20th Century Flight Ring Hot Potato

While recording an episode of the podcast, someone asked about who was using which flight ring in the 20th century stories, as they seemed to be passing them around like hot potatoes. After some research, here's what I came up with (and there seems to be only one editorial error).

1. Legionnaires #31: Superboy is given a flight ring as an honorary member while in the 30th century, for helping get Valor out of the Stasis Zone.
   
   
   
2. LSH #84: Imra gives Inferno and Shvaughn flight rings to help fight Emerald Vi. Shvaughn has been physically de-aged to a baby, but with her adult intelligence. She's also wearing a Legion costume. At the end of the issue, half the team is caught up in an emerald explosion, which we find out next issue has thrown them back in time. 
   
   
   
3. LSH #85: The team pops out in the 20th century, but Shvaughn has inexplicably turned back into an adult and she's wearing an SP uniform, and does not have a ring. There's no explanation for her transformation, making me think this is an editorial oversight. Without a flight ring, she falls from the sky, and Jo flies down to catch her. Tinya, who is a ghost at this point who nobody can see, tells Jo to give Shvaughn Tinya's ring, which Jo still kept. So now Shvaughn has Tinya's ring.
   
   
   
4. Final Night #3: Spark lends Ferro her flight ring during Final Night, but takes it back shortly after it was over (this takes place just before LSH #86).
   
   
   
5. Impulse #21: Cosmic Boy lets Impulse borrow Imra's flight ring, but she takes it back by the end of the issue (takes place prior to LSH #88)
   
   
   
6. LSH #90: Ferro mentions that he does not yet have a flight ring.
   
   
   
7. LSH #93: Ferro borrows Jo’s flight ring for the issue, but after the death of his brother, Cos offers Ferro his ring to keep.
   
   
   
   
   
8. LSH #94: Triad goes to find Superboy, only to find that Superboy has given his ring to Roxy. Later, Cosmic Boy comes back with Gates and Triad and takes back Superboy’s ring. Cos later says that he will use Superboy’s ring since he had just given his own to Ferro. 
   
   
   
   
   
9. LSH #96: Inferno leaves the team, and throws her flight ring at Jo and then flies off under her own power. 
   
   
   
10. SBOY #45: After helping the team, Cos gives Superboy's ring back and tells him not to give it away (takes place prior to LSH #97, just before Genesis).
    
    
    
11. LSH #97: Cosmic Boy is shown using a flight ring, and since all the others are accounted for, he must be using Inferno's old ring.
    

So here's the summary up to this point:

• Shvaughn has Tinya’s old ring [#3]
• Ferro has Cos’s old ring [#8]
• Inferno had a ring but gave it back when she left the team [#9]
• Superboy still has the ring that he was given [#10]
• Cos (presumably) has Inferno’s old ring [#11]
• Everyone else (Gates, Saturn Girl, Spark, Brainiac 5, Triad, Ultra Boy) still has their original ring

LSH animated series: Live, from the DC Fandome, it's Saturday Afternoon!

 On Saturday Sept 12, the DC Fandome event (part 2) finally showed (recorded, streaming on demand) a 30-minute discussion with the producer, director, and voice actors from the 2006-08 Legion animated show. (It was originally to have been at the one back in August, before that was split into two, mostly movies in part 1 and mostly TV in part 2.)

• Top row: moderator Damian Holbrook (TV Guide), director Brandon Vietti, producer James Tucker
• Middle row: Andy Milder (voice of Lightning Lad), Shawn Harrison (voice of Timber Wolf, Ronn Karr), Adam Wylie (voice of Brainiac 5, Computo, Colossal Boy)
• Bottom row: Kari Wahlgren (voice of Saturn Girl, Triplicate Girl, Shrinking Violet, White Witch, Ayla Ranzz), Yuri Lowenthal (voice of Superman)

After the introductions, here's the transcript. 

Finally - flight rings!

