Flashback: how old were the Reboot Legionnaires supposed to be?

As the podcast is just now starting to get into the Reboot timeline, I thought this post might be relevant to resurrect (here's the original).

This came out over on the Compuserve Comics and Animation Forum. Back in the olden days, many of the comics creators were active on the moderated message boards (and to some extent on the unmoderated Usenet newsgroups). Among those on Compuserve were many Legion creators, including Mark Waid, Tom McCraw, Kurt Busiek, and Jeff Moy. This came out around the time of the zero issues, in response to questions about the various members ages.

Tom McCraw, writing to Mark Waid for confirmation, suggested these. Waid read it and never commented on it. Since we're doing a re-read, I will post the relevant panels as we see their ages (as of May 2994).

Forum:  Comics/Animation+ Section:  Comic Books

Subj :  Legionaires #0

To   :  Mark Waid Saturday, September 03, 1994  2:06:23 AM

From :  TOM McCRAW #679086

MARK,

In response to Juliana Kristi's question on the age of the Legion members I've  listed below.  Mark, You may correct me if I goof on someone.

Cosmic Boy -     Rokk Krinn  age 15

Saturn Girl-     Imra Ardeen age 15

Live Wire -    Garth Ranzz   age 14

Apparition -     Tiny Wazzo  age 15

Triad -        Luornu Durgo  age 16

Leviathan -       Gim Allon  age 17

Kid Quantum -   James Cullen age 16

XS -           Jenni Ognats  age 14

Invisible Kid -   Lyle Norg  age 16

On Chameleon and Brainac 5 I'm still trying to figure out the math on Coluan and Durlan timelines. (and it's making my head hurt.)

Hopes this helps anyone who wants to know.

Tom

From Legionnaires #0, page 2, panel 2, we get confirmation of the ages of the founders.

From the new Omnicom pages in "LSH: The Beginning of Tomorrow" TPB, here's Luornu's age. Either she just turned 16 after this page (published May 7) came out, or they revised her age down from 16 to 15.

I later (in 1995) asked Tom about the other Legionnaires who had joined since the above was written. 

Forum:  Comics/Animation Section:  Comic Books

Subj :  LSH CMMTS - LSH #76

To   :  Michael Grabois Wednesday, November 29, 1995  1:51:22 PM

From :  TOM McCRAW #1062756

Michael,

Here are some additions, even if they aren't Legion members yet or not.

VALOR-              Lar Gand age 18

GATES-        Ti'Julk Mr'Asz age 18

SPARK-            Alya Ranzz age 14

KINETIX -         Zoe Saugin age 15

ANDROMEDA-       Laurel Gand age 16

SHRINKING VIOLET- Salu Digby age 14 (almost 15)

Chuck Taine                  age 16

STAR BOY         Thom Kallor age 16

Lori Morning                 age 10 (even if she doesn't look her age)

No word on Cham yet, noone can really understand him except Lyle and Brainy is very vauge about his information.  Quote:  "Why does it matter?"

Hope this helps and let me know next time you want another up-date.

Tom

What's new in the Field Guide to Legion Cover Variants in 2023

The Field Guide to Legion Cover Variants

1958-2005, 2006-2007, 2008-2009, 2010-2011, 2012-2014, 2015-2018, 2019, 2020, 2021-2022

Unused covers, Second printings 

I have updated the Field Guide to Legion Cover Variants 1958-2022 (in 9 parts, as of this writing). New for 2023 are the entire Justice League vs the LSH series from 2022 (see part 9), which had a regular and variant cover for each issue. I recently found out that there was a Walmart pack variant of issue #1 that had a blue logo instead of a red and white logo, so now I'm on the hunt for that one. Also, even though they came out in 2023, I added the San Diego Comic Con 2023 convention exclusive versions of Supergirl & The LSH to the 2006 listing for that issue in part 2.

Let me know if you find something that you think I should add!

• Part 2 (2006-2007)
• Added the July 2023 Adam Hughes & David Nakayama convention exclusives to the 2006 Supergirl & The LSH #23 listing
• Part 9 (2021-2022) NEW
• Justice League vs Legion of Super-Heroes #1 - regular, variant, Walmart variant
• Justice League vs Legion of Super-Heroes #2 - regular, variant
• Justice League vs Legion of Super-Heroes #3 - regular, variant
• Justice League vs Legion of Super-Heroes #4 - regular, variant
• Justice League vs Legion of Super-Heroes #5 - regular, variant
• Justice League vs Legion of Super-Heroes #6 - regular, variant

Jimbo Fett's Reboot Timeline

Friend of the blog and friend of the podcast Jimbo Fett (of Jim's Legion Blog fame) has shared with me his best attempt at making the Legion Reboot timeline. As you saw in my 5YL timelines, some dates were given while others were implied, and some were just educated guesses (like "let's say it takes a day of travel to get from one solar system to another"). Jim has done that for the Reboot series and I offered to post it here. All the work and credit goes to him!

