The Legion Omnicom

Shooter signing in Denver on Saturday

2011-12-15T15:02:00.001-06:00

If you're in the Denver area this weekend, Jim Shooter is too, signing at Mile High.

I’m going to be signing at Chuck Rozanski’s new Mile High Comics Mega-Store this Saturday. I don’t often do signings and conventions anymore, but Chuck has been a good friend for over 30 years. He asked me to help out with his Christmas Season event at his new store and I couldn’t let him down. He’s helped me out many times and never let me down.

Check the link for the details on times and autographing schedules, you can get stuff in person or buy through the website.

RIP: Eduardo Barreto

2011-12-15T11:49:00.003-06:00

Eduardo Barreto died today. He was an artist from Uruguay who I remember most from following George Perez on Teen Titans and doing a lot of Superman artwork in the 1990s. Barreto did two Legion covers and one interior story.

The cover to DC Comics Presents #80:

The interior art to LSH v3 #56 (Steve Lightle cover):

And the cover to Tales of the LSH #329:

Reminder: Mattel 12-pack on sale (again) on Thursday

2011-12-13T20:16:00.001-06:00

If you missed out the first time (like I did) on getting the 12-pack of Legion figures from Mattel, don't forget that they go back on sale this Thursday, December 15th at 9 a.m. PT (12 noon ET).

Here's the link to the LSH page on mattycollector.com, where you'll find this:

This pack is a reissue, which means it was previously released. All reissued packs receive a graphic burst on the package stating “Long Live the Legion” to indicate it is a re-released product but identical to the first run. Mattel holds back a small amount of product from each sale for customer service needs. When a product is reissued, the held back stock is sold. A small percentage of customers will receive product from the first run and the package will not contain the burst. This is random and we cannot control which package will be received.

Available December 15, 2011, only on MattyCollector.com.

Also from mattycollector.com (their links):

As always, I’ll send email reminders (click here to register) and post reminders on Facebook, Twitter and in our Fan Forums.

Nicieza out, DeFalco on as "Legion Lost" writer

2011-12-05T17:10:00.001-06:00

So I'm back in the US after a loooong vacation (since mid-September - I haven't read anything of the New 52 yet) and already they've got creative turnover on a Legion book.

Via The Beat:

What is it about the Legion of Super-Heroes that pulls in ex-Marvel editor-in-chiefs. Roy Thomas wrote it. Gerry Conway wrote it. Jim Shooter came back for another run. Now Tom DeFalco is taking over Legion Lost with issue #7. Writing changes announced on Superman, Green Arrow and Legion Lost before the 4th issues hit the stands? You can’t say DC is averse to change.

Writes Brian Cunningham at DC's The Source blog:

His schedule just couldn’t keep up with a monthly series right now. It’s a bummer because Fabian and I had discussed some really cool ideas for the series, but I understood his reasons, and we parted on a positive note with hopes that someday we can reteam on something else down the road.

So I needed to hire a new writer, someone I felt could take the groundwork laid by Fabian and strive for even greater heights. No small task!

... So Tom came into my office with his infectious enthusiasm, and we just talked about LEGION LOST for over an hour. I really loved what I heard. And then we got on the phone with series artist Pete Woods, and the ideas kept flowing. Carrying over subplots that Fabian had been developing, Tom’s inclinations felt so completely fresh that we were sold instantly. Here’s a taste:
A crossover with TEEN TITANS involving the organization known as N.O.W.H.E.R.E. — with a revelation that will change the entire course of LEGION LOST!
A Timber Wolf romance that could rip the team apart!
A power struggle for leadership!
Tyroc has a deadly secret…and the team isn’t happy when they learn it!
And a traitor lurks in their midst!

I haven't kept up with Marvel in a while; I thought DeFalco was still in charge over there.

Another Shot At The Action Figure 12-Pack

2011-12-05T14:42:00.002-06:00

Mattycollector.com has announced that its upcoming December 15th sale will include the Legion figure 12-pack. This one is supposed to be a "reissue with burst", but there's no explanation of what a "burst" is. Also, it's noted that some buyers will get previously held in reserve first run sans burst packs.

Walt Simonson Drawing January's LSH

2011-11-14T14:56:00.001-06:00

Some early samples of it have been posted.

What Super-Power Do All Terrans Possess?

2011-11-14T14:04:00.002-06:00

James Nicoll raises the question of, in a less Earth-based Legion of Super-Heroes (such as one that exists out there in the galaxy right now and comes to Earth to recruit), what power would all Terrans share that would justify one being a member. Similar to how all Braalians, Carggites, Durlans, etc. have a common power.

Interesting discussion in the responses. The leader, in my opinion, looks to be our ability to throw things at other things. Doing so with any degree of accuracy, let alone having Tom Brady become Quarterback Lad, is said to be unique for humans among Terran lifeforms.

LSH Action Figures On Sale 11/15...No, Not Those Figures

2011-11-09T16:33:00.002-06:00

Mattycollector.com has announced its monthly sale on the 15th items, and among a lot of other items, they're having a mass sale on JLU style 4-packs. This includes the Legion 4-pack of Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl, Lightning Lad, and a blue Brainiac 5.

Originally $30, if you buy 10 4-packs (same person doing the order, shipped to the same address), they'll be only $12 each. Buy 20 packs, $10 each. Buy 30 packs, $8 each. They don't have to all be the Legion 4-pack; you can mix and match the Shazam! Family, Gotham City Criminals, Justice Guild, and Doom Patrol 4-packs with the LSH one to reach 10, 20 or 30.

It is a bit unclear if they'll be sold in quantities less than 10 for the usual $30; it's vaguely implied, but not explicitly stated.

Full list of items on sale on MattyCollector's News Page.

As a side note, comments by MattyCollector reps on their forums indicate a decent chance there'll be a second run of 12-pack, but no guarantees.

Two Bits Of Legionnaire Business

2011-10-27T22:15:00.002-05:00

1) OK, that's just adding insult to injury with respect to my not getting the action figure set. Tonight's Big Bang Theory has the Legion figure set appearing in the background in scenes taking place in the comics store the characters shop in. For those who recorded it, look behind Sheldon's left shoulder.

2) Still need some Legion Archives? www.talesofwonder.com is running a sale that includes most of the already printed Legion Archive volumes at half price. I've shopped with them before and been satisfied.

If you're in Chicago on Saturday....

2011-10-21T02:15:00.000-05:00

In case you didn't see this on one of the mailing lists or elsewhere:

Hey Guys,

I normally don't promote anything going on at my shop on list but this
is HUGE (to me)

This Saturday (October 22)

Jeff and Phil Moy are at Third Coast Comics to sign copies of Star
Trek/Legion of Super Heroes #1 from 2PM to 7PM

They are also bringing Cory Corani! All of these guys are also pretty
plugged into the video game industry given their work on the X-Men
Legends and Ultimate Alliance franchises.

Now I don't know how many of you are in the Chicago area (I know
Anstey is a few hours south I think) but this could be a cool event
for us legion fans!

Third Coast Comics
6234 N. Broadway
Chicago, IL 60660
www.thirdcoastcomics.com

Let's Hope This Isn't The Final Scene In The Legion/Trek Crossover...

2011-10-19T19:27:00.002-05:00

Today's Let's Be Friends Again posits an ending for the Legion/Trek crossover that's just wrong...

January Legion solicitations

2011-10-17T17:32:00.003-05:00

Also, a reminder that the first issue of the Legion / Star Trek crossover comes out this week.

LEGION LOST #5
Written by FABIAN NICIEZA
Art and cover by PETE WOODS
On sale JANUARY 11
32 pg, FC, $2.99 US
RATED T
Our team of time-stranded Legionnaires must do battle with Alastor, the hulking bio-terrorist who has unleashed his lethal future virus in the present-day DCU! But before they arrive on the scene, Dawnstar must try to survive the behemoth alone!

LEGION: SECRET ORIGIN #4
Written by PAUL LEVITZ
Art and cover by CHRIS BATISTA and MARC DEERING
On sale JANUARY 25
32 pg, FC, 4 of 6, $2.99 US
RATED T
As more worlds fall to the mysterious alien armada, the Legion continues its struggle to defend the United Planets. Will new members Ultra Boy and Star Boy be enough to turn the tide?

LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #5
Written by PAUL LEVITZ
Art by WALTER SIMONSON and DAN GREEN
Cover by WALTER SIMONSON
On sale JANUARY 18
32 pg, FC, $2.99 US
RATED T
Legendary artist Walter Simonson comes on board for an ambitious single-issue story that walks you through a day in the life of the Legion, checking in with every single member along the way! It’s a race against time to find the meaning of Dream Girl’s predawn vision before its secret can catch the team by surprise!

LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES: THE CHOICE TP
Written by PAUL LEVITZ
Art by YILDIRAY CINAR, FRANCIS PORTELA and WAYNE FAUCHER
Cover by YILDIRAY CINAR and WAYNE FAUCHER
On sale FEBRUARY 29
224 pg, FC, $17.99 US
This new LEGION title collects issues #1-6 from 2010, including the unwelcome debut of Earth-Man, the kidnapping of Saturn Girl and Lightning Lad’s twins, the revelation of a new Green Lantern and more!

How'd People Do On Getting The Action Figures?

2011-10-17T14:50:00.002-05:00

Given that Mattycollector is now showing them as sold out, I'll abuse the power Michael gave me (: -)) and ask if anyone might have gotten an extra set they'd be willing to sell me. Over a 3+ hour period, I repeatedly got "payment not authorized" messages, despite trying several credit cards, different browsers, and clearing out cookies and caches. Anyone else have similar problems?

Action Figures On Sale Tomorrow

2011-10-16T15:17:00.002-05:00

Final reminder that the Legion figure 12-pack goes on sale tomorrow (Monday) at 0900 EDT, 1200 PDT, at www.mattycollector.com. $180 plus postage and possibly tax (definitely in California). In addition to the Legion figures, they're also selling a fair number of Ghostbusters, Masters of the Universe, and Rainbow Lantern DCU figures, so don't be surprised if you're tossed into a wait loop at first. To save time, I recommend going to the site today and creating a shipping/billing profile. Mattycollector's page for the figures is here.

The Chameleon Boy - Spider-Man Feud

2011-10-14T15:35:00.003-05:00

This week's Comic Book Legends Revealed looks at a brief "feud" between Marvel and DC. The DC contribution was Cham breaking the fourth wall after having changed into a spider to comment that he'd been "changing into all sorts of weird shapes long before [Spider-Man, or at least a description of him] walked up his first wall". Michael is given credit for providing needed info for the piece.

Why Does Brainiac 5 Stay In The Legion?

2011-10-12T18:02:00.002-05:00

Christopher Bird provides his explanation, in a nice one page introduction to Brainy. It's done as part of a series where he writes an intro to a character, each of which is drawn by a different artist. In this case, the art style reminds me of Ty Templeton's.

Legion To Guest In Action Comics #5-6

2011-10-10T18:31:00.003-05:00

Per the DC Source blog, the Legion will be guest-starring in Action #5 and 6, which'll be done by Grant Morrison and Andy Kubert. Assuming the book will still be set five years in the past at the start of Superman's career, and given the implication in Legion #1 that the Legion has still previously met Kal-El in the DCnU continuity, I'd guess this would be "classic Legion" rather than being limited to the Legion Lost team.

Action Figure Two Week Warning

2011-10-03T14:25:00.002-05:00

Just a heads-up that Mattel's Legion of Super-Heroes 12-pack (14 if you count Proty and the empty slot labelled Invisible Kid) of 6" scale action figures will be going on sale at noon EDT on Monday October 17th. Cost will be $180 + postage and possibly plus tax (certainly true if you're in California).

Ordering during one of the monthly sales can be frustrating, as frequently their servers are overloaded and you're tossed into a waiting loop. At least the loop does visibly refresh every 5 seconds, so you don't have to wonder if you're still in the queue. However, I'd still recommend going to www.mattycollector.com in advance and setting up a profile with your shipping and billing addresses to save time on the actual sales day.

Picture of the complete set can be seen here.

Shooter, Manapul On Their Legion Run

2011-09-27T19:24:00.003-05:00

Over the last few days, Jim Shooter's blogged about his plot for Brainiac 5 and Dream Girl's wedding in his last Legion run. Way down in the comments, he goes into detail about problems he'd had with his run on both the production and artist fronts.

In response, artist Francis Manapul blogged about his side of things.

Admin note

2011-09-25T17:20:00.002-05:00

Due to a number of factors at home (like getting laid off and planning for a long trip which I'm currently on), it's obvious that I can't devote time to updating this for the next few months. Plus, I never got a chance to read the last issue or two of Legion and Adventure, so not only do I not know how that storyline ended, I will miss out on all the commentary for the first 3 issues of the DCnU series. Rather than have this sit empty and forgotten, I've gotten a co-author for a while to keep this going.

To Freedom, Friendship, and Frunt, and Long Live the Legion!

More Heroclix coming too

2011-08-10T20:20:00.000-05:00

Via Gamers Daily News comes word of a new Heroclix expansion set, coming in September:

The DC HeroClix: Superman expansion will feature more than 50 figures in standard five-figure boosters. Celebrating over 70 years of history, Superman brings all of the action and amazing power that only the Last Son of Krypton can deliver, and where Superman treads his greatest villains and allies cannot be far behind! Popular sub-themes in the set will include: All-Star Superman, the World of New Krypton, the Legion of Super Heroes, the exciting and pivotal Flashpoint mini-series and more!

Finally - flight rings!

2011-08-10T15:50:00.003-05:00

Via Bleeding Cool:

For every 25 copies of Legion: Secret Origin #1 by Paul Levitz and Chris Batista, comic book retailers can order a bag of 50 Legion of Super-Heroes Promotional Flight Rings.

Wonder if these will come with a warning label similar to the DC Direct one from years ago: "Warning: Does not enable wearer to fly".

SDCC 2011: The New 52

2011-07-21T23:24:00.005-05:00

The first of DC's "New 52" panels at SDCC11 has a little bit about the new Legion title. Paul Levitz was on the panel.

Via Comics Alliance:

On the Legion of Super-Heroes: Levitz rather foul-mouthedly noted that while [Demon Knight author Paul] Cornell has the entire medieval world to "f*** around with," he has the entire future.

Via Newsarama:

Next is Legion of Super-Heroes #1
Levitz's "Legion #1 for the third time. They'll keep making me do it until I do it right."
"We'll be gently easing them in with a modest cast at first."
"Cornell may have the medieval dcu to f*ck around with, but I've got the FUTURE" said Levitz to laughs and claps.

Via CBR:

Levitz said that his vision of the Legion's future era changes every chance he has to start fresh

SDCC 2011: Star Trek/Legion crossover

2011-07-21T22:38:00.001-05:00

[Note: On June 28, I received an email with a link to the Mike Grell cover of Legion/Star Trek #1 by IDW, which I posted here. Grell told me that it was premature and asked if I could pull it until it was official. That notice came Thursday at San Diego.]

Updated 7/22 with more links at the bottom.

Via Bleeding Cool:

“STAR TREK/LEGION OF SUPERHEROES is a galaxy-spanning adventure that draws both teams together to face a menace that includes Khunds, Klingons, Borg, and other threats that aren’t quite as they should be. The egalitarian United Planets in one universe and a United Federation of Planets in another is now the Imperial Planets of Terra, a dark empire focused on war and conquest, and that’s just the beginning for this special series.”

Six issue series, ships in October.

Via CBR:

IDW, which will publish the six-issue miniseries, announced the project during its Thursday panel at Comic-Con International in San Diego and revealed that Chris Roberson will write the series with Jeffrey and Philip Moy on art.

... Roberson will be working with the classic incarnations of each team, with the Legion entering into the story shortly after "The Great Darkness Saga" and the Enterprise crew picking up shortly after the Original Series, at "some point near the end of the original five-year mission," Roberson said.

The crossover will feature six heroes from each team, Roberson told CBR, for a very logical reason. "The limitation was based on the number of transporter pads on a Constitution-class starship," he said. "There's only six. So unfortunately, Scotty had to remain on the Enterprise." The 12 characters will encounter a changed reality, one that merges aspects of the 31st-century DC Universe and the 23rd-century's Final Frontier to the disadvantage of both. "In the altered universe they find themselves in, what's happened is that both of their histories have been obliterated by a change that's happened somewhere in the past," Roberson explained. "So the bifurcations that would have given rise to both their universes didn't happen. Elements of both their universes exist in this blended one."

... "The cast [of creators] lined up for the covers is incredible." That cast include Phil Jimenez as the regular cover artist and Keith Giffen, Steve Lightle, Mike Grell and "Locke & Key" artist Gabriel Rodriguez providing variants.

Other reporting and commentary via Comics Alliance, Newsarama, Major Spoilers, The Outhousers, io9, the official Star Trek site, and ICV2, which calls it "the most startling and unexpected announcement of Comic-Con so far".

San Diego 2011: Preview

2011-07-19T01:41:00.003-05:00

Some actual or potential panels you might be interested in at San Diego 2011. Lots of stuff on the New DCU (aka the DCnU), replacing the normal DC Universe and DC Nation panels, and three DC/Mattel panels in which we might find out more about the Legion figures.

