Life is a battle that we all lose. Which is why you can’t live it like it’s a war.

With that beaut of an issue by Jim Starlin and Paul Levitz, we have all filler with Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes #240. But that is not necessarily a bad thing, because we have two stories.

First is the return of a Jim Shooter / Mike Grell creation, Grimbor, who returns to take out his revenge as well as give us a status update on what happened to Charma. And not only that, but legendary creator Howard Chaykin contributed to the story, which is also his first time at Legion HQ. Welcome Howie!

Then to cap it off we have the origin story of Dawnstar because you probably were wondering how and why Wildfire found her in the first place. Well after this read-through, you will know! Plus we have the long-awaited return of Mr. James Sherman who really makes this story look good. But then we get an announcement in Legion Outpost that makes us confused. But hey, that is nothing new with this series!

So look around, make sure there is no one ready to shackle you (unless you like that sort of thing) and get reading!

The Man Who Manacled The Legion

At that moment, on the east coast of the North American continent, five members of the Legion of Super-Heroes are working quickly in order to alleviate a nasty traffic jam on the Atlantic Highway caused by a ship that smashed into it. Colossal Boy works on holding the bridge with his massive back, while Cosmic Boy uses his magnetic powers to hold the support beams in place long enough for Sun Boy to weld them shut. With that done, Phantom Girl starts to evacuate the people from their cars while Superboy gets more of an arial advantage in order to fuse the rest of the damage shut with his heat vision. 

With the temporary measures in place, all they need to do is wait for the emergency services to arrive. As if right on cue, Zall Morgan and the EES Team arrive, amazing Superboy that they managed to transport from the North Pole Cities in twenty minutes. Zall laughs and still finds it amusing that he is not used to the speeds they can travel in this time period. But even still, they cannot be in two places at once and he happily relieves the Legionnaires and takes over. As they fly back to Legion HQ Superboy spots a sour look on Comic Boy’s face and asks what is wrong. He replies that he is still bummed about Saturn Girl and Lightning Lad. It makes him question his own desire to marry Night Girl, which will be hard if he has to give up the Legion. Because to him, nothing is more important than being a Legionnaire! 

When they arrive, they are greeted by a notice on the message board that Wildfire took some Legionnaires to Pluto for a mission. Cosmic Boy decides to take over monitor duty, which relieves Superboy because he knows that will help him take his mind off things. Elsewhere within the vast complex, Sun Boy wants Colossal Boy to go with him to meet Phantom Girl because she received a care package from her parents. Colossal Boy hesitates because he knows she is still mad at him from how he treated Ultra Boy last issue, but he cannot pass up on the opportunity to indulge in some Bztgl treats. 

Soon, Phantom Girl shares some Roklar Punch and Shorma Fruit with them, but hesitates to give one to Colossal Boy but does so anyway. Sun Boy exclaims that their saving of the Atlantic Highway made the front page and everyone must be reading about it. Indeed they are Sun Boy, because Grimbor is also notified and sees that Superboy is with them. 

Later that night, Superboy takes over monitor duty from Cosmic Boy who said it was all quiet. But an Earthgov Priority alert shatters that belief and Superboy leads his team to figure out what is wrong. Phantom Girl reports that the distress call came from the Presidential Palace and that they have been summoned to the President’s private chambers. 

They arrive and find the President trapped in a very intricate looking device that looks very much like the one Grimbor was admiring. Superboy studies it for a moment and tries to smash it but it does not even budge. Sun Boy decides to give it a go and blasts it with a bit of super heat but sees that it is heat resistant. Cosmic Boy also tries but the contraption seems to be constructed from non-metallic materials. Finally, Phantom Girl can just make out and feel the tumblers inside but she cannot figure it out. And as Superboy watches all of their attempts in vain, it finally dawns on him that there is only one answer. Only one individual could have conceived this and Colossal Boy finishes his statement: Grimbor the Chainsman! And right on cue, Grimbor smashes through the wall, surprising the Legionnaires. 

He throws a series of chains at the Legionnaires, that immediately head for its intended prisoner. For Superboy, self-locking Kryptonite chains quickly wrap around and shackle him. He frantically turns on his heat vision but is horrified to discover that they are heat-resistant.

For Sun Boy, chains that can absorb his heat and channel it away from his body. Cosmic Boy, simple links that are made of the same metallic material that holds the President. For Colossal Boy, an ingenious chain that will tighten as he enlarges, threatening to slice himself into two. And for Phantom Girl, chains that are designed to vibrate into the Phantom dimensions where she exists in her immaterial state. All of the Legionnaires are helpless. 

