The Legion of Super Heroes (v5) #5 - Livin' Fast... Dyin' Young *rolleyes*

Released April 27, 2005
DC Comics, Color
31 Pages

Mark Waid & Barry Kitson - Storytellers
Art Thibert - Finishes
Chris Blythe - Colors
Stephen Wacker - Editor

Synopsis

A voiceover walks the reader through Legion Plaza - a UP delegate is infiltrating the Legion environment and trying to send data back to the UP military.  The delegate finds the environment welcoming, but can't get any information back. The UP council wants a more positive relationship with the Legion, but the SPs view them as a threat.

We switch to Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl on Rimworld 19 investigating the rumors of the invaders from outside. They hear conflicting stories and the populace is dispirited. Garth and a speedster go out and scout while Saturn Girl keeps the rest of the kids calm. They run into Brin Londo who is helping rescue a child.

On Earth, Ultra Boy and Shadow Lass are on patrol when his powers start to go haywire. He was supposed to talk to Brainy but didn't.  She enlists Val to help.

Back on Rimworld, the Legion is telling tales to the kids to keep them calm, but Imra confides in Brin that they don't know how to tell the kids that they are about to step into a holocaust.  The Terra Firma team arrives and Elysion rips up a giant pillar of stone from the ground. The kids begin to panic and Garth goes to confront Terra Firma. Imra psychically keeps the kids calm while Garth and Brin fight the Terror Firma members. Elysion holds a kid hostage with a giant stone fist, and parleys with the Legion.

Their team is an advance group of Terra Firma members who are to pave the way for what's to come.  He kills the hostage. Garth surrenders and Elysion monologues - they came to this world and devastated it just because they could. But the surrender was a ruse - Garth has been charging his power and unleashes it, stunning Elysion.  Imra controls the two female TF members and the remaining two try to duck out, but all of TF is able to escape. Brin is able to follow before their portal closes. Garth and Imra report back to Cosmic Boy and Brainy. As more of these events happen, more UP worlds are leaving.

In Otherspace, Terra Firma meets with Praetor Lemnos. His purpose with Terra Firma was just to cause havoc and will be leading his followers into conquest soon.  

Commentary

This is another good, but not great, issue.  Because we're still in this mode of setting the table, Terror Firma is brought in as the anti-Legion, the next big antagonist, so we see them demonstrating their destructiveness, but still don't really know why yet. So the story becomes a classic fight story by the end, but its clear that the UP is heading for a bad time.  There are some interesting bits about the UP's vs the SP's approach to the Legion, but we're not given much resolution there, as we know so little about the UP *OR* the SP.  We're also given an Ultra Boy who is losing control of his powers.  (YAWN)

The most fascinating part of this issue to me was the fact that Garth and Imra are basically in the same position as the Naltorians from a couple issues back.  Here they are "adulting" by shielding the kids and struggling with how to give them bad news and Brin is the one pushing back.  

More great work from Kitson in the art department. 

Other items:

We are given a date: May 2, 3005... Not sure if that is significant at all.

This is the first time we really see Garth and Imra in this series.  Titanians all communicate completely telepathically. It's a neat touch.

So Brin used to date Ayla in this reality.  But then, who HASN'T Ayla dated?  And apparently Brin now has a thing with Projectra. *shrug*

Jo apparently gets around as well, given that he torched Shady's bed. There's a lot of casual sex in this Legion.  But it would be nicer to see more of these relationships (or ex relationships) *SHOWN*.  Take Ayla for example.  If she were to be going through SO MANY male teammates at this point (at this count, we have Jo, Dirk and Brin THAT WE KNOW OF), in a "more realistic take" there'd be strife among the guys at this point.  

Grade: B+