LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES
Fanfare
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Many of the things I'm wont to cover on this page are already brilliantly detailed by Michael Grabois at the Legion Omnicom.
Legion Rarities & Trivia
+ Unused Legionnaires Art
Chris
Sprouse himself identified this original artwork. For sale on ebay,
it was done by Chris as a "preparatory sketch" for
the final panel of Legionnaires #11 (Feb. 1994). The note at the bottom
(which reads reads "Presenting—Kid Quantum!") was to describe the
action on the page.
+ Legion "Survivor"
An interesting thread that took place on the DC Comics Message boards called "Best of the LSH." Readers were asked to vote elimination style on nearly 400 Legion characters to arrive at the ultimate top 10. The following won out (all, you should know, were the original versions of the characters):
| ULTIMATE SURVIVORS | These were the last remaining Legionnaires from these Earths (longest-standing first) | |
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| LEGION 2 | LEGION 3 | |
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+ The Lost Origin of the Legion Clubhouse!
John Censullo, an early contributor to my Legion module, once mailed me this alternate story intended to be published in Secret Origins. Editor Mark Waid pushed this one through channels after the Crisis, including Superboy in the Legion's origin. After Byrne's revamp of Superman continuity, this didn't sit well with the higher-ups. Although Waid fixed it so that it would have still worked all right, it was killed. A new story was written and ran in Secret Origins #46. It was written by Gerard Jones and penciled by Kurt Schaffenberger. > READ ...
+ Fan-Designed Costumes
These fan-designed costumes appeared in Adventure #403 (1971, after the Legion's run ended in that comic). Only those for Duo Damsel and Saturn Girl were used permanently. For one issue only, Karate Kid, Projectra, and Shadow Lass wore these costumes, in Superboy v.1 #183 (1972)).
Click for a larger look
+ Superman #8 (1987)
I know I'm not the first to post it, but since i just added it to my original Legion Chronology, it's worth putting here...
Creator John Byrne played a little joke in this story by including the four Legionnaires who most closely resembled the Fantastic Four: Brainiac 5 (Mister Fantastic), Invisible Kid (Invisible Woman), Sun Boy (Human Torch) and Blok (Thing). The cover even mimics Fantastic Four #249 (1982).
+ Yikes! My Legion Costume Designs!
Like many fans, I designed lots and lots of Legion costumes. In bringing you the scans below, I was motivated to dig these drawings out of my boxes and bare myself to the world. There's more where these came from, too. What you see, you can never un-see. (Scans are large.)
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| Weird | Better | Best | Posters |
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Posters
Legion posters are pretty uncommon. Most of the ones you find on ebay are competitively bidded.
For details on these posters, visit the Anal Retentive LSH Merchandise Checklist
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1992 Legion v.4, retail; Immonen |
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+ Legion Poster, 1978
I bought this poster from ebay. It was part of a portfolio (or set) of eight DC promotional posters from 1978. The Legion poster reprints art from the cover of Superboy and the Legion #250 ($3.95).
According to Michael Grabois:
The portfolio was published by Golden Books, titled "Super Heroes and Super Villains." The eight posters were of Superman; Batman, Robin, and Batgirl; Wonder Woman; the Flash; Aquaman; Captain Marvel and Billy Batson; the Batman rogue's gallery; and the Legion. The promo pieces may have been from a style guide or calendar, but I haven't seen the actual location. With stuff like this and portfolios, people buy them and then sell the individual plates for more than they bought the whole portfolio for.
Collectibles
I don't need to cover things like Legion action figures, checklists, and their animated history, because one site does it so well!
Legion
Omnicom's Bits
O' Legionnaire Business. It includes, among other things: Action
Figures • Merchandise •
Checklists
And of course, don't forget to check out the main Legion Omnicom blog for the latest in Legion news.
+ Legion
Stickers!
These were a retailer's incentive shipped along with Legionnaires #50 (1997). This was the double-sized finale of the "wedding" of Mordu and Emerald Violet. > SEE ...
Legion on TV!
Also covered at the Omnicom: Animated Legion history
Legion Parodies
The parodies covered in this section are primarily from other publishers.
+ The Archie Legion
The following image was not published, but is a fan-commissioned piece of art. What's notable is that it preceded the launch of the post-Zero Hour Legion—which came to be known as the "Archie Legion." It's drawn by popular Archie illustrator, Mike Worley. The date reads either 1991 or 1992.