THURSDAY

11:30-12:30 DC: Flashpoint— Everything you know will change in a Flash! Flashpoint, the blockbuster comics event of the summer, has turned the DC Universe inside out! Join DC Comics Executive Editor, Eddie Berganza, and some of the amazing talent behind Flashpoint for a panel that's sure to pose new questions about this explosive event even as it answers others! Room 6DE

11:30-12:30 Mattel and WWE: Past, Present, and Future— Hear from some of the top WWE Superstars of all time as they discuss the storied past, exciting present, and promising future of the company and how it's all celebrated in Mattel's action figure toy line! Get a sneak peek at upcoming products and be the first to hear exciting announcements for the 2012 line. Be on hand as WWE Superstars Triple H, Rey Mysterio a surprise WWE Legend, the WWE creative team, Mattel toy designers Bill Miekina and Derek Handy, and Mattel WWE brand manager Enrique Ruvalcaba present an action-packed Q&A! Room 24ABC

1:00-2:00 DC Direct— DC Direct has long been known as one of the mostcreative companies that produce collectibles for the direct market,producing your favorite action figures, statues, and busts for over ten yearsnow. DC Direct director of product development Jim Fletcher along withartist Adam Hughes, DC exclusivesculptors, and others discuss their line of current projects, as well as futureplans revolving around the new DC Universe. Room 5AB

2:00-3:00 DC Comics - The New 52— DC Comics explodes in September with 52 new number one issues and one panel is not enough to cover it! With a "DC Comics - The New 52" panel each day, there's sure to be something for everyone! Join Dan DiDio, DC Entertainment Co-Publisher, Bob Harras, DC's Editor-in-Chief, and DC Comics Executive Editor, Eddie Berganza, for an up-close look at this unprecedented wave of new series, from the first-ever re-launches of Action Comics and Batman titles to the latest thrills from comics' cutting-edge! Room 6DE

5:30-6:30 Spotlight on Paul Levitz— Marv Wolfman (Teen Titans, Superman) and Mark Evanier (Kirby: King of Comics) interview fellow comics fan, writer, and editor -- and Comic-Con special guest -- Paul Levitz about his life, from The Comic Reader to DC Comics president & publisher, and now beyond as he returns to writing Legion of Super-Heroes and makes his debut as a historian with the Eisner-nominated 75 Years Of DC Comics: The Art of Modern Myth-Making. Room 8

FRIDAY

11:15-12:15 DC Comics - The New 52— DC Comics explodes in September with 52 new number one issues and one panel is not enough to cover it! With a "DC Comics - The New 52" panel each day, there's sure to be something for everyone! Join Dan DiDio, DC Entertainment Co-Publisher, Bob Harras, DC's Editor-in-Chief, and DC Comics Executive Editor, Eddie Berganza, for an up-close look at this unprecedented wave of new series, from the first-ever re-launches of Action Comics and Batman titles to the latest thrills from comics' cutting-edge! Room 6DE

11:30-12:15 Direct Conversation— Join executives from DC Comics for a special chat and Q&A session on September's "The New 52" launch, spotlighting sales incentives, marketing and publicity push, and much more. Room 18

1:00-2:00 Mattel: Mattypalooza 2011: Masters of the Universe Classics, DC Universe, Ghostbusters, Voltron, and More!— Are you a Matty Mattel fan? Head over to this year's Mattypalooza to get all the latest info on your favorite Mattel collector lines and MattyCollector.com. Featuring a special Q&A with Mattel toy designers Bill Benecke and Brandon Sopinsky, Mattel brand managers Scott "Toy Guru" Neitlich, Danielle McLachlan, Rhobyn de Jesus, and Natalie So, and guest starring The Four Horsemen. As a bonus, Matty, the original Mattel collector, may even make a live appearance to reveal secrets for the upcoming Masters of the Universe 30th anniversary! New toys will be shown for the first time! Room 25ABC

3:00-4:00 Mattel and DC Comics: A Heroic Partnership— You've been a fan of Mattel's popular DC toy lines, now find out the latest news, sneak peaks, and behind-the-scenes scoop on your favorite Mattel/DC action figures, including DC Universe Classics, Young Justice, Action League, and more. Plus, get an exciting look at new 2012 products. Join Mattel toy designers Bill Benecke and Mike Guarniere, as well as brand managers Danielle McLachlan and Scott "Toy Guru" Neitlich, along with The Four Horsemen and surprise guests from DC Comics and Warner Brothers for an insightful Q&A. Room 4

3:00-4:00 DC: Superman— How does The Man of Tomorrow fit into the new DC Universe that rises in September? Find out as group editor Matt Idelson joins new Action Comics writer Grant Morrison (All Star Superman, Batman Incorporated) and author of the bestselling Superman: Earth One graphic novel J. Michael Straczynski (Superman, Wonder Woman) to take fans new and old up, up, and away to give them a sneak peak at what's in store for Superman. Room 6DE

SATURDAY

11:15-12:30 DC Comics - The New 52— DC Comics explodes in September with 52 new number one issues and one panel is not enough to cover it! With a "DC Comics - The New 52" panel each day, there's sure to be something for everyone! Join Dan DiDio, DC Entertainment Co-Publisher, Bob Harras, DC's Editor-in-Chief, and DC Comics Executive Editor, Eddie Berganza, for an up-close look at this unprecedented wave of new series, from the first-ever re-launches of Action Comics and Batman titles to the latest thrills from comics' cutting-edge! Room 6DE

SUNDAY

1:45-2:45 Designing the New 52— What does it take to remake a universe? There are new stories, new characters, and especially new designs! DC's Co-Publisher Jim Lee, VP - Art and Design Mark Chiarello, exclusive artist Cully Hamner, and others discuss their visual approach to reshaping the DC Universe! Room 6DE

3:00-4:00 DC Comics - The New 52— DC Comics explodes in September with 52 new number one issues and one panel is not enough to cover it! With a "DC Comics - The New 52" panel each day, there's sure to be something for everyone! Join DC Comics Group Editors Matt Idelson and Mike Marts for an up-close look at this unprecedented wave of new series, from the first-ever re-launches of Action Comics and Batman titles to the latest thrills from comics' cutting-edge! Join Matt, Mike and some of the industry's top writers and artists as we make history together. Room 6DE

Bits of Legionnaire Business

2011-07-18T18:50:00.000-05:00

OK, since I haven't been around here much lately, here's some important stuff that you have probably read elsewhere already:

Former Legion writer Mindy Newell is back writing, this time for ComicMix.

Paul Levitz will be writing a new DCnU miniseries (that makes THREE series at once, for 6 months!) on the secret origin of the Legion, with art by returning veteran Chris Batista and inker Rich Perotta.

...This large-scale sci-fi odyssey delves into the secrets behind the scenes, including explaining how the organization known as the United Planets originally formed.

The DCU Source had an interview with Levitz and Francis Portela on the new Legion series.

If you didn't see it, Jim Shooter last month had a story on "Super Lad", a new Superboy-like character intended to be introduced during his run.

Surprisingly, Legion Archives vol 13 has been solicited for next March:

LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES ARCHIVES VOL. 13 HC
Written by JIM SHOOTER, PAUL LEVITZ and GERRY CONWAY
Art by MIKE GRELL, MICHAEL NETZER, JOE STATON, JIM SHERMAN and others • Cover by MIKE GRELL
ADVANCE SOLICITED • On sale MARCH 21 • 240 pg, FC, $59.99 US
In these stories, collected from SUPERBOY AND THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #224-233, the 30th century teens battle Stargrave, The Fatal Five and the intergalactic conspiracy known as The Dark Circle.

And as Tom just pointed out to me:

THE STEVE DITKO OMNIBUS VOL. 2 HC
On sale DECEMBER 14 • 384 pg, FC, $59.99 US
Collecting tales by artist Steve Ditko from SHOWCASE #75, THE HAWK AND THE DOVE #1-2, MAN-BAT #1, DETECTIVE COMICS #483-485 and 487, ADVENTURE COMICS #467-468, LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #267, 268, 274, 276 and 281, OUTSIDERS #13, LEGENDS OF THE DC UNIVERSE 80-PAGE GIANT #1 and the TALES OF THE NEW GODS TP.

Yep, that's right. The Dr. Mayavale story's getting reprinted in hardcover format.

Legion Trek? Say what?

2011-06-28T15:13:00.000-05:00

[Note: On June 28, I posted this entry, then sent an email to Mike Grell asking for clarification. Mike told me that oops, Catskill wasn't supposed to post the cover until the official announcement was made, and asked if I could pull this post. At his request, I did. The miniseries was announced on July 21 at San Diego, so I'm reposting this as it was at the time I wrote it. See the July 21 entry for the full story.]

Got an email today from Catskill Comics, who represents writer/artist Mike Grell (among many others). One thing caught my eye - Grell's cover featuring Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl, Lightning Lad - and Capt. Kirk and Mr. Spock of "Star Trek"! Yes, it sounds like some weird fanfic mashup, but the page says it's a mini-series from IDW.

I couldn't find anything on this miniseries (though I did find a homemade video of the Legion's theme song mashed up with the recent Trek movie as if it were the new Trek TV series opening credits, and a whole page of weird Legion crossover fanfic featuring Star Trek, Pokemon, and Dr. Who).

I've got an email out to Iron Mike to see what he says - is this a real miniseries or just a commission?

More updates

2011-06-08T15:17:00.000-05:00

Updates on io9 from an interview with Dan DiDio:

Paul Levitz is synonymous with the Legion of Superheroes, but DC's published many different iterations of the Legion. Can you give us some hints about what Paul has planned?

DD: The good news on this is that we've had a lot of positive reactions to what's going on with Paul on Legion of Superheroes, and he's got a very distinctive style that is really something that plays to long-time Legion fans. I'm happy to say we're going to be continuing with a lot of the direction and tone he's set currently on the run. That's probably one of the books you'll see the least amount of change taking place, other than the subtraction of the characters in Legion Lost.

Let's talk Legion Lost — is there connection to Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning's miniseries of the same name from a few years back?

DD: The [new book's] title is Legion Lost, but that's where the similarities end with the Legion Lost that came before. What you're going to find out is that this Legion is lost in present time with no way to get back to the future — this is a team of Legionnaires who are trapped on Earth with a very specific mission to accomplish. They're not sure how to do it given the parameters of how the world exists right now.

So, about that new DC reboot.....

2011-06-08T08:39:00.002-05:00

In case you've been hiding under a rock lately, you've probably heard about the upcoming DC reboot coming in September. The TWO new Legion titles were announced today on io9:

Seven heroes from the 31st century have traveled back to the present day. Their mission: Save their future from total annihilation. When the future tech they brought with them fails, they find themselves trapped in a nightmarish world and an ultimate struggle to survive. LEGION LOST #1 will be written by Fabian Nicieza and illustrated by Pete Woods, fresh off an acclaimed run of Action Comics.

In the 31st century, the Legion of Superheroes is reeling from the loss of seven of their finest — and trying desperately to keep their youngest recruits alive against a series of terrible new threats. LEGION OF SUPERHEROES #1 will be written by fan-favorite Legion writer Paul Levitz and illustrated by Francis Portela.

Commentary from io9, iFanboy, Bleeding Cool, the DC Source blog, and the DC Universe message boards.

Meanwhile, Inside Pulse wonders if that's a miscolored Cosmic Boy on the Legion Lost cover at top, or if they're changing his ethnicity like the L3 Star Boy.

That Damned Reprint

2011-04-22T11:50:00.000-05:00

Bleeding Cool is reporting that copies of the mis-printed and recalled Legion reprint of "Legion of the Damned" are being sold on eBay for $30.

Technically titled "DC Comics Presents: Legion Of Superheroes: Legion Of The Damned 100 Page Spectacular" #1, the new version will have a white logo instead of a yellow one.

Legion of the Damned Reprints

2011-04-21T23:03:00.000-05:00

So we finally get a reprint trade paperback of "Legion of the Damned" - the four-part arc that closed out LSH v4/Legionnaires, by Abnett/Lanning/Coipiel - and it turns out that it's printed in the wrong order! Oops.

According to posters at the DC Message Boards and LegionWorld.net, the volume was recalled the day it came out.

The chapters were supposed to be printed as
1. Legion of Super-Heroes (v4) #122
2. Legionnaires #79
3. Legion of Super-Heroes (v4) #123
4. Legionnaires #80

But instead, they were printed as chapters 2, 4, 1, and 3 in that order. Way to go, reprint editor!

Things that make you go "huh?"

2011-04-01T01:07:00.005-05:00

From the Home Office in Webster, Texas, here are the Top Ten Legion moments that make you go "Huh?"

10. Steve Ditko Archives: The Legion Years
9. The Omen & Prophet Saga
8. I Dream of Sneckie
7. Sure, Keith, go ahead and use those thick black markers, they're better than fine lined inking
6. A five-year gap? That could work...
5. Reboot? I guess so, that couldn't make things any more confusing
4. Reboot? Sure, why not, we've already had one, what's one more?
3. We don't need no stinking Superboy! We can write around that.
2. If we take Superboy & the Legion out of "Adventure Comics" and make them a backup strip in "Action Comics", they'll totally love Supergirl instead.
1. Despite having one of the universe's richest men as their benefactor, the Legion lets Superboy leave over a tax issue, because if Supergirl left then the Legion of Super-Pets would leave too.

Sorry, no good April Fools joke this year. But go back and read my earlier ones from when I was funny.

C2E2 10

2011-03-20T20:41:00.000-05:00

This year's C2E2 in Chicago has ended. Here's what you missed from a Legion-centric perspective:

Via Newsarama:

DC Icons panel

Is Linda Danvers/Matrix Supergirl ever going to come back? DiDio: "Don't look at me, I just work here." DiDio says we will not be seeing her again.

The fan then asks about the multiple Legion of Superheroes, and why we can't have multiple Supergirls. DiDio says the current forward direction is Supergirl as Superman's cousin.

Is there a chance for an ongoing Lex Luthor or the Legion of Supervillains series? Berganza: "There's always possibilities." DiDio says the book where the villains are the lead are tough to sustain: They either fight villains and become kind of heroes, fight heroes and lose, or fight heroes and win and start killing off your stable.

DC Nation panel

DiDio says that Adventure Comics might be more of a showcase book, moving ahead, but he hopes Brightest Day will help other characters support their own series.

I don't think CBR covered the DC Icons panel, but here's what came out of their coverage of the DC Nation panel:

DiDio said "Adventure Comics" will likely become a "Showcase"-style book, responding to a question about the "Brightest Day" characters unlikely to support their own series at this point.

Flight rings on eBay

2011-03-13T17:31:00.000-05:00

I am not associated with this ebay auction in any way, shape, or form. That said, someone is selling replica Legion flight rings on ebay if you're interested.

This isn't the original gold-plated DC Direct version but a homemade version that, from the ad, is available in all sizes from 4-15 (US). Cost is $55 ($40 for the ring, $15 for shipping from Israel).

If you do get one, let me know how it works out!

Emerald City Comic Con 2011

2011-03-12T17:48:00.000-06:00

Seattle's Emerald City Comic Con was last weekend. Couldn't find much in the news, but here's what I did find:

DC Universe panel, via CBR:

A reader dissatisfied with the gaps left in Paul Levitz's "Legion of Superheroes" history was promised that "Paul has major plans for the book and will be filling those gaps" beginning in late summer/fall.

But seriously, unnamed fan, the book hasn't even been out a year, did you want the new book to pick up from the end of the Magic Wars right away?

CBR's coverage of the DC Nation panel didn't say anything, and couldn't find anything from Newsarama.

Next weekend: C2E2 in Chicago.

Trivia Quiz #53

2011-02-20T09:37:00.002-06:00

Trivia Quiz #53. Today's topic: random questions!

1. Which members of the Legion of Super-Pets debuted in a Legion story?

2. Speaking of the Super-Pets, several members of the LSP are also members of the Super-Pets team in DC's (non-canonical) kids line. Looking at both groups, which of the members are only in one group?

3. In one story, Cosmic Boy pressed a button, "activating the Selector Machine - round and round spin figures of our members, mounted on a wheel! Let's see who is chosen by sheer chance to.... " do what?

4. Glorith returned (sort of) at the Legion Academy. Back when she was the Time Trapper's assistant, what was the main reason that she was turned into a blob, yet the de-aged Legionnaires weren't, in ADVENTURE 338 (November 1965)?

5. In Dave Cockrum's original concept of the character we currently know as Wildfire, what was his code name?

6. Which two Legionnaires had this conversation:

Legionnaire 1: We're going to have to put on a "lovey-dovey" act to fool everyone, but don't overdo it, buster, or... POW!
Legionnaire 2: {chuckle} I promise... "Sweetheart!" Ha, Ha!

