LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #1 ADVANCE REVIEW

[Blake Petit]

Review by: Blake M. Petit Blake@comixtreme.com
Quick Rating: Excellent
Title: And We Are Legion

In a future with no heroes, a group of young warriors return to the traditions of old!

<a href="http://www.comixtreme.com/gallery/data/media/351/legion1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.comixtreme.com/gallery/data/thumbnails/351/legion1.jpg" align="left" border="0"></a>Writer: Mark Waid
Pencils: Barry Kitson
Inks: Barry Kitson & Mick Gray
Colors: Chris Blythe
Letters: Phil Balsman
Editor: Stephen Wacker
Cover Art: Barry Kitson
Publisher: DC Comics

Review: For those of you who have always wanted to try the Legion of Super-Heroes but didn't know how to get into it because you were afraid it was too continuity-intensive, you no longer have any excuse. There are two things about this issue that say every fan of classic superhero comics should be reading it:

1. Mark Waid and Barry Kitson have crafted a new, innovative, energetic and totally continuity-free vision of the 31st Century.

2. This is one damn, damn good comic book.

It's 1000 years in the future. The superheroes of the past succeeded in their mission. Evil was defeated. Earth was made safe. And now, it's a boring, boring place. People have grown apart. Human contact is kept to a minimum. Even people in the same room with one another prefer to communicate through a viewscreen rather than face-to-face. So naturally, when a group of thousands of superpowered teenagers start wearing outlandish costumes, adopting ludicrous names and begin to imitate the legendary heroes of the 21st century, the grown-ups are put out.

This is a version of the Legion that does not adhere to any previous continuity -- although many of the classic characters are present, one need never have read any other Legion title to understand what's going on. For those who have read the Legion, though, those who do love the rich history and vibrant characters that have had a hardcore following since the late 1950s, you have nothing to worry about. This is a version that is smart, engaging and respectful to those tales of the past.

Barry Kitson, as I said in this week's JSA: Strange Adventures review, is one of my favorite artists for sci-fi superhero comics, and this is him at his best. He has redesigned every member of the Legion, but beyond that, he's redesigned their entire world and made it a place we can imagine our own world may turn into 1000 years in the future. Along with some fantastic coloring and effects by Chris Blythe, this may be the best the Legion has ever looked.

This is a fantastic comic. It's got great heroes, great characters, and no ties to the past to hold you back. It has beautiful artwork. It has great writing. It has 40 pages of comics for the price of a standard 32. And for at least the first year, every issue is going to be a done-in-one story. You have no more excuses. Try the Legion of Super-Heroes. See what superheroes really can be.

Rating: http://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpg http://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpg http://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpg http://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpg http://www.comixtreme.com/reviews/full.jpg

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[Ronée]

I cannot believe that Blythe is that awesome as a colorist AND a damn good writer... Looks like an issue I just might have to pick up.

[Blake Petit]

Yeah, DC really has some top-notch talent on this book. I'm assuming Blythe is responsible for the "cosmic" effect on Star Boy's costume -- it's phenomenal, as is the rest of the look of the issue.

[chrismozer]

Does this mean that all prior LOSH continuity is gone?

[Blake Petit]

Um... yes and no.

The prior continuity was wiped out by the realigning of the timestream in the Teen Titans/Legion special. However, if you read that book, you see there just may have been one survivor...

[chrismozer]

Originally posted by Blake Petit
Um... yes and no.

The prior continuity was wiped out by the realigning of the timestream in the Teen Titans/Legion special. However, if you read that book, you see there just may have been one survivor...

Haven't even gotten LOSH #1 and it is already causing me to hunt down back issues!

[Mark Blicharz]

It's worth it though. Thankfully I've been a reader for years and can read them again. This book was fantastic in every sense of the word.

[Blake Petit]

:LOL:

No, no, it's not. I promise, one can read the new LOSH #1 without ever having read a single Legion comic before and have zero problem getting into it. It's all starting from scratch, and I have no doubt that if and when that sole survivor resurfaces, it will be done in a way to make it understandable to new readers. Hell, the whole reason for the reboot was to let in people intimidated by the past continuity of the series.

