SDCC 2011: The New 52

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

San Diego 2011: Preview

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 most creative companies that produce collectibles for the direct market, producing your favorite action figures, statues, and busts for over ten years now. DC Direct director of product development Jim Fletcher along with artist Adam Hughes, DC exclusive sculptors, and others discuss their line of current projects, as well as future plans 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

Musings about Multiple Earths

Matthew at Legion Abstract got me thinking about Earth-2 again. A while back I proposed some theories about placing all of the different Legions into a coherent continuity such that nobody is upset about "their" Legion being left out. Well, of course I was mostly wrong, but that won't stop me from looking at it again with fresh eyes and the benefit of having read Infinite Crisis and 52.

So, to recap:

1. Superboy of Earth-1 joined the Legion, which was from the future of Earth-1. We'll call this the Earth-1 Legion.
   
2. Post-Crisis, Superboy was from the Pocket Universe and there was only a single Earth (let's call it Earth-Sigma, from the engineering notation where the Greek letter sigma means "summation"). The Legion was from the future of Earth-Sigma. Superboy later died.
   
3. Post Mordruverse, the Legion was created never knowing about Superboy, who did not exist because Superman never had a career as Superboy (just like Earth-2). This Legion was very similar to the Earth-1 Legion, with some heroes the same and some changed (analogous to the Justice Society of Earth-2 and the Justice League of Earth-1). Let's call this one the Earth-2 Legion for now.
   
4. Post Zero Hour, there was a new Legion with some characters the same as the previous version, but with a completely different history for them and for the Legion. Let's call this one the Earth-5 Legion for now.
   
5. As a result of the Infinite Crisis, the multiverse returned, and a new Legion came into being. In this future, the stories of Earth-1 appeared in comic books that survived 1000 years (just as Barry Allen on Earth-1 read the comics adventures of Jay Garrick on Earth-2). Let's call this one the Earth-4 Legion.

In putting this together, I realized that in order to make it all work, I had to posit a Law, which I'll call the Legion Law, that went into effect at the time of the original Crisis. And that is: since the Crisis, you can't visit your own planet's past or future if you try to go too far.

First, we also have the Lightning Saga Legion to worry about. As far as we know, Superboy was a member, and he lost contact with the team after the Crisis. With the exception of the Pocket Universe/Death of Superboy story in v3, pretty much all of the post-Crisis stories can still stay if we assume that Superboy just wasn't there (OK, the Conspiracy story needs work too). Everything up to the Mordruverse reboot should be able to stay in this timeline (which unfortunately means Black Dawn too). There's nothing (yet) that says that the Lightning Saga Legion couldn't be the same Legion that we stopped reading about at that point. So for purposes of this essay (as of today), the Lightning Saga Legion follows sometime after LSH v4 #4. That keeps the Earth-1 timeline more or less intact. Superman (as the younger Superboy) was a member of this team.

During the Crisis, the Monitor and Anti-Monitor thought that there was but one Earth (Earth-Sigma), but due to reasons unknown, they couldn't see the others behind the dimensional walls. Early in v4, rather than rebooting the universe, Mon-el and the Time Trapper merely sent us looking at a totally different timeline, that of Earth-2. When the v4 Legion crossed over with the then-current (pre-Zero Hour) timeline, it was really the Earth-2 Legion travelling to Earth-Sigma, though nobody realized the dimensional barriers were still there, and each thought their Earth was the only one. The new multiverse was revealed, not created. Now, in the new multiverse, we have an Earth-2 which (at least according to "52" #52) resembles the Earth-2 of old, with an older Superman, a Power Girl, a Helena Wayne Huntress, and a JSA. This Earth's future was never revealed, so who's to say that the v4-era Legion was not the Legion of Earth-2? We just don't know what happened to them after Zero Hour.

The Zero Hour event merely shifted the dimensional walls, so that the future of Earth-Sigma now appeared to be that of the post-Zero Hour Legion, when in actuality it was just the future of Earth-5. (I use Earth-5 here because that Legion had Thunder as a member, and the "Shazam Family", who used to be from Earth-S, in the multiverse is now from Earth-5. Notice the S/5 similarity?). The barriers of time prevented time travel within the same Earth's timeline, so that you could only go from Earth-Sigma's present to Earth 5's future, and vice versa. The next version of Superboy, Kon-el, was a member of this team.

