Archive
Star Trek/Legion of Super-Heroes #1
October 31, 2011
Writer: Chris Roberson
Pencils: Jeffrey Moy
Inks: Philip Moy
Colorist: Romulo Fajardo Jr.
Letterer: Robbie Robbins
Cover Artist: Phil Jimenez
Editor: Chris Ryall
Publisher: IDW Publishing/DC Comics
In the 23rd Century, the planet Earth has become the seat of the Imperial Planets, a powerful force that sets out to subjugate any race that doesn’t join it. But that’s just the future of one universe. In another 23rd Century, the United Federation of Planets is a peaceful organization that explores the stars, and in a third world’s 30th century, the United Planets are defended by the valiant Legion of Super-Heroes, In the first issue of this awesome crossover, Captain James T. Kirk and the crew of the USS Enterprise are tossed to an alternate world, one that melds elements of their own universe with that of the Legion. Meanwhile, Cosmic Boy and a team of Legionnaires, attempting time travel, are dropped into the same alternate 23rd century. The question of how the two groups of heroes arrived there and why the world has changed around them hangs in the air, but the first question is one of survival. This book is fun on so many levels. First of all, just seeing these two groups of science fiction legends thrust together is a lot of fun, even if they don’t actually interact yet in this issue. It’s also fun to examine the strange, blended universe Chris Roberson has constructed. DCU fans and Trekkers alike will find elements of their universes clipped together like some sort of twisted jigsaw, which (let’s be honest here) is the sort of thing we geeks always love to do. Jeffrey Moy and Philip Moy give us good depictions of both groups, making them look fairly natural together, although the Phil Jimenez cover really makes you wish you could see him do a full story with these groups some time.
Rating: 9/10
Legion of Super-Heroes (2005 Series) #4
March 28, 2005
Quick Rating: Great
The Science Police make a play for the Legion – and one member holds the key.
Writer: Mark Waid
Co-Plot: Barry Kitson
Pencils: Leonard Kirk & Dave Gibbons
Inks: Mick Gray & Drew Geraci
Colors: Chris Blythe & Paul Mounts
Letters: Jared K. Fletcher & Phil Balsman
Editor: Stephen Wacker
Cover Art: Barry Kitson
Publisher: DC Comics
The United Planets finds a way to crack down on the “dangerous” Legion of Super-Heroes activity, and one unsuspecting member holds the key to the attack. This issue covers more of the team than usual, but the focus is very solidly on a few characters. Cosmic Boy is justifiably outraged at how a member of the team hid the past from them, and equally outraged that Brainiac 5 went along with it, and it all works well in character.
It’s hard to say much more without spoiling the secret of the Legionnaire who’s at the heart of this issue. Suffice it to say, it all comes together well, and furthers the overarching plot of this title, the mysterious “war” that seems to be approaching.
Filling in on the art chores is the always-welcome Leonard Kirk, who has almost as good a handle on this book and its characters as regular artist Barry Kitson. There’s a lot of action this issue, more than we’ve gotten used to seeing in this title, and he handles it all really, really well. The book, overall, amps up the level of intensity and the interest in this title, while still managing to serve up a complete story in a single issue.
In fact, they manage to serve up two complete stories. The second, with art by Dave Gibbons and Drew Geraci, is a quieter story about Karate Kid and Phantom Girl. As the Kid tries to get closer to the biggest heartbreaker in the Legion, Mark Waid explores a really interesting application of her power that, to my knowledge, has never been touched upon before. What makes this series work so well, I think, is the new twists Waid and Kitson have put on this title – the new twists on Phantom Girl, Colossal Boy, Chameleon and others has made this a really great reimagining of the series.
I’ve loved this book from the day the first new issue hit the stands. I still love it. This is one of the best periods the Legion has ever had.
