Review: Convergence: Superboy

Convergence Superboy #2 came out last week, bringing the Kingdom Come Superman/90s Superboy battle to a close.

These Convergence side series are unbelievably brief. Were two issues of 20 page comics enough to tell a story in which the creators were tasked to 1) reintroduce characters from older time periods, 2) include the 'dome coming down now fight' scene, 3) have a plot that included something more than just the fight, 4) have some character growth or progression and 5) be good story-telling?

I don't envy these teams. It can't be easy, especially in an age where all arcs seem to be stretched to 6 issues. Are there compressed stories these days?

Convergence:Superboy does as good a job as any in accomplishing those goals above. Writer Fabian Nicieza has a nice little arc for Superboy here, bringing him from dismay for lacking powers, to re-embracing his powers, to fighting for his world, to ultimately sacrificing himself a little. Superboy is the straw that stirs the drink in this series as opposed to the Kingdom Come Superman who, outside of a major moment for all involved at the end of the book, acts more like an irresistible force.

Artists Karl Moline, inker Jose Marzan, and colorist Hi-Fi bring a nice house style to the book. This isn't flashy or warped. It has an old-school feel which suits the book fine given the presence of this Superman and the 90s Lois as well.

That doesn't mean that there isn't heavy action as the two fighters just lay into each other. This is almost 'Pacific Rim' material! Superman uses a 747 as a club.

But what I like about this is the understanding by Dubbilex that such a fight will undoubtedly level the city if it continues. Any time I read things like that, I feel it is commentary on the Man of Steel movie. These are heroes trying to save their worlds. What sort of world will they be saving if Metropolis is leveled and its people killed.

Nice splash page here.

Kingdom Come Superman has his eyes on the prize. He realizes that all these cities need to work together to fight Telos. But unlike others who simply want to form an assault squad, this Superman wants to 'win' his battle. Superman thinks that if Superboy concedes that Superman will get closer to Telos. Maybe from there Superman can end this.

But it seems like a risky gambit. Telos said that cities whose champions lose will be erased. How does Superman know that Superboy's world won't be utterly destroyed? Isn't he asking Superboy to make a decision that could impact the whole city's population?

The rules of this 'tournament' have been loose and ill-defined. I suppose that this seems as reasonably as anything else.

It does seem like Superboy is the young hero here. He is definitely fighting all out against the Kingdom Come heroes. But there is no listening to reason. He is just attacking.

I like the old tactile TK powers from the earliest days of this Superboy. Here is an interesting way for him to use it, breaking up the surface of the water as Flash runs on it. Haven't seen that one before.

But the biggest emotional moments of the book belong to the Kingdom Come Superman.

I love how overwhelmed he is when he sees Lois alive again. In Kingdom Come it was her death at the hands of the Joker (followed by the acceptance of Magog when he assassinates the Joker) that led Superman to his self-exile in the Fortress.

Her death shut him down.

So, of course, seeing her alive would shock him, would flood him with emotions. Does he want to lose another Lois again?

And then, during this pause in the battle, Superboy decides to continue the attack and inadvertently clobbers Lois with shrapnel.

Now I don't know if like Lois being used as a plot device. I don't think I like her injury being used as the impetus for discussion.

But there it is. I do love how Superman is distraught, rushing to her aid, cradling her, and having the Flash run her to the hospital.

It becomes clear to Kon that this brawl is doing nothing but harming innocents. And Superman explains how he hopes his victory will get him closer to Telos to end the entire thing.

Kon realizes that Superman has a better chance of saving the day than he does. Superman needs to win.  He even asks if he needs to die for this plan to work. He was willing to sacrifice his life in an effort to save everyone. It is mature turn for this Superboy. It is character growth ... in a brief 2 issue series. Impressive.

Superboy stands there and allow Superman to knock him out. And like that, this Superman is off.