This has always been a problem with the Legion -- for some reason, a lot of readers have always been intimidated, thinking it's some massive, continuity-heavy property that only die-hard fans could possibly understand. That's just not true -- it was no more continuity-heavy than any other property of approximately the same age... X-Men, Fantastic Four, etc., but somehow it got that stigma attached to it. Well, no more. It's all new now, baby. It's respectful of the past enough that the hardcore fans won't be disappointed, but it's a clean enough slate that anybody, ANYBODY can give it a try.

[chrismozer]

Originally posted by Blake Petit
:LOL:

No, no, it's not. I promise, one can read the new LOSH #1 without ever having read a single Legion comic before and have zero problem getting into it. It's all starting from scratch, and I have no doubt that if and when that sole survivor resurfaces, it will be done in a way to make it understandable to new readers. Hell, the whole reason for the reboot was to let in people intimidated by the past continuity of the series.

This has always been a problem with the Legion -- for some reason, a lot of readers have always been intimidated, thinking it's some massive, continuity-heavy property that only die-hard fans could possibly understand. That's just not true -- it was no more continuity-heavy than any other property of approximately the same age... X-Men, Fantastic Four, etc., but somehow it got that stigma attached to it. Well, no more. It's all new now, baby. It's respectful of the past enough that the hardcore fans won't be disappointed, but it's a clean enough slate that anybody, ANYBODY can give it a try.


I don't think it's continuity that was the problem. I was just always confused due to the large cast of characters.

FF is easy to keep track of. After all, there are only 4 of them.

How many members of LOSH has there been? 10? 20? 30? To me it seemed to number in the hundreds!!

[Blake Petit]

Aaaah, is that it? Well, dude, I've gotta say, what do you expect? It's called the LEGION for a reason.

With this new team, there are actually literally THOUSANDS of members spread out over hundreds of planets, but the book will focus on the core group of about 18, and Waid promises that he'll address one or two per issue so that, by the end of the first year, you'll feel like you know them all. This issue, FYI, seems to deal mainly with Star Boy and the newest member, Invisible Kid, with a few good scenes for Cosmic Boy as well.

[Symphony of Six]

What does Brainiac 5.1 have to do with the Legion? What is his relation to the Brianiac Supes goes up against?

[Blake Petit]

It's just Brainiac 5 again, forget the .1.

And Brainiac 5, Queryl Dox, is the descendant of Vril Dox, the Brainiac that plagues Superman. Unlike his infamous ancestor, Queryl uses his unsurpassed 12-level intellect for good. And to blow up his lab around him. As for what he has to do with the Legion -- he's a member. In the old continuity he and Invisible Kid (also a scientist) invented the Legion Flight Rings, although I don't know yet if that will hold true with this new Legion.

[B. Schatz]

This issue has been on my pull list ever since I saw the words "Continuity Free Goodness" stamped on it when it was first solicited. That, and every issue being 40 pages (finally... a $4.50 Can. book with some meat to it).

Unfortuately, all comic shops in Canada are getting late shipments this week and next week... *sigh*

So... I will be getting this book. When, is the question.

[chrismozer]

Originally posted by Blake Petit
Aaaah, is that it? Well, dude, I've gotta say, what do you expect? It's called the LEGION for a reason.


Hardy-Har-Har. But, you are correct. I always get this title confused with the little known, cancelled after 1 issue "Bakers Dozen of Super-Heroes!"

[Blake Petit]

LOL -- Yeah, those guys were weird.

But honestly, that is part of the point of the book. It's a Legion. Four characters does not a Legion make.

[Cardiac]

I've been waiting for this for a while. Can't wait.

[Linus]

Me to. I only caught some of Gail Simone's run from the last series and also got the tpb 'Foundations', which I really enjoyed. I dont have a great knowledege of the LOSH so am pretty happy that they are starting a 'continuity free' run.

[Blake Petit]

I hope more people take that approach, Linus. Hope everyone enjoys this!