Post Infinite Crisis, we have another Earth, one in which the heroes of today were only comic book characters. There was no Superman or Batman, just fiction. The dimensional barriers that fell during the Infinite Crisis revealed this Earth, and the Supergirl of Earth-Sigma (now called New Earth) travelled to the future of a different Earth. We can call it the Earth-4 Legion, which is where the Charlton heroes live in their pre-Crisis versions.

So now we have a multiverse. We've got Earths 1, 2, 4, and 5 (reserving Earth-3 for the evil Legion who encountered Superboy in "Smallvile"), each with their own Legion.

• Earth-1's Legion was last seen in LSH v4 #4, right before the Mordruverse reboot. Their history between then and the Lightning Saga is as yet unrevealed (but which includes the resurrection of Karate Kid).
  
• Earth-2's Legion was last seen at Zero Hour.
  
• Earth-4's Legion is currently being seen in LSH v5.
  
• Earth-5's Legion was last seen prior to Infinite Crisis, with a quick stop on Earth-247 which no longer exists.

And the current New Earth (formerly known as Earth-Sigma)? We don't know what their Legion is like, since you can't travel too far into your own future. But we do have a "Legion of Three Worlds" coming up soon.

We need Rip Hunter (and Booster Gold) to sort this out. Three characters who co-existed (Superman, Kon-el, and Supergirl) were members of three different versions of the Legion, and several people (such as Batman) have met members of more than one Legion.

Of course, this is total speculation and only time will tell if any of it is worth the paper it's printed on.

Legion Alternities

Not to discount the imminent finale of the Waid/Kitson run on Supergirl and the Legion, but there are an awful lot of Legionnaires and Legion-related stuff running around the DCU these days. Over at Legion World, they came up with this list (complete with page scans):

• Starman in the JSA, who appears to be the pre-Crisis Star Boy by way of the Kingdom Come universe
  
• Dawnstar, Dream Girl, and Karate Kid, all in JLA and/or JSA, all apparently pre-Crisis
  
• the pre-Glorithverse Fatal Five, in Brave and Bold #3
  
• Statues of the pre-Glorithverse Legion in Superman's Fortress, from Action Comics Annual #10
  
• Superman's Legion flight ring, as mentioned in JLA #0 and #8
  
• In Action Comics, Superman tells his dad about the last time he faced a Sun-Eater, how he had help. Could he be referring to Final Night, or is this a reference to some as-yet-unknown Legion career?
  

(I'm not prepared yet to fit Mon-El into this scenario. This one from the Action Comics Annual isn't the same guy as pre-Glorithverse, since he interacted with Clark Kent before he became Superman and he was rescued by a different Legion in the 31st century than his pre-Crisis counterpart. I'm also discounting Infectious Lass in Tales of the Unexpected, that doesn't seem like a story in any kind of continuity.)

(And then there's the tangentially related items, like Sun-Eaters in 52; a Durlan agent in Green Lantern Corps #7; Ventura, the Gambler's Planet in Brave and Bold; a blue-skinned woman from Talok IV in Green Lantern #18; the apparent origin of the Emerald Eye, even though we'd seen two of them previously in the L.E.G.I.O.N. series; Sun Girl, in the Teen Titans, who claims to be from the 31st century and could be linked in an as-yet-unknown manner to Sun Boy; Dominators in Green Lantern Corps #8, Green Lantern #16, Outsiders #44; etc. I'd put these on a lower tier of Legion-ness, though Sun Girl still bears watching.)

Based on Dream Girl's Darkseid dream-image and Karate Kid being alive, if we assume that this is somehow the pre-Crisis Legion, that puts lower and upper bounds on what time period they're from (LSH v2 #295 to LSH v3 #5), and then we have to figure out how. Darkseid here could be a vision of her future, which would then back it up a little to just before the Great Darkness Saga.

Matthew from the Legion Abstract wrote something on the Legion World thread a couple weeks ago that didn't strike me as profoundly relevant (or at least possibly so) until today.

Maybe LSH #300 is the key to sorting all this out.

In writing that story, Levitz and Giffen showed how the writers didn't have to be slaves to the Adult Legion stories of the past, by showing us alternate futures. Here's what might have happened if Computo won, or if Blok had followed the Dark Man, or if Mordru had won Earthwar. Brainiac 5 finally found a place for Douglas Nolan in one of those alternate timelines, one in which he took his brother's place as a Legionnaire.



