Legion: Secret Origin #4 review

As the newly formed Legion of Super-Heroes grows, the mysterious attacks on backer RJ Brande continue. Chameleon Boy, Invisible Kid and Colossal Boy sign up, though Brainiac 5 resists the idea when Phantom Girl suggests he does too. The Science Police gripe to the United Planets about the Legion poaching its potential recruits, but the politicians are happy that the team is giving UP youngsters a role model to rally around. Out in space, UP Admiral Allon - Colossal Boy's dad - keeps watch over a wormhole after incursions by an unknown power, while on Earth Circadia Senius enlists Brainiac 5 to unravel the secrets of time travel.

It's all go, I tell you ... and still there's room for a fun fight with robots who don't respect Asimov, representing the Legion's first tussle as an official team. With less of the politicking of previous instalments of this mini-series, and more of our title characters, this is the best issue yet. Fun touches include Brainy using his force field to keep the dirty hordes of 31st-century Metropolis at bay, an experiment connected to the Silver Age of Comics and Invisible Kid's unexpected reasons for signing up with Brande. And it ends on a wonderfully hopeful note, delivered by Jaclyn Smith-lookalike Phantom Girl.

Speaking of Phantom Girl, Brainy seems a little in love with her, and he's not the only one, if Chris Batista's gratuitous shot of her intangible arse is anything to go by. Tut.

I really do like the penciller's work with Mark Deering, though, even if figures occasionally look as if they're being squeezed sideways. There are some superb expressions at play, and the background work is first-rate, with the 31st century looking most inviting. Top work, too, from colourist Wes Hartman and letterer Dezi Sienty - this story is going to make a fine-looking trade. And it doesn't read badly, either, with interesting parallel storylines and lots of character quirks from writer Paul Levitz. As a love letter to the Legion, this series is strictly niche, but it's a heckuva nice niche.

Secret Avengers #21.1 review

Captain America takes Hawkeye on a hush-hush mission to one of those ultra-corrupt little nations that populate spy fiction. Hawkeye's bombastic ways see things go awry, annoying Cap, who so wanted his pal to succeed - unknown to Hawkeye, Cap was testing his covert op skills in the hope he could succeed him as Secret Avengers leader.

Hawkeye is understandably miffed, given that Cap's known him for years and he's every bit the Avenger Cap is. Hawkeye goes off in a huff, Cap gets captured by a new Masters of Evil run by loincloth-loving Life Model Decoy Max Fury, Hawkeye rescues him and it looks like he'll get the job for which he never applied.

Well, it's the Secret Avengers, of course you'd not know you were up for a new position.

The last six issues have been the peak of the Secret Avengers series, as Warren Ellis and top-notch artists produced clever little connected one-offs showing superheroes as spies really could work. And perhaps Marvel should have quit while they were ahead, 'cos if this Point One issue is indicative of the future of this book, it's in trouble.

Because it makes no sense. As mentioned above, Cap has no need to test Hawkeye, he's worked with him on and off for years and knows his strongest areas. He seems to expect Hawkeye to see it as a compliment that he's even considering him, but Hawkeye is rightly perturbed. But does Cap apologise? No, he launches into a personal, insulting rant that's beneath him, and one Hawkeye doesn't deserve.

Then, in order for them to come good, Hawkeye is made to take out not just Max Fury but his pet super-villains - Whiplash, Vengeance and (a new?) Princess Python - with a few tricked-up arrows. They get a panel each in which to fall.

It's not all bad, with Rick Remender supplying some crisp, witty dialogue, Patrick Zircher doing a beautiful job on the illustrations and Andy Troy providing cool, textured colour art. The early action sequences, with Hawkeye and Cap escaping casino guards, are excellent (click on image to enlarge). Remender and Zircher gel well, with the pictures used to give us additional information rather than merely underlining the script. And I love that Hawkeye emphasises that 'Avengers don't kill' - he may have to retrain a few Secret Avengers ...

But the whole notion of the issue is so wrongheaded, the falling out of the heroes so unbelievable, that it makes for an ultimately unsatisfying read.

