Aquaman: Death of a King (The New 52) Review

Aquaman Vol. 4: Death of a King (The New 52)

ANGRY!!!

Writer: Goeff Johns

Artists: Paul Pelletier, Sean Parsons and Rod Reis.

Collects: Aquaman #17-19 and #21-25

Background information:

If there’s a way to justify the New 52, it’s Aquaman. DC creative chief and resident god, Geoff Johns injected new life into the character the same way that he did to Green Lantern. This time, he took Aquaman out of the water; proving that the king of the seas can hold his own when out of water.

And after three volumes, Johns put him back in the water.

*sigh* here goes…

Review:

A good final volume in an author’s run should tie up all elements of the arc he/she has written. It should remind us of everything that we enjoyed about the previous volumes and hype the intensity up to the max. Death of a King does these things, but a rushed ending leaves Johns’ run feeling like it lost steam.

Now, where's the Jamaican crab?

So Aquaman, Arthur Curry is the official king of Atlantis. And it’s everything he thought it would be. The surface world doesn’t trust him, the Atlantians follow him only because they have to, and now Atlantian weapons are popping up all over the surface. In the meantime, the former king of Atlantis has risen and is looking to take back his throne.

The whole story absolutely smacks of Johns trying to write a cross between Game of Thrones and The Little Mermaid. To a certain point, it works. Characters have their own agendas. There’s dissention in the ranks. Love triangles are even a part of the story, and it all results in an underwater world that feels fleshed out. There’s a hint of fantasy/sci-fi to this weird world existing parallel to our own and I can only credit Johns for letting readers figure it out rather than having to have their hands held the whole way through. It’s nice when writers assume you’re smart, and that just what Johns has done with this world.

The book introduces a bunch of new characters. We have the Atlantian version of a US Marine; Murk, Tula; the sister of Orm and Swatt; an Atlantian who can’t breathe underwater and loves surface world stuff. Under a new writer, these guys would feel very hard to get used to and would be a bad choice for a last volume, but Johns writes them in a way that you’re surprised they haven’t been part of the series the whole time.

Nyawwww...

The art remains as strong as it always has been. I’ve complained before about the DC house style looking too much like Jim Lee’s work, but it does make a change in artist less daunting. And Aquaman is one of those books that kinda needs that Jim Lee, cinematic, ohmygoodnesslookatthatseasmonster kind of impact.

None of that, however, goes to rectify the biggest problem in Death of a King, and that’s that there’s way too much going on. Like John’s end of his Green Lantern run, the final issue in particular feels like a mad dash to the finish line, when a scenic stroll would have been more appropriate. We jump forward six months to when Atlantis is overrun by villains, but never get the full extent of why that’s so bad for the Atlantians, because Johns gives himself too much to do in only a few issues.

Still, it’s a fine end to a great series, so Death of a King gets a four out of five little mermaids.

****

+ Well-developed world.

+ Some genuinely intriguing characters.

+ Art has plenty of impact.

- Story is rushed toward the end.

Alternate Option: Aquaman: The Trench

Like DC keeps telling you to do, start at the beginning.

Green Lantern Corps Vol. 1: Fearsome

Green Lantern Corps Vol. 1: Fearsome

Featuring Guy Gardner pooping!

Writer: Peter J Tomasi

Artists: Fernando Pasarin and Scott Hanna

Collects: Green Lantern Corps #1-7

Background Information:

New readers need to be aware of two things, really.

Firstly, there is more than just one Green Lantern out there, even when you just restrict yourself to human ones. Alongside showrunner Hal Jordan are youngster Kyle Rayner, and the second and third GLs Guy Gardner and John Stewart. The latter two are the focuses of this book.

Secondly, even though DC claimed to reboot everything with the New 52, the Green Lantern franchise was really overlooked in the process. It picked up right where the old DCU left off, so don’t expect this series to be new reader friendly in the sense that it offers origins for these characters.

Review:

I’ve gotta admit, I hate Guy Gardner. The dude’s a little full of himself and I don’t see it being deserved. I also don’t really like John Stewart. I know, he was in the Justice League cartoon and IGN keep pushing for him to be the DC cinematic universe’s new GL because Hal Jordan is “tarnished” by a bad movie, but I haven’t ever been particularly interested in the guy.

