Supergirl and the Legion #22: "It's that sproggin' little skirt, isn't it?"

[Aaron Kashtan]

This was an incredible issue! It wasn't by the full creative team, but the Waid/Bedard/Kitson/DeKraker conglomerate turned in an awesome story anyway. It featured some very nice characterization and some surprising revelations about Jo, Shady, Lyle and others.

What did everyone else think?

[shaxper]

I've been following this title since OYL and I'm still confused on a few basic points:


1. What's the deal with all the super powered teens that vote for Legion leader but don't fight as part of the Legion? Is there an elite fighting corps or something?

2. What exactly is the mission of the Legion? Most of these issues are either about interpersonal conflicts or trying to get along with the Science Police. What's the actual purpose of the team?

3. Who are those people checking out the Dominion settlement? Apparently, they're not the Legion, which I only know because someone says as much.

I think I really like this series but the Legion's major attraction and flaw have both always been that they have such a vast membership. It's nearly impossible for a newcomer like me to figure out who's who.

[Ontir]

1. What's the deal with all the super powered teens that vote for Legion leader but don't fight as part of the Legion? Is there an elite fighting corps or something?

Basically anyone who believes in the Legion's ideals, and is a teen, is a Legionnaire. Some of them have powers, others don't. The team, as opposed to the movement, is a core group, whose size is dictated by the number of very expensive flight rings.

2. What exactly is the mission of the Legion? Most of these issues are either about interpersonal conflicts or trying to get along with the Science Police. What's the actual purpose of the team?

As clear as I can see, it's that the worlds are really boring, because it's supposedly a utopia, and everyone's really complacent. By donning bright costumes and emulating heroes of the past, they're supposed to spur the public to action from apathy.

3. Who are those people checking out the Dominion settlement? Apparently, they're not the Legion, which I only know because someone says as much.

There are 2 possibilities with this other group: It's either the former Terror Firmas, now under Sunboy's tutelage, or it's the new Legion of Super-Villains, possibly a combination of both; but I've not read the issue, so I'm not certain.

I think I really like this series but the Legion's major attraction and flaw have both always been that they have such a vast membership. It's nearly impossible for a newcomer like me to figure out who's who.

In reality, the Legion isn't any more daunting than the X-Men. Yes, there are several characters, right now, it's about 19 or 20, with more on the way, but at least on the hero side, they do a good job of telling you who they are with the roll call page. The villains is another story. Waid was horrible with identifying Terror Firma. He'd have 7 of their members in an issue, and only one of them would be named in the entire thing, if we were lucky, more than once.

[Alex L]

I think I really like this series but the Legion's major attraction and flaw have both always been that they have such a vast membership. It's nearly impossible for a newcomer like me to figure out who's who.

They do have a lot of members.

However, not everyone is featured in every issue, which might help somewhat.

Over the course of the first storyarc, they did feature people at least once, but not everyone has an equal share of the spotlight (Cosmic Boy and Brainiac are the main characters of the book, Colossal Boy and Element Lad somewhat less so).

[Nessor Sille]

surprising revelations about Jo

So Jo is a stupid neanderthal who can't perform as a hero (or, it's implied, as a lover) if he thinks a girl might be stronger than him?

Surprising? Yes. Also repellent and ugly. That makes Jo seem more vile than just flawed.

[Aaron Kashtan]

So Jo is a stupid neanderthal who can't perform as a hero (or, it's implied, as a lover) if he thinks a girl might be stronger than him?

Surprising? Yes. Also repellent and ugly. That makes Jo seem more vile than just flawed.

I don't think there was any sexism implied anywhere in the issue. Jo's problem, as Shady explains it, is that "not being the strongest anymore is making him mental." It's not that a girl is stronger than him, it's that someone, regardless of who it is, is stronger than him. There is no evidence in the issue to suggest otherwise.

[Mulett]

I don't think there was any sexism implied anywhere in the issue. Jo's problem, as Shady explains it, is that "not being the strongest anymore is making him mental." It's not that a girl is stronger than him, it's that someone, regardless of who it is, is stronger than him. There is no evidence in the issue to suggest otherwise.