On the other hand, Remember is a fine writer, with standout work such as Uncanny X-Force under his belt. And for his coming run, beginning with #22 next month, he's teaming with the very talented Gabriel Hardman ... and Captain Britain is in there. So I'll try a few issues, and put the clunkiness of this good-looking, readable comic down to it being a Point One book, not so much a jumping-on point as a bump in the road.

Zircher, with colourist Dean White, provides a terrific movie poster-style cover. Marvel's marketing department almost ruin it, with a ruddy great advert for an event not starting for three months - are they scared we won't get our orders in early? Newsflash, Marvel, every cover ad is going to sour me towards Avengers vs X-Men just a little bit more ...

Justice League #5 review

Darkseid has landed in Metropolis and has his eyes on Flash and Superman. More specifically, his omega beams, the deadly force blasts that can lock on to a person, making evasion almost impossible.

'Almost'. The fastest man alive finds a way to escape being blasted to atoms, and while Superman isn't so lucky, he is tougher so survives the painful burst of energy. Mind, he's stunned enough for Darkseid's flying monkeys - sorry, parademons - to whisk him away.

Flash shares the bad news with pal Green Lantern and new acquaintances Aquaman, Batman, Cyborg and Wonder Woman, who are pulling themselves together after being downed by Darkseid debris last issue. GL fires himself at the silent alien dictator but is beaten down while his colleagues flail around like an Enterprise crew on the command deck. All but GL - with one arm broken - and Batman wind up blasted streets away, bringing the issue's big emotional scene as Batman bids to persuade GL they should find their colleagues - GL is fighting mad and raring to go up against Darkseid again, even if it gets him killed.

Batman unmasks in front of Hal, to prove he's just an ordinary guy like him, trying to right wrongs. After giving GL a pep talk cum lecture, Batman leaves the mask off, peels away his chest symbol and gives himself up to the parademons, figuring that's the quickest way to find Superman. A becalmed GL finds the other heroes, passes on Batman's pep talk and they shuffle off to find Darkseid. Batman, meanwhile, finds himself on the other side of a Boom Tube and staring at the hellish heart of Armaghetto on the planet Apokolips.

This doesn't yet feel like a Justice League comic, but it's getting there. The heroes have stopped bickering in favour of addressing the big picture - the threat of Darkseid to all life on Earth. Hal Jordan's oafish behaviour comes to a head, bringing the promise of a calmer Green Lantern, while Flash impresses with his super-speed tactics. Batman intrigues with his very odd undressing on the battlefield, and an understandably scared Cyborg steps up into a literal baptism of fire. GL's reaction to Batman's reveal is priceless.

It's not all great, though. Aquaman gets something like four words, while Wonder Woman, in her dozen or so, comes across as a slash-happy dimwit. Hopefully writer Geoff Johns will up his game with regard to Diana, in particular, sharpish.

And if artist Jim Lee could perhaps draw her not looking like a blow-up doll, so much the better (click on image to enlarge).

Everyone else looks fine, but his Diana, in that scrappy tiara-effort, is rubbish - maybe I should blame one or more of the four inkers, but I seriously doubt any of them are tinkering with the boss' breakdowns. Darkseid is imposing but Lee's redesign isn't a patch on Jack Kirby's original, just as none of the New 52 costumes better previous versions ... they're all just fuss and faff, tweaking for the sake of it.

The best scenes are those involving Green Lantern: whether he's tickling Darkseid, bemusing Batman or playing big brother to Cyborg, GL is imbued with a rare intensity by Lee that matches Johns' script.

Next issue brings the origin of the new JLA to a conclusion, and after that, in #7, a Shazam back-up, signalling an end to filler nonsense such as this issue's sketchbooks showing the new designs for Aquaman, Wonder Woman and Cyborg. Maybe then this book will feel like $3.99 well spent.

Teen Titans #5 review

Superboy has pretty much beaten Wonder Girl but before he can turn her over to his masters at NOWHERE, her new friends - christened the Teen Titans by Red Robin - arrive on the scene. After a bunch of individual tussles, they lie defeated but score something of a win ... Superboy tells the shady organisation he wants answers and won't be their lapdog anymore.

