Green Lantern (Vol. 4) #50

Release Date: January 27, 2010
Cover Date: March 2010

Story: Geoff Johns
Pencils: Doug Mahnke
Inks: Christian Alamy, Rebecca Buchman, Tom Nguyen, Mark Irwin, and Doug Mahnke
Cover: Doug Mahnke and Christian Alamy
Variant Cover: Jim Lee and Scott Williams

The seven Corps representatives and their new deputies are trying their damnedest to fight off the Black Lantern horde, but it’s not going well. Hal Jordan’s cranky because lunatics like the Scarecrow and Lex Luthor have power rings, Larfleeze is upset because he wants to be the only one with an orange ring, and the other new recruits aren’t quite sure how to save their fallen friends. The shit really hits the fan when Black Lantern Spectre makes a thunderous appearance in order to “judge” Hal! He even succeeds in turning Hal into a Black Lantern briefly, but Ganthet and Sayd manage to break him free. No matter what the group tries, they can’t bring the corrupted Spectre down…because the actual Spirit of Vengeance is trapped inside, and his power rivals that of the Guardians. Faced with certain defeat, Hal has one last risky gambit: he tells Ganthet to summon his power battery, along with those of John Stewart, Kyle Rayner, and Guy Gardner. (I hope those guys don’t need ‘em!) Inside the batteries are the four pieces of Parallax, trapped there at the end of the Sinestro Corps War. Hal’s going to let the stupid giant space bug out, let it possess him again, and then throw down against Black Lantern Spectre. When Hal was the host for the Spectre long ago, he knew that the Spirit of Vengeance and Parallax were locked in battle with Hal’s soul as a mere bystander; when they were finally split (in Green Lantern: Rebirth #4), the Spectre took off. Hal thinks that the Spectre’s actually afraid of Parallax, so pitting the two against each other again might be their only chance. However, even Sinestro thinks this is a really bad idea, and once the bug is free, he refuses to let Hal anywhere near it! Hal eventually fights Sinestro off, but Carol Ferris is the next to suggest against this dangerous course of action. Hal’s confident that he can control the bug, and gives Carol a goodbye-and-good-luck kiss. Parallax gladly flies into Hal’s body, and the issue ends with Parallax apparently in full control of him once more, ready to resume its grudge match with Black Lantern Spectre.

Just like the last issue #50 of a Green Lantern series (Vol. 3, way back in 1994), this one’s got Parallax on the cover. And also like that other fiftieth, this one’s a doozy!

In proud comics tradition, this anniversary issue was a great one. Plenty of character development, some good surprises, and it moved the story forward in a smooth manner. Obsessive Hal Jordan fans may have burst a blood vessel over Green Lantern (Vol. 3) #50 in 1994, but this new issue was clearly meant as a reference and almost a tribute to that legendary story. Black Lantern Spectre called Hal out for living “without considering consequence,” and that’s got to be a commentary on the numerous retcons we’ve seen over the past few years. With the entire “Emerald Twilight” story from 1994 being blamed completely on the Parallax creature, as well as virtually every other problem Hal had in the past, he was absolved of all guilt and responsibility. Hal really has been living without consequence! Intentional or not, this commentary is still there.

More to the point, the two issues end the same way: Hal, as Parallax, is now ready to go forth and do some even more serious damage. Of course, we all know Parallax’s possession of Hal won’t last; the book wouldn’t go very far, otherwise. You’ll notice that in the first panel where Parallax is in control of Hal, you can still see the Green Lantern symbol on his chest (it’s later obscured by green flames). That’s an obvious reference to Hal still being in some semblance of control. Finally, artist Doug Mahnke’s rendition of the original Parallax costume (designed by Darryl Banks) looks fantastic. The cover looks good; the final splash page looks ten times better!

While Green Lantern (Vol. 4) #50 overall was very good, Hal’s pathetic one-liners just keep getting more and more awful. They were seriously cringe-worthy, and Geoff Johns really needs to stop writing them. They don’t fit the character at all, and given that Hal’s a cocky fighter pilot, that’s saying something! You want funny quips? Have Kyle or Guy spit ‘em out. The other big difference between this #50 and that of Vol. 3? This anniversary issue was just a small piece of a much larger story, while the other #50 was both the end of a shocking tale as well as the beginning of a new era.

Conspiracy theory?

There’s been a lot of rumors floating around about the different colored power rings gaining the abilities of the others; for example, a Sinestro Corps ring using the power of hope, or a Red Lantern ring employing the violet light of the Star Sapphires. This whole train of thought started due to the error rings, and it’s been gaining momentum ever since. I’m sure misprints like the one found in Blackest Night: The Flash #2 have exacerbated the situation.