While not earth-shattering, I enjoyed this 2 parter, this chapter in particular. To see these two heroes stop their destructive skirmish, come up with a way to try to save everyone, and to have Superboy sacrifice himself is entertaining and engaging. And these are two characters whose stories I have enjoyed. It was good to revisit them.

Overall grade: B/B+

Review: Convergence Superboy #1

Superman had died and four heroes came forward to claim the mantle. One was a brash youngster who claimed he was a clone of Superman. In fact, despite his youth, he demanded to be called Superman. Most called him Superboy.

After the events of Reign of the Superman, Superboy was given his own title. He was impetuous, sometimes immature, and always fun. Written by Karl Kesel with art by Tom Grummett, Superboy was a fun title in my pull list. He was a hero on a journey but he was having a good time.

Then things get choppy. He died in Infinite Crisis. He returned in Legion of Three Worlds. He was in a Twin Peaks style book by Jeff Lemire. And then the 52 happened and all bets were off. That new Kon was no character I wanted to read.

So, as with many of the Convergence books, I was thrilled to revisit the Metropolis Kid, a character happy to have powers and smiling as he flew around being a hero. Written by Fabian Nicieza with art by Karl Moline, Convergence Superboy gets us close to those fun-filled early days of the brash Conner.

But first we have a little bit of angst and pathos.

We start with Kon being tested in Cadmus. Dubbilex is trying to see if he can kickstart Kon's powers under the dome. Maybe by infusing him with solar power?

Well it turns out that somehow the dome created a psionic block in Superboy's mind. The energy is present but can't be accessed.

And this is a Superboy who we hear was just getting proud of what he was doing, just being accepted for who he was ... and then the dome came down.

Who is he if he isn't Superboy? He isn't Clark that's for sure. And that's hammered home in a panel where we see him looking at Jimmy and Lois running off somewhere. And he can't help them either. He's just a normal kid.

And then we see part of what is haunting him. What has always haunted him.

He is living in the shadow of Superman. Both figuratively and literally.

How do you fill in for someone that great? How do you live up to that? How do you not disappoint yourself?

This a Kon who is truly in adolescence, just on the cusp of adulthood, and trying to figure out who he is. And with his powers are gone, this is an even trickier conversation.

But then ... the dome drops .... and powers return!

And just like that the happy, smiling, exuberant Superboy returns.

I have to say, I smiled when I saw this page.

This period of joy is short-lived. The 'tournament of worlds' is announced by Telos. And that means a battle is brewing.

Superboy's Metropolis is set up to fight the world of Kingdom Come. There is Wally as a true Hermes, a red blur. And then the Dick Grayson Red Robin. They attack Superboy in an abandoned corner of the city.

I love Kon's matter of fact questioning wondering who these people are. I like the befuddled look on his face too. This is that sort of unfiltered response you expected out of this Superboy.

And then Kon shows a little ingenuity, using his tactile telekinesis to drop the empty buildings on Wally and Dick, incapacitating them.

Some intelligence maybe? Some growth in him and comfort in his ability?

Still, maybe the Flash, who in Kingdom Come was just a blur, should have escaped this?

But then the big Kahuna shows up, the Kingdom Come Superman. And he wonders who Superboy is and why he wears the S. Superboy's brash answer, the acceptance of the challenge seems spot on. After a year off, my guess is he is itching to use his powers and defend the city.

But I do have to wonder why the Kingdom Come Superman, so eager in that book to bring about some peace, would so willingly join in the tournament, fighting other heroes. That seems wrong. And the Kingdom Come Superman was so powerful, even Kryptonite wouldn't bother him. So I don't think would be a close fight.

I thought this was one of the better issues of Convergence because it captured the feeling of this period's Superboy book. That's more than I can say for Supergirl Matrix or Batgirl. And there was even a little teen angst to go along with the teen spirit.

Overall grade: B+

Review: Adventures Of Superman #14

Adventures of Superman #14 came out last week and was a mixed bag. There are two stories in the issue, one that made me wince, one that made me laugh. This book is on its way out, a canceled digital first book, which usually was my source for classic Superman interpretations. So in many ways I am sad to see it go.

