Green Lantern: Rebirth #2 (January, 2005)
"Enemies Within"
Writer - Geoff Johns
Penciller - Ethan Van Sciver
Inker - Prentis Rollins
Colorist - Moose Baumann
Letterer - Rob Leigh
Associate Editor - Stephen Wacker
Editor - Peter Tomasi
Cover Price: $2.95
Let's keep Reborning...
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We open on the rebuilt Oa where a burst of green energy blasts through a statue of Hal Jordan... then goes off planet, looking for Kyle Rayner. Speaking of whom, we rejoin Kyle in New Mexico as he falls in an out of consciousness while trying to give a warning. He finally passes out, but his ring delivers the information... Parallax is Coming.
We pop over to Ferris Aircraft where Hal and Carol have a pretty uncomfortable conversation. We learn that the "Gil" Carol was talking to isn't her boyfriend... but her husband! Hal's happy for her, realizing that marriage likely wasn't ever in the cards for them. He asks if she remembers the first time they were on the tarmac together... and Carol recalls her first day on the job. Hal corrects her... that wasn't the first time. He takes her back to the day his father died in the crash.
He says ever since that day he's tried to live up to his father... but in the past few years he's stumbled more often than not. Carol reminds Hal that Martin Jordan died a hero... just like his son. Hal shifts the discussion from that of sacrifice to one of questioning authority. Hal's never been good with authority figures, be they little blue men, or God's entity of vengeance! He tells Carol that he needs to find his way "back".
At the Justice League Watchtower, Ollie and John stand by while Zatanna tries to locate the Spectre. In their hearts they both know that Batman is wrong, and Hal isn't the baddie of this story. Zatanna locates the Spectre at Ferris Aircraft... which, really now... if it isn't the first place you'd check, it'd definitely be in the first five, right? C'mon, Batman! Anyhoo, Batman seems to be our point-man here, and he breaks the team up into groups... which doesn't sit well with everyone.
We jump to the Justice Society brownstone, where Jade is helping her father inside. He's burning up with fever. We see Mr. Terrific who is getting ready to beam-up to the Watchtower to take a look at Guy Gardner. Alan says he can't help but to feel a link to the Lantern situation, even though he's not part of the Corps. He feels a responsibility to both Hal Jordan and the Spectre.
At Ferris, Hal and Carol embrace... however, they're interrupted by the arrival of the Justice League. Batman asks Jodan what he's doing... to which, a surprised Hal asks if the League needs any help. They explain everything that's gone down... Guy, Coast City... now they see that Ferris Aircraft has also been "fixed". Batman gets on his case about "fixing" things, to which John Stewart completely loses his cool. He tells Batman to shut his Bat-mouth, and jumps back... annoyed with the knowledge that Guy Gardner was right about him being a "good soldier".
He then unleashes one helluva blast to Ferris Aircraft... and attempts to take on the entire Justice League! Hal attempts to step in and calm his hard-headed jar-headed pal... but the Spectre won't allow it. They're needed elsewhere. He vanishes, leaving Stewart to battle the League... the Parallax is Coming warning continues, perhaps this time from John's ring.
Back at the Watchtower, Mr. Terrific is looking over Gardner's file. Together the big-brains deduce that Guy's human DNA is overpowering... and attempting to evict his Vuldarian grossness. The spare ring that Ollie is carrying begins to glow before gliding across the room and onto Guy's finger. Following a terrific green explosion... our man is back.
In New Mexico, Kyle wakes up... again. He tells the UFO geeks that the warning speaks to the name of "the impurity". Suddenly Kilowog appears... demanding that Kyle "use the ring". Kyle refuses.
Kilowog blasts the green casket... I guess I wasn't seeing things... and it opens. While the lid lifts, Ganthet arrives... though the spirit of Hal Jordan is within the Spectre... his body belongs to the Guardians. Well, wouldja lookit that... it's Parallax... riiiiiight?
