A Tribute to a Fashion Disaster:

I'm enjoying the new Legion of Superheroes series. Not quite as much as the post-Zero Hour version, yet, but it's getting up there. I liked this months issue a lot, (because it never stops amusing me how a character like Rokk that usually ends up so scheming and machiavellian, keeps trying to then foist leadership off on someone else when everything's calm again)

But there is something missing about this new Legion, I've come to realize. And it finally occurred to me why. See, I don't actually tend to date Legion comics based on whether they're post crisis, post zero-hour, pre-crisis et cetera. I date them solely on one criteria: Cosmic Boy's hideous outfits. But in this version, he's actually dressed half-way sane! Which saddens me. So as a tribute to a bygone age, I present a collection of Cosmic Boy's horrible, horrible costumes.

Unveiling first, from the cover of Adventure Comics 247:



Now, what's really sad to say is that for all the pink, and the horrendous bubble head helmet thing, this is probably the best costume he has until Zero Hour. Which is sad, but true. And at least the bubble helmet provides character, or something...

Inside the same comic though, it seems that Rokk decided to ditch the bubble helmet after all:



Unfortunately, he's traded it in for wearing his name on his shirt, which is just rather tacky. And the scoop collar doesn't work withut the bubble helmet. And now we see he's wearing lavender trousers with a pink shirt...poor boy, this starts that wonderful trend in your fashion history of taking one step forward and two steps back.

However, in his appearance in very early issues of the comics, Rokk was in the habit of never wearing the same thing twice. Sadly, like in this little number from Adventure 267...perhaps he should have:



Hoo boy, I thought the pink and purple trousers were bad, but at least that had some semblance of dignity. This...this just doesn't work. Though I tell you one thing, if I were a kid back then reading this, I would have wanted a doll of Rokk. I'd dress him in pretty, frilly pink Barbie clothes. He can't look more ridiculous.

Fortunately for my sanity, by Action 267, Rokk had settled on a look that was almost workable:



Yeah, it's still a little...the black panties and the white shoulder hoop things clash, but honestly, it's got a bit more...dignity than his previous costume. This is the one he'll wear for decades, though there will be some variation in color of boots, piping, neck thing, and so on along the way. It's pink but it'll do for now.

As we see some decades later in LSH v2 204, Rokk's still wearing the same ensemble:



The black chest rectangle whatever it is has gotten a little higher, the colors have altered some as I've said, but largely the same.

Actually I just added this one for that stance. If Rokk knows nothing else, it's how to strike a pose.

As is evidenced in LSH 215, where he takes on his most infamous costume change and I devote my unending love to Mike Grell between cackles:



The odd thing is that if looked at as a progression, the outfit isn't quite that bad. Yeah, it's out of the Rocky Horror Picture Show...and yeah, it makes any image that involves Rokk on the ground with a bad guy looming over him just look wrong, but...

It's the comparison really. And it takes toughness to wear *that* in Space I reckon. Space is fucking cold. And to my shock none of the other Legionnaires even blink an eye at the costume.

Honestly, I just think Braal is one strange strange planet. And that pose makes me want to photoshop in a pearl necklace. But fortunately for us all, I can't photoshop. Too bad.

Sadly, after this entertaining if awful costume, poor Rokk plummets into outright hideousness as can be seen by this panel from LSH 294:



It's horrid. Hideous. So bad I can't even excuse it away like I can most of Dick Grayson or Ted Kord's ghastly outfits, which is that it'd look fine and dandy on a bedroom floor. Rokk's too young for that! And honestly, I don't want it near anything I own just in case it contaminates it!

Anyway, he wears this for a very long time too, until, his brother pops up and gets the pink monstrosity foisted onto him. He wears it partially white instead of black though, but as this is Rokk's fashion show, I'm not showing it.

But as we see in this panel from LSH v3 51, having little brothers can be a benefit:



BLUE! And...well, honestly, it's a bit unflattering in cut and style. But it's not the previous montrosity so I'll take what I can get. Besides, anyone looks good next to that monstrosity Polar Boy is wearing. Did he even bother to kill that animal first?

Finally after Zero Hour, we get the pinnacle in costumes, in LSH v4 62:



Somehow it manages to incorporate a lavender color scheme and all the formerly hideous black panelling and circle-disk crap in a way that actually kind of works! He still...looks like a boy much too accustomed to wearng lavender, shall we say, but it's a flattering cut and the girls seem to enjoy it.

And those dorky disk things actually have a purpose which is awesome! I was quite impressed by the use of them as a weapon. And this Rokk's the most scheming and Machiavellian so that might be why I like this one best too. I'm not unbiased. :-P

And finally, the costume from the current version (issue 8, for the specific panel):



See, it's probably the best of them...blue, flattering...but I dunno, it looks like a Star Trek jumpsuit kinda...it's too sane. It should at least be pink or lavender! Or pastel, girly blue! Come on! Work with me here!

It's such a loss. :-)