Grimbor continues that this is only the first step in his plan, and despite the pleas of the President to release him, Grimbor takes them all to a secured location, and chains them to the wall. Phantom Girl attempts to distract him by telling him she read the file. How Grimbor and Charma were defeated by the Legion and that he would have done anything for her. He admits to as much but then reveals that her powers eventually wore off on him but he still loved her. And he reminds them that her powers had the opposite effect on women and females were compelled to hate her. When the Legion defeated them, they threw her in an all female prison, and then the females simply killed her. He then states that it will be their deaths that will be the first payment, while the other installments will be the lives of the rest of the Legion of Super-Murderers (Grimbor’s words of course).

The Legion are speechless and cannot believe what they heard. Are they responsible for Charma’s death? Phantom Girl ignores it and tells them they have to move now. Grimbor smiles at their attempt to whisper behind his back, there is no way they can escape his chains. But Phantom Girl returns his smile and cooly asserts that he did certainly take measures to inhibit her phantom form but not her solid state. And she breaks free. Grimbor is furious and hurls another set of chains at her, but she quickly turns into her phantom state and they pass right through her, hitting the electronic panel that controls the Legionnaires’ restraints. Free, they all descend on Grimbor. But he is not out because he has some more surprises and he clicks the button on a control panel behind him. The Citadel of Grimbor, adorned with armor of Earth’s Medieval time, armor that, is now switched on. 

The armor ends up being a bunch of deadly robots but Sun Boy, Cosmic Boy, and Colossal Boy make quick work of them and smash them to pieces. Superboy watches as Grimbor makes his escape. He tells the others to hold off the robots while he goes after Grimbor. Phantom Girl is a bit upset with herself for being mad at Colossal Boy, but she shakes it off and takes care of two more robots that try to tackle her. 

Meanwhile, outside the massive Citadel, Superboy catches up to Grimbor and tells him that even though he sympathizes with his loss he cannot allow him to threaten the Legion or the President. Grimbor scoffs that he does not want his sympathy but simply his life. Superboy grabs on to him and tells him he has him. Grimbor turns and questions does he really? And then he blows up, sending Superboy backward. The only thing remaining are bits of metal and the robot Grimbor’s head. Superboy cannot believe that Grimbor has been one step ahead of them this whole time. They start to wonder if he was telling the truth about Charma but they quickly agree he was. He is really going after the Legion and will not stop until he has killed them all. Sun Boy cuts in that there is one thing they can do and that is to free the President. 

As they fly off, Superboy does a quick scan of the President’s restraints and concludes there is a way to free him, but they have to use all their powers at the same time. Sun Boy wonders if that is not a little odd, and he tells them he has a plan. They arrive, and the President is still in his restraints. Sun Boy chides him, wondering if he was not going to ask how they escaped. The President responds to his secretary that as soon as he is free, he will put all of them under arrest. That clinches it for the group, and they rush in to quickly remove all the bystanders when the President explodes. 

Superboy quickly fills them in that Sun Boy suspected the trap and that this was another trap to try to kill them all at once. Superboy takes out an electronic device they took from Grimbor’s lab and uses it to trace the signal back to the source. And an incredibly short time later, they smash through the wall and confront the real Grimbor who cannot believe it because he witnessed their deaths on the monitor. Superboy punches him and puts him in his own restraints. With Grimbor down they hear a faint please from the real President, asking them to free him as well. Superboy coyly asks Sun Boy to free him, because he never did like his politics. 

Dawnstar Rising

Jed Rikane, his condensed molecular structure gives him power sufficient to conquer virtually any foe. He proves this by smashing through one of the robots. Laurel Kent, whose ancestor of a thousand years was the mighty Superman, manages to catch Jed, as the robot retaliates with a swinging robotic arm. 

Shadow Lad, the younger brother of Shadow Lass, throws a shadow cone on the robot, at the suggestion of Dawnstar, who then speeds around in circles. The robot uses a flare to dissipate the shadow cone, and the group of heroes quickly realize the robot has defenses against all their powers. Laurel Kent has an idea, and that is simply to pound the robot has hard as she can. Dawnstar scoops up Jed and flies him right in front of the robot’s faceplate. He sees where she is going, and she flings him right at the robot and he smashes through the other side. 

Its gyro-sensors smashed, the robot sways once before it falls, nearly crushing the four youths beneath tons of steel. And after the smoke clears, Jed Rikane admires the result, and compliments himself on the amount of muscles he has. A voice rings off in the distance that it was not bad, but their performance was far from good, and they need to work better as a team. And Wildfire walks in, surveying the recruits in the Legion Academy. Shadow Lad thinks he is not being fair and they did manage to defeat the robot. Wildfire dismisses the statement and tells them they were lucky it was not the Fatal Five they faced. Because if it were, and the way they have performed today, they all would be dead. He then commands them to hit the showers and rest up because tomorrow is going to be a long day, but asks Dawnstar to stay behind a bit. He asks her if she is busy and if they can find some time to talk. She shoots him down and she is only interested in discussing Legion business. She then bids him a good evening and he looks devastated because he was only trying to be friendly. Whether Dawnstar does not hear it or chooses not to listen, Wildfire does not know but the slight is no less painful for him. And save for the whisper of wind through Dawnstar’s wings, the chamber is strangely silent. 