[Walt Kneeland]

You're right...against better financial judgment :D I'm going to be checking this one out. That it's a fresh start, has Waid on writing, and SOMEWHERE recently I saw a preview of it (maybe in the back of the Teen Titans/Legion special?) that seemed interesting enough to warrant at least checking out the first issue.

I'd forgotten about the 8 "extra" pages. Now, 8 pages doesn't SOUND like a lot...but when it's an extra third to quarter of a book, it's not bad. And for the same price...it makes that (assumably $2.95?) price point that much more worthwhile.

(Last week, I bought something like a dozen comics...and the ONLY one LESS than $2.95 was Wolverine, at 2.25. QUITE demoralizing...)

~Walt

[Blake Petit]

Yeah, it's $2.95, same price as probably 50% or more of the comics you're already buying, and it's eight pages longer. :)

And there was a preview (more of a prologue, actually) at the end of the Teen Titans/Legion special, yes.

[mousee]

Originally posted by Blake Petit
With this new team, there are actually literally THOUSANDS of members spread out over hundreds of planets

:D :rolleyes: :D like pokemons for adults?

[Blake Petit]

No. This doesn't suck. :p

[Walt Kneeland]

Hey, now...what's wrong with Pokémon? ;)

Well...er...what's wrong with those first 150 Pokémon?

----

Nah...COMICS in and of themselves are worse than Pokémon. I mean...I'm personally buying probably close to 30 titles each month. So just in new books, that's roughly 360 new books per year; plus whatever back issues I track down.

:D

"You like this story? There was this saga that ran back in __ for 7 issues, and tied into this other story......"

Gotta catch 'em all, right? ;) :D

~Walt
(Does anyone else who goes to their comic store week after week also find yourself perusing the "recent books" EVERY week, paranoid at having somehow missed a recent book? I'm sure the folks working at the shop probably think "He looked at all of those last week, now he's at it again. WHAT is he looking for?!?") :D

[Walt Kneeland]

Originally posted by Walt Kneeland
Hey, now...what's wrong with Pokémon? ;)

...asks the guy who blew at least $200 in 1999 on the CCG, as well as bought a Game Boy SOLELY to PLAY Pokemon: Red, and still thinks "Pikachu" is a cool lil critter. :D

~Walt

[Blake Petit]

Did... did you just answer your own question? :hrm:

As for the "recent" books -- My shop puts out the books on the new release shelf and leaves 'em there until they sell out or until about two months have passed, then they're back issues. So yeah, I look at the shelf every week, because it's new books every week...

[Symphony of Six]

What an awesome book...the Teen Titans/Legion Special can't even compare...I'll be back for #2.

[Blake Petit]

I've gotta ask, Symph, were you a LOSH fan in the past or was the TT/L special your first exposure to the property?

[Walt Kneeland]

Originally posted by Blake Petit
This is a fantastic comic. It’s got great heroes, great characters, and no ties to the past to hold you back. It has beautiful artwork. It has great writing. It has 40 pages of comics for the price of a standard 32. And for at least the first year, every issue is going to be a done-in-one story. You have no more excuses. Try the Legion of Super-Heroes. See what superheroes really can be.

Just read it...I must certainly thank you for the review that ensured I would check the book out.

Still...got to the end...and I'm ready for more.

For a book with this title...that is something that hasn't really happened to me before.

Aside from a couple 100-page specials or similar that my Grandpa had from the 'silver age', I think the only stuff I've read with any of the Legion incarnations have been when they've guest-starred in some other book (such as Superman) or in DCU-spanning events (such as Zero Hour).

~Walt

[mousee]

Originally posted by Walt Kneeland
Hey, now...what's wrong with Pokémon? ;)

Well...er...what's wrong with those first 150 Pokémon?


nothing :) and a good point with #150 :D
just that kids collect them, know each powers...arent we same? ;)

[Blake Petit]

Originally posted by Walt Kneeland
Just read it...I must certainly thank you for the review that ensured I would check the book out.

Still...got to the end...and I'm ready for more.

For a book with this title...that is something that hasn't really happened to me before.

Aside from a couple 100-page specials or similar that my Grandpa had from the 'silver age', I think the only stuff I've read with any of the Legion incarnations have been when they've guest-starred in some other book (such as Superman) or in DCU-spanning events (such as Zero Hour).

