Super Hero Summer Pt. 2 (definitely spoilers)

Here's a link to: Super Hero Summer Pt. 1

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Yeah it's taken me awhile to get back to this I know, but what can I say...been wrapped up in reading Grant Morrison's "Supergods", started to reread "The Invisibles" but decided to wait until I can devote an entire day to immerse myself in that whole other world, also got my hands on Andrew Hickey's "An Incomprehensible Condition: Unauthorised Guide to Seven Soldiers", and have been trying to catch up on a lot of reading when it comes to "Flashpoint" and "Fear Itself" (yes I am ACTUALLY trying to read every tie-in for both events).  So suffice it to say (man I abuse that phrase) I haven't taken the additional time to sit down and go back over the other two movies, "Green Lantern" & "Captain America". 

So let's get this party started with:

"Green Lantern" opened up to the masses here in the United States on June 17th and I, of course, went to the midnight show once again.  There's just something about being in that environment, with fellow devotees to comic book lore, who are just excited to see their favorite ink-and-paper characters brought to life in live-action/CG glory.  Now this is the movie I was most excited to see, thusly the one I was also the most worried about.  The initial trailers did nothing to assuage my fears, seeming more like I was going to bear witness to a Ryan Reynolds comedy than a super hero action flick. 

Luckily the successive trailers showed me more of the film, and actually made me more excited to see it than I was with the first sneak peek.  So in I roll to the film and when the final credits rolled, I was left with a movie I enjoyed more than "Thor" but nowhere near as much as "X-Men: First Class". 

I was actually surprised by how Reynolds captured the Hal Jordan I would expect at this early juncture in his ring slinging.  I'm only a convert to the GL mythos with "Rebirth" and the Geoff Johns era so my touchstone for Hal's origins is the "Secret Origin" story from a few years back, but I felt like Reynolds got it pretty close.  There's some cheese to Reynold's acting sure, and add in the fact that I can't watch him without thinking about Van Wilder, but overall I feel like he captured the essence of a rookie Hal Jordan.

Even more surprising to me was Blake Lively as Carol Ferris, shocking casting move given the MTV world she came from, and even more shocking the job she did as Carol.  Chalk it up to low expectations if you want, but I felt like she more than delivered on her end of things, particularly in Carol's scenes with Hal Jordan. 

Peter Sarsgaard was the best part of the movie for me though.  His Hector Hammond was creepy to the Nth degree, playing out his role as the abandoned son quite well, and I really felt like he could have carried the film as the sole villain with only enough Parallax to establish his malevolent presence as the larger threat to the GL Corps.  The movie only scraped the surface of what Hammond is capable of, but then again, just like Hal, he was so new to his powers that it makes sense he wouldn't have mastered his psionic abilities just yet.

I thought Mark Strong did as well a job as possible with Sinestro as he could with the screen time given.  He strongly establish the very regal nature of Sinestro, and captured his authoritarian demeanor quite well.  Strong brings to the screen a presence worthy of the "greatest Green Lantern", and the script developed a strong character...at least until that little between-credits scene that came out of nowhere and didn't fit into any of what had been established about Sinestro's character.  It was a moment to pop the comic book fans who know the future path of Sinestro, and to set-up a sequel.

Now as for the finer moments of the movie, I certainly appreciated little nods to the comics like the "Highball" & "Sapphire" tags on the helmets of Hal & Carol and playing Spot-The-Lantern during all the Oa scenes, but there was a certain something missing from the movie as a whole.  The space scenes were a tease, but I figure that's something intentional, and complaints I heard/read about Hal's limited use of his power ring aren't without merit, but then again we're also dealing with a guy in his first few days with the ring. 

Was it only a few days? Was it longer?  I don't know honestly, and maybe that's one of the issues with the movie....there's so much time spent in the set-up, that everything else just feels so compressed.  Hal travels to space, blows off the Guardians & his training, Hammond gets infected, Parallax rather abruptly descends on Earth, one off-handed comment about gravity sets up the end of the movie (really transparent, I honestly called that as the end of the big fight as soon as it was stated), and Carol pretty much figures out Hal's secret immediately.  That was a moment I really didn't mind though as sometimes it's nice for the female lead to actually not be fooled by something as simple as a mask.  GL-philes would tell you that the ring clouds the bearer's face to the general populus but it was a nice change to have Carol get it.

The big Parallax fight was...not so big given the immensity of the villain we're talking about here.  I immediately hated the character design as it just reminded me of the Galactus cloud from "FF: Rise Of The Silver Surfer", but resigned myself to someone along the lines of production not wanting a yellow bug to be the big bad of the GL-Verse.  And apparently killing off the main evil force of the GL comics in the first flick seemed an odd choice, but the movie didn't really establish the whole avatar of fear concept behind Parallax.  Guess that falls on Sinestro's shoulders which, as I stated earlier, didn't really fit with what had gone before.  The Sinestro presented throughout the movie was a staunch supporter of the Guardians and, despite their unwillingness to go along with his yellow ring idea, it was never even remotely hinted that Sinestro would turn his back on the Guardians or feel like he had something to prove by harnassing the power of fear.  It just did not fit at all within the confines of the character that had been presented for the previous two hours, and was truly just a fanboy moment tacked on to motivate a sequel.

So what did I take out of this movie in the end? One word: potential.  The groundwork was laid for at least one sequel but "Green Lantern" was certainly not the foundation in which to establish a whole DCU movie-verse a la Marvel Films & The Avengers franchise.  I foresee a Hal Jordan spending time on Oa to further train, I see a true space odyssey involving the whole GL Corps (who were teased just enough to establish some personalities), and I see a massive CG war between them & the Sinestro Corps.  Only problem is the chronological confines of cinema don't really allow for the time it would take for Sinestro to truly build a Corps of his own.  They would likely just...be....after a time gap between the 1st & 2nd films. 

