of potential here and the Manhunter plot was, for me, just abysmal. It was sort of cute to see Superboy bedazzled by a female.

I didn't get a sense of creepy from this story re: incest. Is a thousand years enough time to dilute the family connection? Luke and Leia were contemporaries, actual brother and sister, and that was suggesting creepy, if it had gone further.

Despite the different conclusions, I don’t really disagree with any of the points Cobie made.

Some of Grell’s panels were definite stand outs, over and above his usual quality in other panels. I agree that the Legionnaire’s were all used. I could argue that I would have liked to have seen Shady take more of a vocal role, but she was certainly effective. Relatively speaking, it was a good issue for everyone involved. How could Brin ever have thought he was an android, if he was rubbish at space chess?

I can’t argue that Shooter had put some craft into the plot. To get an analogy with the miscommunication of the Light Brigade, he had to get Brainy away from the group. So Brainy had his chess tournament. He extends that theme, not only to chess board in the ship, but to the duel of wits between Brainy and Lorca. The name drops of fans and Thanagar were nice touches, and as I noted, the unimpressed Legionnaires was a really nice change. Superboy wasn’t out of place in the action either.

But, despite all that, the opening half doesn’t quite click for me. I wasn’t sure at first if I would have preferred seeing this one built up to over issues Levitz style. But since I think it’s the start that bogs it down, it would have made the finale stand out that much more. Perhaps we would have gotten to see some more of it too.

Had Shooter gone with a different Light Brigade analogy, we would have seen vague instructions from Brainy, misinterpreted by Brin resulting in the death of Gim, who is then blamed by everyone else for the disaster so they can save face.

Future Shock For Superboy

Like Cobie, I read this one well after Laurel had run her course in the Academy. I’m not sure I had read the Millennium issues at that point, as that too was a later buy for me.

My first reaction was that this story explained why Laurel wore the least clothing of nearly anyone. I guess a lot of people were impressed by Grell’s art here. Considering her power, Laurel’s attitude to protective coverings/ clothing makes a fair bit of sense.

Again, like Cobie, I always thought the Superboy/ Laurel attraction was a little creepy. This time round, I was struck by Laurel being the only one of the couple who would carry around the knowledge of that attraction. It adds to that sadness she already had from their first meeting, where she couldn’t tell him who she really was. It’s a more powerful story than their genetic connection.

Perhaps she shouldn’t have been too upset. Superman is destined to marry Jimmy Olsen, and she looks nothing like him.

Alternately, in one of the Legion’s many time travelling capers, Laurel gets trapped in Superman’s time and ends up marrying him there, becoming her own ancestor.

It’s a well-crafted story in the short amount of space it has. As mentioned, seeing the early days of Wildfire and his involvement in the legion Academy is welcome. A change of pace form a super villain is also a nice change. Laurel putting a train full of people at risk to catch Superboy’s eye is presumably also there for space constraints. I wonder how many Academy demerits a rail disaster would get her.

As HWW commented, there’s the link between this issue and the older guessing games of who Super would end up with. Being able to involve that, and build upon it positively, gets Shooter some extra credit. Looking further forward, this story would become part of the gestation of Kent Shakespeare years later. I seem to recall that he was affected by a virus due to his Superman heritage. That part of his origin was presumably punted into the long grass with the Superman edict. Similar attitudes would see the end of links to the likes of Thanagar, from the first story, too.

You know, I'm not sure this is the case. It's been established that Superboy does remember aspects about his future when he returns to the 30th century--otherwise, he would have to be reintoduced to Kara every time, and in LSH 259, the whole purpose of sending him back to his own time permanently was so he wouldn't remember the deaths of his foster parents when he returned to the Legion's time. So, theoretically, he should remember his first encounter with Laurel and his feelings for her.

Of course, we never did get to see them interact again, as far as I recall, so the point is moot.

I was totally led by the story there. That Wildfire is so convincing.

