DC Spotlight Review: Legion of Super-Heroes (2023)

Overview: Before she appears in The Flash and leads her own movie with Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, Supergirl leads the way along with the Legion of Super-Heroes in the next movie in what is now called the Tomorrowverse.

Synopsis (spoilers ahead): Legion of Super-Heroes opens with Kara Zor-El with her mother before Krypton explodes. The destruction of Krypton is seen from Kara’s eyes as the planet explodes and she is rocketed off towards Earth. Her ship gets knocked off course, and we meet back up with her in the present day as she adapts to life on Earth. Her cousin Clark (also known as Superman) sent her out for more clothes to better adapt amongst humans, but that is interrupted by Solomon Grundy rampaging through Metropolis. Supergirl cannot take him down and needs the help of Superman and Batman. After seeing the destruction that Supergirl and Grundy caused, Batman tells Superman that Supergirl is inexperienced and shouldn’t be out in the field. Supergirl overhears this and flies off.

Superman catches up with her and apologizes for Batman, and tells Supergirl that she does need more training. He then takes out a device that lets them time travel to the 31st Century, where he introduces Supergirl to the Legion of Super-Heroes. Superman enrolls Supergirl in Legion Academy where she can train with other young heroes. Mon-El is first to greet her, and after Superman leaves, Mon-El gives Supergirl a tour of the academy. While on the tour, they encounter Brainiac-5. Knowing the history of Brainiacs, Supergirl immediately attacks. They fight it out before being stopped by the main members of the Legion Timberwolf, Shadow Lass, and Chemical King. They reprimand Supergirl and Brainiac-5 but privately voice their concerns about Brainiac given the history of his previous clones.

Mon-El introduces Supergirl to the rest of the students, made up of Phantom Girl, Dawnstar, Bouncing Boy, Triplicate Girl, Invisible Kid, and Arms Fall Off Boy. Over time Supergirl begins to form a bond with Brainiac-5 and sees that he is not all that bad a guy.

Triplicate Girl is murdered by a group of villains called the Dark Circle. Supergirl and Brainiac- 5 discover this and Brainiac-5 tells Supergirl that the Dark Circle is looking to get the Miracle Machine which is locked away in the Legion’s vault. Supergirl and Brainiac-5 go to check the vault and Mon-El joins them. Brianiac-5 is able to get through the vault’s defense systems, and they make it to the Miracle Machine. At the machine, Mon-El betrays them and reveals himself as a member of the Dark Circle.

At this point, the original Brainiac shows up having absorbed the bodies of Brainiac 2, 3, and 4. OG Brainiac plans to use the Miracle Machine to rewrite the world in his image. Supergirl and Brianiac-5 escape and meet back with the other young Legionnaires, including Triplicate Girl, who is now going by Duplicate Girl. The young Legion takes down the Dark Circle members and Mon-El while Brianiac-5 is able to defeat OG Brainiac. Brianiac-5 and Supergirl are able to turn off the machine in time for the full Legion team to return, where they all celebrate their win and induct their new members.

In the post-credit scene, Batman and Superman investigate a fire pit left in Metropolis when a ship comes down and abducts them to set up the next movie in this continuity Justice League: Warworld.

Analysis- The story felt a bit redundant in parts. Batman not trusting a young Supergirl, which is reminiscent of Superman/Batman: Apocalypse and Supergirl going to train with the Legion, which happened in a Justice League Unlimited episode, so those parts felt familiar to me.

I will say I like the risk and twists that the movies in this Tomorrowverse take. In Justice Society: World War II, there was the twist of an alternate Earth. In Green Lantern: Beware My Power, there was the twist of Hal Jordan turning evil and destroying the Green Lantern Corps, and in this movie, the twist of Mon-El joining the Dark Circle. 

My one nitpick is that they fill in a lot of the story by referencing events that happened in the past that we did not get to see. They reference a previous fight with Superman and Brainiac. There is also a reference to a previous Justice League and Legion meeting. Those are stories that I would have liked to have seen. The end credits set up a Justice League movie, but in this universe of films, the members of the Justice League are unclear. There is Batman, Superman, Flash, and Green Arrow, so I want to meet the full League.

Meg Donnelly and Harry Shum Jr. voice Supergirl and Brianiac-5 and do a great job of building that relationship. Even though they went from enemies to crushing on each other awfully quick. Shum did a good job of opening up more emotion once he started to fall for Supergirl.

Editor’s Note: Legion of Super-Heroes is now available on Digital HD, Blu-ray, and 4K Ultra HD. You can order your copy and help support TBU in the process by heading over to Amazon.