Legion of Super-Heroes: Legacy of the Great Darkness saga

[j9ac9k]

Current DC -- where stories from classic, critically-acclaimed stories are no longer part of the fabric. Sad, really.

Well, that's the thing isn't it - what's "part of the fabric" vs. "in continuity?" Great Darkness is certainly part of the fabric because the creators still honor it and it's always pointed to as what makes the Legion great and the kind of stories it can tell, but how important is it to be in continuity? That the characters get to say, "Hey, remember that time we fought Darkseid?" Most stories get bottled up for the most part anyway whether it's writing for trades or each creative team essentially just doing their own thing regardless of continuity. We all have our own line about what makes this the "same" team and this is obviously a new start, but I think everything that came before is "part of the fabric" that informs how readers treat the new stuff and how writers treat any given franchise with a significant history. It's all a rich tapestry....

[Jim Kelly]

There are certain concepts where what makes them great is everything from the continuity that informs the characters. That's how it was for me with the Legion--it made it better to know that almost every story had been part of their history. That was true up to 1989. There might have been some little fixes that Paul Levitz did which nullified certain things established by Jim Shooter, but 99% of everything counted. Someone like Saturn Girl was the sum of everything that happened to her in all those stories. That's why I can't feel as invested in the treatments that throw out the coninuity--they're getting rid of the big thing that made LSH so important to me.

[caj]

There are certain concepts where what makes them great is everything from the continuity that informs the characters. That's how it was for me with the Legion--it made it better to know that almost every story had been part of their history. That was true up to 1989. There might have been some little fixes that Paul Levitz did which nullified certain things established by Jim Shooter, but 99% of everything counted. Someone like Saturn Girl was the sum of everything that happened to her in all those stories. That's why I can't feel as invested in the treatments that throw out the coninuity--they're getting rid of the big thing that made LSH so important to me.

Agree completely. That's why Levitz was so successful - he built his stories on the history already laid down over the years.

He wasn't undoing or wiping out what came before just to put his own stamp on how he would've written it. He just drew storylines from what had been a part of their historical past.

[Sutekh]

Agree completely. That's why Levitz was so successful - he built his stories on the history already laid down over the years.

He wasn't undoing or wiping out what came before just to put his own stamp on how he would've written it. He just drew storylines from what had been a part of their historical past.

That, IMO, is the sign of a great writer for comics properties that were created by others decades before, to tap into the many stories that have come before and mine them for fun modern story ideas. Writers like Kurt Busiek and Peter David get a lot of mileage out of pillaging old continuity and freshening it up, and don't seem as worried about giving old characters the voices of the characters they *wish* they were writing (or plugging in their own creations, hoping to get more residuals from them later, and neglecting the characters created by other writers long ago).

I'd love to see a Legion book that both respected it's long history *and* was willing to introduce new and fun stuff. Murrans and Luck Lords and Brain-Globes and Gil'Dishpan *and* Theena, Gazelle, 'Dream Boy', M'Rissey, etc. Evillo and the (expanded, updated) Devil's Dozen and the Taurus Gang and Starfinger and the Heroes of Lallor and Silver Sword and *and* Kid Quantum 2 and Dragonmage and Gates and the Workforce and Amazers. Bring it all on!

[caj]

Giffen's art was spectacular in this story but I did have one major complaint - Saturn Girl's hair.

This was a time when Giffen was slowly updating the looks of the Legionnaires. But for four of the five TGDS issues, Saturn Girl has long hair. Then in the finale, she shows up with short hair. We're supposed to believe that during one of the greatest battles of their entire history that Saturn Girl would take time to have her hair cut? Dream Girl, yeah she'd do that. But Saturn Girl? Especially when she's seen on a cruiser heading into battle in #293 with long hair.

Giffen should've waited until #296 to reveal the new look, the same way he did Shadow Lass when she chopped off all her hair as well.

[caj]

I realize we haven't seen anything yet, but with what happened in Doomsday Clock #11 and Bendis revamping the Legion, is it a safe bet that The Great Darkness Saga will remain the best Legion story of all time?

Or will Bendis blow our minds with what he has planned?

[Infectious Lass]

I think every writer on Legion hopes their story will be as well-remembered as The Great Darkness Saga. I think the key to that is to evoke the drama of the event without copying it directly. I also think Bendis is taking a good approach by building towards a saga instead of starting with one. In my opinion, one of the problems with the Threeboot was they could not top the Praetor Lemnos plot.