Booster Gold #43

Weird. I was totally bored by last month's Perforated Man story, but the follow-up this month is quite enjoyable. Perhaps it is the guest-starring Legion of Super-Heroes (is this Booster's first meeting with them? Weird, if so, they're a natural fit.) Keith Giffen and JM DeMatteis have an amusing take on the Legion, these guys aren't geniuses; heck, they take orders from Ultra Boy in the field, surely they must know better than that!

It may be forced having the Legion capture Booster, but it does set up some great jokes. Chameleon Boy and Proty playing good cop/bad cop? Awesome.

In all, this story seems like a sort of deck-clearing exercise to line us up for Flashpoint. Now, I'd planned to skip that crossover, but now I'm getting concerned that this title won't make sense if I don't get it! It does seem the writers have set up something with that slowed-down aging too, that's an interesting new power for Booster.

Chris Batista has drawn the Legion before, and it shows. He's got a great take on the team, and of course his Booster is smug and hilarious.

Good

Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds TPB

Well color me surprised. I was sure that this new incarnation of the Legion would confuse the hell out of me, but Geoff Johns has done a wonderful job getting me up to speed. I started reading the Legion with Giffen's 5-year later series (one of the only eras being totally forgotten these days) and I kept up during the Zero Hour years. I was crushed when DnA's take finally ended, so it is not an easy thing to get me back into the Legion. But you know what? I'm back.

Johns wisely keeps the focus on a good core of characters. Everyone knows Brainiac, he's a natural central character. I have never really liked Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, or Saturn Girl much, but while they are still central to this story, Blok, the White Witch, Rond Vidar, Wildstar, and Dawnstar have almost equal panel time. Johns spends a ton of time with Superboy Prime, and he's such a compelling villain that he really drives the entire story. Mixing in such a simple villain with all these weird concepts like Takron Galtos and dozens of villains I've never heard of was a really effective way to tackle the story.

It is a thrill seeing the Zero Hour Legion back, even if it was just a short time. I love that Johns leaves them out there as the "New Wanderers" searching the multiverse for other characters marooned after their Earths are destroyed. There's a chance to see them again. Gates and XS actually stick around in the "real" Legion; I'm happy to see it, they were two of the better creations during Zero Hour. Johns shows once again how he's so good at drilling down a core concept and then putting the toys back in the box. (He brings back some pretty big characters in this one too. He loves setting stuff up.) This is a Legion I want to read more about! I can't believe it, but I think I'm in for the upcoming trades on the new series.

Superboy gets a nice (if short-lived) new status quo. Lurking in the "real" world and hanging in the DCU message boards? That's just perfect.

George Perez is the master of crowded fight scenes. There is always another Easter egg, hidden character, or tiny detail to pore over. There was one panel where three fists are punching a villain out, and I grinned at the tiny cameo for Triplicate Girl. Night Girl's revealing costume aside, I loved his take on the older Legion. I do have to admit I'm about ready for something new for Superboy Prime in the costume department.

Good

Adventure Comics #4

I'm kind of torn on this issue. I'm really quite amused that Geoff Johns is going full-throttle on his Superboy Prime as an angry fanboy thing, but at the same time, not much actually happens here. The issue opens with Superboy Prime (who lives in "our" world) reading Adventure Comics #4 and complaining that he has been included in the Blackest Night crossover. That type of in your face fourth wall breaking is hard to come by, and seeing SBP rage at his local comic store is pretty funny. He's even reduced to scouring the internet for clues about what happens in issue 5. Unfortunately, Alex Luthor gets a black lantern ring and pops off to Earth Prime to rile up SBP and eat his heart. Alex has some great lines, the best ones being dead-on statements about what the fan community thinks about SBP. I also liked his observation about computers, that they are instruments that we use to "channel our rage." It's all a bit on the nose, but like I said, it is amusing. However, not much actually happens here. I do think this was worth picking up just for that sweet Blue Lantern ring though!