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Another solid issue of Rebirth. While there's a part of me that thinks this entire to-do could've been done in a single issue, I can't help but love what we're getting so far. Is it decompressed? Well, yes and no... I mean, the progression isn't hasty... but it still feels like nothing included here could (or should) have been left out. Stories like this make my internal 80s/90s fan really struggle!
Not as much to unpack here... which is to be expected. We learn (or at least I learn) that Carol Ferris has moved on with her life in a more "official" (and dare I say, permanent?) way than I had originally thought. Carol being "off the table" makes Hal's journey toward redemption more intrinsic. At this point, he's not doing it for her... not doing it so he and Carol could be together... he's gotta do it for himself. I wrote yesterday about my Hal's Catholic guilt issues... wherein he always seems to temper "what he wants" with ways in which it could benefit other people. As though he's not good or important enough to have good things happen to and/or for him. Every endeavor he undertakes (good or bad) seems to be predicated on how it might affect others before how it would affect himself. Now he knows that his "return" will not change Carol's life... and perhaps, has to question if it's still worth it... if he's worth it. And, as ever... I will concede that I might just be projecting.
Sticking with the same scene, I thought it was funny that Hal thinks that marriage was never in the cards for he and Carol. I guess marriage is only worth it when you're sniffin' around Guy Gardner's gal while he's in a coma!
We've got a pretty erratic John Stewart here... and I can't recall if this is part of a bigger plan, because otherwise... woof, that's a bit of an overreaction. I mean, I understand wanting to noogie Batman a bit, but blasting Superman? He hasn't even given his position on the Hal situation! I also thought it weird that Wally was so quick to think the worst of Hal. I mean, he was kinda like a second Uncle to him... I dunno.
The big reveal at the end adds an interesting wrinkle... but, we'll talk more about that later. The whole New Mexico bit feels pretty ominous... Kilowog, while sounding in character is depicted sorta like a soulless golem. Maybe it's just me, but it feels like there's something sinister in the holes where his eyes oughta be!
It's great having Guy back... while he had some fun adventures as a gross Vuldarian, he's definitely better as a Lantern. Love that they gave him his throwbacky costume too! Still no bowl haircut though... I don't think any creative team will have the guts to go down that road again.
One thing that sticks out in my mind... and it's absolutely nothing against the story. Reading this later on kinda kills some of the suspense. Yeah, I know that's probably one of the dumbest things I've ever said, but hear me out. We open with the the warning that "Parallax is Coming". Back in 2004, my mind instantly went to gray-templed Hal... in 2017, however, my mind instantly goes to Giant Yellow Fear Bug from Outer Space. It kinda kills the big reveal. Again, not a fault of the story, but still worth mentioning.
Overall... like I said, another solid chapter... well worth reading. Just like yesterday, if you're a Green Lantern enthusiast... you've probably already read this. Hell, this might just have been your first GL story! It's a seminal work that draws the map for what's to come... even through today!
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Green Lantern: Rebirth #1 (December, 2004)
"Blackest Night"
Writer - Geoff Johns
Artist - Ethan Van Sciver
Colorist - Moose Baumann
Letterer - Rob Leigh
Associate Editor - Steve Wacker
Editor - Peter Tomasi
Cover Price: $2.95
Been on a bit of a Hal Jordan kick of late... I was gonna push this one off, but figured why fight it, maaaaan? I wanna read and talk Hal... why not just embrace it?
Plus, this'll make it so any time I mention Green Lantern: Rebirth, I can stop adding (the first one), and just throw a link in instead! Win/Win!
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We open with a glowing green craft plummeting to the Earth... landing at Highway Mill, New Mexico... right at the feet of two would-be UFO hunters. The craft opens, revealing... Kyle Rayner! He's in a real bad way... he tries to remove his ring, perhaps to hand it off to one of these geeks, but it won't leave his finger. He tries to explain something to them... it has a name... before he can finish his thought, however, he slumps down next to a ring construct casket (?).
We shift scenes to Northern California... 25 miles outside of the former Coast City. Carol Ferris is on the phone, presumably with whoever she's dating right now (his name is Gil). She arrives at Ferris Aircraft, and feels compelled to enter... in one of the hangars, she finds Hal Jordan's old ride.
