The Green Lantern Bible

In legendary science fiction author Larry Niven’s 1991 anthology Playgrounds of the Mind, there was a little piece about his “Green Lantern Bible.”

Then-editors Dennis O’Neil and Dan Raspler had contacted quite a few scifi writers in the late 1980s to clean up the Green Lantern universe and fill in the gaps; this was done after Green Lantern Corps had been canceled. Ultimately, Niven was chosen, and the plan was that his work would be the basis of a three-issue miniseries tentatively titled The History of the Green Lantern Corps. Furthermore, it would serve as the series bible for a new ongoing Green Lantern series.

Unfortunately, The History of the Green Lantern Corps never saw print, and many of Niven’s concepts weren’t used in Green Lantern (Vol. 3). However, his work did make it to press in some form: the bible gave birth to the landmark Green Lantern: Ganthet’s Tale.

Niven came up with some truly excellent ideas. For example, he answered questions such as “Why do the Green Lanterns use rings?” by explaining that a ring-shaped object will fit on just about any alien appendage, be it a finger, claw, tail, et cetera. Niven also went into extreme detail about the evolution of the Maltusians, their emigration to Oa, and even how Oa itself would survive in the center of a galaxy (and the universe). In fact, the Green Lantern Corps itself isn’t even the focus of the piece; it’s all about everything leading up to the group’s formation. Niven’s attention to detail and adherence to fundamental scientific concepts made the Green Lantern universe much more rich and believable.

And would you believe that there’s even more? The piece found in Playgrounds of the Mind is merely a part of Niven’s Green Lantern Bible; to the best of my knowledge, only DC Comics higher-ups have read the document in its entirety. In the book, it’s specifically listed as “From The Green Lantern Bible,” emphasis mine.

It’s a shame that these concepts were thrown out entirely after the 2004 reboot of the Green Lantern comics. Geoff Johns and friends may be seasoned comic book writers, but they can’t hold a candle to Larry Niven.

“From the Green Lantern Bible” is required reading for all Green Lantern fans. Playgrounds of the Mind is very easy to find, so get out there and pick up a copy. It makes a fine companion to Ganthet’s Tale, and you’ll enjoy the other essays found within, as well; Niven truly is a master of his craft. Besides, if you’re a science fiction fan, and you haven’t read any Niven…what the hell is wrong with you?!

Green Lantern: New Guardians #8

Release Date: April 25, 2012
Cover Date: June 2012

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

The Lanterns leave the Orrery, Kyle Rayner having convinced Invictus that they’ll kill Larfleeze for him. Of course, Kyle plans no such thing, but the group needs to recharge before they face the Orange Lantern. Arkillo flies off to Korugar in a rage when his Sinestro Corps ring won’t register, and Kyle’s ring tells him the Yellow Lanterns have been disbanded. Munk is summoned by Indigo-1, so the remaining Lanterns decide to recharge and meet up later. Kyle is surprised when Bleez wishes to accompany him to Earth. On Korugar, Arkillo saves the Weaponer from being executed by the angry populace. The Qwardian engineer suspected Sinestro of treachery all along, so he was able to ditch his ring and escape the purge. The Weaponer presents Arkillo with a new yellow power battery and ring.

Green Lantern: New Guardians #8 serves as a bridge between the initial Invictus plot and whatever comes next, but it was a good one and did not feel like filler. Aside from giving each of the Lanterns something to do (often connecting to other Green Lantern books), some neat little story hooks popped up. For example, the fact that the Lanterns still aren’t absolutely sure who stole the power rings in the first place, as well as the Star Sapphires’ belief that Invictus had help in bringing the Orrery into the universe. I’d love it if it was someone outside of the Green Lantern mythos, but I’m not getting my hopes up.

Dialogue was well-handled, though some of Arkillo’s speech was a little hokey. (Including his modification of the Sinestro Corps Oath, but that’s to be expected given the scene it appears in.) I don’t think a new “Arkillo Corps” is necessarily a good idea, as he’s too quick to anger and violence to make an effective leader. However, a new Yellow Lantern Corps in general sounds fine.

Speaking of the now-defunct Sinestro Corps, Kyle’s ring says there’s only 2% of them unaccounted for. Aside from Arkillo and the Weaponer…that could be quite a bit! Hear me out. Let’s assume that there was a Sinestro Corpsman for every Green Lantern; that makes 7,200 of them. If 98% are dead or incarcerated, that leaves one hundred and forty-four. Three of those remaining are the Weaponer, Arkillo, and Sinestro himself. What’s going on with the others?

