Legion of Super-Heroes #299

Legion of Super-Heroes #299 (1983)
by Paul Levitz & Keith Giffen

The cover got a chuckle out of me.

Last issue Invisible Kid was just following the Khund responsible for attacking an asteroid… and all of a sudden he finds himself in a crazy alternate dimension.

When even Dawnstar’s tracking power isn’t able to figure out where Wildifire disappeared, White Witch figures it out with a spell and a creepy statement.

The Khund returns for a second round, which goes exactly like the first.

But something is different: the White Witch is here, and she hasn’t had her own “badass first impression” moment just yet.

Never bring science to a magic fight.

The B plot from the previous issue is not over yet, and Element Lad is STILL mad about the election.

Jan… just drop that obsession and focus on your own love interest subplot, okay?

Speaking of the previous plot, it’s the link to ANOTHER new subplot, courtesy of the Heroes of Lallor that introduce us back to Ontiir, from way back of issue #241.

How can you not trust a face like that?

Back to the A plot, Invisible Kid does manage to find his target… but not like he expected.

He might look absolutely ridiculous with that hat, but Wildfire has his body back so he truly loves it here. Having hot half-naked women attending to his every wish is a bonus.

And the first thing Invisible Kid does is try to convince him to get back to reality. I could understand if he framed this in a “this is just an illusion” way… but nope, first it’s all about business and then he guilt-trips Wildfire because of his obvious crush on Dawnstar!!!

Yeah, it’s basically impossible not to side with Wildfire on this one.

But Invisible Kid treats this like leaving Wildfire here is not even an option, so he knocks him out and drags him back to reality.
Why the heck should HE be the one deciding whether Wildfire is “meant” to be here, whatever that means!?

This MIGHT be the afterlife, though, since the original Invisible Kid shows up.

It this were true, it would completely destroy the bittersweet ending of Superboy #203 and turn it into a straightforward tragedy.

The original Invisible Kid doesn’t want the Legionnaires to leave because it would leave him alone for eternity, so the two Kids end up fighting.

“I don’t want to be alone so I’ll kill you and be alone if you don’t agree!” is not a sound strategy, but at least he realizes it.

Still, that’s a powerful moment when the original Invisible Kid isn’t even sure whether he’s real or not.
We’ll eventually learn this is NOT the real deal, but still, the scene would kind of work if he was.
As an ending for the character, not so much.

This is the first indication that the new Invisible Kid might be more powerful than he realized, and he manages to teleport back to reality…

…specifically to Projectra’s planet!!!

I find it very interesting that Projectra has decided to ask her clergy whether she really can marry Karate Kid. She used to be more independent than this, but I suppose it does make sense that becoming Queen has made her more worried about tradition than she used to be.

Wildfire is NOT HAPPY ABOUT THIS.

Turns out there wasn’t only ONE Khund attacking the Legionnaires: they brought a few ships with them.

Dawnstar, what are YOU complaining about!? White Witch has been a thousand times more useful than you in this mission!

Bad news for the Khunds: more Legionnaires are coming!

Was ANYONE not shipping these two as a couple?

And so we end the story with Shadow Lass doing whiteface, in a callback to the Adult Legion stories that is NOT going to end well.

Is it racist for a Talokian to paint herself white?

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Legion significance: 3/10
We’ll eventually learn more about the dimension introduced here, but not much.

Silver Age-ness: 0/10
Not really.

Does it stand the test of time? 6/10
A mixed bag. The White Witch scene is the only memorable one, and she’s quite awesome there. The whole dream dimension thing, though, is quite confusing: the plot is completely disconnected from the investigation and the Khund assassination plot.
Plus the second Invisible Kid is VERY frustrating here… why does he immediately jump to the idea of bringing back Wildfire!?
Also, despite the fact that the last scene of the supposedly original Invisible Kid still works… I’m glad we’ll get confirmation this is not him, because having his final fate being exiled forever in a dimension that drives him mad would be too dark.
The link to Projectra’s planet is also executed poorly. It’ll be expanded, sure, but right here it feels immensely forced and unsatisfying.
Overall, definitely a step down from the usual level of quality of this era.

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