Next stop, Yankee's Stadium. John Stewart and Guy Gardner have arrived to take in a game with their old friend... Hal Jordan?! They have vastly different thoughts on Hal... with John still thinking him one of the best, and Guy being... well, Guy.
Their contentious discussion shifts to being about Hal to their definitions of Green Lantern-ing. Guy accuses John of being Batman's "little soldier", and thankfully John doesn't come back with a "just one punch" reference! Guy shows off his Vuldarian ugliness and musters a "Screw the Corps".
Guy sucks his super-deformity back in and they take their seats. He doubts their special guest will even show... buuuut, he does! Well, hot damn, it's Hal Jordan. He takes his seat, and starts catching up with his pals. Suddenly, people begin leaving their seats and approaching Hal to... confess! Y'all remember that Hal Jordan was the Spectre at this point... and it would appear he has quite an effect on those around him. Even Guy Gardner, who scoffs at the whole thing can't help but to confess to being a tax cheat! Amid a torrent of sinners, Hal stands up... and blinks out.
Star City... Ollie Queen and his new-ish Speedy, Mia Deardon prepare for a night on the town. Suddenly, there's an explosion down below... it's Black Hand... and he's looking for Ollie's spare Green Lantern ring! He uses some sort of sci-fi divining rod to find it in a basement wall safe. He doesn't get to celebrate all that long, as his right hand gets impaled by an arrow! Ollie explains to Mia that this fella is "one of Lantern's old losers"... and speak'a the devil, Hal Jordan appears in the corner of the basement.
As he steps into the light, the spectoral spirit of vengeance overtakes him. He'd like to exchange pleasantries with his Hard-Travelin' Homeboy, but that's not what he's here for. Instead, he walks over to Black Hand to pass judgment and dish out some punishment. With that, Black Hand's... hand goes black! Turning into coal and sprinkling to the ground.
Ollie turns his bow to Hal's direction, and asks him to stand down. Hal appears frustrated... he cannot stop... the Spectre is making him do things. He vanishes in a puff of green mist. Ollie looks at the damage to Black Hand's... hand, and notes that dishing out this type of punishment ain't Hal's style. He picks up the ring, and suggests some heavy stuff's about to go down.
Back in New York City... we pop in on Warrior's Bar, where Guy and John are having a late night drink... well, Guy's drinking anyway. Their chat turns to Hal Jordan... again. Gotta wonder if these folks ever talk about anything but! They mention that since he's been gone, it feels like the world's gotten darker... like there's something missing. Well, yeah... if Hal's not there anymore, it stands to reason that something might be missing. Anyhoo, suddenly Guy drops his beer... and his skin begins to bubble. His Vuldarian grossness starts to take over... and he explodes!
Back in California, a plane prepares to enter the radioactive skies above the Coast City crater. After discussing Mongul's attack on Coast City... which I suppose ya gotta do every time Coast City comes up, the navigator gazes out the window and finds... Coast City? Well, sorta...
We take a brief detour at Belle Reve Prison, where Hector Hammond is being a world-class jerk. When he's not messing with his fellow inmates, he listens in on Kyle Rayner's story of space fear.
At the Justice League Watchtower, DC's greatest minds are giving Guy Gardner the once-over. Dr. Mid-Nite suggests that his body is rejecting itself. It probably took one look in the mirror and wanted that ugliness as far away as possible! The depiction here is... way gross. Organs are twisted, bones are showing... really nasty stuff here.
Wonder Woman and Power Girl radio in from the ruins of Warrior's Bar. The only thing left standing is... the statue of Hal Jordan!
Flash and Aquaman radio in from the west coast... more specifically, in front of 22 Sea View, the only building standing in this strange new Coast City. Hal Jordan's old apartment building!
Well, now ya done it... Batman's put two and two together, and he ain't about to shut up about it. His conspiratorial mind starts spinning, and he brings up how Hal's ascension to the Spectre might've been his plan all along. Sure, as Parallax he was crazy powerful... but as the Spectre, he's akin to a God! By this point John Stewart's heard enough, and tells Batman to shut his Bat-mouth. It gets personal pretty quick... he suggests that Batman's always had it in for Hal because he was the only dude walkin' who didn't fear him... and what is Batman without the fear element?
