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Original Legion of Super-Heroes #15
Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes Vol. 2
War is on the horizon as Legion members Wildfire, Dawnstar, Mon-El and Ultra Boy are called to Weber's World, the 30th century's diplomatic headquarters, on a mission to protect a peace forum between two rival galactic federations, the United Planets and the Dominators. But before the Dominators can even arrive, danger and suspicion take over the conference. A war between the federations could tear apart the universe, but what can four lone Legionnaires do to prevent it?
Meanwhile, as our heroes traverse far-flung planets to prevent intergalactic war, the Legion of Substitute Heroes must rise up to protect the Earth from a deadly Khund invasion!
From creators including Paul Levitz, Gerry Conway, Joe Staton, James Sherman and Steve Ditko, this volume features the full Earthwar saga, the return of Mordu, the debut of the League of Super-Assassins and more! Collects Superboy and the Legion Of Super-Heroes #241-258 and DC Comics Presents #13-14.
Meanwhile, as our heroes traverse far-flung planets to prevent intergalactic war, the Legion of Substitute Heroes must rise up to protect the Earth from a deadly Khund invasion!
From creators including Paul Levitz, Gerry Conway, Joe Staton, James Sherman and Steve Ditko, this volume features the full Earthwar saga, the return of Mordu, the debut of the League of Super-Assassins and more! Collects Superboy and the Legion Of Super-Heroes #241-258 and DC Comics Presents #13-14.
472 pages, Hardcover
First published July 17, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
August 12, 2018
The second (and one presumes final) volume of Superboy and the Legion is a real hodge-podge, with a variety of authors stepping in and out. It's a miracle that the volume is as coherent as it is.
That begins with Paul Levitz's "Earthwar" (#241-245), the longest, most-involved Legion plot ever. It's the gem of this volume. Levitz truly goes out of his way to link many past villains into a mighty tapestry. Though some, like the Resource Raiders, are now long forgotten, others like the Dark Circle and the Khund have become a crucial part of Legion continuity. The actual story is a bit muddy at time, as Levitz was trying to figure out how to balance so many plotlines, but you can also see the creative foundation of his later masterpieces, like "The Great Darkness Saga". And even with that muddiness, this is an epic story, the start of the Legion's period of true greatness.
Levitz only contributes a few other pieces to the book, as it's mostly set between his 1977-1979 and 1981-1989 work. The "Omega" story (#250-251) that he crafts with the pseudonymous Jim Starlin ("Steve Apollo") is another highlight of this volume with great continuity, great character, and great repercussions. (It was written as a direct follow-up to #239, by the same team, but got delayed a bit.) Levitz's DC Comics Presents (#13-14) is unfortunately not as good. Teaming Superboy, the Legion, and Pete Ross up with an adult Superman should have been great, but Pete Ross is the only one who has an interesting outcome. The Legion story has no particular place in continuity and isn't notable.
After "Earthwar", Len Wein picks up the reins for about an issue and a half. He has a somewhat dull scientific mystery in #246 than a Fatal Five story (#246-247) that starts off better, thanks to a big heel turn, but doesn't go anywhere.
The main author of this volume is Gerry Conway, who comes onboard with a fairly dull attempt to bring back a classic but unknown foe called the Chemical Conquerer (#248-249) whose main virtue is that it actively acknowledges the repercussions of the Earthwar. When Conway returns a few issues later, he gets an uninterrupted run through the end of the title. He works hard to create new characters like the Starburst Bandits (#252) and the Psycho-Warrior (#258-259), but his most successful are the League of Super-Assassins story (#253-254). It's not just that Conway introduces Blok, but the whole team of six is colorful and interesting, as is their link to a Dark Man, and the first issue, where they seem to kill five Legionnaires, is very tense.
A few of Conway's other stories, not focused on new characters, are also of note. His return to Krypton (#255) feels very much like a backdoor pilot for a new Superboy series, which of course began a few months later as "The New Adventures of Superboy" by Cary Bates. The look into Brainiac's mind (#256) is also interesting, though it resolves the problems of the Omega crisis just a little too simply (or at least one of them, the other would be an ongoing subplot for years). The continuing R.J. Brande subplot also has a great ending (#258), while the departure of Superboy from the Legion (#259) is some of Conway's best, most emotional writing.
Throughout all of this, Conway offered up good continuity and good characterizations, two of the hallmarks of the Legion's stronger runs. So, he was no Paul Levitz, but he was still offering a good era for the Legion, exceeding the episodic stories of the very recent past.
And of course we end with the Legion getting its open title for the first time ever, free of Superboy's shadow (not that he's a very important element in this volume).
So bring on the next volume, DC, and the stories of the Dark Man, Reflecto, and the rest!
That begins with Paul Levitz's "Earthwar" (#241-245), the longest, most-involved Legion plot ever. It's the gem of this volume. Levitz truly goes out of his way to link many past villains into a mighty tapestry. Though some, like the Resource Raiders, are now long forgotten, others like the Dark Circle and the Khund have become a crucial part of Legion continuity. The actual story is a bit muddy at time, as Levitz was trying to figure out how to balance so many plotlines, but you can also see the creative foundation of his later masterpieces, like "The Great Darkness Saga". And even with that muddiness, this is an epic story, the start of the Legion's period of true greatness.