I still think that Superboy is Imra's puppet. She's displayed some very powerful capabilities down the years. Selectively picking through Supes mind and adjusting what he can, and can't, recall would be within that.

Of course, there are the lost tales of the Legion where Superboy has to get his memory jogged every time he enters the Legion clubhouse. It's automatic now, but there was a time when Tenzil was doing it.

Tenzil: Superboy. This is Lara. Lara Luthor. Fight!
Kara: No! I'm not! Tenzil!

Tenzil: Hi Superboy! We have another "Super" member >chuckle<. Meet Supergixyxptlk! Fight!
Kara: Grrrrrr! Tenzil!

Tenzil: This is all an illusion Clark. You're back in your Smallville bed of the '50s wondering what to do about your feelings for Lana. Oh, and how you're a boy in the '50s when you were a man in the '30s.
Kara: Tenzil!

Well, Wildfire was new to the team. Besides, what he says is technically true: Superboy won't remember what Laurel tells him when he returns to his own time--and that's really the important aspect.

Ah, that Tenz! No wonder he was drafted into politics. He's a manipulative bastich!

It's worth mentioning that it was originally Kara, not Imra, who had hypnotized Kal into forgetting what he learns of his future. Kryptonians could be hypnotized only by other Kryptonians back in the day--but this was either retconned or forgotten in the '70s.

Perhaps there were so many mind games going around, none of the Legionnaires could remember who did what.

"What do you mean it was Rokk, Garth, and Imra who founded the Legion? The way I remember, it was all Reep's idea. He's the one with rich daddy, after all."

Ah, but was it Imra's cunning plan to manipulate Kara as well?

I hope that's what happened behind the scenes. Because I've turned into Continuity Fail Fella all of a sudden for what was in the book. "What is this Lee John of which you speak?"




I don't think I ever knew that though. I think there must have been a point where people thought that the "S" stood for "Smart@ss" and they started to dial it down a bit.



So much scope for great Legion stories by going back and untweaking retcons or establishing slight changes from the early Adventure days.




I now can't get Boney M's Daddy Cool out of my head. Just replace the chorus with "I'm happy as a clam. Now I'm with Daddy Cham"

Hey! it was from 1976. Just where we are in our rereads. Coincidink? ... Or Imra?!

Boney M's only hit in the US was "Rivers of Babylon" (1978). Listening to it just now, I don't recognize it and I'm sure there's no Legion connection (though the male vocalist does resemble Tyroc).

Superboy 218



At the end of #216, Tyroc returns to Metropolis to see if he can qualify to become a Legionnaire. This story is set a month later, and we see that, unlike the three rejected applicants we see at the start, he has passed all the tests, and is ready to be sworn in.

But there’s one final test he has to face. Zoraz, the villain that can seemingly turn the powers of the Legion against them.

We get a small recap of #216, including a mention of “his black race” referring to the people of Marzal, and equating real life racial issues with the previous admission of orange and green Legionnaires.

We’re told that Tyroc has been commuting between Marzal, where he’s still a champion, and the Legion HQ. So, there’s potential there for someone who has an active role on Earth while still being a Legionnaire that could be developed. Tyroc arrives by cruiser, but uses his power to nicely teleport to where Brainy is. Again, lots of potential for a Legionnaire who can teleport, as Gates would prove years later. Tyroc’s costume doesn’t look at all out of place beside Colossal Boy’s.

Tyroc admires the Legion for all running into action in unison. I’d have thought he would have been more impressed if the likes of Ayala and Jan had used their powers from a distance, where they’re effective. Perhaps Tyroc has just worked by himself for too long.

Zoraz defeats everyone except Tyroc. Normally this is done just to spotlight how good a new character (and sometimes writer’s pet) is. Here, we actually get the reason that Zoraz has raided the Legion’s cell banks and can use their powers against them. As Tyroc hasn’t got any cells in the bank, he struggles to defeat him.

