Limited Collectors' Edition #C-49

History

DC's Limited Collectors' Edition series ran from 1972 to 1978, publishing classic stories in an oversized 10" x 14" tabloid format that DC vice president Sol Harrison had championed as a way to stand out on newsstands. C-49 falls squarely in the reprint-focused phase of the run, assembled under the editorial hand of E. Nelson Bridwell (credited on the bonus reference features), and draws its anchor content from Adventure Comics #369–370 — stories that editor Mort Weisinger had originally commissioned from the teenage Jim Shooter, with Swan pencils and Jack Abel inks, for the June–July 1968 issues. The wraparound cover and interior Legion headquarters diagram, composed of panel art culled from multiple mid-70s Superboy issues by Dave Cockrum and Mike Grell, were newly constructed for this treasury edition rather than simply reprinted from a single source.

Trivia · 8 facts

• Cover date: October–November 1976; on-sale date: July 1, 1976; published by National Periodical Publications (DC Comics) as Limited Collectors' Edition Vol. 5, No. C-49.
• The centerpiece reprints are 'Mordru the Merciless!' and 'The Devil's Jury!' from Adventure Comics #369–370 (June–July 1968) — the first appearance of Mordru, the Legion's most powerful magic-based villain, written by Jim Shooter with pencils by Curt Swan and inks by Jack Abel.
• The story arc depicts four Legionnaires (Superboy, Mon-El, Shadow Lass, Duo Damsel) fleeing to 20th-century Smallville to hide from the newly freed sorcerer Mordru, with Pete Ross and Lana Lang (as Insect Queen) playing pivotal roles in the resolution.
• The issue also reprints Legion material from DC Super-Stars #3 (May 1976), featuring the then-new character Tyroc (Troy Stewart) — the Legion's first Black member — created by Cary Bates and Mike Grell and introduced in Superboy #216 (April 1976), just months before this treasury appeared.
• The wraparound cover and interior Legion headquarters diagram were newly assembled composite pages, drawing individual panels from Superboy #201, #203, #206, #209, #213, and Adventure Comics #369 and #371, with colors credited to Anthony Tollin.
• Reference/bonus content — including character profiles covering the full Legion roster, the Heroes of Lallor, the Legion of Substitute Heroes, and the Wanderers — was edited by E. Nelson Bridwell, making the issue one of the most encyclopedic overviews of the Legion's cast published to that point.
• The 'Mordru the Merciless' story arc was later reprinted in Legion of Super-Heroes Archives Volume 8 (DC, 1999) and Showcase Presents: The Legion Vol. 4, but C-49 represents its first reprinting and its first appearance in an oversized format.
• The series ran through C-52 before becoming All-New Collectors' Edition with C-53; C-49 is therefore one of the final issues under the original Limited Collectors' Edition title banner.

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