And Then I Read: ADVENTURE COMICS 525

Images © DC Comics, Inc.

It occurred to me while I was typing the title of this post that DC's long tradition of high-numbered titles is about to go away with the New 52. I'm not really a collector anymore, but even so that makes me a little sad. I have fond memories of filling in a want list, or finding old issues at some used book store or flea market. That could still happen, of course, but fewer and fewer will be looking for them.

This issue continues the training of a new batch of Legion Academy recruits, under the guidance of Legionnaires Night Girl and Cosmic Boy. (And the fact that those names are now inappropriate when much younger heroes are the focus is slightly amusing.) They're tackling some of the baddies in the gang led by Saturn Queen on Phlon, a world I don't recall seeing before. It's an entertaining exercise with real danger involved. Then there's a backup whose point escapes me featuring The Black Witch resurrecting the deadly Legion foe Mordru, only to apparently destroy him again. Perhaps that will make sense later.

The lead story art by Phil Jimenez looks great, and the backup art isn't bad, either. The storytelling is fine, and the character tags are helpful as always, but even with those I find myself getting confused at times as to who's on which side.

Recommended.