Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds [Hardcover]

To me, one of the best things to ever come out of the landmark Crisis on Infinite Earths was the debut of Superboy-Prime (DC COMICS PRESENTS #87). I was a kid back then in the '80s and this was before all the dime-a-dozen reboots and Elseworlds, and I remember that electrifying feeling of wish-fulfillment when I first read about this ordinary kid inhabiting our real world, whose unfortunate name was Clark Kent (his parents had a warped sense of humor), and who then suddenly developed the powers of the Boy of Steel. I don't recall his impact on that first Crisis, but he survived the death of the multiverse, safe in a reality bubble shared with the Earth-2 Superman and Lois Lane and young Alexander Luthor. At that time, we thought we'd seen the last of them.

52, Vol. 4 brought back the multiverse, and Infinite Crisis is when we meet Superboy-Prime again, but a twisted version of him. All those years of exile had embittered young Clark, his sanity compromised by the loss of his own world, Earth-Prime, and all that he's ever known and loved. From then on, it's a short step to hating all things Superman, that older alternate-world counterpart who's managed to keep intact his own reality and loved ones and it really grates on Superboy-Prime that this Superman is so universally revered. So imagine how cheesed off he gets when he's flung to the far future, to the 31st Century, and looks around and sees the Man of Steel's imprint everywhere and most specially on the Legion of Super-Heroes. Worse, he learns that a statue of him in the Superman museum has been relegated to a service closet, his legacy having pretty much amounted to diddly-squat. An enraged Superboy-Prime makes a vow: "Ill destroy everything Superman has ever inspired!". And that most definitely includes the Legion.

I remember when the Legion's far-flung future gleamed with shiny bright optimism and prosperity. But this is a 31st Century that's gotten dirtied up, bleak and bereft of that retro 1950's innocence and this is an Earth festering with xenophobia. We find the original Legion already under siege, already demoralized and with most of the United Planets Council proclaiming that "This galaxy has no more use for the Legion of Super-heroes." and calling for the team to disband. More, the Legion's roster is reduced, a significant number of its membership missing in action. Sun Boy now spends all his time alone and drinking and wallowing in self-pity. Superboy-Prime's arrival couldn't have come at a worse time.

LEGION OF 3 WORLDS is hellaciously epic, pulse-pounding stuff. The first issue does open with heaps of exposition as Superboy-Prime rages about in the Superman museum, and it's not helping that the tour guide is this endlessly cheery holographic Jimmy Olsen. Superboy-Prime had already made up his mind to tear $#!% up in the 31st Century. That the holo ends up filling him in on the Legion of Super-Villains just makes things that much easier. Soon the Legion finds itself facing a massive assault from the deranged Boy of Steel and from just about all the heavy hitters on the Legion's rogue gallery (Mordru, Universo, the Fatal Five, etc.). And, of course, the Time Trapper, perhaps the Legion's most implacable, most enigmatic adversary, is pulling the strings from behind the curtain.

Some time ago, one of Dream Girl's visions had warned Brainiac 5 of the possibility of Superboy-Prime's coming, and this has bought the arrogant Coluan enough time to apply his 12th level intellect and implement a desperate contingency plan. And the first stage of that plan is to recruit Legions from two other realities. Me, I'm old-school so I prefer the original Legionnaires (who, to clarify, are the key protagonists here, along with Superman). But for those who fancy the post-Zero Hour (cool!) or the Threeboot (ugh!) incarnations of the Legion, then here's a chance to catch up with them. Me, I'm pretty stoked that Ferro and Gates are back in action.

So, yeah, it's a huge, huge cast, and you can't really blame Johns for focusing mostly on Superboy-Prime and selected Legionnaires, specifically Superman, the three original Legion founders, and the original Brainiac 5. But also solidly featured are the original versions of Sun Boy, the White Witch, Dawnstar and Wildfire (and I'm glad we get a sort of resolution to their relationship), and my favorite Legionnaire Brek Bannin, a.k.a. Polar Boy.