This fits into the time frame I just mentioned very neatly.

A couple months ago, when the Action Comics Annual with Mon-El came out, we noticed a set of life-size Pre-Crisis Legion statues in Superman's Fortress. Leaving aside the obvious question of why Superman had a set of life-size Pre-Crisis Legion statues in his Fortress, the costumes of the Legionnaires gave an exact time point. Here's what I wrote:

The costumes of Cham, Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl, and Shadow Lass date the statues to immediately prior to the Great Darkness Saga (I checked the covers to be sure - Saturn Girl's non-bikini appeared on the cover to LSH v2 289, while on 288 Shadow Lass is in her non-cloaked costume; Cos was already in his post-Grell costume and Cham hadn't yet changed to purple and yellow).

That's two things that point to the Legion right when the Levitz/Giffen team took over.

Hypertime vs Alternate Futures vs the Multiverse. Didn't things used to be easier when we all knew what the difference between Earth-1 and Earth-2 was? We've already seen the Pre-Zero Hour and Post-Zero Hour Legions meeting via the magic of Hypertime, in LSH v4 #105 and Legionnaires #61.



But supposedly Hypertime is no longer a viable concept in the post Infinite Crisis continuum, so we can't use that any more. And the Multiverse is coming back in some form, and I certainly wouldn't be surprised to see 52 Earths out there, one "grown" from each of the so-called "missing seconds".

There's something, though, about the Legion at this point in time. Maybe this is one of the alternate realities that Brainiac 5 didn't record? What could be the divergence point for this timeline - when did Star Boy go missing for a little while around that time frame?

Matthew asked Brad Meltzer directly:

Did you and Geoff Johns just generally draw a set of Legionnaires from a nonspecific point in Levitz-and-Giffen-era continuity, or was there care taken to insert this crossover at juuust the right point in the Legion's history, to make sure that, for instance, the Legion roster had everyone on it that you needed?

Meltzer's answer: "Fair question. Can't answer it. :-)"

Sounds to me like Matthew's on to something.

Coming up in Action Comics #850 next month:

In this extra-sized special issue, writer Kurt Busiek reunites with artist Renato Guedes to visit the 31st Century and the Girl of Steel! Supergirl's looking for a way to back from the future and to realize why Superman doesn't want her to wear the "S" shield, but both Superman and Supergirl in for a big surprise when they see what the past has in store! With time-viewing sneak peaks at the upcoming year's events!

A thought about the new Multiverse

Remember how the Time Trapper created the Pocket Universe? He took a sliver of time from the past and grew a universe with it.

I keep hearing about the "52 missing seconds" but I can't find the original source. What if those 52 seconds represent "seeds" of a new universe? There's your new Multiverse.

The Eve of War

World War III starts tomorrow. Who are you with?

Oh, wait, wrong company.

We'll know by this time tomorrow what has happened in and to the DC Universe. There are only three issues left until the end of the series, and we haven't seen anything related to the return of the multiverse yet.

Well, at least in the main 52 series, that is. Anachronistic Legion characters are apparently sprouting like weeds - the Pre-Crisis Star Boy, Dream Girl, and Dawnstar over in Justice Society of America, the Pre-Crisis Karate Kid in Justice League of America, Infectious Lass (if it's not some kind of dream) in Tales of the Unexpected, the Pre-Crisis Fatal Five in this week's Brave and Bold.

Somehow, the events of 52 are behind it.

And yet: the post-Infinite Crisis version of the Legion still has an ongoing book, they team up with Batman in Brave and Bold 5, and that version of Karate Kid has been on the teaser cover for the new JLA and for the Countdown poster.

Coming this week:

• 52 #50, it's War!
  
• in World War III Part 2, Supergirl's story with regards to the Legion is apparently revealed
  
• in Brave and Bold #3, it's Batman and Blue Beetle vs the Fatal Five
  
• in Justice League #8, it's part 1 of the JLA/JSA/LSH story "The Lightning Saga" (note: why "Lightning"?)
  

Additionally, this week has the premiere of a new Legion monthly book, "Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st Century" (or as I call it here, "LSH31C"). This follows the continuity of the animated series. The first issue is by J. Torres and Chynna Clugston, with a cover by Steve Uy.