Enter: Ollie. He shares the story of Black Hand... which gives Hal his third-strike for the evening (he's been busy!). Batman deduces that the real Hal Jordan is back... and he's bringing the past back with him. We close out back at Ferris Aircraft, where Carol is visited by an old friend...
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That's a pretty great way to start an event!
We've got a bit to unpack here, so let's start... at the start.
There's Kyle Rayner crash-landing in the desert... sorta like Abin Sur did all them years before. I first read this as it was coming out, and really thought they were starting this thing by killing Kyle off! Hindsight really changes the way I receive this scene. At this point, Green Lantern (vol.3) had come to a close... and we all knew (vol.4) was going to be a Hal book... so, killing Kyle was definitely "on the table" as far as we silly readers knew.
Moving on to John and Guy. I really hate it when people make Simpsons references. Like, reeeeeally hate it. Can't explain why, but it really annoys me. That said, I'm about to do it myself... and I can already feel my body starting to convulse as though I've got the dry heaves. Hal Jordan is Poochie. When Hal's not on panel, all the other characters need to be asking "Where's Hal?" It makes me question why John and Guy would ever hang out if all they're gonna do is talk about Hal.
That said, the scene at Yankee's Stadium was really cool. We know Hal's the Spectre... but haven't really seen how that effects the common folk. Seeing them all head over to confess their sins was pretty eye-opening to me, as it represents Hal's constant struggle as the Spectre. This is never-ending... and man, it must really grate on him.
Sticking with John and Guy... I can't remember what prompted Guy's Vuldarian nastiness to go wonky... outside of editorial fiat to make things be the way they used to be. To be honest, I prefer Guy as a Green Lantern, so I don't have much of a problem with this. It does stink that Warrior's gets destroyed though!
Coast City's sorta-kinda return is intriguing. I haven't read through this since 2004-2005, so I can't remember many of the finer points. I am looking forward to reeducating myself on all this.
We'll wrap up with the League. Ollie experiences a very sadistic Spectre unleashing his cruel wrath on Black Hand, and knows something's up. That same night, Hal's apartment reappears in Coast City... and his statue at Warrior's still stands... yup, something's definitely up!
Batman's constant distrust of Hal is a highlight here. Now, I've made it pretty clear throughout our discussions of "bad-Hal" that I never really saw him as a straight-up supervillain. I saw him as more "broken" than anything... but, not nearly as selfish as I think we were supposed to see him. He reminds me of a dude with "guilt issues", perhaps due to a religious upbringing... where he feels weird doing anything purely to benefit himself. He always twists his motives to appear altruistic... his methods would benefit many people... not just himself. Orrrrrr, maybe I'm just projecting. A-hem.
That said, I still like that Batman's the one guy who Hal's going to have to "work at" to win over. It makes sense that he'd be the one second-guessing all of Hal's motives, and questioning whether or not he's "good-Hal" or "bad-Hal". Sure, we're going to get some reasoning for "bad-Hal" throughout Rebirth... and they're not my favorite... either way, Batman won't even be convinced by that.
We're not going to talk about giant yellow fear bugs from outer space here... because, that's a kvetch for another day.
Overall, despite being a "Kyle guy", I really enjoyed this. Probably more today than I did in 2004! Back then I had less of a working knowledge of Hal, and always viewed him as that other... boring Green Lantern. That has since changed, and I've grown to really enjoy and appreciate Hal's place in the DC pantheon. If you're a Green Lantern fan... you've very likely already read this. If you haven't... you should! The hardcover and trade paperback are among DC's (no pun intended) evergreen books, and should be easy to procure... and is, of course, available digitally.
