Green Lantern (vol.3) #138 (July, 2001)
"Away From Home, Part One"
Writer - Judd Winick
Pencils - Dale Eaglesham
Inks - Rodney Ramos
Colors & Separations - Moose Baumann
Letters - Chris Eliopoulos
Associate Editor - Michael Wright
Editor - Bob Schreck
Cover Price: $2.25
Had such a good time checking out a Kyle story yesterday... I figured why not go ahead and read the next issue? Also, I'm still getting over being sick, and don't feel up to slinging longboxes looking for something else to discuss quite yet!
Let's hear it for accessibility!
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We open with Kyle getting a call from Martian Manhunter about acting as an Ambassador for an off-planet peace treaty ceremony. This is a pretty funny little scene. Ya see, initially the Tendaxians called looking for Hal Jordan, who as we know, is... unavailable. Then, they wanted Superman... or J'onn himself... and it goes on and on until Kyle asks for his feelings to be spared. Kyle agrees to oversee the signing... so long as he can bring his girlfriend along for the trip.
J'onn gives him the thumbs up, and so Kyle goes about putting himself ahead of schedule so he can afford to spend a week off-planet. It's here that we learn that Terry Berg has, come to accept his homosexuality, and is even taking part at a local youth center.
From here, we spend... probably more pages than we need to, watching Kyle and Jen fly to Tendax. They share like the sitcommiest banter... it's almost like they know we're reading. You ever around "those" kinda people? The ones who won't stop "putting on a show" around perfect strangers? It's like they're hoping we're all thinking "Wow, they must have a super-nutty home life!", when we're all really thinking "I wish these #@%@#$ would just shut up and go away!" Yeah, it's like that.
Anyhoo, they eventually arrive on Tendax, and we're given the quick 'n dirty on them... and, I'm not the most knowledgeable on affairs of the Middle East, but it feels like a loose-ish analogy to the situation between Israel and Palestine.
Kyle and Jade are then introduced to Minister Illus, the elected leader of Tendax... who is extremely pleased to see, not one, but two Green Lanterns. Jade quickly corrects... confuses... and probably annoys him (I know it annoyed me!). C'mon Jade, just stop.
The treaty ceremony isn't for a little while, and so our visiting Lanterns decide to take in some of the sights. First stop, the "water side", because Tendax doesn't have a word for beach. Jade pops her top and tries to soak up as much Sun as possible. Kyle ain't keen on her "hanging out", so he tries to cover up her baubles.
Later that night, they attend a celebratory dinner in anticipation of the treaty ceremony. Everyone is in the best of spirits, they all eat some vegetable lasagna (blech)... and Kyle plays some Rock'em Sock'em robots with a kid. You do see where all this is going, right?
While Kyle is busy being a big kid, Jade chats up Minister Illus. We learn a bit more about his role in the "unfortunateness". Ya see, he was a terrorist in his own right before realizing that there had to be a better way to protect his people. He seems very regretful... though hopeful that everything will eventually work out in the end. You... do see where this is headed, no?
The next day... the ceremony begins. It's such a gala event, Kyle compares it to a Royal Wedding. People are dancing in the streets... there's music... lotsa pomp 'n circumstance!
Then... boom.
Terrorists had blown up a school transport train killing 43 children. An additional 116 people were killed in the blast, with over 400 more injured. Kyle and Jade hop to, and try and do whatever they can to aid the Tendaxians... but for many of them, it's already too late.
We wrap up with Kyle and Jade approaching Minister Illus... and offering their services in this conflict.
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Well, this was pretty heavy, huh?
Not that we didn't see it ending this way, right? I mean, it is a "Part One"... which, nothing to do with this story in particular, is something that kind of annoys me straightaway. Let's tangent for a bit...
When you buy a book with called "STORY, Part One", we're kinda trained to expect a twist/cliffhanger ending... which, to me, kinda lessens the impact of that twist/cliffhanger. Just yesterday we read a "one and done" issue... if this issue didn't have a "Part One" in the title... we might've been expecting another, with a focus on the Kyle/Jen relationship and a backdrop of an off-planet peace summit. Then, the "boom" might've had more of an impact. Instead, I was just waiting for it to happen. Not that I haven't read this story before, but it has been nearing on (Oh Lord) twenty years.
On another note, not naming each individual chapter feels kinda lazy to me. All these "Part 1"s or "2 of 6"s just feel like a cop-out when every issue used to come with a different title. I guess I should be happy the arc got a name... so often anymore, they don't even name the arc until the trade is solicited!