The colorist, Scott Sharritt, is also known as "Lightning Lad," the co-owner of LegionWorld.net.
+ The Authority
A sort of "Wildstorm Legion" appeared in The Authority #27 (January 2002).
+ Guardians of the Galaxy (Marvel Comics)
Clockwise from lower left: Charlie-27, Vance Astro,
Starhawk, Martinex,
Nikki, Yondu
© Marvel Comics
Today it seems even more suspicious that the Guardians of the Galaxy were from the 31st century (where our Legion now resides as well). All its members generally hail from within Earth's solar system. They were brought together to fight the alien Badoon race.There are no flagrant Legion similarities other than their being based 1,000+ years in the future.
Though they were created in 1969, it wasn't until they got their own series in 1990 (by Jim Valentino) that this team came to any sort of prominence. Valentino makes only one remarks about the Guardians in relation to the Legion in a written retrospective on his site. In particular, he mentions a cameo appearance by the Legion’s R.J.Brande (as "Ambassador Jacques") in 1991's annual.
A new book was launched in 2008 bearing this name, but starring a cast from the current-day Marvel universe.
Marvel
Super-Heroes #18 (January 1969)
Guardians
of the Galaxy, 62-issues (1990-95)
Avengers v.1 #167-177, 181 • Defenders v.1 #26-29 • Giant Size Defenders #5 • Marvel Two-In-One v.1 #4-5 •Thor v.1 Annual #6 •
Marvel
Comics: Guardians of the Galaxy • Newsarama:
Guardians of the Galaxy
+ The Imperial Guard (Marvel Comics, 1977)
The first batch of heroes who appeared as the Imperial Guard were designed by Dave Cockrum. Cockrum had recently come from a stint at DC where he proposed several new Legionnaires called the Outsiders. His proposal was not picked up and Cockrum took his ideas to Marvel where they became the new X-Men. After the X-Men title took off in sales, the creators took it one step further and unveiled a massive parody of the Legion. The Guard in its first appearance included:
Astra (Phantom Girl), Electron (Lightning Lad), Fang (Timber Wolf), Gladiator (Mon-El), Hobgoblin (Chameleon Boy), Impulse (Wildfire), Magic (Projectra), Mentor (Brainiac 5), Midget (Shrinking Violet), Nightside (Shadow Lass), Oracle (Saturn Girl), Quasar (Star Boy), Smasher (Ultra Boy), Starbolt (Wildfire), Tempest (Sun Boy) and Titan (Colossal Boy)
X-Men v.1
#107 (October 1977)
Imperial
Guard, 3-issue limited series (1997)
Marvel
Appendix: Imperial Guard • UncannyXmen.net:
Imperial Guard
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Astra |
Electron |
Fang |
Gladiator |
Hobgoblin |
Impulse |
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Magic |
Mentor |
Midget |
Nightside |
Oracle |
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Quasar |
Smasher |
Starbolt |
Tempest |
Titan |
+ The Legion of Superfluous Heroes (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1984)
This Legion appeared as a never-ending roll call in the Normalman series by Jim Valentino. The gag in this humor comics began in issue #1 and continued for several issues. Normalman is collected in trade paperback.
Newsarama:
Jim Valentino on normalman
+ The Legion of Galactic Guardians 2099 (Amalgam Comics/Marvel/DC, 1997)
This one-shot was part of the Amalgam DC/Marvel crossover events. Characters from each publisher were mashed together to form new ones. Please visit the link below to see all the Legionnaires who appeared in this story.
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Spider-Boy |
Chameleon |
Darkstar |
Invisible Girl |
'Lectron |
Martinex 5 |
Myriad |
Nucleus |
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Phantom Cat |
Phoenetix |
Psi-Girl |
Sparkler |
Universe Boy |
Vance Cosmic |
Xcel |
Spider-Boy
Team-Up #1 (June 1997, Amalgam Comics)
The
Unofficial Character Guide to the Amalgam Universe
+ The Legion of Super-Furries (Shanda Comics)
Shanda Fantasy Arts Spotlight #5
© 1999 Carl Gafford
Shanda Fantasy Arts publishes specialty comics featuring "funny animal" characters, not unlike Captain Carrot.
