Green Lantern Options

[ChuckMoore]

Just got the latest issue of Green Lantern Corps. It's basically a punch up between Daxamite GL Sodam Yat and Superman Prime while Yat's life runs through his head.

I have not like Yat since his introduction. My main problem with the Corps title is that all of the characters that receive focus are pretty dull, except for Guy Gardner, Mogo the Planet, and Bzzd, the wasp. The Rannian, the Thanagarian, the Korugarian, the Princess, and Sodam Yat just bore me to tears. I guess with the corps I prefer the less human like lanterns.

I SO need to catch up on my Green Lantern reading. I'm still Pre-Sinesto Corps. I swear I'm play catch up from one event to the next these days. Still trying to catch up with my X-titles so I can read Messiah CompleX. The Sinestro Corps stuff looks so good. I may have to break down and read in that direction a little.

I agree on the non-human Corps members. They always intrigued me more as well...

[Glen Davis]

Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps came out on the same day this week. The Sinestro Corps. war is over. The ending seemed a little disjointed, but pretty good despite that. We find the big event for 2009.

Green Lantern was great stuff. Green Lantern Corps. continued focus on characters I don't like, so I liked it less. Kyle is as usual a self centered whiner, the primary alien GLs are dull. Only Guy Gardner is the least bit interesting. It's amazing how long I spent hating the character, but after Beau Smith got ahold of him, he's now pretty interesting.

[Ben Tinsley]

Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps came out on the same day this week. The Sinestro Corps. war is over. The ending seemed a little disjointed, but pretty good despite that. We find the big event for 2009.

Green Lantern was great stuff. Green Lantern Corps. continued focus on characters I don't like, so I liked it less. Kyle is as usual a self centered whiner, the primary alien GLs are dull. Only Guy Gardner is the least bit interesting. It's amazing how long I spent hating the character, but after Beau Smith got ahold of him, he's now pretty interesting.

Yeah, Beau made a believer out of a lot of us.

[Glen Davis]

Green Lantern #26 came out today. On the whole it was a decent epilogue type issue.

My concern is that the commentary and references to the War on Terror are more numerous and more obvious. While I'm very mucha Freedom of Speech kind of guy, I think it is dangerous for DC to do this, especially with the shrinking comic book market. Looking at the utter failure of the recent spate of anti-war on terror movies like Redacted and Rendition, it seems...downright stupid, if not suicidal to wade into those waters. And no, I don't think putting pro war messages in the GLC book would help matters any.

Please note: This is not a political post. I'm just questioning whether inserting such messages is a smart way to sell comics in the current market.

[Ben Tinsley]

Green Lantern #26 came out today. On the whole it was a decent epilogue type issue.

My concern is that the commentary and references to the War on Terror are more numerous and more obvious. While I'm very mucha Freedom of Speech kind of guy, I think it is dangerous for DC to do this, especially with the shrinking comic book market. Looking at the utter failure of the recent spate of anti-war on terror movies like Redacted and Rendition, it seems...downright stupid, if not suicidal to wade into those waters. And no, I don't think putting pro war messages in the GLC book would help matters any.

Please note: This is not a political post. I'm just questioning whether inserting such messages is a smart way to sell comics in the current market.

You make a good point. Everyone's crazy button -- whichever way you stand on the issue -- seems to be set off when opinions on the war are voiced. ((I think mine just got set off.))

But on the other hand, I'm getting sick and tired of living in a world where we have to self-censor and withold our very valuable opinions becuase we don't want people on the other side of the issue to pick up rocks and start throwing them on us. "We" being both a community of comic book lovers and writers in general.

Maybe "we" as a comics community should start insisting on more civility when we discuss matters such as these. Keep those stones from being thrown. Tempers and passions get WAY out of control and innocents get caught in the crossfire. And the point of what we're saying gets lost in the chaos.

I remember a couple of years ago when my ex-wife, who lives in Texas, told me she was going to take my son with her to an anti-war protest. This is Texas, where being a Democrat is a very lonely position to hold.

All I did for the next 24 hours was fear for my son's safety. Perhaps that was an overreaction on my part, but like I said, everyone has a CRAZY button. Look at what happened with the Dixie Chicks. The last thing I wanted was my baby boy, who was basically just there because his mom took him there, being confronted by people demanding to know why his mom was holding an anti war sign. All I could see in my mind's eye were the torches and pitchforks of the angry mob. (Didn't happen, BTW.)

I guess my point is, the war is a very real and valid part of our lives. Every one of us has SOME connection to someone who is serving in that war and running the very real risk of dying. This isn't some intellectual argument.