I've been enjoying the latest take on DC's long-running teenage team, but this issue lets the side down badly. It's a dumb comic. Having announced on page two that his secret weapon is tactile telekinesis, the Titans don't use that knowledge against him. They're not a team yet, but they at least have numbers and could round on Superboy as a unit, destroying his concentration. But no, they attack one on one. Kid Flash runs off half-cocked and winds up tossed right across New York (and not even by Superboy). Bunker's super-Lego proves spectacularly ineffective. Solstice bolts to save Kid Flash before he crashes into a boat in New York Harbour ... by blasting said boat in two and putting civilian lives at risk.

Red Robin finally tries the 'break his concentration' idea, but not having any actual super-powers to back up his assault, proves easy meat for the super-powered clone. And when Wonder Girl jumps back into the fray, she's apparently squished by a subway train.

I say 'apparently' because while we see the train coming, the impact panel is taken up by a nifty, but unhelpful, sound effect. It's safe to assume, though, that there will have been more injuries to innocents.

All of which goes to show that these kids shouldn't be allowed out; they're just not bright enough to cohere as a team, or to prioritise the safety of civilians. I'm not saying give 'em to NOWHERE - Solstice talks of 'everything NOWHERE has done to me, and made me do on their behalf', so they're hardly an after-school club - but these Teen Titans are in need of heavy mentoring.

Also, better dialogue. Superboy's aforementioned moment of stupid exposition is bad enough, but writer Scott Lobdell also has him use Silver Age Memorial Phrase 'vaunted intellect'.

To be fair, at the beginning, Red Robin does suggest they need a plan, but the guy is so patronising ('Follow my lead, guys - it's our only chance') that you can see why individuals might run off half-cocked.

I really hope this NOWHERE plotline wraps soon, as it's taken up ten issues of Teen Titans and Superboy and is getting wearisome. Plus, his dealings with them have made Superboy so scarily unlikable that I can't see how the Teen Titans could ever sign him up.

I can see that this battle was inevitable as part of the Titans' journey - not necessary, but inevitable in a genre where stories progress through dynamic physical conflict - but it doesn't make for a gripping issue. The feel is very much 'going through the motions' as we wait for Superboy's inevitable u-turn. In fact, the most interesting thing about it is trying to work out who that is on the Missing poster - it looks like the original, John Byrne-created Wonder Girl, but it's not going to be her. Any guesses?

The art by Brett Booth and Norm Rapmund is suitably big and bold, with good facial expressions (check out Kid Flash's tongue hanging out as he concentrates, or Wonder Girl's fear as she's dragged below the streets). There's an almost tangible sense of danger sizzling off the page, not something you can say about many comics. The costumes remain awful - outside of Solstice's starkly black look - but hopefully they'll get replaced in time.

The colours by Andrew Dalhouse complement the art well, while Dezi Sienty's lettering is just the job (bar Wonder Girl describing her magic lasso as 'a grift from the gods' - then again ...).

Groundbreaking only in that Superboy rips up the pavement, this is an entirely skippable issue. 

Red Hood and the Outlaws #5 review

Artist Kenneth Rocafort and colorist Blond present a killer cover for the fifth issue of this consistently excellent DC New 52 original. The imposing monster. Helpless hero. Hurting heroine, hair flowing like blood. And all imposed on a gorgeous winter scene ...

The artwork's just as impressive inside, in a more sequential way, of course. The battle between the reptilian Crux and desperate Arsenal is fun to follow, with incident and emotion easily apparent. This being the case, writer Scott Lobdell is able to use narration and dialogue to add detail and fizz, as Arsenal - 'recovering hero' Roy Harper - subdues the creature he suspects of harming his friend Starfire, aka Koriand'r of Tamaran.

Crux's grudge against her arises from a spaceship belonging to her people having accidentally killed his parents - hardly her fault, but the formerly human Crux doesn't care - he hates aliens, and her kind most of all. He's failed, though, in his bid to remove Starfire's alien powers, due to not knowing her history.