Wizard World LA '07: Day 1 - new writer announced

Newsarama brings news from Wizard World LA's DC Nation panel Friday that Tony Bedard will start off as the Legion's next writer, at least for a bit.

DiDio then said that Tony Bedard is going to be doing some issues of Legion of Super-Heroes after Mark Waid.

After Mark Waid?

Reached for comment Friday evening, Waid told Newsarama:

"Since it's been announced, I may as well confirm. Because Barry [Kitson's] moving to Marvel and we've been the Legion team since the relaunch, I can't see doing the book without him.

"The timing of it all means we had to move our plans up a few months, so issue #30 will be our last, and I'm moving on.

"That booming noise you hear is the sound of message board posters around the world whooping in delight. Judging by the internet, I will not be missed."

There's some of that message board poster reaction further on after the main article.

Also at the panel, they said that World War III will explain why Supergirl is with the Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st century.

CBR has the same news (minus the Waid quotes), but clarifies the new creative team situation a bit.

With news of Mark Waid and Bary Kitson’s departure from “Supergirl and the Legion of Superheroes” already out, DiDio revealed that writer Tony Bedard would be handling the series for several issues before the new as yet unknown creative team took over. On a related note, DiDio mentioned that the mysteries surrounding Supergirl and her adventures in the future will be explained in DC’s upcoming “World War III” storyline.

On the other hand, Comics Continuum's write up implies that the new team is known just not announced:

"We have a writer and an artist," DiDio said cryptically. He added that Tony Bedard will be writing some issues and then an announcement will be made.

NYCC: Brace Yourself for Another Comic Con Season Already

DC announced its lineup for the 2nd New York Comic Con next month (Feb. 23-25). Obviously there will be more to come, but here's how it's shaping up for Legion related programming and guests:

Guests with Legion credits will include Brian Azarello and Cliff Chiang (maybe someone can find out WTF Infectious Lass is doing in the "Tales of the Unexpected" backup story with Anthro, the ghost of JEB Stuart, I... Vampire, and talking Nazi gorillas), Adam DeKraker (S/LSH inker), Keith Giffen (former LSH v4 writer), Sanford Greene (artist on LSH31C #2), Andy Lanning (former LSH writer), George Perez (wannabe LSH artist), Gail Simone (the last writer of The Legion), and J. Torres (LSH31C writer). DC editorial will be there too, including Paul Levitz (former LSH v3 writer and DC President and Publisher) and Mike Marts (current LSH editor).

Panels:

Friday 2/23
DC Nation
7:30-8:30pm
The call for the NATION to gather has gone out again! Don't miss the special unveiling of what will sure to be the most talked about event of the coming year! Moderated by Senior VP - Executive Editor DCU Dan DiDio, and featuring VP - Sales Bob Wayne, Senior Editor Mike Marts, Coordinating Editor Jann Jones, writer Paul Dini and writer/artist Keith Giffen.
This is the one where they'll talk about the new WWIII/Countdown picture. The Legion is somehow involved (at least to the extent that there's a Flight Ring in the image.)

Saturday 2/24
DCU: A Better Tomorrow - Today!
12-1pm
The DC Universe has been transformed by the events of 52. Living in a world one year later, discover the fate of your favorite heroes in this compelling presentation and Q&A! Moderated by Senior VP - Executive Editor DCU Dan DiDio, and featuring VP - Sales Bob Wayne, writers Paul Dini, Justin Gray, Jimmy Palmiotti, Greg Rucka and Gail Simone, artist Pete Woods and more.

Countdown to the Multiverse?

Update 1/26 at 4pm: Yep, that little yellow dot is indeed a Legion flight ring. Newsarama has a high-res version of the picture.

---

In case you haven't seen it yet, DC released a promo image for... well, something. Speculation seems to be that it's related to either the upcoming WWIII (from 52) or from the rumored weekly comic called Countdown as the 52 followup.

"Let the battle cry be heard in the land, a shout of great destruction."


There are no Legionnaires in it, unless you squint really hard and think enlarge the picture to see that the conspicuous yellow dot near Blue Beetle's hand is a Legion flight ring. (Click the picture to enlarge it, or go to Newsarama for a high-res version.)