That what's so wonderful about the medium of comics, Sinestro could fade away into the background for awhile after donning the yellow ring, popping up in snippets here & there as he recruits masters of fear to his Corps, but only after having a serious falling out with the Guardians over something that actually justifies the "greatest of the Lanterns" being expelled.

See that may actually be the problem with certain comics translated to movies.  As fans we take it for granted that people know the origin stories of every character, and while that may be true for certain characters like Superman, Batman, and Spider-Man who have transcended the medium and become part of our cultural lexicon, our fashion branding, and with logos so well known that even a child who has never read a comic book in their life recognizes what that "S" represents. 

Green Lantern is not one of those characters, which is what made him an odd choice for that first big non-Batman WB movie.  We wanted space-faring, ring-slinging high adventure right off the bat, but got relationship-establishment and origin stories instead...something for the masses.  Now, that doesn't necessarily excuse the shortcomings of the film, but it may play into the disappointment from certain things we expected to witness as viewers.  Yes we were kind of short-changed when it came to the amazing feats a GL ring is capable of, and maybe I'm being a little forgiving in accepting that it will be part of the inevitable...now being tagged as "gritty" (ugh) sequel.  Still, I think I'm more curious to see what sort of larger epic they lay out with the GL Movie-verse and hoping that it all ties together in the long run.  Perhaps that's a side effect of reading Geoff John's GL comic books  =)

But, I guess what it comes down is will I buy the Blu-Ray and rewatch it?  Of course I will, and not just because I'm a completist fanboy, but also so I can formulate a second opinion.  I haven't watched the movie since my initial viewing on day one, and am quite curious to see if my thoughts remain the same.  Hell I didn't mind "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" on the first theatrical viewing, but thought it total dross when I bought the Blu-Ray and was dumbfounded how I found anything enjoyable about it the first time around.  Repeat viewing can change your opinion after all...it took me three viewings in one day to realize that "Phantom Menace" was NOT a good movie.

So I will aim to come back this week with my thoughts on Captain America...hopefully that actually happens and it doesn't take two weeks to get my butt in gear!  In the mean time, I would also suggest you check out this little blog written by Greg Rucka as it pertains to "gritty": "Gritty" & Greg Rucka

Green Lantern: Rebirth

Well after starting at "Blackest Night" and working backwards to "Sinestro Corps War", I'm now back to where it all started for Geoff Johns epic: "Green Lantern: Rebirth".  It was here that Johns, Ethan Van Sciver, and Prentis Rollins laid the groundwork for everything that was to come over the next several years and in many ways rebuilt the foundation for the GL mythos.

On a side note, after seeing Rollins & Van Sciver in person at Wizard World Philly, I can say that EVS is one funny dude.  Rollins had a pretty dry sense of humor too that played well off of EVS and Shane Davis who was also on the panel.  Another random side note, Rollins & EVS worked on "New X-Men" together during Grant Morrison's epic run...

Welcome back from that commercial break and welcome to my look back at "GL: Rebirth" where everything started anew for Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps!

So for a little backstory for ya'll when this mini-series hit the stands, Hal Jordan was dead but "living" on as the host of the Spectre (a biblical Spirit of Vengeance) as a way to redeem himself for the evils committed as the villain Parallax. 

For even more backstory, Hal's hometown of Coast City had been obliterated during the "Return of Superman" story arc by the Cyborg Superman & the alien Mongul.  This led directly into "Emerald Twilight" where, driven by grief, Hal attempted to use his ring to recreate the city.  The Guardians stripped him of his power, he flew off to Oa, murdered several Lanterns, destroyed the Central Power Battery, killed Sinestro whom the Guardians had released from banishment, and flew off while Kyle Rayner was chosen as the last GL.  Hal then tried to recreate the world to his liking in "Zero Hour", sacrificed himself to reignite the sun in "Final Night", and was selected as the host for Spectre in "Day of Judgment".  Whooooo, maybe all that backstory is why DC is jumping back to square one...but then again half the fun for me was back issue digging.  Story for another day....

Well in the trade format we jump into "GL: Rebirth" with a short prelude from "Wizard X" entitled "The Day Before", pretty self explanatory for when it takes place.  Kyle Rayner saves an alien planet whose inhabitants keep chanting something the ring translates as "Parallax is coming". During this little adventure, Kyle also throws out a seemingly innocent mention of how Sector 3600 was wiped out a long time ago.  Meanwhile Hal, in his human guise, watches an airshow which nearly turns into a disaster until the new Spectre saves a plane from crashing.  A little bit of internal argument between Hal as a GL & Parallax ends with The Spectre stating how this union is "...for the good of not just us, but the universe itself."  Then, with a close up on The Spectre's eye which looks like Parallax's face, he mutters "This pathetic fear-filled universe.".  And off we go...

Enter Chapter 1 and a scene very reminiscent of Abin Sur's (Hal's predecessor) crash on Earth as another space ship crash lands on Earth, only this time it contains a panicked Kyle Rayner telling the people who find him "Don't be afraid"...kind of funny coming from a GL really.  He can't use the ring, or rather won't, is accompanied by a coffin, and refers to himself as "the first GL to know what fear really is".  It's a statement that implies Kyle has felt fear, and in his continual need for self-deprecation, Kyle believes he is the first Lantern to do so.  But as the story goes on the reader will learn that it really means something deeper than that.

We get a look at Carol Ferris, Hal's past love interest, as she walks the abandoned airfield once owned by her father while talking to her husband.  Of course she stumbles on Hal's old plane.  This one page managed to convey everything a new reader needs to know about Carol's history, and the art in the last three panels also tells the reader all they need to know about Carol's connection to Hal Jordan.  EVS draws a perfect look of shock on her face as she stumbles on the plane and wipes away the dust.