Levitz only contributes a few other pieces to the book, as it's mostly set between his 1977-1979 and 1981-1989 work. The "Omega" story (#250-251) that he crafts with the pseudonymous Jim Starlin ("Steve Apollo") is another highlight of this volume with great continuity, great character, and great repercussions. (It was written as a direct follow-up to #239, by the same team, but got delayed a bit.) Levitz's DC Comics Presents (#13-14) is unfortunately not as good. Teaming Superboy, the Legion, and Pete Ross up with an adult Superman should have been great, but Pete Ross is the only one who has an interesting outcome. The Legion story has no particular place in continuity and isn't notable.
After "Earthwar", Len Wein picks up the reins for about an issue and a half. He has a somewhat dull scientific mystery in #246 than a Fatal Five story (#246-247) that starts off better, thanks to a big heel turn, but doesn't go anywhere.
The main author of this volume is Gerry Conway, who comes onboard with a fairly dull attempt to bring back a classic but unknown foe called the Chemical Conquerer (#248-249) whose main virtue is that it actively acknowledges the repercussions of the Earthwar. When Conway returns a few issues later, he gets an uninterrupted run through the end of the title. He works hard to create new characters like the Starburst Bandits (#252) and the Psycho-Warrior (#258-259), but his most successful are the League of Super-Assassins story (#253-254). It's not just that Conway introduces Blok, but the whole team of six is colorful and interesting, as is their link to a Dark Man, and the first issue, where they seem to kill five Legionnaires, is very tense.
A few of Conway's other stories, not focused on new characters, are also of note. His return to Krypton (#255) feels very much like a backdoor pilot for a new Superboy series, which of course began a few months later as "The New Adventures of Superboy" by Cary Bates. The look into Brainiac's mind (#256) is also interesting, though it resolves the problems of the Omega crisis just a little too simply (or at least one of them, the other would be an ongoing subplot for years). The continuing R.J. Brande subplot also has a great ending (#258), while the departure of Superboy from the Legion (#259) is some of Conway's best, most emotional writing.
Throughout all of this, Conway offered up good continuity and good characterizations, two of the hallmarks of the Legion's stronger runs. So, he was no Paul Levitz, but he was still offering a good era for the Legion, exceeding the episodic stories of the very recent past.
And of course we end with the Legion getting its open title for the first time ever, free of Superboy's shadow (not that he's a very important element in this volume).
So bring on the next volume, DC, and the stories of the Dark Man, Reflecto, and the rest!
August 27, 2018
This volume covers the end of Paul Levitz's first tenure on Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes, and the beginning of the disastrous Gerry Conway run. Levitz goes out with a decent bang, the famous Khund-Earth war, followed shortly by the Levitz-Jim (Steve Apollo) Starlin story where Brainiac 5 goes mad and chaos ensues. While Levitz was not as tight a plotter as he would be during his hey-day with Keith Giffen, he still was able to write the Legion as a collection of individuals, not a corporate mess with characters all the same but interchangeable powers.
With Gerry Conway's arrival, however, everything turns to shit. Conway had no appreciation for the Legion, their history, what made them tick, etc., and we get a collection of rather pedestrian stories that only move forward on the narrative of Brainy's madness, and not very well at that. Otherwise, we get sewer monsters, more interstellar raiders, more teenagers bent on revenge against the Legion (seen that a million times before), and a rather silly plot about RJ Brande losing his fortune without ever noticing it going on. Conway, who wrote a very decent Batman, just sucked at team books at DC. He ruined the Justice League of America, and if his time on Legion hadn't been relatively short, he'd probably have ruined that team, as well.
This book ends with the first issue (#259) of the new Legion of Super-Heroes title, Superboy having been kicked out of his own title to get his own solo, starting with #1. Although the completest in me wants to see every Legion story every produced collected, I know the next volume, which should wrap up the series prior to Levitz's classic run, still contains more shitty stories by Conway and the almost equally bad Roy Thomas, along with some JM DeMatteis (Dr Mayavale, anyone?). Ugh.
Joe Staton's art during this time wasn't really a good fit, either. His view of the 30th century was tepid and boring, and add to that his cartoony style of art, along with Conway's stories, it's a wonder this book was never cancelled.
Too bad we can't just skip from 1st Levitz era to the second one. With the exception of the introduction of Blok, who, although created by Conway was not made interesting until Levitz, this time in Legion history was a sad, sad time. 4 stars for the Levitz material, 1 star for the Conway/Staton issues.
With Gerry Conway's arrival, however, everything turns to shit. Conway had no appreciation for the Legion, their history, what made them tick, etc., and we get a collection of rather pedestrian stories that only move forward on the narrative of Brainy's madness, and not very well at that. Otherwise, we get sewer monsters, more interstellar raiders, more teenagers bent on revenge against the Legion (seen that a million times before), and a rather silly plot about RJ Brande losing his fortune without ever noticing it going on. Conway, who wrote a very decent Batman, just sucked at team books at DC. He ruined the Justice League of America, and if his time on Legion hadn't been relatively short, he'd probably have ruined that team, as well.