So it’s significant that a book staring my two least favourite lanterns ended up so entertaining. I still prefer Hal and Kyle, and this collection is far from perfect, but it’s a pleasant surprise.

I hope you like green, you'll see a lot of it.

So Guy and John, after failing to fit into normal society, are called to investigate an alien threat obsessed with stealing natural resources, killing GLs and ultimately getting revenge on the Guardians. There’s more to it than that, but I like my reviews to be as spoiler-free as possible.

First thing I have to say about this book is that it’s green. I mean, it’s really, really, REALLY green. That shouldn’t come as a surprised, I mean, it’s a Green Lantern book, but the core Green Lantern title was at least able to tone it down a little bit. Aside from that, the art is serviceable, but not great. I’m not a fan of the way the artist in this volume draws human faces, it comes across as grotesque, and characters that are meant to look angry look violently constipated instead.

Art aside, though, there’s plenty to enjoy in the story. Writer Peter J. Tomasi delves pretty deep into GL mythology to give us a side to the Guardians’ history that I, for one, never really considered. I won’t ruin it, as it’s probably the best part of the book, but it’s one you’ll definitely want to know more about.

By far, the best part about Fearsome, though, is that it makes me respect Guy Gardner. He’s still not my favourite Lantern, but at least I don’t find him as annoying any more. We get to see some real resourcefulness in Gardner’s character, and his habit of breaking rules and his cocky attitude is more charming here than it was in Green Lantern: Rebirth. I’m glad that Tomasi was able to do this for Guy, even though John is left somewhat on the wayside for this volume (thankfully, it looks like he’ll get some more spotlight in Volume 2).

The gangs all here.

My real problem with Fearsome, though, is that I’m not really sure that it knows what it is. The book starts as a buddy-cop story and would have worked great as such. Not far in, however, it becomes a war story- centred around Guy and John taking platoons on special operations behind enemy lines (at one point, even with machine guns). The book then changes again into a character drama. None of these styles are bad on their own, but you just end up wanting Tomasi to pick one style and stick with it.

Overall, though, there’s no reason new readers can’t enjoy in Fearsome. It gets a three and a half out of five constipated faces.

*** ½

+ Adds to mythology.

+ Makes you like Guy Gardner.

- Art is average.

- Book doesn’t quite know what it is.

Alternate Option: Green Lantern: Sinestro

If you read one Green Lantern book, you suddenly find yourself having to read them all. Proceed with caution, but they're all a blast to read.

Green Lantern Vol. 3: The End (The New 52) Review

Green Lantern Vol. 3: The End (The New 52)

A cover that isn't in the book at all,
but who cares?

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artists: Doug Mahnke

Collects: Green Lantern #13-20

Background Information:

Geoff Johns has been writing Green Lantern for many years, now. And he’s the man who really threw the character of Hal Jordan into the limelight. For better or for worse, it may be the reason that we ended up having a Green Lantern movie, as lame as it was.

In the last two volumes, Hal’s teamed up with long-time enemy Sinestro to take on a plot that the ruling Guardians are forming against the Green Lanterns. It’s brought Hal and Sinestro into contact with the villain known as Black Hand and has banished them to the dead zone, with their rings believing them to be genuinely dead.

Review:

The comics industry is obsessed with getting new readers at the moments. Reboots, retcons and renumberings have been churned out regularly as the industry desperately sprints to provide readers with the perfect jumping-on point. With so many of these around, it’s just as important to provide jumping-off points. In case you couldn’t tell from the title, but The End is just that kind of title; one where you can happily stop reading Green Lantern and move on to other comics.

Obama's not a Green Lantern fan- there's
a red, white and blue joke here, I know
it.

This isn’t purely coincidental to the fact that The End also marks the final volume of Geoff Johns’ brilliant run on the character of Hal Jordan, and the end is as epic as you’d expect a final volume in an over-nine-year run to be. Nothing more than what you’d expect mind you- this isn’t anything mind-blowing, but immensely satisfying.

With Hal and Sinestro in the dead zone, the ring that the two shared now must find a new owner in the form of Simon Baz. In the meantime, the Guardians are setting up a group called the Third Army with this assistance of the First Lantern, Valthoom. It’s the intergalactic version of what we on Earth call a kerfuffle.

Yep, I’m using words that probably don’t exist.