Later that evening, Dawnstar arrives at her dormitory, and when she enters she sees that Laurel Kent is still awake. She knows what she is going to say, and she does so anyway. Why give Wildfire the cold shoulder? She does not know and it is difficult for her to relate to others. She then decides to let Laurel in on her origin story:

“I come from the planet Starhaven in the Galactic Core, a world colonized by Amerinds, descendants of American Indians. My people were renowned throughout the galaxy for their proficiency in deep space navigating and piloting. I am the result of centuries of inbreeding, the ultimate navigator, with a natural propulsion system far greater than any starships. I am a mutant.”

We then flash back with her and see her awaiting orders from Moonwalker, her mother. She wants her to go to a sun in the Alpha XVII system, a space-freighter is stranded in an asteroid belt between its second and third planets. She has been hired to navigate that ship through the belt. 

Dawnstar continues her narration.

“By the age of thirteen I was already in business. Iw as for hire to any individuals ho could pay the price for my mutant talents. My natural propulsion abilities exceed light speeds and I could navigate the densest asteroid belt blindfolded.

“You see, our section of the galaxy is a point of potential conflict, for there are many races close together in the planet-packed core. The money I was able to earn was put towards building a space fleet to help protect Starhaven in times of trouble. I had to help in the defense of my world. One day I was summoned to the asteroid-world of R.J. Brande, the Legion’s financial backer. I had just completed a job for him and now Brande wanted to see me personally.”

Brande offered Dawnstar a place in the Legion but at first she refused because she needed to have a steady income. It was not until he offered to pay her an income that she agreed. We return to her room and she mentions that R.J. Brande hoped that she would be impressed enough to join the Legion. But so far she is not and accuses Laurel Kent and the other Legionnaires of being only interested in showing off. Laurel is shocked that Dawnstar would be so rude and would like nothing more than to punch her in the face. Cooly Dawnstar tells her when she is done, she can turn off the light and wishes her a goodnight.

The next day, Wildfire has summoned them to a spaceport in what used to be called Pennsylvania. Two creatures have escaped from their cages in the spaceport and the Science Police requested help from the Legion in rounding them up. But unfortunately, they got the new recruits at the Legion Academy instead. Laurel Kent wastes no time and rushes into action with Jed Rikane. Dawnstar asks her to wait up and behind her Shadow Lad offers to be her teammate. She brushes him off and tells him she is more efficient alone. 

The Pennsylvania Space-Port is the galaxy’s largest intergalactic terminal, a crossroads for a thousand worlds. But despite the vast array of unusual visitors to the port, it has never played host to one as unique as Dawnstar. She uses her powers to quickly to find the two creatures, and as she swoops down on her prey, she hefts a nearby storage container to use as a shield against the deadly rays from one of the beasts, which shatters on impact. Abruptly Dawnstar is hurled to the floor as the volatile contents explode. The other creature, a ponderous ape, prepares to crush the life from Dawnstar, when the lights go out. Shadow Lad arrives and tells the big ape to back off. Seeing that it is confused, Jed and Laurel move to the front and attack the two beasts. With a single swipe of his powerful fists, Jed Rikane sends both creatures of destruction sprawling. Moments later the beasts have been collared by their trainer. Wildfire congratulates them and Shadow Lad adds that this time they coordinated and worked as a team. Laurel agrees. Dawnstar is strangely silent and Wildfire approaches her to figure out what is wrong. She tells him she was a fool, she thought she was too good for the Academy because she was more powerful than everyone else, and that she did not need anyone. She was wrong and she would like to stay with the Legion, with her friends. 

Creative Team

We return once again to the two story format with legend creator Howard Chakin providing the layouts and pencils on the Man Who Manacled the Legion, which is a sequel to the Jim Shooter and Mike Grell story in issue #221, exploring basically the premise of bondage. 

It was an okay sequel and I think by far the most interesting component was knowing what happened to Charma, which made it quite tragic and you could empathize with Grimbor. Other than that, we sort of went back into the gimmicky, bait and switch territory, with the use of robots and that sort of thing. It is a component of the Legion that I do enjoy, but after that insane good issue with Jim Starlin, this is definitely a step back. The other aspect to comment on is that they keep putting a pretty bad light on the current President, so I do wonder if something is going to happen and play out with the politics of Earth. 

