I hope you enjoyed our ad interim that was DC Special #28! It was a lot of fun writing it and if you wondered why there was a Legion story in the first place (like I did), well, it is answered here. Because if you failed to read this due to the five cent increase when it first came out, boy did you miss out on a life changing event.

Plus we move beyond Metropolis and have a look at the inner workings of Australia for a change and I am relieved. It is about time someone confirmed my suspicions about Australia and the danger that country poses to the rest of the world. It may be hypothetical but boy did it strike fear into my heart. Strewth!

Finally, Paul Levitz shows us he is not playing around because we really do have a death of a Legionnaire. Who is it? Read on if you dare! Though I do hope your hand not tremble in too much fear and wonder…

That a World Might Live a Legionnaire Must Die

Wildfire and Chameleon Boy are summoned to have an audience with President Kandru, the current present of Earth. He called them in to ask for their help on a potential threat coming from Down Under. President Deregon of the Australian region threatens war on other republics and though war is not yet illegal, it is certainly troubling. 

President Kandru finishes the official briefing but then speaks to Wildfire and Chameleon Boy in confidence. Since Wildfire is the current leader of the Legion of Super-Heroes, and Chameleon Boy the leader of the Espionage Squad, will they help him take Deregon off the board?

Time passes and we head to the dark corner of the Earth, the realm of Australia, in particular the city of Perth, which is the current capital city of Australia and a thriving metropolis. Two secretaries from the governor’s office are out for an evening stroll, when suddenly they are kidnapped by members of the Legion of Super-Heroes. Light Lass tells the others to look away as she switches clothes with one captor and Shadow Lass does the same. 

However as Saturn Girl reminds them there is still one potential problem. They both do not have the actual memories of the two secretaries, which could compromise them if President Deregon grows suspicious. In seconds, the memories of two lifetimes are transferred from the secretaries and into the Legionnaires by the awesome concentration of Saturn Girl. But such a task strains even the mightiest of telepaths, and when it is over, Imra Arden’s strength is gone. And she finds refuge in Colossal Boy who tells her he promised Lightning Lad he would bring her back in one piece. Meanwhile Timber Wolf says his goodbyes to Light Lass, and the Legionnaires depart, leaving the two disguised ‘secretaries’ to start their mission. 

The next morning, Superboy observes Timber Wolf and Colossal Boy as they make their way through a vast army that is currently being trained. We zoom in closer and watch Deregon arrive. The Drill Inspector motions toward him that they are ready. But Deregon disagrees and wants more proof. The Drill Instructor looks at his recruits and points to two of them, and commands them to try and attack his assistant instructors. Unfortunately for the Drill Instructor, the two he pointed to were a disguised Timber Wolf and Colossal Boy who are very willing to take up the challenge. But they must not use their super-powers and reveal their true identities. 

And so it begins. Closely observed, it seems to be a ballet of violence as the Legionnaires struggle to conceal their powers, without being crushed under the instructors’ pummeling fists. In seconds, it ends, and the hours of training at the Legion Academy pay off.

Deregon congratulations the Drill Instructor and Deregon’s eyes fall upon the new recruits for just a moment. But any hints of suspicion are quickly erased as he congratulates the two Legionnaires and promises them a promotion at the next opportunity. 

Meanwhile we return to our two secreataries who seem to be talking to someone not in the room about Deregon’s activities. That no-one quickly reversals himself to be someone and that of Chameleon Boy who is currently in a disguise as a flying insect. They try to figure out who Deregon is frequently calling because it does appear to be someone off-world, which means it must be important. Chameleon Boy suggests using a detector that is attuned to the frequency of the hyper-beam he uses but he cannot carry it in the form of an insect. But that is no problem because he quickly changes into an Andalusian Hawk that is fast enough and can get through Deregon’s radar alarm. He takes the detector in his claws and flies it to the next team in place, that just so happens to be Superboy and Chemical King in space!

Chemical King quickly gets to work and uses his power over chemical reactions to amplify the power of the hyper-beam so the detector will be able to pick up the call and trace it. Plus Chemical King is very happy to be on this mission after so long and also be in a position to help. Superboy reminds him that every Legionnaire is equally useful and reminds him that Bouncing Boy even contributes. Chemical Boy looks up and notices a meteor coming right for their position and alerts Superboy. Superboy quickly intercepts the meteor and destroys it. Chemical King cannot believe that they make equal contributions to the Legion and no matter how much he says otherwise, he is simply not on the same level of Superboy and a lot of the other team members. 

