Comic Book Consideration Presents: History of the Legion of Super-Heroes Adventure Comics 337

Hello everyone and welcome to another chapter from the history of the Legion of Super-Heroes. When we last left off the Legion faced Starfinger who turned out to be a mind controlled Lighting Lad. As such we move to October of 1965 and Adventure Comics 337. The cover given the period when this was published shows the Marriage of Lighting Lad and Saturn Girl and Phantom Girl and Ultra Boy.
      The Comic itself begins with Brainiac 5 talking of a impending crisis and that Ultra Boy and Phantom Girl are holding hands and not listening to him. Brainiac starts to berate them only for Saturn Girl to step in and for him to comment that she is doing the same thing with lighting Lad.  However, Brainiac and Superboy talk about Plan R and using Legionnaires to hunt for spies.
      Later the loving Legionnaries head to the clubhouse museum and talk about different marriage customs.

  

      The two groups on different sides of a exhibit start kissing and soon are caught by Brainiac 5 and Superboy. Also at this time secret agents are listening and preparing to bring down the Legion. Soon the Legion starts searching for these agents all over the place and suddenly they appear and attack Saturn Girl.  Luckily she is saved by Lighting Lad.
        After this Lighting Lad and Saturn Girl along with Phantom Girl and Ultra Boy decide to marry. This deeply shocks Brainiac 5 and we have a moment where we see he is not as cold and computer life as he seems.

      Soon the wedding happens and due to a clause in the Legion constitution they are forced to retire. The spies see all this and plan to infiltrate and destroy from within. Soon after the Legion hold their open try outs. Members of the Legion of Substitute Heroes try out but are once again not accepted. However, the three spies also try out and get accepted as replacement members.  The new members wish to help out and go off searching for themselves and lay a trap which takes out Cosmic Boy and Element Lad. They than ransack the clubhouse looking for Plan-R to destroy it.  It turns out that Plan-R is a ploy by the Legion to find out who wants to invade Earth. Then in flashbacks we see that the weddings are fake and a ploy to lure the spies into a false sense of security.
      Soon on the planet the spies come from the Legion Land and reveal Plan-R is nothing but rubbish. The Legion then destroy the super-computer helping the spies out on their home planet.

      Once everything has returned to normal we see as the comic ends that the four who wed have feelings for each other after all and kiss again.
       Now that the story has been completed it is time to turn to the impact that this issue had on the legion of Super-Heroes. First, this story continues the big trend of the Legion being destroyed from the inside. This trend also feels like it is the present impacting on writing as the cold war and Vietnam were raging for the United States. However, perhaps the biggest impact that this issue had is that the two relationships would stay cannon. In the future and from the new 52 Legion we see that Lighting Lad and Saturn Girl will in fact marry and that Phantom Girl and Ultra Boy are still in a relationship. Other than that this issue conforms to the normal's if the 1960's Legion and the slow building of the universe that become of the future of the D.C universe for many years,  

Comic Book Consideration Presents: History of the Legion Adventure Comics 336: Starfinger Saga Part 2

       Hello everyone and welcome to the first issue of the re-branded From the vault. I decided to change the name to better reflect what I was doing in regards to the Legion comics and examining their growth and universe. As such when we last left off the Legion was facing one of their greatest battles against Starfinger. He had magic rings on each finger that made him as powerful as all the Legion members and was going after a magic space rock that made people young again. His way to get things to bend to his will is to destroy the 30th century's Seven Wonders of the World.
        The action itself begins with the Legion members hit by Starfingers power lock ability being fixed. During this same time due to the Knowledge of Starfinger being a Legion member the group begins to distrust each other. After a time looking for Starginger he is spotted going towards the next wonder of the world with his target being the Global tunnel. The tunnel is a hole that goes right through the center of the Earth. Starfinger flies into the hole and the Legion members guarding follow him. However, as they reach him they realize it is a decoy of a fake rocket painted to look like Starfinger. Above the real Starfinger destroys the bore laser.