7. What does C.O.M.P.U.T.O. stand for?

Toyfair 2011 Update

2011-02-15T21:52:00.001-06:00

The annual ToyFair in NYC was this past weekend, and among the highlights (for us, at least) were the release of some more of the Legion figures from the upcoming 12-pack. The new ones are Wildfire, Chameleon Boy, Timber Wolf, and Brainiac 5; in San Diego last year, we saw Superboy, Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, and Matter-Eater Lad. Unseen so far are Karate Kid, Ultra Boy, and Colossal Boy. At San Diego they said the pack was supposed to also include Proty II. In the bottom picture you can see the Legion flight ring replica (warning: does not enable the user to fly) that also comes with the set. The pack will retail for $180 from MattyCollector only.

(H/T to Tom for the IMWAN link)

Via MattyCollector.com:

We revealed four additional figures from the Legion of Super Heroes 12-pack! Fortifying the Legion are Timber Wolf, Wildfire, Brainiac 5, and Chameleon Boy. The rest of the figures will be revealed at conventions throughout the year.

Via IMWAN:

First up: there's been a rumour going around that DC Direct is not going to be making action figures anymore, and that Mattel will now be handling all toys, while DC Direct does statues, busts, etc. Higher end stuff, really. It co-incides with Georg Brewer's leaving, after 9? years in charge of DC Direct.

Photos of the figures via ToyNews and ToyArk, (both of which have lots of closeups).

Trivia Answers #52

2011-02-15T21:12:00.002-06:00

Special (late) Legion election trivia edition, with late-breaking results!

1. Chronologically from the founding of the L1 Legion to the Magic Wars, three leaders were not elected leader by the rest of the members. Which ones, and what were the circumstances?

Cosmic Boy was chosen by computer to be the first leader; Saturn Girl became leader after winning Proty II's contest; and Element Lad (who was Deputy) became leader after the resignation of Lightning Lad

2. Who won the first Legion leader election that was based on a reader vote?

The announcement for the first reader vote appeared in the Legion Outpost letters page of Adventure 364.

Dear Editor:
In the Legion Constitution, it says a new leader must be elected every year. In ADVENTURE No. 323, Saturn Girl was elected. 14 months later, in No. 332 [sic], Brainiac 5 was put in command. Again, just 11 months after this, Invisible Kid took over the position of honor. The time is coming when a new leader should be elected. This time, before saying who the new top man (or girl) will be, why not hold an election in which the readers can vote, too? This wouldn't be like the popularity contest you held a couple of years back, for it would be based on ability, not mere popularity. Superboy and Supergirl should be excluded, because they live in the 20th century and couldn't devote their full time to the post. The former leaders (including Cosmic Boy, the first leader) should be left out of the running, too.
-Tredgar Waller, Rosemount, Minn.
(How about it, fans? Who would you like to see holding the Legion's reins? Phantom Girl? Ultra Boy? Lightning Lad? Duo Damsel? You tell us and we'll announce the results in this department. Make sure all votes are postmarked before Dec. 26 - the date the next issue of ADVENTURE hits the stands. -Ed.)

Here's the announcement from Adventure 368:

Dear Editor:
In a recent issue, a reader suggested having an election for a new leader of the Super-Heroes. So I am going to cast my vote for Ultra Boy, even though I'm not old enough to vote.
-James Garner, Jersey City, N.J.
(You're old enough to vote in this election, Jim - and you were one of 7,810 readers who did just that. We have the final tallies; but before we announce them, let's see who some of the other readers picked, and why . -Ed.)

"I vote for Mon-El because he is older. He was in the Phantom Zone from the 20th century to the 30th and has 1,000 years of knowledge behind him" -Jeffery Martin, Rock Creek, Ohio . . . "I would like to see Karate Kid as the Legion Leader because he has a unique ability. I SAID ABILITY - not power. K Kid didn't drink a potion or get changed by rays. He had to practice long hours to attain his famed skill." -Robert Gold, Jackson Heights, N.Y. . . . "I cast my vote for Element Lad. He could defeat the whole Legion - or almost - with his element-changing power. He could even turn rock to Kryptonite to beat Superboy." -Lonnie Herzog, Bronx, N.Y. . . . "I vote for Dream Girl because she is Dreamy, Remarkable, Eager, Amazing, Marvelous, Groovy, Irresistable, Reliable, Law-Abiding. She could also see into the future and see what crimes will be committed and who she should assign to them." -Dan Patnode, Menomonee Falls, Wis. . . . "I vote for Lightning Lad because he is the only one of the original three members who has not yet been Leader. Besides, he has the most 'battle scars' of any living Legionnaire." -Unsigned, Freehold, N.J.

(And now - the big announcement! The Legionnaire you readers have elected as the next Leader is . . . ULTRA BOY! He racked up 1,262 votes. Coming in a close second was Mon-El, with 1,160 votes - so he'll be the new Deputy Leader. Every Legionnaire got several votes (except Shadow Lass, who hadn't joined yet). Even former Leaders got some - and Timber Wolf, who hasn't joined yet, officially, racked up a few. Here's the way the other Super-Heroes did in the final tally: Element Lad - 893; Karate Kid - 879; Lightning Lad - 615; Phantom Girl - 525; Chameleon Boy - 420; Sun Boy - 388; Superboy - 316; Matter-Eater Lad - 300; Supergirl - 267; Duo Damsel - 144; Princess Projectra - 139; Colossal Boy - 111; Brainiac 5 - 96; Star Boy - 84; Bouncing Boy - 73; Dream Girl - 68; Light Lass, Cosmic Boy and Saturn Girl - 32 each; Timber Wolf - 23; Shrinking Violet and Invisible Kid - who are obviously the hardest to see - 15 each. That's it! Watch for Ultra Boy and Mon-El to take over their new duties in an early issue of ADVENTURE. -Ed.)

Ultra Boy's term began in Adventure 371. Incidentally, this appeared the following year, in Adventure 378, which said that former leaders were NOT eligible:

Now to some serious business. Paul Williams, Cataula, Ga., points out that "The current Legion Leader, Ultra Boy, and the Deputy Leader, Mon-El, were elected by the readers. I believe you should have a similar election every year. That way, the Leader will be the one the readers want." We agree - so, since it's about that time, we'll give you all one month to send in your votes. All ballots much reach us by February 27, the date when our next issue hits the stands. Remember, Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl, Brainiac 5, Invisible Kid and Ultra Boy have already held the post. That leaves the following members eligible: Bouncing Boy, Chameleon Boy, Chemical King, Colossal Boy, Dream Girl, Duo Damsel, Element Lad, Karate Kid, Light Lass, Lightning Lad, Matter-Eater Lad, Mon-El, Phantom Girl, Princess Projectra, Shadow Lass, Shrinking Violet, Star Boy, Sun Boy, Superboy, Supergirl and Timber Wolf. Vote for your favorite. The winner will be the next leader; the runner-up will be the Deputy.

(Via the Silver Age Legion page)

3. Which Legion leader was disqualified after the readers voted, and why? Who became the leader instead?

Superboy won the 1976 election, but was disqualified at the inauguration (Superboy 225, 3/77) since he was not a regular inhabitant of the 30th century. Wildfire became leader. (You'd think that the Legion election rules would have been known to the Legionnaires...)

4. Considering what we know of the all of the various "regular" Legions - the L1 Legion (founding through Magic Wars), the v4-era Legion (post-Magic Wars til Zero Hour) and the SW6 Legion, the L2 Legion post-Zero Hour reboot, the L3 Legion Waid/Kitson reboot, the current retroboot, the DC Animated Universe (including Justice League Unlimited and Superman The Animated Series), and the Legion animated series - which Legionnaire has been the leader the most number of times? For this question, for counting purposes we'll consider different versions of the same character (Lightning Lad and Livewire, for example) to be the same.

For this question, consecutive terms only count as being leader one time.
L1: Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl, Brainiac 5, Invisible Kid, Ultra Boy, Mon-El, Wildfire, Lightning Lad, Dream Girl, Element Lad, Polar Boy, Sensor Girl
L1v4: Sun Boy, Polar Boy, unknown after Legion reformation
L2: Cosmic Boy, Leviathan, Cosmic Boy, Leviathan, Shrinking Violet, Livewire, Invisible Kid, Saturn Girl, Livewire, Cosmic Boy, Kid Quantum
L3: unknown
Current: Cosmic Boy, Mon-El
DCAU: unknown
LSHAn: Cosmic Boy, Bouncing Boy, Cosmic Boy
I'm pretty sure I'm missing a couple in here, bu it looks like Cosmic Boy has been leader the most times across the various continuities, at least six. Nobody else even comes close.

5. In his two previous writing stints on the Legion, how many elections has Paul Levitz overseen and which leaders were chosen?

Levitz 1: Wildfire (Superboy 225), Lightning Lad (Superboy and the LSH 247)
Levitz 2: Dream Girl (LSH v2 291), Element Lad (LSH v2 306), Element Lad (LSH v3 12), Polar Boy x2, Sensor Girl (LSH v4 60)
Incidentally, there were no leader elections between Lightning Lad and Dream Girl. Levitz wrote all the elections from 1977 to 1989.

6. What happens if the Leader resigns, is expelled, dies, becomes incapacitated, or otherwise can't fulfill his/her duties as leader? What about the Deputy? What if they both are?

From the Legion Constitution:

6.3 In the event of the resignation, expulsion, leave, death or incapacity of:
(i) the Leader, the Deputy Leader shall become Leader and shall appoint a new Deputy Leader;
(ii) the Deputy Leader, the Leader shall appoint a new Deputy Leader; or
(iii) both the Leader and the Deputy Leader, the senior active member shall serve as temporary Leader, with a new Leader and Deputy Leader to be selected at the first opportunity in a manner conforming to the requirements of Sections 8.2, 8.3 and 8.4 hereunder.
(Note that section 8 of the Constitution deals with voting)

7. In this election, which eligible Legionnaires have NOT been leader before (that we know of)?

Of the 25 people on the ballot, the following had been leader at least once in the L1 continuity: Brainiac 5, Cosmic Boy, Dream Girl, Element Lad, Invisible Kid, Mon-El, Polar Boy, Sensor Girl, Ultra Boy, and Wildfire.

That leaves the following: Chameleon Boy, Chameleon Girl, Colossal Boy, Dawnstar, Earth Man, Gates, Lightning Lass, Phantom Girl, Quislet, Shadow Lass, Shrinking Violet, Sun Boy, Tellus, Timber Wolf, and Tyroc.

RIP Wizard Magazine

2011-01-24T22:44:00.001-06:00

Updated 1/25 with link in last paragraph
-------------------------
So after nearly 20 years, Wizard Magazine (and sister magazine Toyfare) have ceased publication, basically falling victim to the internet. Though Wizard never - as far as I can remember - cover-featured the Legion, they have been featured from time to time. My Wizard collection is sadly lacking, so I don't even own any of the issues on my checklist (which is also incomplete - damn this procrastination!). I've got issues 19, 59, 67, and 208 on the list. What else am I missing?

In 1993, when the "Legionnaires" title was starting up, there was a trading card promotion with it for the new Cosmic Teams set. The #00 Catspaw was bagged with the March/April issue of Comics Buyers' Guide Price Guide, while the #000 card, Dragonmage, was bagged with Wizard #19. The Computo card, promo #0000, was bagged with "Legionnaires" #1. A fourth card, P1 with Apparition, was given out at conventions that year. No, there doesn't seem to have been a #0 card, go figure.

My old checklist shows that there was some sort of appearances in issue 59, but I have no idea what was in there (and I haven't been able to find a copy for download).

Issue 67 had a Reboot Legion casting call. Some of the young TV and movie actors from this 1993 casting call turned out to have pretty good careers, such as Leonardo di Caprio (their choice for Livewire), Claire Danes (Spark), and Natalie Portman (Shrinking Violet). Even Wil Wheaton got a nomination, as Chameleon.

A couple years ago, in preparation for the Legion episode of "Smallville", Wizard interviewed Geoff Johns (who wrote the episode).

A former Wizard writer recounted an interview (mentioned in the comments below) with Paul Levitz and the resulting 6-page article, but I'm not 100% sure which issue it appeared in:

Maybe you never noticed the change in tone, but others did – after not doing any form of interview with the magazine in 224 issues and countless specials, Paul Levitz sat down with me for almost an hour to talk about the Legion of Super-Heroes, and the magazine ended up running a six-page spread on the Levitz Era of Legion, something that would have never happened in the past, both in regards to the subjects the magazine covered as well as the subject interviewed.

Legion collected editions on Amazon

2010-12-25T03:32:00.003-06:00

Merry Christmas y'all! Who's waking up with some shiny new Amazon gift cards under the tree? May I suggest a trade paperback or two? Maybe a DVD, some video on demand, or even some toys?

(full disclosure: I get a small kickback if you order something after clicking one of these links).

Note: a few of these (marked with an asterisk) are currently for pre-order only. Let me know if I'm missing any reprint volumes, as I'm going to try to keep this updated on my sidebar to the left (below all the other stuff).

Video on Demand

L1 Legion

L2 Legion [Post-Zero Hour]

L3 Legion

Retroboot

Other TPBs

Animated Series on DVD

Toys

DC Heroes RPG (Mayfair)

Miscellaneous

Festivus 2010

2010-12-23T19:30:00.001-06:00

Today is December 23, and you know what that means... it's Festivus time!

Festivus, which originated on an episode of "Seinfeld" in 1997, is a non-denominational holiday celebrated on Dec. 23 (or sometimes earlier, to avoid the Christmas rush). Instead of a tree, a simple unadorned aluminum pole is displayed, in opposition to the highly decorated Christmas trees. Two of the main elements of the holiday that involve people are the annual Airing of Grievances and the Feats of Strength. There are Festivus Miracles too, but they're not officially required.

So to celebrate, here are my list of Legion grievances. Please add your own in the comments, but remember they only can cover calendar year 2010 (so no whining about anything that happened last year). In no particular order:

Airing of Grievances

The Superboy lawsuit is STILL not settled (and with the judge's recent retirement, there doesn't seem to be much hope on the horizon). Unless they come to some conclusion that can provide a precedent on the Jerry Siegel side of things, there are going to be more problems in just a couple years when the Joe Shuster rights revert to his heirs.
A lack of support for a flight ring giveaway like they did for Green Lantern and the revival of The Flash. A missed opportunity after seeing what the promotion did for sales of Blackest Night tie-ins, and a Legion flight ring was a natural since (a) it's the start of a new series and (b) the flight ring has been around as long as the Flash and Green Lantern rings (give or take).
The CD put out by DC covering 75 years of TV theme songs doesn't include the Legion cartoon's theme.
Still no season 2 DVD of the cartoon, nor are there any plans to release it or a multi-season box set.
Sales of the Legion books are not what they should be.

Festivus Miracles

A new Legion book, written by Paul Levitz.
A second Legion book, also written by Levitz, taking over the revival of "Adventure Comics" and renumbering to continue the 500+ issue history.
Sad to have lost Francis Manapul as the regular penciller of the main book, but what a job Yildiray Cinar has done!
The Jim Lee/Paul Levitz Legion story in the "ICONS" book finally shipped, though two years late.
Legion elections return
The announcement of Phil Jimenez as co-creator on the Legion Academy series.
The announcement of Keith Giffen as co-creator on the Legion Annual with the new Emerald Empress. Without a strong writer or editor to reign him in, Giffen can be creatively out there, but under Karen Berger (editor) and Paul Levitz (plotter, scripter) their work was so good that the title became DC's #2 book in sales (behind Wolfman/Perez on New Teen Titans).
(Relatively) high profile co-starring roles for the Legion and Mon-El in the 21st century Superman and JLA books
The Great Darkness Saga deluxe re-release with extra story and extra extras.
Action figures - a new Tyr (out this month) and Validus as a build-a-figure (out last month), and the announcement of a huge 12-figure box set, all from Mattel, and a new-costume Mon-El from DC Direct.
Jim Lee variant covers for the new series
The Dragon*Con cosplayer gathering
Tyroc! Written by Levitz! Never thought I'd live to see the day.

Feats of Strength

The last of the Festivus traditions is the Feats of Strength, in which the guests wrestle with and try to pin the host to the floor. Usually I cap this off with a few extra trivia questions, but this time the Feat of Strength is the fact that last month I hit the five-year blogiversary mark. My first post was in November 2005 and although I haven't posted as much this year as previous years, at 1,187 posts I'm still going and I plan on being here for a while.

(And for bonus Omnicom coverage that doesn't always make it here, don't forget to follow me on Twitter and Facebook.)

Legion Annual #1 delayed til January - here's why

2010-12-22T17:18:00.000-06:00

Over at the DC Message Boards, in a discussion about why the Legion Annual has been pushed back to January 19th, Keith Giffen posted this:

Re: Legion of Superheroes Annual # 1
Posted: Dec 17, 2010 4:00 PM

Okay...

My bad here gang... kinda.

My retina decided to detach midway through the job and what with going blind in one eye and optic surgery and what-all... well, do the math.

Just wanted to get it out there because I don't want anyone thinking anyone involved in the book's not pulling for all they're worth.

I guess filing it under s**t happens might seem a bit cavalier but... s**t does indeed happen.