This book ends with the first issue (#259) of the new Legion of Super-Heroes title, Superboy having been kicked out of his own title to get his own solo, starting with #1. Although the completest in me wants to see every Legion story every produced collected, I know the next volume, which should wrap up the series prior to Levitz's classic run, still contains more shitty stories by Conway and the almost equally bad Roy Thomas, along with some JM DeMatteis (Dr Mayavale, anyone?). Ugh.
Joe Staton's art during this time wasn't really a good fit, either. His view of the 30th century was tepid and boring, and add to that his cartoony style of art, along with Conway's stories, it's a wonder this book was never cancelled.
Too bad we can't just skip from 1st Levitz era to the second one. With the exception of the introduction of Blok, who, although created by Conway was not made interesting until Levitz, this time in Legion history was a sad, sad time. 4 stars for the Levitz material, 1 star for the Conway/Staton issues.
August 12, 2018
Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes Volume Two collects a run from the late ‘70s that starts with one of the franchise’s best known sagas, before moving into what would be a long transitional phase.
The multi-part “Earth War” found the Legion enmeshed in an attack on Earth carried out by the Khunds and Dark Circle, but whose real architect was one of the team’s deadliest foes. After the Legion rescinded the rule against married members, founders Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl returned, with the former becoming the last of the founding trio to be elected team leader. Old foes The Fatal Five returned in a rather unexpected way, while the team fought any number of one-off menaces, monsters and crooks. Team benefactor R.J. Brande found himself the target of a conspiracy to bankrupt him, as Brainiac 5’s erratic behavior led to a breakdown. The secret adversary behind recent attacks on the team came to light and unleashed Omega, a hate-fueled creature that battered the team and destroyed their clubhouse. The League of Super-Assassins debuted, six survivors who blamed the Legion for the destruction of their world, empowered by the mysterious Dark Man and bent on killing six Legionnaires in return. A couple of time travel tales had the Legion interacting with both an adult Superman and his father, Jor-El. Finally, the psychological attack of a new foe left Superboy with an inkling as to how his adoptive parents had died; to spare him pain, the team sent him back to his own time, with muddled memories and a post-hypnotic suggestion not to return to the future.
Written by noted Legion scribe Paul Levitz, Earth War would be the high water mark for the series for some time to come. It was a classic big Legion story, with universe-spanning conflict, battles with some of their best known enemies and dramatic stakes whose after-effects were felt for some time to come. A couple of well-known industry writers pitched in over the next few issues, as the series seemed to struggle for direction post-Earth War. After a two-part collaboration with Jim Starlin (using the pseudonym “Steve Apollo”), Levitz wrapped his first stint on the book.
Veteran Gerry Conway came aboard thereafter with likewise mixed results. The Super-Assassins story was mostly well-handled, introducing a recurring threat for the heroes (as well as a future LSH member in Blok, who’d switch sides in the Assassins’ next appearance), as well as the “Dark Man” mystery. The Brainiac 5 breakdown and plot against R.J. Brande both were interesting ideas that generated drama but whose resolutions fell short. Ultimately, this stretch was filled with stories featuring threats that weren’t especially memorable and had little lasting impact on the book. Superboy’s exit also felt like it should have had more impact.
Still, there was some decent characterization, with a handful of characters like Brainiac 5, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Wildfire and Chameleon Boy especially benefitting from the spotlight. But with a large regular cast, and a plethora of supporting characters, many members could go months without a significant appearance or major part in the plot, as both Levitz and Conway struggled with the complicated juggling act of giving each character time in the spotlight (an art that Levitz would nail much more successfully when he returned to the book a couple of years later).
A significant historical note: with issue #259, Superboy was removed from the title of the series, making the Legion the sole headliner of an ongoing book for the first time.
The art side started with the enigmatic James Sherman for two issues. His quirky, idiosyncratic take on the future was an apt follow-up to the departed Mike Grell, but the book couldn’t hold onto him, with the far more conventional Joe Staton taking over as regular penciler in the middle of Earth War. After forward-thinking artists like Sherman, Grell and Dave Cockrum, DC mainstay Staton couldn’t help but feel like a step backward in some ways. His work was mostly clean and straightforward, practically retro, but without the design flourishes that often made his predecessors’ work so absorbing. The success of Staton’s pages was also heavily dependent on who was inking him, as a rotating line-up of embellishers wound up giving the book a very different feel from issue to issue, before Dave Hunt settled in as his regular collaborator for a solid but unspectacular run. Starlin’s two issues were a reminder of how innovative Legion could be when given the chance.
Other than Earth War, this stretch will mostly be of interests to serious Legion fans, with the steep cover price not making this collection a logical entry point for newcomers.