The reason I'm posting it here is that speculation seems to be leaning towards this representing (among other things) the return of the Multiverse: there are characters from the former Earths-1, 4, S, and 8, plus a couple in old costumes, plus some Elseworlds characters. Are there going to be 52 Earths? There are (probably literally) dozens of Legion continuities to choose from...

On the other hand, the last time I tried some future speculating in here a year ago, I posted some guesses that turned out to be just a bit off. They included someone thinking that Superboy-Prime would end up in the 31st century as the new Mon-El, and my thought that the current Legion would be revealed to be the post-Infinite Crisis Earth-2 Legion (with the post-Zero Hour Legion as the Earth-1 Legion). Well, that last one might still have some ring of truth.

Follow the discussion on CBR and Newsarama, and keep watching the skies...

Coming in April 2007

As you've no doubt read elsewhere, the big news about April is the long-anticipated release of the comic based on the animated show, called Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st Century (instead of Legion of Super-Heroes Adventures or even Adventure Comics Starring the Legion of Super-Heroes). And note that this will be the Free Comic Book Day offering from DC, so if you're into cover variants, here's another one you'll need to pick up in May. Notice to the anal retentive: the cartoon doesn't have a dash between "Super Heroes" while both the original and the cartoon spinoff comics do.

Add to that the regular title, some 52 related titles, some oddball spinoffs like Brave and Bold, and the return of the JLA/JSA crossover. Keep an eye on Teen Titans (for Sun Girl) and Tales of the Unexpected (for Infectious Lass), too.

WORLD WAR III PART TWO: THE VALIANT
Written by Keith Champagne
Art by Andy Smith & Ray Snyder
Cover by Ethan Van Sciver
The war rages on, extending from the far reaches of space, where Supergirl encounters a missing hero, to the darkest depths of the ocean, where the fate of Aquaman is revealed.
In stores April 18; 32 pg, FC, $2.50 US

This one's got the return of Supergirl. Not quite sure what that means or where it fits in with Legion continuity, but here's a heads-up anyway. This comes out concurrently with 52 #50.

THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD #3
Written by Mark Waid
Art by George Pérez & Bob Wiacek
Covers by Pérez
It’s Batman and Blue Beetle versus the Fatal Five in the team-up book to end all team-up books! Who’s brought these Legion villains into the fray? The Lord of Time, who has pulled in assassins and villains from throughout the history of the DCU!
On sale April 18 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US

And just to mess with our minds, this looks like the Pre-Crisis Fatal Five. The last couple issues have visited Ventura, the Gambler's Planet.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #8
Written by Brad Meltzer
Art by Ed Benes & Sandra Hope
Cover by Michael Turner
Variant cover by Phil Jimenez
Beginning the long awaited, epic crossover between the new Justice League and the new Justice Society, uniting the combined writing talents of best-selling author Brad Meltzer and comics mega-star Geoff Johns for the ultimate team-up! “The Lightning Saga” 5-parter begins with the mystery of who Trident is, and how his identity crisis will change everything!
Retailers: This issue will feature two covers that may be ordered separately. The Standard Edition cover is by Michael Turner; one copy of the Variant Edition, with a cover by Phil Jimenez, may be ordered for every 10 copies of the Standard Edition ordered. Please see the Previews Order Form for further details.
On sale April 4 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US



JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #5
Written by Geoff Johns
Art by Dale Eaglesham & Art Thibert
Cover by Alex Ross
Variant cover by Eaglesham
Part 2 of the 5-part JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA/JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA crossover with “The Lightning Saga!” Batman and Starman break into the depths of Arkham Asylum in search of the one person who may be able to reconcile Starman's past. But with nightmares literally around every corner, that person may be dead before they reach him. Plus, a battle within the Fortress of Solitude reveals the key to it all, especially the members of the team!
Retailers: This issue will feature two covers that may be ordered separately. The Standard Edition cover is by Alex Ross; one copy of the Variant Edition, with a cover by Dale Eaglesham, may be ordered for every 10 copies of the Standard Edition ordered. Please see the Previews Order Form for further details.
On sale April 25 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US



SUPERGIRL AND THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #29
Written by Mark Waid
Art by Barry Kitson & Mick Gray
Cover by Kitson
The surviving Legionnaires and Wanderers face off against the entirety of the Dominator Empire to prevent the destruction of the galaxy!
On sale April 25 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US



THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES IN THE 31st CENTURY #1
Written by J. Torres
Art by Chynna Clugston-Flores
Cover by Steve Uy
An all-new series spinning out of the smash-hit TV show, written by J. Torres (TEEN TITANS GO, Sidekicks, Alison Dare: Little Miss Adventures) and drawn by the creator of the indie favorite Blue Monday, Chynna Clugston-Flores!
To stop the Fatal Five from destroying Metropolis, the Legion of Super-Heroes travel back in time for reinforcements, because this looks like a job for...Clark Kent?! Can six teenagers from the future help a mild-mannered reporter become the Man of Steel, or will the Fatal Five determine his destiny before it’s even begun?
Retailers: Please see the solicitation for the Free Comic Book Day Edition of this issue elsewhere in this issue of Previews.
On sale April 18 • 32 pg, FC, $2.25 US

The Physics of Superheroes

Thanks to Matthew for pointing this one out.

Newsarama has an interview with James Kakalios, author of "The Physics of Superheroes", whose book tries to semi-plausibly explain the physics of what goes on inside a comic book, from Flash's aura to the Hulk's strength and beyond. The interviewer asks if Kakalios has been in contact with current creators, to help them out. He mentions one exchange with Gail Simone on "The All-New Atom" and this exchange with Mark Waid on the Legion:

When Mark Waid wrote that Supergirl suddenly shows up in the year 3000 and people are trying to figure out how she got there and even she’s not sure how she time traveled. I said, “I know how this happened.” But I waited until the next issue and then I saw that it was going to be presented as a big mystery. I sent them an email saying “This is the mechanism by which she probably did it.” He wrote back saying, “That’s much better than what I was thinking of. I got to see if I can change this now.” So that’s fun. But so far in the storyline he hasn’t explained how she’s shown up in the future. So I’m waiting to see whether my mechanism pops up or not.

The apparent explanation that we've seen is that a zeta-beam transports across space, so a messed-up zeta-beam transports across time. Or is that just a red herring in 52?

Editorial shuffle - Wacker's out

Update 11:55pm, see below the cut.

(Originally posted 5:06 pm)
In the latest round of editorial shuffles at Marvel and DC, Newsarama announced today that Steve Wacker is leaving DC for Marvel. Wacker has been the Legion's editor (as well as Jonah Hex and JSA) and one of the guys keeping 52 together. According to Wizard (via Major Spoilers, though curiously not through WizardUniverse), he tendered his resignation today, and Newsarama says that sources say he was not fired.

More as it develops....

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(Update 11:55 pm)
Wow! I had to go into work for a few hours and while I was gone, apparently the internet broke in half. The single page of responses to the Newsarama article above turned into twelve pages, most blasting Wacker for being unprofessional for leaving in the middle of the 52 project. Mark Waid (who of course writes both the Legion and 52) was able to get a word or two in edgewise, warning posters not to assume anything and to blast their calling Wacker "unprofessional".

I speak for all the creators involved with 52 when I say that Steve is one of the best, most professional and most talented editors we've ever worked with, and we will miss him immensely. His contribution to this series cannot be understated. Leaving was not an easy decision for him to make, but he has earned from us our support in whatever he does, and DC's loss is Marvel's gain.

Heidi at The BEAT caught Wizard's article mentioned above, but for some reason it was taken down shortly after she quoted from it (by the time I got there earlier tonight, it was already down). Stuart Moore, a former DC editor himself and current writer of Firestorm, commented at The BEAT that

The departure is sudden because of DC corporate policy: If you leave to go to another comics company, you leave immediately. It doesn’t imply anything else.

And Johanna notes that Marvel honcho Tom Brevoort has something to say from the other side of the fence (which is surely the first time I've linked to a Marvel.com site here!).

Meanwhile, back in "52"....

Here's a bit from Newsarama's weekly interview with 52 editor Steve Wacker. This week, obviously, the big story is the Emerald Eye.

NRAMA: For those of us not fully up on our Emerald Eyes – is this the first mention of the Head of Ekron? Or at least first sighting? And did Lobo do the tearing?