But maybe I can feel better about seeing this book go if it means that DC won't let creators like Max Landis tell his Superman story. Because Max Landis should, at least in my mind, be banned from touching DC characters and especially Superman! After all, Landis made a big splash by telling people that they don't care about Superman and shouldn't care about Superman. He made it a point to demean many many creators when he disparaged the whole Death/Funeral of a Friend/Return of Superman arc. And he did it in such a smug way, something that someone who made a mediocre movie about super-powered teens shouldn't have the right to do.

Anyways, preconceived notions are hard to remove. So I am sure I went into this issue with a jaundiced eye. I mean, if Landis doesn't think I should care about Superman why would I ever care about his Superman story?

After that bitter pill, at least I had the fun and irreverant Sugar and Spike team-up by Fabian Nicieza and Phil Hester to soothe.

Landis' story has The Joker on the roof of the Daily Planet, holding a detonation device, claiming that bombs of joker-venom gas are around the city. Superman arrives and the two settle into a philosophical debate about their realities. The Joker calls Superman boring and vague. Superman calls the Joker boring and a ruse, a shroud that writers can fling over any character archetype and have it be deemed interesting.

It is clear that Landis dislikes these characters. I have to assume that how the characters describe each other is how Landis views them. In essence, he is insulting prior creators' work.

Now the story isn't a complete failure. Jock's art is solid. And this page where Landis shows the many faces the Joker has worn is a nice walk through history - from Finger to Romero to Novick to Bolland to Nicholson to Timm to Capullo to Ledger - these are all the versions of the Joker. From killer to camp, from victim to cartoon to killer, the Joker has evolved.

Isn't character evolution a good thing? 

And if the Joker is everything and nothing, Superman is something - boring, bland, vague.

The Joker doesn't care. Landis doesn't care.

Funny though ... I care. I am a fan of Superman. So why would DC let someone who doesn't understand the character write a story.

Hell, why would Warners let someone who doesn't understand the character write the screenplay?? Or direct the movie?? But I digress.

Because it isn't over. Landis has to be edgy. So why not let Superman threaten to kill the Joker.

And then have him say the metatextual insult that anyone could write, play, or be the Joker.

Ooooh ... Landis is fighting the establishment. Mocking and deconstructing two of DC's most well-known characters!!

Ooooohhh ... rebellious!

In the end, Superman grabs the bombs and the Joker.

But then there is this ending. Let's add some more nonsense to this story.

It turns out that somehow Batman could have stopped the Joker from heading to Metropolis. But he didn't!! He wanted to see how Superman would react. Because that is what Batman would do.

And Superman says another Joker visit will end in death. Oooohhh ... glowing red eyes! So violent!

That's right! Batman let the murderous sociopath head to a huge city ... as a test. Good thing the Joker simply didn't detonate the bombs.

Here is a plea to DC ... lose Max Landis' contact information. Stop prostituting yourself. Whatever money he brings in isn't worth the way he treats the characters or the back-door insults to your company.

I rolled my eyes so many times reading the Landis story that my vision was blurry for a bit.

When things normalized, I read the next story. And suddenly Superman was fun again.

Somehow Clark gets roped into babysitting Sugar and Spike. And these kids are a handful. There was a sort of Mort Meskin Jonny Quick feel to this page with the multiple images of Spike flying around the room. And the fact that Superman is the still figure shows the terror of this toddler!

Sugar and Spike's fathers are STAR Labs employees. And while working late, their dimension-breaking device is stolen by the Atomic Skull. Clark has no option but to bring the tots along for an adventure.

Superman briefly gets shunted to another dimension leaving Sugar and Spike at the mercy of the Skull. Or is it the other way around.

Spike turns the tables, bringing Superman back and jumbling the Skull in and out of reality.

That's right, toddlers can make both the hero's life and the villain's life miserable.