The multi-part “Earth War” found the Legion enmeshed in an attack on Earth carried out by the Khunds and Dark Circle, but whose real architect was one of the team’s deadliest foes. After the Legion rescinded the rule against married members, founders Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl returned, with the former becoming the last of the founding trio to be elected team leader. Old foes The Fatal Five returned in a rather unexpected way, while the team fought any number of one-off menaces, monsters and crooks. Team benefactor R.J. Brande found himself the target of a conspiracy to bankrupt him, as Brainiac 5’s erratic behavior led to a breakdown. The secret adversary behind recent attacks on the team came to light and unleashed Omega, a hate-fueled creature that battered the team and destroyed their clubhouse. The League of Super-Assassins debuted, six survivors who blamed the Legion for the destruction of their world, empowered by the mysterious Dark Man and bent on killing six Legionnaires in return. A couple of time travel tales had the Legion interacting with both an adult Superman and his father, Jor-El. Finally, the psychological attack of a new foe left Superboy with an inkling as to how his adoptive parents had died; to spare him pain, the team sent him back to his own time, with muddled memories and a post-hypnotic suggestion not to return to the future.
Written by noted Legion scribe Paul Levitz, Earth War would be the high water mark for the series for some time to come. It was a classic big Legion story, with universe-spanning conflict, battles with some of their best known enemies and dramatic stakes whose after-effects were felt for some time to come. A couple of well-known industry writers pitched in over the next few issues, as the series seemed to struggle for direction post-Earth War. After a two-part collaboration with Jim Starlin (using the pseudonym “Steve Apollo”), Levitz wrapped his first stint on the book.
Veteran Gerry Conway came aboard thereafter with likewise mixed results. The Super-Assassins story was mostly well-handled, introducing a recurring threat for the heroes (as well as a future LSH member in Blok, who’d switch sides in the Assassins’ next appearance), as well as the “Dark Man” mystery. The Brainiac 5 breakdown and plot against R.J. Brande both were interesting ideas that generated drama but whose resolutions fell short. Ultimately, this stretch was filled with stories featuring threats that weren’t especially memorable and had little lasting impact on the book. Superboy’s exit also felt like it should have had more impact.
Still, there was some decent characterization, with a handful of characters like Brainiac 5, Lightning Lad, Saturn Girl, Wildfire and Chameleon Boy especially benefitting from the spotlight. But with a large regular cast, and a plethora of supporting characters, many members could go months without a significant appearance or major part in the plot, as both Levitz and Conway struggled with the complicated juggling act of giving each character time in the spotlight (an art that Levitz would nail much more successfully when he returned to the book a couple of years later).
A significant historical note: with issue #259, Superboy was removed from the title of the series, making the Legion the sole headliner of an ongoing book for the first time.
The art side started with the enigmatic James Sherman for two issues. His quirky, idiosyncratic take on the future was an apt follow-up to the departed Mike Grell, but the book couldn’t hold onto him, with the far more conventional Joe Staton taking over as regular penciler in the middle of Earth War. After forward-thinking artists like Sherman, Grell and Dave Cockrum, DC mainstay Staton couldn’t help but feel like a step backward in some ways. His work was mostly clean and straightforward, practically retro, but without the design flourishes that often made his predecessors’ work so absorbing. The success of Staton’s pages was also heavily dependent on who was inking him, as a rotating line-up of embellishers wound up giving the book a very different feel from issue to issue, before Dave Hunt settled in as his regular collaborator for a solid but unspectacular run. Starlin’s two issues were a reminder of how innovative Legion could be when given the chance.
Other than Earth War, this stretch will mostly be of interests to serious Legion fans, with the steep cover price not making this collection a logical entry point for newcomers.
June 30, 2020
As I've probably mentioned before, Legion of Super-Heroes was my first favorite comic (I started on the main series with #272). However, I hadn't read any of these issues (when Superboy was in the title and the book) before, so this was great. The volume encompasses #241-259 plus two issues of DC Comics Presents and I was surprised to realize some of the events that took place here didn't happen thaaaat long before I started on the book (as a kid I thought Earthwar and Brainy's insanity had happened long ago). The good news is this was all highly entertaining and I had an absolute blast reading it over the past couple weeks. Gerry Conway and Paul Levitz handled most the the writing duties; Joe Staton was the main artist and I really liked his work, especially when paired with Dave Hunt. There isn't another volume collecting the next 30 issues or so, which means I will be jumping to the DC Universe app to keep reading - not ready to leave my Legion!
July 20, 2018
Well, this just came out this week.
The thing about the Legion, is that - like the Fantastic Four - they are a family. They have their squabbles, and occasionally one of them goes mad and tries to kill the rest, or blow up the universe in one case, but they love and stand by each other.
Their special abilities range from the ridiculously powerful (Mon-El, stronger than Superboy and immune to Kryptonite...) to the, well, ridiculous (Matter-Eater Lad. Bouncing Boy.) The plotting ranges from the melodramatic to the inane, as is par for most super-hero comics, though there are occasional side-trips to something decently plotted. The villains are bombastic and, well, they have to be powerful enough, or crazy enough, to challenge 20-something superpowered 20-somethings.
