Enter: The New Gods!
2025: Century 21 - Doomsday Minus One
One hundred years after Saturn Girl dies in the Kents' living room in Smallville, and erases everyone's memories of the attempted Parademon invasion of Earth, Knightwing supervises the debut of his daughters Lois and Lara as Supergirl Red and Supergirl Blue - the Super Twins! Meanwhile, their mother, Amanda, checks in on Luthor's brain in it's holding cell only to find that it has escaped! Elsewhere, while OMAC is on patrol, Clark and Bruce are in Smallville at the Kent farmhouse reminiscing about an attempted invasion or night manuevers. Bruce wonders aloud why the Legion never visited Clark after 1925. Perplexed, Clark heads out to excavate the site, where they find the hundred year old remains of Parademons!
Parademons who, in 2025, have found Luthor's secret lab and await his arrival.
On New Genesis, Highfather and Lightray receive a cryptic message on the Source Wall. Metron arrives, and together they remember Orion's sacrifice to stop Darkseid and the fires of Apokolips.
At JLA HQ, Clark and Bruce outline a plan with Jay West, Hal Jordan, Janet Hall and Stephanie Trevor, to open a Boom Tube stargate to New Genesis. When the question comes up who has the ability to block and repress memories, Clark doesn't think of Irma or the Legion.
Both OMAC and the Super Twins crash Luthor's secret lab. He uses Kryptonite that is part of his container to disable the girls, and severs the link between Buddy Blank and Brother Eye.
Superman arrives at New Genesis, where he is greeted by Metron and Lightray who take him to Highfather. The see something rise from the ashes of Apokolips.
At the same moment on Earth, Luthor's scheme with the Parademons unfolds!
The Good ~
John Byrne kicks Generations up a notch! G1 and G2 were short, simple self-contained highlight vignettes. G3 is much more involved, layered, complex and complicated. G3 isn't broken up or composed of single, individual stories, but one story broken up over different time periods. The events that happen here is 2025 reach back and forth across the ages. This issue is the background that explains the previous issue. It's not really clear how the Legion became involved, but this is the event origin. This is more of a second first issue.
If you are a fan of Jack Kirby's Fourth World New Gods, this issue is for you! If you are a fan of OMAC, this issue is for you. If you are like me and thought you would be seeing more of the Legion after last issue. Nuh-uh. Not this issue.
The Bad ~
I read maybe a handful of The Legion of Super-Heroes in the late '70's, and early '80's. I read the simultaneous Legion of Super-Heroes and Legionnaires. I was hoping for more Legion here. But the Parademons are the ones to watch here. And Luthor's brain.
I'm not a fan of the New Gods. Other than a JLA/JSA/New Gods team up in Justice League of America and in the Uncanny X-Men/New Teen Titans team-up, I haven't read much on them.
This issue jumps one hundred years from last issue's 1925 to 2025. skipping everything in between. In the first two issues of G2 there were appearances by the Justice Society, Blackhawks, an alternate Teen Titans/Justice League, Deadman and Dr. Thirteen. In two issues of G3, in addition to the supporting Superman and Batman characters, there's only been Saturn Girl, Highfather, Lightray, Metron, OMAC and a dozen Parademons. So far the standouts have been Irma, Pete Ross and Lana Lang. It would have been interesting to see where Lana and Lois ended up in the Time Bubble, and maybe how the Legion could "Back to the Future 2" the whole adventure. Maybe that would have been too predictable, though. I liked seeing the younger heroes in G2, and liked seeing Pete, Lana, Lois and Irma along with Clark and Bruce.
The Ugly ~
The Ultra-Humanite is gone. In his place is Luthor's brain. In a jar. Like on of those jar-heads on Futurama. Since Ultra swapped bodies with Luthor, Lex has spent his a century or more disembodied! In the classic DCU history, Ultra had his brain transplanted into an actress' body; then, the giant white gorilla. Luthor really has gotten the short straw. And his containers are nowhere near as cool as The Brain's.
I'm not a fan of Byrne's costume redesigns. The Super Twins costumes are less than impressive, and an homage to Superman's red and blue period. Not so much a fan. Superman doesn't wear gloves, yet Kara and Lara and Lois wear gloves. Because...?
Metron actually uses the word "disgorge" when Superman exists the Boom Tube at New Genesis. "Disgorge". He said "disgorge"...heh-heh, heh-heh, heh...
