Green Lantern: New Guardians #7

Release Date: March 28, 2012
Cover Date: May 2012

Story: Tony Bedard
Pencils: Tyler Kirkham
Inks: Matt “Batt” Banning
Cover: Tyler Kirkham and Matt “Batt” Banning

After Saint Walker fails to calm Invictus down, the archangel tells the group his life story. He was part of a race of angels who watched over the Vega system…until Larfleeze came along. The Orange Lantern couldn’t make constructs out of the angels he’d killed, so he decided to exterminate them. Invictus was the sole survivor, cast into the void by Larfleeze. During his exile, he created the Orrery to replace the Vega system, as he feels it’s been hopelessly corrupted. Kyle Rayner explains that this would make Invictus no better than Larfleeze, and even though Bleez shows up to complicate things, the archangel and the other Lanterns begin to see that they’ve been played for fools. Meanwhile, Larfleeze pesters Sayd as to why his team of “new Guardians” hasn’t killed Invictus yet.

Green Lantern: New Guardians #7 was a thrill from start to finish. It was easily the best issue of the series thus far, and most likely the best issue out of all of the Green Lantern relaunch titles. Aside from a solid, believable origin for Invictus, this issue does something else that fans have been waiting years for: Larfleeze has finally become a high-level threat again. He’s been a comic relief embarrassment for quite some time, but not anymore; not only is Larfleeze responsible for the near genocide of Invictus’ race, but it’s shown that he killed countless others in the Vega system, and he’s responsible for getting the Lantern group together in the first place to serve as his assassins! And don’t forget about Sayd. She’s clearly getting tired of Larfleeze’s bullshit, and even though she became his Guardian willingly, it’s obvious that a day of reckoning is coming. That’ll be great to see.

Kyle’s defense of the seven Lanterns finally working together despite their massive differences was also critical. Even a Sinestro Corpsman and Blue Lantern are beginning to understand each other, and that’s huge! Pointing this out, as well as Invictus planning to kill billions just to get his own past back, makes the entire storyline more than just “taking down the bad guy.” Invictus is a much more interesting antagonist if he’s not just some generic villain out to conquer or kill just because he can. He did say he sees things in black and white, but that’s clearly changing now that the group knows of Larfleeze’s treachery. Invictus is more of an antihero than a villain, and those are always more compelling to read about.

Tyler Kirkham’s art was fantastic in this issue, especially the Invictus origin. As the story began, Saint Walker’s shocked face is on the left…and as it ends, we’ve got Invictus’ stern visage on the right. Excellent artistic bookends, if you will. Kirkham’s Larfleeze looked particularly malevolent here, as well he should be. Even the fight scenes with Invictus looked better than ever; the Lanterns can’t stand against him, but they damned well tried. Invictus’ shifting from bright to dark was a nice touch, too. I can’t wait to see what his pencils will whip up next, as this story keeps getting better.

Green Lantern: “Into the Abyss”

Season 1, Episode 4
Airdate: March 24, 2012

Our heroes respond to a distress call from a trouble space freight. It’s being pulled into a pinhole (a micro black hole), and both the captain and his precious cargo of rare alien eggs need to be saved. Kilowog and Razer are still at loggerheads, but Hal Jordan forces them to work together to get the job done. The eggs seem to hatch bugs that feed on the ship’s power lines, but as Hal and Razer try to restart the engine, they discover that the bugs aren’t hatchlings; they’re really robots controlled by Aya. She helps the Lanterns save the ship, and back on the Interceptor, she downloads herself into a robot body to better participate in missions.

“Into the Abyss” really stood out due to some great cinematography. The scenes where the three Lanterns are flying towards the freighter were expertly rendered, with the camera moving around as if the viewer was a fourth character flying in formation along with our protagonists. Then the camera would arc around to a different angle, as if the viewer was standing guard outside! Very well done.

The script holds up, too; the dialogue between Kilowog and Razer was great, and the sense of tension is maintained throughout the episode. Even the few bits of humor worked well; yes, I know it was cheesy, but I still laughed at the “shake hands” bit. Razer’s continued character development is great to watch, and his place as an antihero on the show is most welcome. (If only they’d bring him into the comics…)

For the eagle-eyed fan, this episode had a few aspects reminiscent of other franchises. For example, the freighter captain looks a lot like the Gorons from The Legend of Zelda video game series. This was likely intention, as the captain’s name is the similar-sounding “Goray.”

Aya’s creation of a physical form is an odd parallel to Mass Effect 3, where the Normandy‘s artificial intelligence EDI can also walk around in a robot body. (A sexy robot body, of course.) However, I think this is merely a coincidence; I doubt either property’s creative teams were copying the other, since both properties were being developed at the same time.

Green Lantern Corps (Vol. 3) #7

Release Date: March 21, 2012
Cover Date: May 2012

Story: Peter Tomasi
Pencils: Claude St. Aubin
Inks: Scott Hanna
Cover: Ivan Reis and Joe Prado

During Kirrt’s funeral, John Stewart ruminates over the fact that he murdered his fellow Green Lantern to save Oa. He left it out of his official report, and only one other Lantern knows the truth, but it’s still eating at John. He delivers the dead Lantern to his family himself, but still can’t bring himself to tell them what really happened. Kirrt’s parents understand their son’s sacrifice, but his slow-witted younger brother isn’t taking things so well. Eventually, John is able to convince him of the hero Kirrt truly was, but it still doesn’t make things any better for his guilt.