Okay, nit-picky tangent over... probably.
For the issue itself... it was fine. The Kyle and Jen relationship, which I do remember fondly... kind of grated on me a bit here. They feel like that "circus couple" that gets invited to game night. It's like, as soon as they arrive the "show" begins, and you question why you even bothered to invite them. It's like the "You're Schmoopy" episode of Seinfeld. What I'm trying to say is... they're a bit much.
The Terry Berg story gets a requisite mention... we find out that he's going to be okay, which is fair enough.
I think my favorite bit here was the opening pages, where J'onn is running down all the names the Tendaxians actually wanted, before Kyle basically came out and asked him to stop busting his chops. That was cute.
Overall, not a bad issue by any stretch, but one with a somewhat telegraphed ending... and one that laid it on a bit too heavy with the cutesy couple banter. This issue is available digitally.
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Letters Page:
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Green Lantern (vol.3) #137 (June, 2001)
"The Bonds of Friends and Lovers"
Writer - Judd Winick
Pencils - Darryl Banks
Inks - Rick Faber
Colors - Moose Baumann
Letters - Chris Eliopoulos
Associate Editor - Michael Wright
Editor - Bob Schreck
Cover Price: $2.25
Uh-oh, it looks like somebody wants to end the romantic entanglement between Kyle and Jade. I wonder what sort of monster that could be tearing up that photo?!
Ready to find out...
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We pick up where we left off last issue... which we haven't covered here, but stands to reason it would've been the cliffhanger... where Kyle has just proposed marriage to Jade! She is taken aback, then hugs him... kisses him... and turns him down! She calls him a stupid, stupid man, and tells him he's probably jumping the gun a little bit. Ya see, they finally got this whole relationship "thing" right, and she figures the worst thing they can possibly do is "push" it. Annnnd, she's probably right.
She clarifies that this isn't an outright rejection of marrying Kyle... it's more of a "not yet", which I suppose softens the blow... at least a little bit. She still wants the (Power) Ring though! Ya see, he was proposing with a Green Lantern Ring that had been in Batman's possession for a little while now.
He sheepishly hands it over, and the first thing she does is whip up a construct wedding dress. Real jerk move there, Jen.
We jump ahead to later that day, Kyle's at work when his assistant Terry Berg pops in with some coffees. T-Berg sees that Kyle's a bit out of sorts and asks him what's up... Kyle tells him about his proposal attempt to the green gal, and Terry doesn't really react all that well to the idea. He actually throws a little tantrum.
He even goes so far as to refer to Jennie as a "green-skinned freak". I'm not sure if that racist or speciest (is "speciest" a thing?). I mean, she's human, right? Just that her skin is full'a chlorophyll... which, I guess wouldn't make her a different race, necessarily. Uh, I'm not sure I'm supposed to be talking about this. Anyhoo, we'll just let T-Berg say it.
Terry apologizes, and clarifies that he's not mad at her... he just doesn't want Kyle to be with her... because, well... you know.
Shortly after Terry storms out, Kyle is joined by his Art Director, Andre Whatshisface. Kyle (who is depicted as wearing his Green Lantern ring like all the time) tells Andre what just happened between he and Terry. He believes that the kid might've just "come out" to him. Now, here's where it gets a bit funny. Kyle asks Andre how he handled "coming out".
To which, Andre comes out to him... as a straight man! It's actually funnier than I'm making it sound... one of the rare times Winick managed to get a chuckle out of me. Andre then flips the script, asking Kyle what he thinks people picture when they imagine an unmarried artist living in Greenwich Village.
Back at the homestead, Jennie razzes Kyle about being an offensive dipwad. Another cute scene, that gets a smile. I tell ya what, when Winick's on, he's really on. Banks' facials here are spot-on as well.
But then, out comes the soap-box. Kyle wonders aloud how he should handle the Terry situation. His mind immediately goes to "the kid should speak to a therapist". C'mon, Kyle... you don't make a good strawman.
Jennie lights into Kyle, and tells him that what Terry needs isn't a therapist, but a friend. She insists Kyle talk this out with him... and so, next thing we know, Kyle is at the Berg residence in Maplewood, New Jersey. Upon entering Terry's room... it's, uh... stereotypical. There's a "Hunks" poster, as well as a Bette Midler one. There's an rock poster behind him obscured by a word balloon which, we'll eventually... thankfully learn reads "Ferrets".