The dynamic duo of Tyler Kirkham and Matt “Batt” Banning have produced high-quality art action over these past eight issues, and I’m glad there’s no sign of them slowing down. (I will say that in a few panels, I thought I was reading Red Lanterns for a moment, with the attention given to Bleez’s dangerous curves.) In addition to the tightly illustrated interiors — especially the scenes on Korugar — I love that cover, with a crew of hunters taking the piss out of Arkillo.

Kyle’s story continues in Blue Beetle (Vol. 3) #9; he actually appeared on the last page of Blue Beetle (Vol. 3) #8 with Bleez and Glomulus in New York City, wondering why some insect-armored kid was hanging around outside his apartment window. Storylines in Blue Beetle also cross over into the next few issues of New Guardians, as the Reach attacks the Blue Lantern Corps on Odym. Oh yes, I shall be reading and reviewing them!

Green Lantern: “Fear Itself”

Season 1, Episode 8
Airdate: April 21, 2012

While looking for foodstuffs on an uncharted planet, Kilowog saves a local woman named Galia from an apparent attack from a giant jellyfish-like being, while elsewhere Hal Jordan finds himself meeting the same creatures, who are known as the Nadara. Galia’s tribe are the Zor, and Kilowog promises to help the village defend themselves against the Nadara, armed with weapons made from a yellow crystal called orum. The Zor use orum in everything, from structures to clothing to food. Kilowog’s been having nightmares, due to the orum in soup Galia made for him. Elsewhere, Hal realizes that the orum is the same substance that the Spider Guild used to knock out power rings and subdue prisoners; but here, the Nadara mine it, and they know it’s harmful to other beings. They weren’t attacking the Zor, they were trying to take the orum away from them. Hal and the Nadara go to the tribe to try to explain, but Kilowog and the Zor are extremely paranoid due to the orum’s influence, and mount an attack. Hal and Kilowog duke it out, but Hal is finally able to get through to his friend and the others. The Nadara manage to take away the orum, and the Zor thanks the Green Lanterns by giving them food for their journey. While all of this was transpiring planetside, Razer is debating recharging his ring onboard the Interceptor, and is not keen on Aya trying to help.

Hal’s failed attempts to find food on his own was suitably humorous, and a decent change of pace; it’s usually Kilowog who handles the comic relief. Also cool was the pure silence of the Nadara, and even though it stretched the suspension of disbelief a little too far that Hal was able to understand them so easily, the silent aliens are still a cool and unique addition to GLTAS lore.

The orum has the expected effect of making one afraid, but I also liked how it deepened to paranoia, rather than just debilitating fear. If the Zor were just a bunch of simpering cowards due to the orum’s effects, this episode would’ve gone nowhere fast!

I found it amusing that when Aya interrupted Razer’s recharging, he reacted like she had walked in on him looking at porn. Anyway, it’s notable that the new oath Aya created didn’t work at all, and Razer was forced to use the regular Red Lantern Oath, which he now detests. It’ll be interesting to seee what effect this will have on his psyche.

In GLTAS, it seems that a Lantern’s oath is a very specific key phrase necessary to activate the power battery and charge the ring. In the comics, the reason for the oath has varied. In the Silver Age it was a catchphrase; then it became a mantra to help the ringbearer relax and focus their thoughts while they recharged; after the fall of the Corps, it wasn’t necessary at all; and in modern times it’s just a kitschy relic.

“Fear Itself” was not a bad episode, though it’s likely the weakest of the bunch aired thus far. As much as I enjoy his character, I think excising the Razer scenes would’ve helped considerably. His brooding and whatnot needs its own dedicated story, not just a smattering in every single episode. Granted, Razer is still reeling from recent events, but this followup could have waited another episode or two.

