Dream Quest continues and Universo reigns supreme - we look at The Legion #21 & 22!!

The Legion #21

It's part three of "Dream Crime," the latest multi-issue story from writers Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning (DnA) and artists Chris Batista and Mark Farmer. For those who missed last week, we left off with Saturn Girl and Dreamer on Titan, the former for rest and relaxation to get a grip on her PTSD and the latter to figure out if she can link her precognitive powers to the Titanian communication net and help the U.P. predict threats. Dreamer, in issue #19, sees that Darkseid has come back to wreak havoc while Saturn Girl, in issue #20, is being mentally attacked by Universo. Since it's Universo on the cover of #21, I'm guessing Darkseid is just a trick. But with DnA, I honestly wouldn't be shocked if they just went with both and completely destroyed the Earth.

We're now establishing the front page of the book as 4/5ths pictures of the Legionnaires with a text piece explaining what's happened before and 1/5th the first panel of the book. We finally get to see what Sensor looks like now after she evolved - she's more humanoid but still snake-like... and we get a very gratuitous butt shot of Shikari. Pandering is not dead in the 31st Century.

Dreamer has reached out to Legion World to let everyone know that she saw Darkseid, the newest threat to the galaxy. Kid Quantum, Cosmic Boy, and Triad talk about who he was (he isn't really well-known 1,000 years in the future) and compare him to Ra's Al Ghul (No offense to Ra's, but he's not even in the same ballpark as Darkseid). Gear pulls up some old records and informs us that Darkseid usually lived outside their standard dimension and uses a "Boom Tube" to get back and forth. Triad tracks the energy profile of the Boom Tubes and discovers a match - here at Legion World.

The Tube bursts open, delivering para-demons aplenty to fight the Legion. They're all saying "Darkseid is." over and over again.

Instead of the requisite fight, we head to the Medical Deck, where Ultra Boy and Apparition are checking in on Cub, who's still living inside a Quantum bubble that slows time. Jo wants to know why Tinya didn't check with him before making medical decisions about his son, and she responds that she figured he was too busy with Saturn Girl. The alarm sirens go off so we have to table this inane discussion so they can join the fight.

With every issue, this whole Jo/Tinya subplot is just becoming an unfunny episode of Three's Company (young readers, ask your parents what this was). All they need to do is sit down and talk, maybe with a counselor, and this would be over in 22 minutes.

We break away from the Medical Deck to see that a huge Apokolips-like planetoid has appeared beside Legion World. I'll also ignore this whole "why would anyone choose to live or work on Legion World" problem. It is a great full-page drawing, though.

Inside Legion World, the battle is fully-joined. Shikari and Brainiac 5 rush to help their teammates as she starts asking who is Darkseid and, more importantly, what is he? Then she "hears" Universo's voice, "I am more." and we realize that Brainy didn't hear it. Is Shikari more sensitive to psychic communication?

We go to the darkened room where Sensor is hiding from her teammates. She's angry, hating what she's become. She's ugly now. She's also curious - why did everything go so quiet?

Darkseid emerges from the Boom Tube, leading the attack, and Star Boy flies towards him. We get a nice moment of Chuck trying to carry out one of Triad's three bodies, rescuing her while she's unconscious. Star Boy's powers, to no surprise, immediately stop working properly and he collapses in front of Darkseid. And, as he collapses, he starts turning into a black hole. As Kid Quantum tries to slow this down, Darkseid prepares to attack her.

To the Medical Deck, where the para-demons have started attacking, Apparition wants to them to get Cub out of there. Cub, by the way, looks completely different from last issue, or the issue before, or any issue. Is it so hard to draw and color a child the same way from issue to issue? Before they can do anything, the Quantum bubble pops and Cub has disappeared.

Back to the fight and Shikari is fighting against the voice in her head, trying to figure out where it's coming from. She uses her powers to track it and then realizes that she's standing in a room of frozen people. There is no battle. They haven't been attacked. Everyone is standing like statues.

She approaches all the Legionnaires she sees, who are just repeating, "I am. You think, therefore I am more. I am more," over and over again. I guess they're all DeCartesians. The only positive thing here is that they finally draw Leviathan at normal size. Wow - I honestly can't remember the last time this happened.

Shikari flies through Legion World, trying to find someone else who isn't being mind-controlled. She runs into Sensor, who was emerged from her quarters. They talk about what's going on and Sensor has determined that "some kind of total mind-sprock" is going on. Yep, they've completely forgotten how she speaks as well. Their powers are protecting them from what's going on, although there's absolutely no reason why they should, so they can lead the fight against the villain.