With the Skull caught, Supes brings the kids home and tucks them into bed.

It is a cute story and just what I needed after Landis' poison.

So a hit and a miss in this issue of Adventures of Superman. They can't all be perfect.

Overall grade: D+ (F for Landis/Jock, B for Nicieza/Hester)

Review: Superman Annual #1

Superman Annual #1 came out this week, the opening volley of the Scott Lobdell era on the character.

Plotted by Lobdell, scripted by Fabian Nicieza, and drawn mostly by Pascal Alixe, the book reads a bit uneven. There is a lot of Superman in this book, no doubt. But there are also a lot of other characters in here as well, interacting on the periphery of the plot and probably foreshadowing some big crossover in the future. As a result, it felt a bit disjointed, as if DC was using this book to introduce (or reintroduce) me to some characters I haven't been following.

And it is an interesting opening chapter for Lobdell to start his Superman run with. For starters, Superman is basically ineffective this entire book. He is outgunned by the main villain Helspont. In some ways, that's good as it places Helspont in a high tier of someone who can actually be a threat. By being trounced thoroughly and yet continuing to rise up to fight again, I got a sense of how Lobdell characterizes Superman. There are some nice bits sprinkled throughout that make me think Lobdell understands the essence of Superman. But by having Superman be completely powerless against the threat, I felt like Superman did little here, instead having things done to him. There is a fine balance between establishing a worthy villain and making the hero seem worthless. This skirted on the later.

Perhaps the biggest thing that I thought about this being Lobdell's opening chapter is that it felt like a big story that Superman was a part of rather than a Superman story. It almost felt like it should be a one shot with a unique title highlighting the Daemonites.

The book opens with a flashback to Helspont's origins some 3000 years ago. He feels that his mother's intermingling of Daemonite genes with other races has weakened the proud race. He wants to bring back the glory of a pure race, re-establishing the Daemonites as conquerors of the universe. Sounds pretty racist and evil. And the queen responds appropriately, exiling him.

But Helspont, here called Artus, also makes other comments ... about rising infant mortality, worsening autoimmune deficiencies, and cancers. His own wife died in childbirth from some medical weakness. And all this decay is happening while the rich ruling class indulges itself. This sounds like he is trying to save a sinking ship, trying to help the dying 99% while the 1% throws parties.

So maybe the guy with the flaming skull head isn't all bad? It is hard to get away from the 'pure race of conquerors' bit though.

After the flashback, we get to see what Lobdell thinks of Clark. I have to say I liked what I read.

As Clark he likes to take the subway in to be among the people, to be normal. He thinks it makes him feel ..... (shudder) ... grounded. I don't know if I will ever hear that word in regards to Superman again and not think of JMS' wipeout of an arc.

But then we get this panel about Lois. When thinking about the more sensational aspects of the Planet's news these days, Clark misses Lois. She would straighten things out. He misses her, lamenting the fact that he didn't realize what she meant to him.

Whoa ...

Now as much as I loved this panel ... I mean loved it ... it flies in the face of the cover of Justice League #12 and all the news about that. I'd prefer this panel to that story every time.

His trek to work is interrupted by the sudden appearance of a massive spaceship hovering over Earth. A super-vision peek reveals Helspont is there. Switching to his costume, Superman flies into space to confront the Daemonite. But before he can reach the ship, he is stopped short by Helspont.

Now this is what a 2 page splash should be. Because Helspont is literally tugging on Superman's cape. (I wonder if that line is lost on younger readers.) Regardless of Jim Croce lyrics, it shows just how powerful Helspont is, just how beneath him he feels Superman is. This is a playground maneuver. I don't need to hear Helspont lord his power over Superman. This image does it for me. That is what comics should be about.

This tug is followed by a backhanded slap to Superman which sends Superman crashing into the moon and knocking him out!

The annual then takes a bit of a sidetrack as Helspont sends out emissaries to some of the alien heroes on Earth, trying to persuade them to join his mission and discussing the legend of 'The Thirteen Scions of Salvation'.

