The Legion #29 - Two Darkseids for the price of one!

Released January 28, 2004

DC Comics, Color
23 Pages

Foundations Part Five

Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning - Writers
Chris Batista - Pencils
Chip Wallace - Inks
Sno Cone - Colors
Rob Leigh - Letters
Stephen Wacker - Editor

Synopsis

In the 8th century, Uxas is torn out of time which creates a massive temporal shockwave going through time, destroying the past and the future. We are privy to the forward march of time being dissolved, Etrigan, the Amazonians, Jonah Hex, all vanishing from history.  

In the 31st century, what remains of the Legion, Kid Quantum, Vi, Chuck and Superboy determine they have less than an hour before the shock wave reaches them. On Apokalips, Old Darkseid welcomes his younger self, which is what is causing the time ripple. Rokk presses the attack, but old Darkseid holds the entire Legion in stasis with a gesture and starts to explain his plans.  He wants to be rejuvenated, but young Darkseid understand the implications of pulling him out of his time. The dark matter older Darkseid has been collecting will hold off the time wave ten years in their past. Old Darkseid will then take young Darkseid's body.  

On Legion World, Vi has an idea.  The time collapse continues, taking the Red Baron in WWI, Jay Garrick, and Sgt Rock in WWII. 

On Apokalips, young Darkseid throws a wrench in the elder's plans by deciding that he will be the surviving Darkseid.  He blasts his older, crusty self, then asks the Legion to ally with him to fight.  

The time stream collapse now erases the murder of the Waynes, Barry Allen in the speed force, the "New Team Titans".

Vi theorizes that Jazmin's power is acting up as a response to the time collapse at the quantum level.  They start planning on the risky time travel strategy, and Garth suggests that he come along to use Tromium to protect them. 

At Apokalips, the fight is on, with young Darkseid and the Legion versus old Darkseid and his dark servants. Younger Darkseid grabs the dark Orion and forces him to shoot old Darkseid to fulfill the prophecy of Darkseid's death.  Crusty Darkseid dissolves, and of course the younger Darkseid turns on the Legion. 

Gleaming with Tromium, Kid Quantum, Jarth, Superboy and Violet fly through spacetime.

Commentary

Finally the Foundations story really starts to cook with action and holds my interest.  And the Batista/Wallace/Sno art team just keeps things looking amazing.  But to me it was still held back by a few odd moments that popped out to me.  First off, the time erasure plot point is again over the top - kind of similar to Hypertaxis in my view, but instead of the damage limited to Earth, its the entire universe. I start thinking - if the past is destroyed, doesn't that just automatically kill everything forward automatically like a butterfly effect?  The imagery of a temporal wavefront is interesting, but falls apart on closer analysis. I know - stop overanalyzing - but this ties directly to the issue with Jazmin's powers that we've seen for the last four issues plus the Secret Files. Jaz & Vi theorize that her powers are reacting to the time deletion, but that just started when young Darkseid was pulled forward, which was last issue.  

I did enjoy the fight on Apokalips, and young Darkseid taking out old Darkseid (I kept hearing young Darkseid saying, "Don't call me son..." - sorry, Hamilton joke...) with the victor immediately turning on the Legion that had just helped him. But the fight itself was chock full full of a lot of too-cute phrases meant to recall moments from the prior 28 issues - "Think fast", Shikari cussing, Ferro misses Steeple, etc. The story is ambitious for sure.  It will inevitably draw comparisons to the Great Darkness Saga, and not in a good way, as while well drawn, the story is not told nearly as well.

I'm really happy to finally see Vi having a more central role here.  Too bad it took over two years.  The "Its too big" conversation taking place while Vi is uselessly large again is somewhat amusing, but I'm miffed that she's uselessly large.  Again.  I think she's only been shrunk twice in the entire run.  

Was the future Titans panel actually a thing? I don't remember that version of Batman or Robin.

Grade: B-. A good action filled issue, but with odd plot points.