By Otto Binder, Jerry Siegel, Edmond Hamilton, Jim Shooter, Curt Swan, John Forte & various (DC Comics)
ISBN: 978-1- 4012-1724-2
Once upon a time, in the far future, a band of super-powered kids from a multitude of worlds took inspiration from the greatest legend of all time and formed a club of heroes. One day those Children of Tomorrow came back in time and invited their inspiration to join them…
And thus began the vast and epic saga of the Legion of Super-Heroes, as first envisioned by writer Otto Binder and artist Al Plastino in early 1958, just as the revived comicbook genre of superheroes was gathering an inexorable head of steam. Since that time the fortunes and popularity of the Legion have perpetually waxed and waned, with their future history tweaked and rebooted, retconned and overwritten over and again to comply with editorial diktat and popular whim.
This splendid, charm-soaked, action packed second monochrome collection continues to re-present those early tales from the disparate Superman Family titles in chronological order: the sagas from their own feature spanning Adventure Comics #322-348, plus guest-shots from Superboy #117, 124-125 98 and pertinent portions of Superman Annual #4, covering July 1964 to September 1966.
From Adventure #322 the fun-filled futurism opens with ‘The Super-Tests of the Super-Pets’ by Edmond Hamilton, John Forte & Sheldon Moldoff, wherein the Legion’s mighty animal companions – Krypto, Streaky the Super Cat, Beppo, the monkey from Krypton and Comet the magical Super-horse – were left to guard Earth as the major players continued to pursue the elusive Time Trapper.
When Chameleon Boy’s pet Proty II applied to join the bestial bunch they gave him a series of extremely difficult qualification tasks…
‘The Eight Impossible Missions!‘ (#323 by Jerry Siegel, Forte & George Klein) found the incomprehensibly smart Proty setting the human Legionnaires a set of challenges to determine their next leader, after which the tone switched to deadly danger in ‘The Legion of Super-Outlaws!’ by Hamilton & Forte, as a mad scientist bearing a grudge manipulated a super-team from far distant Lallor into attacking the United Planets heroes…
Issue #325 revealed how ‘Lex Luthor Meets the Legion of Super-Heroes!’ (Siegel & Forte) in a cunning tale of deadly deception whilst a ‘Revolt of the Girl Legionnaires!’ (Siegel, Forte & Klein) found the female members attempting to eradicate their male comrades. Of course they didn’t mean it and a sinister mastermind was behind it all…
Superboy #117 (December 1964) featured a classy thriller wherein Chameleon Boy, Invisible Kid, Ultra Boy, Element Lad and Brainiac 5 seemingly travelled back 1000 years to attack the Boy of Steel in ‘Superboy and the Five Legion Traitors!’ (Siegel, Curt Swan & Klein) whilst over in Adventure #327 ‘The Lone Wolf Legionnaire!’ introduced Brin Londo; a troubled teen framed for appalling crimes who would one day become a valued member of the team in a clever thriller from Hamilton, Forte, Klein & Moldoff.
Jerry Siegel & Jim Mooney began an engaging run of tales in #328 beginning with ‘The Lad who Wrecked the Legion!’ as the insidious Command Kid joined the superhero squad in order to dismantle it from within.
Narrowly escaping that fate, the heroes had to confront the topsy-turvy threat of their own imperfect doppelgangers in #329’s ‘The Bizarro Legion!’ after which another nefarious juvenile infiltrated the LSH intending to destroy them all in ‘Secret of the Mystery Legionnaire!’. The dastardly plan proceeded without a hitch until the victorious Dynamo-Boy recruited the malevolent Lightning Lord, Cosmic King and Saturn Queen and fell victim to ‘The Triumph of the Legion of Super-Villains!’ in #331.
Rescued and restored, the good kids were back in Adventure #332 to face ‘The Super-Moby Dick of Space!’ (by Hamilton & Forte) wherein the recently resurrected Lightning Lad suffered crippling injuries and an imminent nervous breakdown…
‘The War Between Krypton and Earth!’ in #333, by Hamilton, Forte & Klein, had the time travelling heroes flung back into the World’s antediluvian past and split into internecine factions on opposite sides of a conflict forgotten by history, after which ‘The Unknown Legionnaire!’ (Hamilton, Forte & Moldoff) posed a perilous puzzle with an oppressed race’s future at stake…
The same creative team introduced deadly super-villain ‘Starfinger!’ in #335 who framed a luckless Legionnaire for his incredible crimes before ‘The True Identity of Starfinger!’ (inked by Klein) was revealed and the entire team focused on the real menace.