Much like Helspont beating up on Superman, his agents also pack a lot of power as they confront the heroes.

First Martian Manhunter gets beaten up by the female Salu. Now J'Onn recognized her as an agent of Helspont and initiated the fight. But she ends it. And leaves after telling him he either is going to join Helspont or die.

Given the Steranko-like panel effects and the rough art, my guess is these pages were done by Marco Rudy. Perhaps these were initially planned to be in Stormwatch?

Then the ever-voluptuous Starfire is approached by Quom. Naturally, he finds her sunbathing on the beach in a mere slip of a bikini. Where else would you find Starfire?

Anyways, in much the same way, she initiates a fight with Quom and is dispatched easily. He also reminds her about the legend of the thirteen and tells her she needs to join or die. It is interesting that Starfire has heard about this legend, equating it to a fairy tale rather than a prophecy.

And this being the Starfire interlude, the art is much smoother. But I wonder if these were pages ear-marked for an issue of Red Hood.

And then Lord Defile (yeesh ... what a name) shows up to batter Hawkman and also give him the ultimatum of joining Helspont or dying. Again, the art here is different ... maybe Tom Raney? Could these have been pages originally planned for a Hawkman issue?

Between these scenes, Superman is actually saved by Grifter and brought onto his pod. Again the art is different. Could these have been lifted from a Grifter issue?

Remember, this annual was initially solicited as a completely different story written by Keith Giffen. Could DC have decided that rather than running these bits through individual titles building a crossover there, that they simply consolidated them, bulking up a single issue of Superman into a super-sized Annual?

The bottom line is that the 'Thirteen' myth isn't mentioned again, only in these other heroes' interludes. So given the initial bend of Helspont wanting a pure race, having him gathering other races in a way that didn't impact the main story with Superman, felt wrong, as if scenes from one movie were cut into another.

In the meantime, Superman makes his way onto Helspont's ship to confront him.

Helspont states his reason for visiting Earth was to kill some of his sleeper agents that he has on the planet. Helspont even kills some of his crew that is helping keep Superman at bay. It is the action of a madman that Helspont justifies by swearing that his execution of millions will, in the end, save trillions. He also says his agents welcome death if he orders it. Superman isn't so sure they went willingly. And the ends never justify the means.

It turns out that there are a lot of Daemonites living among the people of Earth. Thousands of years ago Helspont put them there to help keep track of the metagene in Terrans' DNA. He thought that gene might rectify the problems in his own races' genome.

Unfortunately, those agents went native and lost sight of the task. And so they needed to be eliminated.

This is an interesting plot point, one I hope gets explored more in the future. Were these being immortal? Long-lived? Did they mate with humans?

The truth is Helspont didn't need these agents on Earth to act as a shepherd humanity's metagene. Superman is doing that already. Look at that last panel. Helspont smugly standing there, hands behind his back, while Superman is small and on his knees. Superman has been unwittingly serving Helspont and is basically powerless before him. Another nice panel meshing words and pictures.

So I credit Lobdell for elevating Helspont as an adversary for Superman. Helspont's whole demeanor throughout this encounter has been one of haughty derision, just effortlessly turning aside Superman's attacks and doing whatever he wanted to do. And to add a wrinkle to all this, Helspont states that not only has he killed Kryptonians before, he knew Jor-El!

And here I thought Helspont was basically just an Atomic Skull/Mongul mash-up. He seems deeper and more interesting than that.

And so we get this final panel showing a defeated Superman, clueless about what he should do next.

Had this been a stand-alone Superman issue ... if the Martian Manhunter, Starfire, Grifter, and Hawkman pages not been in here ... I probably would give it a B+ for the opening scenes of Clark and for defining Helspont so formidably.

Unfortunately, those pages are in here and seem out of place. I can't help but think that when Giffen's Annual was shelved that DC cobbled this thing together from a planned Superman issue and some pages from those characters titles. And while those pages involve Helspont, they don't mesh with the story involving Superman.

