Green Lantern (vol.5) #21 (August, 2013)
"Dark Days Ahead"
Writer - Robert Venditti
Penciller - Billy Tan
Inker - Richard Friend
Colorists - Alex Sinclair & Tony Avina
Letterer - Dave Sharpe
Associate Editor - Chris Conroy
Group Editor - Matt Idelson
Cover Price: $2.99
Following Flashpoint, it's no secret that I whittled down my pull-list a great deal. Among those dropped were all of the Lantern books. I just couldn't jump into four new titles. I stayed away for the first year and change... but then, found myself oddly curious about the direction the books might have gone.
I decided that I'd jump back in at the next "jumping on" point... which just happened to be the issue we're going to look at today. Geoff Johns was stepping away... and we would be getting a fresh(ish) start... and hopefully a little less of the monthly crossover grind!
So, let's take a look at how the post-Johns era of Green Lantern started...
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We open with the Corps on the run. They're fighting off... I wanna say Relic, and their rings are very nearly out of juice. As they begin to perish one by one, Hal and John order them to double back to the Central Power Battery for a recharge. Unfortunately for them, even that battery is dead!
That was "then"... so we shift into the "now", where Hal is popping in for a visit with his sorta-kinda girlfriend, Carol Ferris. It's more of the same from the two of them... do they love each other? Are they good for each other? Stuff like that. Hal's cool with whatever, but Carol ain't sure. So, it's basically "Tuesday" for them. Before they can come to any sort of resolution, Hal is called away to Oa by the Guardians.
Upon arrival, Hal is offered... or given (it doesn't seem like he has much of a choice here) a promotion... he is now the leader of the Green Lantern Corps. I mean, he basically has been for a half-century anyway... might as well push the paperwork and make it official. Kyle and Hal discuss all the reasons why this is a terrible idea... but the blue boys ain't hearing it.
Later, Hal meets up with his his new Protocol Officer, Kilowog. Together they look at all of the orphaned Lantern rings... the rings of "the fallen". Hal decides, that in his first official move as leader, to send the rings out to find new owners. Kilowog isn't so sure this is the best idea.
Just then... the see a whole lotta orange on the horizon. Larfleeze is incoming! It would appear he wants all of those rings.
Hal assembles the Corps and takes the fight to the greedy beast. Larfleeze and his construct army prove to be a pretty tough fight for Hal and the Gang... but, not to worry, his new ring-bearers should be here annnnnnny minute. Well, don't look now but here they are. Yikes.
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Not a bad start to the post-Johns world.
There isn't a whole lot "new" here, outside of Hal officially becoming the leader of the Corps. Feels like one of those "We can't give you a raise, but here's a new title" propositions so many of us have faced in our professional lives. New responsibilities, and... oh yeah, all of your current workload. No raise, but... your new business cards will arrive in 6-8 weeks.
I really liked the scene where Hal and Kyle talk about what a bad idea this all is. You'd figure, with how old the Guardians of the Universe are, the whole Parallax mess must feel like it happened like two weeks ago. Weird that they'd forget... or choose not to remember that. I mean, John Stewart... a trained field leader... is like right there. Why choose Hal instead of him?
Well, I guess Hal is still the star of the book... so, whattayagonnado? His impetuous ring-slinging in hopes of rebuilding the Corps feels in-line with his character... definitely something he would do before thinking of the ramifications. It's no surprise that all of the pretty shiny rings might gain the attention of Larfleeze... and really, he is as good a baddie as any for Hal's first time out as Corps Leader.
The Hal and Carol scene felt... a bit tacked on. I mean, it's always the same song and dance with these two... and didn't really feel necessary. I suppose it was as good a bridging scene as any... but I wish it would have added something new to the dynamic. It's just more of the same from their dysfunctional romance.
Overall... not a bad start. Decompressed, however, things do actually occur. The art is pretty good, however, a bit scratchy at times. Tan's work evokes a bit of the 90's line-heavy aesthetic that hasn't really aged well to me. I'd say this is worth a look... after all, back in 2013, I did come back for the next issue, and have been back "all-in" with the Lanterns ever since.
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Channel-52!
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Green Lantern (vol.5) #41 (August, 2015)
"At Odds"
Writer - Robert Venditti
Penciller - Billy Tan
Inker - Mark Irwin
Colorists - Alex Sinclair & Tony Avila
Letterer - Dave Sharpe
Assistant Editor - Andrew Merino
Group Editors - Eddie Berganza & Matt Idelson
Cover Price: $3.99
We took a look at some DCYOU Superman not too long ago... and I lamented the fact that the initiative felt kinda doomed from the get-go. Too many big changes all at once made it feel as though nothing much mattered.
I'm sure there's a word for it... it's like a bell-curve of engagement... you start off disengaged... then add some stimuli, and engagement rises... however, you reach a point where you get overloaded... and you just stop caring altogether. That's how DCYOU made me feel.