Firstly, though I gave a fairly short synopsis, there’s a lot that happens in this book. And though a new reader may have no idea it’s happening, The End draws together so many elements from Johns’ Green Lantern run; the multi-coloured lanterns, Blackest Night, and the huge focus on developing of Sinestro’s character that it’s hard to believe that Green Lantern isn’t simply ending.

It’s admittedly a complicated story; one that requires you to read it alongside at least Green Lantern Corps and possibly Green Lantern New Guardians and Red Lanterns. That’s a problem for people who don’t want to buy the crossover. It does make the story a little confusing.

Insert anime style "Waaarrrrrggghhhh!!!"

Thankfully, there are so many elements to this story that brings out the best of Geoff Johns’ mythos. I can’t go much further without talking about Sinestro. It’s possible to say that Johns’ run is more about Sinestro than Hal Jordan, and Sinestro really comes full circle here. Don’t get me wrong; there’s plenty of extra story with the character, but again, if you were to stop here, it would be just as satisfying as if you continued. Not bad for a guy who looks like a pink Hitler.

Art by Doug Mahnke is as good as it has always been, but my problem lies not in the art at all. It actually lies in the fact that Johns puts so much into this book that it’s really hard to take in. Each scene, as a result, feels rushed. We go from the Lanterns fighting the Third Army, to fighting Volthoom, to fighting Sinestro to the finish.

Be that as it may, The End is still an amazing finish to the New 52’s Green Lantern. It gets a four out of five pink Hitlers

****

+ Perfect “jumping-off” point.

+ Sinestro is awesome

+ Cover so much of what made Johns’ run awesome.

- Story can sometimes go way too fast to follow

Alternate Option: The first three volumes of any other Lantern series

There’s a much wider story to be experienced here; go and experience it!

Justice League Vol. 3: Throne of Atlantis (DC) Review

Justice League Vol. 3: Throne of Atlantis (The New 52)

Aquaman in the center of a JL picture...
Hell''s frozen over.

Writers: Geoff Johns and Jeff Lemire

Artists: Ivan Reis, Paul Pelletier and Tony S. Daniel

Collects: Justice League 13-17 and Aquaman 13-17

Background Information:

The biggest success story of the New 52 has to be Geoff Johns’ Aquaman. The reboot was just what the King of Atlantis needed to kick that “useless hero” stigma he’d been suffering from for years. Thanks to the rebooted character (and, Aquaman’s character in Injustice didn’t hurt him either), Aquaman has been kicked back into the A-list. It’s the reason the guy now has two books devoted to him.

Justice League, though, hasn’t had the same positive reception. The first volume was fine, but not well received due to its popcorn-munching simplicity. The second volume wasn’t worse, but not necessarily better. That’s a concern for a book that’s meant to be the central title for the New 52.

Review:

Three characters nobody cares aboout in this volume...
 and Aquaman

Not all crossovers work. More often than not, it’s a desperate cry for help from a series that’s failing, and their cause isn’t always helped by connecting it to a more popular title. Thankfully, connecting a lukewarm-running title like Justice League to an out-of-nowhere success like Aquaman has paid off in spades for DC, finally giving us a Justice League story that feels like a title that’s been going on for a year, instead of being perpetually in its first two months.

So, after a tough battle with the Cheetah, a Justice League-sized crisis has hit earth. Atlantis has invaded the surface world, and the surface world is ill-prepared for it. But who’s the mastermind behind the attack, and what have Atlantis or the surface world to gain from the battle?

This volume does a lot of things that fixes the problems from the last volume. For starters, the Superman/Wonder Woman relationship finally comes across as something natural. In the last volume, the relationship just seemed to be a matter of Wonder Woman finding the alpha male (and no, sorry, it isn’t Batman). Now there’s some meat to those previously shallow bones. Superman’s a nice guy now, and he actually looks like he deserves the affections of the Amazon princess. Likewise, Wonder Woman clearly has something to learn from Superman; creating a very Pretty Woman-style vibe to the relationship.

Then there’s the focus of the volume, a Aquaman-centred story this early in the New 52 is a stroke of genius, and Aquaman is at his best here, loaded with that well-developed character that Johns has been establishing in previous Aquaman stories. He’s been driving the story and it’s been great to see someone other than the trinity or Green Lantern heading a League story.

