RIP LSH V5
Well, at least it didn't fade out to white, like other Legions have done when they've been cancelled.
But even Jim Shooter was (apparently) so disappointed with how the ending turned out - his story arc truncated by four issues - that he pulled a Steve Apollo. Notice (as I didn't the first time) that the writer for this one is credited to "Justin Thyme". And yes, the storyline felt rushed, for good reason. Or maybe Shooter didn't write this at all.
Ironically, this was supposed to have been the month that "Legion of Three Worlds" ended, along with LSH v5. We were supposed to get a wrapup of v5 (or "L3") so that we could see how everyone gets called to the big meeting. Instead, we get a rush job (don't put the blame all on Shooter, he wasn't the one who decided to pull the plug) with some hugely dangling plot lines (Cosmic Boy, Projectra) and no expectations of seeing a satisfying conclusion.
And the next big thing, apparently, is a spot in a possibly rotating anthology?
Here's what was promised:
THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #50
Written by Jim Shooter
Art and cover by Francis Manapul & Livesay
It’s the final issue! The climactic conclusion of the Universal Annihilation War is here and every Legionnaire, every reservist and even the United Planets’ Young Heroes battle to save existence. Also featuring the return of Cosmic Boy, the death of a longtime Legionaire and a gorgeous wraparound cover!
FINAL ISSUE On sale January 28 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US
Here's what we got:
Not that. Presumably Projectra was supposed to die. But we did get the really cool wraparound cover.
Greg McElhatton at CBR gave it 0.5 out of 5 stars.
There's a right way and a wrong way to end a comic book series, and "Legion of Super-Heroes" #50 is definitely the wrong way...
With cancellation of the title, Shooter had said in interviews that his current storyline was supposed to end with #54, but that he would try and wrap up as much as possible with #50. But what we actually got with #50? Well, despite the solicitations promising Shooter and Manapul, instead we got the pseudonym of "Justin Thyme" for the writer, and Ramon Bachs pinch-hitting on pencils. And unsurprisingly, it's not very good. The big storyline, with Princess Projectra being the real enemy that the Legion had to worry about? It's completely gone. Instead the Legion fights an army of rogue planets in a virtual reality environment, which is just rather dull, and everything else from the previous issues are ignored.
Great cover, though. But the insides - what a mess.
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9 comments:
please see my bitter comments to the previous post. i'm likely to bite my tongue off or something if i attempt to repeat them....
I'm actually glad the writer (whatever name he chooses to use)left those loose ends. I seriously doubt that he'd come up with a decent closure for the storylines, so now each fan can fill the blanks with his/her own imagination.
Me, I'm happy to conclude that Projectra realized how bad she's been, apologized to everyone and left for a nice long vacation. She also took Karate Kid an Triplicate Girl with her. They're now drinking cherr berr mojitos by the pool.
Cosmic Boy stayed in the 41st century, to inspire the heroes of the far future.
There. I'm tired of playing 'Whiny Fangirl'. Moving on to the next Run.
The main issue here is that DC was completely disrespectful to its customers, to the creators and to whoever believes that you cannot false-advertise something.
It´s funny to see how different Dan Didio dealt with Death of New Gods (which was later considered a "poetic view"- which could definitely be the case with Shooter's run) or Manhunter.
Well, what a mess... And I must say that I'm sad with that, because this version of the Legion was the one that made me to become a fan of the group.
I was particularly looking forward to see the return of Cosmic Boy, with that great idea to send him to the 41th Century (and what about Karate Kid and Triplicate Girl???).
I think that maybe they'll close these loose endings somehow in LO3W saga... maybe.
I thought it was hilarious and a great way for Shooter to give DC Comics the finger. He couldn't fit 5 issues in one so he didn't. He wrote 50 as intended and the invitation in the end was a sarcastic message to editorial.
As I said in my review, it read like a fan comic. A pretty good one, but still a fannish attempt to finish the series, as if the book just ended with #49 and someone guessed at how things were supposed to wrap up.
What follows are my feelings on this issue (which exploded after learning that another good teen book was being cancelled at DC):
LAST ISSUE OF BLUE BEETLE NEXT MONTH?!?!?! @@#@!@@!!$%$%$#%@$!@#!@#@!#!@ YOU DC!!!!!!! Also, Legion of Super-Heroes #50 sucked ass; you maimed Jim Shooter's plot and had to sign the script as "Justin Thyme", with the WORST. ART. EVER. for the suckiest LSH comic I've ever read.... @E$#$#$@#$@#$@%@$^!@#! YOU AGAIN DC!!!!! I'M ANGRY!!!
I'm a bit bothered, with everyone else, that I've pre-ordered the hardcover that includes this issue. Knowing before I go in how poorly it finishes -- not because I disagree with a writer's choice, but because I know the writer didn't even get to finish -- makes me feel like I've thrown money away.
I get my comics in monthly shipments so I just got this issue yesterday...and it's almost fitting that this particular Legion run ended with such a messy and infuriating finale. This series was seemingly snake-bit from the beginning...but Shooter had breathed some new life into it. So, of course, they prematurely pulled the plug and then dumped this on us.
Sigh.
Sometimes they make it hard to be a Legion fan...but a Legion fan I have been and a Legion fan I remain :-)
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