SW: Head of Ekron is new. It’s been called the Emerald Eye of Ekron for years but we never knew what Ekron was. There have been a lot of good Emerald Eye stories throughout the years, but some of my favorites are from the L.E.G.I.O.N. series from the late-80s, early ‘90s - which also starred Lobo for a time, my research lovin’ friends.

NRAMA: If you can recall, who brought the Emerald Eye to the table (figuratively)? And was the head a part of the package at first, or did that come in later? Are we going to see more of Ekron’s body parts?

SW: My memory is that Grant had made a good point early on in our meetings that he wanted the team caught in the Zeta beam accident (from weeks 4 and 5) to be extremely messed up physically and psychologically. The idea was to really show the terror and pain of interstellar disaster and instantaneous spacefolds rather than have everyone disappear into a special effect hole and wake up in a safe lump on the ground.

They were all riffing on the idea of Green Lantern missing an eye and the one he had not being his and that led Grant to thinking about the Emerald Eye. The Emerald head idea is expanded on in the script. I’ll ask the guys if they mind if I share that here. Remind me next week, internet.

NRAMA: We’ll have more from Geoff Johns on this on Monday, but in Green Lantern #13, we saw the Guardians chanting “52.” What the heck? Generally speaking, are we going to see a growing presence of 52’s storylines and elements in the DC titles? Any particular places we should be looking for tie-ins and touches?

SW: The first place I’d look is in the ongoing books these guys are working on. Supergirl and the Legion, Batman, Checkmate and Teen Titans. Now that the One Year Later stories have several months under their staples to establish their status quos, you’ll probably be seeing more hints as to what happened in the missing year. (There was also another early clue in the last few pages of JSA #87, if you’re keeping count....and I know you are.)

And later, in the Q&A section:

Q: Will we be seeing any of the Legion of Super-Heroes in 52?

SW: More likely you’ll see one of stars of 52 in Legion before too long. Paul Levitz presented a couple ideas to me and [Mark] Waid about ways to make 52 pay off for Legion that we liked, so keep your eyes peeled and ask me later.

This is probably (but of course, not necessarily definitely) a reference to Mon-el, or whatever name he's using. Which suggests that as has been speculated, Mon-el, or whatever name he's using, will play a part in the next half-year of 52.

The Emerald Eye of Apple Jacks

This week's issue of 52 (issue #20) cover-features a giant green eyeball -- what is probably Alan Scott's missing eye (eeewww), and what will probably turn out to be the Emerald Eye of Ekron, or at least one of them.

So imagine what I thought when I saw this in the supermarket tonight:

52: Eye See You

So as it was pointed out to me, I have neglected to mention the latest 52 rumors and appearances.

A big green eyeball makes an appearance in issue 19. Lobo has it in a box. If it's still in continuity, I believe Lobo was around during the L.E.G.I.O.N. days when Garryn and Marij'n Bek had their own set of Eyes, and if not, he must have at least heard of the Eyes.

There are also those who think that Supernova just might be Mon-el. Tom Foss thought so back in June. In another installment of "crazy theory theater" recently, Tom tries to tie together Mon-el, the Dominators, and the cover of LSH #24 in which we see someone dressed an awful lot like Mon-el. And don't forget that Mark Waid said in Baltimore that there's an "extraordinarily good chance" we'd see him even before we expected. Wonder Girl thinks it's Kon-el, but "Kon" is just two letters down the alphabet from "Mon".

Where's this going? I dunno. There are as many theories right now as issues published, so who knows. All I know is that something is going on.

Baltimore Con '06 news

OK, it may be old news to you, but I'm still catching up on my RSS feeds, so here's some stuff from last weekend's Baltimore Con '06.

CBR has a DC Nation report.

Where's Blok? Waid says there's no plans for Blok, and that "Dream Boy" is now an official member of the Legion of Superheroes. "Superboy punches a wall, you never know."

Will the Legion appear in "52?" Waid says yes.

The Time Trapper in LOSH? "Not anytime soon, not in Legion of Superheroes" said Waid.

Wildfire in Legion? "Possibly," said Waid.

Bizarro Brainiac any time soon? "If Bizarro Brainiac isn't in an issue of 'Brave and the Bold' I will have failed," Waid said.

Newsarama has a few more quotes:

Q: Will Mon-el coming back?

Waid: Who’s this Mon-el of who you speak? Interesting…I would say there’s an extraordinary good chance – even before you may expect.