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".

Flight rings on eBay

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!

Toyfair 2011 Update

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).

MegaCon '10 & Emerald City '10: There Will Be Flight Rings?

I forgot that MegaCon was in Orlando this past weekend (and, since I'm just getting back from vacation, a delay in the reporting). Unless I missed something, CBR covered Emerald City but not MegaCon and Newsarama didn't cover either. What's up with that?

Conflicting news over whether and when we'll get Legion flight rings...

The DC Nation panel, via Superman Homepage (emphasis added in the 2nd paragraph):

... Didio mentioned that the generational gaps with certain characters can be the DC Universe's great strength and also a weakness. There was much discussion that some readers are turned off by a certain version of The Flash or The Legion of Superheroes, but stressed that if it's a good story, it should remind the reader why he or she loved The Legion or The Flash in the first place. The goal is to find one strong interpretation and build the fan base around that. It alienates some people, but that's not at all the goal. Palmiotti added that he embraces how some creators can take one version and rework it into something fresh and cool.

...Thanks to the popularity of the Lantern Rings as promotional items, there will be a Legion of Superheroes ring available soon, as well as a Flash ring. I asked if there would be a "Supermen of America" ring like the limited edition ones from the 1940's and someone asked about an Alan Scott/Green Lantern ring, but the answer to both was "no."

Adventure Comics will feature a "Secret Origin" story of the Legion, and they will also have their own title back soon. Although it's in no way Superman related, Batwoman will finally receive her own title as well.

...Concerning how co-features like the backup stories in Action Comics will be handled in collected formats, Didio explained that if the backup story is integral to the main story, it will be in the collection, but when it's not, it will either be collected separately or not at all.

Via the Airship Over Water blog:

DiDio said one of the big problems of the DCU is that properties get fractualized and that fans develop favorite versions of properties such as the Legion or Hawkman, creating generational conflicts. He said the goal now is to find a strong interpretation of the characters and build upon it throughout the comics and other media. “It’s not just resetting the wheel every time,” he said.

Another bit I noted was the fact that he mentioned Hawkman and the Legion. I love every version of Hawkman and Jim Shooter and Francis Manupal’s Legion of Superheroes is the only Legion I’m familiar with. Either way, I agree with what Didio is saying. Some characters have an iconic legacy that has been represented far differently multiple times. With Hawkman you have fans of Carter Hall and fans or Katar Hol, and with the Legion you might have fans of Jim Shooter’s Legion and some of Geoff Johns’ Legion. I think trying to come together with that icon and connect for all fans is a key thing to do.

Via Comics Continuum:

...DiDio said one of the big problems of the DCU is that properties get fractualized and that fans develop favorite versions of properties such as the Legion or Hawkman, creating generational conflicts. He said the goal now is to find a strong interpretation of the characters and build upon it throughout the comics and other media. "It's not just resetting the wheel every time," he said. 

...Bedard was asking if the Starro story will bleed into other books, and he noted there will be a little more crossover between R.E.B.E.L.S. and the Green Lantern Corps. 

...DiDio said backup features will continue, noting Coven in Teen Titans, rotating stories in Action Comics, the Question in Detective Comics and more in Adventure Comics. 

...DiDio said Legion rings are a possibility.

I don't know why I can't find info on this weekend's Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle at Newsarama, but here's some news on the DC Nation panel via CBR:

...Next up, an attendee commented on how he’s enjoying his Lantern rings – and can’t wait for his Flash ring – but he still wanted to know…when is DC going to be giving out Legion rings?

Johns smiled and replied, “For every Marvel comic you rip up and send to us, you’ll get a ring.” The crowd laughed loudly at this answer.

One (Flight) Ring to Rule Them All

I'm late to the bandwagon here, but in case you hadn't heard, there's an effort going on to get DC to issue Legion Flight Rings, just like the 9 multi-flavored Lantern rings and the Flash ring that have come out or are coming out soon. A new Legion title is a great reason (not that we need any) to promote with a ring.

