Or - “Did NOT See That One Coming.”

For all the love I give the original incarnation of the Legion, it’s sometimes important to note that the book does still come out monthly, and while we’re a couple of reboots down the line, I feel like the creative minds behind it are again firing on all cylinders. Aside from my ongoing lament about the loss of the less powerful or later-period original Legionnaires, (Bouncing Boy, Matter-Eater Lad, Tyroc, and the Substitute Heroes are mostly missing, and later characters like Wildfire, Dawnstar, & Blok are, as yet, undepicted) and echoing Christopher Bird’s sentiment that Ultra Boy is a musclehead but NOT a complete moron, the “threeboot” Legion is consistently reminding me why I love this title in the first place.

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Or - “I Think Roosevelt Once Said Something About Changing Horses Midstream…”

This particular issue was solicited as:

SUPERGIRL AND THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #29
Written by Mark Waid
Art by Barry Kitson & Mick Gray
Cover by Kitson

Of those promised things, the only one that’s actually true of what we GET is “Cover by Kitson.” Incorrect solicitations are the kind of thing that usually tick me off, since I’m committing to buy a comic three months in advance. And, since my friendly local comic store (Gatekeeper Hobbies, Huntoon & Gage, Topeka! Ask us about our Fred J. Dukes look-alike contest!!) is also a secondary source of income, I can’t in good conscience put back a comic that I ordered. After all, my friends and bosses have already PAID for the !&$%ing thing… (Also, the manager will put me in the Tazzmission and choke me out, and he’s one of the few men I know with the size and strength to actually injure me.) In any case, the REAL question is, how does this change in creative affect the overall product?

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Finally catching up on everything that needs to be handled around here, which brings me to the fabulous return of the Fun Panel of the Week. This week’s panel comes from Brave and the Bold #3.

Hehe, he called Supergirl a nimrod.

Or - “Every Issue I Think It Can’t Get Worse… And Every Issue I’m Wrong.”

The Legion’s situation can’t get worse, I mean, not the book. The book has been pretty consistently good, with moments of awesome and couple of peaks of Holy $#!+ mixed in here and there… With the Legion’s publishing history being what it is, I greet every issue with trepidation, wondering if this is the one that will tip the balance of the relaunch towards “Make them stop!” but there’s no sign of that, yet. Of course, it has been revealed that issue #30 will mark the end of the W/KRP (Waid/Kitson Reboot Period), and that Tony Bedard will be handling a six-issue arc. I was not a fan of Tony’s work on ‘Exiles,’ so I’m reserving judgement on that arc (I prefer to excoriate things after I see them, the better to complain with). Of course, Legion of Super Heroes is also being floated as a possibility for Gail Simone’s ‘dream project,’ for which she left Birds of Prey. All I ask is that somebody brings back Blok…

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If you haven’t been checking out Josh Howard’s site, you’ve been missing out on some fantastic art he’s been cranking out lately. The one that has caught my fancy at the moment is this awesome looking take on Supergirl.

Take the jump for the full image, and a couple that might just blow your mind.

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Or - “And Now, A Moment Of Silence For The Late Dave Cockrum…”

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Project: Rooftop along with Girl-Wonder.org presented a week-long appreciation of Supergirl over at the Project: Rooftop website. In addition to reviewing the top picks from the Draw Supergirl meme, Girl-Wonder.org will feature a comprehensive article on Supergirl’s costume history on Friday.

“Supergirl is a more important character in comics than people tend to think. She’s actually one of the more well-known female superheroes in American popular culture, which means she’s got the potential to reach out to new readers and strengthen the industry,” said Dean Trippe, Project: Rooftop founder. “This is a chance to explore how various indie artists would handle her costuming in ways that show respect to the character and what she means to the culture at large.”

I would encourage you to check out both the sites and check out the fantastic discussion over the works presented.

via Project:Rooftop and Girl-Wonder.org.

Or - “Aren’t EVERYONE’S Siblings Out Of Their Minds?”

The second issue of Justice Society of America featured the Heywood family reunion, a function that has been attended by two generations of superheroes (with a third on the way). From a comic book standpoint, the Commanders Steel have it easy. Can you imagine a Mar-Vell family reunion? Or a Stark family reunion? (Seems like every four or five years, somebody comes out of the woodwork to steal Tony’s company out from under him, so you know there’s more of ‘em out there…) Now, imagine Christmas dinner at the Ranzz household, where not only do all the siblings have superhuman powers, but Mekt was ALREADY bug#%^$ crazy BEFORE he became a super-villain. I imagine it makes for awkward small-talk… “What did you do this year, Mekt?” “I used my lightning to melt seventy three people… Oh, and I also wrote a novel! Pass the potatoes?”

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Or - “Does Supergirl Have To Choke A B!+c#?”

Issue 25 didn’t used to be a milestone, back in the day. When I was a kid, it seemed like a comic book either went under before it hit double digits, or it ran forever. Granted, I was twelve, and that pretty much sums up the world-view of MOST 12 year olds, but whadayagonnado? In any case, at some point (’bout half an hour after somebody realized comics were suddenly collectible), every chance they had for a milestone issue, they took. Issue 1. Issue fifty. Any Spider-Man book where the number was divisible by 25. They even invented the concpet of issue #0 so they could slap chrome on ugly pictures. Since it’s such a speculator mindset, I’m a little ashamed that I predicted a big flashy “anniversary” issue of Legion at 25. This is the W/KRP (Waid/Kitson Reboot Period), after all, and it’s nothing if not old school. Which is not to say that NOTHING happens this issue…

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Or - “Big Brother Is Watching (From The Phantom Zone)!”

Last time on Supergirl/LSH, we left our heroes on the Kryptonian colony of Rokyn (previously known as The Bottle City of Kandor), flat on their backs from a nearly disastrous battle with separatists, while simultaneously dealing with fallout from the revelation that Supergirl could, just possibly, be nothing but a giant loon with the full range of Kryptonian powers, giving her the ability to annihilate anything that annoys her, including your planet. Meanwhile, Substitute reserve member Jack Bau-Er of Daxam hides in the cargo section of the Legion Cruiser, ready to hijack it to keep it from delivering a deadly payload to downtown Argo City. BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

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Or - “Everything That You Once Knew Was Wrong Is Wronger Still…”

If you’ve been reading, (and I thank you if ya have), you may have noticed that I have an affinity for team books. In most cases, the bigger the cast, the happier I am. This is a common malady among comic fans my age, and most of us blame it on The Legion. I was introduced to the 30th century through the digest-sized reprints that DC put out in the early 80’s, reprinting the seminal run from Adventure Comics lo those million years ago. At the time, the Legion did something that other comics didn’t: it had consequences. Oh, sure, they were limited and pure schmaltz, but they happened. When Star Boy broke the Legion constitution, they drummed him out of the ranks. Lightning Lad actually died, villains from EVEN FURTHER in the future manipulated the timeline, and bits and pieces of comic lore from years before became integral parts of the story. Now, nigh on fifty years later, how fares the ever-lovin Legion?

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The United States Postal Service unveiled the commemorative DC superhero stamp collection last week at the San Diego Comic Con. The 1st day of issue stamps were available at the convention, but Friday morning post offices around the country began selling the 20 stamp collection.

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