But by far the best thing about this volume is the fact that Johns has somehow sneaked quite a lot of character development into the last two volumes without anyone really noticing it. Batman and Aquaman are quarreling over leadership. Wonder Woman and Superman are dating. Green Lantern has left the league through a show of responsibility. Cyborg wonders if he is human anymore, but has Flash to be the nice uncle to him. It’s a status quo that you really never see happening, and it’s a great surprise when you find out that these characters has actually come a fair ways.

My only real problem with Throne of Atlantis is the fact that in a Justice League collection, the best titles are the Aquaman ones. It’s weird when you consider that the central New 52 title is kinda the forgotten kid brother of the title that everyone probably thought would fizzle out when announced.

Y'know, I still have no idea what the trident does....

The art duties are taken over by Ivan Reis, whose work is so close to Jim Lee's, that there doesn’t feel like there’s a lack of consistency in the series. What makes it better for this volume is that Reis just knows how to capture Aquaman perfectly. Considering that Aquaman is the central character here, that’s a very good thing. And it’s an excellent thing that Tony S. Daniel is sticking to art here; putting it lightly, it’s definitely putting his best foot forward (because the best example of Daniel’s writing is still like calling someone the friendliest Nazi).

Throne of Atlantis finally gave the Justice League the story they deserve. It gets a four and a half out of five friendly Nazis.

**** ½

+ Superman’s/Wonder Woman’s relationship finally makes sense

+ Aquaman at the centre of the story.

+ Where did this character development come from?

- Justice League issues play second fiddle to Aquaman ones.

Alternate Option: Aquaman: Throne of Atlantis

It’s the same story, just has a couple more Aquaman issues.

Justice League Vol. 2: Villain's Journey (The New 52)

Justice League Vol. 2: Villain’s Journey (The New 52)

When face with a threat, The Flash makes
stupid faces!

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artists: Jim Lee and Scott Williams

Collects: Justice League  #7-12

Background Information:

It’s the fourth and final in our Geoff Johns week!

The last volume of Justice League saw the league form no so much out of a desire for justice, but in order to stop the public from hating them. For those not in the know, this iteration of the team consists of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, The Flash, Aquaman and Cyborg. Last time we saw them, they took on the galactic evil-dude known as Darkseid and won, earning the world’s trust, even though they don’t really trust each other.

Review:

The last volume, Origin, was fun, but in the end, it was mostly popcorn-munching stuff. Hardly a deep story, I compared it pretty heavily to Marvel’s Avengers film back from 2012. In Villain’s Jorney, Geoff Johns offers much of the same, but unfortunately, as readers, we’re ready for something meatier.

By now, the Justice League is adored by the whole world. There are many civilians calling for them to lead the US government. They believe that the League could put on a united front and fix every political problem in the world. The League, however, are at best overvalued in reality. They still do not trust each other, even though they work together better than they used to. And they haven’t yet become actual good guys. And now, a man by the name of David Graves is out to show the world just how unheroic these heroes really are.

I’m pretty sure every superhero franchise ever created has had a story like this. I can think of two Batman movies and a Spider-Man videogame that have had the “make the public hate the hero” storyline. The difference here, though, is that Graves isn’t trying to lie to the public; the league are not yet united and they aren’t able to fix everything.

It sounds like the story is going to offer plenty of depth, but don’t be fooled. This is another fairly shallow plot in reality. That was fine in a book like Origin, where we were just getting used to the team and were probably more interested in what the team was capable of than in complex storytelling, but the status quo in Justice League has already been established. Johns should have offered something a little deeper for this second story, and as such, the whole book feels pretty dismissible.

And that’s even considering the Wonder Woman/Superman kiss at the end of the trade (I’d give a spoiler warning, but it was advertised like crazy when it happened- that isn’t a spoiler). I’m not too concerned that there was little substance given to the moment- even though Superman and Wonder Woman barely exchange a word before they meet on the rooftop and then make out. I’m not even that keen on a Wonder Woman/Batman relationship. To me, the only person in the DCU that could be considered “Alpha Male” enough for Wonder Woman would be Superman, so the relationship makes perfect sense. But that’s the part that bothered me. There was nothing that seemed adventurous about the kiss; nothing that seemed like it would be a defining moment because I’m pretty convinced most new reads thought it was happening anyway. As such, it’s hard to really care about the kiss at all. I was actually more interested in what happened to Green Lantern at the end of this collection.