Mind. she's not much use when it's round two between him and Roy - happily, Arsenal is ready to make the sacrifice necessary to end the fight once and for all.

Nearby, Jason Todd - Robin turned Red Hood - fights for his life against a member of the hidden race known as the Untitled. Along the way he learns that his foe, who has been serving as town sheriff, had nothing to do with the slaughter of his friends, the All-Caste league of assassins. Red Hood doesn't care, and murders her anyway, using a previously unseen ability that's shockingly unpleasant.

Mid-battle he flashes back to the time Ducra - Yoda-meets-Terminator matriarch of the All-Caste - supervised a ritual known as The Cleansing. She hinted that one day he'd expel the anger within him (the small matter of the Joker having beaten him to death and Batman failing to avenge him) and be glorious. Not this day, though, as the lifeless Untitled sheriff would attest.

Ace Jase reunites with Roy and Kori, and tells them they have to get out of town because an angry mob is on his tail - he's realised that the Untitled are taking over communities, controlling the good burghers. They flee, taking the injured Crux along ...

... and so ends another issue packed with incident, action and characterisation. It becomes obvious this time that Roy doesn't share his friends' attitude towards killing - Jason has been brainwashed into believing that offing someone is akin to giving them a marvellous gift, Kori's martial upbringing and past as a tortured slave have her primed to execute Crux, but Roy? He venerates life, and it'll be interesting to see if he can persuade at least one of his pals to come around to his way of thinking.

The only off-moment this time is a comment from Crux that implies he read the controversial first issue of this title (click on image to enlarge).

That's just a tad too meta for my liking.

Great page, though - Rocafort really imbues Crux with sinewy power, making Roy and Kori's situation seem suitably dire. The artist does similarly fine work throughout, with dramatic storytelling and dynamic layouts. Blond's colouring is the icing on the proverbial cake - bright where it needs to be, subdued elsewhere. And relative newcomer Carlos M Mangual has fast become one of DC's go-to letterers with intelligent, stylish calligraphy. The script from Lobdell is worth Mangual taking time over, being full of little revelations and big moments. I especially like the way the Outlaws' (no one has actually called them that yet!) camaraderie is morphing into friendship.

Lobdell and co are producing one of DC's best books, as fascinating, likable characters (and I'm not normally one to enjoy 'good guys' who kill) negotiate a confidently worked-out mystery. I'm here for the long haul.

Uncanny X-Men #5 review

This issue the Brotherhood of Evil X-Men handles a dangling plot thread from an X-Force story. Angel had become evil old Archangel again (he'd fit right in here) but Psylocke was too soft to kill him, meaning 5,000 people died in a nuclear blast. Oops. The spot where they perished is now a temporal anomaly nicknamed Tabula Rasa, a kind of Savage Land from the other end of time. Inside are future folk worshipping X Force, and monsters who need bashing.

But that's not important right now. What is, is the fact that the plot maguffin allows writer Kieron Gillen to split Cyclops' Extinction Team into pairs, elicitng some elegant character moments. There's Magik bringing brother Colossus-cum-Juggernaut out of his funk; Hope dropping the tough girl bit long enough to enjoy a flirt with Sub-Mariner; Storm and Cyclops discussing the mutant schism; and Magneto forcing Psylocke to admit she knows more about Tabula Rasa than she's telling anyone. Only the robotic Danger is left out, with Cyclops, as is usually the case, restricting her to communications - and don't think the formerly murderous AI hasn't noticed.

The best thing Gillen does this issue is begin the rehabilitation of Cyclops - there's not one instance of him being a pompous asshole; instead, he's the smart, nurturing leader he was meant to be. There are even signs that ill-feeling lingering after the schism won't last long. 

The much-maligned Greg Land turns in the best work I've seen from him for years - very few loony toothpaste ad model grins (Magick, and she is meant to be a little skewed) but plenty of action-appropriate poses. And he produces not simply isolated images, but proper storytelling. Like this page (click on image to enlarge):

There's a pic of Storm having a bit of fun amid the danger that may well have started out as an ad, or glamour image, but it works and Ororo doesn't get enough spotlight moments these days ... the woman used to be a star! And Magneto looks magnificent, never has his helmet looked so shiny (ahem).