Lord help him when Mon-El shows up again!

I'm slowly getting into the Legion again. I'm suffering a bit from the number of re-boots and this 'older' Legion is harder to care about, simply because they have years of history that we (as readers) didn't share with them.

For instance, some one mentioned that - for all we know - Superboy (Superman as a boy - who appears to be coming back into continuity) may have been a member of this Legion in the early years and we simply don't know that yet.

But I have been enjoying the stories so far. They just haven't really hooked me in, just yet, like earlier versions.

[kenaustin]

There are 2 possibilities with this other group: It's either the former Terror Firmas, now under Sunboy's tutelage, or it's the new Legion of Super-Villains, possibly a combination of both; but I've not read the issue, so I'm not certain.

Yeah, it's Former Terror Firma, and Sunboy in a new costume.

...For instance, some one mentioned that - for all we know - Superboy (Superman as a boy - who appears to be coming back into continuity) may have been a member of this Legion in the early years and we simply don't know that yet.

Where did you see/hear this at, Mulett? I've never heard that before.

[Shellhead]

Issue #22 was enjoyable, unlike several recent issues. However, I wish that Sunboy and Terror Firma could have stayed out of the picture longer, because we still haven't gotten enough scenes featuring some of the Legion in this series. I hope this Supergirl subplot goes somewhere soon, because so far she hasn't added much to the title, at least not enough to justify top-billing. Sure, she's powerful, but her personality is pretty bland.

[Green Gardner]

Sure, she's powerful, but her personality is pretty bland.

Say what you like, but I'll take perky over emo. And anyway, I liked this issue a lot. I mostly got into the title because I decided (After a period of thinking the idea of a guy so good at Karate that he can fight evenly with Superman level beings was retarded.) I liked the Karate Kid concept, and based on scans I'd seen, the personality was pretty cool too, but since I started reading, there hasn't been much of him, so this issue was nice. Plus the moral of the story being that Ultra Boy is an idiot with no depth whatsoever still makes me chuckle.

[Killer Frost]

Hey, Ultra Boy's not an idiot, he's a non-existential warrior type. :p

It was good fun, this issue. He-man Sun Boy was an extra bonus. Clever twist to the Supergirl and Cosmic Boy non-romance, too. She's okay as long as she stays out of the Legionnaires' pants.

[Bored at 3:00AM]

I was really enjoying this newest version of Legion, but I've been growing bored with it over the past several months. Can't quite place why, but I think I'll be dropping it and just watch the cartoon for my Legion fix.

[Killer Frost]

I was really enjoying this newest version of Legion, but I've been growing bored with it over the past several months. Can't quite place why, but I think I'll be dropping it and just watch the cartoon for my Legion fix.

You might find part of the answer on the credits page. Fill-in artist and relief co-scripter for the past few months.

[Mulett]

Where did you see/hear this at, Mulett? I've never heard that before.

It was on one of these DC threads - possibly a post-IC thread. The suggestion was that Superboy (Kal-el as a boy, as opposed to Conner) is coming back into continuity. This is mainly believed to be the case because an image of the Kal-el Superboy was shown when the 'New Earth' was created in Infinite Crisis. He was stood infront of the Welcome to Smallville sign. There have also been (vague) references to this in Superman's own comics recently.

When the previous Legion came into being (as a result of Zero Hour) we watched them from their first meeting (Livewire, Saturn Girl and Cosmic Boy) and so we know the origins of that particular team and that (Kal-el) Superboy was never involved.

But this current version is older and has a history that we haven't shared with them. The thread that suggested a Superboy link included a comment that if the Kal-el Superboy is - indeed - back in continuity again, he may well have been a member of this Legion during their early years. Or at the very least have been the inspiration for the team - as he was pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths.

[Jack]

We know that there was a big rumour about a "Super-Boy" in Kansas, but never any proof. The equivalent of Bigfoot, until Superman himself showed up and people made the connection. But JLA #1 does prove that Clark has had some connection to some form of the Legion, because he once showed a Flight Ring to Bruce.

His origin is probably more in line with Smallville than PrC Superboy.