Speaking of, there's a sequence in which Polar Boy makes a last-ditch stand against Superboy-Prime and this constitutes possibly the most awesome Polar Boy moment ever (okay, with the possible exception of when he was elected leader of the Legion). If Superman embodies the ideals upheld by the Legion, then Polar Boy is the one who most fervently embraces these ideals. Dude is unflagging, and when you factor in his underdog status and that he had to apply for membership in the Legion over and over and over before being accepted, and that for years he languished, uncomplainingly, in the Legion of Substitute Heroes, then you may see why this guy is so easy to root for. To me, Polar Boy is THE man.

Fifty years of dense, broken continuity and three iterations of the Legion (and that's not even counting L.E.G.I.O.N.). It's crazy convoluted, and it's a lot to take in. Somehow writer Geoff Johns makes the story accessible enough and lends enough clarity that even newbies to the mythos can sort of follow along. But there's no denying that even longtime fans may have to occasionally look hard twice to figure out just who is who and from which Legion. Having said that, there's a lot of fun in seeing three Ultra Boys getting on so famously, with three Phantom Girls mooning over them. And one outstanding little moment (out of many memorable ones) which really resonates is when the three original founders show up (I guess plucked from when they'd just founded the Legion - Cosmic Boy still sports that bubble helmet). The fresh-faced kids gaze in wonder at all the future and otherdimensional Legionnaires, and each has something to say to their counterparts:

- Young Cosmic Boy: "The dream! It all comes true, doesn't it?"
- Young Saturn Girl: "Mr. Brande is right. We actually help unite the universe."
- Young Lightning Lad: "I look awesome." (Hah!)

FINAL CRISIS: LEGION OF 3 WORLDS (and, by the way, the FINAL CRISIS ties are tenuous, at best) collects the five issues of the mini-series, and features George Perez's stunning, lavishly detailed pencils. And, frankly, in reading this trade format, I'm almost convinced to give a pass to DC for being so late in putting out some of the issues (But I'm still cheesed). Geoff Johns is doing massive work in this series as he finally gives the lowdown on several plot threads that have been dangling for the past few years in the DC Universe. For those who've been wondering just what's up with that lightning rod from The Lightning Saga arc (chronicled in Justice League of America: Lightning Saga (Volume 2)), you find out here. We also learn who (or what) has been hiding beneath the Time Trapper's purply hood, and it actually makes sense. Back in the 21st Century, we finally learn Starman's mysterious mission. We get to see the last Green Lantern in action (and then, later, the really last Green Lantern). Also, deaths and resurrections. And, heck, Geoff Johns even delves into meta-fiction.

I'm still a bit put out that DC turned Superboy-Prime into a villain but, after seeing him be the featured Big Bad in INFINITE CRISIS and THE SINESTRO CORPS WAR, I guess I've come to terms. Evil Superboy touts this ridiculous combo of bratty entitlement, homicidal rage, and an enormous case of the wiggy, and yet his comments, so petulant and filtered thru a teenager's vocabulary, keep cracking me up. Johns must have a blast writing this crazy cat.

All along, Johns's storytelling gives us great character moments to go with the epic scale and the big crackling action. If you're a fan with any sort of expectations regarding this mini-series, then chances are that Geoff Johns will meet them. The guy loves the Legion of Super-Heroes and it shows in the care he puts in, in the attention to detail and the little fanboy treats he throws our way. It's titled LEGION OF 3 WORLDS, but I think that just about everyone who's ever been a Legionnaire pops up in this one. I think I even saw Proty somewhere. And I definitely glimpsed a headband-wearing, pre-CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS Supergirl. If nothing else, how could you pass up three Brainiac 5s squabbling with each other?

At the end of the day, Geoff Johns has also managed to introduce several new open-ended plot threads to entice you and me to pick up the spanking new ADVENTURE COMICS, which co-features the Legion of Super-Heroes. Now if only one of those future stories could somehow include a few panels of Reed Richards and Brainiac 5 competing in a Sudoku match, how cool would that be?