That same art/dialogue combo nails it on the head as John Stewart (the 2nd Earth GL) & Guy Gardner  (a former Earth GL) are introduced into the story for the first time.  The meticulous detail of Stewart's construct, the look on his face as he says he used to trust Hal, it all gives you an idea of just who John is.  Guy's cocky (though false) self-assurance that John trusts him, the fact that he wears a shirt with his own logo on it, his tight "show off my muscles" t-shirt all give you an idea of who Gardner is as well.  The friendship between this two is immediately evident as well as they engage in a discussion, albeit one-sided, about Hal, the Green Lantern Corps, and all of John's shortcomings.  Guy can see all of John's faults but is oblivious...or lying...about his own. 

Enter: Hal Jordan as he joins John & Guy at a baseball game.  A perfectly normal, everyday, human thing to do...the problem though is that Hal isn't human anymore.  His mere presence provokes the entire audience, including Guy, to confess their sins (In my head, I always hear those last 3 words in Antonio Banderas' "Desperado" voice) to the Spirit of Vengeance. 

Jump on over to Green Arrow & his female sidekick Mia (not as random as you'd think) as the villain Black Hand bursts in looking for something using some kind of tool as a tracking device (for more on this read "GL: Secret Origin" & see how beautifully Johns mapped this out).  His target: a GL ring that Hal gave to Oliver Queen.  Black Hand, whom Ollie refers to as a loser, ends up with an arrow in his hand just in time for Hal (as The Spectre) to enter the room full of righteous vengeance.  The Spectre burns off the hand of Black Hand (see more planning ahead there from Johns), before departing with omnious words to Oliver...

Could not find an image that wasn't cut off, but in the missing panels Hal utters "It's getting hard to focus Ollie. I...there's something wrong.  None of this should've happened.  This isn't me.  This isn't who I am."  Freaky indeed...

Back to Guy & John at Gardner's bar called...egotistically unsurprising...Warriors.  There the discussion about Hal continues, with both men praising him in their own way (hell Guy has a statue of Jordan in his bar).  During the convo, Gardner has an attack of some kind and explodes, taking the bar & John with him while over on the left coast, a certain decimated city apparently returns from the dead! 

A seemingly random jump to Hector Hammond in Belle Reve Prison bridges the gap to the JLA Watchtower where Guy is being looked at by Martian Manhunter & Doctor Mid-Nite whilst Wonder Woman & others investigate the remains of Warriors.  The only thing left intact...that statue of Hal.  Alan Scott, the mystical GL, isn't feeling so hot and the Flash (Wally West) is speeding around the partially restored Coast City only to find, alongside Aquaman, one building whole: Hal Jordan's old apartment building.  All of this is enough for Batman to declare Hal has returned to his evil ways...that the jump from Parallax to The Spectre was planned as part of some larger scheme.  Unsuprisingly John Stewart is the man standing up for Hal as he nails the whole problem on the head...

As the first issue closes, Hal restores one last part of his past, Ferris Air, while Carol stands in the midst of the wreckage.  We also get the title of this first story, and I don't think it's a coincidence that it's entitled "Blackest Night".  Hot damn is that a lot of ground covered and that's just the first issue! It's like the first chapter of "Sinestro Corps War" in that Johns dumps damn near everything into the first issue to get the reader hooked in.  It certainly leaves the reader with that "what happens next" feeling...

The 2nd issue starts just as crazy as a green energy bursts forth from the GL battery on Oa with the words "Find him. Find Kyle Rayner" as it shoots off into space.  Oh yeah, and it trashes a Hal Jordan statue as it erupts from the battery.  Kyle is still out of it on Earth, being watched over by two guys who were trolling the New Mexico desert for aliens, while his internal dialogue continues to debate on whether or not to use the ring. A ring that keeps repeating "Parallax, Parallax is coming" by the way...

Back to Hal & Carol at the airfield where we get a flashback to the first day they met as children, the fateful day that Hal's father died right in front of him after passing his jacket down to Hal; the same jacket he has been wearing in the story thus far.  Hal elaborates to Carol essentially what he hinted at to Ollie, that something is clouding his judgment and making him doubt himself, making him afraid...

Up to the Watchtower where the JLA/JSA are looking for Hal, Alan Scott is getting sicker, and Batman is being Batman.  Zatanna locates The Spectre energies, the JLA heads off to confront Hal and find him still at the airfield.  Upon confrontation, John Stewart freaks out and blasts everyone standing on the airfield!  He goes hardcore, blasting Superman in his eyes with green energy as John's ring now begins to repeat the mantra "Parallax is coming".  At the Watchtower, GA's ring duplicates itself and the new ring bonds to Guy Gardner...

That ring also keeps repeating the same phrase, as is Kyle's when we cut back to him finally recovering as he starts to explain that the yellow impurity has a name just in time for the future Drill Instructor of the GLC Kilowog to make his appearance.  Obviously acting...wrong, Wog is encouraging Kyle to use the ring, making the connection that this unusual behavior from John, Guy, and Wog is linked to ring usage.  The big cliffhanger hits when that green energy from the start of chapter 2 finally finds Kyle and is revealed to be Guardian Ganthet!  Not only that, but we find out that contained within the coffin Kyle came to Earth with is: Hal Jordan!

Chapter 3 opens with Ganthet trying to convince Kilowog to stand down as Kyle provides the info dump for the uninitiated as to the little blue guy's background.  One sentence pretty much sums it up: "Ganthet could crack the planet in half with a thought."  This stand-off also gives us what is for me the absolute coolest image of Kilowog ever put to paper:

The display of power from Ganthet as he fends of Wog is only a fraction of what the Guardian has to offer, but more importantly, Kyle finally uses his ring.  During that one page we begin to understand why the last GL hasn't used it thus far, "It's reaching into my soul again.", but what "IT" is isn't something quite known yet.  This....IT...also gives Kyle a look at what's happening with John Stewart at that moment and allows the reader to see what's gone down without devoting pages to it.  Nice touch...

