The Griffen Legion - This is Incredible

[ultradav]

I will say to get things back on track that for me the Terra Mosaic (issues 25-36) story line was one the best Legion stories ever and really made the whole Giffenbaum pay off in such an amazing way. To have a full year of just one story is hard to pull off and they did it. Everything they set up in those first 24 issues really paid off big in this story.

I'm reading it right now, it is so great -- the layered stories, the SW6 batch, the SUBs.

I will say I think they did let some plotlines get lost in the shuffle. Like, Celeste Rockfish and the green energy, Kent Shakespeare just showed up without much background ever given, or Bounty / Dawnstar (I guess I'm dense, but I didn't realize it was Dawnstar until it was revealed, though the clues were all there). It was also an interesting choice to have the main Legion become like supporting characters in this long arc, they didn't have much to do with this big story of liberating Earthgov. But this is nitpicking perhaps.

[The Whovian]

great recommendations - thank you very much. i had no idea they were parts of a bigger story

I would also recommend reading Legion Lost, the DnA Legion and Superboy's Legion by Farmer and Davis.

[Zero Hunter]

I'm reading it right now, it is so great -- the layered stories, the SW6 batch, the SUBs.

I will say I think they did let some plotlines get lost in the shuffle. Like, Celeste Rockfish and the green energy, Kent Shakespeare just showed up without much background ever given, or Bounty / Dawnstar (I guess I'm dense, but I didn't realize it was Dawnstar until it was revealed, though the clues were all there). It was also an interesting choice to have the main Legion become like supporting characters in this long arc, they didn't have much to do with this big story of liberating Earthgov. But this is nitpicking perhaps.

I agree that we could have used an issue here and there showing us things like Kent Shakespeare's story and Dawnstars transformation to Bounty. Those kind of things would have been perfect for short stories in an Annual.

[Nomads1]

I would also recommend reading Legion Lost, the DnA Legion and Superboy's Legion by Farmer and Davis.

LOVE Superboy's Legion. It's like The Nail with less repercussion (and issues, also). Awsome stuff. (also love the other recomendations)


Peace

[bearman]

Not just my favorite item Legion run...one of my favorite runs of enything, ever..
Giffen was a brilliant idea man; the stories were dense, but so rewarding.
A brilliant achievement, killed to soon.

[Orf with his head]

5YL Legion was the first time I had ever read LOSH, and I absolutely loved it. To be honest nothing ever matched it to this day for me.

Loved the characterisation of characters like Kono, Jan, Devlin, Celeste and Kent. What also drew me to it so much was the LGBT aspect and showed character like Lightning Lord reforming and having a partner, and the Sean/Shvaughn reveal was so well done I think it would win awards if it was published today.

I was so gutted when it was rebooted and we lost all those characters and stories were wiped out.

[CaptCleghorn]

Giffen's 5YL Legion is the kind of book I think Young Animal is shooting for. A series that takes parts of DC's history, relishes what works, tweak or even mock what didn't and serve it up with a modern flavor.

This type of leap is what the new post-Rebirth Legion needs.

[Zero Hunter]

I have always said the 5 Years Latter... Legion probably would have fit in more with what Vertigo was doing at the time compared to the normal DC books. If Veritgo had started a few years sooner this run of Legion would have fit right in with books like Shade and Doom Patrol.

[Tugger]

I'm about ten issues away from hitting the ATFYG series and I can't wait. I remember it fondly and it's one of the main reasons that I'm revisiting the comics of my youth.
It was so fresh and different from what had gone before and Keith's artwork really suited the stories.
Listen up Marvel (and DC), if you're going to reboot something, THIS is how it should be done.

[AcesX1X]

i finished it a few months ago. i still think its one of the best-told sagas in all of comics history

[j9ac9k]

While I loved the "5 Year Gap" Legion stories, I definitely thought the idea lost steam after awhile. After all the darkness and death, and all the various Legionnaires fighting to create not only the team again, but the bright future they fought for in their youth, the book should have essentially ended on a high note of them actually succeeding and creating a brighter, better universe to close out that run, then move on to the next creative team to show the adult Legion in a much happier place. Instead, they blew up the Earth. To me, it's a closed continuity - that story is done and we can never go back to that era, because it was its own thing. Best to create an alternate future based on the original Legion, but having their timeline diverge at some point. (I think that's what Johns did? Not sure)

[Marvell2100]

Not just my favorite item Legion run...one of my favorite runs of enything, ever..
Giffen was a brilliant idea man; the stories were dense, but so rewarding.
A brilliant achievement, killed to soon.

I agree. This was some of the best writing you'll find in any comic. When they ended it, I just gave up on it. It lost the thrill for me.

[Deniz Camp]

Still absolutely my favorite Legion run ever, and by far.

[Montressor]

My favorite run of the Legion. It was both shocking and refreshing at the same time, having come up on the classic Superboy and the Legion stuff (the fact that a young version of Superman from an earlier point in the timeline hung out with heroes from the distant future was just cool to me). This was jarring, dark, and Giffen's angular and shadowed artwork was perfect (I became the fan I am today because of his art during this run). Giffen's art here is Kirby-level spectacular, in my opinion.

The removal of Superboy--entirely--was heartbreaking, but those final images of Mon El whaling away on the Time Trapper will remain with me forever, and I love how Mon himself was elevated (the retelling of his origin as epic myth was just fun and awesome). Glorith to this day remains one of my favorite villains of all time (you got worried when she'd show up, you know?) It was just a great run at a great time,and as someone mentioned above it should've been a Vertigo book (that had never occurred to me). If you're reading it having never read the original pre-Crisis stuff, I suppose it's still impressive, but the 'Five Years Later' tag it all began with meant something solid to those of us who remember time bubbles, Smallville, Dev Em and Laurel Kent.