Analysis Notes
| General |
Only pages 20-22 are dealt with here. |
| In the final issue of Sovereign Seven, the entire series was retconned out of existence (it was revealed to be a story read Pansy and Violet). That effectively means that this scene never took place, and that the implied connection between Saturn Girl and any anti-system movement never existed. |
| For lack of a better location, position the scene with Saturn Girl and Network as occurring between the first and second stories in Legion of Super-Heroes v4 #100. |
| 20:1 |
2995 is a topical reference. This story was published in 1996, and the photo in 22:6 indicates it occurs after Sovereign Seven Plus #1, which would have placed this no earlier than 2998 (which itself is a topical reference, due to the compression of time that inevitably occurs with comics). |
| The song is being sung by Daisy Miller, while Pansy Smith and Violet Jones are playing |
| 20:2 |
Note the conservative bias of the media with terms like “outright vandalism,” “lies and slander,” and “radical.” |
| Ignore the “newly established” comment. When this story was published, the Legion books had only been around for a year and a half or so. As mentioned, 22:6 dates this as occurring quite a while later. |
| 20:4 |
This is the only reference we’ve had to “the system.” In the context of what is know about Saturn Girl’s upbringing, that would be a rigidly defined training regimen and behavior patterns designed as much to control the telepath in a non-psi society as to allow the telepath to control his or her own powers. The established patriarchy would like for both telepaths and the general public to believe that this system is the best and only means for a telepath to operate in society, but Network’s opinion differs. |
| 21:2 |
Despite Network’s “officer” comment, this person is obviously hospital personnel, probably a Probe nurse. |
| Probes may or may not be immune to this sort of telepathic suggestion. Even if they are immune to it from system-trained telepaths, Network’s external training and experience may allow her to do things normal 30th century telepaths cannot. |
| 21:6 |
“Summer Grey”: between her looks, Cable’s real name of Nate Grey, and Phoenix II’s real name of Rachel Summers, there can be little doubt that Summer Grey is an analogue of that refugee from a repressed future. |
| 21:7 |
From the clothing, this is also a probe nurse. (On the other hand, if Network is right and this is more prison than hospital, “officer” isn’t entirely wrong.) |
| 21:9 |
Summer Grey’s parents: given the number of “Claremontisms” carried over from Claremont’s days on X-Men to Sovereign Seven (Indigo = Nightcrawler, for example) and the closeness between Cable and Marvel Girl when Claremont returned to the X-books a few years later, it may not be wrong to guess at the identity of Summer’s parents. (But trying to second guess the resolution of Claremont plots… that way lies madness!) |
| 22:1 |
Can we have a few less “Claremontisms”? There must be some other way to phrase that, no? |
| 22:2 |
The writing should probably be in Interlac — unless Network is using an archaic language intentionally, going against the established government patriarchy, of course. |
| 22:5 |
Coloring error: Saturn Girl’s left butt cheek should be pink. |
| 22:4-7 |
Saturn Girl and Network are apparently in collusion in the latter’s battle against the system, or at the very least, Imra gives the fight her tacit approval and will probably prevent Legion interference with it where she can. |
| An alternate interpretation of this scene is that Saturn Girl is Network, but that doesn’t fit with either her character or the scene on page 20. (But it would explain how Network can fly: Legion flight ring.) |
| 22:7 |
This photograph is a souvenir of Saturn Girl’s trip to the 20th century, specifically from Sovereign Seven Plus #1. |