     

       This begins to cause the tunnel to collapse on the Legion members inside and for the Earthquake to soon be detected at the Legion clubhouse. During this same time something starts to happen at the hale of fame guarded by Ultra Boy.
        Ultra Boy tries to prevent Starfinger from destroying the figures of Earth's past but can't keep up with the falling statues and is crushed under the statues.  As Legion members get to him some think he is dead. Luckly, Saturn Girl comes to the scene and with her powers helps us to learn that he is fine and switched his powers to invulnerability just in time. Superboy who has also come adds he can repair the damage in time. After this they search once again for Starfinger and set extra guards at the last three wonders. Brainiac 5 also makes a breakthough on stopping stargingers rays and creates Inertron shields for the Legion to use. The shields are soon given out just in time as the members guarding the reversed waterfalls come under attack from Starfinger.
        During the attack he does damage the pumps at the waterfalls but is chased off by the Legion and their new shields before he does major damge. Luckly, Light Lass helps to keep the water moving. During the chase some of the guards and 6th and 7th wonder also move to engage and soon the Legion has Starfinger surrounded and force him to the ground.

      On the ground they pin his arms and take his mask off to reveal Lighting Lad as Starfinger. They look him over and see that his arm has been changed to let him made the rays. Saturn Girl also senses something is not right with him and that he has been hypnotist which they soon break him out of. The real Starginger had been Dr. Hanscom who was the one treating Lighting Lad all along. His base is also protected by inertron. It turns out the legion had been guarding his base the entire time as its in the 7th wonder of the world the Fusion-Powersphere. The Legion learns that the Rejuvium has been given over to Starfinger and so Superboy flies into the tunnel under the base and confronts the doctor.

       There the doctor points out he will destroy the rock if Superboy comes any closer. Superboy stops him by point out that his invulnerability and that that the doctor would not destroy something he so wanted. The doctor gives in and the the comic ends with him going to the prison planet and the Legion working to rebuild the 7 wonders.
        Now that the plot of the issue is done lets turn and look at the wider impact the story had on the Legion. Overall both the story and evil villain had little impact on the Legion following this story. However, it did continue the trends that existed in Legion comics during this period of destruction from the inside and the worry of double agents. This was the second Legion comic from 1965 that dealt with this issue. Overall, I believe this steams from the period of the cold war and the fear in the Cold War of fifth column agents working to destroy the United States within.
        In the end this Legion comic was not bad picking up after the last issue and showing how the steaks for the Legion were beginning to grow. it also helps to grow a better understand of the 30th century and what Earth looks like. All in all another classic Legion tale from the silver age.    
  

From the Vault: Adventure Comics # 335

        The Comic Starts in the 30th century with Sun Boy on a date with someone called Nila. She calls him by his full name Dirk Morgna and that if the Legion and the meeting has has to go to is more important than her to not come and see her later. At the same time but elsewhere in Metropolis Cosmic Boy is leaving visiting his family and his mom is worried about him. The two of them and Saturn Girl meeting is seeing Lighting Lad and seeing how he is and their regular medical checkup. Saturn Girl asks a Dr. Hanscom how Lighting Lad is. The process of growing new limbs is slow growing but that he will be doing a new experiment on Lighting Lad to make growing a new arm move along. Soon they have their checkups. It seems their are signs of space fatigue but it is good their are no missions right now. Suddenly, a nurse comes in and says the chief of the Science Police needs them to meet him at the clubhouse.

From the Vault: Adventure Comics #334

        The Comics Stars with the Legion visiting a planet by the name of Antares. Superboy asks the Legion to follow him. They follow him to a statue to the memory of a unknown Legion member called Unknown boy. Superboy states it brings back some memories and he adds that it was a great mystery-Adventure. Soon a flash back begins and the adventure begins on the Prison planetoid which holds the most dangerous lawbreakers from the system. The prison is surrounded by a electric eye halo which prevents escape. It alerts them to a supply ship landing. However, one prisoner has hatched a plan to escape. His name is Dr. Norm Eldor who tunnels out and breaks into the ship. Soon he leaves on a lifeboat after the supply ship has traveled away for awhile.  