Svengali Lad (Sven Staatveit) started the ball rolling with this post:

Recently, DC mounted a postcard drive to see if readers were interested in renumbering the WONDER WOMAN book to #600. DC received over 800 postcards (as of their last post regarding this) and the change in numbering will happen this year. What worked for Diana’s fans can work for us, Legionnaires.

To put in simply, just mail a postcard filled out like this to DC:

LSH FLIGHT RING
c/o Dan DiDio
1700 Broadway
New York, NY
10019

WONDER WOMAN fans only needed 600 postcards to make their change happen, we can do this, Legionnaires.

I would also like to remind DC that a plastic LSH FLIGHT RING has already been tooled, so there is no cost to them to design or sculpt a new one. This plastic LSH FLIGHT RING I’m referring to is the one that came with the DC DIRECT action figures of COSMIC BOY, LIGHTNING LAD and SATURN GIRL.

The Flight Ring Saga has been picked up by CBR's Robot 6, Progressive Ruin, Comics Alliance, the Miracle Machine, Major Spoilers, the Legion Abstract, the Comic Book Closet, and even a Facebook group.

The Emerald City Comic Con is in Seattle this weekend, anyone going to it who can ask about this?

Legion torrents and flight rings

Not surprisingly, my normal daily hit count tripled yesterday after the Legion episode of "Smallville" aired.

What was surprising, though, was the number of queries for flight rings. Sadly, there are none on ebay at the moment, though the first wave of Legion action figures from DC Direct in 2001 each came with a plastic flight ring. Chris at Atlas Comics might have some, but the official ones are hard to come by. Here's a closer look at my ring.

A number of people are also looking for torrents (keywords S08E11 or 8x11) to download the show: you can find a standard def version (350 MB) and a high-def version (720p, 1.09 GB) at these and other places.

If only these flight rings actually worked...

Anyone need a Legion Flight Ring for their collection? There's one on eBay right now for $66, not too much above the original price of $54.95.



Too bad I missed it, but I would have posted on this one: you could have had Mark Waid's Legion flight ring, which went for $107.50. (Thanks to this week's Lying in the Gutters for this tip.)

Legion Toywatch: Prequel, part 6 (pins and rings)

Legion merchandising, part 6 in a series... a look back in anticipation of merchandising the Legion animated show in the near future.

In the mid-90's, comics were at their speculative peak and dealers were ordering lots of stuff at huge numbers. Sometimes the companies would even offer retailers some bonues for every certain number of copies ordered (like 1 variant cover for each 25 regular, for example - a practice prevalent in the 90's speculation boom, which fell out of favor for a while but is back again today). When Legionnaires #1 came out, the deal was that for every 100 copies ordered by the shops, they would get a special cloisonne pin. I didn't find mine until a year later in San Diego, and I've only seen one since then. The black paint on gold metal does look kinda cool.

For a cheaper alternative, conventions had "pinbacks" by the bucketful at the DC booth. The difference is that a cloisonne pin has a pin you stick through perpendicularly with a back that attaches, while the pinback has a pin that slides through sideways. You can find the pinbacks cheap on ebay.



In 1997, DC Direct offered a Legion Flight Ring for sale. Here's the original soliciation from Previews:

LEGION RING $54.95
Long desired by LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES fans, this 14K gold-plated ring is a replica of the flight rings that enable the greatest heroes of the 30th Century to take to the air. (Note: These rings will not enable the wearer to fly, as that technology is not yet available.) Available in sizes 6-13 (whole sizes only).

Here are scans of the box, along with the front and side of the ring.


Warning: This ring does not enable the wearer to fly!


Here's a shot of a guy properly attired as Booster Gold at the San Diego Con '06, complete with Legion Flight Ring - remember, that's how Booster could fly, he stole a Flight Ring from the Space Museum.