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Adventures of Superman #498 (January, 1993)
"Funeral For a Friend/1: Death of a Legend"
Writer - Jerry Ordway
Penciller - Tom Grummett
Inker - Doug Hazelwood
Letterer - Albert DeGuzman
Colorist - Glenn Whitmore
Assistant Editor - Jennifer Frank
Editor - Mike Carlin
Cover Price: $1.25
Iconic cover... Iconic character... Iconic story... Iconic creators... I'yai yai!
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We open in the immediate wake of Superman (vol.2) #75 (wow, it's been awhile since we discussed that one!). Lois is on her knees, holding Superman's body. Before them, there's another body... Doomsday lay face down, surrounded by terrified members of the Metropolis Special Crimes Unit. One tentatively pokes the beast with his gun... but nobody can agree on whether or not it causes the monster to twitch.
Luckily for them, Dubbilex is present... and he can attempt to read Doomsday's mind. After doing so, he proclaims that while earlier it was full of rage and anger... now, there's nothing. Similarly, he was able to get a reading on Superman earlier... and now, nothing.
Lois isn't willing to accept this... Cat Grant and Jimmy run to her side to comfort her. Maggie Sawyer and the Guardian walk up... with the latter doing his best to perform mouth-to-mouth on a man who's lungs are akin to steel drums!
Sawyer calls over some EMTs... who fire up the defibrillator. Terrible Dan Turpin watches on from the sidelines... he compares Superman's passing to losing a fellow officer in the line of duty. He makes his way through the wreckage, and (almost literally) stumbles upon the protoplasmic bod of Matrix. Lex Luthor pops in to take her away.
Back at the body... the EMT's are getting ready to give up their shock-paddle endeavor, for fear that they're going to melt their tools. The Guardian grabs him by the collar, and tells him if he's gotta melt 'em to bring Superman back, then they're damn sure gonna melt 'em. Jimmy and Cat pull Lois away... Lois has not relaxed her grip on Superman's shredded cape.
Lois suggests they contact Dr. Sanchez at S.T.A.R. Labs... and then, it happens. Cat asks Jimmy to call Clark to come and get Lois. It's now that it finally hits Lois that not only is Superman dead... so is Clark Kent! What does this mean? Did Ma and Pa see their only son die on television?
A WBGS van pulls up, and Cat prepares for her live breaking news broadcast. When it cuts into "regularly scheduled programming", we hop to Cat's own apartment where her son Adam and main-squeeze Jose Delgado hear the news. Adam's never been a big Superman fan... so, he switches the channel to cartoons. Jose snaps at him, and grabs the remote control. Adam runs off crying. Jose heads to the closet and pulls out his old Gangbuster costume. In the background, a particularly snotty newscaster say that he guesses "Superman wasn't so Super after all". Jose hurls his helmet through the set.
In Smallville, Ma and Pa are watching the news roll out on television. Pa thinks they're all being dumb... after all, Superman's come back from worse... right? Ma wonders aloud if they might be right. The Kents hug and pray for their son's safety.
At LexCorp, Lex and Supergirl discuss what had just gone down. Supergirl regrets that there wasn't more she could've done to help... Lex feels similarly, buuuut for different reasons. He'd had liked to save Superman, if only to never let him forget that he'd done so. The Protoplasmic Matrix performs her most difficult and painful transformation... and we can see that her Supergirl bod is covered in bruises from the battle.
Back at the bodies... the head of Cadmus arrives, and claims to have been given the authorization to take both Superman and Doomsday's bodies. Dan Turpin doesn't seem to have any problem with them hauling Doomsday away... but, he won't let him take Superman. Head of Cadmus is a jerk... a loudmouthed homophobic jerk at that. Terrible Turpin hauls off and punches him in the gut.
Dubbilex reveals that he reached out to some friends for help... and so, Emil Hamilton and Bibbo (!) saunter up with an energy-collecting unit to soup-up the defibrillators.
Bibbo has volunteered to be the guy to press the paddles into the Man of Steel's chest... it's pretty heartbreaking, he says if anything goes wrong, "no one's gonna miss a pug like me". They load up the unit... and Bibbo pumps the power, which causes a terrific elec-splosion. Superman's body actually jumps... however, Dubbilex confirms that his condition is unchanged. A nearly-kayoed Bibbo asks for another go-round. As you might assume... none of this actually brings Superman back to life.