It's kinda like when I'm looking at my "to read" pile... as it grows, it feels kinda urgent, like I gotta make time to get around to it... but then it hits that "tipping point", and I wind up just filing them all away.
Anyhoo... let's get to it!
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We open at the Gaming Dens of Y'Gaal, somewhere in Sector 3087. A well-dressed blue alien stands in the arena... ready to face off against a beast referred to as a "Kreeak", very likely because that's the sound it makes. The creature lunges, only to find itself impaled by an emerald construct sword. The fix is in!
Or is it? Well, the bloodthirsty crowd seems to think so, and I suppose that's all that really matters at this point. Feeling as though the "house" scammed the gamblers, a riot breaks out... and the blue-skinned alien is returned to his cell. Later, he is joined by the man who put that sword in his hand... the Renegade Green Lantern, Hal Jordan. Hal looks quite a bit different than he used to... longer hair, longer coat... and a gauntlet in place of his ring.
Hal breaks this alien (named Virgo) out of his cell... the escape route, however, is blocked by a trio of guards led by a Darth Maul-looking fella named Trap. Despite the new-look, he immediately recognizes Hal... and a fight is on.
Hal eventually gets the better of things, however by this point the rioting patrons have begun to storm the pens. Hal headbutts Trap, and takes him hostage as he and Virgo attempt to make their escape.
To hasten their egress, Hal uses his gauntlet to open all of the creature cages... allowing them to run free among the rioters. Hal and the gang then hop on a construct aero-bike, and head off...
... Arriving some time later at Hal's Class III Light Cruiser, Darlene! This is one sassy ship, who doesn't shy away from talking back to Mr. Jordan. On board, we see that Hal has locked Trap away in a cell... and learn that he rescued Virgo in order to get payyyyyyed.
They're heading to Ketleth Prime to return the blue prince, however are taking the scenic route through Sector Zero... where we see that the Green Lantern Corps have... vanished!
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Ya know... as overwhelmed as I am by DC's current bi-weekly shipping model, I gotta say, I think I'm a bit spoiled by it.
In reading this issue I just feel like we didn't get quite enough. Knowing that we had to wait an entire month for the follow-up... I dunno. It's weird, I never thought about stuff like that before Rebirth. Once a month comics were always enough... it's just the way it's always been, so I didn't think much of it. Even as concepts like decompressed storytelling were introduced... and the entirety of the Bendis Avengers, I never felt like the these books needed to be anything more than monthly.
Nowadays when I think of DC's "monthlies", they almost seem like afterthoughts. Like, their stories don't matter as much as the "flagship" titles... they're a buck more expensive... and it's almost as though they're on-deck for cancellation.
It's interesting to go back... even just a couple of years, and think about what it was like to wait for an entire month. This isn't Green Lantern-specific or anything, just some thoughts that popped into my head while reading. Can't really hold them against the book itself... but worth mentioning, if only to get it out of my head. Oh yeah, one more thing... this is a four-dollar book. For the amount of story we get... I gotta say, I'm really glad DC decided to "draw the line" one more time.
For the issue itself, it was really quite good. I actually dig the new-look Hal Jordan here. Feel like the longer hair and coat suits him... it's different enough to stand out (could even get its own action figure), but not so alien as to look weird. Plus, seeing Hal in a hood takes me back to his days as the Spectre... which is a neat touch.
Renegade Lantern Hal Jordan rescues a rich alien... and takes a bad alien hostage, setting up an interesting Odd Couple... er, Triad (?) going forward. Outside of our cliffhanger, that's really about all that goes down.
Now... speaking of the cliffhanger, this is one I was pretty excited for. Over the past decade-plus, I've grown a bit weary of constant Corps stories. I came in to the franchise during the Kyle days, where there was no Corps... and the stories were mostly Earth-based. I miss stories like that... where we're not spending a quarter of each issue "checking in" on Oa, or Mogo... or wherever the hell the Corps is hanging out.
I think that might be one of the highlights of this DCYOU era of Green Lantern... the Corps were off doing their own thing, and Hal got to spend a bit of time on Earth. Of course, the eventual clash with Parallax was... a bit underwhelming. Okay, it was really quite awful... but that's a discussion for another day.
Overall, an interesting "first chapter" for this (sadly) short-lived Renegade Green Lantern arc. Definitely worth checking out. Venditti gives us many questions... and thankfully, they're all ones I want(ed) to stick around to get the answers for. Billy Tan's artwork here is really good... despite the "new look", Hal still looks like Hal.