As a result, the book felt just disjointed enough, the art just varied enough to drop a bit.

Pascal Alixe's art is pretty good as he channels Gary Frank and does a decent job. As said above, panel composition was solid throughout.

And, at least in this issue for one panel, Clark mooned a bit over Lois. So at least I got that going for me.

Overall grade: B

Review: Legion Lost #11

Legion Lost #11 came out last week and continued the restructuring of this book, moving it toward a new overall theme of 'lost', not only temporally but also psychologically. This Legion team is each dealing with some serious issues in this time whether it be trust, or fear of death, or paranoia.

It is an interesting overlay for a Legion book. I feel like these Legionnaires are sort of caught in the eye of a storm. They are starting to look at each other with a more discerning eye as secrets and lies are being uncovered. And yet, they still have to trust each other as teammates and friends to get through these trying times. That dichotomy of feelings is a pretty rich theme to mine. In that way, it is an interesting counterpart to the more upbeat main Legion book.

Writer Tom DeFalco adds more mystery this issue, bringing in a new wrinkle to a Legionnaire and helping move the initial storyline of Alastor and his Hypertaxis plague closer to a finale. And artist Pete Woods continues to shine here.

Last issue ended with the MetAmerican attack squad engaging with the Legionnaires who returned to New York and shooting Timber Wolf in the chest. And Chameleon Girl isn't going to take that lightly. She morphs into your typically excellent Pete Woods monstrosity and wades into battle.

Now I usually harp on these books for having our military immediately target and fight the heroes in comic books. But this actually seems reasonable. The Legionnaires aren't established in our time and have been around a lot of disasters. It makes sense to try to bring them in.

That said, the placement of the American flag so prominently in the fight sequence seemed forced. It added a bit too much 'our heroes are fighting America' feel to the scene. That flag doesn't need to be in the scene but it is ... so the writer must want it to mean something. I liked it when our heroes fought for America.

Anyways, the MetaMarines are a pretty good unit and pretty soon get the upper hand. Yera suffers a minor head injury so she can't focus to shape change. And Tyroc gets a boot to the throat so he can't use his sonics.

The scene shifts to Oz, Tellus, and the injured Timber Wolf. Oz brings Brin to the local urgent care center, staffed by Dr. Shaleeka Mosley. She opened up the clinic to help the underserved and has treated many trauma victims. But high caliber bullet wounds to the chest?

Now I suppose if I can suspend my disbelief enough to buy Timber Wolf, Tellus, and Gates then I have to suspend it that an urgent care site and an experienced doctor could deal with these wounds. But even a level one trauma center with an experienced trauma team and a waiting OR would have a hard time saving someone with multiple high caliber bullet wounds to the chest.

I do hope that Mosley becomes a supporting cast member, a sort of Leslie Thompkins for the team.

One character who I have grown to like a lot is Yera. She seems completely 'no nonsense' and proactive. She will wade into the good fight with or without her powers. No you could argue that maybe the right thing to do was surrender here and state their case to the marines. But not Yera ...

Yera seems to be hiding inside info about Harvest.
Tyroc seems troubled by a propecy only he knows.
So they have their issues, even with each other. So nice to see them back each other up.

Tellus is hiding some big secret too.

At first it seemed like Wildfire and Dawnstar might not be touched by all this internal intrigue. But now they have their own issues adding to the maelstrom of this team.

Dawnstar apparently has feelings for Timber Wolf. The two rush to his side in the clinic where his natural healing has kicked in.

Wildfire, his suit irreparable and leaking his essence, sees that she loves Timber Wolf and not him. As a Wildfire fan, this struck me. He thinks he is dying, dissipating ... and now he thinks he has lost his love.

So now they have their issues outside of the team as well.

Pete Woods has always been great but I feel like he has come to put his mark on these characters. I like that Tellus' human image of Wildfire has a scar where the crack in his faceplate is. And he really does a wonderful Dawnstar, a sort of cold beauty about her.