Q: Will Mordru return to the Legion as well?

Waid: Not for a while. He’s one of my favorite villains, and we’re afraid to bring him back and screw it up, and at the same time, we want to stay away from established Legion characters and villains.

The Emerald Eye of Ekron?

Update: added LegionWorld link and Dan DiDio quote, per the comments.

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Some people, who are apparently way smarter than I am, are wondering what happened to Alan "Green Lantern" Scott's eye when he came back from outer space recently in "52".

They're wondering if somehow this is the origin of the Emerald Eye of Ekron.

Devon at Seven Hells thinks so, as do a bunch of people who commented there. So did this guy at the ComicBloc forum, and this guy at Kalinara's Pretty Fizzy Paradise, John Hays at Silver Bullet Comics, and this guy at the DC message boards, and this guy at Tom Foss' Fortress of Soliloquy, and Douglas Wolk's 52 Pickup, and this thread on the LegionWorld ...

You may recall that the Eye was seen in the 21st century in the pages of L.E.G.I.O.N. '90 a while back (off and on between issues 11 and 22). Garryn and Marij'n Bek bonded with (or were taken over by, depending on your point of view) the Eye.

Of course, that was pre-Zero Hour. We only saw one in the pre-ZH 30th century (with the Emerald Empress), and a couple in the post-ZH 30th century (found by Kinetix, took over Shrinking Violet, later bonded with the Empress; at one point there were two of them). Read this entry (scroll down a bit) on the history of the pre-ZH and post-ZH Eyes.

Dan Didio to Newsarama, Crisis Counseling #7:

Q: Will Alan Scott's missing eye turn out/be related to the Emerald Eye of Ekron of Legion lore?

DD: I do not believe that is the case but I do know the eye is out there looking for him.

Of course, we all knew that Captain Atom was going to be revealed as Monarch in "Armageddon 2001", too.

52 Week 6

I haven't read it yet since I left town before the new comics came in last week, but there's a lot of speculation about whether (or when, or where) Mon-el will reappear. Some great commentary over at the Absorbascon (especially in the comments) regarding everything we saw in that 2-page spread of Dr. Hunter's lab and what it might mean.

Remember, Dan DiDio said a couple months back that we'd see Mon-el (or Lar Gand), just not in the Legion book (yet).

It can't be that easy, can it?

SPOILERS for 52 week 5....

The secret behind Supergirl's appearance in the 30th century can't be that easy, can it?

In 52 week 5, we finally find out what happened to the space-faring team out near the hole in space (from the Rann/Thanagar War). Alan Scott is telling Steel what happened to his team:

The aftereffects of healing a rift in space over 95 million miles wide were unbelievable. It wasn't just energy that emenated from it. It was some kind of reality-warping wave. ... Adam Strange told Mal Duncan to open up a portal that would lead to the northern hemisphere of the planet Rann, all in hopes of rediverting a zeta beam to our location in order to teleport us back to Earth. A moment later, the zeta beam came through. But something went wrong. It was splintered by the portal, like a ray of light sent through a prism. A beam struck Cyborg and Firestorm, fusing them together. Another hit Hawkgirl and Bumblebee. Still another sent Supergirl... somewhere...

It appears that "somewhere" is actually "somewhen" - the 30th century. So after some time in the future with the Legion, she'll make it back to the present in time for "One Year Later". Apparently.

Just before he was blasted, Red Tornado's last words were "It's coming! 52! 52!" The Dominators in the 30th century remember the 52. Apparently there's going to be a real plot in this series, not just a year-long series of vignettes.

Also out this week

New this week:

• 52 week 5, which is still recapping the original Crisis. We see Mon-el, Wildfire, Ultra Boy, and others fighting the Anti-Monitor (flashing back to Crisis issues 8-12). That's probably it for the Legion in the History of the DC Universe backup unless they show us the future.
  
  
• The Power Girl reprint trade paperback, reprinting (among others) the first four issues of last fall's JSA Classified. You'll recall that some of the Legionnaires appeared there as illusions courtesy of the Psycho Pirate (but no explanation of why the current post-Infinite Crisis Legion was shown rather than the pre-Crisis Legion that Psycho Pirate was exposed to during the original Crisis). The TPB also reprints all of the variant covers.