It’s good to see the continuity of the cell bank being used constructively. We’re reminded that the Legion intends one day to be able to clone Legionnaire replacements (and also John Boy form the Waltons and Cary Bates, going by the titles on the cell bank drawers). Readers will recall having seen their attempts to clone Ferro Lad and Invisible Kid back in #206.

As mentioned in the review for that issue (http://www.legionworld.net/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=871673#Post871673) the cell bank would provide the basis for a major plot in the TMK run, where we’re introduced to the SW6 Legionnaires. When I first read that run, I thought that TMK had used a number of stories over the years, from #206 to their cloning of Dev-Em in #324-325, to show that the Dark Circle accessed various cells. But they could just have easily got the whole thing from reading this issue.

Zoraz doesn’t press his victory but, as Superboy eventually gets round to telling Tyroc, has gone off in the Legion HQ.

At this point, Bates seems to switch the plot really nicely. We see a figure lurking in the vents and assume its Zoraz. In the monitor room, a very relaxed considering a villain’s on the loose) Rokk and Dirk are alarmed at his appearance and attack on (a similarly relaxed) Nura and Thom.

As it turns out, their alarmed reactions are odd, because they know exactly who Zoraz is. It had been Dirk and was now Superboy just providing a final test for Tyroc. As we see Superboy in the Zoraz costume, he looks quite a lot like Superboy Prime would look.

A similar plot, of the superheroes pretending to be a villain, would also be used to test Black Lightning in Justice League of America #173 in 1979. There, Lightning is not at all pleased at the heroes’ actions as DC come up with a way of preventing him being on the team.

It’s only after they reveal all this that the mystery figure from the vents appears in a Zoraz suit. It’s Absorbency Boy, who Bates had shown us leave the HQ as a rejected applicant back at the start. Having the reminder of Superboy Prime, and knowing Absorbency Boy’s future, it’s a page worth a sigh of disappointment.

Absorbency Boy can absorb the residual energy form super heroes, and the suit gives him the powers of Dirk and Kal. Combining both to good effect he takes out Superboy easily.

He then challenges Tyroc to see which one of them would make the better candidate. As if, by beating Tyroc, the others would be likely to take him in. Of course, years later, after he has committed a number of crimes and personally and brutally, attacked the Legion, that’s exactly what happens in one of the Legion’s low points.

Bates, once again, shows a good application of a character’s powers. Back in #216 Tyroc used a supersonic cry to get Superboy’s attention. He uses it again here, deafening Absorbency Boy who is then knocked out efficiently by a single blow.

The final panel shows Tyroc being inducted, at last, into the Legion. Karate Kid is shown to have popped back from the 20th century for the occasion in a continuity snafu.

Overall, it was a decent spotlight issue for Tyroc. We see not only his fighting skills, but his concern for injured colleagues. His powers aren’t pinned down enough. He can teleport, but also cause Zoraz to spin around.

A number of the other heroes fall easily to Zoraz, but they are causing that themselves as part of the test. Shrinking Violet, who’s on patrol with Tyroc when Zaroz attacks a second time, doesn’t appear as often as she should though.

I felt that Bates could have had the second attack be the arrival of Absorbency Boy. It would have matched up with Rokk’s reaction at his appearance and shown him as a real threat by defeating Nura and Thom. But having read the Black Lightning story years before I got this issue, it was good to see DC letting him join.

In the final panel, Cosmic Boy and Shadow Lass are discussing something. A efficient, combative champions a Tyroc/ Shadow Lass partnership has some potential. Tyroc teleporting the pair into a battle, with Shadow Lass' powers disabling their opponents for example.

218:

Brainiac 5 gives a somewhat inaccurate recounting of 216. Tyroc never "agreed to help" the Legion. He acted entirely on his own until he needed their help.

