Dave Cockrum & Legion of Super-Heroes

[kybearfuzz]

First, let me say that I think Dave Cockrum was an amazing artist who helped create and/or re-designed many of the characters I loved as a kid -- The X-Men, The Legion, etc. I'm about to channel my inner Tim Gunn though.

Over the last few weeks I bought several hardbound compilations of "The Legion of Super-Heroes," specifically the Cockrum and Mike Grell years in the 1970's. These are issues that introduced new costumes for several Legionnaires, but also strengthened certain personalities and made the individual characters more unique. While most costumes were pretty good, some were odd and questionable.

Karate Kid's uniform became his definitive look. Duo Damsel donned her first orange-purple outfit that coolly divided in color when she split into two bodies (designed by a reader mainly, I know). Sadly, she got married and retired soon after it was introduced, so it wasn't seen much. I personally loved Phantom Girl's bell-bottomed costume. Lightning Lad and Timber Wolf got new outfits that are well known.

Some of the unusual ones though are signs of the time, in my opinion. Saturn Girl's pink bikini outfit was awful and didn't go with the character's personality of being cold and reserved. Around this time, Shadow Lass suited up in a black bikini, but being from a desert world and having a wilder personality, this was believable. Cosmic Boy's bustier outfit wasn't very practical, I did like that it showed off some skin. Conversely, Colossal Boy's outfit was overdone. In an emergency I bet it took him forever to get dressed.

Granted, these are just my opinions. Any other readers from this era have a comment or so?

Comments

[dendren.livejournal.com]

These are the classic costumes I first familiarized myelf with, I came in right at the beginning of the Cockrum/Grell era in the 70s.

Tinya's costume really was best, tho the pony tails......

Timber Wolf, Dawnstar and Star Boy... awesome.

Colossal Boy... cool once they started coloring in the legs... it looked horrendous with the bare legs in his first new costume appearances.

Saturn Girl, Jeckie and Shadow Lass (and even Tinya with the many skin showing holes)... so completely 70s. I liked the costumes at the time but they are such sex kitten lookng to me now. I remember when they changed Saturn Girl back to a more classic look I thought she looked so matronly and boring but have gotten to prefer it again.

I do love the 70s/80s LOSH tho...

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

I agree. Colossal Boy went from the 1960's costume to those horrible outfits. I think Giffen got him a cleaner costume that worked well.

And I think when Saturn Girl's outfit to the classic look was definitely more mature. I think something between the bikini and the matron look would have been good.

[dendren.livejournal.com]

I think Imra's change was the most sudden and drastic of the early 80s new costumes. It's interesting how they rolled out new costumes team-wide a couple of times instead of just introducing a new costume here and there over the years. I'm trying to remember, for Imra, was the change about the time she got pregnant with Graym and Garridan? I guess that would lead to having a more matronly outfit. Can you imagine her in the pink bikini 9 months pregnant LOL

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

I think if it was done in the 70's, she might have been wearing it. *shudder*