Jump to Coast City & Hal Jordan as he's walked away from the JLA/JSA battle with John and finally gets an idea himself of what's really going on here.  A visit to his old apartment, a look at an old Lantern Battery, and the reflection of Parallax in the green tell him (and the reader) some of what we need to know.

Back to Kyle & Ganthet as they continue to fight the only GL whose ring makes noise (you didn't forget Kilowog already did you?), while the Guardian explains to Kyle that his ability to know fear, his "flaw", is the only thing keeping him from ending up like 'Wog & John. 

Kyle takes Hal's body and heads to the Watchtower where he assumes they will be safe while Hal battles for his very sanity with Parallax & The Spectre.  Kyle, greeted by a recovering GA, offers an explanation to Ollie (and to the reader) for what is really going on here, and we get our required massive info dump. First the truth about Parallax:

A yellow fear-eating creature traveling the universe that The Guardians eventually captured and stored within the Central Power Battery on Oa.  Over time Parallax became known as nothing more than the yellow impurity.  The Fear Entity's presence within the battery made the rings weak against its corresponding color. I actually think this is a brillant explanation for what essentially was a case of the ring being too powerful thus needing a weakness built-in (like Supes & Kryptonite essentially).

It's also the primary reason why a person with a GL ring must be a being capable of overcoming great fear in order to master the little green circle.  But nothing can last forever, and Parallax used the ring as a conduit to slowly poison the "Greatest Green Lantern", Hal Jordan, and it first showed in the white hair Hal had in his later days as a GL before Coast City (another great way to explain what came before!). 

The clincher was obviously Coast City's destruction and it was reinforced by Hal's assault on Oa, and murder of fellow GL's, not to mention snapping Sinestro's neck when the Guardians released him from his prison inside the Central Battery to fight Hal (another important story beat from the past).  Essentially Parallax is an entity latched onto Hal's soul, and even his death to reignite the sun didn't save him from Parallax.  As the next few pages show, it ultimately just gave Parallax access to the Spectre...and the big question, what woke Parallax up in the first place?

And that is how we close the third chapter!  Ain't this dude dead?!?!?  Well the first page of part 4 essentially consists of Kyle (who has largely been our narrator throughout) explaining how much of a badass Sinestro is...the only one of Hal's old enemies that Guy Gardner doesn't mock.  Sinestro honestly admits...while he's trashing the Watchtower...he never understood his yellow power until the Guardians imprisoned him alongside Parallax, essentially making him the master of fear, and setting the wheels of their own fate into motion.  Makes me wonder if the Guardians were essentially fulfilling the prophecies of the Book of Oa simply because they were prophecy?

Back on Earth, Parallax assaults Ganthet as he battles the possessed Lanterns but the owerwhelming power of the Guardian frees them from fear's control, and gives time for the collected heroes of Earth to join the fray.  At the Watchtower, Kyle & GA battle Sinestro and I think this may be the first "alley rat" reference from Sinestro towards Kyle but don't quote me on that. This little fight offers up another awesome moment after Ollie tries to charge up a GL ring...

Not only does that awesomeness happen but in the follow-up panel Ollie asks if the exhaustion and confusion he feels after using the ring...barely...is what Kyle feels like when he forces his willpower into the ring.  Kyle's response of "Every time" tells the reader more about how using the ring actually feels than any story before it, and Ollie's "Damn" is pretty much how the reader feels after seeing it.  Again, recognition must be given to EVS and crew for the bang-up artistic job on these panels.  Lesser artists would not have been able to convey these facials and all the emotions wrapped up in it...

On Earth we get the JL(S)A battle with Parallax along with the little bit of information that the reason Alan Scott was feeling sick was because the fear entity was trying to worm its way into his life as well but the differences between the GLC & his ring made it difficult.  Finally the Spectre helps Hal fight the Parallax influence, freeing them both, leaving Spectre free to find a new host and Hal...well Jordan is dead after all, he's off to somewhere.  Parallax, on the other hand, is still quite alive and hops into the body of Guardian Ganthet!  As for Hal, well the ring he left with GA comes in handy as Jordan's soul finds its way to the body on the Watchtower, and the "greatest gl" is restored!

And with the penultimate issue it is on!  Hal Jordan vs. Sinestro on the freakin' moon and we get the core (no pun) of what will drive this story for some time ahead.  Free will(power) vs. rule of fear...and one of the coolest things this chapter offers is a flashback to the first day Hal & Sinestro met.  Now I can't double check my "Secret Origin" HC to verify this because it is currently in the hands of a friend, but I do believe this exact pair of pages is part of the "SO" story...

In just a few pages Hal Jordan manages to show everyone why he was considered the greatest as he takes it to Sinestro AND verbally berates Sinestro for his disrespect of Kyle.  We also get the moment that scarred Sinestro forever as Kyle returns to the fight and embeds a ton of arrows into the wannabe dictator's back in the shape of the GL ring.  Sinestro escapes to the Anti-Matter Universe as the fight closes and we get another moment as a free Hal Jordan officially meets Kyle Rayner.  Tried to find an image...got this...

Kyle doubts himself, but as John & Guy said when this all started, Hal is the type of man to make you believe even in the most dire circumstances.  And the situation certainly is as we head back to Earth where Parallax has possessed Ganthet.  But before we get anywhere, Bats has something to say but so does Hal's fist...

The fight rages on and in the midst Johns' give us a wonderful description of just how all four Earth Lanterns & Kilowog function as GL's, how their personalities come out in their constructs, and how they all empower each other.  This fight is where the rebirth of the Corps begins.