And yet, somehow, it works. Or at least, it worked, for someone like me who grew up with them. But I drifted away from comics for many years, and when I came back, I'd missed huge swathes of Legion history.
Some of these stories I've heard about for years the Earthwar, the desperate battle against Omega, the coming of the Super-Assassins - and this issue takes us to the end of the "Superboy and the Legion" magazine; the next issue after the last one in this volume features the beginning of the first regular monthly "Legion of Super-Heroes" title.
The art, too, ranges, from the competent to the pretty darn good, but is limited by the subject matter to tones of bold and brash and colorful. The later stories in this volume are all written by Gerry Conway and drawn by Joe Staton, who would later be famous for the delightfully silly E-Man.
All of which is, I guess, an attempt to justify to myself why I keep buying these volumes. And I will, too, until they catch up with where my collection of the magazines begins... Because the truth is, I love them with the heart of a nine-year-old boy picking up his first Legion story ("The Super-Stalag of Space!") and seeing the wondrous Thirtieth (now Thirty-First; the Legion always stays 1000 years ahead) Century.
Sadly, around the time I stopped buying comics regularly - indeed, it's one of the _reasons_ I stopped buying comics regularly - DC wiped out the entire history of the Legion and started over again. And, yes, some of the names were better ("Triad" instead of "Triplicate Girl," [later the even sillier "Duo Damsel" ...] for example), and some of the stories were better-written ... but I frankly don't care. The Legion was built on the growth and maturing of characters originally created as a tossed-off one-shot story, basically to give Superboy something to _do_ for an issue. They did indeed grow and mature, with characters leaving, dying (for real, no backsies), marrying, and generally having lives. Taking all that and tossing it in the shitcan meant that _my_ Legion was dead and gone for good.
So, no, I can't get excited about Mon-El and Saturn Girl showing up in the _Supergirl_ tv series. I just can't care about revamps. When they rebooted the Legion, they booted me.
As Pansy Yokum would say: Ah has spoke!
The thing about the Legion, is that - like the Fantastic Four - they are a family. They have their squabbles, and occasionally one of them goes mad and tries to kill the rest, or blow up the universe in one case, but they love and stand by each other.
Their special abilities range from the ridiculously powerful (Mon-El, stronger than Superboy and immune to Kryptonite...) to the, well, ridiculous (Matter-Eater Lad. Bouncing Boy.) The plotting ranges from the melodramatic to the inane, as is par for most super-hero comics, though there are occasional side-trips to something decently plotted. The villains are bombastic and, well, they have to be powerful enough, or crazy enough, to challenge 20-something superpowered 20-somethings.
And yet, somehow, it works. Or at least, it worked, for someone like me who grew up with them. But I drifted away from comics for many years, and when I came back, I'd missed huge swathes of Legion history.
Some of these stories I've heard about for years the Earthwar, the desperate battle against Omega, the coming of the Super-Assassins - and this issue takes us to the end of the "Superboy and the Legion" magazine; the next issue after the last one in this volume features the beginning of the first regular monthly "Legion of Super-Heroes" title.
The art, too, ranges, from the competent to the pretty darn good, but is limited by the subject matter to tones of bold and brash and colorful. The later stories in this volume are all written by Gerry Conway and drawn by Joe Staton, who would later be famous for the delightfully silly E-Man.
All of which is, I guess, an attempt to justify to myself why I keep buying these volumes. And I will, too, until they catch up with where my collection of the magazines begins... Because the truth is, I love them with the heart of a nine-year-old boy picking up his first Legion story ("The Super-Stalag of Space!") and seeing the wondrous Thirtieth (now Thirty-First; the Legion always stays 1000 years ahead) Century.
Sadly, around the time I stopped buying comics regularly - indeed, it's one of the _reasons_ I stopped buying comics regularly - DC wiped out the entire history of the Legion and started over again. And, yes, some of the names were better ("Triad" instead of "Triplicate Girl," [later the even sillier "Duo Damsel" ...] for example), and some of the stories were better-written ... but I frankly don't care. The Legion was built on the growth and maturing of characters originally created as a tossed-off one-shot story, basically to give Superboy something to _do_ for an issue. They did indeed grow and mature, with characters leaving, dying (for real, no backsies), marrying, and generally having lives. Taking all that and tossing it in the shitcan meant that _my_ Legion was dead and gone for good.
So, no, I can't get excited about Mon-El and Saturn Girl showing up in the _Supergirl_ tv series. I just can't care about revamps. When they rebooted the Legion, they booted me.
As Pansy Yokum would say: Ah has spoke!
August 8, 2019
The third book of my big Legion reread of 2025 (that year still looks futuristic to me!) is in the books. As I wrote a few years ago, Levitz finds his footing in these stories. Conway turns in some largely solid scripts.
