Episode 1.07: Child's Play

Chronologically, this actually takes place prior to "Lightning Storm" (episode 1.08), and was referenced in "Brain Drain" (episode 1.09) when Superman said that he thought only magic could take away his powers.

A visual treat this time: Here are some storyboards for the episode that artist Barry Crain provided on his site.

At the Comics Continuum earlier this week, producer James Tucker is quoted as saying "We're trying to do a lot of episodes that were Superman-esque, without having access to Superman's characters. So this is probably the closest we'll have to a Mxyzptlk-type episode. It's pretty funny. And Phantom Girl is the featured star of it."

Two items - first, it's nice to see that they remember that Drax's pets were still running around loose after the "Phantoms" episode. But it took the Science Police a week to catch them, yet Superman and Saturn Girl took them down in seconds? They didn't have as easy a time with the beasts last time. Second, he was credited as "Evil Wizard" at the end, but there's only one bearded guy with a purple shirt and green winged hat who's also a sorceror... Mordru! Did you catch him sitting at the Council on Zarok?

Torrents: Hi-Def and Regular, get 'em while they're hot!

Review roundup:

• Matthew at the Legion Abstract:
  

  It's hard for me to review the episodes that are just trifles, like this one. This series has little that resembles an ongoing storyline, and its episode plots are straightforward and simple. Sometimes the characterization is complex enough to provoke discussion, as in the cases of Brainiac 5 and Lightning Lad, but more often it's not. Sometimes the episodes feature the kind of Legion lore that demands notice from longtime fans, but not always. And when we get episodes like this, I just have to remember that it's a show for little kids, not for me, and it doesn't have to be anything other than enjoyable and Legionesque, and it is both those things.

  
  
• Rokk at the Comic Book Revolution:
  

  “Child’s Play” was not as fantastic as the past two episodes, but it was still quite good. The only reason I didn’t like this episode as much as the past two was because it was not loaded down with cameo appearances....
  
  We got plenty of quality action and humor in this episode. This was a quick paced episode that kept the viewers attention from start to finish. The creative team continues to impress me with the nice character development with each Legionnaire. Every character is fully developed and has their own unique personality. The creative team also creates good chemistry between the various Legionnaires.
  
  The Animated Legion continues to evoke the same positive and fun feel of the Adventure era Legion without being a retro cartoon. The creative team has given us a thoroughly modern Legion that retains the essence if its roots in the Adventure era.

  
  
• Over at Toonzone, one poster noted that Zyx's helmet reminded him of The Master, who was a mind-control villain in Superboy 205. I recognized it as being very close to the JLA villain Brain Storm, but I forgot about The Master. The LegionWorlders caught all the Easter Eggs too.