Friday, June 27, 2008

Adventure Comics #371

Adventure Comics #371 (On Sale: June 27, 1968) has a Legion of Super-Heroes cover by Neal Adams that illustrates the back-up reprint in this issue. Strange Uncle Morty, strange.

This issue begins with "The Colossal Failure" by Jim Shooter, Curt Swan and Jack Abel. Colossal Boy is spending a quiet evening at home with his parents when two men claiming to represent Universe TV call on the Allons to interview them as part of a documentary on the Legion. When the men set up their equipment, however, it gives off rays that turn Mr. and Mrs. Allon to glass. They then explain that their criminal superiors have assigned them to learn the exact details of the Legion training and testing program. Since such knowledge is classified and known only to members of the selection board, the men give Gim two weeks to uncover the information, and teleport away with his parents as hostages.

Afraid to tell his comrades of his problem, Gim deliberately fails on a mission and submits to retraining in order to gain the needed information. Bouncing Boy, temporarily acting as instructor at the Legion Academy, suspects something wrong and, hoping to find clues to Gim's problem in the Allons' apartment, discovers a top-secret manual and illegal notes on the Legion training procedures. Reprinted in Best of DC #24 and Legion of Super-Heroes Archives Vol. 8 HC.

The back-up is our cover feature, "When Superboy Walked Out on the Legion," a reprint from Superboy #101, where it was originally entitled , "The Valhalla of Super-Companions." This was originally not a Legion story and only in this reprint are the Legion inserted in a couple of new panels. Whatever you want to call it, it was drawn by George Papp. An alien ship arrives on Earth and puts the residents of Smallville to sleep. Othar, the alien leader, wants Superboy to return to his homeworld of Thrann to live. The Boy of Steel is forced to comply in order to wake the sleeping people. Othar stops at several other worlds and blackmails their heroes into coming to Thrann as well.

On Thrann, the heroes compete to determine leadership. Superboy wins by performing the greatest feat, but everyone misses their homeworlds. The heroes begin to fight among themselves, forcing Othar to realize his mistake in bringing the heroes to Thrann. He allows them to return home where they belong.

Edited by Mort Weisinger.

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