This will be a work in progress as we refine the dates (as needed) when we cover the issue on the show.

A lot of dates are referenced from LSH Secret Files #1, so that's just abbreviated as LSHSF in the table below. This timeline does NOT attempt to figure out when the 20th century events happened between when half the group got sent back in time in LSH v4 #84 and when they were reunited in #100 (but if anyone has come up with proposed dates, I'll be happy to post it or link it here!).

We know the "report by" date is 5/31, so the 5/25 date for the founding (and thus all the other dates that are keyed off of it) is somewhat arbitrary but a reasonable assumption.

Issue	Date	Event	Reference Info
LSH v4 #0	May 9, 2994	Brande is saved from assassination	Omnicom page from the "LSH: Beginning of Tomorrow" TPB
LSH v4 #0	May 25, 2994	Brande charters the Legion with Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl, and Live Wire as the first members	In LSH v4 Annual #6 & Legionnaires #0 - "Report by 29940531", so this date is arbitrary based on 2-3 days between issues
LSH Secret Files #1	May 26, 2994	Legion captures Grimbor	Founding + 1 day (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #0	May 28, 2994	UP Senate is attacked	Founding + 3 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #0; LSH v4 Annual #6	May 29, 2994	Apparition and Triad join the team; draft notices sent out to Gim Allon, Lyle Norg, Jenni Ognats, James Cullen, Querl Dox, and a Durlan	Assume a couple of days prior to "Report by date"
Legionnaires #0	May 31, 2994	Date given for draftees to report (not shown)	Legionnaires #0
LSH v4 #62	June 1, 2994	Leviathan, Invisible Kid, XS, Chameleon, and Kid Quantum join; KQ killed in action	Founding + 7 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #19	June 4, 2994	Funeral for Kid Quantum is bombed, but mitigated by XS	Assume 3 days later. Brande to Brainy - "Your membership was approved last week"
LSH v4 #63	June 7, 2994	HQ opened	Founding + 13 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #20	June 8, 2994	Legion faces off against Mano	Founding + 14 days (LSHSF #1)
LSH v4 #64	June 9, 2994	Intro of Ultra Boy, Spark replaces Livewire	Founding + 15 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #21; LSH v4 #65; Legionnaires #22	June 12, 2994	Planet Hell, parts 1-3	Founding + 18 days (LSHSF #1)
LSH v4 #66	June 17, 2994	Andromeda, Violet, Kinetix drafted	Founding + 23 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #23	June 21, 2994	Girls night out; Invisible Kid invents the flight ring	Founding + 27 days (LSHSF #1)
LSH v4 #67; Legionnaires #24; LSH v4 #68	June 24, 2994	Tangleweb II; Assault on Triad	Founding + 30 days (LSHSF #1)
Showcase '95 #6	June 26, 2994	Legion Academy story	This has to take place prior to the fight with the Composite Man: Apparition and Andromeda are behaving somewhat civilly, and it's before Andromeda gets sick
Legionnaires #25; LSH v4 #69	June 28, 2994	The Legion fights and defeats the Composite Man; Saturn Girl hospitalized	Founding + 34 days (LSHSF #1)
LSH Annual #6	June 29, 2994	Shvaughn Erin officially assigned new role as Legion liaison; Zoe & Vi's trip where Kinetix loses her powers	Founding + 35 days (LSHSF #1)
LSH Annual #6	June 30, 2994	Shvaughn finds out she’s the new liaison and reviews the Legionnaires files	In order to make the Zoe/Vi story fit the timeline, Shvaughn doesn’t find out until the next day about her new assignment
Showcase '95 #6	July 2, 2994	Leviathan assists Shvaughn, Gigi, and Deacon in bringing in criminals	After LSH Annual 6 (since Shvaughn is the new LSH liaison), but before the Triangle War
Legionnaires #26	July 4, 2994	Micah Aven tries to aid Saturn Girl; the Workforce fights the White Triangle	A sick Andromeda crashes through the monitor room, so assume a day before LSH v4 #70.
LSH v4 #70	July 5, 2994	Brainy cures Laurel. Kinetix leaves.	Founding + 41 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #27	July 6, 2994	Introduction of Roxxas as a Daxamite	Andromeda recovered
LSH v4 #71; Legionnaires #28	July 7, 2994	Stargate network and Trom destroyed by the White Triangle Daxamites	Just before the Daxamite attack on Earth (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires Annual 2	July 8, 2994	White Triangle War. Andromeda and Apparition apparently killed	Founding + 44 days (LSHSF #1)
LSH v4 #72	July 10, 2994	Memorial Service for the fallen Legionnaires	Estimated a couple days after Annual events
Legionnaires #29	July 11, 2994	Dirk Morgna taken hostage and mutated by Dr. Regulus	Founding + 47 days (LSHSF #1)
LSH v4 #73; Legionnaires #30 pages 1-19	July 12, 2994	Garth hunts down Mekt; Garth and Ayla defeat Mekt, but Garth loses his arm	Founding + 48 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #30 pages 20-22; LSH v4 #74; Legionnaires #31	July 15, 2994	Superboy/Future Tense (parts 1 & 2); XS is lost in the time stream	Founding + 51 days (LSHSF #1)
LSH v4 #75; Legionnaires #32	July 16, 2994	2-Timer parts 1 & 2	Founding + 52 days (LSHSF #1)
LSH v4 #76	July 18, 2994	Repairs continue. Gates & Star Boy join the team	Founding + 54 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #33; LSH v4 #77; Legionnaires #34	July 20, 2994	Starfinger attacks the Legion, Kinetix bargains with Mysa; Nara Minsork mentally interrogates Brainiac 5; Starfinger defeated and revealed to be Jan Arrah.	Founding + 56 days (LSHSF #1)