Good catch on the names on the clone boxes, thoth. I've tried to read the names on the two boxes before Cary Bates and John Boy, but they look like "ALLAN LAUP" and "NIIIIII ?" (though the ? could be a 5, I suppose).

This is by far one of the better issues in quite some time, though not without flaws. Very little is made of Tyroc being black (although he uses some unconvincing slang, including the word "freaky" at one point); he comes across as a competent, capable hero who can hold his own against an unknown threat.

It's also nice to see the Legion return to tradition: playing a practical joke on an applicant. This idea, of course, is as old as the Legion itself.

The various Legionnaires are also well utilized in their brief appearances, including Sun Boy's absence from the climactic scene, which leads Tyroc into thinking the Zoraz who appears before them is Sun Boy.

As for the true villain . . . Bates did a great job of introducing us to Absorbency Boy at the beginning of the story and hinting at his resentment--and also of not revealing his name or power until the end, which keeps us in suspense. Reading the story now and knowing how it turns out, I'm impressed with the misdirection Bates worked in by having us think the mysterious figure hiding in the ventilation shafts is "Zoraz" instead of Absorbency Boy.

This story leaves me wishing DC had followed up on Tyroc and integrated (poor choice of word, I know) him into the team as just another Legionnaire who happened to be black. Although his power remains ill defined, it is used well here, and he demonstrates the courage and ingenuity to be a Legionnaire. Figuring out that Absorbency Boy would not be used to super-hearing was brilliant.

Not only does this issue make use of the cloning technology from # 206, but it continues the theme of rejected applicants challenging Legionnaires for membership (# 212). There's nothing wrong with repeating a theme if it can be done in a fresh way, and it's handled well here. Infectious Lass is even included as reminder that some applicants don't like to give up.

I forgot to add in that it was nice to see Drura again. She's there for comic relief, but those powers are under more control. So, one day...

Good point about the testing the applicant theme too. Quite nice to have that Superboy to Tyroc link actually.

Speaking of which, I do think he came across as a pretty effective character here. He has, as you've pointed out before, those minimum characteristic requirements of a Legionnaire. I could see him being a slightly more modern (well, 1970s) version of some of the older Legionnaires.

Most of the other Legionnaires on the lower level are standing at attention. I think Cos was just being a dick and Shady was about to tell him to shh!

I thought Shady might be evaluating Tyroc's potential as a colleague (and really, just that.) But you may be right...

Rokk: When I'm Time Trapper, I'll get you into all the issues.
Shady: Get lost, creep. We do talk to Ayla and Lydda you know.
Rokk: >fake horror< going to tell Mon El on me?
Shady: Mon El steps in to save people from me. Creep.
> fearful silence from Cosmic Creep.

Love it!

The concept that all super powers give off energy which may be absorbed is pretty interesting. New concept? I don't recall that idea from previous issues.

This issue struck me for the surveillance - screens everywhere - just what does Sun Boy do when he's on Monitor Duty?

The cell banks! I'm surprised it took until TMK to get a major story arc out of that.

And may there always be ventilation shafts for people to hide in. You can hardly make a heist movie without a ventilation shaft and it's good to see the tradition enshrined in the Legion comic.



Absospacealutely!

Superboy 219



A combination of “Alone” from #218’s cover and some scattered unconscious figures as per #217’s cover give us this one. It’s Superboy vs the Fatal Five!

The Fatal Five have targeted Imsk. There, they have stolen miniaturised defence circuitry. But they are confronted by Duplicate Boy and the Imskian Legionnaire, Shrinking Violet.

The Persuader’s axe gets a clear shot at Duplicate Boy. He’s dying, but it should really have killed him. The axe is supposed to cut through anything. Having said that, it didn’t injure Mon El years later either on Talok VIII, another Legionnaire home world.

This is just the first of the Fatal Five’s crimes this issue. It’s also the first of a number of little items that have been picked up from previous stories or that will inspire future tales of the Legion.

