Archive for the ‘Legion of Super Heroes’ Category
This week on the Major Spoilers Podcast, Matthew, Stephen, and two special guests will be on hand to talk everything Legion of Super-Heroes. With a full rich history, and several reboots, we want you to sound off.
What are your favorite, and least favorite, moments from Legion Lore. You can use the comment section below, drop us a voice mail by calling (785) 727-1939, or record your comments and send an email to podcast@majorspoilers.com.
We record the new show Tuesday night, so make sure you have your contribution to us by 5:00 PM CST.
You’ve probably already seen this, but just in case you haven’t, here’s the trailer for the new Smallville episode featuring everyone’s favorite teen trio from the future – the Legion of Super-Heroes.
Just as I hoped, it looks like the Legion have traveled to the past to fight Braniac, who has taken over Chloe’s body (oh noze!).
Or – “The Grand Old Tradition Returns!”
Two words: Legion. Tryouts.
Hide the good silver.
We’ve already told you about Alex Johnson playing Saturn Girl in the upcoming Smallville episode featuring the Legion of Super-Heroes. IMDB has updated the show’s cast naming Ryan Kennedy as Cosmic Boy and Calum Worthy as Lightning Lad.
The scheduled date for the show is in January, which just so happens to be the same month the Legion of Super-Heroes comic ends with issue #50. Nice timing. Of course the first appearance of the Legion occurred in Adventure Comics #247, and DC is wisely launching a new Adventure Comics series in February, so maybe someone is on the ball after all…. BWA-HA-HA-HA! Who am I kidding?
Or – “In Which Projectra Makes A Fatal Error…”
In his landmark third book of his (five-book-long) Hithchiker’s trilogy, the late Douglas Adams makes a reference to the seemingly absent social life of Arthur Dent, long the central character of the novels. “What is he, man or mouse? Is he interested in nothing more than tea and the wider issues of life? Has he no spirit? Has he no passion? Does he not, to put it in a nutshell, &@$!?” Those who have wondered things like this about your superhero teens from the future, read on… Others may wish to skip to the last paragraph, which is a good bit and has Marvin in it.
Dan DiDio spoke with the LA Times this past weekend to hype talk up the major story arcs happening in the big titles. He also revealed the company is bringing back Adventure Comics.
Simultaneous to “Battle for the Cowl,” we’re going to be making changes in Superman’s world as well. Superman has been the star of “Action Comics” for its entire run, essentially, and he will be leaving it and handing it over to new characters. The only time he hasn’t appeared in the book, I believe, was after “The Death of Superman,” in those years. So this is a lot of fun for us. I think that’s going to get people excited and scratching their heads and wondering what’s going on. In his own book, “Superman,” there will be a dramatic turn as the hero leaves Earth and it seems like he’s leaving for good. We’ll follow his adventures in space more so than his adventures on Earth, and that’s a big and exciting thing. We’re also bringing back one of the old-time favorite titles of DC Comics, “Adventure Comics.” It will be back with a new No. 1 and with new stars but old stars at the same time. It’ll be pretty easy to guess who will be the stars of “Adventure Comics” if you know who the title was most identified with…
Now you know where the Legion of Super-Heroes will appear following the ending of the LoSH title. Heck maybe we’ll see Manhunter, Aquaman, Plastic Man, and Dial H for Hero make appearances there too.
Or – “The Legion’s Impulsive Heart…”
And here we are, at the beginnings of the whole shebang. The three kids who started it all, who leapt into action to save the life of a stranger because they had the ability to do so. The founding members of the Legion represent an interesting triad, a study in contrasts. The studious, internally focused blonde whose powers are completely covert in nature. The charismatic, team-oriented dark-haired one, whose abilities represent the ability to shape, to change, to manipulate. The quick-to-action red-haired one, whose powers channel the destructive forces of nature. Imra as commanding mother figure, Rokk as guiding big brother, but where does that leave today’s entrant? A founding member, a powerhouse of the early team, but never quite comfortable in his own skin, his battles with his family (and, indeed, with himself) are as legendary as his clashes with any other opponent. Sometimes called the unluckiest Legionnaire, he nonetheless has been an anchor of all incarnations of the team to date. This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Garth Ranzz of Winath… Lightning Lad!
9 Comments »
For those of you loving the Major Spoilers Hero Histories covering the Legion of Super-Heroes, you might also like reading a collection of essays about the teenagers from the future.
This time out, the Tardis loses a tenant, Heroes without head men, guys who don’t die, guys you won’t die, guys who keep dying and still coming back… Plus: Three Legions! No Waiting! Robbie walks again, but where’s Prospero? And it’s a head to head battle of the crazy as the Batman of Zur-En-Arrh goes head to head with the goddamn Batman in a no-holds-barred war of wacky in the wicky woo… Let’s get ready to rumbllllllleeee!
Show Notes after the Jump!
Or – “Number Two Has To Try Harder…”
It’s absolutely amazing to me to think that we’ve been doing these Hero Histories now for over a year and a half. I’ve had relationships that didn’t last that long! When we started out, the list of Legionnaires seemed endless, stretching out into infinity. Now, it would seem we’re in the home stretch, having come to the point where there are fewer than half a dozen LSHer’s yet unprofiled. When I initially started this project, I knew where it had to begin, and I knew where it had to end, with a stretch of indecision in the middle. But today’s Hero History entrant absolutely had to be placed where he is: alongside the founding members of the Legion of Super-Heroes. His devotion to the Legion was always second to none, and his impact on the team as a whole was eclipsed by very few heroes. It can honestly be said that a large part of the Legion’s appeal was directly due to HIS actions and heroism as much as those of Cos and company. It may have taken him longer than others to make the team, but once there, he made an indelible mark on Legion history. This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Brek Bannin of Tharr… Polar Boy!