From the Vault: Adventure Comics # 333

            The comic starts one day when Superboy comes and visits the Legion. He only sees Triplicate Girl standing watch and wonders where the rest are. Triplicate Girl states several like Mon-EL are on missions and the others are working on a archaeological project and takes him to it. At the location in the Atlantic Phantom Girl has found a tablet with strange writing on it and asks Superboy to get it. Light Lass adds she will help and makes the rock light. They soon break it off and get to it. Brainiac 5 is eager to study it. Superboy looks at the tablet and sees that it speaks of a war between Krypton and Earth. Both Brainiac and Superboy are shocked by this. Brainiac tests it out to see if its a fake by radio-carbon dating it. The dating states it is millions of years old. At this Superboy resolves to go back in time and solve the mystery of this event.

From the Vault: Adventure Comics # 332

       The comic starts with a giant space monster attacking a ship. The creature shaped like a whale soon eats the cargo of ore and the crew on lifeboats end out a distress call. Nearby, returning from a one man mission Lighting Lad hears it and thinks they have to be exaggerating. He soon gets to the lifeboats and calls the space guard. The crew tell him the creature has headed for a nearby red asteroid.

From the Vault: Adventure Comics # 331

      The comic starts with Vorm in charge and a man called Golden Boy asking to join. His power has the power to turn anything to gold. He is rejected as it would make gold a worthless metal. Next is a person calling himself Polocat who horns produces a terrible smell. Next is Animal Lad. He can turn humans into beasts or tame wild creatures. Vorm wonders if he will work

From the Vault: Adventure Comics # 330

 
        The comic starts on a pirate planetoid. They are watching a ship being attacked by some of their men. It is a pleasure cruiser and they want the rich people items. Suddenly, Superboy attacks and melts the cannons of the pirate ship. Ultra Boy than spins the ship and Mon-EL carries the pleasure ship to safety. The leader of the pirates hates this and says he has a evil plan. He wants two younger volunteers. Two volunteers Pargg and Vorm agree and he gives them belts which have different buttons to do various powers. They test it out and Pargg turns fourth dimensional and Vorm a pair of extra arms.

From the Vault: Adventure Comics #329

        The comic starts at the Legion clubhouse where a meeting is happening. Saturn Girl states it is a new year. They talk about the time trapper and the inability to pass his barrier of time. Than their was a vanishing planet full of monsters. Chameleon Boy mentions criminals reforming and surrendering and thinks something bad is going to happen. Next Brainiac 5 reveals his new creation the Flight Ring. Using will power it allows him to easily fly and the nee for flight belts is no more.

From the Vault: Adventure Comics # 328

        The comic starts in the clubhouse of the Legion of Super-Heroes in the 30th century. Cosmic Boy is using a machine called the Ancestor-visualizer to view his ancestors. Sun Boy is watching and says he would be scared to meet some of them. Elsewhere, in the building Invisible Kid and Triplicate Girl are in a room. Invisible Kid calls it the Rouge room and that Triplicate Girl is adjusting a anti-gravity ray on the Molock bust. Two androids of Zaryan and Jungle Kid are arguing over which villain was mightier. In another room Triplicate Girl shows a celestial chamber that shows where each Legionnaire home planet is. In a lib in the clubhouse Bouncing Boy comes to visit Superboy and laments in being on the reverse list. Superboy says he has a surprise for him.

From the Vault: Adventure Comics # 327

         The comic starts with a ship coming to a prison world. The man has done the crime of joining the Legion under false pretenses to sabotage the emergency board to make a crime easier to do.