Delays are inevitable in podcasting. But the best podcasters can make those delays work for them. Such is the case with Billy Hogan and episode 258 and his show, the Superman Fan Podcast.
When his original plans for the episode fell through, Billy regrouped and decided to turn the entire episode into a celebration of Jerry Siegel’s contributions to the Legion of Super-Heroes!
As detailed at greater length in the episode, while Siegel didn’t create the concept of the Legion of Super-Heroes, or even write the first story in which they appeared, he is responsible for many long-standing contributions to the team, including the characters of Ultra-Boy, Brainiac 5, Bouncing Boy and more. Siegel also played a hand in the off-shoot teams of the Legion of Super-Pets and the Legion of Super-Villains.
After the overview, Billy digs in, looking at two Legion of Super-Heroes stories written by Siegel. First up is “Prisoner of the Super-Heroes!” from ADVENTURE COMICS #267, which is a Superboy story featuring Siegel’s first use of Legion characters (and is Legion’s second appearance, coming roughly a year and a half after their debut in issue #247).
He then turns his attention to “Computo the Conqueror” from ADVENTURE COMICS #340. In the episode, Billy calls this Siegel’s final Legion story. However, Siegel is also thought by many to have written “Colossal Boy’s One Man War” from the next issue. (Some sources credit Edmond Hamilton for this story, but I agree with the Siegel assessment, given that the story continues from Siegel’s tale in issue #340.)
Regardless, the episode is a great retrospective of Siegel’s contribution to DC’s heroes of the future and a must-listen for Siegel fans!
