Legion of Super-Heroes: Millennium #2 – Brian Michael Bendis, Writer; Nicola Scott, Jim Cheung, Jeff Dekal, Ryan Sook, Artists; Tomeu Morey, Jordie Bellaire, Colorists
Ratings:
Ray – 8/10
Ray: Legion of Super-Heroes: Millennium #2, the second part of Bendis’ prelude to his upcoming Legion title, has all the same problems as the first – namely, it’s not a Legion comic.
It’s a story of Rose and Thorn traveling through time, endlessly frustrated by their alternate personalities and the world’s tendency to collapse around her. This issue keeps the structure as well, taking Rose further into the future and shifting the art style with every segment. Nicola Scott’s segment takes place in the 25th century and features her touring a superhero museum while a particularly persistent security guard talks to her about the 20th century. His identity is a clever touch, and it gives Rose and Thorn a sort of Zelig/Forrest Gump vibe as she influences things on her long-way walkabout through time. The OMAC segment, drawn by Jim Cheung, was less my speed as it was basically just Rose yelling at OMAC over the fact that stupid humans blew up the planet again in the Great Disaster. Looked great, but overall just a distraction on the way to her destination.
The segment by indie artist Jeff Dekal is a major change of pace, as it’s less a sequential art segment and more a series of gorgeous pinups as Rose exiles herself and Thorn to deep space to try to neutralize her insane other half.
The visuals of a lonely world in abandoned space stations and vast star systems is fascinating, but it would have been a lot better if the dialogue was a little less crude in places – another bathroom humor reference was a little out of place. Then it’s over to Ryan Sook’s segment, as we finally meet the Legion and the team – including Jon Kent – gathers to celebrate their founding and are interrupted by Rose as she arrives with massive news to share. We’ll find that out in the new series, natch.
Overall, the story still feels very scattered and an odd way to usher in the return of one of DC’s most beloved teams, but the art showcase looks fantastic and introduces us to a bold new DC talent in Jeff Dekal.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
Disclaimer: GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