The art is just as good here. Jim Lee now shares writing duties with Scott Williams, but honestly, I couldn’t see any drop in quality. There are all of those trademark “big moments” that the last volume did so well. It’s great to look at and Johns gives Lee and Williams plenty of awesome things to draw.

By the time you start reading Villains Journey, you realise that you are done with stories of this calibre. The third volume in this series is supposed to be spectacular, but this one only gets three out of five over-advertised kisses.

 ***

+ Story is a clever idea

+ Art is still really good

- It’s still too shallow- we need depth by the second volume

Alternate Option: Teen Titans: Its our Right to Fight

Okay, so it’s hard to really recommend this, but if you want another team book, this one also has some big-name heroes. They’re just younger.

Aquaman Vol. 2: The Others (The New 52)

Aquaman Vol. 2: The Others (The New 52)

Everyone on this cover is angry at you.
Deal with it.

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artists: Ivan Reis

Collects: Aquaman #7-13

Background Information:

Here’s number three for Geoff Johns week!

It’s a strange time to be a DC reader. At the end of last year, a Batman series was cancelled, and for the last two years, people were saying good things about Aquaman!

When Geoff Johns took the series over at the beginning of the New 52, Aquaman was the laughing stock of DC. Rather than try to pretend that everyone actually loved the king of the seas, though, Johns decided to roll with the jokes made about him to really let the reader see the human side of Aquaman and bring some much-needed humour to the New 52. The strategy worked, and Aquaman now enjoys enough popularity to warrant a second series beginning in April.

Review:

Johns’ last Aquaman volume was an excellent request to readers to give the much-ridiculed superhero a chance. That request resulted in one of the most enjoyable collections in the New 52. For the second aqua-outing, The Others loses some of that humour, but that’s okay. It’s a new message that Johns is sending readers, and it’s leading somewhere excellent.

Before coming to the Justice League, Aquaman had a team of his own known as The Others. Each member possessed their own powers but also carried ancient relics from Atlantis. Now, the villain known as Black Manta is killing them off and taking the relics for an unknown employer. Aquaman joins up with former team-member, the almost-not-naked Ya’Wara to defend The Others and take down Black Manta.

In the last volume, humour really stood out as a defining feature of the series, and that’s not something that’s so abundant in The Others. The humour is there, absolutely, but the reader needs to look for it more than in the previous volume. In its place is a new, Indiana Jones-like feel that sees Aquaman traversing the globe, visiting ancient buildings, and uncovering lost secrets and artefacts. It’s a great vibe that helps Aquaman feel truly different to other DC books that are out there

It’s equally significant that here Aquaman spend very little actually in the water. If he uses water for anything, it’s travel. He hasn’t spoken to fish in this volume, and he has spent absolutely no time in Atlantis. It’s a smart move by Geoff Johns who I’m sure is still trying to change the perception some have of Aquaman as the “water-locked hero”. Aquaman’s awesome on the land too, and that really gets driven home in these issues.

By far, though, the best thing about The Others is that it goes deeper into Aquaman’s history with Black Manta. John’s is doing an excellent job at giving both Aquaman and one of his deadliest enemies multiple dimensions. I thought Aquaman had enough character development in the first volume, but leave it to Johns to give you just that little bit more.

It’s not all smooth sailing for The Others, though. There were plenty of moments in the book where I just wanted to see somebody underestimate Aquaman. Part of the fun of the last volume was seeing Aquaman blow the public’s expectations out of the water. Here, everyone is convinced Aquaman’s awesome. It’s sad to see that element go, because it was one of the best parts of the rebooted Aquaman. The result is that The Others ultimately feels less revolutionary than its predecessor did.

The art here is well done. Again, there’s much of that New-52 sameness, but it’s still beautiful to look at. There are plenty of page and double-page spreads that capture just the right feel for what Johns has written. The character designs are bright and colourful, yet somehow still come off as dark and gritty. That’s a hard line to walk and the combined efforts of Ivan Reis and Joe Prado pull it off wonderfully.

The Others is not as funny as the previous Aquaman volume, but it’s still highly entertaining and well worth the purchase. It gets four out of five almost-not-naked people.