Superboy #124 (October 1965, by Otto Binder & George Papp) featured Lana Lang as ‘The Insect Queen of Smallville!’ who was rewarded with a shape-changing ring after rescuing a trapped alien. Naturally she used her new abilities to ferret out Clark Kent’s secrets…
Adventure #337 highlighted ‘The Weddings that Wrecked the Legion!’ by Hamilton, Forte & Moldoff as two couples resigned to marry. However, there was serious method in the seeming marital madness…
Long absent Bête Noir the Time Trapper at last returned in #338 when Siegel & Forte revealed ‘The Menace of the Sinister Super-Babies!’ with sultry Glorith of Baaldur using the Chronal Conqueror’s devices to turn everybody but Superboy and Brainiac 5 into mewling infants. When they turned the tables on the villains a new era dawned for the valiant Tomorrow Teens…
Superboy #125 (November 1965) signalled darker days ahead by introducing a legion reservist with a tragic secret in ‘The Sacrifice of Kid Psycho!’ by Binder & Papp, after which Hamilton, Forte & Moldoff told the bittersweet tale of disaffected and tormented Lallorian hero Beast Boy who turned against humanity in Adventure Comics #339’s ‘Hunters of the Super-Beasts!’
The slow death of whimsy and light-hearted escapades culminated in #340 when Brainiac 5’s latest invention went berserk, becoming ‘Computo the Conqueror!’ (Siegel, Swan & Klein): attacking humanity and even killing one of the superheroes before ‘The Weirdo Legionnaire!’ (inked by Moldoff) began the team’s fight-back and eventual glorious triumph.
‘The Legionnaire who Killed!’ (#342 by Hamilton, Swan, Moldoff & Klein) saw Star Boy forced to take a life and confronted with the harshest of consequences, whilst ‘The Evil Hand of the Luck Lords!’ by Hamilton, Swan & Klein saw the bold band of heroes invade the stronghold of a sinister cult which claimed to control chance and destiny.
The same creative team ramped up the tension in Adventure #344 with ‘The Super-Stalag of Space!’ wherein the Legion – as well as many other planetary champions – were incarcerated by malicious alien overlord Nardo; an epic thriller completed in #345 with ‘The Execution of Matter-Eater Lad!’
With Adventure #346 (July 1966) the dramatic revolution culminated in ‘One of us is a Traitor!’ as Jim Shooter, barely a teenager, sold script and layouts (finished and inked by veteran Sheldon Moldoff) for a spectacular Earth invasion yarn as the sinister Khunds attacked and the depleted Legion inducted four new members to bolster their strength. However, although Princess Projectra, Nemesis Kid, Ferro Lad and Karate Kid were all capable fighters it was soon apparent that one was an enemy agent…
With Earth all but conquered ‘The Traitor’s Triumph!’ (Shooter, Swan & Klein) seemed assured, but there was one last surprise to come in this spectacular debut yarn from one of the industry’s most innovative creators…
This splendid second compendium concludes with a tense thriller by Shooter & Papp from Adventure #348 as the secret origin of Sun Boy was revealed when radioactive rogue Dr. Regulus attempted to gain misplaced vengeance in ‘Target-21 Legionnaires!’
But wait! There’s more!
Before the end there’s an expanded illustrated pictorial check-list and informational guide to the entire team by Swan, Klein & Al Plastino, culled from Superman Annual #4, 1961, Adventure Comics #316 and #365 (January 1964 & February 1968, respectively).
The Legion is undoubtedly one of the most beloved and bewildering creations in comicbook history and largely responsible for the growth of the groundswell movement that became American Comics Fandom. Moreover, these sparkling, simplistic and devastatingly addictive stories as much as the legendary Julie Schwartz Justice League fired up the interest and imaginations of a generation of young readers and built the industry we all know today.
These naive, silly, joyous, stirring and utterly compelling yarns are precious and fun beyond any ability to explain – even if we old lags gently mock them to ourselves and one another. If you love comics and haven’t read this stuff, you are the poorer for it and need to enrich your future life as soon as possible.
© 1961, 1964, 1965, 1966, 2008 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.