Parallax is resecured inside the Central Battery, the Guardians return on Oa, Guy Gardner admits he missed it all, and Batman leaves well enough alone (for now at least).  We return once more to Hector Hammond as he deliver some ominous warnings about the future, Hal meets up with Carol to tell her he has plans that don't involve Ferris Air, and most importantly Hal & Ollie reconnect while Jordan reconnects with his lantern and that Oath GA can't quite remember...

So wow...just wow.  No wonder this was such a high selling book (the first issue went through four printing & sold a total of 156,975 copies; the second issue went through two printings & sold 122,221 copies. The subsequent issues sold 106,523, 108,077, 115,006, and 114,354 copies, respectively...thanks Wiki!), and so critically well received.  It set the foundation for everything that has been delivered the last few years in the GL-Verse from "Sinestro Corps Wars" to "Blackest Night", it laid down the base of the emotional spectrum, and gave explanation for elements of the past that didn't quite fit or just weren't ever given detail.  I think my favorite little throwaway line was Ganthet, the eventual creator of the Blue (Hope) Lanterns stating that "Hope is meaningless against fear...willpower is our only weapon."  See even the Guardians can grow...maybe not physically but emotionally, psychologically if they want to.

This is a trade that comes with the highest recommendation from yours truly.  Prior to reading this book my only knowledge of Hal Jordan as Green Lantern was his involvement in "Return of Superman" and the "Emerald Twilight" story arc.  Kyle Rayner was the GL that I knew and read, the one that I grew somewhat attached to while Hal Jordan was the hero turned villain trying to "fix" the world. 

The sheer power of Johns' writing and the beauty of EVS' art in this 6 issue arc are what drew me to Hal Jordan.  When I was given this trade as a gift, it was just as Sinestro Corps War was beginning I believe so I quickly got all the other trades I could find and took advantage of a big sale at my local shop to get the first 5-6 parts of "SCW" thatI had missed.  I don't regret it for a second and trust me neither will you.

So if you found your way here because of the movie, or if you're just curious about Green Lantern's history, this is the place where it all started again: "Green Lantern: Rebirth".  It's the place where it could all start for you too...

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For my other Blogs on the GL-Verse check out these:

Blackest Night

Sinestro Corps War Part 1

Sinestro Corps War Part 2

And if you're interested enough to buy them (I don't make any money): Green Lantern on Amazon

The Sinestro Corps War Revisited: Part Two!

If you haven't read Part One, here it is: Sinestro Corps War Revisited Part One

When we last left our intrepid green brigade, Kyle Rayner (possessed by Parallax) was hovering outside the balcony of Hal Jordan's brother's house while we discover that the Sinestro Corps isn't after Oa (the center of the Universe), they are after Earth (the center of the Multiverse).  But given the way this story has been set-up, alternating between issues of GL & GLC, Vol. 2 picks up with the Green Lantern Corps as they fight to save Mogo from the SC & their own living planet Ranx.  This chapter is a great example of how the Corps functions as a unit, as evidenced by Lantern Green Man using the knowledge from his home planet as a means for Mogo to protect himself.  This part also bring up the prophecy surrounding Lantern Yat and shows the reader how the Corps reacts to the new law of the Book of Oa that enables lethal force to be used.  Suffice to say the level of violence, already quite high given the ruthless nature of the SC, is jacked up even further.  Still, it's not something that sits well with every member of the GLC but before the impact of this change can really sink in, the Corps is caught up to speed on the events of the the previous chapter as they learn of the assault on Earth.

Finally, after several chapters of just hanging out on the moon biding his time, Superboy-Prime joins the fray as the SC encroaches on Earth.  This image is very reminiscent of one I put in my Blackest Night blog (although that would probably be vice versa if I was doing this in chronological order), and I think that's completely intentional.

This next chapter is the turning point in so many ways for the Earth GL's, but it also lays out fairly clearly what Sinestro's desires are when it comes to Earth.  He wants to "create a symbol of terror that will was over the universe.  I want the universe controlled with order.  And I want all to realize that control comes not out of love, compassion, or hope, but out of fear."  Suffice to say that the real world overtones of this saga are hard to miss, especially given the time frame in which this story was originally written.  What's the threat level associated with yellow again? (Threat Level yellow = a significant risk of terrorist attacks, thanks wikipedia)

Anywho, this is the moment of truth for Kyle Rayner when, as Parallax, he faces off against a powerless Hal Jordan while Guy Gardner chases down the painting Kyle mentioned in the first part of SCW.  Upon absorbing Hal, we get to see Parallax in the yellow & black of the Sinestro Corps for the first time, and it's a damn imposing figure...

This issue also marks the merging of the GLC story line & the GL story line as the Corps finally makes it to Earth, saving Guy in dramatic fashion from a SC attack as he quests for the painting.  It's also the issue, given that we're on Earth, in which the other heroes join the fray.  Remember Hal's words after the fight with Zoom that started this whole shebang?  Well looks like he was as wrong as it gets...

What proceeds is an internal battle as Kyle & Hal fight to free Kyle of Parallax's influence. Now this is where I feel like I should bring up the Tales Of The Sinestro Corps books and whether or not they were essential to the core story.  With Blackest Night there was A LOT of tie-in material, most of which was non-essential, but the 6 mini's had some story beats that were necessary to get the full picture.  The SC Tales, of which there were only 3, are a mix...the reason I bring it up here is because the Parallax one focuses on Kyle's struggle prior to this AND gives some context for just why this painting is such a big deal in Kyle's life.    None of this material is printed in the collected SCW, rather given its own collection and I'm only intending to mention it when there's something "missing" from the story proper.

Back to our regularly scheduled program: Kyle & Hal fight their way free of Parallax, Ganthet & Sayd store its essence within the lantern batteries of Kyle, Hal, Guy, & John Stewart, and Kyle...who is no longer the host for Ion...is given a proper GL ring.  The panels of the four Earth GL's reciting the oath over images of the SC's domination (in particular the Statue of Liberty replaced by Sinestro) are quite powerful.