****

+ Art is great.

+ Aquaman somehow is more fleshed out

+ Indiana Jones vibe works well.

- Art is still New 52’s sameness

- The humour is severely lessened

Alternate Option: Justice League: Villain’s Journey

This volume actually does a better job at investigating Aquaman’s public perception. If you miss that, this one should slate that thirst

Green Lantern Vol. 2: Revenge of Black Hand (The New 52)

Green Lantern Vol. 2: The Revenge of Black Hand (The New 52)

And the only thing I can think is; what's
making his cape do that?

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artists: Doug Mahnke and Ethan Van Sciver

Collects: Green Lantern #7-12 and Green Lantern Annual #1

Background Information:

It’s the second review in our Geoff Johns week!

In the last volume, Sinestro revealed that the Guardians, the rulers of the Green Lanterns, had an evil plan in store that involved two major entities- the legendary “First Lantern” and the coming of something called “the third army”. While Sinestro doesn’t know for sure what is going on, he knows the Guardians are up to something insidious.

The two other Green Lantern books; Green Lantern Corps and Green Lantern – New Guardians have been following a similar story, so whatever the Guardians have in store has massive implication for all of the GL characters.

Review:

So Sinestro has once again called upon Hal Jordan for help in trying to uncover the Guardians’ plot and, hopefully, save the Green Lantern Corps. Before they can do anything, though, Sinestro and Hal are captured by a group of Lanterns known as the Indigo Tribe. The Indigo tribe wields the Indigo light of compassion. They have the ability to emulate the powers of any light-related power. They are also made up of some of the most sadistic killers in the universe who have been turned good by the Indigo light. They know Sinestro’s past and want to convert him as well.



After a whole collection that focussed primarily on Sinestro, it’s nice to see Hal Jordan back in the spotlight. Geoff Johns has owned this character for nine years, and it’s great to see Johns use the character that he has become so adept at writing. I’m not sure that Johns utilises Hal to the best of his ability, but it’s great to see him take centre stage once again.



Characteristically, Johns introduces a lot of new mythology into the Green Lantern franchise. The Indigo Tribe, for example, were originally set up by Hal’s predecessor, Abin Sur to try and stop[ the Guardians and their evil plan. Johns has continually added more to the Green Lantern world and it’s nice to see that he hasn’t run out of new ideas after nine years

There are plenty of excellent moments in this book, but the best has to be in the final three issues of the collection where Hal and Sinestro take on Black Hand for the first time since before the New 52 in an event called Blackest Night. Black Hand wields the black light of death- it’s a power that allows him to call corrupted bodies from the dead. Whereas most of us would use that to create Thriller flashmobs, Black Hand uses it to kill even more people. The fight itself is unremarkable, but the revelation at the end makes for an amazing cliffhanger. Johns makes you desperately want to know what happens in the next volume, and it kills you when the final issue ends.

The art here follows suit from the previous volume in this series, and the inclusion of multiple guest artists doesn’t really do much to change things. It’s all very much the same as what we’ve seen in other stories, but it’s detailed, well-coloured and just very nice to look at. When the art is compared to other books however (I’m specifically thinking of The Flash, Wonder Woman and Batman) it looks fairly vanilla. It’s saved here, though, by Johns giving his artists plenty of awesome things to draw, so there’s still plenty of moments here that will impress. All the same, though, I doubt I would be able to tell the difference between Mahnke’s art and, say, the work of Jim Lee or Ivan Reis (one thing I can really credit Marvel NOW! for is that nearly every book looks very different to each other- something I didn’t see in the New 52).

The Revenge of Black Hand hooks the reader into reading the next volume. This is definitely one of Johns’ better works and it gets a four and a half out of five Thriller flash mobs.

**** ½

+ More added to GL mythology

+ Hal is back in the saddle

+ Art shows plenty of excellent moments

- Art is still kinda same-y

Alternate Option: Green Lantern – New Guardians or Green Lantern Corps

There is so much happening in between these three titles that you would be doing yourself a disservice not to look into these.

Green Lantern Vol. 1: Sinestro (The New 52)

Green Lantern Vol. 1: Sinestro (The New 52)

Every November, this guy does amazing
things for prostate cancer research.