That clinic also has a corpse! A dessicated husk of a person ... with the stench of Alastor all over him.

With the rest of them elsewhere, Tellus and Dawnstar decide to track him down on their own.

Thank goodness! I am glad the opening arc is going to be dealt with.

That said, shouldn't Tellus be able to tell that Yera and Tyroc are in a battle. Shouldn't they head back to find out who shot Timber Wolf? I just don't understand why this team would be so scattered. And blase about the attack.

And I thought that Timber Wolf might remain above the fray of all the personal conflicts and conspiracies. But he also begins to have some concerns about this mission.

While recovering he has a vision about the Echo project, a plan to mindwipe witnesses in the future and throw them in the past. Could the Legionnaires have been mindwiped and dumped in the present?

It seems too crazy an idea to contemplate. It's not like Alastor wasn't here when they arrived. He was. And they have their memories ... although I suppose the key memories could have been scrubbed.

But this seems a bit too out there to easily accept as a reader. It feels like a forced 'lost' storyline for Timber Wolf.

But as I said above, what I love about the book is that while everyone seems to have a skeleton in their closet or some impending tragedy or some delusion, they are still the Legion, together. The Marines can only defeat Tyroc and Yera by exploiting their care for each other. It was a nice little reminder of who the Legion are amidst these personal dramas.

And I like that the MetAmerican thinks that exploitation of their teamwork was loathsome. Again, I don't think these guys are the bad guys. So it is nice to see them have some morals as well.

And Tellus and Dawnstar have no shot against Alastor, who has developed a new power to possess people. That is, until he burns them out like that corpse seen earlier. And here he takes over Dawnstar.

We saw Alastor defeat the whole team in the early issues so I don't know just what these two thought they could do by themselves. I don't know why Tellus didn't inform the rest of the team.

So right now these characters are lost in time, hiding motivations and missions from each other, and now separated. It looks like things are going to get better before they get worse.

Of all the DCnU titles I have bought which changed themes and teams early on, this one has made the easiest transition. While I miss the rotating narrator motif that Nicieza brought to the book, these internal mysteries and 'lost' plotlines have piqued my interest. Now you can't keep all the secrets secret too long or it becomes tedious. But for now I just wonder which one of these hidden back stories is true ... maybe more than one is. I almost feel like the team needs to come together and everyone needs to come clean.

Overall grade: B

Review: Legion Lost #6

One of the many new 52 titles getting a creative team change is Legion Lost, with writer Fabien Nicieza moving on and Tom DeFalco coming on board.  It is a change I am a bit leery of. You see, this was a book I almost abandoned after the first issue. I didn't like the 'trapped in time' story and I didn't like the 'stop the virus' plot either. But Nicieza really did a great job with the characters here, giving each Legionnaire a turn at being narrator, allowing us to see their inner thoughts, and learn about them more. And that characterization really worked for me, surpassing the virus plot and making this the Legion book I was anticipating most each month. Of course, Pete Woods awesome art didn't hurt.

Legion Lost #6 came out last week and was a transition issue with both Nicieza and DeFalco splitting writing duties. And Supergirl pinch hitter extraordinaire Matt Camp helped out with Woods on art. As the original team is still here, it is hard to know if any major change in the books feel is going to happen. This issue was narrated by Tyroc and continued the strong character feel of the book. And the issue ends with what might considered a finale for the opening arc ... maybe.

We know this book isn't selling like gangbusters, so the question is does DC decide to shake up what is solid storytelling to try to attract readers. Or will they let word of mouth bring people here. (Of course, the upcoming crossover with Titans and Superboy might bring people here too).

Last issue ended with a cliffhanger, with the Martian Manhunter stopping Timber Wolf and Chameleon Girl from rejoining the rest of the team. In something of a twist, he doesn't take them back to Stormwatch HQ and insteads lets them get captured by the military squad following. And the J'Onn tags along, all stealthy (although allowing TW to still see him).

