“Somebody hit our new team members with a shrink ray!”
Legionnaires #0
DC Comics (October, 1994)
“Close Encounters”
PLOT: Mark Waid & Tom McCraw
WRITER/COLORIST: Tom McCraw
PENCILERS: Jeffery Moy
INKER: Ron Boyd
LETTERER: Pat Brosseau
ASSISTANT EDITOR: Mike McAvennie
EDITOR: KC Carlson
Before the Legion can be officially recognized they must convince the new United Planet government to accept them. Lord Doyle sees his last chance to be rid of Brande and the Legion as well as damage the burgeoning United Planets alliance. However, a girl with phasing powers accidentally stumbles upon the bomb while Brande’s assistant uses her triple form to save others. The girl also saves Saturn Girl from one of the would-be assassins. Cosmic Boy suggests the pair, now dubbed “Apparition” and “Triad”, join the Legion. The president wants to send them on a mission immediately but Brande doesn’t think their ready. So she takes it upon herself to boost their ranks, whether the recruits want to or not!
What they got right: Apparition and Triad get a good introduction as they show off what they can do to help others, not because of their powers but because they have a desire to help. There’s a nice nod to Live Wire’s old name, Lighting Lad, back when the Legion was first introduced in comics oh so many years ago.
What they got wrong: The other characters they want to add to the Legion are not as well introduced. The president is forcing them to join because she wants the PR the Legion can provide, so the other new members are just dropped on us rather than properly introduced. And if they’re rebooting with a smaller group do they really need a second series for everybody to see action?
Recommendation: A good continuation of Legion Of Super-Heroes but I don’t know what’s canon anymore with this series and I’m wondering if DC even does at this point. It’s a good point to jump in if you want to collect the older run.
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