Impulse #9; Flash v2 #109; Impulse #10; Flash v2 #110; Impulse #11; Flash v2 #111; Impulse #12; Flash #112; Legionnaires Annual #3	N/A	XS, stuck in the 20th century, finds Impulse and they hang out before finding themselves helping to fight Savitar in "Dead Heat". Afterwards, she hangs out with Bart and then jumps through time, only to find herself meeting her grandfather Barry Allen in the 30th century, Ultra-Man in the far future, and the Time Trapper at the end of time, who sends her back to her time.	XS is lost in the time stream in LSH v4 #74, finds herself in the 20th century in #75, and returns at the end of Legionnaires #35.
LSH v4 #78; Legionnaires #35; LSH v4 #79; Legionnaires #36	July 22, 2994	With the threat of the Sun Eater, President Chu orders the Legion to assemble the Fatal Five; XS returns from being lost in time; back at HQ, Shvaughn, Lori, Tenzil, Chuck and Rond defend against Protean invaders; the Legion fights the Fatal Five; Fatal Five defeated, Kinetix returns to the team	Founding + 58 days (LSHSF #1)
LSH v4 #80	July 23, 2994	Chu's control of Starfinger and the Fatal Five is revealed. She is deposed and Brande is elected president	Founding + 59 days (LSHSF #1)
Showcase '96 #8	July 24, 2994	Leviathan, Gates, and XS go to Dagosk on behalf of the UP	Takes place before Leviathan is directed to take a team to Xanthu in LSH #81
Legionnaires #37	July 25, 2994	Lar Gand/Valor is re-christened as M'Onel	Estimate between LSH v4 #80 and Legionnaires #38
LSH v4 #81	July 26, 2994	The Legion attempts to help Dirk Morgna.	Estimate between Legionnaires #37 and #38
Legionnaires #38	July 27, 2994	Vi elected leader. The founders visit Titan.	Founding + 63 days (LSHSF #1)
LSH v4 #82	July 30, 2994	A Legion team visits Xanthu. Tinya's ghost manifests itself from within Jo.	Arbitrary date between the prior issues
Legionnaires #39	August 2, 2994	Strange things happen in the Legion HQ. The Legion is summoned to Vega to confront Regulus	Just prior to LSH v4 #83
LSH v4 #83	August 3, 2994	Leviathan dies in battle with Regulus	Founding + 70 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #40; LSH v4 #84	August 4, 2994	Emerald Legion parts 1 & 2: half the team is thrown back to the 20th century	Founding + 71 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #41	August 5, 2994	Aftermath of the Emerald Legion. Funeral for Leviathan	Assumed - 1 day between LSH v4 #84 and Legionnaires #42
Legionnaires #42	August 6, 2994	Kinetix & others abducted by Mysa. Kinetix's powers returned. Garth appointed temporary leader	Founding + 73 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #43	August 10, 2994	Legion tryouts	Founding + 77 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #44	August 11, 2994	Mordru's tomb is discovered; new members Sensor, Umbra and Magno go on mission	Live Wire to new recruits - "You joined yesterday."
Legionnaires #45	August 13, 2994	Mantis Morlo causes havoc on Vygra; Lyle elected leader	Founding + 80 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #46	August 15, 2994	M'Onel recruits Laurel Gand to search for Violet. Jeka and Reep go on a date.	Issue picks up just after prior with Thom taking Nura home
Legionnaires #47	August 20, 2994	Legion temporarily reunited in the timestream	Story opens w/Lyle & Dragonmage. Legionnaires #48 Lyle says this happened "yesterday"
Legionnaires #48; Legionnaires #49; Legionnaires #50	August 21, 2994	Emerald War begins; Legion, Workforce and Amazers unite to attack Mordru; Violet freed from the Emerald Eye; Mordru defeated	Founding + 88 days (LSHSF #1); Brande says Sklar was destroyed "today" - i.e., Legionnaires #48
Legionnaires #51; Legionnaires #52	August 22, 2994	Emerald War aftermath; Vi gains growth powers	Founding + 89 days (LSHSF #1)
Legionnaires #53	August 25, 2994	Lori uses an H dial; Magno considers his future; Monstress adjusts to the team	Arbitrary. A couple days after Legionnaires #52
Legionnaires #54	Out of Time	The Legion experiences an alternate reality on 1940s Earth	Current Legion only in timestream - but with Vi there no one from the 20th c. team realizes she's not still possessed!
Legionnaires #55	August 29, 2994	The Legion fights the Composite Durlan again	Legionnaires #54 was "last week" so at least three or four days since Legionnaires #53
Legionnaires #56	August 31-ish, 2994	M'onel's story to keep him away from HQ	Legionnaires are not to be found - as they are all in LSH v4 #100. Valor's encounter with the Khunds keeps him away from HQ
LSH v4 #100	August 31, 2994	COMPUTO defeated. Legion Reunited	Concurrent with Legionnaires #56, prior to Ferro mission & Outpost dedication
LSH v4 #100	September 1, 2994	Violet & Ferro defeat Medusa	Assume 1 day prior to Outpost dedication based on Ferro comments
LSH v4 #100	September 2, 2994	Legion Day - Dedication of Legion Outpost Allon	Founding + 100 days (LSHSF #1) - Outpost Allon dedicated; assumes Legion Day story takes place earlier in the day as Kinetix gives her cape to Monstress
LSH v4 #100	September 3, 2994	Mysterious Deep space anomaly discovered by Andromeda.	Story happens after Outpost Allon dedication given Andromeda cameo in dedication story