Rating: 8/10
Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes #16
March 20, 2006
Quick Rating: Very Good
1001 Years Later – the Legion’s newest member!
Writer: Mark Waid
Pencils: Barry Kitson
Inks: Mick Gray
Colors: Nathan Eyring
Letters: Phil Balsman
Editor: Stephen Wacker
Cover Art: Barry Kitson
Publisher: DC Comics
As much as I’ve enjoyed the new Legion of Super-Heroes since Mark Waid and Barry Kitson took over, I was initially skeptical about the name change and the new member. I can’t argue, however, with Mark Waid’s contention that this is a title that should have a link to the Superman family.
The good news? The addition of Supergirl to the title doesn’t detract from the Legion in the slightest. In fact, while her appearance is the impetus for most of this issue, the focus is clearly on the characters we’ve gotten to know over the past 15 issues and on the new world that they’re trying to build in the aftermath of the war. Cosmic Boy makes an important decision this issue, and the team continues to reel from Lightning Lad’s actions, making them a branch of the United Planets.
Waid has declared that the mystery of how Supergirl winds up in the 31st century isn’t a mystery specifically about her, but about the very nature of this future, and the final few pages of this issue seem to bear that out. Waid obviously has something rather inventive in mind, and while I doubt that the final statement in this issue should be taken at face value, it’s certain to be important to how this story resolves itself.
Kitson and Gray are firing on all cylinders here – the artwork is great, the Legion is beautiful.
The only criticism I really could give here is that I don’t know that changing the title of the series was necessary – although adding Supergirl will certainly make for an interesting change for the book, and I can’t wait to see where it goes. If there’s any statement to be made by changing the title it’s that they’re behind this new addition to the cast for the long haul, and that’s just fine with me.
Rating: 8/10
Legion Secret Files 3003
November 18, 2003
Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: The Earth Spins Presents: The Legion Secret Files 3003
A Daily Planet reporter takes you along to meet the Legion of Super-Heroes.
Writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Pencils: Leonard Kirk
Inks: Robin Riggs
Colors: Sno Cone
Art (Profiles): Tony Harris & Tom Feister
Letters: Nick J. Napolitano
Editor: Ivan Cohen & Stephen Wacker
Cover Art: Tony Harris & Tom Feister
Publisher: DC Comics
From the very beginning of the Secret Files program, the individual issues have been hit and miss. This may be the biggest hit yet, and it gets there by completely eschewing the standard Secret Files format and embracing the purpose of the book. Abnett and Lanning, rather than giving us a couple of fill-in-the-blank stories and a scattering of profile pages, instead work the profiles into the story itself, telling a nice tale that gives us insight into every member of the Legion of Super-Heroes and the world they live in.
We see how Cosmic Boy is dealing with Superboy’s sudden appearance in the 31st century, how Sensor is failing to deal with her transformation into a more humanoid form – beautiful to her teammates but hideous in her own culture – and how Live Wire is trying to deal with his resurrection in the crystalline body of Element Lad. (This is a particularly good segment, although it does call to mind the perfectly reasonable question of, “If the Legion can’t trust Live Wire because he looks like a member that went crazy and killed several of them, why doesn’t he at least stop wearing Element Lad’s uniform? The obvious questions are the most frustrating, aren’t they?)
We are also treated to a prologue and epilogue that tie in to the current “Foundations” storyline running in the regular Legion title, in which dark (but frighteningly familiar) beings are working for the resurrection of the greatest evil the DC Universe has ever known — Darkseid. Any longtime Legion fan who remembers the epic “Great Darkness Saga” should be getting chills at this point.
It’s always nice to see Leonard Kirk’s pencils – I was very sorry to see him leave JSA, and the Harris/Feister team continues to impress for the most part, although the double-page spread featuring Brainiac 5, Spark, Violet and Invisible Kid looks kind of sloppy – a couple of the characters look like they could have fallen out of a Hanna-Barbera cartoon.
If you’re interested in reading Legion and didn’t learn all you wanted from the fantastic Legion #25, this should answer any questions you have left. It’s one of the best Secret Files ever put out.
Rating: 8/10
The Back Issue Bin 