Legion of Super-Heroes: The Life and Death of Ferro Lad (DC Comics Classics Library)
The popularity of The Legion of Super-Heroes in the 1960s, when comic-book readership consisted almost exclusively of adolescent and younger boys, is easy to understand. What youngster wouldn’t delight in a thirtieth-century team of teenage superheroes from across the galaxy, led by Superboy, who traveled through time to join it? Its appeal was enhanced by the fact that the title was written by an actual teen, Jim Shooter, 13 when he sold his first script for the series. His initial Legion tale is among the seven stories from his first year on the strip, 1966–67, that are collected here. Unfortunately, hindsight sees the stories as undeniably puerile (to be fair to Shooter, his scripts were no more childish than earlier ones by his adult peers). Of necessity, the Legion’s stories grew more sophisticated to appeal to the maturing comics audience, and the team continues as a comics mainstay to this day. That said, these early tales, illustrated by definitive Superman artist Curt Swan, will rouse nostalgia in Legion fans who remember its salad days. --Gordon Flagg