Green Lantern Corps (Vol. 3) #8

Release Date: April 18, 2012
Cover Date: June 2012

Story: Peter Tomasi
Pencils: Fernando Pasarin
Inks: Scott Hanna
Cover: Fernando Pasarin and Scott Hanna

The Alpha Lanterns review the logs from the Keeper incident, and decide that a certain Green Lantern must pay for his crime. Meanwhile, Guy Gardner, John Stewart, and a bunch of other Corpsmen are burying the Sinestro Corps Central Power Battery on Oa. Guy thinks the whole thing is bullshit, and tells Salaak as such. When he knocks the Battery down, he’s summoned to the Citadel to face the Guardians. He thinks he’s in trouble again, but the Guardians actually want to promote Guy due to his long service and unorthodox strategies. Finally, while John and Guy relax at Warriors, a fight breaks out, only to be stopped by the arrival of the Alpha Lanterns…who arrest John Stewart and charge him with murder.

Green Lantern Corps (Vol. 3) #8 had great character development and some cool scenes…that were ultimately bogged down by silliness and plot points that likely won’t go anywhere. We’ll get the dumb aspects out of the way first, starting with the Alpha Corps Oath:

In days of peace, in nights of war
Obey the laws forevermore
Misconduct must be answered for
Swear us the chosen — the Alpha Corps!

It’s not the oath’s first use (that was way back in Green Lantern [Vol. 4] #27), but it’s still seven shades of stupid. Aside from the questionable grammar, there is no reason whatsoever for the Alpha Lanterns to have their own oath; they’re still Green Lanterns! Ugh. (And what happened to their secondary power rings, anyway?)

Next is Guy’s promotion. The Guardians say he’ll outrank Salaak, and be second in command only to themselves…and Guy falls for it hook, line, and sinker. See, as we know from their behavior in other Green Lantern books, the Guardians are planning to destroy the Green Lantern Corps. So, the promotion is a load of shit, since Guy is among those they want to strike down. Even if this was all part of that plan, Guy’s not that stupid. He should be able to see through shit like that, even with his massive ego.

And now an art error, of sorts: did you notice that Guy’s constructs depicting Sinestro’s evil acts were all based on scenes in which Guy was not present? How would he know what they looked like?

Let’s move on to the good stuff. The Alpha Lanterns’ origin is well explained within conversation, reminding the group just what they stand for. It was also good to see that John is still lost in thought over killing Kirrt; he’s clearly trying to distract himself by hanging around the bar and building toothpick bridges, but the guilt is eating away at him.

Guy’s stance against the Sinestro Corps is absolutely correct. Their Battery should be destroyed, as leaving it on Oa with the captured Corpsmen nearby is just a recipe for disaster. (They’re still in uniform, so we can assume they still have their rings, but that may just be an error.) Perhaps this is also part of the Guardians’ rotten plan, but it’s a disservice to Salaak’s character that he believes it so readily, as well as Sinestro’s role as a Green Lantern.

The four stacked panels depicting the bar brawl were the best pieces of art in the entire issue. Seriously, they look great! And no energy constructs, either. Guy and his fellow Lanterns have no trouble scrapping without weapons, and this classic bar fight looks fantastic as a result. Other art of note includes Guy’s hilarious constructs depicting a reformed Sinestro. Kudos to Fernando Pasarin for bringing such cool scenes to life!

Overall, Green Lantern Corps (Vol. 3) #8 was good, but those stumbles held it back from something greater. I’ve got a feeling the next issue ought to amp things up considerably.

Green Lantern: “Reckoning”

Season 1, Episode 7
Airdate: April 14, 2012

The Lanterns are conducting reconnaissance on Shard, but Razer’s had enough. He sets up a diversion, and escapes to the Red Lantern stronghold to recharge his ring. Hal Jordan convinces Kilowog and Aya that they need to go after him, and while they sneak in, Atrocitus captures Razer and tortures him. Hal and friends rescue him, but the whole group is soon split up. While Aya tries to hack the Shard computers, Kilowog gets his ass kicked by Skallox, and Atrocitus beats Razer down. When Atrocitus reveals that he was responsible for the war on Razer’s homeworld and the death of his wife Alana, Razer flips out and nearly kills Atrocitus. He’s forced to leave to save the other Lanterns, but he takes Atrocitus’ power battery with him and vows revenge. Finally, Aya reveals that the Red Lanterns are assembling a massive war fleet.

Buckle up, nerds, because I’ve got a lot to say about “Reckoning.” Don’t worry, it was a great episode, so I’m not going to spend a few pages bashing it. The Red Lanterns have been notably absent since the premiere (with the exception of Razer, of course), so it was cool to see them come back and still present a tangible threat. The Green Lanterns barely escaped with their lives, and the Red Lantern Corps only lost a single power battery. I also liked that the Red Lantern Corps has random troops patrolling Shard; they don’t seem to be Red Lanterns themselves, but if Atrocitus is building an army, why not have your rank-and-file soldiers along with your heavy hitter ringwielders?

