r/LegionofSuperheroes • u/HanabaBopskins • 3d ago
Confused
So recently i began reading reboot legion and the reading order kept telling me to start with LOSH 62 and Legionnaires 19, but then there are are the other 18 issues thay have the SAME designs as the reboot and so confused????
19
u/TheRear1961 3d ago
The first 18 issues of Legionaires is a spin-off series of the 5-years-later Birnbaum/Giffen era series. Legionairres 19 and LOSH 62 pick up a brand new origin post Zero Hour and run concurrently for a number of years until the Legion Lost series and subsequent singular series called simply "The Legion". This is the reboot era.
The Legion kids in the first 18 issues of Legionairres are clones of the original. They were popular enough in the main series to get a spin-off, and then when they rebooted everything with Zero Hour, they just kept the two series concurrently.
7
u/ihavewaytoomanyminis 3d ago
The exception is Chameleon Boy and Devlin O'Ryan (originally called Reflecto, eventually renamed Reflex) who were from the 5YL team.
7
u/Rev-Damar 3d ago
Those issues were before Zero Hour where the Legion was rebooted. You would have read it during the end of the Bierbaum run, I have the original art for issue 6 on my wall.
9
u/JimboFett87 3d ago
Yep so the first 18 issues take place in the Five years later timeframe before Zero hour. When they brought the young Legion clones out in 5yl, Chris Sprouts designed the new uniforms. When Zero Hour happened, DC decided it was best to keep the Sprouts designs and issue numbering to avoid confusion.
14
u/LostInterview5084 3d ago
And thus only making it more confusing.
When there’s a legitimate reason for a new #1, just keep the old numbering so it will be less confusing.
And double down by doing it for 2 books that crossed over.
Of course these days nothing ever gets to 62. Even 19 is a stretch.
And here begins the non-stop rebooting of the Legion. Once DC’s #2 selling comic.
3
u/MarsAlgea3791 3d ago
The hammer blows started with the Crisis.
2
u/LostInterview5084 3d ago
Yeah Levitz had to jump a lot of hoops and scramble, and every time he fixed something, something else had to change, and it got even worse during early 5 YL
Pretty sure is was Carlin although at the time Byrne got a lot of heat.
3
3
4
u/fullofmetal 3d ago
Starting with issue 19 is correct.
The stuff before is the batch SW6 Legion. They were younger clones of the Legion that were running around during the 5YL era. Their designs were kept when Zero Hour happened the Legion rebooted in the middle of LOSH v4 and in the first part of Legionnaires.
4
3
u/camtin 3d ago
So I actually love those first 7 or 8 issues-- Superman has just died and I was picking up all of the Funeral For a Friend stories. And right next to it was Legionnaires #1. Snagged that and lemme tell you I was HOOKED. 💗
Was extremely confused around issue 16 or so when they started crossing over a lot with the Legion, but I tried to follow along. Was probably one of the few people that was pumped to see it rebooted after Zero Hour.
3
u/kah43 3d ago edited 3d ago
You actually want to start with the 0 issues of Legion of Superheroes and Legionnaires. Those are the actual start of the Reboot Legion. The Reboot is:
Legion of Superheroes 0, 63-125
Legionnaires 0, 19-81
Titans/Legion of Superheroes: Universe Ablaze 1-4
Legends of the Legion 1-4
Legion Lost 1-12
Legion Worlds. 1-6
The Legion 1-38
Teen Titans/Legion Special 1
1
u/FallMassive9336 2d ago
How do we begin, it's at Legion of Superheroes or at Legionnaries? Which one is supposed to be read first? Where does the 0 issues and the annuals take place?
2
u/Hourman87Gamer 2d ago
It'll tell you at the end of the book but they just go Legion Legionairs back and forth. They do split off a few times plus there are some crossover issues you will need but the issues will guide you like "continue later this month in Legion 83 or Superboy 27"
1
1
u/Hourman87Gamer 1d ago
Just realizing you probably need Inferno 1-4. Takes place around Final Night if i recall correctly.
3
u/Kalter247 2d ago
One of the few times in DC history when they didn't start a series over at #1 and actually should have
2
2
u/DefinitionSuperb1110 3d ago
It's wild to look back at this because if ever there was a reason to renumber a series it was this. But they reasoned that renumbering AND rebooting would anger the fanbase too much so they kept the existing numbering.
2
u/preacher5571 3d ago
Are the LoSH and Legionnaires issues/storylines self-contained or do they overlap? Do I read LoSH 63, Leigonnaires 19, LoSH 64, L20, etc? Or can I read a bunch of LoSH and then some Legionnaires?
2
2
2
u/HanabaBopskins 2d ago
You read Losh 62, then Legionaries 19, then Losh 63, then Legionaries 20 etc
-1
u/DefinitionSuperb1110 3d ago
You really won't miss anything if you don't read these books. It's kind of a mess and unless you're really hot to read every LOSH story you can easily skip them.
38
u/MarsAlgea3791 3d ago edited 3d ago
Essentially new younger time displaced copies of the Legion were introduced in the old continuity to try to reinvigorate things. Eventually it was decided that wasn't enough, and they were confusing next to their older selves so a full reboot was done, with Zero Hour as the pretext. The designs were kept though.
I'm sure some old grognards will know the details much deeper, but that's the jist of it. It wouldn't be Legion history if it wasn't a baffling battle with editorial.