I've been waiting for more than twenty years for the opportunity to return to the 30th century with Paul and I think it's to DC's credit that they were willing to wait a few weeks so I could get it done up right.

Oh, and yes,the 30th century's still just as much fun as I thought it would be.

K-

Coming Distractions for March - Return of the LSV!

2010-12-20T21:47:00.000-06:00

Holy crap, there's THREE Legion books coming in March!

ADVENTURE COMICS #524
Written by PAUL LEVITZ
Art by PHIL JIMENEZ & ANDY LANNING
Cover by PHIL JIMENEZ
Paul Levitz (LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES) and Phil Jimenez (INFINITE CRISIS) continue their “Legion Academy” arc starring Legionnaires in training! And the Taurus Gang resurfaces with dark ties to the Academy!
On sale MARCH 2 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US

LEGION OF SUPER-VILLAINS #1
Written by PAUL LEVITZ
Art and cover by FRANCIS PORTELA
This 31st century team of psychopaths returns! Now led by Saturn Queen, they break out of the prison world Takron-Galtos to wreak havoc on the United Planets. DCU fans won’t want to miss this one-shot, which sets up a major 2011 storyline that’ll shake the universe!
ONE-SHOT • On sale MARCH 9 • 48 pg, FC, $4.99 US

OK, so who are those others besides Saturn Queen and Lightning Lord?

LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #11
Written by PAUL LEVITZ
Art and cover by YILDIRAY CINAR & WAYNE FAUCHER
A jam-packed extravaganza! Star Boy returns from the 21st century! Sensor Girl searches for Karate Kid! The team trails the escaped Legion of Super-Villains! And Saturn Girl seeks Harmonia Li’s blood—and the reason why will shock you!
On sale MARCH 23 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US

Wait, Sensor Girl searches for Karate Kid AGAIN?

Paul Levitz, New York Times Best-Selling Author

2010-12-04T18:49:00.000-06:00

The Levitz/Giffen "Legion of Super-Heroes: The Great Darkness Saga (Deluxe Edition)" is #5 on the New York Times "Bestselling Hardcover Graphic Books" list this week.

Levitz says he's "blushing".

[note: Amazon.com link]

Mike Grell in Atlanta this weekend

2010-12-02T10:00:00.000-06:00

Anyone going to Wizard World Atlanta this weekend? Mike Grell will be there (here's his bio) as a guest and on a panel from 2-3pm on Sunday.

WIZARD ART SCHOOL W/ MIKE GRELL
The legendary comics icon behind classic Legion of Super-Heroes tales and Warlord joins fans to discuss his unique art style as well as his take on the industry, from breaking in to breaking down a page."

Cully Hamner is going to be there too. You can ask him for a sketch of Fortress Lad, as he drew Fwangians in an issue of "Green Lantern: Mosaic".

Paul Levitz on "The Craft of Comics Writing"

2010-11-21T20:55:00.000-06:00

For those of you in New York on Dec. 6th, Paul Levitz will be teaching a class at MoCCA, the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art.

THE CRAFT OF COMICS WRITING:
THE LONG AND SHORT OF PLOTTING
Instructor: PAUL LEVITZ
One session, MONDAY December 6
6:30 pm-8:30 pm
Admission $40 | $35 for MoCCA Members

From one of comics’ undisputed master plotters, PAUL LEVITZ, a discussion of how to construct plots to suit story structures long and short, building ideas from character, and tools for analyzing the form to develop your goals. Everything you ever wanted to know about plotting comics but were afraid to ask!

Go to this page and scroll down until you see a familiar cover.

Saturn Girl's new TV ad

2010-11-21T16:51:00.000-06:00

Not sure quite why Saturn Girl dyed her hair brown or why she's advertising for T-Mobile, but there she is.

Computo, the iPad

2010-11-16T22:39:00.000-06:00

If you follow Mark Waid on Twitter, you might have heard that yesterday he left his iPad on a plane and it was stolen. The interesting thing (and the relevant part, here) was that he posted a screen shot of the location where the MobilMe service said it was, and that's when I found out Waid named his iPad "Computo". I later asked him if he had any other geek tech with comic book names, and he said that his iPhone is named "Omnicom" (after the device, not this site, I'm sure).

I asked my readers a few years ago what Legion-related names they have for their tech stuff. Here's my current listing:

my desktop computer is "LSH-HQ"
my laptop is "Computo"
my network is "Sleepnet"
my wireless router is "LegionOutpost"
my iPhone is "Omnicom"
my flash drive in my briefcase is "Brainiac5"

What do you guys have?

Unofficial election results: Mon-El projected as new leader

2010-11-15T21:32:00.000-06:00

First things first... The Legion Omnicom is projecting Mon-El as the new Legion Leader for election 2010.

The Legion Election is over. According to my unofficial election poll, Mon-El is the new leader with Phantom Girl as the new Deputy. Here are my final results, with over 760 voters (which is a good 2% of the actual readers). Using the Associated Press method of calculating margin of error, the numbers here are likely to be correct to within plus or minus 5 percentage points.

Although Mon-El leads Phantom Girl by only 2.5 points, which is within the margin of error, trends over the course of the polling leads The Omnicom Network to call Mon-El the winner of Legion Election 2010, with Phantom Girl as the runner-up and thus the Deputy Leader.

Official results are still being tallied, and the actual winner will be announced in-story in the issue coming out in December 2010.

	Percentage	Votes
Mon-El	16.28%	126
Phantom Girl	13.70%	106
Gates	7.49%	58
Brainiac 5	6.33%	49
Tyroc	5.81%	45
Shadow Lass	5.04%	39
Sensor Girl	4.13%	32
Lightning Lass	3.62%	28
Quislet	3.62%	28
Shrinking Violet	3.49%	27
Polar Boy	3.10%	24
Dream Girl	2.97%	23
Dawnstar	2.58%	20
Element Lad	2.58%	20
Chameleon Boy	2.45%	19
Cosmic Boy	2.20%	17
Timber Wolf	2.20%	17
Ultra Boy	2.07%	16
Earth Man	1.94%	15
Colossal Boy	1.55%	12
Invisible Kid	1.55%	12
Sun Boy	1.55%	12
Tellus	1.42%	11
Wildfire	1.42%	11
Chameleon Girl	0.90%	7

I have to assume that this is a legitimate tally with no shenanigans (though I have heard anecdotal evidence of people voting more than once).

Some observations:

Interestingly, Phantom Girl led from day 1 up through about a week before the election closed, when Mon-El surged ahead. I'm not sure what got people voting for him - was there some online effort in a forum that urged voters to choose him or something? Or is it just that more people are familiar with him because of his 21st century "Superman" appearances?
Gates' showing here was, I believe, a way of throwing Paul Levitz a curveball - "Let's see what he can do with THIS!" type thing. I voted for Gates for that reason.
Tyroc too. When has he been popular enough to have people vote for him? I think this was a vote for "Let's pick the character that Levitz has said that he dislikes the most."
Towards the low end of the voting, we have many characters who are actually in the spotlight, like Sun Boy, Earth Man, Ultra Boy, and Polar Boy. That's puzzling, unless these are characters that the readers think are being OVER-used. Yet Brainiac 5, also in the spotlight, is near the top of the votes.
Wildfire, second from last? He has always been one of the MOST popular Legionnaires.

Now, on the other hand, not sure how Mon-El and Phantom Girl fit when Paul Levitz wrote that he "is busy tearing up his Legion plot charts and figuring out how to accommodate the will of the masses!".

Jim Lee, ICONS, & the Legion

2010-10-26T13:43:00.000-05:00

Via MTV Splashpage, here's part of an interview with Jim Lee on his long-awaited book Icons: The DC Comics and Wildstorm Art of Jim Lee (Amazon link), which goes on sale next week:

MTV: When you went through the book, remembering some of these characters and your work with them, were there any that made you think, "Hey, I want to work with that character again."

LEE: Sure, there’s a whole section where I did Legion of Superheroes. I loved the fact that when Dave Cockrum worked on those books — and actually on X-Men as well — he just sat down and created costumes, and wouldn’t even necessarily know who those characters were. He just kind of created these looks. I’ve always been inspired by that kind of notion, so I just kind of sat down and just started sketching costumes and seeing what worked and what didn’t work, and it was all very rough draft stuff. None of that stuff was thought out — it was just kind of spur-of-the-moment, you know? Going with the moment?

And I liked how a lot of them turned out, so it just got me excited by the idea of actually working on these costumes. The Legion has gone through all these eras where they all had major fashion changes in the styles of costumes that they’ve had, and that’s always been part of their lore, I guess. So the idea of working on that and redefining them for the 30th Century was something that was very appealing to me.

Via Publisher's Weekly:

PWCW: You've also got brand new art, both on the dust jacket, and in an all-new Legion of Super-Heroes story, written by Paul Levitz. What can we expect from the story and does it fit into current Legion canon?

JL: It can if you want it to. We expressly made a story where it’s more fantastical in nature. It’s the Miracle Machine and so it kind of takes the thoughts of whatever’s near it and makes it reality in their mind. That story came about with me and Paul just kind of talking about our favorite Legion stories and our favorite Legionnaires and we crafted that short story together and then he wrote it out after that. It’s really the chance to get to work with Paul, really the quintessential Legion writer. I was having a lot of fun drawing the characters but once Paul put the dialogue in, because we didn’t work full script on this issue, the characters really came to life.

Thursday election polls

2010-10-21T23:52:00.000-05:00

I'm not going to make this a daily thing (yet), but here are day 2's exit polling. The Legion leader election website has been open for 2 days now, so let's check out unofficial trends. If you've already voted and have not anonymously recorded your vote with me, please go to the exit poll here and let me know who you voted for - and if you frequent a message board where they're discussing the election, please post the exit poll link, I'd like to hear from as many voters as possible.

A reminder: this is a highly unscientific survey of those people who went to the website and said they voted, so I have to take everyone at their word that who they voted for here is who they voted for in the election, and that there's been no ballot box stuffing.

After 312 votes (as of 11:45 pm CDT on 10/21/10) cast, here are the leading candidates with more than 5% of the total votes cast:

Phantom Girl - 15.48% (48 votes)
Gates - 9.68% (30 votes)
Mon-El - 8.33% (26 votes)
Brainiac 5 - 7.10% (22 votes)
Tyroc - 7.10% (22 votes)
Quislet - 5.16% (16 votes)

Compare this to Wednesday's votes:

Phantom Girl - 12.50% (23 votes)
Gates - 9.78% (18 votes)
Brainiac 5 - 7.61% (14 votes)
Tyroc - 7.07% (13 votes)
Mon-El - 5.98% (11 votes)
Quislet - 5.98% (11 votes)
Sensor Girl - 5.98% (11 votes)

Phantom Girl increases her lead by 3 percentage points and Mon-El picks up 2. Everyone else is basically flat lined. Still too early to call, with only 2 days of voting tallies in a 3-week election. There won't be any "October Surprise" to change the public's mind about the candidates, though a previously untold flashback in the next issue of Adventure Comics might sway some undecided voters who haven't cast their ballot yet.

Incidentally, the 312 votes cast here represents approximately 0.85% of the 36,360 copies of LSH v6 #3 that were sold (the latest sales figures available).

Election trends: who's leading in the exit polls?

2010-10-20T21:59:00.000-05:00

Via holo-vid reporter Marella Tao of "Metropolis Tonite",

Although the Legion leader election website has only been open for about 24 hours, there are some unofficial trends on the exit polls. (If you've already voted, please go to the exit poll here and let me know who you voted for.)

A reminder: this is a highly unscientific survey of those people who went to the website and said they voted, so I have to take everyone at their word that who they voted for here is who they voted for in the election. After 184 votes (as of 9pm CDT on 10/20/10) cast, here are the leading candidates with more than 5% of the total votes cast:

Phantom Girl 12.50% (23 votes)
Gates 9.78% (18 votes)
Brainiac 5 7.61% (14 votes)
Tyroc 7.07% (13 votes)
Mon-El 5.98% (11 votes)
Quislet 5.98% (11 votes)
Sensor Girl 5.98% (11 votes)

Reporter's commentary: I believe that the Gates, Tyroc, and Quislet votes are there to throw Paul Levitz a curveball. But I could live with Tinya as leader; she's the longest-serving member who's never been elected before (without knowing what went on prior to the "Superman & the Legion" story arc).
We've got til November 10 to vote.

Trivia Quiz #52

2010-10-20T08:28:00.019-05:00

Special Legion election edition! Reader elections are open today through Nov. 10th. Vote early but you can't vote often as it's one vote per IP address.

1. Chronologically from the founding of the L1 Legion to the Magic Wars, three leaders were not elected leader by the rest of the members. Which ones, and what were the circumstances?

2. Who won the first Legion leader election that was based on a reader vote?

3. Which Legion leader was disqualified after the readers voted, and why? Who became the leader instead?

4. Considering what we know of the all of the various "regular" Legions - the L1 Legion (founding through Magic Wars), the v4-era Legion (post-Magic Wars til Zero Hour) and the SW6 Legion, the L2 Legion post-Zero Hour reboot, the L3 Legion Waid/Kitson reboot, the current retroboot, the DC Animated Universe (including Justice League Unlimited and Superman The Animated Series), and the Legion animated series - which Legionnaire has been the leader the most number of times? For this question, for counting purposes we'll consider different versions of the same character (Lightning Lad and Livewire, for example) to be the same.

5. In his two previous writing stints on the Legion, how many elections has Paul Levitz overseen and which leaders were chosen?

6. What happens if the Leader resigns, is expelled, dies, becomes incapacitated, or otherwise can't fulfill his/her duties as leader? What about the Deputy? What if they both are?

7. In this election, which eligible Legionnaires have NOT been leader before (that we know of)?

Who did you vote for Legion leader in 2010?

2010-10-20T01:37:00.001-05:00

Who did you vote for as the new Legion Leader? I've set up a poll to see how the votes here match the final vote. Please only vote once, and only vote for the person you voted for on DC's site.

Legion election voting is now open!

2010-10-19T22:12:00.000-05:00

The Legion election has its own page at the DC site, open now through Nov. 10th. You have 25 candidates to choose from (including Chameleon Girl, Earth-Man, and Gates, but not including Matter-Eater Lad), with no write-ins. Apparently you're limited to one vote per IP address.

Greetings, Legionnaires!
By the order of the LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES CONSTITUTION, a Legion leader will be chosen in a manner determined by its membership. Please review the following list of active members for the Legionnaire that you feel embodies the traits and skills of a strong leader. Remember Legion Constitutional Amendment to Section 8.0: Anyone attempting to use their superpowers to influence the election may be exiled to Shanghalla and their votes discarded!

Computo will tally the votes between the polling period of OCTOBER 20 and NOVEMBER 10.

I voted for Gates, just to see what Paul Levitz would do with him.

And incidentally, section 8.0 of the Legion Constitution really does cover voting. The new leader is the one with a plurality of the votes, with the deputy leader the one with the next highest number of votes.

Mordru on "Legends of the Super-Heroes" DVD cover

2010-10-18T14:36:00.000-05:00

Via TV Shows on DVD, here's the cover art for the "Legends of the Super-Heroes" DVD which is available starting tomorrow (10/19) on the WB Shop page for the amazing low low low price of $19.95 and better quality than any bootleg VHS video you may illegally own (plus it's got outtakes that you've never seen).

Includes the most famous jet-ski chase scene in filmed history.

NYCC10: Changes coming to Adventure Comics

2010-10-09T12:35:00.000-05:00

The Legion Academy will be taking over Adventure Comics, XS notes, and Green Lantern hints for the 31st century.

Via Newsarama's live blog of the DC Universe panel today:

Levitz says we will pick the new leader. In issue #6 there will be a backdoor pilot to a new Legion story in Adventure comics. It will eventually turn into the Legion Academy series.

Via CBR's article writeup after the panel:

Levitz said that "Legion of Super-Heroes" #6 will introduce Legion Academy in a backup feature illustrated by Phil Jimenez. This group will then move over into "Adventure," and later get its own series. "Legion" #6 will also include a URL for fans to vote for Legion leader. "Then I get to write myself out of whatever ridiculous situation you put us in," he joked. "I think we'll be able to have results integrated very quickly into the book with how it's set up."

Asked about speedsters in the future, Levitz said, "XS is running around, but we're trying to keep Legion down to four billion characters, so we're giving her a little time before she shows up."

"Legion Academy" will feature ties to 21st-century DC, but at present there are no plans for Superman and Batman's descendants to appear, Levitz said when asked.

The new Green Lantern for the Earth sector in "Legion" will debut soon, "someone who will stick around, unlike Earthman, who had the attention span of about two minutes." Who this character is will "hopefully surprise you," Levitz said. Bedard added that Sodam Yat will be appearing in "Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors."

Coming soon to your TV

2010-10-09T00:06:00.001-05:00

Two items of note today regarding Legion(ish) stuff on TV:

1. At the NYCC, Warners announced that the 1979 2-part miniseries "Legends of the Super-Heroes" will be released on DVD later this month. This is the infamous show where part 1 has "The Challenge" and part 2 has "The Roast". Both feature Mordru, who appears in part 1 on a jet-ski.