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Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps: Rebirth #1 (September, 2016)
"Forged"
Writer - Robert Venditti
Artist - Ethan Van Sciver
Colorist - Jason Wright
Letterer - Dave Sharpe
Assistant Editor - Andrew Marino
Editor - Mike Cotton
Group Editor - Eddie Berganza
Cover Price: $2.99
Hot damn but that's a long title. Doing some "for fun" catch up here today. Thus far I have bought every single DC Comics with the word Rebirth on it. Got a killer deal on the bundles at Discount Comic Book Service... hell, been using them since the dawn of the New-52! So, what this means is I've got more books to read than minutes in the day to read them. There are entire series' that I haven't touched yet... including the one we'll be discussing today.
When DC Comics announced the first run of Rebirth-branded books I was pretty annoyed not to see a straightforward Green Lantern title, instead we've got two... Green Lanterns and this one. Anyone who knows me knows I'm almost unbearably attached to my "full runs" on books... so when Green Lantern (vol.5) was relegated to the dump-bin, I wasn't entirely sure which new title would be the one I considered the "real" Lantern book. Hell, I still don't know which one's real-er, but that's on a count of my not reading them.
Gonna start fixing that today.
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We open in Space Sector Zero where we see the floating remains of Oa. Suddenly the bits are pelted with yellow energy, and we see the planet remake itself as not the home of the Green Lantern Corps, but the Sinestro Corps. On Warworld, an aged Sinestro is approached by Lyssa who informs him that everything is his to command, so spake the Book of Parallax. We learn that the Green Lantern Corps has vanished, leaving Sinestro without much of a satisfying "win" here today.
We shift to Space Sector 563 where floats a dead planet. We get a monologue from Hal Jordan as green energy swirls and crystallizes. Then we see him... and he looks quite a bit different than the Green Lantern of old! I will concede that I only skimmed the last two issues of the preceding volume of Green Lantern. I was so let-down by the promise of a Hal vs. Parallax Hal battle in issue #50 that I kind of zoned out for the capper. Hal as an energy-being is wholly new for me.
From here we get a bit of a Hal Jordan/Green Lantern Corps history lesson... from Hal's father's death to the recent Green Lantern Renegade/Gauntlet of Krona story arc. We next learn that the Corps is in fact missing in action... this is follow-up from the Green Lantern: Lost Army and Green Lantern Corps: Edge of Oblivion miniseries'.
Hal produces a chunk of glowing green rock from the energy glut and places it down on a construct of an anvil. He then forms an energy hammer, and prepares to wield it. When he does, it reverberates throughout the universe... the Green Lantern Corps, the Guardians, the White Lantern, and the newest Green Lantern Jessica Cruz are seen reacting.
Back on Warworld, Sinestro descends down a long and winding flight of stairs to greet an old ally... Parallax itself. Not Hal-as-Parallax... the actual giant yellow fear bug. He asks it to grant him a final wish... everything. Least he's realistic, right?
While this is going on, Hal continues his hammering. Members of the Indigo Tribe, Larfleeze and Carol Ferris can feel Hal's presence. When he is done, what he has left is a Green Lantern ring... one he forged himself, which is a feat previously thought impossible. He's also no longer an energy-looking fella... he's back to flesh and bone. And so, he tosses Krona's gauntlet and slips on his new piece of jewelry.
He says the Green Lantern oath and is now seen in costume. He knows he's got a lotta work to do... but he's confident. He looks into the nothingness of space and thinks it's about time he got back to raising a little hell.
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I really quite liked this... and boy is it gorgeous to look at!
This did a really good job of making me interested in this franchise as well as Hal Jordan. I gotta say, I was just barely holding on during the DCYOU Renegade stuff... and was really only reading it for the Parallax circa-Zero Hour bits. Those were what really kept me interested. We were promised a confrontation in issue #50... which was, ehhh... underwhelming, to say the least. Really poorly handled, though, to be fair... I'm guessing the pending onset of Rebirth may have had something to do with all that.
I didn't know a whole lot about Hal as an energy being, and to be honest, I had (and have) zero interest in anything of the sort. I'm glad that was (apparently) done away with here. I'm happy to have Hal as Green Lantern... but, whatever that gauntlet-wearing see-through dealie was, I want no part of that.
Now, had I been a new reader... I think I would have been "comfortably lost". I feel like we get enough here to bring us up to speed... at least as "up to speed" as we need to be at the moment. The flashback page here was really well done in that it picked and chose its moments to highlight... Martin Jordan's death, Abin Sur handing over the ring, the Green Lantern Corps, and the Renegade bit. That's all we really need to know at present... nothing confusing... we don't need to mention the patchwork Mosaic world, or Emerald Twilight here... not to say those didn't matter, it's just not necessary for this issue.
Overall... very pleased with this, and I'm looking forward to trudging my way forward through the series... at this rate I'll get through the first storyarc by the Fall. Since this is a new(er) book, it is available digitally, and has been collected. Can't speak to the quality of subsequent issues, but I definitely dug this opening chapter.
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