First off, the ties to the failure that was "Final Crisis" are almost nil. Second, it helps if you've read both "Superman and the Legion" as well as "The Lightning Saga" to fill in the backstory. But as it is, this is still a fantastic read. The plot is simple: With feelings against the Legion high, the Legion's old enemy, the Time Trapper brings the powerful and insane Superboy-Prime to the 30th century. Outraged at a future that worships Superman and treats Prime as a footnote, the man strikes back. He gets together just about every single Legion foe to form a massive Legion of Super-Villians and strike at Earth. Bringing Superman into the future, the Legion must still fight back and Brainac 5 calls upon Legions of two other worlds to fight back.

Geoff Johns is a master of DC history and is able to explain just why there are so many different Legions and gives each their unique voice. Sunboy's guilt over being used before, Polar Boy finally being the big-time hero he always wanted and why Cosmic Boy has been so hard-set on leading the team, all these characterizations shine. He also handles the confusion with so many Legions (no surprise that the three Brainacs instantly argue as to who's smarter) and, once more, shines with re-working continuity on how they form.

Along with "Crisis on Infinite Earths" and "JLA/Avengers," this is the story George Perez was born to draw. He makes it all work, the battle scenes, the clashes and more, and doesn't skimp on backgrounds through it all. Better is how he manages to make each character stand out and handles the daunting task of making each Legionaire stand out on thier own so you can tell who's who. From start to finish, Perez shows why he's still the undisputed master of the ultra-detailed crowd shot.

In one volume, the story holds up even better, even managing to restore two heroes whose ends were a bit marred (both of which play into the current "Blackest Night" storyline. If you're a Legion fan, this is a true must-own, the best Legion tale ever. And if you aren't, you can still enjoy a fantastic adventure that's brilliantly written and drawn and can entertain any comic fan.

No series was more affected by DC's mid-'80s Crisis on Infinite Earths than The Legion of Super-Heroes. Once one of DC's most popular series, it meandered for more than two decades through reboot after reboot. Muddled, hard to follow, and pretty much cut off from its long-standing origins even though it takes place 1,000 years in the future, the LSH seemed to be a Crisis casualty that would never recover.

Not so. DC writer Geoff Johns--who, perhaps more than any other current comics writer, has built a career by shrewdly adding on to the '80s works that inspired him--has combined the multiple Legion reboots into the sprawling series called Legion of 3 Worlds. It's a broad tale in which the Time Trapper (a seemingly all-powerful being who controls time itself) has assembled every single villain in the Legion's history into one mega Legion of Super-Villains. (You might think that a being who controls time and can do just about anything with it could figure out a way to eliminate his enemies on his own...then again, you might think Green Lantern would be all-powerful too, but that's quite obviously not the case here as well.)

Those of us who have waited to see our old Legion friends and find out what they've been up to don't get much satisfaction when it comes to personal details. The emphasis here is on action, and as such, it's a nice example of a well-written slugfest. That is to say, character development and emotional connections take a backseat to the task at hand, which is saving the universe from the LSV and their plans for total domination. It makes sense, but still, it would have been nice to see a little more reaction to the large number of deaths that take place.

Those deaths and lots and lots of violence ensure this is definitely for older readers. Those who haven't followed Legion history closely the past couple of decades may also find themselves a little out of touch with some of the story's details; even if you did follow them, it's hard to stay on top of it all. (A primer would have been very helpful, as would a foreword or afterword that would help solidify the Legion's place in the DC universe and explain where the team will be headed next.)

A word must be said about the art, of course. George Pérez is a comics legend best known for his '80s work on The New Teen Titans and the aforementioned Crisis. Back then, readers of the Titans and the Legion longed for a much-promised team-up that never actually came about. It's wonderful to see Pérez stake his claim on the team now--his work hasn't missed a beat over the years. He is, in fact, as wonderful an artist as ever. If you want to see how visually impressive and exciting the art in a superhero comic book can really be...look no further than here.

-- John Hogan