No, really.

2. James Marsters, last seen on Smallville as Brainiac being taken to the 31st century by the Legion, returns next Friday 10/15 in the series 200th episode as Brainiac 5 (but not a green version). TV Guide has a preview video with its article.

New York Comic Con '10 preview

2010-10-05T20:58:00.000-05:00

So who's going to the NYCC '10 this weekend? Here's a list of panels you might want to attend. Did I miss any?

Spotlight on Geoff Johns
Geoff Johns’ storytelling and creativity fueled event blockbusters Blackest Night, the new Brightest Day and the character rebirths of Green Lantern and The Flash. As the Chief Creative Officer of DC Entertainment, you can expect Geoff to deliver even more thrills and excitement as his focus shifts to bringing the DCU to life outside of the comics starting with the Green Lantern film and many other surprises! Don’t miss this panel hosted by Eddie Berganza, Group Editor, interviewing one of the most exciting talents in comics.
10/8/10 2:15 PM
Room 1A08

DC Nation
The DC NATION is back at the home front – New York City! We’re always looking for new recruits, so be sure to come on by as Co-Publishers Dan DiDio and Jim Lee and some of the industry’s top talent lead the way to give you the inside scoop to all current and future NATION members!
10/8/10 6:00 PM
Room 1A08

James Marsters Spotlight
James Marsters may best be known for the role of Spike, the cult favorite punk-goth vampire that he played for six seasons on the series Buffy the Vampire, but he’s done a whole lot more! Don’t faint in this spotlight panel!
10/8/10 8:45 PM
Room 1A08

[Marsters is playing Brainiac 5 on this season of Smallville, maybe he'll reveal something about whether we'll see the Legion vs Darkseid]

DC Universe
Ian Sattler, Senior Story Editor, and your favorite writers and artists are here for the main event: The DC Universe! What lies ahead for your favorite heroes and series? Got a question for your favorite DCU creator? Come on by! There’s no greater gathering of top-tier creative talent!
10/9/10 12:15 PM
Room 1A08

Levitz & Giffen, together again for Legion Annual #1

2010-09-20T12:05:00.000-05:00

The DC Blog reported today that Paul Levitz and Keith Giffen will reunite for the Legion Annual #1, coming this December, starring the new Emerald Empress.

Newsarama has an interview with the two.

Paul Levitz: As soon as Keith heard I was doing some Legion work again, he was an immediate and energetic volunteer. And knowing his fondness for the Emerald Empress, I said, "I'll put her aside for you, and when I'm ready to get to that story, I'll give you a yell."

Newsarama will have part 2 with Levitz tomorrow where they talk about the current series and upcoming changes with Adventure Comics.

Trivia Quiz #51

2010-09-20T01:35:00.002-05:00

Here's a quiz to start off the second half-century of monthly trivia quizzes. These questions were submitted by Omnicom readers.

1. From Tom Galloway:
Many Legionnaires come from planets where everyone shares a particular ability, and people from those planets have also fought the Legion. Name the planets/races/Legionnaires for whom the Legion has never fought someone from that common-powered world. (To simplify, we'll look at the pre-Zero Hour/current retroboot Legion only)

2. From Michael X. MacArthur:
In Adventure 373, the creators inserted a clue in the center of the book to the identity of the Tornado Twins. What was the clue?

3. From Don Sakers:
Legionnaires have had code names that start with almost every letter of the alphabet, but which five letters have started no Legionnaire code names?

4. Another from Don Sakers:
Which Legionnaire’s parents were the very first ones we saw, and when? For extra credit, what were their names? (update: not including Superboy or Supergirl)

5. From Darrell Lawrence:
When was "Lar Gand" revealed as Mon-El's real name?

6. From Matthew at the Legion Abstract:
Name all the superhero names Ayla Ranzz has gone by, in all three-and-a-half Legion continuities (that's L1, L2, L3, and v4).

7. Another from Matthew:
Name both parties in each marriage involving Legionnaires. (Not including dreams, hoaxes, imaginary stories, or alternate futures outside of the 3.5 main continuities)

Talk Like a Pirate Day 2010: Roxxas

2010-09-19T02:26:00.003-05:00

Ahoy, mateys! Sept. 19th is International Talk Like a Pirate Day. Yo ho ho and a bottle of Silverale!

For this year's pirate spotlight, we go to the dread pirate Roxxas, the scourge of Trom. Here's his pre-V4 bio from "Who's Who in the Legion" #5. That series embellished a lot from what had been seen in the comics, but for the most part it has been accepted as canon, so you might find out a little that you didn't know. Roxxas... you don't have to put on the red light....

KIVUN ROXXAS of MURGADOR

Roxxas, a surly but intelligent young man, was accepted into the naval academy on Amadus only to desert after killing his commanding officer and raiding the compu-vault for credits. As a fugitive, he spent many years fighting and running before he joined a group of techno-pirates. Roxxas pushed the men toward more and more illegal acts until he had become by authority and combat, the leader of a band of space-pirates. Roxxas led them on raids to many worlds. When he heard rumors of a valley of transmuters on Trom, he sent spies to visit the world and report back to him. They told tales of wonder, children turning their toys to gold, young men clearing new ground by evaporating boulders, all in a largely pacifistic civlilation. Roxxas immediately ordered the kidnapping of several Tromians to hold hostrage for their cooperation of the rest of the world. When Roxxas' men tried to take hostages, some were accidentally killed in self defense by the peaceful Tromians, at which point the pirates began slaughtering the Tromians in cold blood. One young boy, Jan Arrah, escaped in a small ship and was subsequently picked up by investigating Science Police. Roxxas, furious that his men had lost control and maddened by the failure of his plan, led his men in search of the one remaining transmuter, who had fled to Earth and joined the Legion of Super-Heroes. When they met again, Jan was willing to sacrifice himself to stop Roxxas, but he was saved by Invisible Kid. [Adventure 307]

Roxxas was captured and taken to Takron-Galtos. Escaping years later, he ran to Trom, assuming no one would think to look for him there. Alone, he gradually became insane. Later, when the Legionnaires raided a prisoner refuge world called Haven, they got a lead on Roxxas, and Element Lad tracked him to Trom. Element Lad, in a vengeful rage, tried to kill Roxxas but was stopped b other arriving Legionnaires. Roxxas, who believed himself to be haunted b the "ghosts" of the Tromians, surrendered and begged to die. Element Lad decided the best revenge was to let Roxxas live. He is currently undergoing intensive psychotherapy on Labyrinth. [Superboy 211]

Roxxas was the primary villain in the initial story arc of the v4 Legion. Sprung from prison by the Earth Government (secretly run by the Dominators) and given advanced weaponry, he was assigned with preventing the reformation of the Legion of Super-Heroes, preferably by killing them. They ignored his irrational behavior, which included hearing voices in his head of his former victims. He set out by murdering ex-Legionnaire Blok. He expected this would cause the remaining Legion members to gather on Shanghalla for the funeral, where he could take them out with one bomb. They instead gathered on Winath, so he attacked them there, critically wounding Chameleon Boy, and injuring several others before being forced to flee. He was eventually tracked down by a team lead by Element Lad and returned to prison. He then provided key evidence that Earthgov was run by the Dominators, which started the next story arc of freeing Earth from their control. In many ways his actions brought about the very thing he was hired to prevent, as the Legion reformed. [via Wikipedia]

Previously:
2009: Captain Frake
2008: Dynamo Boy

Dragon*Con 2010 part 2

2010-09-08T00:32:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Brainy for pointing out a whole new trove of photos (all of these are from Shieldwolf52165's Photobucket album). If you're not already a fan on the Omnicom on Facebook, I've got a bunch more pictures there from other Facebook albums so come on over. In addition to the Legionnaires from yesterday's pictures, we also have Insect Queen and Dawnstar.

These appear to be from the group shoot on Sunday afternoon.

Dragon*Con 2010

2010-09-06T23:09:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure what else they do at Dragon*Con in Atlanta besides show off their amazing costumes - as I read on someone's Twitter status, "[San Diego] Comic Con is for amateurs" - but thanks to Brainiac 5 there was a gathering of Legionnaires (and a villain or two) at this year's convention. Pictures are slow to come online but I found a few.

@ThatDJSpider showed off her Sensor Girl costume before the con (original source; more of her shortly):

Here's a link to another photo at a DC character gathering. Lightning Lad is on the far left. This one has Brainiac 5 (the one who organized the Legion shoot) and Kid Quantum. (Note that neither of these allows pictures to be hotlinked like the one above).

Here are Brainiac 5 and his wife Supergirl.More photos on the Superhero Costuming Forum (which has its own discussion area just for Legion costumes).

So here's Sensor Girl (not hotlink-able) - and you know, I think that's what Sensor Girl would really look like.

And here are the 15 costumed Legionnaires and villains from this year's photo shoot, via @Gary_TheGreat (original source):

That's the Time Trapper at the top of the middle column, and it looks like Colossal Boy is holding Shrinking Violet.

Gary posted one other picture, taken after Keith Giffen left the area (original source):

Still waiting on others to be posted.

Bits of Legionnaire Business

2010-09-05T12:20:00.007-05:00

Stuff.

Michael Deeley's Top 10 Most Wanted Trade Paperbacks include the Abnett/Lanning stories.

LSH v6 #4 reviews from Too Dangerous for a Girl, Major Spoilers, Dave van Domelen, The Miracle Machine, IGN, ComicVine, CBR, and A Comic Book Blog.

Superman/Batman #75 reviews from Stars and Garters, Every Day Is Like Wednesday, and IGN.

CBR's Comics Legends Revealed tells the story behind the creation of Shadow Lass.

The Major Spoilers "TwitterPitch" contest has two weeks remaining.

Comic Book The Blog explains the Subs for those who may have read the the recent Brave & Bold story where they meet the Inferior Five and not known who the Subs were.

Giant-Size Geek displays some of the Alan Davis covers from the 1990s without their logos, and presents the Neal Adams print from the 1976 DC Calendar and where else it appeared.

Eat Feats, the blog for competitive eating, finally noticed Tenzil Kem and Taryn Loy.

As part of its 75th anniversary, DC is putting out a CD with various TV and movie theme songs from the 1940s to today. Unfortunately, the Legion cartoon's theme is not one of them.

A Dispensable List of Comic Book Lists has the "Five Years Later" v4 Legion on a list of "11 Attempts to Reboot, Revamp or Re-Energize a Comic-Book Superhero Franchise That Could Have Gone a Little Bit Better".

Previously, in the Future looks at some teaser pages from the Booster Gold series to see which ones actually happened (like in the JSA book when we saw Dawnstar's arm). Some of them with Booster and Brainiac 5 were promised but never happened.

Weird Worm thinks that Pete Ross wasn't such a great super-hero sidekick (or an honorary Legionnaire).

Did you know that the Legion made an appearance in Tiny Titans #31?

Brave & Bold: The Lost Issues presents a cover for what a Batman/Super-Pets team-up might have looked like.

Action Figure Insider has the August Q&A with the Matty Collector people. Question #2 is about the upcoming Legion 12-pack statue poses.

Toronto & Baltimore convention updates

2010-09-04T18:09:00.000-05:00

Totally missed covering the Chicago Comic Con (formerly Wizard World Chicago, two weeks ago) and the Toronto Fan Fest and the Baltimore Comic Con (both last week). Here are some Legiony highlights, with the big news being that the Legion will not appear in Adventure after next summer:

DC Nation at Baltimore, via Newsarama:

[Sterling] Gates: Then there's a Supergirl Annual with Supergirl and the Legion. It's her first teamup with Brianiac 5 from her point of view. (Here's the cover)

Q: Loving Levitz's Legion, anything you can say?
A: Sattler: It's kicking into high gear in a couple issues and doesn't slow down.

DC Sunday Conversation at Baltimore, via CBR:

Will either Superboy or Supergirl be recurring “Legion” characters? Lemire’s “Superboy” is starting soon and you never have any idea who’ll turn up there, the panel teased.

DC Nation at Toronto, via CBR:

DiDio himself revealed that a new character would be headlining “Adventure Comics” after the superstar team of writer Geoff Johns and artist Andy Kubert completed next summer’s “Flashpoint” event miniseries.

Can anyone locate a page on Wizard's website that has news for what happened at their con? CBR and Newsarama didn't cover it and Wizard's page seems to be designed only to sell things.

Trivia Answers #50

2010-09-04T00:22:00.000-05:00

Call me Procrastination Lad. Here are the answers to Trivia Quiz #50 from last month:

1. The Alex Ross booth in San Diego had a huge floor-to-ceiling banner of his giant Legion litho that he did for the Warner Bros. Stores. When/where else have we seen Alex Ross draw/paint the Legion as a group or individuals, not counting Superman or Supergirl

With a little help from the Alex Ross Collector website, here's what I came up with:
Kingdom Come miniseries
Kingdom Come trading cards
additional sketches in the Absolute Kingdom Come
Justice miniseries
Overstreet Price Guide cover
Starman cover/poster (from the James Robinson series)
Starman, on various JSA covers
"Rough Justice" hardcover
"Mythology" hardcover
Crisis on Infinite Earths hardcover cover/poster
Alex Ross Millennium Edition Special (Wizard magazine)

2. In LA, I went to Venice Beach. When the Legion played the New Teen Titans in volleyball (in a published DC comic!), who was on each team?

From DC Sampler #3, the teams were Ultra Boy and Star Boy vs Jericho and Lilith.

3. In San Diego they announced that a set of 12 action figures would be released next year. Of those 12, which ones have never had any kind of 3-dimensional figure commercially released before? Remember that the Legionnaires of one timeline/continuity are not the same as those of another.

The 12 figures are all from the Pre-Crisis timeline:
• Superboy
• Cosmic Boy
• Lightning Lad
• Saturn Girl
• Brainiac 5
• Chameleon Boy
• Ultra Boy
• Karate Kid
• Wildfire
• Matter-Eater Lad
• Timber Wolf
• Colossal Boy

Superboy, Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Brainiac 5, Chameleon Boy, Ultra Boy, Timber Wolf, and Colossal Boy all have had figures from DC Direct (among other places as well). Wildfire had a figure in the Mayfair box set of lead figurines in the mid-1980s. The L3 Karate Kid had a Heroclix figure, but the L1 Karate Kid didn't. So the answer here is Karate Kid and Matter-Eater Lad.

4. Paul Levitz announced that we'll see a Legion election soon. Assuming for the moment that his stories more or less remain canon up through the end of the Magic Wars, which Legionnaire had been elected leader the most number of times to that point?

Element Lad, Mon-El, and Ultra Boy had each been elected Legion leader twice.

5. Vegas is all about money. Name five types of money from different worlds in the 30th/31st century.

Among others: In ADV 309 Monster Master once asked to exchange his Barakian Living Money for liquid money of the world Althar. In ADV 350 we saw the living crystal money of Rojun has 6 legs and eats through metal, gas money from Mercury, and Huopian energy money. In ADV 377, they mention dollars, "ergloks of radium", and a giant mirror coin from Dracksler. Plus, of course, we've seen gold and Galactic Credits.

6. In Canada, they talk funny (at least to me, they do!). Which Legionnaire(s) has/have a distinctive accent or speech pattern different from "standard" (meaning everyone else)?

A number of people had different speech balloons, which is meant to indicate something other than "normal".

From L1: Quislet, Blok, Tellus, Invisible Kid II, Comet Queen, White Witch, and RJ Brande. An anonymous poster reminded me that when she went back to the 20th century to hide from Mordru, Shadow Lass passed as a foreign exchange student. ("My name is Tasmia Conehead, and I am from France.")
From L2: Shikari, Chameleon
From L3: Gazelle, Saturn Girl (who's mute)

7. In Las Vegas you have to be 21 to drink alcohol. Before the Legionnaires grew up to drink Silverale, they drank kono juice. Where did we first see kono juice?

As Tom put it, "I believe that was in Adventure 378, as the Legion toasted Brainy with that Coluan delicacy on his birthday...on to find that the cups had been poisoned."

Déjà Vu 18: Mon-El

2010-08-26T01:56:00.000-05:00

On the left, Mon-El by Giffen and Gordon. On the right, Mon-El by Jim Lee and Scott Willaims (the variant cover to this week's LSH v6 #4).

Source: Jim Lee's TwitPic page

RIP: KC Ryan (of Klordny APA)

2010-08-19T15:59:00.000-05:00

Via James Ricklef, in the comments to a post from last week:

I hate to bring this celebration down, but I figured that most of the people coming here have some connection to the APA, Klordny.

I just want to let people know that KC Ryan, former Klordny CM, passed away recently. He had stage four cancer and died in his sleep at his parents' home, where he was in hospice.

Very sad news. KC was a great guy, and he contributed a lot to Legion fandom. He'll be missed.

KC had a blog at KC Ryan's Word Balloons, last updated in June. Here's his obituary, published in the San Jose paper.