I'm confused on the Legion. Brainiac 5 and the Legion are shown in the main story to be in the process of excavating old comics that they can use to try and determine what happened hundreds of years ago. Brainy also mentions that Sun Boy and Element Lad are dead. Didn't I just read about Sun Boy last month, or am I misremembering? It also seems like the status quo is quite different in the backup story. I'm totally befuddled as to the timeline and what is happening. I must confess that I haven't read Legion of 3 Worlds though, maybe that clears it up.

Jerry Ordway is spot on, as always. He's got such a great blend of emotion and action in his pencils that I always love it when he gets to headline a book. Clayton Henry has a clean style that works great for super-stories too; his Dawnstar in particular is quite nice.

Fair

Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes TPB

These Superman trades take so darn long to ship, it really is too bad. I had really lost interest in most of the Superman books as I waited for the trade, but now that I finally get to read Geoff Johns' definitive take on the Legion, I find myself really digging it.

Superman is going about his business when he happens upon a Legion time-sphere. A message from Brainiac 5 fills in Supes that he's needed in the future to set the record straight on a few things, but when the trip goes wrong, Superman ends up arriving months after he was supposed to. He's already too late. And the sun is red.
There have been eras where I loved the legion (Giffen's 5 year later, DnA's Legion Lost) and eras where it has been just average (the zero hour relaunch and Waid's legion of teenagers). The common thread seems to be that I'm really interested in the dynamics of a huge crew of heroes, but only when they are the underdogs.

Johns plays it just right (for me) here, by the time Superman arrives in the future, Earth Man and his Justice League have the Legion on the run. I'm going show off my lack of Legion cred when I announce that I don't recognize any of the evil Justice League as former rejects of the Legion, but Johns brings me up to speed nicely. All these folks were rejected by the Legion back in the day, and really all the hate and cruelty they've fostered is just an attempt to prove they are worth something. The way Johns plays it, all the rejects have powers that actually seem worthwhile, even the lady with extra eyeballs. I really dug his take on the one reject who has the power to channel different auras of light. (Bonus points if you can guess that those colors now correspond to the rainbow lanterns of the current DCU.) Johns provides plenty of cameos and cool scenes for most of the Legion, but he wisely chooses to focus on a select few: Dawnstar, Wildfire, Colossal Boy, and Polar Boy. The dialogue does a nice job bouncing between earnest seriousness and camp recognizing the fun history of the Legion. The modern takes on the costumes helps, everyone is still wearing a version of their classic suit, but the cast is all so haggard and toughened up that it is clear "this ain't your father's legion."

Superman eventually comes through, relying on his goodness and strength of character more than his powers, just like all good Superman stories. There are a few great panels of the Justice League getting their comeuppance, which is an important part of every story. Supes' friendship with the Legion feels a tad forced, but I can respect the close bond Johns is attempting to set up. I really dug how closely Johns tied scenes here to his work on the current Superman: Secret Identity series. There are direct panels repeated in both stories. At this point, it is clear Johns has a plan. (One request though; could we get more Ultra Boy and Phantom Girl next time? They were my favorite part of the Zero Hour Legion.)

There are plenty of things I don't even get. I thought Chameleon Boy was a... boy, I'm not familiar with Chameleon Girl at all. Was Radiation Roy supposed to be someone I recognized, or just a general deviant? It is actually kind of funny, after reading comics for almost 30 years now, I rarely feel like I'm not getting the whole picture, but I felt like that here. Not that it stopped me from enjoying the trade. I think I can safely add Johns' take on the Legion to the list of eras that I like, rather than those that are just "there."

Gary Frank's pencils are always so nicely detailed. His faces are so expressive, very few can show emotions as well as his characters do. Sometimes his people can look at bit odd, for example, Night Girl looks like a bit of a kook in most of the panels she shows up in. That said, his updated costumes are really fun and I loved the design for Earth Man. We need more folks showing up in comics willing to rock the sideburns!

Good