Or – “They Had Me At Hello.”
Can I just say that I HATE the vertically aligned giant theme covers for Final Crisis and Final Crisis by-products? Not only is it nigh-impossible to get a decent cover scan, they have to cram whatever they’re trying to show you into 1/3 of a standard comics page, which compresses the visual information into a tiny little space and crams everything together. But enough whining. Legion fans and detractors alike have long complained that the logistics of a team with 25 members are impossible to coordinate, and I can certainly feel their pain. This series promises THREE DISTINCT VERSIONS of most of the characters from that 25 member team, as well as the vast majority of the evil types that the 30th Century has to offer, all wrapped up into one. Will it be as accessible as the first issue was?
Or – “Sometimes You Have To Work Your Way Up To The Big Leagues…”
There’s a lot of confusion regarding the early days of the Legion and their recruiting practices. Bouncing Boy got in, but Radiation Roy did not. Matter-Eater Lad got the nod, whereas Animal Lad was told no. The reasoning behind this has been the subject of much discussion (though I like Geoff Johns’ recent revelation in Action Comics that some of the Legion rejects were rejected because Saturn Girl could tell that there was something wrong with their minds) but the whole issue really seems to boil down to “Who Do We Like Best?” Come on, we’re looking at a bunch of teenagers, even with vast super-powers, and teenagers do a lot of stupid, arbitrary, exclusionary stuff. We should be glad that the team wasn’t smoking super-elastic fluid, or piercing their pancreas. Some heroes who didn’t make the cut, though, wouldn’t take ‘No’ for an answer, knowing that their day in the sun was just around the corner. These stalwart few decided to prepare themselves for the inevitable moment when they would be the ones called upon to save the day. This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Lydda Jath of Kathoon… Ral Benem of Mardru… Ulu Vakk of Lupra… Staq Mavlen of Schwar… Drura Sehpt of Somahtur… Peter Dursin of Earth… Dag Wentim of Zwen… The Legion of Substitute Heroes!
Or – “Soldiering On In The Face of Inevitability…”
First of all, I know what you’re thinking… Where’s the Hero History, schmucko? Turns out that doing seven heroes at the same time is the kind of thing you should plan extra time for. Go figure. Add to that recent work meetings about metrics that nobody really understands and a 14 hour day yesterday, and the Hero History is late. (Again.) In any case, I thought I’d share a little Legion in the hopes of cushioning the blow, and then get the H.H. up and running tonight, barring the rising of the creek and the blessings of any theoretical deities. Recent announcements that this book is ending with #50 have somewhat diminished the bloom on this particular Legion era’s rose, ironically at the point where things were really starting to turn around. DC editorial seems to be intent on returning the old-school Legion to prominence, without realizing that’s exactly what Shooter has been doing…
Or – “What A Difference A Few Decades Make…”
If you’re a regular reader of our Hero Histories, you’ve probably gleaned that the team’s adventures have been somewhat unorthodox for a comic super-group. The Legion has been up and down the popularity charts, have run the gamut from super-silly to ultra-serious tales, and have dealt with grown-up subjects like marriage, death, betrayal, and sexual issues long before the rest of the comics world was ready to do so. The Legion’s earliest adventures, though, were steeped in the rules of the Silver Age of comics, and the rules of Mort Weisinger’s Superman titles especially. For a long time the LSH was considered nothing more than Tom Welling’s little pals from the far future, and no matter what happened, the boy in the red cape had to be the center of attention. Nowhere was this more evident than when his non-super pals made the scene in the Legion and were given special status due to their proximity to the boy of steel. (It’s good to have powerful friends…) Awesomely, though, the pals and gal of Superman ended up PROVING the point of the Legion rather than undermining it, showing once again that heroism is a state of mind. This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Pete Ross of Smallville… James Bartholomew Olsen of Metropolis… Gnill Opral of Hagor… Lana Lang of Smallville… Rond Vidar of Earth… The Honorary Legionnaires!
6 Comments »
DC has announced that the current run of the Legion of Super-Heroes will come to an end with issue #50.
“We’re going to bring a close to the Legion of Super-Heroes now,” said DC Senior VP and Executive Editor Dan DiDio. “There’s a lot going on with the characters. I thought that [writer] Jim [Shooter] and [artist] Francis [Manapul] have done a terrific job with the series, and ‘50′ seemed like a really nice number to bring this series to a conclusion.”
According to Dan DiDio, the Legion won’t be going away – especially after the events of Legion of Three Worlds – the company is just giving the characters a rest until something definitive can be decided. But don’t think that Geoff Johns will be taking over the writing duties, Newsarama reports that Johns is just too busy writing every other title in the DC Universe to take on another project.
I’m telling you, something strange is afoot at DC Comics. First Minx, now LoSH, and I’m betting Jonah Hex, and Blue Beetle are soon to follow. I can understand low sales causing a title to be canceled, but Legion was ranked in the Top 100 titles for August 2008.
What version of the Legion of Super-Heroes would you like to see resurrected when DC finally decides to reboot the Legion… again?
Loading ...