Trivia Answers #35

I keep forgetting to post the answers to the trivia quiz in a timely manner, so here are the results of the May quiz.

Theme: In the news... these questions are based on things happening recently in the real world or in the latest issue of L3W.

1. With the H1N1 swine flu in the news, can you name five 30th/31st century diseases?

The ones I thought of off the top of my head were Grandian Gender Reversal Virus, Validus Plague, Yorggian Fever, Crimson Plague, lead poisoning, and stress-induced "space madness". There are plenty more, including the ones you guys came up with like influenza, Pain Plague, the disease on the planet Kol, Shrinking Plague, common cold, Proactian lava-pimples, Rimborian Rhinovirus and Tiburian Ptomaine. It would probably take a whole page just to list out what Infectious Lass has been shown to have given out.

2. May 1st (aka May Day, aka International Workers' Day) will be Gates' favorite holiday. Name three other 30th/31st century holidays or celebrations that we've seen.

Klordny, of course, as well as Christmas, Chanukkah, and Sun Boy's birthday. Add Election Day, Founder's Day, Parents Day, Apollo Day, and Halloween.

3. On May 15, Mattel will release four new action figures. Prior to this line, what is the combined number of times these four Legionnaires have been made into some sort of 3-D figure (traditional "action figures", statues, game pieces, etc.)?

The answer I was looking for was "20x". Peter got it right:

Saturn Girl (5x): Legion of Super-Heroes PVC, DC Direct, Pocket Super-Heroes, Heroclix Cosmic Justice, Heroclix LSH Starter

Brainiac 5 (4x): Legion of Super-Heroes PVC, DC Direct, Heroclix Unleashed, Happy Meal

Lightning Lad (6x): Legion of Super-Heroes PVC, DC Direct, Pocket Super-Heroes, Heroclix Cosmic Justice, Heroclix LSH Starter, Happy Meal

Cosmic Boy (5x): Legion of Super-Heroes PVC, DC Direct, Pocket Super-Heroes, Heroclix Cosmic Justice, Heroclix LSH Starter

4. Superboy-Prime is an example of a villain who was created outside of the Legion universe, who became significantly associated with the Legion. Name at least three other characters (hero or villain) who have also been associated with the Legion (not including any of the Superboys or Supergirls).

Another one I guess wasn't worded well enough. I was looking for people like Mon-El and Dev-Em, who were created outside of the Legion books (in "Superboy", in both cases) and then later joined Legion continuity, and whose appearances are most often associated with the Legion. Basically, when you think of this character, does the Legion come to mind?

The following people you mentioned, while they have met or interacted with the Legion, do not fit this criteria: Ra's al Ghul, J'Onn J'Onzz, Bart Allen, Lobo, Green Lantern (not counting Rond Vidar), Brainiac, Mr. Mxyzptlk, Bizarro, Jimmy Olsen, Lana Lang, Lex Luthor, Prof. Ivo, Xotar the Weapons Master, Ambush Bug, Scavenger, Chronos, and Amethyst.

The ones I was thinking of were Dev-Em, Mon-El, Darkseid and Thunder, along with Jimmy's and Lana's identities as Elastic Lad and Insect Queen (but not their civilian ID's). The H-Dial is debatable, as it was (part of) a major character for a while, but I think it's still more associated with Silver Age "House of Mystery" and 1980s "Adventure Comics" than the Legion. I suppose Time Trapper would go here since he was introduced in a Wonder Woman comic (even before the Legion's first appearance) though it was only a 1970s retcon that said as much.

These people started out in Legion continuity and moved to the "mainstream" DCU (which wasn't my question, but would have made a good one): Persuader, Mordru, Emerald Eye, Controllers, Durlans, and Daxamites.

5. In "Legion of 3 Worlds" so far, we've lost L3 Sun Boy, L3 Element Lad, L2 Kinetix, L1 Rond Vidar, and L1 Karate Kid II. When was the last time three or more Legionnaires died in the course of a single storyline (not counting Elseworlds or alternate realities)?

I was thinking of the deaths of the SW6 Princess Projectra, Karate Kid, and Chameleon Boy, but a good argument could be made for Monstress, Element Lad, and Live Wire at the end of "Legion Lost".

6. The recent Easter holiday brings to mind Easter Eggs, such as Spider-Man and Garfield being hidden in the group shot of LSH v2 #300. Name three other Easter Eggs in Legion publishing (not counting Tuckerizations).

There are tons of them. Various X-Men; Martian Manhunter and Tars Tarkas (from Edgar Rice Burroughs' "John Carter of Mars" series) at the wedding of Bouncing Boy and Duo Damsel; Grell and Levitz in the wedding party of Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl; Spock in S/LSH #197; Deanna Troi in Legionnaires #35; Garfield's owner Jon Arbuckle, Luke Skywalker (Bespin Fatigues)and Lando Calrissian during Universo Project; various famous robots including Twiki, Cybermen, and a Dalek appeared when Xotar attacked the robot Museum; and many more. My favorites are Eccentrica Gallumbits (from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy), who showed up on a sign on Rimbor, I believe, during the later v4 issues; and the USS Enterprise and Jupiter II in the spaceship graveyard when the Substitute Legion got the old Legion clubhouse for their own.

7. Here's a multi-parter about the Ric Estrada-drawn issues of "Karate Kid". Who was Karate Kid's sorta-girlfriend in the 20th century, where did they meet, what villain did she turn into, which 20th-century hero helped fight her, and how was she cured?

One of the anonymous commenters got it all: Iris Jacobs, a teacher, Met KK at her apartment building. Jealous of Val's love for Jeckie, she volunteered for a S.T.A.R. Labs experiment and became Diamondeth. KK was helped out by the original Robin, Dick Grayson, to help subdue her. After a sidetrip to Kamandi's reality, KK returned to the 30th Century during Earthwar. Iris was shortly cured by a group of doctors on Mercury, and Val returned her to her home time.