Adventure Comics 308

ADVENTURE COMICS 308 (1963)
by Edmond Hamilton and John Forte

We begin by saluting the hideous flag of the Legion of Super-Heroes.
Luckily we won’t see much of it.

We’re also reminded that Lightning Lad is still dead.
I told you we’d see this panel frequently.

As the Legionnaires honor their fallen comrade, Bouncing Boy notices something…

It’s Lightning Lad RISING FROM HIS GRAVE!

He doesn’t remember much of what’s happened after his death.

Cosmic Boy, out of ABSOLUTELY NOWHERE, takes this as a hint that Lightning Lad might’ve lost his powers.

Which is an excuse for a retelling of Lighning Lad’s origin.

The lightning beasts of Korbal look completely different from the first time we saw them; they always look different at each retelling.

Note Lightning Lad is already wearing his costume BEFORE becoming Lightning Lad.

Cosmic Boy gives Lightning Lad an assignment to make sure he still has his powers, but Sun Boy is convinced that he’s lost them and covers for his friend.

Later on, the Legion is recruited by the Science Police to find the infamous Thieves’ Planet.

Which is located… “somewhere in that general direction”, I guess?

Thanks to these incredibly precise clues, the Legion finds a suspect planet.
Sun Boy, STILL convinced that Lightning Lad’s lost his powers for no reason at all, covers for him again.

Turns out the ship belongs to criminal who have stolen some of the rarest animals in the universe.

We COULD focus on the three-headed aliens that Chameleon Boy can’t imitate, but instead we’re introduced to…

*sigh*
I knew we’d get to him eventually. I f##king hate Proty.

Thanks to the ship, the Legion does find the real Thieves’ Planet and they decide to infiltrate it by posing as criminals.
Criminals who are wearing the costumes of the most famous crime-fighters in the galaxy.

At least we get the interesting visual of the Pyramid Men from Altair and of their “living paintings”.

The Legion manages to get a meeting with the leader of Thieves’ Planet: a ball of living energy.

Unsurprisingly, their cover is IMMEDIATELY blown.

They’re thrown in crystal prison that Sun Boy can’t melt without killing the rest of the team.

Maybe Lightning Lad can save them. If only they would STOP INTERRUPTING EACH OTHER AT EVERY SENTENCE or, and I’m just throwing it out there, LET HIM DO ANYTHING!!!!!

*sigh*

They escape because Chameleon Boy, who has the power to transform into anything, asks Proty to turn into a fake gun.

Have I mentioned that I hate Proty yet?

The Legion breaks free and start using their superpowers.
Except Lightning Lad because Sun Boy JUST WON’T SHUT UP about his lost powers!

Until Lightning Lad finally DOES SOMETHING and saves the rest of the team while they were being paralyzed by the energy being.

Actually Sun Boy had a reason to think Lightning Lad didn’t have any powers.
It’s a… weird one.

Mostly because it’s partially true… this isn’t Lightning Lad at all.
IT’S HIS SISTER, Ayla.

Hold on. I need a moment to list how many things DON’T WORK with this explanation.

The first one that comes to mind: did NO ONE notice she has a different voice!? Or is Lightning Lad’s voice so high-pitched that you can confuse it with a girl’s?

Second: I can buy that the costume has enough padding to hide her figure, but her face?

Third: one of the clues is that she had long hair covering the back of her neck… but she’s revealed to have a hairstyle that DOESN’T cover her neck.

Fourth: if she wanted to replace her brother, WHY fake being him instead of applying for membership? Did she REALLY think she could fool everyone forever?

Fifth: why is Sun Boy so sure that she doesn’t have any powers!?!?

We’re shown Lightning Lad’s origin again, this time showing us that his sister was there.
Curiously, this is the second time we’ve seen someone else was present… we saw his brother Lightning Lord, but in that scene we didn’t see their sister.

Oh, and another immensely stupid point: apparently Ayla took her brother’s casket to Korbal between the scenes of previous issues.
Which NOBODY NOTICED.

Anyway, in recognition for her help, she joins the Legion under the codename Lightning Lass.
You can see how thrilled she is by the vibrant expression captured by the artist.
Are we SURE she’s the sibling who is still alive?

Legion girls stick together, but I guess Phantom Girl and Supergirl don’t count.

Legion significance: 5/10
Lightning Lass (in her many codenames) will become one of the most intriguing Legionnaires, but you’d never tell by her awful introduction.
Proty will become extremely important very soon, no matter how much I hate him/it.
Which is A LOT.

Silver Age-ness: 8/10
When the most plausible thing in the story are the Pyramid Men from Altair…

Does it stand the test of time? 0/10
I don’t need to give any reason, right?

We are legion

13 active in this story: Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl, Sun Boy, Bouncing Boy, Chameleon Boy, Mon-El, Invisible Kid, Shrinking Violet, Superboy, Supergirl, Brainiac 5, Triplicate Girl, Lightning Lass
5 not appearing but officially members: Colossal Boy, , Phantom Girl, Ultra Boy, Matter-Eater Lad, Element Lad
1 unknown: Star Boy as usual
1 deceased: Lightning Lad

How much Legion is too much?
With the arrival of Lightning Lass, the Legion now includes of 19 members.

Interesting letters: someone FINALLY remembers Star Boy!!!