Paul Levitz on Facebook

2010-08-15T03:35:00.000-05:00

For those of you on Facebook, did you know that you can be Facebook Friends with Paul Levitz? He appears to be friending everyone who asks, and he engages the fans with comments, replies, small posts, big notes, hints about what he's writing at the moment, and teases for upcoming issues. Here's a sample, a note (which he gave permission to repost) which discusses this week's Adventure 517:

On adding to history

by Paul Levitz on Thursday, August 12, 2010 at 9:10pm

A couple of thoughts following up on the comments on ADVENTURE this month:

Any time you go back to tell an old story, the odds are something will change; it can be a nuance, or a revelation of an incident or fact that was untold but that isn't contradictory, or an outright revision of the tale. I've done all three in the past. Some of each have stuck and become time-honored lore (Universo and Rond Vidar as Green Lanterns, GiGi and Colossal Boy as SP trainees, and on and on). Some don't stick--they get revised by the original writer as he rethinks the tale, or by a subsequent storyteller. It's part of the form.

In any case, my goal with the Saturn Girl-Cosmic Boy moment was what I call an "under-reveal"--something we haven't known before, but that doesn't contradict what we know of the character. The current ADVENTURE arc is very much Saturn Girl's formative tale. We know from tales going back to my childhood that she's not shy about using her powers on her colleagues when she thinks it's for the good of the team, and hasn't always been right about that... We know she fell in love with Lightning Lad, but not when or how, or much about her emotional life before then. Before the arc ends with events that include ADVENTURE #304, hopefully her journey to maturity will be more nuanced and realistic. The Legionnaires are not children--however old their calendar ages (and I'll leave that to indexers to debate)--if they're being allowed to place themselves in harm's way, and to be responsible for the lives of others, they're acting as adults and that extends across the wide spectrum of life. Which doesn't mean they're all entirely ready for that, or will all make wise decisions.

There will be a direct contradiction or two in the story arc before it's done, but I think it's a logical application of the Legion lore that followed #304 back onto that earlier storyline. We'll see how readers react as it rolls out...three more issues to go.

In any case, I appreciate the debate, and the passion Legion fans have for these characters as people. Whether you agree with my treatment of them or not, the goal is to make them more complex and interesting...and a measure of controversy isn't surprising or disappointing. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

Happy Klordny Week 2010!

2010-08-13T01:07:00.001-05:00

Hey, we're in Klordny Week already! Since 1995, Klordny Week has been celebrated in the week or so that contains my birthday (August 13) and sometimes Elvis Appreciation Day (August 16). It first appeared in Superboy and the LSH 232 (10/77), written by Gerry Conway.

How do you celebrate? By dancing and partying!

Do me a favor, Lightning Lad, shut up and dance!

Why do you celebrate? I'm not telling you!

What's the Ritual Klordny Toast?

You can never have too much Frunt. Others celebrating (whether they know it or not) include Cold Frunt Productions, Frunt's flickr photos, Frunt's Myspace page, the Frunt Room, signs by Frunt, and a map of the town of Frunt, in Graubunden, Ostschweiz, Switzerland, and none other than Erwin Frunt!. Sadly, Yahoo Answers doesn't get it.

Trivia Quiz #50

2010-08-11T18:00:00.001-05:00

I decided extend the deadline one more month for your trivia questions, you guys can take over Quiz #51. Email me your favorite trivia questions and I'll make the next quiz all yours.

So this trivia quiz is based on where I've been lately.

1. The Alex Ross booth in San Diego had a huge floor-to-ceiling banner of his giant Legion litho that he did for the Warner Bros. Stores. When/where else have we seen Alex Ross draw/paint the Legion as a group or individuals, not counting Superman or Supergirl

2. In LA, I went to Venice Beach. When the Legion played the New Teen Titans in volleyball (in a published DC comic!), who was on each team?

3. In San Diego they announced that a set of 12 action figures would be released next year. Of those 12, which ones have never had any kind of 3-dimensional figure commercially released before? Remember that the Legionnaires of one timeline/continuity are not the same as those of another.

4. Paul Levitz announced that we'll see a Legion election soon. Assuming for the moment that his stories more or less remain canon up through the end of the Magic Wars, which Legionnaire had been elected leader the most number of times to that point?

5. Vegas is all about money. Name five types of money from different worlds in the 30th/31st century.

6. In Canada, they talk funny (at least to me, they do!). Which Legionnaire(s) has/have a distinctive accent or speech pattern different from "standard" (meaning everyone else)?

7. In Las Vegas you have to be 21 to drink alcohol. Before the Legionnaires grew up to drink Silverale, they drank kono juice. Where did we first see kono juice?

Bits of Legionnaire Business

2010-08-11T06:25:00.002-05:00

I still have my San Diego wrap-up to do - you guys learned more about what happened at the con than I did, and I was there - but here are some Bits of Legionnaire Business to hold you over in the meantime.

SMALLVILLE

Via TV Guide:

What can you tell me about the returns of Brainiac and Supergirl on Smallville? — Jeff
ADAM: James Marsters returns as Brainiac 5, who, despite being a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes in the comic books, executive producer Kelly Souders describes as "a slippery fish" with a questionable moral compass. As for Supergirl, expect her to have a more dramatic impact this time around: "She's going to shake up the world for our superheroes," Souders says.

Members of the Smallville message board on the CWTV site discuss which Legionnaires they want to see this season.

TOYS

Toyfare #158 apparently cover-features the Legion figures from Mattel.

The Fwoosh has a very long discussion thread on the Legion 12-pack, starting the day they were revealed in San Diego up through today.

Joe Acevedo has some new custom Legion figures, as does glwannabe at the DC Direct message board.

LSH v6

Photon Torpedoes looks at the Jim Lee alternate version covers so far. Over on Twitter, Jim briefly discussed who's going to be on which cover:

So I've been doing these variant covers for Paul Levitz and @ycinar great run on Legion. Need a quintessential 80s Legionnaire for that slot 11:40 AM Jul 29th via Echofon

Had Superboy for 50s cvr, Chameleon Boy for 60s, Saturn Girl for 70s. Just did Mon-el in his "5 years later" Giffen costume for 90s. 11:45 AM Jul 29th via Echofon

Already locked in for 00 choice (a current Legionnaire). 80s still up in the air...any Legion fans out there? 11:46 AM Jul 29th via Echofon

Down to Tellus, Dawnstar, Sensor Girl and Timberwolf... 12:03 PM Jul 29th via Echofon

Kello explains why he doesn't like the Legion, while Chris Sims explains why the Legion does work. Let's you and him fight!

The trade paperback for the first 6-issue arc of v6 is available for preorder on Amazon: "The Choice" will be available next April.

MISC

Here's a pinup by Francis Manapul showing Superboy and the Legion (in his Adventure Comics style).

Doug Wolk explains why the v4 "Five Years Later" Legion should be reprinted.

Legion gathering at Dragon*Con

2010-08-11T01:41:00.000-05:00

Just found this via a Google Alert - anyone going to Dragon*Con this year? That's a big con for costumers, and it turns out that there's going to be a big Legion presence. Over 20 people will be participating and dressing up as various Legionnaires on Sunday. See this post for more info.

If you're going, I hope you are able to get photos.

There is going to be a Legion of Super-Heroes photoshoot/meetup Sunday at Dragoncon (currently set for 6pm Sunday at the Hilton Steps).

Any and all Legionnaires, subs, or supporting members (or villains!) are welcome! Multiple versions of characters are canon (*cough*Legion of Three Worlds*cough*) so duplicate character signups are embraced! We've already got some cool new costumes debuting at Dragoncon, and it'd be great if we could make this a huge gathering of Legionnaires in costume!

Trivia Answers #49

2010-08-10T01:04:00.000-05:00

Answers to July's Trivia Quiz #49. I was going to turn the column over to the readers for Quiz #50 but I haven't gotten enough questions yet, so please send them in. I'll save them for #51, I've already got a bunch for the next quiz.

1. Who were Jilly, Helen, Charlie, Sophie, Donna, and Jane?

Jilly Major, Helen Cage, Charlie Woodcock, Sophie Desjardins, Donna Ferri and Jane Washington-Carver were Inferno's mall-rat friends in her mini-series.

2. Name the 5 LSH members who held wands in an attempt to attract lightning and revive the dead Lightning Lad.

Superboy, Lightning Lass, Mon-El, Chameleon Boy, and Sun Boy. If you said Saturn Girl, you were wrong, because it was really Proty in disguise.

3. Fortress Lad was from Fwang, in the 30th century. When did we see residents of Fwang in the 20th/21st century?

Gerry Jones, who wrote the story introducing Fortress Lad in the Secret Origins of the LSH Clubhouse story, was also the writer of Green Lantern: Mosaic, starring John Stewart on a mosaic-planet composed of cities from many worlds. One such world was Fwang, as seen here in GL: Mosaic #10 (his first and only appearance).

4. Dave Cockrum redesigned a number of Legionnaires' costumes when he was artist. Here's an alphabetical list of those Legionnaires, put them in chronological order of when Cockrum changed their costumes. (Note: in several stories, multiple Legionnaires got new costumes; these 12 Legionnaires got new costumes in a total of 6 different stories.)

Chameleon Boy
Colossal Boy
Duo Damsel
Element Lad
Light Lass
Lightning Lad
Phantom Girl
Princess Projectra
Shadow Lass
Shrinking Violet
Star Boy
Timber Wolf

I guess this was too trivial! Although I should have said that these costumes were either redesigned by Cockrum or first brought into a story by him, I didn't get much luck at an answer. So here's the list:
Duo Damsel, Chameleon Boy, Shrinking Violet, Karate Kid (SBOY 193)
Phantom Girl, Colossal Boy, Princess Projectra (SBOY 195)
Lightning Lad, Timber Wolf (SBOY 197)
Element Lad (SBOY 198)
Star Boy (SBOY 199)
Light Lass, Shadow Lass (SBOY 200)

5. What do these five Legionnaires have in common, in this order, that no other Legionnaires have: Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Cosmic Boy, Brainiac 5, and Dawnstar.

They were the Legionnaires who appeared on the "spotlight" covers on the "Legion of 3 Worlds" miniseries issues 1-5 (in that order).

6. How many Legionnaires (including honorary and reserve but not imaginary stories or Elseworlds) have had their own solo series, miniseries, or one-shot? That is, a book with their name in the title where they were the star, not someone who was in an anthology series or a backup strip.

You guys guessed Superman/Superboy, Supergirl, Superboy II, Mon-El/Valor, Cosmic Boy, Timber Wolf, Karate Kid, Inferno, Impulse, and Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen. But although you differentiated between Superboy Kal-El and Superboy Kon-El, no such distinction was made for pre-Crisis Supergirl and the current version of Supergirl.

7. Which Legionnaire(s) did Wally Wood draw, and where did that appear?

Although the Wood-inked Superboy stories technically fit this criteria, it wasn't what I was looking for. The one I did have in mind was this one, from the 1966 Comic Book Foldees card set. Wood did the art for the whole series:

And when you folded the halves over, you could make "hilarious" pictures like these:

SDCC Legion figures

2010-07-23T21:05:00.001-05:00

Here's a picture of the five Legion figures on display at the Mattel booth. Sculpts look amazing!

SDCC 10: Geoff Johns panel

2010-07-22T16:43:00.000-05:00

At the Geoff Johns panel today I asked two Legion questions. First, will we see the Legion in "Smallville" this next (last) season? The answer: "I'm not allowed to say." Second, when Waid & Kitson rebooted the Legion a few years ago, they were not able to use the original Legion. What changed in DC corporate policy that allowed you to use them a few years later? Answer: "I don't know, you'd have to ask the editors at the time, we didn't have anything to do with that."

San Diego notes & open thread

2010-07-22T14:10:00.000-05:00

Haven't had a chance to get to my computer to post some pics from Preview Night, but I saw the Mattel Tyr and Validus, and DC Direct's Mon-El figures. Didn't catch the DC writers panel earlier with Paul Levitz. And because I'm limited to my iPhone I can't check all the news sites. If you read any good Legion news please post it here with links.

Trivia Quiz #49

2010-07-17T02:10:00.000-05:00

This is Trivia Quiz #49. I've been doing this monthly for 4 years now. Most of the questions have been my own, a few here and there I've taken (and tried to credit) from various message boards. For Quiz #50 next month, I want to turn this over to you guys - send me (do NOT post them here) your favorite Legion trivia questions with the answers (what, do you think I know everything?) and I'll post a bunch next month.

No particular theme this week, just questions that have been sitting around minding their own business, waiting for me to post them.

1. Who were Jilly, Helen, Charlie, Sophie, Donna, and Jane?

2. Name the 5 LSH members who held wands in an attempt to attract lightning and revive the dead Lightning Lad.

3. Fortress Lad was from Fwang, in the 30th century. When did we see residents of Fwang in the 20th/21st century?

4. Dave Cockrum redesigned a number of Legionnaires' costumes when he was artist. Here's an alphabetical list of those Legionnaires, put them in chronological order of when Cockrum changed their costumes. (Note: in several stories, multiple Legionnaires got new costumes; these 12 Legionnaires got new costumes in a total of 6 different stories.)

Chameleon Boy
Colossal Boy
Duo Damsel
Element Lad
Light Lass
Lightning Lad
Phantom Girl
Princess Projectra
Shadow Lass
Shrinking Violet
Star Boy
Timber Wolf

5. What do these five Legionnaires have in common, in this order, that no other Legionnaires have: Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Cosmic Boy, Brainiac 5, and Dawnstar.

6. How many Legionnaires (including honorary and reserve but not imaginary stories or Elseworlds) have had their own solo series, miniseries, or one-shot? That is, a book with their name in the title where they were the star, not someone who was in an anthology series or a backup strip.

7. Which Legionnaire(s) did Wally Wood draw, and where did that appear?

Trivia Answers #48

2010-07-17T01:45:00.000-05:00

Guess I forgot to post the answers. June's theme was "stuff I thought of while reading LSH v6 #1".

1. What were the names of the members of the original Wanderers, and what were their new names once they got their own series?

The original Wanderers and their rebooted names are Celebrand (died, not rebooted), Ornitho (Aviax), Immorto (Re-Animage), Dartalg (Dartalon), Elvo (Elvar), and Psyche and Quantum Queen (both of whom kept their names).

2. In the Silver Age, just about every member had a name that fit the pattern "Descriptor + Gender/Youth", like Karate Kid, Dream Girl, and Princess Projectra. Which Silver Age Legionnaire(s) did not fit this pattern? (That is, everyone who joined before Wildfire).

Brainiac 5, Shrinking Violet, Mon-El, and Timber Wolf. Everyone else in the Silver Age was a Kid, Boy, Girl, Lass, Lad, King, or Princess.

3. Which of the Legionnaires or their closely related characters has or had some sort of tie to the Green Lantern Corps?

Rond Vidar and Universo were Green Lanterns. Celeste Rockfish became a living lantern of sorts (in a story that I don't think was ever fully finished) and later became Neon. I didn't think anyone would get "Teen Lantern" Jordana Gardner from the animated show's comic book series, but good call Don! And Earth-Man, of course. But nobody got the retroboot Rainbow Girl, as seen in the "Superman & the Legion" storyline, who has tapped into the rainbow spectrum even if she doesn't know it.

4. Not counting Adventure 247, who was the first Legionnaire to get a permanent costume change that is outside the "artistic license" boundaries (I consider "how many points were on the sunburst symbol on Sun Boy's costume" to be an example of artistic license; Cosmic Boy changing from his pink costume to the bustier-type is a major change)?

Although it's a judgment call, my vote for first significant permanent costume change goes to Saturn Girl, who exchanged her red and white outfit with a skirt for a red (later hot pink) bikini in Action Comics 392. Much earlier, Lightning Lass changed her logo but I wouldn't call that as significant. Yes, my wording of the question doesn't specifically rule that out, but I make the rules here.

5. Which other Legionnaire(s) were forced to join the Legion against their wishes or will?

In the v4-era, the four Khund Legionnaires (Veilmist, Firefist, Flederweb, and Bloodclaw) were forced upon the Legion, who didn't want them. In the reboot Legion, Andromeda, Brainiac 5, and Gates didn't want to join but were forced to (is that all of them?). In the retroboot (current) Legion, the UP forced the Legion to accept Earth-Man.

6. Earth-Man is the latest Legionnaire to gain admittance to the Legion after his original tryout attempt. Who else failed at their first attempt, for whatever reason, and got in later?

Bouncing Boy, Matter-Eater Lad, Supergirl (pre-Crisis), Sun Boy, Shrinking Violet, Polar Boy, Night Girl, Fire Lad, Stone Boy, Infectious Lass, Chlorophyll Kid, Color Kid, Wildfire, Nightwind, Crystal Kid, Porcupine Pete, Storm Boy, Calamity King

7. Which other Legionnaire homeworlds have blown up?

Pre-Crisis: Krypton, Dryad
Post-Crisis: Sorceror's World
Glorithverse: Earth
Threeboot: Orando
Retroboot: Titan

OMG! It's Gates!

2010-07-15T19:05:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Val Beasley for the link. Check out this creature recently discovered in Australia:

More here.

