Enter–the Legion of Light! (comic story)
Enter–the Legion of Light! was the third comic in the Tales To Behold subseries of the webcomic The Cosmic Beholder, and the fifth story in the series overall. Written and drawn by Paul Hoppe, it was released both in serialised webcomic form and in a limited print run.
It continued to feature “Jenny Everywhere” (really Jenny Nowhere posing as her) as part of Captain Evening's growing team of superheroes.
Contents
Plot
Armstrong Fatbuckle has been living the high life. With his undeath so heavenly, his thoughts have actually turned to perhaps trying to redeem himself and thereby be allowed entry into the actual Heaven, albeit just to visit and see what it's like. He soon gets the opportunity to demonstrate his newfound heroism when, while hanging out with a group of strippers, he is confronted with the Legion of Light, modern-day knights-in-shining-armour who insist on “liberating” the women from their “sinful lifestyle” whether they like it or not.
Meanwhile, Professor Madison and Rodney show up at Captain Evening's home, where he introduces them to Merv the Griffin and Jenny, explaining that Madison has been helping him with his technical equipment. Madison is not long creating a device to help detect transdimensional activity, thus tracking Doctor Brain if he opens another portal. While she tests it out, Jenny and Rodney slip away to sleep together, with Rodney explaining that “a bunny's life is short”.
Meanwhile, confronted with the “devilish” sight of Armstrong Fatbuckle, the Legion of Light have used their Magic Sword to summon matching help — a summoned demon called Red Vicious. Although Fatbuckle's ability to continue moving his limbs even if they're separated from the rest of his body initially discombobulates Red Vicious, the demon's brute strength is still threatening to overwhelm him; in gratefulness for his standing up for them, the strippers themselves pounce on the demon to defend him, to the confusion of the Legion.
It is this moment which Captain Evening and his friends choose to burst down through the glass roof, prepared to help defeat Red Vicious and the Legion — only to find that the girls have already done a pretty good job of it. Evening and the other heroes still take care of tying up the trounced Legion members, however, and the Captain begins to lecture them about their self-righteous beliefs. Red Vicious himself is outraged at having been summoned due to sheer bigotry and stomps off in a huff.
While the ever-hedonistic Rodney stays with the strippers to party for the night, Armstrong is taken back to Captain Evening's headquarters to be reassembled, an activity which all involved approach in good humour as a kind of puzzle-solving family-game-night. Once he is back on his feet, Captain offers Armstrong the chance to join his “odd group of mischief”, which a flustered Armstrong accepts.
Worldbuilding
Jenny Nowhere
- Jenny continues posing as Jenny Everywhere.
- Jenny unconcernedly sleeps with Rodney.
Universes
- This story takes place all in one universe, later named as Reality Z-25 31-H.
- Red Vicious was summoned through a transdimensional portal by the Legion of Light using the Magic Sword.
Other
- The Devil who banished Armstrong Fatbuckle from Hell is named in dialogue as “Satan”. The Legion of Light, meanwhile, briefly think that Fatbuckle himself is “Lucifer”.
- Armstrong Fatbuckle is nicknamed “Boney” by the girls.
- Captain Evening claims that “people from the future” gave him his special powers.
Continuity
- Armstrong Fatbuckle's story continues on directly from the events of COMIC: Hell Is Too Good For Him in terms of plot mechanics, although it is ambiguous how much time he spent partying in the interim.
- Merv the Griffin and “Jenny Everywhere”'s very recent joining of the Odds in COMIC: For Whom The Toll Bells (in circumstances involving an interdimensional portal created by Doctor Brain) is referenced.
Behind the scenes
Read online
Enter–the Legion of Light! is available online on the Cosmic Beholder blog.