Backing up Land with one of the most gorgeous colouring jobs I've seen are Justin Ponsor, Laura Martin and Guru Fx. And Ponsor it is who adds the hues to Land's grabber of a cover.

There's a cliffhanger as the bad guy shows up, but he's no one I know. Apparently a Celestial. Celestials are boring, so hopefully not. Then again, Gillen books are never boring, so perhaps the - Immortal Man, is it? - will display a previously unremarked wit. And tap dancing ability. Yeah, I'd buy that for four dollars.

Legion of Super-heroes #5 review

'One day, a thousand years from now ...' the Legion of Super-Heroes takes a breather. With no universe-shaking crisis to beat, the members enjoy a rare day of downtime. They train, they love, they party, they work. Over the course of 24 hours we check in with, by my count, 29 members and reserve members, the most we've seen in any issue of the Legion since its recent relaunch.

If you're looking for big dramas, this isn't the issue for you. But if you're wanting perfect cameo portraits of the members who make up the galaxy's greatest super-team, don't miss it. There's Cosmic Boy obsessing over the missing, presumed dead, team currently to be seen in Legion Lost; Harmonia Li putting the lie to her name with a disastrous spot of music making; teenage witch Glorith disturbed by ... something; Polar Boy drunkenly carousing; Dream Girl seeing 'a weird image of some big old stones ...' and more.

And it's not just the current team make-up, as we check in with the likes of child-raising founders Saturn Girl and Lightning Lad; odd couple Blok and Black Witch (in tabloid-speak, the Blok Witch); and Academy graduates Power Boy and Gravity Kid, who I'm happy to see are considered part of the gang.

The Dominator incursion plotline bubbles along, while there's foreshadowing around the nature of Glorith and those stones. The latter show up for real on the final page, which melds hope and foreboding in a single image. Overall, this done-in-one story is a box of chocolates without a solitary hard caramel, and congratulations to writer Paul Levitz for pulling it off (click on image to enlarge)

Joining Levitz is another Legion veteran, though one whose service record is a tad spottier. Still, I'll forgive this deserter as it's the great Walt Simonson, who drew the odd Legion story back in the Seventies. His loose line is perfect for this lighter tale of the Legion, his knack for body language brings the members to life and his kineticism proves handy when it comes to depicting such things as Ultra Boy playing ball. My favourite scene shows Vi on a tiny running machine by the bed she shares with Lightning Lass - it's just so ordinary yet, as she grows to full size, extraordinary.

Dan Green and Sean Parsons provide strong inking support, while Javier Mena's colours highlight such things as Element Lad's seeming depression and Glorith's fears. Pat Brosseau, meanwhile, keeps the script straight with his usual smart lettering job.

I love Day in the Life stories, because they show what the heroes are protecting - the status quo, the joyful Ordinary, that's worth fighting for. And this is a splendid one.

Supergirl #5 review

Hoping to learn what happened to her world, Kara follows the sunstone's lead through hyperspace to a blue orb, where she finds her home, Argo City. But it's deserted, in ruins. The sunstone plays a message from her father, Zor-El, telling Kara how he planned to save the city from Krypton's destruction, but unsure he'd be successful, placed her in a protective pod and sent her offworld. His hope was that Kara would one day be reunited with him and her mother ...

... tragically, it will never happen. Zor-El is distracted by something off camera, something that approaches and slaughters him. Kara is filled with grief and anger - in the space of minutes she's learned that as Superman claimed, Krypton is dead; Argo City survived awhile, but it's now dead; her father, too, is dead.

She begins hitting out at things around her, a terrifying engine of destruction. It's then that perhaps the only other being on Argo makes herself known - Reign, another woman of immense power, with an offer to make Kara. Supergirl, though, isn't listening, instead lashing out against the newcomer even as distance from Earth's yellow sun dampens her powers some. She can't beat Reign, and has to listen as she explains that she's a sentient living weapon linked to Zor-El, a Worldkiller.

