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About the
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("We're sorry, Get-A-Life Boy, but until you learn to control your power, you would be as much a danger to us as to our enemies. Here, take this copy of Legion Archives #25 as a consolation prize.") |
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About the
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("We're sorry, Get-A-Life Boy, but until you learn to control your power, you would be as much a danger to us as to our enemies. Here, take this copy of Legion Archives #25 as a consolation prize.") |
In the late 1990s, at least two LSH title were being printed each month: Legion of Super-Heroes and Legionnaires. Stories often continued from one title to the next, so fans wanted to be sure to read them in the correct order. Inevitable publishing delays, shipping interruptions, and schedule rearrangements meant that the two comics didn't necessarily come out in the same order, making it even more challenging to keep them in order.
Beginning in January, 1996, DC instituted a sequential numbering
of the main LSH comics each year. The numbers, linked to the year,
appeared on the cover in a 
symbol. Thus, LSH (4) 76 (96/01) was numbered
1996-1, while LEGIONNAIRES
33 (96/01) was 1996-2,
etc.
Reader response was tremendous. The system was so useful, in fact, that fans soon modified it, and extended it backward over the Legion's long history.
Of course, whenever an "official" system is modified, there will be disagreements. Here are the ground rules, developed in various conversations among fans, for extending the system to cover all Legion comics. For the examples, assume that the following comics were all published in January 2058: LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES (v.27) #420 (contains 3 LSH stories) , LEGIONNAIRES (v.18) #200 (contains 2 stories), MYSTERIES OF THE LEGION #3 of 6 (limited series), MORDRU THE MERCILESS #8 of 12 (limited series), LIL' LEGION ADVENTURES #247 (spinoff), L.E.G.I.O.N.N.A.I.R.E.S.'58 #1822 (spinoff), SUPERMAN #10,256 (Cosmic Boy cameo), and AQUAMAN #1 (Tellus cameo).
number
refers to the comic, not the story. (This is how DC does
it currently) In the case of a backup story (or stories) between
the same covers, sequential letters are added. (Example: LEGION
OF SUPER-HEROES (v.27) #420 would be designated 2058-1. The first backup story
in that issue is 2058-1a,
and the second backup story 2058-1b. LEGIONNAIRES (v.18) #200 would be
2058-2,
and the backup story 2058-2a
)
numbers
appear on the mainstream LSH comic(s) only. (This is how DC does
it currently.) Spinoff titles, cameo appearances, miniseries,
etc. receive numbers
with added letters, as above. When there is more than one additional
title, letters are assigned in alphabetical order (Hypothetical
example: AQUAMAN #1 is 2058-2b,
L.E.G.I.O.N.N.A.I.R.E.S.'58 #1822 is 2058-2c, LIL' LEGION ADVENTURES
#247 is 2058-2d,
MORDRU THE MERCILESS #8 of 12 is 2058-2e, MYSTERIES OF THE LEGION #3 of 6
is 2058-2f,
and SUPERMAN #10,256 is 2058-2g.)
numbers on Annuals.)
purposes,
1993 numbers are continued through September 1994; this allows
the Zero issues of October 1994 to be counted as 1994-1 and 1994-2.
system to your comics,
just download one of the following .gif images.
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Permission is expressly granted for Legion fans to modify and/or distribute this image. You can add the year and number by hand, or in your favorite paint program. The Windows font Arial Black works particularly well, at ten-point (underlined) for the date, and 20-point for the number. Any fairly thick sans-serif font should work as well. If you have a color printer, of course, you'll want to do the numbers in gold.
Just cut out a symbol for each comic, and attach it to the outside of the polybag in which you store your comic. (Scotch tape is quite acceptable.) If you wish to glue the symbol to the actual cover of your comic, please don't tell me.
Here are some samples of what the finsihed product should look like:
If you label your comics this way, and keep them in perfect order, then you, too, might qualify for a consolation prize from the Legion!