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artist: Doug Mahnke

Collects: Green Lantern #1-6

Background information:

It’s Geoff Johns week! In short; I have a lot of Geoff Johns books to review and we're getting them out of way right now!

Geoff Johns has been writing Green Lantern for nine years, so there is a LOT of backstory to the New 52’s reboot. In short, A group of blue aliens known as the Guardians commissioned the Green Lantern Corps as guardians of the universe- think Jedi with spandex. Each Green Lantern is given a power ring which can create constructs out of green light- light that is fuelled by willpower. Each Green Lantern is also given a lantern-like battery with which they can recharge their rings. As long as a Green Lantern’s ring is charged and their willpower strong enough, they are almost unstoppable.

Hal Jordan is one such Green Lantern, granted a power ring by dying Green Lantern, Abin Sur, Hal has spent a large part of his career fighting Sinestro- the DC equivalent of Darth Vader. Sinestro wielded yellow light- light powered by fear. As such, his constructs were more powerful than Hal’s.

But all of that changed when a Green Lantern ring picked Sinestro as its new wielder. What’s more, Hal has been expelled from the Corps, leading to an interesting situation.

Review:

Geoff Johns has basically made Green Lantern the amazing franchise it is today. His nine-year storyline has remained pretty much untouched in the New 52 reboot, and as such there’s a lot of backstory that new readers may find difficult to understand. But if you’re new, and willing to accept that there are some things you don’t know, Sinestro is a rewarding read.

So Sinestro is now a Green Lantern. What’s more, the Guardians have given him licence to do pretty much whatever he wants (so long as he protects his sector). In this book, that means freeing his home planet of Korugar. To do that, he creates a ring to give to Hal Jordan. As a result, Hal now answers to Sinestro.

What follows is an interesting status quo. Hal does not trust Sinestro in the least, but he wants to be a Green Lantern again so badly. Hal is forced to work with the one person/alien/thing (whatever Sinestro is, he looks like a pink Hitler) he wants dead more than anything else. There’s some great tension between these characters who you can tell would be more than happy to fight each other, but necessity dictates otherwise.

It should come as no surprise that Sinestro is the central character to the collection and John’s does everything right with him; he’s fully fleshed-out and has some clear motives to his actions. As you would expect, he doesn’t trust the Guardians in the least (which is good, because it turns out you actually can’t trust the Guardians at all), and is working to uncover them while he tries to save his home. Sinestro also has to confront his past as a fear-mongering past as his own planet hates him for creating his own twisted version of the Green Lantern Corps who are pretty set on enslaving Korugar and killing its people. I don’t know if I ever appreciated any comic villain as much as I have Sinestro (and no, I didn’t conveniently forget the Joker). Sure, Sinestro’s trying to do the right thing; but at no point was I ever convinced he was the good guy- it’s this mistrust that Johns creates that draws you even more into Sinestro’s personality.

Hal isn’t ignored in this book, though. His character works really well as an outlet for the reader’s thoughts. I didn’t trust Sinestro as I was reading; neither does Hal. I was frustrated that Hal wasn’t a Lantern; so was Hal. I was convinced that Sinestro was still evil despite the fact that he saves a whole planet; so is Hal. Johns makes sure that Hal maintains the human element of the Green Lantern status quo by making him as imperfect as the reader. This isn’t Superman- Hal’s not a mature guy. This also isn’t Batman; Hal isn’t anywhere near as smart. Hal, instead stands out really well on his own.

The art by Doug Mahnke is quite good. Mahnke has the great challenge of drawing various alien species. It would have been so easy to draw misfigured, or recoloured humans and call it a day, but Mahnke goes further than that. Each alien has its own body type. Tentacles, insectoid legs and faces with nothing but teeth abound throughout Sinestro and it’s a joy to look at. Unfortunately, there’s very little to distinguish this art from other New 52 books like Justice League, Nightwing or Aquaman. As such, it’s hard to praise this art as particularly spectacular, but it performs its function and performs it well.

Sinestro is every a Johns Green Lantern collection should be. It gets a four out of five pink Hitlers.

****

+ Sinestro and Hal’s characters are well fleshed out

+Great status quo

+ Character designs are weird and wonderful

- Art in general looks same-y

Alternate Option: Green Lantern Corps: Fearsome

The New 52’s Green Lantern books are all interconnected really well. As such, it would be a crime if you didn’t read this one too.