~Walt

Glad to hear you liked it, Walt! :)

:adds number to commission check from Mark Waid:

[Symphony of Six]

Originally posted by Blake Petit
I've gotta ask, Symph, were you a LOSH fan in the past or was the TT/L special your first exposure to the property?

To answer your question Blake. I wasn't even a DC fan until Kevin Smith's and Brad Meltzer's runs on Green Arrow and Batman: Hush. (I've read DC before though not on a regular basis where I would pick up every issue...only Vertigo, like Sandman, Preacher (Which in my mind next to New X-Men is the best book ever), Lucifer and Y the Last Man. Then I got into Superman/Batman. After Identity Crisis I'm now reading Batman, The Flash, Nightwing, Superman, Green Lantern, Teen Titans and now it's looking like LOSH...and soon to come DC All Stars. Somehow from when I was a young, young kid. I knew about the Legion and Superboy. Maybe it was from my coloring books or something. But enough of the un-needed rambling. To answer your question Blake...No and yes the TT/Legion was my first real exposure.

Happy New Year!!!!!!

[jonsnow]

Gonna have to give this book a try as well. Between Blake and Ronee I am going to be a poor man.

[The-Wraith]

I might give this a go, it looks pretty good to me.

[Walt Kneeland]

It's worth it...

:D

Besides...what harm can buying one issue do? ;)

~Walt

...says the guy who checked out "The Flash" with # 197 and is STILL onboard...

[Blake Petit]

That ain't harm.

Them's smart buying. ;)

[TwIsTeD_Rubz]

sigh...so many good reviews are influencing me to try this title.

I haven't touched a Legion book before but this might be my first. my worry is not if it's good but if i'll like it. i guess i'll take the advice and see, since you guys said, one issue won't hurt.

just to give you an idea, my favorite titles as of the moment are Ultimate Spider-man, Ultimate Fantastic Four, the Losers and Astonishing X-men. I tried Teen Titans, liked the 1st arc, was lukewarm on the brother blood arc, liked and then went blah on the Beast Boy arc, and currently ok with the last arc, and since McKone's leaving the title, i'm probably dropping it. I'm liking what Geoff Johns is doing with Green Lantern though.

If anyone else could recommend a good DC title given the titles that i currently like, i would greatly appreciate it! i've been wanting to get on board DC for a long time now, and maybe this is the time (along with DC All-Stars of course)

[Blake Petit]

Hmm... LOSH is really great for classic superhero stuff. And each issue is self-contained, so even if you don't like it, you won't have to worry about not getting the whole story.

Johns is also doing great stuff with Flash and JSA -- two of the best Superhero comics on the market these days, IMO.

Superman/Batman is great too, but it may be the most continuity-intensive comic book on the market.

[Walt Kneeland]

Let me second the recommendation for The Flash.

Like I said above, I checked it out for a single issue, having never bought or read the title before; never really cared for the character, etc. Been on-board for something like 20 issues now--I have yet to track down any back-issues or TPBs--and yet, it has continued to be a great read, month-in and month-out.

I'd also recommend Robin--while I'm not (personally) fond of the art these days, the writing's solid.

just my couple cents' worth for the moment,

~Walt
(this from someone whose 3rd-ever Batman comic introduced (fully) one "Tim Drake" in "A Lonely Place of Dying"....)

[TwIsTeD_Rubz]

Thanks for the tips! sorry for being off topic, but if i were to start reading the Flash, where should i start? are there any key trades/stories that i should catch up on, or is the upcoming story arc of "Rogue War" a good place to start? and what about the Flash makes it cool (you can just PM me if you like, thanks!)

I read back on the "preview" of LOSH in the Titans/Legion special...hmm yeah this does seem to be interesting stuff.

[Blake Petit]

Actually, any of the trades by Waid or Johns are worth reading. I think the Rogue War will probably be a good jumping-on point for the monthly, though.

