DC Comics has taken another swing at its most persistently convoluted superhero franchise with Legion of Super-Heroes #1, a fresh launch under the DC All In/Next Level initiative that aims to make the 31st-century team accessible to modern readers. The Legion has long been a tough sell for casual audiences — its massive ensemble cast and constant reboots every few years have created a barrier to entry that even dedicated DC fans struggle to navigate. This latest volume, written by Joshua Williamson and illustrated by Hayden Sherman, arrives with the weight of that history behind it, yet manages to feel like a genuine entry point rather than just another reset.
The creative pedigree here is substantial. Williamson has spent recent years transforming Superman into one of the most consistent monthly titles on the stands, while Sherman earned two of the five nominations for IGN's Best Comic Book or Original Graphic Novel of 2025 award. Colorist Tamra Bonvillain and letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou round out a team that operates at a level where failure would be genuinely surprising. The question isn't whether the book is competent — it's whether it justifies yet another Legion reboot, and whether the art lives up to the hype surrounding Sherman's concurrent work on Absolute Wonder Woman.
What Is Legion of Super-Heroes?
Legion of Super-Heroes #1 is a new ongoing series from DC Comics that reimagines the publisher's long-running futuristic teen superhero team. The franchise dates back to the Silver Age and has undergone numerous continuity resets, each attempting to reconcile a sprawling cast of characters with DC's ever-shifting timeline. This volume arrives as part of the DC All In/Next Level publishing initiative, which has successfully revitalized several dormant or struggling properties across the line.
Williamson's script centers on legacy as a core theme, connecting the Legion's 31st-century heroism directly to the moment a young Clark Kent first put on a costume. A murder mystery drives the immediate plot, providing urgency and signaling that this future won't play out along predictable lines. Rather than overwhelming readers with the full roster immediately, the issue introduces a handful of key figures — including Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl — scattered across different worlds. The approach assumes some basic familiarity with these characters, but by the final page, their collective mission to use their powers for galactic betterment comes through clearly.
Script and Structure
Williamson's writing cuts through decades of Legion baggage by focusing on a few key elements rather than attempting to service the entire ensemble at once. The legacy theme connects the Legion's heroism to DC's broader mythological tradition. The murder mystery structure gives the debut issue a narrative engine, creating stakes that feel immediate rather than abstract. Readers meet Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl in contexts that establish their personalities and powers without requiring extensive prior knowledge.
The script still assumes some basic familiarity with these core characters, which may frustrate absolute newcomers. But Williamson's restraint in not bombarding the reader with the full cast upfront keeps the issue focused. The pacing allows each introduced character space to develop, and the central mystery connects their disparate starting points. It's a smart structural choice for a franchise whose greatest enemy has always been its own sprawl.
Art and Visual Storytelling
Make no mistake: the art is the real selling point in Legion of Super-Heroes #1. Sherman's figure work is exquisite — the characters are full of life without being burdened by excessive amounts of detail, a hallmark of their style. Bonvillain's colors flesh out what the lines suggest, adding depth and atmosphere that elevate every page. The character designs reimagine classic Legion costumes as 31st-century fashion statements rather than traditional uniforms, a fresh visual vocabulary that makes the future feel lived-in and culturally distinct.
Sherman's page layouts are a true visual feast, constantly playing with format and structure to create collage-like panel arrangements that evoke the work of J.H. Williams III — terrific company to be in. The reader's eye is pulled in different directions across each spread, yet the storytelling remains clean and clear. Visual flourishes abound: lettering that forms the trail of Lightning Lad's electric bike, nonverbal thought balloons conveying Saturn Girl's psychic conversations. The combination between Sherman, Bonvillain, and Otsmane-Elhaou is total — this art team is fully in sync, and the book benefits tremendously from having such an elegant, warm, and visually dynamic look.
What Doesn't Work
The prospect of rebooting this convoluted franchise yet again is, frankly, a little tiresome. DC has reset the Legion so many times that even the act of launching a "definitive" new volume carries a certain fatigue. Readers who have invested in previous iterations may feel justified skepticism about whether this one will stick, or whether the next creative overhaul is already being planned. The franchise's history works against it before the first page is even turned.
The script's assumption of basic familiarity with Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl creates a minor but real barrier for true newcomers. While the issue does solid work establishing these characters in context, readers with zero Legion knowledge may miss nuances that longtime fans catch immediately. It's a difficult balance — too much exposition bogs down the pacing, too little alienates new readers — and Williamson leans slightly toward the latter. For a book explicitly positioned as an entry point, that's a notable friction point.
There's also the awkward reality that Sherman's talent on this book feels like a loss for Absolute Wonder Woman, where their art has been a major draw. "It's hard not to resent this book on some level, simply because it threatens to pull Sherman away from Absolute Wonder Woman," the review notes. That's a sign of the artist's value, but it underscores the zero-sum nature of creative talent allocation at the Big Two — a gain for one title is often a loss for another.
Legion of Super-Heroes #1 succeeds as both an accessible entry point and a showcase for one of comics' most exciting artistic teams. Williamson provides a focused, mystery-driven script that respects the franchise's legacy without drowning in it. But Sherman, Bonvillain, and Otsmane-Elhaou are the reason to buy this book — their visual storytelling operates at a level that makes every page feel like an event. Whether this Legion sticks around longer than its predecessors remains to be seen, but for now, it's the best-looking comic on the stands.
