tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37940560.post864317574924452759..comments2024-03-27T08:49:38.786-03:00Comments on Siskoid's Blog of Geekery: Why the Legion of Super-Heroes?Siskoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08266365376486695812noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37940560.post-4945201128990708512013-01-11T18:07:03.649-04:002013-01-11T18:07:03.649-04:00Wiki has a list of Legion trades, and it looks lik...Wiki has a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Legion_of_Super-Heroes_publications#Hardcovers_.26_Trade_paperbacks" rel="nofollow">list of Legion trades</a>, and it looks like the pricy Archives have gotten to the 70s, but not Showcase. At least, not yet.Siskoidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08266365376486695812noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37940560.post-88612687595426427032013-01-11T12:47:28.639-04:002013-01-11T12:47:28.639-04:00The biggest obstacle to getting into the Legion is...The biggest obstacle to getting into the Legion is availability of the good stuff, i.e. the Levitz/ Giffen run. I read The Great Darkness trade and found beat up copies of issues 297-300. They were good, but, as far as I know, there aren't huge Omnibuses of tose comics. <br /><br />Are the Showcase reprints up to the late '70s yet? Honestly, Silver Age DC wackiness usually isn't my thing (great in small doses but wearying after about 3 issues), but I'd like to be able to read more prime Legion.<br /><br />- Mike Loughlin Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37940560.post-50778531051451501792013-01-10T17:18:31.007-04:002013-01-10T17:18:31.007-04:00Timing does tend to be a factor, I agree. When you...Timing does tend to be a factor, I agree. When you don't feel you're getting in near enough the ground floor for the project to even be possible, for example.Siskoidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08266365376486695812noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37940560.post-20885146787914666552013-01-10T12:26:37.181-04:002013-01-10T12:26:37.181-04:00It seems there are two kinds of comics fans - thos...<i>It seems there are two kinds of comics fans - those who love the Legion, you might say, unconditionally, and those who don't see the attraction whatsoever...</i><br /><br />I think maybe I'm the odd duck that falls somewhere in the middle (though I definitely agree most people fall in one camp or the other). <br /><br />I came late to the Legion, the first regular series I read being the Waid reboot. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but didn't follow the Legion to their next series. I've since gone back and read some of the greatest hits and fun, whacky Silver Age stuff, but haven't dove in headfirst. <br /><br />So it isn't that I don't get the appeal of the Legion, and I have enjoyed what I've read, but at the same time, I wouldn't say I'm so enamored of it to become an expert. <br /><br /><i>There's something special about the geek cred one accumulates by becoming an expert on a truly immense fictional universe.</i><br /><br />This I totally get. And maybe one of the reasons I haven't dove fully into the Legion is that, coming to it later than other comic book properties, I'm at a point in my life where I'm less willing to spend the time to master another fictional universe. But if I'd gotten into the Legion when I was a little younger, I'd probably have been all about it. Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37940560.post-67072123074846166422013-01-09T19:00:50.319-04:002013-01-09T19:00:50.319-04:00You guys bring a lot of great additional points!You guys bring a lot of great additional points!Siskoidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08266365376486695812noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37940560.post-57238270383069625282013-01-09T14:58:57.625-04:002013-01-09T14:58:57.625-04:00Great post. I go back a little earlier than you --...Great post. I go back a little earlier than you -- my first Legion story was also Jim Shooter's, and I lost interest when Five Years Later began, though I came back on board for a while after Zero Hour. A big part of the Legion's appeal was that it wasn't just about characters, but a whole fantastic world to discover. For the same reason, I loved Superman stories set on Krypton or in Kandor.Bob Buethehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04624148139233566430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37940560.post-48199976722897451192013-01-09T12:55:19.597-04:002013-01-09T12:55:19.597-04:00Bravo.Bravo.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00412497492372886356noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37940560.post-66219762016183956622013-01-09T12:32:34.546-04:002013-01-09T12:32:34.546-04:00All excellent points, Siskoid. And AFO boy is ama...All excellent points, Siskoid. And AFO boy is amazing. Some personal reasons why I love the Legion:<br /><br />1. The 5 Years Later Era: The dark, overblown in angst 90's version of 'your favorite comic' that only the LSH could produce. So dense with references that only a fan could love it, so many character deaths and changes that few fans would. Yet it remains a complex saga of wit, drama, despair and hope.<br /><br />2. Space Opera: The Legion has been doing it longer than Dr. Who (if that counts), with a format that really melds super-heroics with the genre. Plus, the LSH represents the diversity of their universe better than the casts of Trek or Wars. While staying Earth centered, they avoid being a 'homo-sapiens only club.' <br /><br />3. I'm not a fan of the question "What super-power do you want?" as it ignores most comic book characters complex string of abilities. But the Legion explores this idea with a passion and focus that even the Fantastic Four doesn't match. Even Mon-El or Jo Nah seem like the classic response of "All of Superman's powers."<br /><br />4. Another question: "Which super-hero world would you like to join?" Juvenile, but fun. As overwhelming as the 30th (31st now?) can be, it still has a sense of joy and wonder that other comic settings do not. All the potential of Trek's Federation, with all the adventure of the Justice League. This is a world of worlds to explore. All the main comic teams are great to read, but who would want to live as an X-man? (You would? Awesome. Let's team up the next time Kang and the Time Trapper get together.)Twistyarmnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37940560.post-55269606428594364902013-01-09T09:27:19.712-04:002013-01-09T09:27:19.712-04:00Arm
Fall
Off
Boy
::drops microphone::Arm<br /><br />Fall<br /><br />Off<br /><br />Boy<br /><br />::drops microphone::Dehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10132196355430345167noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37940560.post-58981776697820187102013-01-09T08:52:30.681-04:002013-01-09T08:52:30.681-04:00Well said!
I've been a Legion fan since the 8...Well said!<br /><br />I've been a Legion fan since the 80s as well and for me 2 other things stick out, the Legion's long run and the willingness of creators to make changes. <br /><br />First off the long run, the fact the LSH goes from a Flash Gordon future to a 70s Star Trek and spandex universe to a grim 90s crappy universe is great. The Legion is always a reflection what we want/expect the future to be. <br /><br />And unlike the Avengers or JLA the Legion is off on its own isolated from the rest of the DCU, they rarely have to worry what's going in other books so characters could leave, come back and die permanently. <br /><br />Which is why I gave up after the first Waid reboot. I caught up on the second Waid reboot in TPBs but never felt it. If you can hit reset any time then the stories just don't matter much to me. In theory I should be all over the Levitz reboot but again... reboots... ick. Kid Kyotohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06831945346163986586noreply@blogger.com