Kyle sits down and asks Terry if earlier that day he was trying to tell him that he's gay. Terry says he isn't sure what he is. All we know so far is he's just an ordinary teen-age Bette Midler fan.
Kyle then starts talking as though he were the "mentor" figure in a Public Service Announcement. He ensures Terry that there's nothing wrong with him, and empathizes with how confusing this all must be. He also tells him that he'll always be around to talk if he needs him. Oh yeah, and that he's flattered...
... but that he's with someone. Terry cuts through the B.S. and reminds Kyle that, not only is he attached... he's also, ya know, not gay. Kyle volleys back with the fact that Terry's only 16... and the last thing Kyle needs is to be invited to "take a seat". Note that he's not leading with the whole "not gay" thing. More on my thoughts on that down below.
Kyle then rubs salt in the wound by asking if he can have a hug. Seems like one of those "least I can do" motions that a rejector offers to a rejectee... not that *cough* I'd know anything about that... ahem.
We wrap up with Kyle and Terry sitting down and wrapping up their conversation. Kyle tells Terry how brave he is by coming out.
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This was a lot of fun. I feel like I'm saying that a lot. "This was a lot of fun"... say it so much, it almost feels meaningless. Well, I hope it doesn't sound meaningless, because I'm bein' sinceeyuh ova heeyuh.
Let's jump right to the crux of this issue, Terry Berg coming out to Kyle. I give Winick a lot of guff for some of his less-than-subtle writing... but, I really feel like this was handled about as well as I'd have liked. Let's go to the initial argument. Terry's a sixteen year old boy, who is dealing with his sexuality, and who happens to sorta-kinda but definitely be crushing on his boss. A boss who can't seem to shut up about his knockout girlfriend.
Stands to reason that Terry might lose his cool and lash out. It also stands to reason that Terry might not be as forthcoming with his emotions... disguising jealousy with anger, and disappointment with rage. We can see that in his lashing out, he appears to regret the things he says just as soon as they leave his lips. The "green-skinned freak" comment especially. The kid's confused and angry... and isn't sure how to properly express it. He isn't sure if he's even allowed to express it. I really feel like this might have been the perfect scene for depict this situation.
From there... Winick pulls back the tension, and gives us a legit "laugh/chuckle out loud" moment between Kyle and Andre. I hate using such a trite statement as "roller coaster of emotions", but the juxtaposition here is just so well done. Kyle's basically an emotionally punch-drunk rope-a-dope here... and he's unwittingly insulting everyone around him. I think many of us have been in that situation a time or two before... recreational beverages optional.
The soap-box does come out... but in a far more subtle way than it would had this issue come out during "current year". Kyle doesn't make the best strawman here. He really doesn't. Since Winick himself alluded to the stereotype of the "unmarried artist living in the village", I feel like it's okay for us to use it too. Now, being as though Kyle is an "unmarried artist living in the village", it stands to reason that he's (using Winick's own stereotype via Andre) been around plenty of gay men and women of varying ages. You'd assume he'd be comfortable with that, and not call for a visit to the therapist straight out the gate... right? This bit seemed to have been written just to facilitate Jade's speech... and doesn't do Kyle any favors.
I get that Kyle's being written as the good-looking guy who's oblivious to the fact that he's good-looking... but, that's a trait that can only be "charming" for so long. I mean, within months of making his debut, he had Donna Troy and Jade fighting over him. Dude should know by now that he's "in demand". His obliviousness only comes off as his being aloof at this point. Aloof... or extremely stupid.
Kyle's chat with Terry to close out the issue was well done, though perhaps a bit too "after school special-y". I did take note of Kyle's glossing over the fact that he's not gay... which, back in 2001 sounds like he's just doing his best to let Terry down gently. Discussing the other reasons why they can't be together, to make the orientation of the situation the least of those factors. To my mind, he's doing what he can for Terry not to feel different. I feel like in 2019, this scene would be all over social media as Kyle officially "coming out" as bisexual... because, we just don't do subtlety anymore.
Overall... this was a really fun issue, that tackled a serious issue about as well as I've ever seen it handled. It wasn't done for shock, it wasn't done to bait USA Today into slumming it in the comics ghetto for a hot-minute... then again, last I looked, this isn't a Marvel book. I feel this was done with an earnestness... this is clearly a very important subject to the writer, and I gotta say, he handled it with grace, class and most importantly, the respect it deserves. I highly recommend checking it out... it is available digitally.
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Letters Page:
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Titans East Special #1 (January, 2008)
"The Fickle Hand, Part One: Go East, Young Man."