++++++++
This is a fairly solid collection of Legion stories. The art is solid but not overly memorable. Paul Levitz, after some tepidness in the first volume of this reprint series, seems to find his legs and turns in a very memorable "Earthwar" storyline. (Although the "Brainiac 5 goes insane" story didn't work for me at all.) Gerry Conway then takes over the series, and it's more mixed - there are some solid moments (the Legion confronted by their worst fears), but also some odd bits that don't quite work (the League of Assassins and the hokey "suspended animation" out). And overall, the character work is still very thin compared to the classic Levitz/Giffen stories from the 1980s.
++++++++
This is a fairly solid collection of Legion stories. The art is solid but not overly memorable. Paul Levitz, after some tepidness in the first volume of this reprint series, seems to find his legs and turns in a very memorable "Earthwar" storyline. (Although the "Brainiac 5 goes insane" story didn't work for me at all.) Gerry Conway then takes over the series, and it's more mixed - there are some solid moments (the Legion confronted by their worst fears), but also some odd bits that don't quite work (the League of Assassins and the hokey "suspended animation" out). And overall, the character work is still very thin compared to the classic Levitz/Giffen stories from the 1980s.
January 6, 2018
Gems include the "Earthwar" 5parter, "Will the Last One to Leave Mercury Please Close the Planet?", "Celebration!", "Arctoraan Jewel Case", "Man Who Destroyed The Universe", "P.S. to Holocaust", "A Madman Shall Lead Them", & "This Is Your Life..& Death, Brainiac 5!"
October 27, 2020
The Preamble:
This is a rating of 3.5. There are a lot of stories here and they range from the great to the merely amusing and nostalgic. I say nostalgic but some of these stories are from before my time but they very clearly carry a lot of old comic book campiness. I love the Legion of Super-Heroes. And in an effort to get to know more of their history I thought I'd read some of their older adventures. And I was not disappointed.
I am not a big fan of Paul Levitz work, let me make that very clear. I know he is a sacred cow and fanboys feel about Levitz and LOSH the way I and other fanboys feel about Chris Claremont and the X-Men. These are perfect pairings and no one else could write the characters the same way and the books are never the same under anyone else's hands and all that jazz. But the truth of the matter is, I loved Waid's work on the Legion, a lot more, and even more than him, if possible, Jim Shooter's closing out of the Legion's run before Geoff John's brought back Levitz's Legion and Levitz himself took over their adventures again pre-52.
Now the majority of that won't mean a thing to people new to the Legion, so please ignore that, or take this advice, ANY run of the Legion of Super-Heroes is good. These characters are just so appealing in every incarnation, and your mileage may vary but they have all been fortunate enough to have writers and artists who care tons about their books.
The Review:
This is a collection of different issues of Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes, a title that ran back in the 70's. This collection contains stories written by Paul Levitz, and Gerry Conway along with Len Wein and Paul Kupperberg. Of all of them I think I liked the stories written by Gerry Conway the best. Though, I will say I would be hard pressed to pick a favorite out of all of the stories contained here. Though I will say one of my favorites was written by Paul Levitz for DC Comics Presents Superman and Superboy. I liked it but I will say it contained more Superman and Superboy than the Legion so that might have had something to do with that. And the artwork in that storyline by Dick Dillin and Dick Giordano was some of the best art in the books.
Artwise, the book is all over the place for 70's style artwork. I don't mean this to be disparaging in any way, actually quite the contrary, the art styles employed back then by DC and Marvel were some of the most realistic and less wildly stylized than the stuff you currently find in comics and nowhere near as ridiculous as the 90's art styles would get. Even the artist with the most sparce art styles still manage to draw very realistic and interesting landscapes and easily recognizable characters. I don't know if this is strictly owed to the way books were drawn back then or if the Legion merely afforded better artists because they were a Superman book. Whatever the reason, the artwork in this book will not disappoint. It is gorgeous and features some little glimpses of Mike Grell's work as well as James Sherman. I am very eager to add this book to my own personal collection, despite the heavy price tag. If DC would be kind enough to print a paperback I wouldn't complain.
There are a lot of adventures here, most of them including Superboy and they range from cute and campy to epically long (but not in the good way), and I mean that about Levitz's Earthwar which is supposed to be the big story and the selling point of the book. However, I find the story takes too long and it doesn't seem half as interesting as it could be. It drags, like much of Levitz's stories and accomplishes little in the way of anything new. If I have one complaint about this book, it is that the same ten legionnaires seem to get all the love and attention, something I've seen with Levitz's legion runs over and over again. I for one can't stand Wildfire, so I could have done with less of him. The story with the Legion of Substitute Heroes was really a nice change, and I love any and all Brainiac 5 appearances though I do think they did him wrong towards the end of the book. A highly enjoyable book if you like old comics. It is nowhere near as grimdark as Levitz got when he finished his New 52 Legion. The stories show a bright and hopeful future and the last adventure in the book is bittersweet and heartbreaking and left me wanting to know where the Legion went from here.
Good stories, better art, I recommend this for any fan of the Legion, or anyone wanting to read classic Legion adventures but the continuity does not matter anymore so it is best to see them as adventures of another Legion in an Elseworld but still, brilliant works by great artists and a must for any Legion fan.