Personally, I think that theory is pretty stupid. If the rings could use each others’ powers, or otherwise “switch up” on a whim, that would defeat the entire premise of having the different colors in the first place! As far as the aforementioned misprint is concerned, I really don’t see how that possibly could’ve been intentional. At no point in the story did Barry Allen show fear, nor use any abilities connected to fear. Hell, at one point, the Black Lantern Reverse Flash admitted that he wanted Barry to feel hope!

I really hope this rumor doesn’t turn out to be true. That would be incredibly shitty writing, and a really lousy cop-out. I know that’s something DC Comics and Geoff Johns are guilty of in the past, but that’s not an excuse to repeat it.

Blackest Night: The Flash #2

Release Date: January 20, 2010
Cover Date: March 2010

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Scott Kolins
Cover: Scott Kolins
Variant Cover: Francis Manapul

Captain Cold and the Rogues are goin’ zombie-huntin’, breaking into Iron Heights to deal with former Rogues who have been resurrected as Black Lanterns. They’re attacked very quickly by the undead Mirror Master and Captain Boomerang, but it gets worse: Cold’s dead sister, the Golden Glider, enters the fray along with Black Lantern versions of the Top, the Rainbow Raider, and the Trickster.

While the Rogues are in a fight for their lives, the newly-inducted Blue Lantern Barry Allen (see Blackest Night #6) is adapting to his newfound abilities, thanks to the help of Saint Walker. He starts to separate the captive Jason Rusch from Black Lantern Firestorm, but is stopped by Black Lantern Bart Allen. Their battle is soon interrupted by the Black Lantern Reverse Flash, however, who tosses Saint Walker aside like a rag doll. As the villain attacks Barry, he’s blown apart by the timely arrival of Wally West. That’s still not the end of the fight, as Black Lantern Solovar shows up, drawn to Barry’s blue light of hope! The gorilla’s powerful psionic powers bring our heroes to their knees.

Back at Iron Heights, Cold’s getting his ass kicked by his undead sibling. She keeps trying to get him to show his love for her, making him a tastier treat for her to rip apart, but Cold’s had enough. He freezes the Black Lantern Golden Glider and shatters her, then rejoins the other Rogues in their battle. The Black Lantern Top is tormenting the Weather Wizard, wondering if the other Rogues know about their plan long ago to kill Cold and take over the Rogues. As Black Lantern Captain Boomerang prepares to tear out the Weather Wizard’s heart, Cold comes to the rescue…only to be stopped by the arrival of the current Captain Boomerang, who believes that he can save his undead father.

Barry coming to grips with his new blue ring was the highlight of this issue, as it showed that even the mighty Flash was still human and had a lot to learn. Of course, the ring was essentially telling him what to do the whole time, and causing him to spout “All will be well.” (Even though I was trying to be funny, I was right!) Still, Barry makes a great Blue Lantern, and it’s a definite step up from his usual boring Flash persona. Sorry, Barry Allen fanboys: he’s boring. Wally West was a much more interesting character, especially when Mark Waid and Geoff Johns wrote him. It’s a shame that Barry’s role as a Blue Lantern won’t be permanent (he was deputized by Ganthet for only twenty-four hours in Blackest Night #6).

The Rogues stuff was okay, but nothing special. We’ve seen Rogues fighting Rogues before, and this was sadly no different. Even Captain Cold facing down his sister, getting his ass kicked, then coming back and “killing” her was extremely cliché. At least Scott Kolins’ art was top-notch, as always.

On a final note, there’s also an amusing printing error in this issue. In the captions that show Barry’s inner monologues, look at the symbol behind the bolt of lightning:

It was obviously supposed to be a Blue Lantern symbol to reflect Barry’s new status, but the letterer accidentally stuck in a blue Sinestro Corps symbol instead! Oops!

Green Lantern Corps (Vol. 2) #44

Release Date: January 20, 2010
Cover Date: March 2010

Story: Peter Tomasi
Pencils: Patrick Gleason
Inks: Rebecca Buchman, Tom Nguyen, Keith Champagne, and Patrick Gleason
Cover: Patrick Gleason and Rebecca Buchman
Variant Cover: Greg Horn

Mogo may have moved into Oa’s orbit, but it doesn’t seem to be doing anything while the Black Lanterns are assaulting the Central Power Battery. Guy Gardner’s tearing them apart with his green and red power rings, but it’s not enough; the Battery falls. Kyle wants to go out and stop Guy, but Vath says that Guy’s actually succeeding in destroying the Black Lanterns permanently, and they should just let him continue doing so until the tide is turned. Kyle flies off anyway, and tries to talk Guy down. At first, Guy thinks it’s a trick and attacks Kyle, but Kyle keeps trying. Guy’s rage subsists for a moment, and he even asks Kyle to kill him before the red ring takes over completely, but it’s too late: his anger boils inside him once more, and Guy renews his assault.

