Wednesday, November 24, 2004
Long live the Giffen Legion!

 

I enjoy checking in on the various internet listserv related to comic reading.  One I particularly enjoy is the DC Comics forum over at Yahoo! Groups (click here to check it out).  Currently the forum houses a little over 300 members and the discussion (relating not just to DC, but to other titles as well) has proven quite interesting.  

 

Recently, I chimed in on one of my favorite comic runs from years past.  Being an old fan of the Legion of Super Heroes, I thought it might be fun to share my posts here as a kick off to the "commentary" section of Comic Related.

My favorite Legion era (man there have been several) was the run that took place "five years later" by Keith Giffen.  I liked the darker, more serious Legion of the early 90's.  The way the story built to the destruction of earth has stuck with me over the years as one of the more entertaining reads.  When Giffen works to do a serious story (aka NOT Ambush Bug, Video Jack, etc.), for me it's a treat to read.

Following my post, several in the forum expressed their distaste for this era of Legion history while others were stern supporters.  This prompted me to share a few additional thoughts which ended with some brief commentary on the way comic stories are packaged into bite sized chunks in today's culture.

Guess I kind of stepped into an old topic without even knowing it, didn't I? 

 

For me the Legion/Giffen run is one of my most enjoyable comic memories. I purchase a lot of titles each month so I'm usually reading quite a bit behind the more traditional monthly readers. I kind of package my reading into story arcs. That said, it was on a winter holiday just like the once coming this December that I sat down and read about 30 or so issues of Legion in one long blissful run. That read remains one of my enduring favorite times reading comics. The plot challenged me and even as a long time Legion reader, I had to drop back once in a while to figure out who was who, but that didn't bother me. I liked the fact that the Legion change was sudden and distinctive. I liked that they began referring to each other by their real names rather than code names. It felt as if they had evolved, matured and I was being rewarded as long time reader.

 

I actually really liked the art, but I certainly understand how many could take issue with it. The change in the title did, at the time, seem to come out of left field. You had to really know the characters and there was a lot of story forced into each page. I would love to see more books like this, but I certainly accept I'm somewhat in the minority.

 

Basically, I like a story that challenges me and I really liked the grim future presented by Giffen. I'm a big fan of experimental storytelling and taking a big chance with an established book. You can only tell the same story for so many years, before you have to surprise the reader a little. I hate a full reboot, love long term continuity but I also really enjoy a big change when it happens (as recently exemplified in Avengers ... just read the Disassembled storyline [review] start to finish last night). Some of the best stories I've read have come out of major change within a title.

 

I don’t think every comic title needs to be packaged into a sellable trade-paperback stories. Most do and I understand that's the market these days, but it would be nice to see a few titles develop longer more intricate stories. These would have to be titles with established reader bases and Legion has always seemed like a good niche title that could be used to weave these longer, more complex stories. It has a long running, dedicated following that has been with the book through it's many (and I do mean many) incarnations. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a Giffen style change, but give me a title that I can dig into and feel like my commitment to read it is being rewarded over the years.

 

Just my thoughts...

 

Cheers,
Chuck

For those who are also fans of this era of Legion history, check out a great interview with Mr. Giffen from this period in his career [full interview] on the Keith Giffen resource page [full website].  Another great page is the Keith Giffen Exhibit [full website].  Both sites are well worth a visit.  Finally, if Mr. Giffen should ever pass by this little write-up, I sincerely thank him for a great comic memory. 

 

Return to the latest Related Recap