Seeing Duplicate Boy in a medical chamber reminds me of a similarly invulnerable Mon El encounter with the Fatal Five. There, he lost part of an arm to the Emerald Empress. But the code kept the gore here to a non-existent level. Other parallels with that last Legion arc are Tharok’s attacks through technology, The Persuader enjoying r&r and a life beyond their goals, and Validus digging to the heart of a planet.

Although just one of a fairly large roll call this issue, a major subplot is Gim’s feelings for Salu. This would eventually lead to the Violet imposter storyline. But, although he’s no doubt happy that Duplicate Boy lives at the end, he’s shown with a sadness of a man carrying a busted heart, knowing that he can never tell the girl of his dreams how he feels.

Speaking of the girl of someone’s dreams in relation to Salu, Ayla gets to see Mano’s face beneath that toxic cloud filled helmet of his. But what’s under there? Does he look like someone we know? Superboy? Does he have alien features? A nice little mystery that reminds me of the time Cosmic Boy was prevented from seeing his horrible future.

With every Fatal Five story I begin reading, I always fear that it will be one where their effectiveness is downplayed. They have been written to such a high standard, that there’s always the worry that there’s only one way for them to go.

Thankfully this story, by their creator Jim Shooter, keeps them at that level. It even goes further to show that the Five commit crimes not only for immediate gain, but to enjoy other pursuits. They may bicker and posture. But they know they work well together. This issue shows them setting up some personal spaces to make the group less fractious.

In a nice touch, Brainy gets completely the wrong idea about the Five’s goals. Querl gets them in the end, but not because he anticipated their schemes. Tharok is once again shown to be possibly smarter than Brainy. He’s given goals here, that once thwarted turn the conflict with the Legion into something far more personal.

We’re reminded that Validus is childlike. Further, Garth paternally suggests that the Legion should play with him, now that the giant’s rattle has been broken. That would become a major plot in Garth and Imra’s life later on.

The Empress is shown to be increasingly powerful, from creating Green Lanternesque space craft to teleporting her colleagues. She still has a thing for Superboy, offering a partnership even as she’s rendered unconscious. Her eye was a bit too easily captured by Superboy’s cape this time round.

The Persuader is captured relatively easily by Gim and Salu. It’s Gim’s rage that surprises him and they would be sparring partners for many years to come when the two groups met.

The Five are defeated again. But with Tharok and Validus both escaping (Tharok a little easily considering Jo’s Ultra speed), you know it won’t be long before the others are also free.

I enjoyed this issue. We have a different take on the motivations of villains. It’s fitting that it should be a story containing the Fatal Five, who have shown so often that they are a step above nearly any other villainous team.

Shooter gives himself room to show some of their crimes, include a Gim and Salu subplot; provide plenty of action and to develop the villains, planting seeds for future writers along the way. That’s a very good return.

There’s more cruiser based Star Trek action in this period. In this issue, we get a diagram of a Legion cruiser, as they prepare to shoot the Five’s craft down.

It’s a mixed issue for Shrinking Violet. She makes some smart decisions, but they don’t show her in a very good light. She knows to track Validus back to the Five’s base. But she opts instead to get Duplicate Boy to medical aid.

Later, Violet knows that Tharok could save Duplicate Boy, but faces recriminations from her colleagues for stopping them shooting the Fatal Five in space. She’s tearful and apologetic. But she was probably right, and the team had made a deal with the Emerald Empress previously.

Finally, Violet is brave enough to tackle the Persuader in single combat. But her shrinking skills enable her to use other tactics, and she is saved by Colossal Boy.

219:

I always remember this story fondly from the latter-day Shooter/Bates/Grell period. It's a full-length story, and the stakes are very high. It also humanizes the Fatal Five by showing the personal reasons they have for committing crimes. I actually felt sorry for them at the end. The meddling Legionnaires completely misread their intentions, and, if they'd left well enough alone, the F5 might have been happy fishing and spending time with their android servants, and we may never have heard from them again (or not ...)