Jump to the GLC as they head to Earth, but first the Guardians make it known they intend to reassign the Ion power, albeit earlier than they intended.  Arkillo and Killowog get their rematch, and in quite a brutal moment, the GLC's drill instructor takes Arkillo's finger and his ring along with it!  Now I'm going to have to take a look at his post-SCW appearances to see if this missing digit is actually still missing.  Dude loses his tongue and a finger....sucks to be him.

The Anti-Monitor makes his way to Earth, and starts blasting away, hitting Sodam Yat and there's this odd moment in which Sodam seems like a robot as his eyes glow red and he comes back to life.  It's just wierd, but it does lead to the Guardians infusing Yat with the Ion entity...

...which is followed up by SuperboyPrime's Tales of the SC issue that isn't discussed or mentioned, so it seems totally random that he is now without the armor.  It also makes you wonder what the hell happened to him in between panels. Oh yeah, and unfortunately the art for this chapter just sucks....sucks in the next part too.

The next part is mix of flashback and fight as we learn about Sodam Yat's origins on Daxam while he's busy getting pulped by Prime in one of the bloodiest, no make that the bloodiest fight, of the entire SCW.  The last couple panels of the fight just throw ichor all over the place and, I would surmise because he's potentially too powerful, Ion gets a weakness in the form of lead poisoning (something else I have to check on to verify that it's maintained post-SCW).  So we end this chapter with the uber-powerful Prime holding the lifeless body of Yat as Guy & John take aim. 

So we begin the final chapter of the SCW with a real look at the war with these two images...

 

From the looks of it, this war has brought every GL and damn near every hero on Earth to the fight.  But before the Earth GL's, fresh off the Parallax fight, rejoin the larger battle they are filled in on the Prophecy of the Blackest Night by Ganthet & Sayd.  It's as close to full disclosure as the Guardians, even Ganthet, are likely to get as they elaborate on the different Corps that will pop-up between SCW & BN. We even get this nifty image of the War of Light that is foretold in the Book of Oa.



 So with all that in mind, Hal attempts to save his family by having them evacuate Coast City but they, along with the rest of the residents of town, illuminate green lights in the window as a show of support.  We also see the the Anti-Monitor at work as he attempts to make a meal out of the positive matter energy of Earth.  Then all hell really breaks loose!  The Lost Lanterns come to the aid of Hal Jordan as he battles Sinestro in space, the Guardians (in a call back to the original Crisis) battle the Anti-Monitor, Guy Gardner gets sick from Despotellis, Amon Sur turns tail and runs when he realizes the GLC can kill, and Hal & Kyle realize that truth about Sinestro.

All he has wanted was to force the GLC to change, and with the institution of the Lethal Force Law, Sinestro sees that he has already won.  Sinestro speaks of his loyalty to the idea of the GLC, and in some ways all he has done has been in attempt to push change upon the Corps; changes that could truly allow the GLC to police the universe, or in Sinestro's words "The Universe will fear Green Lanterns, and the Universe will be better for it."

Back on Earth a moment that will change the future of the GLC, indeed the entire DCU, goes down as the Anti-Monitor burns one of the Guardians with his touch.  That Guardian would eventually become known as Scar, and serve as a mole within the Guardians, working for Nekron, and steering events towards The Blackest Night.  It's just one more example of how intricately Geoff Johns has laid out his GL opus...

An increasingly sick Guy & John Stewart use the Yellow Lantern Battery as a bomb to stop the Anti-Monitor, trapping the Cyborg Superman within, and seemingly granting his death wish which Henshaw meets with a "thank you" to the GLs.   Hal & Kyle both end up with 0% power in their rings, they turn Sinestro's toys against him to drain his power ring, and the fight goes hand-to-hand.  Superboy-Prime single-handedly ends the threat of the Anti-Monitor by flinging his shell into space.  Natu heals Guy using the GLC's own sentient virus, Hal beats Sinestro, a Guardian sacrifices his life to seemingly stop Prime, and the fight finally comes to a close.

The wrap-up sees Coast City's population boom, we discover Prime has been transported into the Multi-Verse, the Guardians mention initiating the 2nd new Law into the Book of Oa, Sayd & Ganthet officially spawn the Blue Ring of Hope, Cyborg Supes is unwillingly resurrected by his Manhunters, the remains of the Anti-Monitor crash land on a dark planet, and the last thing we see on the final page of the SCW....

The Blackest Night is upon us...

So upon finishing the SCW my first thought is....damn that was intense!  Geoff Johns, Dave Gibbons, and Peter Tomasi threw everything they had at the reader and it made for a truly emotional, impactful, gut wrenching story that not only was excellent on it's own, but it also serves as a guide stone for the future of the GL-Verse.  Just within this story you have:

- The Prophecy of the Blackest Night/War of the Light

- The Other Corps Explained

- Origin of Scar

- Anti-Monitor Set-Up In the Black Lantern Battery

- Guy Joking About Wearing Other Rings

- The 10 New Laws In The Book Of Oa (only 6 have been revealed to date)

- Earth = Center Of Multi-Verse

- Superboy Prime in Multi-Verse (Plays Out In Final Crisis & Blackest Night)

There are certainly more set-up points as well, but those are just the ones that were on the tip of my proverbial tongue.  In the same fashion that this set-up "Blackest Night" and BN led into "War of the Green Lanterns", "Sinestro Corps War" was the result of two years of build that all started in "GL: Rebirth".  Johns has proven quite masterful at sowing the seeds of his future storylines within events while simultaneously paying off the build-up, and this is a skill not easy to come by.  All too frequently an event comic can feel as if it was nothing more than a bridge to the next event, and not provide a payoff of its own.  For me that was not the case with BN, nor was it the case with SCW. 