During all of this fighting, Salaak is still busy manning the monitors in the Green Lantern Citadel when Mogo finally makes contact with him. Mogo invokes the Primacy Directive given to it long ago by the Guardians, and begins its “purge” of Oa. By amplifying its gravity exponentially, Mogo pulls every Lantern off of the surface of Oa. Our heroes are protected by their rings’ auras, but the Black Lanterns don’t fare so well. As they fall with increasing speed towards Mogo, we see that Iolande is already there, caring for other Green Lanterns who had been injured. The living Lanterns are held back while the zombies are absorbed into Mogo itself. The sentient planet breaks them down into their component atoms, and holds them at its core, where they can never reform and will burn forever. The rest of the Green Lanterns are ordered back to Oa by Salaak, leaving Kyle and friends to deal with an incensed Guy who is now focused on them instead of the undead!

Continuing “The Red Badge of Rage” storyline from the last issue, Green Lantern Corps (Vol. 2) #44 manages to keep the action consistent. There’s plenty of violent battle scenes, but they’re tempered with some good character development. Guy Gardner is one of the only Red Lanterns other than Atrocitus who still has some control of his own mind while wearing the red ring, and that makes him far more interesting than the usual Red Lantern raging beasts. (The fact that he’s still got a green ring on probably helps.) He’s clearly fighting the ring from the inside, but given his propensity for violence in the first place, it’s not a battle he can easily win.

The Black Lanterns buried within Mogo was a nice trick, too, and a convenient subplot that could be resurrected (no pun intended) in the future. As we all know, you need two kinds of light to destroy a Black Lantern, and Mogo’s only got the green. It’s entirely possible that the zombies within the planet could be released someday.

Green Lantern Corps #201

Cover Date: June 1986

Story: Steve Englehart
Pencils: Joe Staton
Inks: Mark Farmer
Cover: Joe Staton and Bruce Patterson

The Crisis (on Infinite Earths) has passed, and after the Guardians and Zamarons have taken off to get busy (*vomit*), some famous Green Lanterns decide to set up shop on Earth.

Ch’p and Salaak are en route to Earth, and the stoic Salaak has to put up with his comrade’s incessant babbling. As to why they’re going to Earth in the first place, Ch’p had discovered that his homeworld of H’lven has changed; everyone thinks he died many years ago! See, the sector that got merged into the new universe following the Crisis was from a different reality, in which Ch’p had actually died, and never became a Green Lantern. With nothing left for him at home, Ch’p decides to join the other Lanterns on Earth. Salaak’s in much the same position; as much as he loved his homeworld, he missed working with the other Lanterns, though his pride would never permit him to admit it.

The pair descend to Earth, and meet up with Hal Jordan, John Stewart, Arisia, and Katma Tui. Hal and John are from Earth, anyway, and the two female Lanterns have the hots for the Earthmen, so that’s why they’re staying. The women and John have also altered their uniforms somewhat, so it’ll be easier for the general public to tell them apart. (I guess the vastly different skin colors and alien physiologies weren’t clear enough for Dumb America.) The group’s rounded out by Kilowog, a Lantern whose home sector was obliterated during the Crisis.

While all of this is good news, an evil plot is brewing. Sonar, Throttle, and Blindside team up with Doctor Polaris, Whiteout, Dropded, and the mysterious Polestar. Polaris is still pissed at Hal Jordan (there’s a shock), and the combined group plans to attack the Lanterns’ new base of operations. Meanwhile, back on the rebuilt planet Maltus, Guy Gardner takes out his frustrations on an invading fleet while complaining about his living accommodations to the Guardian Appa Ali Apsa. (What, Guy complains about something and lashes out with violence? You don’t say!) At the same time, Star Sapphire is trying to figure out what to do now that the rest of her Zamaron subjects are gone.

Earth’s Green Lantern Corps are putting the finishing touches on their citadel when Polaris and crew show up to spoil the party. While they’re certainly powerful, the Lanterns are more than a match for them, especially with the brutally strong Kilowog among them. The villains beat a hasty retreat, with the Lanterns proud of their victory.

This issue is notable for two reasons: the book had been relaunched as Green Lantern Corps (though it retained the numbering scheme from Green Lantern), and it’s the first appearance of everyone’s favorite poozer, Kilowog. In fact, his first appearance is definitely a memorable one, and really helps set the tone for the character: Kilowog’s so powerful, he often didn’t even need to use his ring to beat the shit out of Polaris’ goons!

As a standalone issue, Green Lantern Corps #201 is pretty good, though the visuals of Ch’p's homeworld are incredibly silly. I know it’s supposed to be that way, but it looks like a crappy Saturday morning cartoon! Ch’p himself has always looked ridiculous, and this just made things worse. (Thank God for Green Lantern: Mosaic #2…) Furthermore, Doctor Polaris’ costume is quite dated, even for 1986. The glaring magnet symbol on his chest? Come on. The other villains’ costumes were cheesy, too, but that’s only by our modern standards. As I said, Polaris’ garb looked stupid even then, over two decades ago.