Now Reign wants Kara to join her as she conquers Earth, convinced there's a secret on 'that little ocean planet' that makes it a haven for Kryptonians. Realising Kara won't help her, she instead leaves Supergirl to die as Argo finally fades.

This is my favourite issue of Supergirl yet, a fast-moving balance of action and explanation. While I could live without Supergirl's first reaction to the arrival of a  stranger being to beat them up (see also Supergirl #2), I accept that she's under stress and immature; just let this be the last time for awhile. I do like that we get some illumination as regards Supergirl's background - I was afraid the mysteries would drag on forever. And her mix of wonderment and fear as she realises that she's flying through space on a single breath makes sense. I'm less keen on a second appearance for her ability to release yellow sun energy from within ... I prefer my Kryptonians to have the standard power set.

New character Reign (originally planned to be a fresh take on old character Maxima) has potential as an ongoing antagonist, given her strength and ties to Supergirl's heritage. And she has a creepy look as drawn by Mahmud Asrar, with heavy brow, perma-sneer and something of the White Martians about her.

Asrar's work is pleasing throughout, though Argo might look a tad more fantastic. His new take on Zor-El works and the fight with Reign is nicely varied in composition. The contribution of Dave McCaig deserves extra praise, now Asrar is working without an inker. They pair kick off the issue well with a well-balanced, dramatic cover.

With luck, the origin arc will be over soon. Good as it is, I'm keen to see what Kara's status quo will be in terms of her new life on Earth. Meanwhile, I'm enjoying this new take on the Supergirl legend.

Wonder Woman #5 review

Diana's having a breakfast of tomatoes in London with pals Zola and Hermes when a stranger, Lennox, brings a side order of obtuseness.

'It must be something to learn yea has a dad the same day yea learn he's scarpered off the ... call it the immortal coil?'

Well cor bloimey and lor luvvaduck. Rather than tell the fella to get back to Mary Poppins, Diana lets him speak, and believes his story that with Zeus being dead, some of his children are jostling for position. She also takes on board his claim that he's a member of her newfound family too, one who discovered his links to Olympus on the battlefields of the Second World War.

So she takes Lennox at his word that she has to be on Tower Bridge at 'six bells' or live to regret it. Who should turn up at 6pm but Poseidon, god of the seas, not in familiar old guy pose, but as the biggest, ugliest fish you ever did see? Diana changes into her Wonder Woman outfit to have a chat. Poseidon says he's going to be the new lord of Olympus, Diana stirs the pot by lying, telling him that Hera has her eye on the prize.

Meanwhile, Lennox has gone into the London sewers, met three-headed devil dog Cerberus and been saved from becoming dog food by, presumably, Hades. Dig that beehive gone bad.

Back on the rain-sodden streets of London, a pair of (masked!) centaurs appear behind the crowd watching Diana. And on some godly plain, Hera seethes at Diana's weasel words.

So Wonder Woman's plan to take on Hera, who has killed her mother and threatens Zola and her child, is based on a lie? I'm taking it that she aims to get Poseidon and Hera at one another's throats and hope they take one another down. I get that Hera's power levels are far beyond her own, but truth has always been one of the most powerful weapons in Diana's arsenal. I'm all for using it, not abusing it.

I'm baffled as to why there's such a long gap between Lennox's arrival at breakfast and Poseidon's at teatime - we're told Diana and Zola have spent the day together, which isn't very proactive for a superheroine; she should be rounding up troops against Hera, not sticking by Zola's side for Hera's inevitable attack ... act, don't react. Take the offensive. Even Hermes sees that sticking close to Zola just makes her a bigger target.

Mind, this Diana isn't the sharpest tool in the Amazon armoury, suggesting that Zola having Zeus's child somehow makes Zola her aunt. Why does Lennox gain Diana's trust so easily? Who's told him to go into the sewers? Why doesn't Diana ask more questions?