This is a rating of 3.5. There are a lot of stories here and they range from the great to the merely amusing and nostalgic. I say nostalgic but some of these stories are from before my time but they very clearly carry a lot of old comic book campiness. I love the Legion of Super-Heroes. And in an effort to get to know more of their history I thought I'd read some of their older adventures. And I was not disappointed.
I am not a big fan of Paul Levitz work, let me make that very clear. I know he is a sacred cow and fanboys feel about Levitz and LOSH the way I and other fanboys feel about Chris Claremont and the X-Men. These are perfect pairings and no one else could write the characters the same way and the books are never the same under anyone else's hands and all that jazz. But the truth of the matter is, I loved Waid's work on the Legion, a lot more, and even more than him, if possible, Jim Shooter's closing out of the Legion's run before Geoff John's brought back Levitz's Legion and Levitz himself took over their adventures again pre-52.
Now the majority of that won't mean a thing to people new to the Legion, so please ignore that, or take this advice, ANY run of the Legion of Super-Heroes is good. These characters are just so appealing in every incarnation, and your mileage may vary but they have all been fortunate enough to have writers and artists who care tons about their books.
The Review:
This is a collection of different issues of Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes, a title that ran back in the 70's. This collection contains stories written by Paul Levitz, and Gerry Conway along with Len Wein and Paul Kupperberg. Of all of them I think I liked the stories written by Gerry Conway the best. Though, I will say I would be hard pressed to pick a favorite out of all of the stories contained here. Though I will say one of my favorites was written by Paul Levitz for DC Comics Presents Superman and Superboy. I liked it but I will say it contained more Superman and Superboy than the Legion so that might have had something to do with that. And the artwork in that storyline by Dick Dillin and Dick Giordano was some of the best art in the books.
Artwise, the book is all over the place for 70's style artwork. I don't mean this to be disparaging in any way, actually quite the contrary, the art styles employed back then by DC and Marvel were some of the most realistic and less wildly stylized than the stuff you currently find in comics and nowhere near as ridiculous as the 90's art styles would get. Even the artist with the most sparce art styles still manage to draw very realistic and interesting landscapes and easily recognizable characters. I don't know if this is strictly owed to the way books were drawn back then or if the Legion merely afforded better artists because they were a Superman book. Whatever the reason, the artwork in this book will not disappoint. It is gorgeous and features some little glimpses of Mike Grell's work as well as James Sherman. I am very eager to add this book to my own personal collection, despite the heavy price tag. If DC would be kind enough to print a paperback I wouldn't complain.
There are a lot of adventures here, most of them including Superboy and they range from cute and campy to epically long (but not in the good way), and I mean that about Levitz's Earthwar which is supposed to be the big story and the selling point of the book. However, I find the story takes too long and it doesn't seem half as interesting as it could be. It drags, like much of Levitz's stories and accomplishes little in the way of anything new. If I have one complaint about this book, it is that the same ten legionnaires seem to get all the love and attention, something I've seen with Levitz's legion runs over and over again. I for one can't stand Wildfire, so I could have done with less of him. The story with the Legion of Substitute Heroes was really a nice change, and I love any and all Brainiac 5 appearances though I do think they did him wrong towards the end of the book. A highly enjoyable book if you like old comics. It is nowhere near as grimdark as Levitz got when he finished his New 52 Legion. The stories show a bright and hopeful future and the last adventure in the book is bittersweet and heartbreaking and left me wanting to know where the Legion went from here.
Good stories, better art, I recommend this for any fan of the Legion, or anyone wanting to read classic Legion adventures but the continuity does not matter anymore so it is best to see them as adventures of another Legion in an Elseworld but still, brilliant works by great artists and a must for any Legion fan.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 2, 2019
The League of Assassins was not half bad villains team, i really enjoyed the Legion of Sabsitude Heroes, they were really capable in this story... Especially the Polar Boy and Fire boy or whatever they call him... the kid who controls plants were pretty strong as well actually, it's not a silly power, Night Girl and Color Kid are hopeless cases though... lol but even they came though in this story under Braniac 5's guidance, he made a cool plan. But Braniac 5 actually lost it 1 arc ago, created a creature called Omega to destory the universe.... Omega was not that good desing wise... very bland and lame and Braniac saved everyone at the cost of Matter Eater Lad's senity... :/ If he wasn't still half insane, He wouldn't put Matter Eater Lad at harms way like that, i believe... Superboy and his suspended animation nonsense in The league of Assassins arc was really silly... lol
Not worse than how they beat the lame villain Morduru in earth war though... lol Element Lad buriying Morduru with manuplating Hydrogen atoms in space or something... lol like there aren't hydrogen atoms on Earth.... lol They never think anything through with this stories... Almost all of them are filled with gaint plot holes. Were they all children when they wrote Superboy and LOSH ? There was a Superman vs Superboy story, that was enjoyable even if the silliness. lol I enjoyed the first trade more actually... But this wan't half bad at the end parts. I liked how they cured Braniac 5, even if it's abit crazy. lol And the pycho war two part story was really fun. I really liked how that crazy pycho warrior took on the challange of taking on legion and Superboy by himself with his self built armor and some tech... that was epic like Batman vs Superman. I always love when a guy with nothing but his brain, wit to take on these Gods... He is right or wrong, it is always a real pleasure to read.