New Cosmic Boy figurine

2010-07-12T17:55:00.000-05:00

Lost in my inbox from when I was on vacation last week, here's an ad for an upcoming statue of Cosmic Boy from Eaglemoss Publications (which makes lead statuettes for DC Direct). Here's a list of what they have put out so far. Preorder from Previews (page 350) or from Big Bad Toystore, from where I got this image. Thanks to Travis Ellisor for the tip.

The ultimate collection for comics fans, the DC Superhero Collection Figurine Magazine brings together DC Comics' greatest heroes and villains! Official figurines of the characters, both good and evil, are cast in lead, individually hand-painted and numbered to form an authentic collector's edition. Each comes with a 20-page magazine providing detailed history and background on the featured characters, including exclusive images and interviews. Choose this month from Black Lightning (#66) or Cosmic Boy (#67).

It's San Diego Time.... Programming part 2

2010-07-11T16:44:00.000-05:00

Part 2 of San Diego programming, covering Saturday and Sunday. Some of it's generic DC stuff, one with Levitz as a panelist. (See part 1 for Thursday and Friday here).

Saturday, July 24

12:30-1:45 DC Universe: Event Horizon— Ian Sattler, senior story editor, and your favorite writers and artists are here for the main event: The DC Universe! What lies ahead for your favorite heroes and series? Got a question for your favorite DCU creator? Come on by! There's no greater gathering of top-tier creative talent! Room 6A

Sunday, July 25

10:00-11:00 Smallville Screening and Q&A— Comic-Con favorite Smallville returns for its last visit to Comic-Con in advance of the show's 10th and final season, as showrunners Kelly Souders and Brian Peterson join star/executive producer Tom Welling and series stars Erica Durance, Cassidy Freeman, and Justin Hartley to talk about the year ahead, answer fan questions, and give an exclusive sneak peek at clips from the final season. From Tollin/Robbins Productions, Millar/Gough Ink in association with Warner Bros. Television, Smallville airs Fridays at 8pm ET/PT on The CW. Smallville: The Complete Ninth Season will be released on Blu-ray and DVD on September 7. Ballroom 20

2:00-3:00 DC Focus: Premiere Teams— DC Comics knows a thing or two about teams. From the company that brought you the first team in comics' history (Justice Society of America), don't miss this panel on the DCU's top teams roaming Earth (JLA, JSA, Secret Six, Titans), the farthest reaches of space (R.E.B.E.L.S.), and even across time (Legion of Super-Heroes)! Senior group editor Mike Carlin is joined by Tony Bedard (R.E.B.E.L.S.), Marc Guggenheim (Flash), JT Krul (Titans), Paul Levitz (Legion of Super-Heroes), James Robinson (Justice League of America), Matthew Sturges (JSA All-Stars), and others for this collaborative panel! Room 6A

3:00-4:30 Comics Pro/Fan Trivia Match— Len Wein (Microbots), Kurt Busiek (Kool-Aid Man), and Mark Waid (Batman Electric Talking Toothbrush) face off against fans Tom Galloway (former Google employee), David Oakes (college professor), and Michael Grabois (rocket scientist) in a match on significant pre-Crisis DC events in celebration of DC's 75th anniversary. Peter David (Captain America's War on Drugs) will moderate. Room 4

It's San Diego Time.... Programming part 1

2010-07-09T23:56:00.000-05:00

Less than two weeks to the start of the San Diego Comic Con... who else is going besides me? Programming for Thursday and Friday are up, let's see what we've got for Legion fans:

Thursday, July 22

10:15-11:15 DC Comics Writers Unite!— Originally a successful panel at WonderCon 2010, "Comics Writers Unite!" (see the Comic-Con Souvenir Book for a transcript) brought together a number of special guests to talk about the art of writing. Part of a series of programs at this year's Comic-Con celebrating "The Year of the Writer," this panel features special guests Paul Levitz (Legion of Super-Heroes), Dennis O'Neil (Batman, The Question), and J. Michael Straczynski (Superman, Wonder Woman), along with Gail Simone (Birds of Prey, Secret Six), Judd Winick (Justice League: Generation Lost, Power Girl), and moderator James Robinson (Starman, Justice League of America). Room 6DE

11:30-12:30 DC Nation Convention Kickoff!— The DC Nation invades San Diego and you're invited along for the ride! Celebrate the start of what promises to be an unforgettable convention experience. Your hosts, DC co-publishers Dan DiDio and Jim Lee get the party started here! The Nation welcomes all. Room 6DE

2:00-3:00 DC Focus: Geoff Johns— Geoff Johns's storytelling and creativity fueled event blockblusters Blackest Night and the new Brightest Day and the character rebirths of Green Lantern and The Flash. As the new chief creative officer of DC Entertainment, Geoff can be expected to deliver even more thrills and excitement as his focus shifts to bringing the DCU to life outside of the comics, starting with the Green Lantern film and many other surprises! Don't miss this panel hosted by Eddie Berganza, group editor, interviewing one of the most exciting talents in comics. Room 6DE

Friday, July 23

11:00-12:00 Mattel and DC Comics: A Heroic Partnership— Find out the latest news, sneak peeks and behind-the-scenes scoop on your favorite Mattel/DC action figures, including DC Universe Classics, Justice League Unlimited, Retro Action, Infinite Heroes, and more! Plus, be here for an exciting look at all-new 2011 product! Mattel toy designer Bill Benecke, Mattel brand manager Scott "Toy Guru" Neitlich, The Four Horsemen, and special guests from DC Comics and Warner Brothers are on hand for an insightful Q&A that's not to be missed! Room 24ABC

11:30-12:30 Spotlight on Paul Levitz— Paul Levitz has been a comics fan (The Comic Reader fanzine, NY Comic Art Convention committee), editor (Batman), writer (Legion of Super-Heroes), and executive (DC Comics, including publisher from 1989 to 2010). Now he's interviewed by favorite writer and DC chief creative officer Geoff Johns about his varied career and his return to writing Legion and other DC projects, including a coffeetable book history of the company. Room 5AB

1:00-2:30 Comic-Con How-To Session: Whilce Portacio and Francis Manapul— Acclaimed artists Whilce Portacio (Uncanny X-Men, Image United) and Francis Manapul (The Flash, Adventure Comics, Superman/Batman) will demonstrate how to create and draw characters for comic books. Room 18

1:00-2:00 Mattel's Mattypalooza 2010: Masters of the Universe Classics, Ghostbusters and more!— Are you a Matty Mattel fan? Head over to this year's Mattypalooza to get all the latest info on your favorite Mattel collector lines, including Masters of the Universe Classics, DC Universe, Ghostbusters, and more from MattyCollector.com! Room 24ABC

3:00-4:00 Hi-Fi Color for Comics— Every month your favorite comic books must be colored before going to press, but just how are comic books colored? Learn about the creative art of comic book coloring from Hi-Fi's Brian Miller (Legion of Superheroes) and Kristy Miller (Birds of Prey), as Brian demonstrates the step-by-step transformation of a comic book page from black and white to full color. Learn the basics of flatting, rendering, color holds, and special effects and top digital coloring tips. Q&A if time permits. Room 30CDE

4:15-5:15 DC Nation Special Edition— It's the DC Nation State of the Union address as DC co-publishers Dan DiDio and Jim Lee join forces to give fans all the info they can handle! With those two leading the Nation, expect the unexpected...The Nation welcomes all! Room 6DE

Legions of Future Past

2010-06-23T00:06:00.000-05:00

You may recall this Legion/X-Men mashup from a few years ago here, where artist Bob Layton re-created the Byrne/Austin cover of X-Men 141 ("Days of Future Past") with Legionnaires in the X-Men roles. Here's an all-new, all-different version by former Legion artist Mike Netzer (formerly Nasser):

Thanks to Richard Caldwell for passing this one along to me.

Trivia Quiz #48

2010-06-07T12:43:00.000-05:00

This month's theme is "stuff I thought of while reading LSH v6 #1".

1. What were the names of the members of the original Wanderers, and what were their new names once they got their own series?

2. In the Silver Age, just about every member had a name that fit the pattern "Descriptor + Gender/Youth", like Karate Kid, Dream Girl, and Princess Projectra. Which Silver Age Legionnaire(s) did not fit this pattern? (That is, everyone who joined before Wildfire).

3. Which of the Legionnaires or their closely related characters has or had some sort of tie to the Green Lantern Corps?

4. Not counting Adventure 247, who was the first Legionnaire to get a permanent costume change that is outside the "artistic license" boundaries (I consider "how many points were on the sunburst symbol on Sun Boy's costume" to be an example of artistic license; Cosmic Boy changing from his pink costume to the bustier-type is a major change)?

5. Which other Legionnaire(s) were forced to join the Legion against their wishes or will?

6. Earth-Man is the latest Legionnaire to gain admittance to the Legion after his original tryout attempt. Who else failed at their first attempt, for whatever reason, and got in later?

7. Which other Legionnaire homeworlds have blown up?

Bits of Legionnaire Business

2010-06-07T00:36:00.001-05:00

So I picked a bad time to take a small break, huh? Three new Legion books (LSH v6 #1, Brave and Bold v3 #34, Adventure Comics v3 #12) in three weeks. Hot damn!

For those of you who were wondering, the Legion roster in Adventure Comics #12 places the story chronologically right after Superboy joined and before Ultra Boy. Supergirl (in original continuity) had just been inducted along with Brainiac 5 prior to Superboy's joining. The Outhousers point out some continuity errors (which are now called "chronicler's errors" by Levitz): Saturn Girl shouldn't be described as an orphan, and flight rings weren't used until Adventure 325. Also, Imra's not married to Garth at this point (her caption says "Ardeen-Ranzz"), and RJ Brande shouldn't be said to be from Durla, which was not known at this point in Legion history.

Also out this past week: X-Men Forever Giant Size #1. Huh? It's got Mike Grell, in a rare Marvel book, drawing the Dave Cockrum-era Imperial Guard.

First up: news from Heroes Con in Charlotte this weekend:

Via Newsarama:

Is there a chance for a Legion ring promotion? Yes, we may get a Legion flight ring in the near future.

Are there any plans for more back up co-features? Yes, Two-Face will start in Streets of Gotham and The Atom in Adventure Comics.

Also they are trying to just keep it to one Legion book for right now.
Why couldn't we keep anything from World of New Krypton? Sattler replied that Mon-El was always going back. Nightwing and Flamebird on the other hand, we might have not have seen the last of. "Just because they're off camera doesn't mean they're gone."

Not sure what the "just one Legion book" thing is about, Levitz is writing two (or rather, one and a half, the Legion book and the lead in Adventure).

Reviews of Adventure Comics v3 #12 from Legion Abstract, Arisverse, Comics Bulletin, Comixtreme, the Outhousers, IGN, ComicVine
Reviews of Brave and Bold #34 from True Believer Reviews, Paradox, Mania
Reviews of LSH v6 #1 from the Q Review, Diamond Galleries Scoop, Hero Press, Giggaheim, IGN, Broken Frontier, Fist Full of Comics, Comic Book Revolution, Comic Related

LSH v6 #1 has sold out and will be reprinted with a new cover.

LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #1, the debut issue of the new ongoing series from writer Paul Levitz and artist Yildaray Cinar, has sold out at DC comics and will return in a new, second printing. LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #1 Second Printing (APR108152) features a sketch version of the variant cover by Jim Lee. This issue is scheduled to arrive in stores on June 23 and has a Final Order Cutoff date of June 3.

More info here.

Blog Into Mystery reviews Tales of the LSH Annual 5, the last part of the Darkness curse.
The Legion of Substitute Podcasters #86 interviews Paul Levitz and they talk about LSH v6 #1.
Superman Fan Podcast #128 reviews the whole World of New Krypton story arc.
Secret Identity Podcast #239 covers LSH #1, among other issues.
Legion Showcase volume 4 comes out in September:

In this volume, the Legion battles Mordru the Merciless and The Fatal Five and meets The Tornado Twins. Collecting ADVENTURE COMICS #369-380, ACTION COMICS #378-387, 389-392 and SUPERBOY #172, 173, 176, 183, 184, 188, 190 and 191.

Multiversity Comics has the reading order for the various Superman story arcs of the last few years.
Paul Levitz is interviewed on video at Midtown Comics in NYC.
Gene Gonzales draws Ferro Lad.
Doug Wolk gives a selective publishing history of the Legion.

More bits coming soon.

Paul Levitz to make NJ appearance Thursday

2010-05-19T22:09:00.000-05:00

And now, a public service announcement...

PAUL LEVITZ CREATOR APPEARANCE

Writer of the new LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES series & the former President and Publishers of DC COMICS

DEWEY'S COMIC CITY, 13 Park Avenue, Madison, NJ 07940 (973 593 0042)

This Thursday, May 20th, 5:30pm until 7:30pm

We are pleased and excited to welcome PAUL LEVITZ, the writer of the new LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES and former President and Publisher of DC COMICS to Dewey’s Comic City. Paul will be signing copies of LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #1 (arriving the day before Paul’s appearance, on Wednesday, May 19th) and we’ll have plenty of copies of that issue available for him to sign.

With the publication of the new Legion of Super-heroes series Levitz returns to writing comic books after serving DC COMICS for 35 years in various executive positions, the most recent being as President and Publisher of DC Comics from 2002 to 2009. He has a long history as a writer on the LEGION having written the series from 1977 to 1978 and again from 1981 to 1989.

His appearance at Dewey’s Comic City is Mr. Levitz’s first area store appearance since resuming the role of writer.

Paul Levitz was born in Brooklyn, NY, attended Stuyvesant High School and later enrolled in New York University. During high school he published The Comic Reader, an early comic book fanzine for which he would gather comic book news items from various New York publishers. While a freshman at NYU he was offered a position at DC COMICS and left before graduating. He began at DC as a writer and assistant editor and later became editor of the Batman line of comics. In 1980 Mr. Levitz became the DC’s manager of business affairs, created the marketing department, helped develop the earliest graphic novel format comic books, and eventually was appointed vice president and executive vice president before becoming President in 2002.

Everyone who attends the signing and has Paul sign a copy of the regular cover of LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #1 will be entered into a raffle to win one of three FREE copies of the Jim Lee variant cover that will be raffled off that evening.

Come meet a true legend in the comic book medium! Paul Levitz, Thursday, May 20th at Dewey's Comic City, in Madison, NJ!

Trivia Answers #47

2010-05-18T01:23:00.000-05:00

This week kicks off the beginning of new Legion series by Paul Levitz and Yildiray Cinar, so in that spirit I present this issue of Legion Trivia.

1. Who were the main villains in each of the other #1 issues of the "Legion of Super-Heroes" series?

Legion v1 #1 reprinted Adventure #328, the Command Kid story.
There was no issue #1 for v2.
Legion v3 #1 had the Legion of Super-Villains
Legion v4 #1 had the Dominators behind the scenes
Legion v5 #1 had a giant robot.
I was amused at how many other issues you guys tried to fit in, from LSH v2 #259 to Legionnaires to The Legion to issue #0s. I was only interested in the #1 issues of "Legion of Super-Heroes" series.

2. With the Legion appearing in two series next month (Adventure Comics and Legion v6), how many times in the past has the Legion had two simultaneous ongoing series?

By my count, four times:
Adventure Comics [Digest] & LSH v2 (1982-83)
Tales of the LSH & LSH v3 (1984-1987)
LSH v4 & Legionnaires (1993-2000)
LSH v5 & LSH in 31st Century (2007-2008)

I counted Adventure because the Legion had a regular ongoing reprint series (even thought it only lasted 13 issues). The LSH v1 series, 4 reprint issues, wasn't an ongoing series, and the Legion only had an occasional backup in Superboy at the time. Guest appearances and miniseries don't count.

3. Between his first story in LSH v2 #284 and the end of LSH v3 (including Annuals but not including miniseries), how many people were given some sort of writing credit along with Paul Levitz? This includes credits for plotter, scripter, dialog, etc.

I had forgotten that Paul helped finish out the Reflecto storyline, starting in issue 281, before taking the book for himself (mostly).
Roy Thomas: plot LSH v2 281-282
Keith Giffen: co-plot and/or co-script LSH v2 293-313 plus Annuals 1-3; Tales of the LSH 313-317; LSH v3 1-5, 50-55, 57-58, 60-63
Mindy Newell: dialogue, script, and/or co-plot Tales 314-317, 320-325
Steve Lightle: co-plot LSH v3 23

4. Assuming that Adventure Comics had continued its numbering as a monthly title and had not been cancelled with issue #503, with the issues coming out (in whatever format) regularly since then as a typical DC comic. What issue number would have been dated May 2010?

Mike McKean got it right: "Since Adventure #503 was cover dated Sep 1983, if the series had been published monthly, the May 2010 issue (which would have come out in March) should have been numbered #823. I'm assuming Adventure would have published #0 and #1000000 in the same months as other DC titles, which balances out the two "extra" 1988 issues, Winter and Holiday." (I meant to ask which issue would Levitz be starting on, which Duke got: issue 826.)