For many years, the aspect I liked most about this issue was the cutaway diagram of the Legion cruiser. I was a sucker for such things . . .

Reading the story now, I think it mostly holds up. The ideas are solid, from Duplicate Boy's injury to Violet's grief, from the cat-and-mouse with the Fatal Five to the revelation of their true motives. Shooter has room to develop this story, and he uses it to great effect.

Even so, the story feels rushed and choppy in places. Violet vanishes from the initial conflict with the F5, and, although we soon find out where she went, her disappearance is jarring. A panel with her and Dupe hatching a plan would have solved this.

Also, Silver Age science rears its uninformed head again, as Validus carves out a huge chunk of the planet yet the rest of the planet remains intact, and most of its populace apparently survives. If someone carved out a continent of earth, I don't think the rest of the planet would be so neatly unaffected.

Although many Legionnaires appear, few do anything interesting or of significance. I'm particularly miffed that my man, Mon-El, who is still the leader, defers to Brainiac 5 and serves as nothing more than rattle fodder for Validus. Whazzamatter, Mon? Low on anti-lead serum?

On the other hand, it's great that Ayla gets to kayo Mano (Kayo Mano? Sounds like a song from "The Lion King.") And Vi holds her own against the Persuader, which conveniently makes up for her panic earlier in the story. Yes, Dupe's injury clouded her judgment--which only makes me wonder why the Legion brought her along on this mission in the first place. I suppose her knowledge of the Imskian microcircuitry the F5 stole might have come in handy, but we're not told this.

Another plus is Gim's unrequited love. This was a rare and realistic form of character development for the time.

So, it's a good story, but it reads like a rough draft (as, unfortunately, do many of these stories). With another draft, Shooter might have ironed out the pacing and other issues.

Odd note: The blurb on the letter's page teases us with the debut of Charma and Grimbor, but they do not appear until 221.

Superboy & the LSH #218

You guys did a good job summing up the issue and and my opinions echo your own: this was a surprisingly enjoyable story! It had its flaws, no doubt, and a lot of it is a bit predicable, but Bates flexes his storytelling muscles nicely to provide a good balance of character and plot.

A big part of my enjoyment is it felt damn good to get a full length story. Bates makes good use of it too by layering the story with the fake-out of the paractical joke (an LSH tradition) and then adding the twist of Absorbancy Boy. That multi-tiered approach to the plot felt satisfying!

I also agree Tyroc came across really likable here. We've talked about missed opportunities in the past and Tyroc is one of the biggest ones. This story ignores the weaker parts of his character and let's the man himself shine through--and there's a lot to like!

Grell's art is on point here, and I especially like the Zoraz costume. It's easy to forget Absorbancy Boy goes unremembered for 30 years and ends up being Earth Man. This story shows its certainly not out of character.

SLSH #219

This was an unusual Fatal Five story, with lots of Legion sub-plots and moments to go with it. There's a lot here to mine for future stories.

The Five almost seem like a family here. A dsyfunctional family, but nevertheless working together to achieve their goals. And what ordinary goals they are: to live life in peace, according to their individual dreams. It's a very odd motivation for comic book supervillains.

I loved the Legion cruiser page, too. Jo displays a little hot-head, ready to pull the trigger.

Interesting use of Imra's power to get Duplicate Boy to heal himself.


Gim's devotion to Violet is sad; she uses him as a shoulder to cry on but at no time reciprocates his feelings.



I also found it odd at the beginning that Duplicate Boy was rushing off to ... what? It was as if I missed a panel. Does he just go out cruising for trouble?

The planet thing, too - very distracting. At least, in later years, writers will acknowledge that some major manipulations have to take place to move planetary bodies around, even if the science is still fuzzy.



Until I read Thoth's post, I had missed how big this mystery is and that it has never been pursued in later issues. Fuel for speculation!