It's Universo, pretending to be Darkseid to mess everyone up. He's on every channel and every link. Sensor explains who he is and then tells Shikari they need to head to Earth to make sure they're not under control. Just a dumb question of mine, but why would he take over Legion World and Titan but not Earth? Surely, if he can already control billions of people, what is another few billions?

They head to the threshold area but everything's shut down. Waiting for them are Spark, Wildfire, and Brainiac 5, who see them as para-demons and attack. M'onel joins the attack and we get our first sense of Sensor's new powers - she's much stronger than before and throws him like a doll.

Shikari and Sensor get to Brainy's lab, where the only working threshold is the one that would take them to Steeple... which is where Karate Kid and Ferro are trapped by star weights. Unfortunately, the two have no choice and they jump through the gate. M'onel blasts the gate behind them, destroying it, and we get the horrible message that there is a 100% probability that the two have been lost or corrupted in transit.

Is there anyone reading this who actually thinks they've killed off Sensor and Shikari? Yeah, me neither.

I just have to say this - I know that they're making Universo out to be insanely powerful, but can we just talk about what kind of powers it would take for him to control an entire planet of telepaths... you know, people who have been training for their entire lives to fight against this?

To be continued...

The Legion #22

This cover just looks off to me. I can't explain why... it's like the anatomy is just wrong...

Anyway, let's continue with the Universo problem. Or the "what happened to Shikari and Sensor" problem.

The front text piece explains what happened to our two alien-looking Legionnaires (although both are becoming more and more humanoid with each issue) and how they've been "plunged, helpless, into the fathomless wastes of interstitial space..."

According to Merriam-Webster, interstitial means "occurring in or being an interval or intervening space or segment : of, relating to, or forming an interstice." An interstice is "a space that intervenes between things." So, the space between space?

By the way, I'd just like to point out that The Legion is written at a higher grade level than any newspaper or magazine. And at a higher grade level than the average American is able to read at. Remember this whenever someone gives you crap for reading comic books.

We begin with Universo walking on Titan as the conquering tyrant. At least I think he's on Titan - they're don't explain anything and, to be blunt, everything kinda looks the same. He's in control of millions of people, with both Saturn Girl and Dreamer hooked up to some machines that keep them under wraps. I have absolutely no idea why Dreamer is hooked up to the same device as Saturn Girl. How are her powers a problem for him at all? 

All of the Legion are under his control, arriving through thresholds, from Neo-Kinetix (I guess being a Terrorform doesn't protect you from psychic attacks) to Wildfire (who doesn't have a brain... I always wondered how telepaths were able to control an energy being).

With the threshold destroyed last issue, Sensor and Shikari find themselves flying through what they call the Warp-way but what looks remarkably like the time stream. I know we all love the rainbow colors, but can't we have these things look different? Shikari yells at Sensor to take her hand, reminding her that Sensor may as well use what she now has. Somehow, Shikari is able to find a threshold gate and they both get through to... safety??

I was also expecting this to be more... dangerous. I mean, it just kinda looks like they're flying through a pathway. How is this so dangerous that Shikari refused to do it two issues ago?

Universo pays close attention to Dreamer, rapidly approaching creepy status, and then compliments Saturn Girl for her "Statuesque mind." He thinks about how unfair it was that the leaders of Titan locked him up. Then he thanks them for building the Titanet, the telepathic connector to the entire United Planets.

Sensor wakes up after the crash landing through the threshold door and spots Karate Kid and Ferro. Neither of them recognize her so she's got to introduce herself again. Ferro wonders if she's there to rescue them. They go to someone's home, Sensor tells them about the Legionnaires they lost, and then Shikari says that the four of them are the only Legionnaires able to stop Universo.

And just as I start thinking, "how the heck did a threshold door end up on Steeple?" they're nice enough to explain how Brainiac 5 sent it with instructions, Karate Kid was able to set it up, and Shikari explains that they didn't come get them because they were worried it was too dangerous.

Ferro is also nice enough to explain to Sensor that he was badly injured and is now stuck in his bio-metal form forever. And his mask is fused to him - he can never take it off again. In one page they settle what was spread over far too many issues in the previous run. I can't say I love this twist for Ferro, but at least they're moving forward. I also have no idea how the backwards priests of this planet have anything resembling the powers or the technology to cure Ferro, but since DnA doesn't care if this makes sense, I'm not going to care either.