Meanwhile, Deregon is back in his office and already realizes that something has disturbed the hyper-beam. Which is impossible because only he knows the frequency. So that only leaves his lovely secretaries as the current suspects. He calls them into his office and Chameleon Boy already assumes that the game is up. He quickly turns into an Octocrawler of Vorn and rushes in to assist. However, Shadow Lass wished they could have talked their way out of it but there is no point now. Their cover is blown.

Deregon calls for his guards and the Legionnaires are quickly outnumbered. Shadow Lass manages to throw some darkness on the situation but Light Lass is not quick enough and is hit by a blast. Within heartbeats, the Legionnaires fall, for while their powers are formidable they are also limited. And in this desperate situation, almost useless before the powerful stun blasters of the dreaded Australian Army Troops. 

Deregon knows he was betrayed and based on the powers they just exhibited, they must be members of the Legion of Super-Heroes. Which also means the world government is spying on him…and now it is time for war.

We return to Superboy and Chemical King who are philosophizing on the concept of war. Chemical King never even has seen one, with the last one taking place two hundred years before with World War VI. Superboy mentions that his time has experienced two World Wars and knows that they are not missing out on anything. Returning to the current problem at hand, Chemical Boy hopes that when he lost control of the reaction during the meteor episode, that it did not ruin their calculations. But there is only one way to find out. Superboy agrees and uses his powerful telescopic vision to follow the hyper-beam to the planet that it is pointed towards. It looks familiar because it is the home of the dreaded Dark Circle, who we have not seen since Adventure Comics #357. And as Superboy narrows his field of vision and concentrates on the specifics of their lair, he sees a model of Deregon that is proudly displayed. They must be connected. Superboy and Chemical King then decide to go back to Earth to alert the others that Deregon and the Dark Circle are working together.

But the crisis has already occurred. Because standing on display in front of Deregon and a large crowd of war thirsty soldiers are Light Lass, Shadow Lass, and Chameleon Boy. Deregon tells the crowd that President Kendru sent these Legionnaires to destroy them and have been outed as spies. And the punishment for spying? Death. 

But among those listening are our still disguised Timber Wolf and Colossal Boy. The sight of Light Lass on stage pushes him over to a blind rage, and despite Colossal Boy’s efforts to stop him, he springs into action. Knowing that they are also exposed, Colossal Boy goes into full giant mode. Striding through the ranks of soldiers like a titan, Colossal Boy draws their fire while Timber Wolf uses his agile abilities to take them out. Desperation overtakes Deregon and he must escalate the war despite the Dark Circle’s plan. He darts into his fortress to join the captive Legionnaires. Once inside, he clicks a hidden control on his amulet. 

Metal walls enclose the entire complex and laser cannons sprout from the walls, making the fortress even more impenetrable. However, Colossal Boy and Timber Wolf press on. CB punches a giant sized hole in the building, and Timber Wolf manages to jump through the main gate seconds before it closes. He takes out all of the defense robots who try to get in his way until he comes face to face with Deregon who uses his beloved Light Lass as a human shield. Deregon assures him that he has not hurt his fellow Legionnaires and to gaze at what is behind him. 

A large energy shield surrounds Australia and Superboy plummets from above to destroy it. Despite Superboy’s incredible strength, the shield still stands. However, Chemical King swoops in and knows that if he can speed up the fields natural decay reactions, it will give them the opportunity to enter and take out Deregon.

Meanwhile, Deregon has enclosed himself in a cosmic energy sphere that he hopes to unleash onto the world, that will not only destroy Australia but the entire planet. Timber Wolf takes advantage of the fact that he released Light Lass and  launches himself at him but is quickly stopped due to the radiation of the sphere being too much. Timber Wolf collapses.

Superboy and Colossal Boy manage to enter the dome and they arrive on the scene for much needed support. Superboy taunts Deregon and tells them that he might have stopped one Legionnaire, but they work as a team and will be hard to stop. Deregon accepts Superboy’s challenge and ensures that the energy sphere around him will be as deadly to the Teen of Steel as to Timber Wolf who currently lays at his feet. Superboy moves quickly and just has enough power to get close enough to move Timber Wolf further away and out of danger. Chemical King then moves in and knows he can use the same method to stop the energy sphere as he did to take down Deregon’s protective sphere over Australia.

Deregon taunts Chemical King and sine he does not recognize him he believes that he has nothing to fear. Besides, in mere seconds, the cosmic energy sphere will reach critical mass and the resulting explosion will wipe out half of the planet and trigger World War VII, which will finish off the survivors. But Chemical King moves in closer and is determined to put the reaction in check. Colossal Boy pleads for CK to get away or he will be killed.

Fierce energies crackle across the room—fiercely and deadly. An ebbing, flowing tide stirred by two men in final, fatal conflict. Then Deregon vanishes, and all know the moment of truth has arrived as the sphere pulses, glows, and collapses inward, turning its fury upon itself. But one man has fallen victim to its power nonetheless—Chemical King—a hero, though he himself would deny the title. A man who gave his life for a world and a man hose comrades’ faces loudly proclaim one simple fact.