Cramey,
Good observation about the F5 working together like a family. The Persuader steals the Imskian microcircuitry, which will benefit Tharok. Validus (under Tharok's control) steals part of a planet so the Persuader can go fishing and so it will serve as a base for the entire group. The F5 demonstrate more teamwork here than the Legionnaires usually do.

Good point about Dupe's mysterious reason for running off. His motive is never explained or returned to in the story; likewise, the revelation of Mano's face remains a dangling and titillating thread. These holes in the story make it less than fully satisfying.

It’s said that the best villains are the one who think they’re the good guys. The Fatal Five know that they are utter meanies. I think they get a reminder of that when there’s more than two of them in the same room. But that doesn’t mean that they are inhuman (even Validus in the end :)) and this definitely shows a side to villains that nearly no other comic bothers with. I’m reminded of their attempt to accelerate a world in a situation they felt would be a win for all concerned.



I always liked the HQ diagrams I think our benchmark is possibly…

Eagle Annuals




I was reading at speed, so it didn’t seem so long for me I thought the continuity tidy up concerning Tharok’s reappearance dragged a bit. It could have been build into the story.

Particularly at the end when his plans to become human are destroyed (well, delayed. He could have just set up shop elsewhere really)



That’s disappointing to know. I’d sulk about it in the rain, but the weather control says it to be dry tonight. Nothing else for it. I’ll just go for a drive through the tunnels Supergirl dug through the Earth



I look at Mon-El a bit more since I read that he was one of your favourites, HWW. But in my time on the rereads, he doesn’t often come out too well in this era. He seems to get crushed by Validus quite a bit in similar poses over the years too.




With her bag I guess even Shooter groaned, judging by Ayla’s on thoughts on it.



Yeah, I could see a lot of the target audience getting attached to Colossal Boy after this one. It’s a continual thread throughout, but never gets in the way of the rest of the plot. So, points to Shooter for that.



Good point. While Brainy and Tharok are considered to be the most intelligent around, it’s Imra who comes up with a practical (if exhausting) solution. Wisdom over Intelligence?



I’m trying to get the image of Duplicate Boy, with his later ‘tache, out cruising out of my head now. I’m scarred!

The panel stopped me too. I think a bit further on Dupe says that it was the sheer power of Validus being there that caused his duplicating powers to pick him up. So, his powers are sort of always active. At least in sensing powers to duplicate.

Edit: I also liked your thoughts on the FF being like a family of sorts, Cramer.

How cool! A magazine with nothing but cutaways.




Yeah, I was going to say there was too much exposition in that scene. It's vital information as it sets up the ending, but it sure drags down the story.



I presume there's a difference between digging a tunnel through the planet and carving away nearly half of it. Just the same, it's good that there aren't real Kryptonians around to muck up the planet's stability. ("We don't need no friggin' tectonic plates! We've got Kara to move continents for us.")



True. As I mentioned in another thread, it's interesting to do these re-reads and come away with a different perspective of certain characters, even if that perspective is less than flattering.

Even so, Mon presented certain challenges for writers. With Superboy around, his powers were superfluous. Together, he and Superboy could mop the floor with just about anyone, so the writers kept trying to find ways to minimize his involvement or even get him out of the story as quickly as possible. He hasn't really played a significant role in any story since wayyyy back in 202, when he solved the Devil Fish mystery. He was present in 203, but once again taken out by Validus, and, in 205, he led the firing squad while brainwashed; except for rare cameos, he's been otherwise absent from stories.

As an aside, the lettercol of 219 also reveals the results of the next leadership election, with Superboy winning but deferring to the runner-up, Wildfire. However, Drake doesn't take office until 225, which means we've got five more issues of Mon as a leader in name only. If he was such an unpopular character with Shooter and Bates, as he seems to have been, one wonders why the transition didn't occur earlier.




Whatever works works.