As for Chaykin, he did a pretty good job but it was not spectacular. I think it was not on the level of what Jim Starlin contributed last issue, but it still got the job done. He did a great job of handling Grimbor and the fantastic contraptions that he put the Legion in. And I must say he does look like he borrowed Mike Grell’s style quite a bit, which is not a bad thing and it did create some consistency. 

The second story was by far the strongest of the two and we finally received the complete origin story of Dawnstar, as well as the beginnings of the Dawnstar/Wildfire romance. Though she does come across as a complete jerk, there is that nice character arc at the end. And this story does quite a few things as it relates to her as a character. One, it really allowed us to understand how powerful she is and why she is there. I think this is quite significant because from the stories so far she would pop in and out and be used to track the main villain. But due to this story, she is probably one of the most powerful, if not the fastest, Legionnaire in the group. Additionally, it was a lot of fun seeing the Legion Academy and seeing Laurel Kent again. I do repeat myself a lot, but one of the aspects that I absolutely adore about Levitz’s run is that he will reference what happened before and bring back characters that appeared. It was a long time since we saw Laurel Kent when Superboy saved her before realizing that she is his descendent (another Jim Shooter, Mike Grell collaboration by the way, back in issue #217).

And can we please give a warm welcome back to the amazing James Sherman. If this story proves anything, is that he just has a wonderful eye for the female figure. His rendering of Dawnstar and Laurel Kent are absolutely stunning, and he just handles the action and pacing very well. Also, he is great at character design, such as demonstrated here with the big robot and the two creatures here. He has definitely shaped up to be one of my favorite Legion artists so far. I do hope he sticks around, but as we will see from the Legion Outpost below, that might not be the case. Their announcements are more confusing than ever. 

All in all, a pretty good filler, albeit a disappointing step back in the direction that was established last issue. But both of these stories are solid and not only reference what came before, but introduce just enough to make it feel that we are moving forward, if not at a very slow pace. 

The Legion Outpost

We are back to only two letters in this issue’s Legion Outpost, which are not terrible interesting. However we do, thankfully, have an announcement, which makes us more confused than ever. 

“Before we start this letters page, we’d like to make a happy announcement: as of #242, there will be a regular team of creative people doing this magazine every month (at last!). Paul Levitz, Joe Staton and Jack Abel will be our regular staff, appearing in every issue, while Jim Sherman concentrates his energies on the Legion Spectacular for next winter and Mike Nasser departs to find America. Meanwhile, we’d like to give a salute to our latest fabulous fill-in team, Howie Chaykin, Bob Waicek and Jack Harris, whose efforts stand before you.”

Wait what? James Sherman is leaving the book to do something called a Legion Spectacular? What the heck is going on? How many times have they announced something like this and then it goes away or something else entirely happens? I think they are really dead set on having Joe Staton be involved because his name does keep getting mentioned. And Jack Abel is not going anywhere, which is nice. But what about Sherman? I do think he does stick around, though I wonder if this Legion Spectacular in the winter is the now legendary storyline, Earth War? I think that must be it. Either way, we have to wait and see what happens. One thing is for sure though, Paul Levitz is not going anywhere. Thank goodness. 

The Legion Medallion of Merit

With two stories we have to decide on the one Legionnaire that is deserving of the Legion Medallion of Merit. The Man Who Manacled the Legion was basically a Superboy-esque story, and it is hard to pinpoint exactly who is deserving, especially with the way they acted and acknowledge Charma’s death, which was not very empathetic in my opinion. 

With the second story, it is a Dawnstar focused story that redeems her as a character and shows us why she is deserving of a place on the Legionnaire roster. So it does make it quite difficult.

I think if I had to choose, I would actually give it to Laurel Kent. Laurel stood up to Dawnstar when she came in, especially how she treated Wildfire. She called her out on being a jerk. When Wildfire gave them the order to find and capture those two creatures, Laurel went into action leaving Dawnstar behind, teaching her a lesson. I think if it were not for those seeds that she planted and sticking up for the group, Dawnstar might not have had the change of heart she needed to have in order to find her place. 

Congratulations Laurel Kent! May this Medallion really make your fellow cadets in the Legion Academy jealous and we do hope to see you in the current ranks soon.

That is it for this week’s installment Legionnaires! Join us next week as we tackle the FINAL issue of Karate Kid that is issue #15. The end of an era, at least for this blog. I am very curious on what it is in store for us.

But until then, if you reflect on the merits of bondage and want to give it a go, but decide it is definitely not for you, just remember that ultimate safe word, or in this case phrase…

LONG LIVE THE LEGION!