One hundred years after Saturn Girl dies in the Kents' living room in Smallville, and erases everyone's memories of the attempted Parademon invasion of Earth, Knightwing supervises the debut of his daughters Lois and Lara as Supergirl Red and Supergirl Blue - the Super Twins! Meanwhile, their mother, Amanda, checks in on Luthor's brain in it's holding cell only to find that it has escaped! Elsewhere, while OMAC is on patrol, Clark and Bruce are in Smallville at the Kent farmhouse reminiscing about an attempted invasion or night manuevers. Bruce wonders aloud why the Legion never visited Clark after 1925. Perplexed, Clark heads out to excavate the site, where they find the hundred year old remains of Parademons!
Parademons who, in 2025, have found Luthor's secret lab and await his arrival.
On New Genesis, Highfather and Lightray receive a cryptic message on the Source Wall. Metron arrives, and together they remember Orion's sacrifice to stop Darkseid and the fires of Apokolips.
At JLA HQ, Clark and Bruce outline a plan with Jay West, Hal Jordan, Janet Hall and Stephanie Trevor, to open a Boom Tube stargate to New Genesis. When the question comes up who has the ability to block and repress memories, Clark doesn't think of Irma or the Legion.
Both OMAC and the Super Twins crash Luthor's secret lab. He uses Kryptonite that is part of his container to disable the girls, and severs the link between Buddy Blank and Brother Eye.
Superman arrives at New Genesis, where he is greeted by Metron and Lightray who take him to Highfather. The see something rise from the ashes of Apokolips.
At the same moment on Earth, Luthor's scheme with the Parademons unfolds!
The Good ~
John Byrne kicks Generations up a notch! G1 and G2 were short, simple self-contained highlight vignettes. G3 is much more involved, layered, complex and complicated. G3 isn't broken up or composed of single, individual stories, but one story broken up over different time periods. The events that happen here is 2025 reach back and forth across the ages. This issue is the background that explains the previous issue. It's not really clear how the Legion became involved, but this is the event origin. This is more of a second first issue.
If you are a fan of Jack Kirby's Fourth World New Gods, this issue is for you! If you are a fan of OMAC, this issue is for you. If you are like me and thought you would be seeing more of the Legion after last issue. Nuh-uh. Not this issue.
The Bad ~
I read maybe a handful of The Legion of Super-Heroes in the late '70's, and early '80's. I read the simultaneous Legion of Super-Heroes and Legionnaires. I was hoping for more Legion here. But the Parademons are the ones to watch here. And Luthor's brain.
I'm not a fan of the New Gods. Other than a JLA/JSA/New Gods team up in Justice League of America and in the Uncanny X-Men/New Teen Titans team-up, I haven't read much on them.
This issue jumps one hundred years from last issue's 1925 to 2025. skipping everything in between. In the first two issues of G2 there were appearances by the Justice Society, Blackhawks, an alternate Teen Titans/Justice League, Deadman and Dr. Thirteen. In two issues of G3, in addition to the supporting Superman and Batman characters, there's only been Saturn Girl, Highfather, Lightray, Metron, OMAC and a dozen Parademons. So far the standouts have been Irma, Pete Ross and Lana Lang. It would have been interesting to see where Lana and Lois ended up in the Time Bubble, and maybe how the Legion could "Back to the Future 2" the whole adventure. Maybe that would have been too predictable, though. I liked seeing the younger heroes in G2, and liked seeing Pete, Lana, Lois and Irma along with Clark and Bruce.
The Ugly ~
The Ultra-Humanite is gone. In his place is Luthor's brain. In a jar. Like on of those jar-heads on Futurama. Since Ultra swapped bodies with Luthor, Lex has spent his a century or more disembodied! In the classic DCU history, Ultra had his brain transplanted into an actress' body; then, the giant white gorilla. Luthor really has gotten the short straw. And his containers are nowhere near as cool as The Brain's.
I'm not a fan of Byrne's costume redesigns. The Super Twins costumes are less than impressive, and an homage to Superman's red and blue period. Not so much a fan. Superman doesn't wear gloves, yet Kara and Lara and Lois wear gloves. Because...?
Metron actually uses the word "disgorge" when Superman exists the Boom Tube at New Genesis. "Disgorge". He said "disgorge"...heh-heh, heh-heh, heh...