Jim says "The Reboot timeline goes along pretty swimmingly until LSH #100, when Carlson leaves and McAvennie takes over. Up to then, the 30th century stories take place in 2994. After LSH 100, McAvennie makes everything back to the old publish year + 1000 model, which completely throws off any timeline tracking efforts."

Coming eventually: Jim says he'll work out a timeline post LSH #100, which we won't get to in the podcast until late 2025.

Reprint predictions again

In April 2021, I made a bold prediction on what I thought DC was going to reprint in 2022, given that we had just found out that "Before the Darkness" vol 2 was on the schedule. I looked at the tea leaves and made what I thought were good, sound prognostications on what I thought the most likely reprint collections would be given DC's reprinting history of Legion volumes to that point. I figured we were good for any 3 of the 5. 

As it turned out, I only got one out of five right: the second volume of the Five Years Later Omnibus (which I'm still shocked that DC decided to reprint in the first place!). And we did get three, but not the ones I predicted.

🚫1. Bronze Age Omnibus vol 1: reprinting Superboy 172-224, last reprinted 2000-2003 in Archives 10-12; the last Silver Age Omnibus volume came out in 2020
🚫2. The Great Darkness Saga re-release: reprinting LSH v2 284-296, last reprinted 2011, though if this came out I expect it would be at the end of the year since "Before the Darkness vol 2" will come out in Jan 2022
✅3. 5YL Omnibus vol 2: reprinting LSH v4 #40-63, plus the Legionnaires series and half of the Valor run, all of which has never been reprinted; vol 1 came out in 2021
🚫4. Reboot vol 3: reprinting LSH v4 #74-80 and LGS #31-37 plus the Superboy crossover, and continuing the naming for this reprint series as "Legionnaires", all of which has never been reprinted; volume 2 came out in 2018
🚫5. Legion Worlds: issues 1-6 never reprinted, although solicited but cancelled in 2013; last Abnett/Lanning volume 2 came out in 2018

On the other hand, we did get one that I did NOT see coming, the Who's Who Omnibus volume 2 that also reprinted the entire "Who's Who in the LSH" series.

They both have nifty (if reprinted) Sprouse/Story covers, so maybe that's what it takes to get a reprint volume?

And of course, the one we did get that everyone saw coming was "Justice League vs the LSH". (Note that this did not have a Sprouse/Story cover.)

I still stand by my predictions on items 1, 2, 4, and 5 above as what SHOULD come out. But with the new DC management, my Naltorian future-prediction powers have departed and who knows when they'll return.