Then, to make it safer to go back, the priests have built devices for everyone to wear that, when connected to Sensor's powers, will protect them from psychic attacks. They build these based on Ferro's designs... so, once again, a Legionnaire does something that they've never shown the ability to do before to move the story forward. I guess this would not be the right time to point out that Ferro was born in the 20th Century because, once again, I doubt DnA know this.

Shikari takes the four into the threshold and, while it was dangerous to go to Steeple, it's nothing to leave. That makes no sense, but we have to get to the action, right? They arrive at Titanet Tower and they're immediately bombarded by psychic energy. Why not go to Earth? Or anywhere else for help?

Almost immediately, they enter the main room and see Universo and the Legion, floating around the energy spike in the middle. Universo spots them instantly and the battle begins. No strategy from the four... no thoughts before arriving... wow...

The Legionnaires attack, thinking they're up against Darkseid's forces and the four are able to battle against them. Ferro takes a full blast of Wildfire's powers and then punches him, reminding everyone that he's living metal. I have no idea how Ferro would know who Wildfire is, but that's par for the course with this issue? Karate Kid comments that everyone is moving slowly from the mind control, which is when Triad kicks him. He was able to parry Ultra Boy's super strength and speed, but Triad gives him problems because Tri-Jitsu is the greatest martial art in the galaxy.

Eventually, the sheer number of mind-controlled Legionnaires proves too much and Universo starts gloating. He's able to take control of the four of them and blast them to the ground. Sensor struggles to get back upright when she hears Universo say:

"Oh yes. We are Universo. And now... so are you."

That might have been the dumbest rescue attempt/attack on the villain I've seen in a Legion comic in a long time. I get that none of the four of them have ever proven to be smart tacticians, but just running into a room to fight all of their teammates? That's a new level of dumb.

For longtime Legion readers, this wouldn't have been the first time that four Legionnaires went up against their mind-controlled former allies... it previously happened in Volume 3, way back in the 80's. While back then, Saturn Girl, Dream Girl, Chameleon Boy, and Brainiac 5 actually had a plan, used their brains, and worked as a team, this four used nothing... it's all just kinda disappointing. DnA could've shown why these four were valuable Legionnaires. Instead...

What's crazy is that, even with all the huge plot holes and inconsistent character work, I actually kinda liked this issue. They got Karate Kid and Ferro off Steeple. They showed Sensor taking charge. They set up the villain as an even bigger threat. They didn't end the issue they way they normally do. The artwork is great.

I just wish DnA let the four actually use their brains.

Our next Legionnaire in the spotlight... Infectious Lass!!!

 

I think the first place I saw Infectious Lass was in DC Comics Presents #59, where Ambush Bug ends up in the 30th Century and it's up to the Subs to stop him. The entire issue is played for comedy and Drura Sehpt is asked to "seduce" the Bug to get him to stop. She, of course, fails at her attempt and the "villain" of the issue continues his rampage across futuristic Metropolis.

My first thought, upon seeing her, was, of course: "Is that snot hanging off her arms?"

Then, upon seeing her first two appearances in the Legion, waaaaay back in Superboy #201 and #218, I was even more entertained. A superhero who can make people sick. A female character who was drawn well (it doesn't hurt that it was Dave Cockrum and Mike Grell) but repulsive at the same time? She was great. Yes, there was no way she was going to make the Legion and she shouldn't have. And there was no way she was really going to help the Subs... and she didn't. And a life of comedy was probably her best best. But there was something compelling about this type of hero.

But, instead of just keeping her as a comedienne, and instead of having her in the resistance in the 5YL Legion and disappearing, she became one of the most "realistic" characters in the series. She was married to Invisible Kid II, the President of Earth, and was his voice of reason, his confidante, and stuck with him through everything. Instead of letting her powers and her past define her, she became capable, confident, and compelling. You could argue that she was one of the Legion's best characters at this point - one of the few who you could actually support and cheer for.

I think she belongs in the same category as Bouncing Boy and Matter-Eater Lad - a hero who may not seem to be much, but has become someone you needed to take seriously. I really hope she'll be a part of any reboot/relaunch that's coming in the future.

Thoughts on Dream Crime? Or Infectious Lass? Please share your comments on Reddit and we'll see you next week!