Not worse than how they beat the lame villain Morduru in earth war though... lol Element Lad buriying Morduru with manuplating Hydrogen atoms in space or something... lol like there aren't hydrogen atoms on Earth.... lol They never think anything through with this stories... Almost all of them are filled with gaint plot holes. Were they all children when they wrote Superboy and LOSH ? There was a Superman vs Superboy story, that was enjoyable even if the silliness. lol I enjoyed the first trade more actually... But this wan't half bad at the end parts. I liked how they cured Braniac 5, even if it's abit crazy. lol And the pycho war two part story was really fun. I really liked how that crazy pycho warrior took on the challange of taking on legion and Superboy by himself with his self built armor and some tech... that was epic like Batman vs Superman. I always love when a guy with nothing but his brain, wit to take on these Gods... He is right or wrong, it is always a real pleasure to read.
November 30, 2024
Collects Superboy and the Legion Of Super-Heroes #241-258 with the renamed Legion Of Super-Heroes #259, as well as DC Comics Presents #13-14, a two-part story featuring Superman meeting the Legion and then himself (sort of) as Superboy (with no Legion in sight). All of these issues are from 1978-79.
Paul Levitz wrote the first few of these issues which includes one of the classic storylines, the Earthwar saga. Gerry Conway soon took over the writing and to his credit spent a lot of time with the aftermath of the Earthwar, at a point when comics didn't do long story arcs much. Conway's scripts are only average, though, feeling a bit of a regression to pre-Jim Shooter blandness. The art is handled by a variety of artists, including Joe Staton, James Sherman, and even (an uninspired) Steve Ditko for one short backup story. None of the artists match former mainstay artist Mike Grell's achievements, but are serviceable. Overall, not the greatest period in Legion history, but good enough to slog through.
Paul Levitz wrote the first few of these issues which includes one of the classic storylines, the Earthwar saga. Gerry Conway soon took over the writing and to his credit spent a lot of time with the aftermath of the Earthwar, at a point when comics didn't do long story arcs much. Conway's scripts are only average, though, feeling a bit of a regression to pre-Jim Shooter blandness. The art is handled by a variety of artists, including Joe Staton, James Sherman, and even (an uninspired) Steve Ditko for one short backup story. None of the artists match former mainstay artist Mike Grell's achievements, but are serviceable. Overall, not the greatest period in Legion history, but good enough to slog through.
February 12, 2021
I really enjoy reading these compilations of years worth of comics, especially a series with many long-term plots (and a few too many characters) like "Legion of Super Heroes". However, not all of these issues from the '70s hold up all that well. There are some good stories here, but also some inconsistent art, and a mood and tone that flips from silly to deadly serious, sometimes from page to page. My major cringe from these story arcs is the portrayal of mental health and illness; except for a few villains motivated by greed, most are motivated by trauma or madness. Even a hero becomes a villain due to stress and past trauma. It's certainly fitting for DC Comics, where "mental illness equals villainy" has long been a pervasive and troublesome theme, but reading stories with these themes in 2021 makes them seem that much more dated.
August 2, 2021
I'm huge fan of the LSH going back decades. There are a few Pre-Crisis stories I'd always want to read but could never find... at least cheaply. One of them is Earth War. Most of the these stories are so 70s. But if you like Bronze Age Comics, you're in for a treat. Lots of neat little mystery stores but not the cheap kind. Apart from the Psychowar... the writers (mostly Paul Levitz and Gerry Conway) play fair. The clues are all there. Most of the stories are great and are a lot of fun.
September 8, 2018
I grew up with the Legion in Adventure Comics, and never read these stories when they were published in comic form. So happy that DC is collecting them like this. The stories do not compare to the ones that came before; they lack a certain joy, I think. But they are well done, and the printing is excellent. I just wish they had done an introduction like the Archives series did, to set the tone and the time of the book. All in all, an enjoyable book.
May 14, 2019
This is another volume that includes book I picked up as a kid of the 70's. For much of this run, I actually had a subscription. Others I remember snagging at one of the first comic book shops I ever visited - Empire Comics outside of Rochester NY. At this point, we get occasional covers by Mike Grell, which are amazing, but interiors that did not excite me as much. That makes this period of LSH history not a big favorite of mine. Still, it sets some good groundwork for what was to come.
December 10, 2020
La guerra terrestre, la locura de Brainiac, la bancarrota de R. J. Brande y el adiós de Superboy: estas son las aventuras hasta un año antes de la Saga de la Gran Oscuridad, y aunque mucho menos alabadas que esta, ponen las bases de la mayoría de edad de la Legión. El crescendo emocional y un grafismo no innovador pero sí sólido, hacen que el volumen sea muy disfrutable, y una pieza valiosa de la historia legionaria.
March 29, 2019
This second volume that continues on from the associated Archives was much appreciated - and once again took me back to my later teenage years. Hopefully the will continue!
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