Not a bad issue; the focus on John’s actions was a nice touch, and I’m glad to see it wasn’t yet another plot point just casually tossed away. The redneck alien family was a bit forgettable, but the important thing was that John’s still torn by murdering another Corpsman. Sure, his actions likely saved the entire Green Lantern Corps, but it’s humanizing to see that John still feels like he did something wrong. I hope this continues for quite some time; we don’t necessarily need to see John second-guessing himself constantly, but his guilt should help shape him into an even better hero.

The guest art in this issue was provided by Claude St. Aubin, and I’m big fan of his work. He was the regular artist during the recent R.E.B.E.L.S. series, and his style fits a group of science fiction heroes to a tee. No offense meant to Fernando Pasarin, but I’d love to see St. Aubin do a lot more work on Green Lantern Corps!

My only complaint with this issue was Guy Gardner’s debriefing. The Guardians were not pleased with Guy’s use of the Sinestro Corps members as bombs, and that’s fine; that kind of calling-out-on-the-carpet makes sense. What annoyed me was Guy using the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as precedent. Need I remind you that the two Sinestro Corpsmen were literally named Fat Man and Little Boy?

For the last time, we fucking get it. I’m really getting tired of comic book writers treating their audience like a bunch of brain-dead morons. We can understand real-world references just fine without having them repeatedly jammed in our faces and explained to us. This kind of nonsense is nothing short of insulting.

Green Lantern: Crimson Clash

Since Green Lantern: The Animated Series has returned to television screens everywhere, a new browser-based video game has appeared to help promote it. Green Lantern: Crimson Clash is a simple shooter in which Hal Jordan faces off against a few Red Lanterns in a fight to the finish.

You start by selecting an opponent (Razer’s up first, of course), and you’re immediately dropped onto a planet surface to battle them. The game plays like many horizontal shooters of yore, where you’re flying to the right and you need to blast your foe into oblivion.

What sets Crimson Clash apart somewhat is that your health is represented by your willpower…and it’s constantly draining. To restore it, you need to score hits on your opponent. This boosts your combo meter, and you can use it to recharge. If your combo meter reaches a very high level, you can also unleash a special attack like a giant fist construct.

Sorry that the fist is hard to see here; taking screenshots while playing wasn’t easy!

Last but not least, you can log in with your Cartoon Network account allows you to save your progress, as well as the badges you’ve earned. These are the same as Xbox Live Achievements or PSN Trophies, and there’s six in total:

• Blasteroid – Mystery badge
• Going Green – Beat Level 1
• Rapid Fire – Get a combo of 100
• Green Lantern’s Light- Beat the game
• Master of Willpower – Beat a level with 100,000 points
• Unbreakable Will – Beat a level without getting hit

The whole game is built in Adobe Flash; the graphics and sound aren’t bad, and the game controls just fine. It’s just incredibly simplistic. Crimson Clash is nothing special, but as with most browser games, it’s a fun diversion.

Green Lantern: “Razer’s Edge”

(What, you forgot that Green Lantern: The Animated Series had returned to the airwaves?! You’d better go and read my review of the premiere again…)

Season 1, Episode 3
Airdate: March 17, 2012

Hal Jordan and Kilowog drop their captive Razer off at a private prison, where the Spider Guild promises to “rehabilitate” criminals. After the Green Lanterns leave, Razer discovers what this truly means: mental torture, where he’s forced to relive his worst memory over and over again. In his case, it was the death of his wife, which was the catalyst to his becoming a Red Lantern. Meanwhile, Hal and Kilowog encounter a prison escapee who tells them the truth about the gulag, and they return to investigate. They’re quickly captured, and the Spider Guild reveals that they torture their prisoners and then consume them. Aya is able to free Razer, who retrieves his Red Lantern ring and saves the heroes. The Spider Guild is imprisoned themselves, and the three ringwielders set off for further adventures.

At long last, Green Lantern: The Animated Series is back! The premiere was split into two reruns on March 3 and March 10 — so I didn’t need to review it twice — but now we’ve finally got a new episode.

Did “Razer’s Edge” deliver? Yes indeed. Aside from giving the title character an origin, the story featured great character development alongside plenty of action. Hal and Kilowog didn’t do much, but Razer carved a blazing swath of destruction through that prison. The scene where he beats the living shit out of the Spider Guildsmen and stands there aflame was fantastic, and it speaks volumes that he purposefully ditched his ring afterwards. He could’ve roasted the aliens alive, but he willfully chose otherwise. (That, and GLTAS is a kids’ cartoon, ya know.) Razer is not going to let it control him anymore; instead, he will master the ring.

This episode also featured some excellent foreshadowing. Those “fear rocks” utilized by the Spider Guild are an easy setup for a Sinestro Corps analogue down the road. Just carve a yellow ring out of ‘em! Even though there’s apparently no plans for a Sinestro appearance in GLTAS, I’m sure he’ll show up soon due to his starring role in Green Lantern (Vol. 5). A more immediate story hook was Aya becoming much more involved in the Green Lanterns’ mission, and her conversations were Razer were the highlight of the episode as the latter came to grips with his own faults and failings rather than just wallowing in his own crapulence.

I wasn’t a big fan of Goggan (the little alien squid thing), but since he was clearly designed for a much younger audience, I’ll give it a pass. I imagine plush Goggans would sell fairly well. Though I can’t be the only one who noticed his resemblance to Starro…

“Razer’s Edge” keeps up the momentum established by the premiere episodes, and if GLTAS can continue this level of quality, then the rest of the season should be great.