We wrap up at the Daily Planet, where Jimmy is annoyed at all of the sensationalism... even more annoyed that Cat Grant is part of the deluge. Meanwhile, Lois is working on her article... Jimmy's instantly-iconic snap of Superman's body will run alongside it. Jimmy feels as though publishing this photo is in someways a violation of his friendship with him. Jimmy offers to walk Lois home... and Perry assures her that if the worst should be confirmed about Clark, they will do whatever they can to keep his memory alive.
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Alrighty, we got quite a bit to unpack here...
Let's first discuss the fact that this story actually happened in the first place. I remember when we first learned that this entire event was going down, I wasn't sure how this whole Funeral For A Friend leg of the journey was going to work. Normally, you'd figure the death of an iconic comic book character might require an issue (mayyyybe two) devoted to the fallout and funeral. Certainly not two-months... and nine (counting Justice League America) issues!
Gotta say, in hindsight this might be my favorite bit of the Doomsday "three-act play". This is an extended post-credits scene, where we're actually afforded the opportunity to see how everything rolls out. This issue (and story) picks up immediately following the last page of Superman #75. There's no jump to "days later"... or "the morning of the funeral"... this is, for all intents and purposes, the second chapter of Superman #75. The credits rolled... but the curtain never went down.
Let's talk Lois. The way she was depicted here was perfect. To her mind, Superman and Clark Kent are the same fella... because, well, ya know... he is. She doesn't immediately consider the ramifications of losing both of them individually. When Jimmy and Cat ask about Clark... it hits her like a ton of bricks. Superman's dead... but so is Clark. How does this effect those who called Clark "friend" or "son"? How does this effect her own life going forward... her fiance is gone! Her refusal to let the cape go... her insistence that the EMT's continue pumping electricity into Superman's body... all very touching... and amazingly "real".
The Kents in Smallville... their scenes during this arc are particularly painful to get through. They may have lost the most during this event, however, they are so far removed from Superman, so far as the general public is concerned, that their grieving is... I dunno... unrequited? I know that's the wrong word for it... but it feels like their mourning isn't quite as "real" as it could be. Part of the grieving process for many is being able to talk to others about their loss. Here the Kents are... alone in Smallville, having lost their son. The rest of the world might've lost it's greatest hero... but they lost their only child...
Bibbo is another heavy-hitter for me during this era. He sees himself as disposable in his attempts to help shock Superman back to life... which is very touching. A later scene with Mr. Bibbowski is particularly difficult to get through. I'm sure we'll cover that book sometime soon. Suffice it to say, Bibbo is depicted as having perhaps the purest "heart" here... and I love that Ordway included him.
Without going too deep here... because many of the cameo characters will get more fleshed-out scenes during this arc, and we'll eventually discuss them at length... I really appreciate the way in which so many characters from the Super-cast are included. Transitioning from Cat Grant's "breaking news" to Jose and Adam hearing the news was perfect. All of Metropolis's "Science" gangs all being interested in conducting studies... even before the bodies are cold is a nice touch as well. Lex and Matrix both wishing things could've gone down differently... but for very different reasons... all fantastic stuff!
Overall... if you're a Superman fan, let's face it... you've already read this issue. It's a wonderful (and terrible!) look at the fallout of a horrible disaster, and we get to experience the reactions first hand. There was no time to digest what had just happened... every reaction here is determined by "gut" and "heart". This is before anyone can reflect... or utilize critical thinking, and with that in mind... is scripted as perfectly as I would hope. Tom Grummett is able to convey so much emotion in these characters... it's almost as though you can guess, at a glance, which step on the Kubler-Ross scale each person is currently on.
A pair'a masters (and team) working their magic on an amazing book. If somehow you haven't read this... rectify that at your earliest possible convenience. The entire Doomsday arc is available in a number of ways... and while I always recommend single-issues (not floppies!), you can get this in several flavors of trade paperback, omnibus, and of course... digitally.
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