He will be avenged!

Next issue: A fighting-mad legion scours the galaxy on a “Hunt for a Hero-Killer!” Be there April 21st. 

Creative Team

What an incredible issue from Paul Levitz, James Sherman, and Jack Abel. There is a lot to unpack here.

First, if you wondered why there was a DC Special #28 featuring the Legion of Super-Heroes, that we just happened to cover on Tuesday, you do now. I guess they felt they needed to have one more quick story featuring Chemical King, just to act as a refresher since he has not shown up for a few issues.

That being said this has been our first death since Invisible Kid when Mike Grell first jumped on the book and more proof that there are stakes involved when it comes to the Legion of Super-Heroes. Was the death impactful? It really is hard to tell. I cannot help but wonder if Chemical King’s questioning of his own abilities and place in the team was not simply convenient commentary placed by Levitz to really question what exactly he was doing there in the first place. Regardless, any Legionnaire death is shocking and it will be interesting to see what the ramification will be in the issues to come.

What impressed me the most of this story though is Levitz’s intention to flesh out Earth and actually make it a place outside of Metropolis. There must be other governments out there, and including Australia as a place of interest helps give us a better idea of the Legion’s position under the President of Earth and the potential drama that can ensue should any other leaders attempt to go rogue. This sets up enormous opportunity and I do wonder if it will be used in future issues.

Plus, we have the Dark Circle popping up once again and Levitz is not shy to remind us of previous threats while he incorporates them into the new lineup. This is incredible world building and I feel we are definitely hitting our own pace. This is not Levitz trying to find himself or his place as a writer. This is Levitz going full steam ahead and not being shy about anything or feeling the need to prove himself first. You can just feel the swagger and confidence in his writing.

Sherman and Abel continue to produce fantastic sequential art, especially draping our characters in moody shadows. Sherman handled the battles very well and it never felt that things were getting congested or rushed as in previous issues. I have to chalk this up to only having one story, which again, is far superior than cramming two stories into one seventeen-page issue. It helped Sherman breathe and put things where they needed to go. 

That being said, I could not help but smile (in a weird way) in Sherman’s depiction of Superboy holding Chemical King after he died. Was this the inspiring moment for the famous George Perez’s depiction of Superman holding a dead Supergirl in his arms in Crisis on Infinite Earths #7? I am sure similar depictions must have already existed because it is an obvious pose to do, but it does make you wonder. 

All in all a very strong issue. Levitz, with the help of Gerry Conway, brought all the outstanding plot points from the Shooter and Bates era to a close and now we are very much off into the direction he wants to take the Legion. He is doing it with confidence, a lot of swagger, and he has the amazing duo of James Sherman and Jack Abel as support. This is an incredible time folks and I cannot wait to read more from here. With this gushing out of the way, let us tackle the next installment of Super-Talk!

Super-Talk

We do have some letters in this issue’s Super-Talk as well as a bit of news.

First off is a response to a letter from Scott R. Taylor who wants the book to be the same size as the JLA book at the time, which had a lot of pages. The editor responds that it is in fact scheduled and should arrive on the 231st issue at a hefty fifty cents. As you may remember we had the Giant-Sizes running for a while, shortly after the book launched with the new concept. So I am very curious on what the format will be. Will it be jammed with a bunch of reprints or will we get all original content? Stick around and stay tuned!

Sandra K. Durham references the Amazing World of DC #12, which included an interview of Mike Grell. Much like #9, I do hope to get my hands on this issue so I can include it in the blog. If I am anything it is an obsessive compulsive completionist. 

Finally, we receive an interesting letter from Mary A. Flynn asking where Irene Vartanoff was? If you ready your Silver Age DC and paid attention in the letters pages, Irene had letters that were published quite often. In particular in Adventure Comics and others. So they do confirm that she is a real person and give another update because she is working at Marvel Comics and will become a future writer. How about that. 

The Legion Medallion of Merit

Come on folks, this one is easy. The Medallion goes to Chemical King who made the ultimate sacrifice, just like Invisible Kid before him. He not only saved Metropolis from certain destruction by Tyroc’s arch nemesis Fenton Pike in our DC Special #28, but he basically saved the entire planet by stopping Deregon in this issue. 

His Medallion will be laid to rest on his own statue that will surely be placed in the Hall of Heroes. And now let us all partake in a two minute silence to commemorate our fallen comrade and friend.

And once those two minutes are up, grasp the hand of the person next to you, and in a defiant whisper call out to the cosmos…

Long. Live. The Legion.