In the initial reading, I felt like this paid off all the build and it made me excited for the future of the GL-verse.  Reading it back now, after having seen how all the set-up paid off, I find it even more amazing how much was really in the meat of this story.  And that's just within the realm of the comic book, not saying anything  of the real world implications of this story.

The character of Sinestro invokes the images of dictators from across the years, I believe Guy even calls him "Adolf" at one point, and his mission to rule by fear is one that strikes close to home in a world where we have seen our lives changed because of fear.  Fear of terror attacks has caused the general population here in the United States to WILLING give up their rights under the guise of homeland security.  This consistent state fear of is perpetuated by the terror alert color schematics, by "enhanced" airport security, by constant rumors of terrorist attacks, and by having a boogieman lurking out in the desert for nearly a decade.  It's nothing new, the idea of government using fear tactics to their advantage...the red scare of communism, Saddam Hussein, Osama Bin Laden, and that's just me using the US government as an example. 

The world that Sinestro wishes to create is one in which rule of fear is taking to its ultimate extreme, but it is one that is plausible.  The opposite argument, in the form of the GLC and as evidenced by Coast City's rally, is that it is through our own willpower that we can fight this sort of fear-based tyranny, and that it can really only be done if we stand together. 

I find it a rare thing in comics that you get a story that speaks to you on a real level, and makes you think about things that actually happen in the "real world".  This was one of those stories, and in the same way Marvel's "Civil War" broached some serious issues, so did "Sinestro Corps War".  Just because it's a comic book, doesn't mean it can't...or rather won't...force you to ask questions.

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Got everything from Geoff John's GL run covering "Sinestro Corps War" thru "Brightest Day" on my EBay Store: My Ebay Store



The Sinestro Corps War Revisited: Part One!

And so it was after re-reading "Blackest Night" that I decided to keep going in reverse thru the tent-pole events of the GL-Verse.  Since Geoff Johns started his opus with "Green Lantern: Rebirth", the story has had a specific forward momentum; building towards events that shaped the immediate future of the GL Corps, and laid the groundwork for future events.  Parts of what went down in BN were established as far back as GL: Rebirth (with some story elements written well before Johns was even thinking of being a comic writer).  That is also the case right here with "The Sinestro Corps War".  So with that I decided to follow in the footsteps of what I did with BN, and read ONLY the core story itself and none of the other tie-in books (thankfully in this case that's only like 4 one-shots).

The opening page of this story, in a fashion sometimes lost in comics, tells you every bit of backstory you really need to know in 5 simple panels of beautiful Ivan Reis art.  A naked Sinestro utters one sentence that sums up his whole purpose, and the purpose of this event..."The Universe Needs To Change".  His backstory unfolds quickly, the second page answers the question of how Sinestro's back was scarred with the Lantern logo, and clearly defines his hate for Kyle Rayner, or rather "the alley rat" as Sinestro so lovingly calls him.  And in the 3rd & 4th pages, we get to hear the oath of the Sinestro Corps; an oath that is the antithesis of the GL oath.

Given the current status quo of the DCU, I find it amusing that Zoom is the villain Geoff Johns elected to use to really kick this story off as the JLA searches out Sinestro in a follow-up to the moment in an earlier issue where Batman is initated into the Sinestro Corps for a minute (GL #17)...

It's in those moments after the Zoom confrontation that Hal Jordan makes a dire statement, "I don't think the Sinestro Corps is Earth's problem, it's the Green Lanterns."  Enter the yellow rings as they fly around the universe looking for those beings capable of creating great fear in a follow-up to a few issues earlier where the reader sees the construction of the rings on Qward, further teasing what was about to go down here.

Johns' drops in on The Guardians as they investigate another of Geoff's favorites, The Cyborg Superman (last seen leading a new wave of Manhunters , who has apparently discovered the secret of the 52 parallel universes and we also get our first mention of the Prophecy of Cosmic Revelations: the Blackest Night in this story (it was name dropped GL #11).  In another small touch, that only has meaning in hindsight, Cyborg Supes says "Without life, there will be no fear, avarice, or hate.", to which Ganthet retorts "Without life there is also no hope or compassion." and Sayd (the female Guardian) chimes in "or love".    In one panel we have the core elements of the...ummm, corps...stated before anything outside of the GLC or SC exist.  And the seeds are planted...

After a quick check-in on another Johns favorite in Superboy-Prime (following up on his imprisonment after "Infinite Crisis"), we get a down moment that lets us in on the internal struggles within the GLC as well as those of Kyle Rayner AKA Ion.  We find out about Ion's Mom, about some painting, and then with a KRAKSH everything goes to hell!  Kyle's abducted, deposited in the Anti-Matter Universe, and the reader gets their first idea of just what awaits Hal Jordan, Guy Gardner, John Stewart, and the rest of the GLC...

And as if that wasn't enough, the brutality begins on Oa and we get to see how violent this war is going to be when a sniper beam blows a whole in a Lantern's head and sprays Guy's face with blood. Kyle versus the SC, the GLC vs the SC, Superboy-Prime & Cyborg Supes liberated, the truth behind Ion revealed as its ripped from the chest of Kyle, and the symbolic ripping of Kyle's heart from his chest as Sinestro tells Kyle the truth about his mother's death & the SC's role in it.  He is a broken man, just like Hal Jordan after Coast City's destruction, and just like Hal, Sinestro uses that moment to turn Kyle into Parallax.   Oh wait, there's more...

And all of that is just the Prologue issue...Sinestro, Parallax, two Super-Men, and the f'n Anti-Monitor!  Not to mention the Sinestro Corps and their very lethal methods.  In one issue, Geoff Johns has set-up a no-win situation for the GLC and even in the re-read I still felt that same sense of "how the hell are they going to survive this" that I had when I first saw that image right above.