This is the first time the Book of Rage has been mentioned in Green Lantern: The Animated Series; it’s already been mentioned in the comics, in Green Lantern (Vol. 5) #7, to be exact. Instead of some magical tome or some such nonsense, it’s merely a chronicle of the Red Lanterns’ exploits. That makes sense. The scene with Cleric Lorrin explaining the Red Lanterns’ history to the disguised Hal was great, as it handled their Corps’ origin within the ongoing story, without resorting to cheesy flashbacks. That stained glass window looks fantastic!

Some more of the Red Lanterns seen in the comics make appearances here: namely Skallox, Bleez, and Veon. I actually like their animated designs more than the comics! Not only does Skallox look more bestial and demonic, he kicks some serious ass. He beat the living shit out of Kilowog! How many foes can claim that on their résumé? Veon has a more detailed eye, which allows him to be a bit more expressive. Finally, Bleez looks slightly less like a stripper. I don’t mean her outfit, which is more detailed than the comic book version, but the scene she appears in does not zoom in on her ass or feature a brokeback pose, nor does she have the colossal chest common to comic book women.

This episode featured the first appearance of the Red Lantern Corps Oath, with some notable changes. This is the original version found in the comics:

With blood and rage of crimson red,
Ripped from a corpse so freshly dead,
Together with our hellish hate,
We’ll burn you all — that is your fate!

And here’s the animated version:

With blood and rage of crimson red,
We fill mens souls with darkest dread,
And twist your minds to pain and hate,
We’ll burn you all — that is your fate!

As you can see, the second and third lines were altered to be far less violent. This is completely understandable, since Green Lantern: The Animated Series is aimed at the younger set. Besides, the Oath still gets its point across, so the changes are negligible.

Not only was “Reckoning” a great episode by itself, it was also loaded with references to other science fiction and fantasy movies. Here’s as many I can remember, in no particular order:

• The Green Lanterns used the old “wait for ‘em to dump their garbage” trick from The Empire Strikes Back to sneak into Shard.
• The city atop Shard looks like something out of Tron (much like Oa).
• Lorrin mutters “It is by rage alone I set my mind in motion.” This is paraphrasing the Mentats’ creed from Dune: “It is by will alone I set my mind in motion.” (The fact that “will” is used in the original is just a coincidence!)
• The headpiece of Lorrin’s staff looks like the Eye of Sauron from The Lord of the Rings.
• Lorrin himself resembles the xenomorph queen from Aliens.
• The heads-up display and closeup shots in the stolen Red Lantern trooper helmet strongly resembles those in the titular armor from Iron Man.
• Shard’s central computer room looks like HAL 9000′s memory core from 2001: A Space Odyssey.

There’s probably even more that I missed! (If you can think of any, let me know in the comments.)

The only thing I didn’t like in this episode was the twist where Atrocitus reveals that he “created” Razer by engulfing his planet in war and killing Alana. There’s enough death, chaos, and rage in the universe that he should have no shortage of potential Red Lanterns; Earth alone would provide millions of ‘em! There’s no reason Atrocitus would have to go out there and kill people just to get one or two more on his side. The Book of Rage explained that the reason the Red Lanterns started in the first place was due to the Manhunters turning Ysmault into a warzone and killing most of the population, driving Atrocitus into an ever-burning rage. Atrocitus doing the exact same thing to Razer’s world (and who knows how many others) makes him a quite the hypocrite, don’t you agree? Plus, as you can see in Razer’s case, this behavior came back to bite Atrocitus in the ass.

Now for your daily nit to pick: the green portions of Aya’s robot form are supposed to be constructs, just like those created by a Green Lantern power ring. They disappear when Aya disassembles herself; for example, when she split into her component parts to infiltrate Shard. However, when Aya was heavily damaged by Atrocitus, the green areas remained solid, and they’re later directly hooked up to equipment onboard the Interceptor. This makes no sense, but I’m assuming it was just an error. Therefore, it’s not a dig against “Reckoning.”

The Red Lantern threat on GLTAS is being handled in an excellent manner. What’ll those rage-heads do next? If only the comic book versions would hurry the hell up and become more like their animated selves, as they’re much more interesting…