Writer - Judd Winick
Pencils - Ian Churchill
Inks - Norm Rapmund, Andy Lanning & Jon Sibal
Colors - Edgar Delgado
Letters - Comicraft
Assistant Editor - Adam Schlagman
Editor - Eddie Berganza
Cover Price: $3.99
The late 2000's. It was the best of times... oh, who am I even trying to kid... it was the worst of times (to be a Titans fan).
Anyone who might be following my reviews of the contemporary (post-Rebirth) Teen Titans (vol.6) over at Weird Science DC Comics knows that up until a few months ago, I was very hard on the direction (or lack thereof) of the book. It was the same thing every month, high on angst with the looming threat that somebody was going to quit the team at any time. Rarely an issue would go by without someone quitting, threatening to quit, get kicked off, or threatened to be kicked off. It was an awful run.
But then... if you're a tenured Titans fan... your mind might take you back to the post-Geoff Johns/pre-J.T. Krul era... and I realize, "Hey! It could always be worse!".
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We open back in the long ago during a Jenni! concert that has been hijacked by... the Joker! (I did check around to see if Jenni! was a reference to some obscure Golden/Silver-Age character, but she doesn't appear to be). In fact, it's not only the Joker... but Bizarro too! Man, I love me a Joker/Bizarro team-up... what a classic, right? Right??? Okay, in fairness, I'm sure they'd probably rubbed shoulders a time or two before this... I mean, World's Finest Comics was a thing for a very long time. Anyhoo, the Teen Titans are there to (try and) save the day! This looks like it would've taken place early in the New Teen Titans era, as Wally is a) still a member, and b) still Kid Flash.
Over the next several pages, the Titans look for an opening to attack the Joker (who is revealed to be handcuffed to the lovely and talented Jenni!), all the while Bizarro plays the heavy. Beast Boy transforms into a bee, and stings Joker on the cheek, which provides Robin the opportunity to use a 'rang to shatter the cuffs. Beast Boy then turns into an ape and rescues the girl.
Wally rushes the Joker and swipes his gun... only to find out that it's actually a ticking bomb inside a gun's housing! He runs it out into the bay where it explodes... 3 seconds early. The kinda thing that would add real drama in any story that isn't clearly a flashback!
As the Joker gloats over "killing" Kid Flash, he is suddenly overcome by emotion... yup, Raven's in the house. While gettin' high on the Joker's supply, she goes a little nutty herself (but thankfully doesn't give us like a half-dozen pages of her acting like the Joker).
Back with Bizarro, Starfire realizes that since Superman is powered by yellow sunlight, Bizarro might actually be de-powered by the same. Lucky for her, she appears to be right!
Just then, Wally returns (from dead) with a box under his arm. While he was gone, he swung by... I dunno, S.T.A.R. Labs or something, and picked up a chunk of Blue Kryptonite (which is actually steeped in Bizarro history)! This puts Bizarro down for good... for now.
Robin socks the Joker, and the Titans stand together atop the heap of baddies.
Then... we jump ahead to "now". Cyborg is trying to assemble a second team of Titans. This is post-Infinite Crisis, so the San Francisco-based (Cassie-Wonder Girl-led) iteration ain't doin' all that hot at the moment. Vic asks his usual running-buddies, but they just ain't feelin' it. Donna is off doing some Countdown-related stuff with Kyle Rayner, Beast Boy is hanging out with the All-New All-Old Doom Patrol, Roy is part of the Justice League of America... hell, even Lilith turns him down, and I'm sure she ain't doin' anything!
Finally, Vic reaches out to Dick Grayson... who also ain't feelin' it. Ya see, Cyborg has drafted some "newbies" and he wants the vets on board to help whip 'em into shape (yes, again). Nightwing says they were a great team once, and they may be a great team again... but now might not be the right time. They get nostalgic for a moment, before Dick asks Vic about these "newbies"...
And so, let's meet a few. First stop, Dawn and Holly Granger, the all-new Hawk & Dove! It seemed like they really wanted to play-up Holly (Hawk)'s sex appeal, and so naturally, we catch her in the shower. She tells Dawn about "some guy" she picked up the night before. More on that in a bit...
... or, right now. Next, we meet... Power Boy (complete with booby-window!). He talks about how last night he "got some" with a freaky girl who didn't mind wearing a Supergirl costume while they "did it"!