In the proper Part One, Johns gives the reader the same kind of origin for Hal Jordan that he did for Sinestro and nails all the pertinent information in a couple of pages.  The stress caused between the Lost Lanterns & Hal Jordan continues while the Guardians elect to further bury The Blackest Night by destroying the last chapter of the Book of Oa.  But it is those action that bring about the eventual creation of the Blue Lanters when Ganthet & Sayd bid farewell to Hal Jordan with three simple words... "We will hope.".  Unfortunately that hope is nearly decimated immediately as Hal is confronted by the Parallax-possessed Kyle Rayner.

With Chapter Two of the story in GLC (written by Dave Gibbsons), it jumps to the events of the War from other perspectives: primarily that of Sinestro but with some members of the GLC included.  The level of violence in this is chapter really shows how different, how serious this battle truly is, but the crux of the story is that of Sinestro's return to Korugar which is now patrolled by Soranik Natu.  In this confrontation we get our first mention of the GLC's inability to use lethal force on their enemies which becomes a major point within the SCW, and we get the first meeting between Sinestro & Soranik which has some serious long term ramifications.  In the light of what is eventually revealed about their familial connection, it's no wonder Sinestro didn't kill her, and it gives a whole other level of meaning to Sinestro's statement that he "only need Korugar to believe you have defeated me and I have won."  Maybe, in his twisted way of thinking, Sinestro figured that Natu would owe him for the fealty Korugar would give her for the "victory" over their former tyrannical ruler....or maybe he figured she'd owe her Daddy one.  Oh yeah, and this Sodam Yat guy pops up....

Back to Hal's story and the return of Amon Sur (now a Sinestro Corps member) after his failed attempts to kill Jordan a few issues prior to SCW.  I guess the first few pages of this issue tell the tale of how only family can talk trash about family, anyone else better watch their mouth.  What's Superboy-Prime waiting for? How sad is Cyborg Supes when you really look at him? And how terrible are the Guardians as they are apparently willing to sacrifice everything Kyle has done for them to save the Ion Entity?  For the greater good and all that...

Kyle unfortunately has to suffer through some of the same moments Hal had to when he was under Parallax's influence, specifically when he kills the lost lantern Jack Chance.  And we get our second moment of a ring shutting down at the attempted use of lethal force, this time by another lost lantern, Boodikka.  Seems to be a theme.  Oh yeah, and very pivotal figure for the coming years is introduced in the Keeper of the Book of Parallax known as Lyssa Drak. 

The jump to GLC bring us a brutal bloody war on Mogo as several elements of previous GLC arcs come into play in the forms of Ranx The Sentient Planet & The Children of the White Lobe.  As a matter of fact, the attempted destruction of Mogo is actually a continuation of a prophecy from a 1986 Annual written by Alan Moore.  Hell, a lot of what Johns has used to tell his long-term story is based on Tales of the Green Lantern Corps Annual #2 (the Empire of Tears, Ysmault, the Five Inversions, etc.).  We also get continued concern about the condition of Sodam Yat by the Guardians, and the fight everyone has been waiting for since we first saw him in GL #10: Arkillo vs. Killowog.  Oh yeah, and the GLC meets the Anti-Monitor!

To Hal and the Earth-GL's....oh wait, first a little stop in Coast City and the Jordan family.  See Hal's brother and his family moved to Coast City shortly after Jordan's return to life but despite the best efforts of the government, the city is still barely populated.  Anywho, Hal find himself powerless in the heart of Sinestro Corps hell and makes the scary scary decison to take on a handful of yellow rings; touching another Corps ring and setting the stage for moments to come as hell eventually wears the ring of damn near every Corps (which in turn created the speculation that he would be the White Lantern since he had touched all the colors).  The Guardians also make their first fateful decision as they renege on something they stated many issues earlier when Hal requested to explore the Forbidden Sector: they elect to rewrite the Book of Oa...and toss Ganthet & Sayd on their asses for acting on emotion. 

In the span of a few pages, the entire game changes:  The Sinestro Corps heads for Earth while the Guardians have amassed the GLC on Oa, the Earth Lanterns stand alone in Coast City as Parallax arrives, and the 1st of 10 new rules in the Book of Oa is announced: Lethal Force Enabled!  Why Earth and not Oa (given that Oa is the center of the universe)? 

Because Earth is the center of the multiverse....

Thus ends Volume One of the Sinestro Corps War HC, and part one of my recap/review/rewind/rehash.  So what do we have? 

In the first half of the story, Johns & Gibbons have laid some of the foundation for "Blackest Night", have evolved storyline points from the first two years of GL & the one year of GLC to bring to fruition the teases of the Sinestro Corps formation; villains that sprouted out in pre-SCW issues have come full circle with membership in the SC; the saga of Coast City continues; elements of Johns' other mega-story "Infinite Crisis" are brought into play with Cyborg Supes, Supes-Prime, and the 52; it laid the groundwork for the whole concept of The Entities; hell even elements of Kyle's life pre-Johns are fleshed out as his sorrow at his mother's death becomes a key storyline point.  And all of that is just in the first half of this GL-Event.

What lies in story for the culmination of the Sinestro Corps War?  How does it foretell the coming of the Blackest Night and the other Corps that are introduced following SCW?  What else does SCW tell us about the past & future of the GL-Verse?  Check back at the end of the week for Part Two of Sinestro Corps War Revisited! 

Until then, don't let Parallax get ya!

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And if you're interested in reading this, or any of the rest of Geoff Johns' Green Lantern run, I am currently auctioning off a large chunk of his run (everything from SCW - present), so check it out here: My Green Lantern Auction.

Also, check out the rest of my auctions if you're interested: The Rest Of My Auctions