Five issues in, and as atmospheric as this story is, as nicely written as the dialogue is when Brian Azzarello isn't reaching for local colour, I'm impatient for the wrap-up. Wonder Woman seems far from the star of this book, which is basically Clash of the Titans meets Dynasty. It's a seemingly endless parade of gods and godlings knocking on Diana's door, telling her things. There's no spark to Diana, no optimism, no sense of her taking control. She should be unifying the Amazons to storm the gates of Olympus, not cowering in London waiting for the next thing to happen.

Cliff Chiang is absent this issue, but fill-in penciller Tony Akins produces more than decent work, keeping the Chiang feel. Diana, Hermes and Zola are all on-model, he can draw realistic street clothes, his London is convincing - he gets across the idea of rain swimmingly - and his creatures of myth are suitably unearthly. Not that all the monsters work - Poseidon looks just ridiculous, like a fat refugee from The Little Mermaid with his daft 'crown' of shells. There's no sense of grandeur, or threat - he looks plain silly.

In all, this is another good issue of Azzarello and Chiang's Wonder Woman, but if someone told me they were leaving tomorrow, I'd be fine with that. The title character in this run isn't DC's most famous heroine, she's a bit player in a tale of gods and monsters, Percy Jackson in a swimsuit.

Legion Lost #5 review

'Never stopped you either, energy-sock.'

And there you have it, my favourite line in this week's comics. But who said it? Stick around, embrace spoilers and I'll get to that.

As we rejoin the storyline, Dawnstar is fighting super-villain from the future Alastor - three of him, due to his manifesting the powers of a Carggite. As she attacks physically, Tellus tries to beat him mentally.

Elsewhere, a new demonstration of Tyroc's powers allows Timber Wolf to escape US security forces with the stricken Chameleon Girl, and he and Wildfire to join Tellus and Dawnstar. They know the latter two are in trouble, having felt the cry of pain from Tellus as Alastor resists.

Alastor, in his rage, causes a truck to crash, sending the driver through the windscreen. This in turn prompts an impressive display of super-tracker Dawnstar's ability to instantly calculate 'every movement of the truck ... the driver ... every individual piece of glass ... trajectories, angles'. But even as she hurls herself forward on angel wings, Dawny knows she won't be able to resist the oncoming truck.

She also knows Wildfire will arrive to save her, a matter not of super-powers, but of faith and love. And he does, before showing Alastor the extent of his anti-energy's force. It's Tellus who finally gets the drop on their foe, though, showing Alastor that while he intended to destroy the human race for supposed future crimes, he's actually guaranteed the universe that supposedly caused the death of his sister. Ah, sweet irony.

The revelation finally causes Alastor to shut down, meaning he misses the issue's big surprise - the return of thought-dead Legionnaire Gates. His and Wildfire's mutual joy at being reunited motivates the quote at the top of this review, a gem from writer Fabian Nicieza. Have some context, and a typically splendid panel from artist Pete Woods (click on image to enlarge).

That's not the final surprise of this issue. But I should leave something for anyone still to read the book. It's another pacey, enjoyable episode from Nicieza and Woods. They're extremely good at splitting their overall story into immensely satisfying nuggests. Former Legion writer Jim Shooter was writing at his blog this week about the lack of clear fight choreography in superhero comics, and I suspect he'd approve of this series - cause and effect within panels is clear, and it's easy to imagine what there's not room to show; logical new uses for powers are found; characters are clearly identifiable ... this is 'simply' good storytelling.

And the praise must extend to colourist Brad Anderson, who is excellent at leading the eye where it should go, and producing dramatic lighting effects. And letterer Travis Lanham, for some distinctive work - he does an especially nice job with Tellus' narration, an easy on the eye yellow-out-of black treatment.

The only art tweak I'd suggest would be a return to a more classic costume for Wildfire, who currently looks more like a robot than an anti-energy ghost. Other than that, it's all good, with moments such as Tellus's mental battle with Alastor, and its resolution, outstanding.

Other commitments mean next issue is Nicieza's last, which is sad. Here's hoping successor Tom DeFalco keeps the momentum and character moments coming. Whatever happens, for the moment at least, we have one of the best Legion of Super-Heroes series in years.