What makes it cool? That's harder to answer. I think it's probably the fact that Wally West is really the first sidekick ever to "graduate." The whole concept of the sidekick -- Robin, Speedy, Kid Flash -- was to give younger readers the idea of someone they could relate to in the comic book, and hope through them, vicariously, that they could someday become the hero. So while Robin eventually grew up, he didn't become Batman. He became Nightwing. Speedy didn't become Green Arrow. He became Arsenal.

Kid Flash, though... he fulfilled the promise. He became the hero.

And there's something incredibly cool about that.

Plus, the Flash is (IMO) the greatest heroic legacy in comics. It's a torch that gets passed from time to time. Jay Garrick was the first, and he passed it down to Barry Allen, who passed it down to Wally West. And we know that Bart Allen is ready to take over someday. And we know that the legacy of the Flash will stretch far into the future, thousands of years. That's also something I, personally, really like about the character.

As for why you should be reading it now though... because Geoff Johns rocks. :cool:

[chrismozer]

Originally posted by Walt Kneeland


Besides...what harm can buying one issue do? ;)

~Walt

...says the guy who checked out "The Flash" with # 197 and is STILL onboard...

That's what i was told about smoking pot!!!

[Blake Petit]

And Legion definitely is a gateway drug -- if you're not careful you'll wind up reading JSA and Teen Titans too! :LOL:

[jonsnow]

Got hooked when I started with the Flash, but JSA never caught on with me. Flash though, is second only to Superman/Batman for best monthly title.

[Symphony of Six]

I've actually picked up the JSA Identity Crisis tie in and the JSA/JSA Part. 1 along with the Redeption storyline. (which featured Hal Jordan/Spectre. The thing I liked the most about it and someone tell me if I'm wrong, but it almost had a Norman Rockwell meets the DC heros feeling. Not just in the art but how the Heros were portrayed. That also could be because most of them were created in the '40's. As far as The Flash goes...Great Comic! I've been reading ever since #207 and have yet to get the trades.

[chrismozer]

Loved the artwork for the 1st five pages. FANTASTIC. The rest of the book looked great,too.

Story was very easy to follow and was very glad that is had zero continuity plus less calories!

I'll be back for the next issue!!

[jonsnow]

Picked this up, and while the art is great and the story flowed well, it does not captivate me. A good buy for some, just not up my alley.

[TwIsTeD_Rubz]

the art, i have to say, was really good! the story though, felt a little crammed, and i don't blame them, because they had to stick in the "origin" of the team, put two "adventures" and show us the inner workings of the legion all in one issue! I'm not a fan of decompressed storytelling, but this is kinda not up my alley either, which is why i thought it was unfair for me to judge this series based solely on the intial issue. I'll wait to see a whole story without the origin/explanation and stuff and then decide the fate of this book on my pull list.

I liked the fact that this story was continuity free (although i strangely felt like it wasn't) and i liked the premise behind the formation of the Legion. it's just simple: Bored teenagers. but unlike when we were growing up, these kids are actually subscribing to the Legion based on philosophy (i don't think this is a spoiler is it) too.

I just really felt like the part aboutSpoiler Ahead Cosmic boy and the rebellion could have been developed further

all in all, i see great potential for this series, and i'll probably pick up a few more issues of this comic before deciding whether i like it or not. just like what jonsnow said, i wasn't exactly captivated but i'm giving this series a chance.

[Blake Petit]

Actually, you didn't see the origin of this team at all. In fact, you probably won't. While it's safe to assume that the beginning of this team is pretty much the same as in the past, and that it may be alluded to, Waid has said that he sees no reason to show the scene with three teenagers saving R.J. Brande's life yet again.

(For Legion neophytes, that's how the team was formed in the first place -- Rokk Krinn, Imra Ardeen and Garth Ranzz saved the life of a billionaire who was so impressed that he convinced them to become heroes like the legendary heroes of 1,000 years before. Krinn, Ardeen and Ranzz became Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl and Lightning Lad, respectively.)

[TwIsTeD_Rubz]

thanks for the info Blake! i'll hope this turns out to be a great series, one for keeps.

[Blake Petit]

Hey, no problem. Spitting out random bits of DC Comics trivia: my purpose in life. :cool: