Seriously, why does anyone screw with the Cockrum design? LOOK AT IT!

Wildfire- Best Legionnaire:
-Wildfire exploded onto the scene in the Dave Cockrum-designed ’70s Legion, and pretty much overnight became one of the most popular characters, even though he DIED in his first issue. He sacrificed himself to save the team, revealing his “forbidden” unique power- a suicide attack that left his suit an empty shell. However, he passed the most important test any character could ever pass in comics- he LOOKED COOL. So instantaneously, fans were like “Hey, BRING THAT GUY BACK!!”. And when they did, changing him from the silly “ERG-1” to “Wildfire”, he was so popular that fans voted him to be the new Team Leader, even though he rubbed all of his teammates the wrong way so they’d probably never have voted him in for real. Basically, they “Spider-Gwenned” him.

-It’s all timing- he was a loose cannon, a rebel in a world of yes-men named “Lad” and “Kid”, he had bad-ass levels of power, and it was the era right before Wolverine (another Cockrum-influenced character) hit it big enough to become comics’ most successful character created outside of the Golden or Silver Ages. With the constant angsty threat of being discorporated hanging over his head like the Sword of Damocles, he was angry and bitter a lot of the time, and when he wasn’t, he was being boisterous and arrogant, ripping on his teammates and going on about how awesome he was. In short, Wildfire was a Marvel character thrown into the DC universe.

-It’s actually funny how great all the Wildfire scenes are in the Legion stories I’ve read- a great number of Legionnaires tend to be bland or one-note, and so Drake stands out all the more when he’s proclaiming victory or arguing with all of his teammates. He commands attention in a way that few others do- people like him, Dream Girl & Timber Wolf really stand out. The fact that he’s also a total bad-ass helps as well- he easily fits into the Super-Heavyweight squad that went against the Anti-Monitor, yet he also had some key weaknesses (such as his easily-damaged suit that reduces him to useless floating energy), preventing him from being “That Guy You Have to Write Around” to get him beaten in team fights. So he can command attention, but doesn’t command ALL of it.

Wildfire Debuts:
-Wildfire was Drake Burroughs, an astro-engineer who gained his powers in an accident that disintegrated his entire body. His consciousness survived, and he was saved by being placed in a containment suit. Calling himself “Energy Release Generator 1” (ERG-1, for short), he found his personal relationships dying (his ex-girlfriend, thinking him dead, was frightened by his appearance), and so he applied for Legion membership, disguising his self-pity and sadness under a veil of arrogance. His powers, alas, were not unique, so he couldn’t make the team- his one unique power was one he “couldn’t use”. Of course, at the end of the story, he DID use it- discorporating himself to save the team. The team mourned him and saluted his bravery, but he eventually found his way to their HQ, and re-entered his empty suit. Thus, he took the name “Wildfire”, and pointed out his unique characteristics- he was made of energy, and needed his suit to function at all.

-Wildfire proved to be a powerful fighter (he was in the “Top Tier” with Superboy, Ultra Boy & Mon-El), and even made Legion leader at one point. He was decisive and good at tactics, but was sorely lacking in people skills- the more selfless character in the early days soon shifted into a bit of a blowhard with a tendency to be overly-direct and blunt with others (an “Origin Story” book would indicate this was a deliberate method of dealing with his inner torment- he acts out so nobody feels sorry for or pities him- he’s way too proud to accept that). His stint as leader was short-lived (though he adopts a mentorly relationship with three recruits that continues for a while), but he did manage to recruit a member to the team. The squad met… *sigh*… DAWNSTAR…

Wildfire & Dawny:
-Wildfire was transfixed by the beautiful, winged descendant of Amerindians, and gladly put her up on the Legion thanks to her tracking abilities. And thus began the most interesting, and most doomed, of the Legion’s couples. I mean, here you’ve got this boisterous, arrogant douchebag, yet he basically actively worships this stoic, aloof winged nudist that barely gives anyone the time of day. It’s SO OBVIOUS he loves her, too- he follows her around constantly, he sings her praises all the time (and he NEVER sings people’s praises- he’s usually the first to point out someone’s flaws!), he one-shotted an evil Guardian of the Universe clone when he implied he was going to make her his slave, and he once declared a massive battle a loss just because she’d disappeared- then immediately switched his opinion once she turned up okay (“hey- turn that to a victory after all, guys!”).

-But the relationship was so fascinating- Dawnstar was incredibly distant and aloof with everyone, refusing to let anyone in. Wildfire doted on her, but was an overprotective ass (once literally throwing her off-planet because she was about to be attacked by Darkseid’s Shadow Monsters). They clearly cared for each other, but his lack of a physical body made him unwilling to bite the bullet and reveal his obvious feelings- his self-pity overwhelmed him. Dawnstar clearly cared for him as well, but was herself unwilling to be with a man who had no physical form- this lack of physicality drove a wedge between the two of them, and since they were both exceptionally-proud, arrogant people, neither could properly express themselves. So there’s this moody depressing undercurrent to their unconsummatable relationship. It’s really goddamn “Marvel Silver Age”. Funnily enough, the Bierbaums, later Legion writers, more or less accuse both characters of being too Marvel-inspired, which is why they never cared for them.

-But of course, this is comics, so the “Will They, Won’t They?” thing often just turns into “They Won’t”, because writers get sidetracked, or throw one too many wrenches into the works, etc. So you get Dream Girl/Star Boy, Shadow Lass/Mon-El, Ultra-Boy/Phantom Girl, etc., but poor Wildfire & Dawny just never quite gets going- she gets a crush on a guy from a primitive planet, and despite the fact that he’s a one-off, she more or less drops Drake, acting distant and confessing things when he pushes her to. And of course, Wildfire immediately “gets it” and accepts her decision (“No worries, kid- a good man is hard to find”). And the one time he gains a physical form, she finds herself unwilling to hook up with it since his new form is so unnatural… and probably because their status-quo being altered frightened her. When she finally agrees to it… he’s too hot to the touch to do anything without causing her pain. Dawny is willing to bear it for him, but he’s unwilling to hurt her, and breaks it off. GODDAMN SHAKESPEARE.

The End of Wildfire:
-Wildfire would lose his solid form when Quislet, who’d helped him maintain it, left the Legion. He would eventually die saving the Earth in the “Five Years Later” era, and would largely disappear from the book, having reignited Earth’s Sun. By the end of continuity, he was stuck in the deceased Sun Boy’s body. A charred corpse, as a matter of fact, and so he resisted Dawnstar’s advances. This continuity ended very shortly afterwards. Despite being such a big part of the Legion, to me, Wildfire wasn’t a major character anywhere else. Hell, it was pretty clear Keith Giffen wasn’t a fan either, because Drake was gone during much of his run as solitary Legion creator.

Later Wildfires:
-In any case, the “Reboot” era would use him in a weird way. When Mordru killed two different heroes- Atom’X (Randall Burroughs) and Blast-Off (Jahr-Drake Ningle)- their energies intermingled, and were eventually contained in a Wildfire-like powersuit they called “ERG-1”. When the containment suit opened and he was lost in space, ERG-1 became a star- the two minds finally merged into one, and were given the name “Wildfire”. Eventually, however, he was used to power the world of Qward, and even after being rescued, running out of power was a constant threat.

-“Threeboot” Drake was a different beast- he still got the “dies on his first mission” trait, but his brother Randall gathers his energies and uses “E.R.G.-1” as an assassin. This was very far into this version of the Legion, and it was soon done for.

-Geoff Johns, in restarting the old Legion continuity (pre-“Five Years Later”), indicates that Wildfire is actually in the shell of the android Red Tornado. He and Dawnstar finally accept their relationship in this continuity, which didn’t last long, and didn’t feature them as major characters. The New 52 featured a Legion Lost series that starred the pair, along with some others, but it lasted only sixteen issues.

Wildfire = Rad:
-But really, Wildfire is THE BEST. With a tragic origin story, he’s basically Ben Grimm with a more abrasive personality, but just enough that he’s pretty hilarious. Most of the best & funniest scenes in the Levitz-era stuff I’ve read come from Wildfire either boasting, being petty, or giving the rare congratulations to a teammate. There’s a great bit in The Great Darkness Saga where Darkseid cops to losing as his plan unravels, he releases the team, and disappears… and Drake is like “WAHOO!! WE SURE SHOWED THAT BIG GREY ASSHOLE!” the SECOND he leaves, so Darkseid just pops up a spectral image in front of Drake and taunts him with some dark portens of the future. And on a team of pretty bland people with some… occasionally IFFY costume choices, Wildfire packs one of Dave Cockrum’s best designs, a boastful & brash personality, and the kind of attitude that throws a wrench into everything without being “Danny Chase”-level annoying. He’s fantastic. Some DC writers didn’t care for him because he’s too “Marvel”, but that’s really why he’s THE BEST- DC heroes are BORING and Marvel’s are fun, miserable, arrogant, psychotic crazy people who can’t go twenty minutes without arguing with someone.

*sigh*… DAWNSTAR…:
-A very iconic Legionnaire for her time, Dawnstar piqued fans’ interest early on by being the nudest, hottest woman on a TEAM of nearly-nude, women. I mean, this was the Mike Grell “Nude Legion”, but when this exotic-looking winged beauty came in with a neckline that reached past her belly-button… fans were in LOVE. Especially so since she acted completely cold and distant to everyone. That whole aloof, “I don’t really care what you think” attitude… woof. Lindsey “The Nostalgia Chick” Ellis pointed this out about The Last Unicorn, when the Prince just starts OBSESSING over Lady Amalthea simply because she doesn’t give a crap about him- that stuff works on dudes pretty hardcore. I speak from experience, lol.

