THIS WEEK: The Green Lantern Corps continues its All In rebuild, with the start of a new ensemble series. Also, we check in on the King of the Sea and two versions of the Dark Knight, with micro-reviews of Aquaman #2, Batman: Dark Patterns #3, and Absolute Batman #5.
Note: The review below may contain spoilers.
Green Lantern Corps #1
Writers: Morgan Hampton and Jeremy Adams
Penciler: Fernando Pasarin
Inker: Oclair Albert
Colorist: Arif Prianto
Letterer: Dave Sharpe
Cover Artists: Pasarin, Albert, and Prianto
For me, there’s an easy way to tell when a series titled Green Lantern Corps is going to be successful. My judgment boils down to one question: Does the creative team understand the Corps should be both understandable (it’s a cosmic police force …) and strange (… made up of aliens from throughout the DC universe, which is a wild, wild place)?
By page six, I felt assured the creative team behind this week’s Green Lantern Corps #1 would nail the feeling I was looking for. In the scene that takes place across pages five and six, Lanterns Jo Mullein and John Stewart perp walk Kanjar Ro through the Corps’ front office. They talk shop; Stewart avoids talking about his feelings. In the background, Guy Gardner conducts an interview with some sort of sentient liquid being. I won’t ruin what is a hilarious background gag here, but let’s just say, Guy’s interview gets quite weird.
This mix, of cop drama and cosmic spectacle, pervades Green Lantern Corps #1. The issue is at least somewhat a standard police procedural. But here, the case the cops catch involves wrangling a giant construct of a Tamaranean goddess. Which is, you know, just a standard Green Lantern problem. All in a day’s work and not even worth fretting about if you’re a seasoned member of the Corps. Me, I was a bit worried for them.
Part of the reason I was worried is that penciler Fernando Pasarin, inker Oclair Albert, and colorist Arif Prianto did such a stellar job rendering this issue’s action sequences. Pasarin has been a DC mainstay for literal decades now, and I expect certain things from him. Great character acting, decent action sequences. However, due to either Pasarin’s own efforts, those of Albert and Prianto, or both, Green Lantern Corps #1 felt like a level-up from Pasarin’s usual work. The excellent character acting I expected was still on display, but Pasarin’s action sequences felt smoother, stronger, and more detailed. If Pasarin and co. can bring this level of quality to future issues, the art alone will make Green Lantern Corps worth a read.
In a world in which many people have strong feelings about cops, it’s worth noting that here, the Lanterns solve their primary problem with a minimum of violence. In fact, not a single punch or laser beam is thrown at this issue’s “antagonist.” Instead, Sinestro (of all people) de-escalates the situation via conversation. I’m sure future issues of Green Lantern Corps will feature some more-standard “cop vs. criminal” action. It is, after all, a superhero comic series. But I found co-writers Morgan Hampton and Jeremy Adams’s choice to start this series with peaceful conflict resolution refreshing, and hope that theme will feature throughout.
All in all, Green Lantern Corps #1 is a strong start and a welcome follow-up to last month’s Green Lantern: Fractured Spectrum special. That special (while feeling a bit rushed) seemed to promise good things were ahead for the Green Lantern line. If Green Lantern Corps #1 is any indication, those promises will pay off.
The Round-Up
- Over in this week’s other Jeremy Adams book, Aquaman sure does talk about killing a lot in Aquaman #2. I’m much lower on this series than Adams’s Green Lantern work, and I think part of that comes down to the tonal mismatch between the story’s plot and art. Adams is writing a grim, sword and sorcery-esque story, while artist John Timms, colorist Rex Lokus, and letterer Dave Sharpe are doing quite cartoony work. That said, I think any story in which Aquaman yelled “It’s time to die!” at his enemy and engaged in bloodbending would throw me off a bit. If you’re into a somewhat Conan-like Aquaman, this book might be for you. But if, like me, you prefer a bit more optimistic Aquaman, you probably want to give this one a pass.
- Batman: Dark Patterns continues to be the best Bat-book on stands currently, which is saying something given its competition. In the maxiseries’s third issue, writer Dan Watters, artist Hayden Sherman, colorist Tríona Farrell, and letterer Frank Cvetkovic close the case of the Wound Man in gripping, noirish fashion. This series’s focus on strange antagonists, emotional trauma, and actual detective work has made it a must-read, and I can’t wait for the start of its second mystery next month.
- Absolute Batman #5 gives Dark Patterns a run for its money this week, with the penultimate issue of its first storyline. Artist Nick Dragotta and colorist Frank Martin continue to steal the show here, providing action-packed pages that have oh so very many panels on them, as well as an awe-inspiring splash page. But writer Scott Snyder is keeping pace with his art team, not only by giving them all these cool things to draw, but by positioning Batman as an underdog taking on the upper class and broken systems. Snyder set out to create a version of Batman that speaks to the current moment, and he’s certainly done so – which is why I’m so invested in the conclusion to this opening arc.
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