Legion Of Superheroes The Great Darkness Saga Review: Part one

Guess what I got a little bit ago?

Legion of Superheroes, the Great Darkness Saga!

Now this is a story I've heard lots about. Most people I talk to say that is the best Legion story that they have ever read. Now, I've been looking for it for a while and since its been out of print I haven't been able to find it. But today it suddenly ended up on my door step and I couldn't have been happier.

Now I will review part one: Prologue to Darkness/And the Servant Shall be a Sign

So part one (Prologue to Darkness) written by Paul Levitz, drawn by Broderick and Mahlstedt starts with Mon-El and Shadow Lass getting flying to a dark world, charred and forgotten... no erased from human memory. Their vacation interrupted, they must investigate this strange husk of a world. A strange world has floated into interstellar trade routes and the Legion send two Legionaries to investigate.

The art on these pages are great, especially on Shadow Lass's suit. They land on the world and Mon-El makes a comment that he hasn't seen any place like this in his thousands of years in the Phantom Zone. They search the area and Shadow Lass feels cold, feeling the residue evil in the air. Her love hits her up with a little bit of heat vision before suddenly an old crawler tank comes to life. Pushing Shady away and taking the brunt of the blast, he destroys the tanks rather quickly be he realizes they have to be protecting something. After getting banged around a bit, his lover gets tired of waiting and shades him with one of her dark fields which scares the tanks away. She has no idea why but she is glad for it. Suddenly her flight ring goes off and she and Mon-El head back to Legion HQ.

But as they leave, the shadow awakens. This has to be my favorite part of this prologue, it is really well written. Knowing who it is ahead of time did not ruin the feeling of dread I felt reading it. And you know that this will be one fight the Legion will have a hard time with.

My favorite line: "Worship the darkness, fools... until the day it comes for you!"

Next is 'And the Servant Shall be A Sign' written again by Levitz and drawn by Keith Giffen (more on him later) and Mahlstedt. We start out with the burning Museum of the Mystic Arts in Mega-California were Superboy meets new Legionnaire Invisible Kid II. I really him and his characterization is great. Anyway apparently the Museum was attacked by being unknown, who was looking for something that the Curator was hiding from them. A wand of Mentachem, that has power over elements in their natural state. The minute he brings it out it seems the servant comes and attacks. He makes quick work of the Legionaries, grabbing the rod and returning it to their master. Wildfire summed up the whole fight, 'we blew it.'

Back at Legion HQ, Brainiac Five tells Blok about the tourist who are here to look at HQ. They clue the reader on Matter Eater Lad's insanity after he ate something a little wrong, and about how the Legion seems to have forgotten him. Then we switch to Chameleon Boy and Timberwolf, who is still pissed after the suicide mission. Apparently he is in big trouble for going to the Khund World, the United Planets going to bring him to court for almost starting a war. He rushes his way from Cham and ends up bumping into Saturn Girl. There are some unresolved feelings there.

Then cut to London in 2982, a much different place than what Superboy remembers in his time. They are going to find the next possible item that the Servant could be after; the Excalibur. I like the mention that Supergirl unearth it during her initiation. They are not there for long when another servant arrives, this time one small and big headed. It doesn't take him long to take the sword and vanish, leaving the Legion once again empty handed. Poor Legion.

Back at Legion HQ, poor Lighting Lad is suffering from some strange illness that leaves everyone confused and wondering how it happened. Especially a worried Saturn Girl, who is worried it was her fault that Lighting Lad is in the state he is in. Element Lad comes by to get her to go and see her husband and then tell Timber-wolf off. Poor Timber-wolf if neglecting his girl.

Then we go to the forgotten world mentioned in the Prologue, were the dark master takes in the power of the two items. He mentions how his servants are little mockeries, shadows of things that really exist. It is one of the first mentions of it. Then we go back to the Tower, where Cosmic Boy decides to go back to Legion HQ to figure out where the Servants will strike next. Invisible Kid says he could follow the servants when they next show up, to find out who their Master is and Superboy says that is a bold move. He will make a great Legionnaire, if he survives.

Brainaic Five points them in the direction of Talok VIII, Shadow Lass's home world and they even meet up with her and Mon-El to protect a strange Orb. Its not long before the next servant arrives. This time it is a woman who can create shadows much like Shadow Lass but much more powerful. She hits Superboy hard, trying to get the orb but Cos gets in her way. They start to get the better of her then another servant appears, riding on a strange sled like thing kind of like Orion. He grabs the orb and is out of there fast, but the female servant is taken down by the Legion. Now they got their first capture, and she will lead them to some interesting places.

Returning to Legion HQ, Element Lad decides that now, during the middle of an attack by some unknown evil force, that they should have Elections. Dream girl says she is in the running, and in the middle of the meeting a U.P. spokes woman says that Chameleon Boy's trail is tomorrow and they might want to come. Way to put everything into prospective. We shift to Superboy taking the servant down to the lab where even Computo is acting violently to her presences. Oh boy. Evil can feel a greater evil.

Then we go to the master again, where he takes the orb from his 'son' as he puts it. Interesting. He takes the power of orb, making the power his. He tells his son that it is time to leave this world, to search for people to give him the rest of his power. Then he is gone in a crackle of energy, leaving the world empty.

I'm really loving the story so far. Its sinisterly written, and well drawn. Giffen is a great artist in this saga (even if I do not like his art in the 'Five Year Later' Legion and his writing in that), and I'm glad that I finally got this.

Next time Part two of the Great Darkness Saga... A Sign of Darkness Dawning.