-Her people’s origin story is… weird. To the point where writers are better-off just glossing it over. Her people are the descendants of Native Americans, abducted by villains centuries ago, and sent to Starhaven, where they gained wings and superhuman tracking abilities. And despite it being THE THIRTIETH CENTURY, she was flying around wearing buckskins and beads. Like even in the future, Natives gotta look as stereotypical as possible. It’s… a bit goofy.

Dawnstar’s Debut:
-Dawny makes her debut as the surprise recruit of Wildfire, during his short tenure as Legion leader- the braggart goes on and on about how his new recruit (who REALLY seems to impress him, if you know what I mean) is gonna save the day, and her Super-Tracking powers prove instrumental. Normally tasked with leading starships around, or hunters to their space-prey, she is delighted to the point of tears to be asked to join the Legion full-time. This sets up Wildfire/Dawnstar as another “pairing” on the team, as the two are rarely seen out of each other’s presence for long.

-Dawnstar’s early personality is one of… *sigh*… cool, casual aloofness. She’s also quite confident in her tracking abilities, which are occasionally quite useful (though if it’s a plot point that people don’t know where the others are, there’s often some random thing stopping her from just finding them. It’s like they gave her the power without considering how many stories she can stop in their tracks, so her ONE GOOD TRICK is often rendered useless)- she even appears in the first issue of Crisis on Infinite Earths, though her role is diminished after that point. Her & Wildfire of course had the classic “Star-Crossed Lovers” thing going on, as they respected each other’s supremely-confident personality, and Wildfire was CLEARLY infatuated with his beautiful teammate, but both of them knew they couldn’t really BE together, since he was just invisible energy in a big suit. This kind of barrier between them often made her act overly-cold or distant, pushing Drake away before he could get too close. And once, when she found herself injured on a primitive alien world, she got a crush on a local boy and forgot all about Drake (who, heartbroken, more or less told her to follow her heart because of his own self-hatred, combined with wanting the best for her). Alas, this was just a quick fling (she was still QUITE young at this point), and went nowhere.

-The pair were off like this for a while, and a minor history reboot at the hands of Mordru showed her possessed by an evil being called Bounty, who amputated her beloved wings, and acted as an assassin. Freed from the control eventually, she moved on, still couldn’t QUITE get together with Drake (he took an “unnatural” form, then couldn’t touch her without burning her- she was willing to suffer for him, but he couldn’t stand to see her hurt, then he was possessing Sun Boy’s corpse). She vanished during the ending the first Legion continuity.

Dawnstar in Modern Times:
-Dawny ended up being rather iconic to “her” Legion, as she was one of the few members to never make the jump to another continuity. Wildfire kind of popped up in different forms, but a grey bug-girl named Shikari took her role in the “Reboot” continuity. Therefore, spotting Dawnstar is really emblematic of a “1970s-80s Legion Story”. Later writers didn’t care as much for her- the Bierbaums, a couple who took over the Legion book from Keith Giffen, dismissed her as “Marvel Pretense”, which is probably part of why their Legion faded away into nothingness- people LIKE their Marvel-type characters, goddamit! She & Wildfire in particular really stand out as Marvelized characters in the DC Universe- grumpy basket cases with attitude problems on a team full of shiny, peppy white people with goofy names.

-Dawnstar reappears in modern times for the JLA/JSA crossover, with her & Wildfire confessing their love for each other about fifteen years after they disappeared from continuity. She & he were on the cancelled “New 52” Legion Lost book as well, as apparently some real attempts were made at pushing her. Hey, you gotta make a “Diversity Character” stick, you could do a lot worse than one who was actually created in the 1970s instead of some newbie you gotta push from the ground up. Despite the writers never REALLY focusing on her too much (Levitz mostly had her as a Plot Device and backgrounder; later writers didn’t care for her), she’s arguably one of the most popular female Legionnaires every time I do one of these sets. Must be her great characterization and… oh f*ck it, we all know why.

-I mean, THAT V-NECK. That costume alone has pretty well made Dawnstar the most popular female Legionnaire amongst the entire generation who hit puberty while reading the Legion book! Dream Girl was more openly flirty and did all the cover-girl poses, and Shadow Lass showed more skin, and cleavage was as common at Legion Meetings as Flight Rings were, but that is a LLLLOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWWWWW cut suit. Personally, I’m just fascinated by her relationship with Wildfire; it’s a bit too bad they never properly compensated it- you can’t “Will They/Won’t They” for more than fifteen years. It seems the writers loved the tragedy of the romance (which, to be fair, was most of the appeal), but so many circumstances popped up to keep them apart (she found another; he was hot to the touch; he was in a dead body) that it got a bit tired, and then the new writers didn’t care for either character, so they just disappeared.