Of course, Timber Wolf knows the Manhunter, something which confuses J'Onn.

I don't know if I understand why J'Onn allowed Wolf to get captured by this group unless he was also scouting them out too.

Dawnstar is able to track them to the compound they are being held in Tyroc decides assault is the best option. And Gates is the perfect advance trooper, blipping in and out stealing the soldiers' weapons. It is hear I learn that Gates hates all authority and would relish this task.

I did not Legion during the time Gates was around. So I don't know if this is new for him or always there. Nice use of multiple panels spanning one continuous image, giving the reader the feeling that Gates is moving around in time and space.

And Tyroc shares his own feelings of inadequacy as team leader here. He talks about feeling nervous telling them what to do. But really, who else could be the leader of this team. Wolf and Wildfire are too hot-headed. Gates hates authority. Dawnstar is an introvert. Tellus is ... meek. It has to be Tyroc or Yera.

So he has to pull it together and take control.

Man, that Matt Camp can draw. What a great panel of two of my favorite Legionnaires.

Meanwhile, Timber Wolf begins being interrogated by the woman leader of this military operation. We have seen her since issue one. I am telling you, that scar on her face has to be courtesy of some alien or maybe Alastor himself.

I do like the code words they have given the Legionnaires. Lenny Kravitz for Tyroc ... perfect. Big yellow frog for Tellus? Even more perfect.

But Wolf has little to say other than he can smell alien corpses in this place. This is as much a lab and morgue as it is a prison.

Once inside, Dawnstar and Gates are able to pinpoint just where their friends are. Wildfire wants to split up. Tyroc doesn't want to. But Ty concedes. He isn't quite ready to overrule Wildfire, especially when it comes to a battle.

But Tyroc knows there is risk too.

He and Wildfire go to rescue Yera and run into J'onn. J'onn isn't sure what is going on.

Of course Wildfire reacts like Wildfire. He blasts the Martian and engages in battle. But like Wolf, Tyroc immediately recognizes J'onn and commands Wildfire to stand down. And when Drake won't listen, Tyroc puts some teeth behind his order. It was definitely nice to see Tyroc finally act like a leader.

When cooler heads prevail, J'onn and the Legionnaires talk about their plight. J'onn finds a Durlan corpse which will supply Yera the needed biomass to purge her body of the Hypertaxis virus. And J'onn is able to get the temporal signature of the Legion, something he was looking for since intercepting Brin.

Timber Wolf and the others mop the floor with the soldiers and it looks like everyone is going to get out of this thing in one piece. But then J'onn drops a bomb on them. Time travel is one way.

I think the Legion all along have known this in their hearts. But having it said by someone else makes it sink in. This use of repeated panels to convey the passing of time is a well traveled technique in the decompressed writing style. For me, it is a Bendis technique. Sometimes he would have the same panel cover the whole page to really give the feeling of time passing.

I don't mind it as a story-telling method if used sparingly. The more it is used, the less story we get. Here it works nice, showing the shock on the Legion, paralyzed by the news.

As for Tellus, who was left guarding Alastor, he fails in his one job. He 'falls asleep' and when he awakens Alastor is gone and completely cloaked. You would think that J'onn would help stop Alastor when he learned of this threat. Who knows, maybe he did, taking Alastor away.

So does this mark the end of the Hypertaxis arc? Sort of. But my guess is ... and I hope ... that the Legion still tries to contain the plague. Or will the Legion's hope of getting home become the dominating thread?

Regardless, next issue is set in New York, as far away from the plague epicenter as you can get.

So overall, I thought this was a good issue, showcasing Tyroc's fears as well as bringing the team finally back together. And, the Woods/Camp art was top notch.

But the J'onn guest star seemed a bit superfluous and maybe a little forced. And I hope the Alastor/plague story isn't swept under the rug. I don't like it ... but I want resolution.

Overall grade: B