In its anthology issue (50 pages!), SFA Spotlight #5, one two-page story starred the Legion of Super-Furries. It parodies the classic Legion tryouts and the roll call highlights: Cosmic Cat, Saturn Squirrel, Lightning Bug, Monk-Ey, Ultramarine, Karate Kid, Dream Beaver, Colossal Boar, Polar Bear, Night Owl, Chameleon Chameleon, Shrinking Viaduck and Star Fish.
I thought this issue would be impossible to find, but it was in stock at Mile High Comics (in July 2008).
After its publication, Legion fandom took the concept and ran with it a step further, creating the virtual, the hypothetical ... Lotta Species Heroes.
CLICK AND READ:
SFA
Spotlight #5 (May 1999)
+ The Pantheon of Heroes (Big Bang Comics/Image, 1997)
The Pantheon of Super-Heroes formed sometime around the year 2965. In Big Bang v.2 #12, the Savage Dragon is thrust forward in time and meets a trio of heroes: Clone Boy (Dubba, who was a sort of mix between Chameleon Boy and Triplicate Girl); Gravity Girl (a combo of Star Boy and Light Lass); and Laughing Boy. This tale mirrored the Legion try-outs from the Adventure Comics era.
©1998 Big Bang Comics (Big Bang v.2 #22). Click
here for the key to this illustration.
Their next appearance in issue #14 was an homage to the 1970s Mike Grell tales and the Five Year Gap Legion. We see Galactic Lad (now simply called by his real name, Noa Zark) and Snowstar and hear a mention of Anglefish and Nature Boy (deceased). He and Snowstar talk about how their enemy the Time-Bomber keeps them from traveling in time, and how Clone Boy is his prisoner. These heroes are from 2988, but man a station at the end of time and are destroyed when the Savage Dragon passes through their era.
The Dragon's journey continues to plague the Pantheon in 2969, where we meet Brain Boy and Tele-Girl. Then we catch a glimpse of 2973 and Ghost Girl and the entire Pantheon — rendered in the style of Dave Cockrum and combined with his designs for Marvel's Imperieal Guard.
Issue #22 features a reprinting of the gallery of heroes in #18, with a "who's who" key! Members past and present are identified.
Issues #24 and 26 are a staggeringly detailed mockery called "History of Big Bang Comics" that tells about these characters' faux publishing histories. It shows how Ultragirl traveled from the past and was a member of their group.
In issue #33, Tele-Girl appears in the Savage Dragon's time period and meets the Whiz Kids (now in their New Teen Titans Pérez-styled era).
The Pantheon was inspired by 20th century heroes like the Knights of Justice (based on the Justice Society), and the Round Table of America (based on the Justice League).
Big
Bang Comics v.2 #12 (July 1997)
Big Bang Comics v.2 #12, 14, 18, 22, 33
Publications (The Legion in Print)
DC Legion Archives:
- Reprints Action #267, 276, 287, 289, Adventure #247, 267, 282, 290, 293, 300-305, Superboy #86, 89, 98, Superman #147 & Annual #4 (1991)
- Reprints Adventure #306-317, Jimmy Olsen #72, Superman Annual #4 (1992)
- Reprints Adventure #318-328, Superboy #117, Jimmy Olsen #76 (1993)
- Reprints Adventure #329-339, Superboy #124-125 (1994)
- Reprints Adventure #340-349 (1995)
- Reprints Adventure #350-358 (1997)
- Reprints Adventure #359-368 & Jimmy Olson #106(1998)
- Reprints Adventure #368-376 & Superboy #147 ( (1999)
- Reprints Adventure #377-380 & Action #378-387, 389-392 (1999)
- Reprints Superboy # 172, 173, 176, 183, 184, 188, 190, 191, 193, 195, 197-202 (2000)
- Reprints Superboy #203-212 (2001)
- Reprints Superboy #213-223 & Karate Kid #1 (2003)
Showcase Presents… Collections:
These collections reprint about three times as many stories as the Archives above, but they are black-and-white volumes for a fraction of the cost…
- Showcase Presents: The Legion of Super-Heroes Volume 1: Adventure #247, 267, 282, 290, 293, 300-328, Action #267, 276, 287, 289; Superboy #86, 89, 98, 117; Superman #147, Superman Annual #4; Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen #72, 76.
- Showcase Presents: The Legion of Super-Heroes Volume 2: Adventure #316, #322-348, 365; Superboy #117, #125, and Superman Annual #4.
- Showcase Presents: The Legion of Super-Heroes Volume 2: Adventure#349-368; Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen #116.
