The DC3 Legion Boy is back to talk about, well, the Legion of Super-Heroes. Specifically, the Paul Levitz run featuring the “Great Darkness Saga.” Before we get to that story however, we’ll dive into the first issues with Levitz as sole writer of the book and a little something extra as a bonus.
Legion of Super Heroes
Written by Paul Levitz
Illustrated by Pat Broderick, Keith Giffen, Curt Swan, Bruce Patterson, Larry Mahlstedt, and Dave Hunt
Colored by Gene D’Angelo
Lettered by Ben Oda, Adam Kubert, dand J. Costanza
We begin with a quick detour into another series all together, “DC Comics Presents” #43, written by Levitz and illustrated by Curt Swan and Dave Hunt. This issue is a Superman and the Legion team-up written around the same time as the other issues I’ll be covering this week. It also acts as a nice spiritual sequel to the Wildfire centric issue discussed last week.
This standalone chapter sees Superman confronted by two significant threats; Mongul and a Sun-Eater. To assist him, his pal Jimmy Olsen summons the Legion of Super-Heroes, with the team of Cosmic Boy, Brainiac 5, Sun Boy, Shadow Lass, Element Lad, and Wildfire heeding the call. The Legion aren’t the only heroes that join the fray, with various League members joining as well. The show of force highlights the supreme threat that Mongul represents. There’s a marked increase in maturity and quality of story-telling between this chapter and the Roy Thomas co-written chapters. Levitz leans into Legion lore, referencing a prior encounter with a Sun-Eater that resulted in the death of Ferro Lad. These events are repeated, with Wildfire once again sacrificing his form to defeat the Sun-Eater. Of course, everyone but Superman knows that Drake can reform, leading to a lighthearted ending to an otherwise serious issue.
That greater depth of comics craft is carried back in the “Legion of Super-Heroes” title as Levitz begins his run in earnest with issue #284, “The Soul Thief From The Stars,” illustrated by Pat Broderick and Bruce Patterson. This chapter features a number of plot threads. Hitting the high points:
• Legion members and husband/wife Bouncing Boy and Duplicate Damsel decide to retire from the Legion
• The Legionnaire Timber Wolf (think Space Wolverine) gets plastic surgery on a medical frigate known as Medicus One
• Meanwhile, Medicus One is attacked by pirates who leave behind a nasty parasitic being called Organus
Levitz does a better job than in previous issues of onboarding newer readers, highlighting the workings of the Legion and the relationships between various important characters. Also, we learn that people still play Dungeons and Dragons in the 30th century. Broderick delivers some really great work here, particularly in the fight between Blok and Organus.
Issue #285, “Night Never Falls at Nullport,” feels almost entirely disconnected from the previous issue, focusing on a different location and cast. However, it shares similarities in that yet another space station is attacked, this time a shipyard of particularly high value to the United Planets. Again, the tone is more serious than previous issues, but there’s a fair bit of levity thanks to the stations General Manager (Mr. General Manager) H’hrnath, a bizarre horse/human hybrid and an absolute joy. The Legion ties the sabotage to the Khunds, a prominent race in DC’s space pantheon.
This issue begins a subplot with Karate Kid and Princess Projectra on the medieval world of Orando. It also features a back-up, illustrated by Keith Giffen, on Dream Girl and her home world of Naltor. With these three plot threads we see Levitz beginning to expand the new reader’s understanding of the state of the 30th century. The world building on display is impressive, even if Levitz is just expanding on the work of previous creators.
Issue #286, “Old Friends, New Relatives, and Other Corpses,” is unfortunately the weakest of the bunch this week. The issue begins with the equivalent of the classic “X-Men baseball game” trope and features a rather hammy antagonist in the form of Doctor Zaxton Regulus. Regulus, we learn, has close ties to Sun Boy and is responsible for his powers. One thing you’ll quickly learn from reading Legion stories is that many of the Legionnaires have archrivals with a very similar powerset. It’s a goofy, if somewhat endearing, aspect that has continued on into the modern Legion stories. That said, Regulus does not make for a compelling villain, making the “A” plot a tad dull. Broderick again deserves praise here for at least making it all very good looking.
Continued belowMore interesting are the “B” plot featuring Chameleon Boy and the Karate Kid back-up story. Chameleon Boy, who recently learned that Legion founder RJ Brande is his father, decides to take the fight to the Khunds without full Legion approval, arranging a team under the banner of the Legion Espionage Squad. The back-up story feels like a different comic altogether, more sword and sorcery than future sci-fi. It’s a welcome change of pace that does not feel out of place thanks to Giffen’s artistic contributions. The story ends with the tease of a “Prologue to Darkness” to come.
Overall I was very impressed by the marked improvement in quality in these issues in nearly every respect. The artwork felt richer, the plots more complex, and the characters more fully formed and with more natural dialogue. I’m very excited to see what the next few issues have in store.