5. Who wrote "An Open Note of Suicide", and why? For that matter, why does that question fit this quiz?

As Anon wrote:
Saturn Girl's new costume design was submitted by K. Haven (Kim) Metzger. This outfit, later colored fuscia, would be adopted by the Bronze Age Saturn Girl. When nearly all the Legionnaires were eventually given new costumes in the Bronze Age, Kim wrote his famous "An Open Note of Suicide" letter/essay in the fanzine Legion Outpost No. 10 (Spring 1981) , saying:

"... since those new uniforms were introduced, it just doesn't seem like the Legion I knew. And I live with the knowledge that I am responsible. Whatever it is about the Legion that seems different now, that something had its birth with my Saturn Girl uniform. I cannot bear to watch anymore ... I ask no forgiveness; I deserve none. Rather, I deserve perhaps pity, perhaps contempt from my fellow Legion fans ... Let those who sneer at a super-hero's costume with dreams of changing it - recall my success and remember the wretchedness it brought me."

This question was inspired by Jim Lee's alternate cover to LSH v6 #1. Nobody answered that part of the question.

6. Which Legionnaire was featured in Yildiray Cinar's Sketchbook, which was first sold recently at the C2E2 convention and also posted online?

This had just been mentioned on my Twitter feed the day before, and it was still on the Twitter sidebar when this was posted. The answer is Shadow Lass.

7. Who is the only Legionnaire whose birthday is in May?

From the 1976 DC Calendar (which has since been made canon), only Condo Arlik, aka Chemical King, was born in May.

Trivia Quiz #47

2010-05-03T22:46:00.001-05:00

May kicks off the beginning of new Legion series by Paul Levitz and Yildiray Cinar, so in that spirit I present this issue of Legion Trivia.

1. Who were the main villains in each of the other #1 issues of the "Legion of Super-Heroes" series?

2. With the Legion appearing in two series next month (Adventure Comics and Legion v6), how many times in the past has the Legion had two simultaneous ongoing series?

3. Between his first story in LSH v2 #284 and the end of LSH v3 (including Annuals but not including miniseries), how many people were given some sort of writing credit along with Paul Levitz? This includes credits for plotter, scripter, dialog, etc.

4. Assuming that Adventure Comics had continued its numbering as a monthly title and had not been cancelled with issue #503, with the issues coming out (in whatever format) regularly since then as a typical DC comic. What issue number would have been dated May 2010?

5. Who wrote "An Open Note of Suicide", and why? For that matter, why does that question fit this quiz?

6. Which Legionnaire was featured in Yildiray Cinar's Sketchbook, which was first sold recently at the C2E2 convention and also posted online?

7. Who is the only Legionnaire whose birthday is in May?

Jim Lee's variant LSH covers

2010-04-28T12:41:00.000-05:00

The DCU Source blog today released the first of Jim Lee's variant covers, to appear on LSH v6 #1:

Via the Fire Wire comes this Newarama video from last week's C2E2 in Chicago (jump to the 2:00 mark), in which he discusses the series of covers.

Paul Levitz's last decision as publisher, as Lee says, was for Jim Lee to do variant covers for the first six Legion issues. He says the Legionnaires were his favorite characters from when he was growing up. First is Saturn Girl from the 70s in her pink costume (his favorite era) - but in the video, note that they show her in her 60s red outfit in the background. Each cover will feature one Legionnaire from 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, and 00s but not in that order, along with spaceships and the HQ. You'll be able to put them together and show a whole chronology of what the Legion has been about.

Earth Day

2010-04-22T14:29:00.000-05:00

Today's Earth Day. Earth-Man says take care of your favorite planet!

Earth-Man probably spits into the wind, too.

She's still preoccupied with 1985...

2010-04-22T02:11:00.001-05:00

And nothing has been alright since
Bruce Springsteen, Madonna
Way before Nirvana
There was U2 and Blondie
And music still on MTV
Her two kids in high school
They tell her that she’s uncool
Cause she's still preoccupied
With 19, 19, 1985

-- Bowling for Soup, "1985"

Scans_Daily has some excerpts from the 1985 "Amazing Heroes" Preview Issue. AH was a great magazine. First annually, then twice a year, they'd publish a mammoth volume listing everything from the major (and not so major) companies and what's coming up. This issue talks about things like the untitled "Batman Special Project" (Batman 10 years in the future, by Frank Miller), "Crisis on Infinite Earths", "Marvelman", and "Watchmen".

So let's see what 1985 had in store for the Legion...

The Great Darkness Saga (Deluxe Edition)

2010-04-18T19:48:00.000-05:00

Look what's shown up on Amazon.com: Legion of Super-Heroes: The Great Darkness Saga (Deluxe Edition), available for pre-order now and coming in November.

Via Collected Editions:

A hardcover Great Darkness isn't a great suprise, given that the original book is out of print, that Levitz is about to begin a new run on Legion, and that DC already announced a new Legion of Super-Heroes: Prologue to Darkness paperback that leads in to Great Darkness. What is a surprise is the deluxe format, which makes the hardcover a bit bigger and, in my opinion, adds some extra value for the reader even if they already own an old, dog-eared copy of Darkness.

However, the Prologue book (previously announced in February) has been removed from Amazon:

... Maybe the deluxe edition contains the Prologue issues, too (at an announced 416 pages, the deluxe edition is about twice the size of the original Great Darkness trade paperback).

The original, out of print trade paperback version of Great Darkness only runs 192 pages.

C2E2 '10: Flash/Green Lantern

2010-04-18T16:33:00.000-05:00

Some bonus news from the Flash/Green Lantern: Revelations panel at C2E2....

Via CBR:

The "Green Lantern Corps" title itself will be taken over by Tony Bedard, of whose work the panel spoke highly. Senior Story Editor Ian Sattler explained this new work will will affect "R.E.B.E.L.S." as well, a title he felt is "deserving of a wider audience."

An audience member asked after the status of the Tornado Twins and John Fox considering the first arc of "The Flash" deals in time travel to the 25th Century, and Johns promised, "Eventually, you will see them" though whether it happens in this first arc remains unknown.

Via Newsarama:

Meanwhile, Tony Bedard is taking over Green Lantern Corps. With his background of R.E.B.E.L.S., he was the "perfect guy to jump in and join our Corps." Ganthet will remain a Green Lantern. Kyle Rayner and John Stewart, Boodikka and Soranik Natu will be dealing with a returned Cyborg Superman.

Q: With the 25th century angle, can you spoil whether we'll see Tornado Twins and John Fox? Johns: No. Eventually you will see them.

Q: More Rainbow Girl? Johns: That's a question more for Paul Levitz.

C2E2 '10: DC Editorial

2010-04-18T03:59:00.000-05:00

Didn't see anything out of the DC Nation panel on Friday at C2E2 in Chicago, but Paul Levitz was one of the speakers at the DC Editorial panel on Saturday:

Via CBR:

"I filled my brain with too many Legionnaires and home planets," Levitz joked, about his return to "Legion of Super Heroes." He said he enjoyed the power of god that a writer enjoys over his characters. "When you go to a high school reunion, you don't really get to decide who had a failed marriage."

...Will we see the traveling Legion or the Legion in the past in Levitz's "Legion?" Levitz said that his book will pick up a lot of the material established by Geoff Johns, but the specific points the fan mentioned were addressed by Robinson in "Adventure Comics."

Via Newsarama's live blog:

Sattler introduces Paul Levitz, talking about the Legion of Superheroes. "I filled my brain with too many origin planets and issue numbers, which is why I cannot recognize human beings," Levitz cracked.

...Levitz compares it to a high school reunion, in the fact that there are people with bad marriages and poor choices and those you simply wish were dead.

...Q: What's up with the various Legion teams? Levitz: A lot of what I'm doing is picking up on recent arcs on Superboy as well as Legion of Three Worlds -- Earth Man is big in the first arc, Gates transports people around in the second arc, Shrinking Violet will vomit as a result.

C2E2 '10 Preview

2010-04-15T23:20:00.000-05:00

Anyone going to the Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (aka "C2E2") this weekend? It's run by the same people who do the New York Comic Con and is not related to the old Chicago Comic Con/Wizard World Chicago. Here's their lineup this weekend:

Friday:

4:30-5:30
Mark Waid Takes On The Trivia Fans
Trivia King Mark Waid single-handedly battles a panel of expert fans in a Silver Age trivia match for the ages! Pit your knowledge of Marvel and DC’s 1960's comics when these titans clash! Nothing will ever be the same again! Moderated by Craig Shutt, writer of the Ask Mr. Silver Age column for the Comics Buyer’s Guide.

If you're going to Chicago and not going to the DC Nation panel, go here. Watching Mark Waid in a trivia contest is a sight to behold. It's like a magic trick, you sit there and wonder how he does it.

4:45-5:45
DC Nation
The DC Nation finally returns to Chicago! We’re always looking for new recruits, so be sure to come on by as Co-Publishers Dan DiDio and Jim Lee, Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns and some of the industry’s top talent lead the way to give you the inside scoop to all current and future Nation members!

Maybe someone can ask about the alleged Legion flight rings we heard rumors of.

Saturday:

3:15-4:15
DC Universe Editorial Presentation
Your guides to comics’ greatest Universe include Co-Publishers Dan DiDio, Jim Lee, Geoff Johns and the some of the industry’s best and brightest stars!

Trivia Answers #46

2010-04-12T03:19:00.002-05:00

Special all-Mike Grell issue!

Name two places where Grell drew himself in a published Legion issue.

The one everyone knows is the All-New Collector's Edition C-55 (aka "That Damned Tabloid"). The other one is from the Meet "Iron Mike" Grell feature from Superboy 205.

Grell took over from Dave Cockrum. How many published stories did they collaborate on?

Just one - Grell's first issue (Superboy 202) was Cockrum's last. Cockrum pencilled "Lost - A Million Miles From Home!" and Grell inked it.

One of Grell's stories on the Legion prominently featured "a black man who had been colored pink". Who was this man? (I need the actual character's name, not the one he mis-remembered in an interview.)

Long story short: Cary Bates wrote a story in which a man seemed to turn against the Legion, for Grell to draw. Grell drew the man as black. Editor Murray Boltinoff said that they couldn't show a black man being the bad guy, even if he turns out good in the end. Plus, they were going to introduce a black Legionnaire soon. So they just colored him white. In Glen Cadigan's "The Legion Companion", Grell says: "It was about a young man who’s one of the Space Troopers who comes into a conflicting situation. He has to make a choice. Like a lot of us, he makes a couple of mistakes, but then he turns out all right. He does the right thing in the end. I saw that as a very positive thing." He's talking about Dvron (from Superboy 207), but in that interview he mis-remembers him as Soljer. See this Comic Book Legends Revealed episode for more quotes and pictures.

Why did Grell leave the artist's job on the Legion book?

From the Legion Companion: "I got off the title because Warlord had just been made monthly, and I was also doing Green Lantern/Green Arrow at the time. Given the choice between one or the other, since Green Lantern/Green Arrow, at that particular moment, was my favorite title - Green Arrow was always my favorite comic book character - it was a really simple choice to make."

What was the most recent Legion-related work Grell had published?

The alternate variant cover to Action Comics #861, one of the "Superman & The Legion" issues. (I own the original art to the preliminary pencil sketch to this one!)

Grell co-created Dawnstar with Paul Levitz. The way Grell tells it, what parts of the character did he come up with, and which were Levitz's?

From the Companion again: "I came up with the visuals for her, and the concept of her having wings and being an American Indian. That was about it. Paul [Levitz] came up with her superpower, and I'm pretty sure he came up with her name." She first appeared in Superboy 226.

Which of the following Legionnaires, listed alphabetically, did Grell design a new costume for (not counting minor alterations due to artistic license)? Chameleon Boy, Cosmic Boy, Element Lad, Karate Kid, Light Lass, Lightning Lad, Princess Projectra, Saturn Girl

Surprisingly (to me), the only costume that Grell redesigned was Cosmic Boy's. All of the other redesigns in this list came before. (Note that while a caption in the original story says that Colossal Boy got a new costume too, but he actually got that one in the original Wildfire story in Superboy 195). He started out blue and orange, then was red and blue (as seen above in the Cockrum/Grell panel), then he lost the blue arms and legs for bare skin.

Trivia Quiz #46

2010-04-07T02:21:00.000-05:00

Special all-Mike Grell issue! One of the most popular artists of the Bronze Age Legion, his Legion art is still highly sought-after. He's one of my favorite artists, and he drew my very first Legion story (Superboy 212). This is for "Iron Mike" Grell.

Name two places where Grell drew himself in a published Legion issue.
Grell took over from Dave Cockrum. How many published stories did they collaborate on?
One of Grell's stories on the Legion prominently featured "a black man who had been colored pink". Who was this man? (I need the actual character's name, not the one he mis-remembered in an interview.)
Why did Grell leave the artist's job on the Legion book?
What was the most recent Legion-related work Grell had published?
Grell co-created Dawnstar with Paul Levitz. The way Grell tells it, what parts of the character did he come up with, and which were Levitz's?
Which of the following Legionnaires, listed alphabetically, did Grell design a new costume for (not counting minor alterations due to artistic license)? Chameleon Boy, Cosmic Boy, Element Lad, Karate Kid, Light Lass, Lightning Lad, Princess Projectra, Saturn Girl

Now, with 100% more Twitter!

2010-04-05T23:26:00.001-05:00

You may notice that I've stuck the Omnicom Twitter feed over there on the left. If you don't already follow me there, you can read the last few things I've posted. Some of it is the typical inane chatter you see on Twitter, but about half is re-announcing (or "retweeting") stuff other people say that I think you guys would be interested in. Also, I've got a feature that puts a link there for every post I do here.

For example:

Retweeting the new Legion of Substitute Podcasters podcast announcement
Passing along LSH v6 artist Yildiray Cinar's daily (or thereabouts) new sketch, like this one of Shadow Lass
@abayer's page of original art bought at WonderCon
Tood Schoonover's weirdest moment at WonderCon

This is stuff I'd normally put in a "Bits of Legionnaire Business" column but it's easier this way.

The Legion Omnicom

Shooter signing in Denver on Saturday

RIP: Eduardo Barreto

Reminder: Mattel 12-pack on sale (again) on Thursday

Nicieza out, DeFalco on as "Legion Lost" writer

Another Shot At The Action Figure 12-Pack

Walt Simonson Drawing January's LSH

What Super-Power Do All Terrans Possess?

LSH Action Figures On Sale 11/15...No, Not *Those* Figures

Two Bits Of Legionnaire Business

If you're in Chicago on Saturday....

Let's Hope This Isn't The Final Scene In The Legion/Trek Crossover...

January Legion solicitations

How'd People Do On Getting The Action Figures?

Action Figures On Sale Tomorrow

The Chameleon Boy - Spider-Man Feud

Why Does Brainiac 5 Stay In The Legion?

Legion To Guest In Action Comics #5-6

Action Figure Two Week Warning

Shooter, Manapul On Their Legion Run

Admin note

More Heroclix coming too

Finally - flight rings!

SDCC 2011: The New 52

SDCC 2011: Star Trek/Legion crossover

San Diego 2011: Preview

Bits of Legionnaire Business

Legion Trek? Say what?

More updates

So, about that new DC reboot.....

That Damned Reprint

Legion of the Damned Reprints

Things that make you go "huh?"

C2E2 10

Flight rings on eBay

Emerald City Comic Con 2011

Trivia Quiz #53

Toyfair 2011 Update

Trivia Answers #52

RIP Wizard Magazine

Legion collected editions on Amazon

Festivus 2010

Legion Annual #1 delayed til January - here's why

Coming Distractions for March - Return of the LSV!

Paul Levitz, New York Times Best-Selling Author

Mike Grell in Atlanta this weekend

Paul Levitz on "The Craft of Comics Writing"

Saturn Girl's new TV ad

Computo, the iPad

Unofficial election results: Mon-El projected as new leader

Jim Lee, ICONS, & the Legion

Thursday election polls

Election trends: who's leading in the exit polls?

Trivia Quiz #52

Who did you vote for Legion leader in 2010?

Legion election voting is now open!

Mordru on "Legends of the Super-Heroes" DVD cover

NYCC10: Changes coming to Adventure Comics

Coming soon to your TV

New York Comic Con '10 preview

Levitz & Giffen, together again for Legion Annual #1

Trivia Quiz #51

Talk Like a Pirate Day 2010: Roxxas

Dragon*Con 2010 part 2

Dragon*Con 2010

Bits of Legionnaire Business

Toronto & Baltimore convention updates

Trivia Answers #50

Déjà Vu 18: Mon-El

RIP: KC Ryan (of Klordny APA)

Paul Levitz on Facebook

On adding to history

Happy Klordny Week 2010!

Trivia Quiz #50

Bits of Legionnaire Business

Legion gathering at Dragon*Con

Trivia Answers #49

SDCC Legion figures

SDCC 10: Geoff Johns panel

San Diego notes & open thread

LSH Action Figures On Sale 11/15...No, Not Those Figures