He goes for a swim before heading over to the first meeting of Teen Titans East. His teammates include, Little Barda, Anima (a Bloodlines buddy), (semi-obscure Charlton character) Son of Vulcan, Lagoon Boy, and, of course... Hawk & Dove.
Cyborg informs them that for this first training session, Power Boy is going to be something of a tackling dummy. The rest of the team are to track him down, and defeat him in combat... which is the case for the next dozen or so pages! During those pages, he exchanges banter with each teammate, and even learns that the freaky girl he was with the night before is now a member of his team! Each member of Titans East gets to sorta-kinda "show their stuff" during the brouhaha... which, sadly, isn't saying much.
The team eventually loses sight of Power Boy, and heads into the nearby woods to investigate... and what they find is, rather grim. A badly-burned Power Boy has been impaled on a tree branch!
Vic rushes in to see what's up, and suddenly beams of energy start raining down on the heroes... one of which goes right through poor Anima!
When Cyborg makes it to the clearing... the beams get a bit bigger... and by "a bit" I mean, a whole lot. A tremendous beam bears down, smashing into the team, and leaving a crater in its wake. To be continued...
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Okay, before we begin. I gotta say that being a decade-plus removed from this one, I didn't hate it as much as I did when I first read it. I didn't like it... but, I'm not as mad at it as I was back in the Winter of 2007. If you weren't reading the Titans back in the "nebulous interim" that was post-Infinite Crisis/pre-Final Crisis, you wouldn't know just how many team members were "sacrificed". This was the era of the Teen Titans "casket cover"... lotsa teen-age heroes were being thrown on the fire... and the fatigue was real!
Look at this cover... "Who Will Die?" That's your selling point? What is this, Heroes in Crisis?! I'm sorry, you're going to need more than that. Buying a book only to find out who dies? Really, if that's all you're interested in... just hang out on social media a week before the book comes out, some "pro" reviewer will undoubtedly spoil it. If that's all you're looking for... there's no reason to shell out four-bucks for this.
Let's put this book aside for a moment... and say, you missed out on it. Didn't even know it was a "thing". One day you head into the local comic shop, and see a bright-shiny Titans (vol.2) #1 sitting there on the shelf. You pick it up and take it home. Upon opening it, you're greeted with "The Fickle Hand, Part TWO". Part Two... in a #1 issue! What a mess.
Now, let's look at the issue itself. It's kinda empty. It's basically two big fight scenes separated by a couple of pages of exposition. Not sure why we needed the "This was Then..." bits, other than the desire to shoehorn the Joker into the issue. That's fair enough... not sure why it necessitated so many damned pages though.
Speaking of an embarrassment of pages... that training exercise probably didn't need twelve of 'em! I get that we want to try and flesh these newbies out... let 'em "show their stuff" before the big "gotcha". But, that only works if you don't spoil the fact that someone's going to die on the cover! We never get the opportunity to lose ourselves in the story... we're just looking for someone to die. We're anticipating the "gotcha" moment, so that when it finally happens... it doesn't really have the desired effect!
The expositional middle... was okay. It feels like the Titans are always in "rebuilding mode"... nobody can just tell a story about them coming together... there has to be some cockamamie reason behind it all. The past several times has been about "training the next bunch"... which... I mean, there's already a Teen Titans team... and before that, there was Young Justice. This is redundant... and I totally understand the "originals" wanting to be as far away from it as possible. This whole thing feels like a "here we go again" rather than... "Hell yeah, new Titans!"... which isn't the best way to launch a new series.
I suppose we could go into Power Boy and Hawk's cosplay sex... but, I mean, what can I say? It's pandering, crass, and ultimately unnecessary, but it's pretty much exactly what I'd expect from DC and Judd Winick at that point in time. Was this to give us a feeling of "loss"? It wasn't depicted as romantic in the slightest... and it's not like nu-Hawk has all that much time left among the living either. I dunno... the whole thing was just really off-putting.
Overall... I really don't know what to say. Back in 2007-2008 I'd give this a hard-pass, and suggest everyone else would too. Now? I still don't need this in my life, but that doesn't mean other folks won't dig it. The era of Titans-death-fatigue is in the distant rear-view at this point... and so, this might actually feel novel rather than just another few bodies being haphazardly thrown on the fire. It is worth noting, the art here is good. I had some problems with early Ian Churchill... he was very much in the Rob Liefeld-alikes list. You can still see some of the influence here, but it's softened quite a bit. This issue is available digitally if you're interested... but I would suggest holding off until you find it in the cheap-o bins instead.
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