Long Live the Legion

Legion of Super-Heroes (vol 7) #16 All we need to know for the recap is that the Fatal Five is reforming and Chameleon Boy is investigating. We'll cover anything else as we go. "Choose wisely" is written by Paul Levitz with art by Scott Kolins. Ugh. We're back to the boxey, Steve Ditko-inspired artwork that just doesn't work for either this book or this era of comics. What's weird is that I know Kolins is capable of doing much, much, much better work. Why did he change his style for this? Was he spending too much time reading old issues of Shade, the Changing Man and thought it was the best way to handle the Legion? Ultra Boy and Phantom Girl arrive at Legion HQ and Jo has the unenviable task of letting us know what's going on. The leadership election is happening... again... and he's not pleased with the process. He figures Tinya should be leader. She's smart, right? But she doesn't want to be noticed at all and would rather not be leader. Not...

Legion of Super-Heroes (vol 7) #15 The only recap we really need here is that we're moving closer and closer to the return of the Fatal Five. And, apparently, male Legionnaires are threats to touch women in unwanted ways. Let's begin! "Once Upon a Dream" is written by Paul Levitz, with art by Francis Portela. We're in Metropolis and Glorith is woken from a dream... or is sleepwalking... or in a trance... I dunno. She gets out of bed, her eyes are glowing, and she walks through a pink portal. I must be honest - I have been enjoying the massive amount of pink that's been used in this comic recently. It was always Element Lad's costume and nothing else in the past, so it's good to see they're using more of the available palette. As I'm trying to be more positive today, I'm just going to call out the huge carved tree in her room and I like how they've designed her domicile. It feels like she's back on the Sorcerers' World, so I like...

Legion of Super-Heroes (vol 7) #14 In order to preserve my sanity, I've decided that writing these articles is a public service. If I can prevent one person from reading these books and suffering the way I have, I've done my job. Okay, as much as I complain, LSH isn't actually that bad. Maybe it's because I'm comparing it to Legion Lost, but there are usually a few good things in each issue. Why do I suddenly feel like those are famous last words? The quick recap is that Element Lad, Chemical Kid, and Cosmic Boy are chasing after space pirates, some of which are from Braal, so Rokk struggled fighting them. And they knocked him out with a rock. The rest of the Legion is flying all over the galaxy to make sure the Fatal Five aren't reuniting. Except for Brainiac 5, who's keeping the traitorous Comet Queen sedated and stuck in a plastic tube while he tries to figure out why she helped the Dominators. Even worse, only Duplicate Damsel has a problem with this. ...

Legion of Super-Heroes (vol 7) #13 11 more issues to go before this series reaches its conclusion. These are the moments when I wonder what the editor and creative team are thinking. Legion Lost is about to be cancelled. This book's sales have been dropping every month (45,362 for issue #1 to 18,487 for this one) and I have to assume they're getting the same messages - start getting sales back or you're done. Do you start trying anything you can to get more people to read the book? Is this why artist Scott Kolins has taken over? Does writer Paul Levitz have another trick up his sleeve or is he just staring at his computer and wondering why this experience is so different from his last run on the Legion? Is he calling Keith Giffen every day? Do they have just as many "Questions" as the book itself? We begin on an asteroid mine, where Element Lad and Cosmic Boy as actually doing something, and Chemical Kid is standing behind them, wondering why they're there. Th...