Trade Paperbacks...
Legion v.2
- Legion of Super-Heroes: The Great Darkness Saga, collects Legion v.2 #287, 290-294 & Annual #3 (1991).
Legion v.3
- Legion of Super-Heroes: An Eye for an Eye, collects Legion v.3 #1-5, 168 pages (2007).
- Legion of Super-Heroes: The More Things Change, collects Legion v.3 #7-13.
Legion v.4
- Legion of Super-Heroes: The Beginning of Tomorrow, collects Legion v.4 #0, 62-65 & Legionnaires #0, 19-22 (1999).
The Legion
- The Legion: Foundations, collects The Legion #25-30 & Legion Secret Files 2003.
Legion v.5
- Legion of Super-Heroes: Teenage Revolution, collects Teen Titans/Legion Special 1 and issues #1-6 (2005).
- Legion of Super-Heroes: Death of a Dream, collects Legion of Super-Heroes v.5 #7-13 (2006).
- Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes: Strange Visitor from Another Century: collects Legion v.5 #14-15 & Supergirl & the Legion #16-19 (2006).
- Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes: Adult Education, collects issues #20-25 (2007).
- Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes: Dominator War, collects issues #26-30 (2007).
- Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes: The Quest for Cosmic Boy, collects issues #31-36 (2008).
- Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes: Enemy Rising, collects issues #37-44 (2008).
- Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes: Enemy Manifest, collects issues #45-50 (2009).
Legion Animated
- The Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st Century (volume 1):Tomorrow's Heroes, collects issues #1-6 (2008).
Miscellaneous
- Justice League of America: The Lightning Saga, collects Justice League of America v.2 #0, 8-12 Justice Society of America v.3 #5-6.
- Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes, collects Action #858-863.
Prestige format series:
- Titans/Legion: Universe Ablaze, 4-issue prestige series (2000).
- Superboy's Legion (Elseworlds), 2-issue prestige series (2001).
Books + Fan Publications:
- No. 213: Legion of Super-Heroes Sourcebook, Volume I. Mayfair Games, Inc. (1986).
- No. 216: Legion of Super-Heroes, Volume II: The World Book. Mayfair Games, Inc. (1987).
- No. 223: Pawns
of Time, Mortika, Chris
and Steve Crow. Mayfair Games, Inc. (1987).
First of four in the Chessman series, featuring the Legion of Super-Heroes
versus the Time Trapper.RPG.net.
- No. 224: Knight to Planet 3, Acres, Mark. Mayfair Games, Inc. (1987).
- No. 225: Mad Rook's Gambit, Martin, David. Mayfair Games, Inc. (1987).
- No. 226: King for All Time, Acres, Mark. Mayfair Games, Inc. (1987).
- No. 263: 2995: The Legion of Super-Heroes Sourcebook, Bierbaum, Tom and Mary. Mayfair Games Inc. (1995). This is the bible for the post-Crisis Legion.
Others
- Back Issue! magazine
- #14, Two Morrows Publishing (January 2006). Legion feature.
- #33 (March 2009) features a star-studded art gallery of Legion of Super-Heroes 1970s fashions
- Best of the Legion Outpost, ed. Glen Cadigan, Two Morrows Publishing (2004). Reprinting Legion fanzines from the 1970s.
- Comics
Feature #15, January 1981.
This issue features an interview with Paul Levitz, at a time just before he resumed writing duties (Legion v.2 #284, 1982). He is very candid and talks about how the book has always struggled to find a good ongoing artist. He doesn't mention Keith Giffen at all. Odd, the timing.... It also features an article summarizing the Legion's history and members. The cover is illustrated by Chuck Patton.
• Read two of the three articles here!
Comics Feature ran for 57 issues, March
1980-July 1987. Strangely, there's not a lot on the internet about
this magazine. Basically, it served as the pre-Internet era's comics
news outlet. It featured interviews with creators, and delivered
information from press releases. The best place
to review the run of this magazine is at Mile
High Comics' online store. - Comics Buyer's Guide #999, (January
8, 1993). Krause Publications, Inc.
Scanned from the original. It offers lots of insights about the new directions the Legion books took in the late 90s. At this time, the editor was trying to save the book and open it up to new readers with the creation of the Legionnaries title. - The Legion Companion, Glen Cadigan, Two Morrows Publishing (2003). The story behind the stories.