Very real people, very honorable people, are going to go off to fight that war. Many of them won't come back. But what are they fighting for? Shouldn't we allow every person who has an opinion to speak their minds without fear of reprisal? Isn't that ultimately what we are Americans are fighting for, be it in Iraq or in the courtrooms or on the streets or at the polls?

Sometimes writers who feel there is something very valuable that needs to be said and explored tuck their convictions into their writing. A lot of the reason they do that is because they feel no one would listen if they said this stuff out loud. That's where a lot of our finest literature comes from.

I haven't picked got my copy of Green Lantern #26 yet, but if Geoff Johns indeed tucked observations on the war into it as you said, it wouldn't be any different than what Jonathan Swift did in 1729 when he published "A Modest Proposal," a satirical essay in which he suggested the Irish eat their own children to deal with the hunger, poverty and overpopulation problem. I'm fairly certain Swift didn't REALLY advocate canibalism, but he sure as heck got people's attention. Passed it off as entertainment and we remember it to this day.


Bottom line, let's stop treating the war as some issue that's separate from our everyday lives. Becuase it isn't. Let's stop having to couch our thoughts with prefaces like "this isn't a poltical post." Say what you have to say, Brother. I promise you someone will listen. And if you feel threatened, stand behind me while you talk and I'll shield you from the rocks while you finish your sentence. Whether you are for the war or not.

God. I think I'm channeling Dennis Miller with this rant of mine. I'll stop now.

Thanks.

[ChuckMoore]

We momentarily interrupt this discussion for some sweet, sweet art...



This art comes to me via an advance solicited GREEN LANTERN/SINESTRO CORPS SECRET FILES #1 poster set to go on sale on August 27, 2008. Art for the poster is by Ivan Reis & Oclair Albert.

[Glen Davis]

Got issue #17.

Guy and Kyle move to Oa. Mongul talks to his dead sister's rotting head. At least they kept the other supporting Gl's out.

[ChuckMoore]

Glen, I agree completely regarding the Corps. To me they were always the group you turned to for the interestingly different aliens. The earlier runs of this series did a great job of bringing alien culture along with characteristics to the stories. If I wanted a humanoid focused space series, I'd advocate the return of Ferrin Colos and the Darkstars or leave it to the professionals... The Legion of Super-Heroes.

[Glen Davis]

Got GL #27. A good cameo with the Scarecrow. Other than that, there is the formation of the alpha lanterns and the other rival corps. I'm more interested in the rival corps than the alph lanterns, but I guess I'll have to be patient.

[better]

I have not read it before, I would love to read its this edition. This is looking great on Cover page.

[Glen Davis]

More information on the Alpha Lanterns

http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=146011

[Conscientious Se...]

Yeah, Newsarama is also running a preview of next week's GL Corps right now on its front page.

[BrightParis]

I have read Green Lantern and now, i m reading it again.Any current update about this.

[Glen Davis]

GLC Came out. More of the alpha Lanterns, with a focus on Boodika. Not bad.

[Glen Davis]

Issue #28 of Green Lantern really doesn't have much to do with Hal Jordan. He stands around while Laira is put on trial for killing Amon Sur, then has another little talk with Sinestro.

The cool stuff that happens is about the formation of the Red Lanterns.

Read it for that.

[Glen Davis]

GLC #22 came out. If continues the story with Boodika. I'm still not very interested in her story, but the story was okay, if a bit predictable. More on the Red Lanterns, which is the story I'm interested in.

[Glen Davis]

GL #29 came out. It's the first part of an arc showing Hal Jordan's origin, and the connexion to Atrocitus and the Blackest Night prophecy.

I liked it despite the lack of Green Lantern action. Some bemoaned the way John Stewart was portrayed, but that's not one of my oxes to gored.

[Glen Davis]

Geoff Johns talks Green Lantern

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=15826

[Glen Davis]

GLC focuses on the small number of lanterns n practically every issue. Other than Guy, the only one I find at all interesting is Stel. They are pursuing sinestro rings and find Mongul on the other end. Pretty good stuff, just would like to see some of the other 7190 GLC members.

[Glen Davis]

GL #30, more on the origin of Hal Jordan. Not bad. We get a tiresome scene of Hal defending Thomas Kalamaku from a racist pilot to show what a good guy Hal is. I rolled my eyes at this. All Kalamaku had to do was go to a lawyer and the pilot would be fired forthwith. It also tends to make Kalamaku look like a helpless victim instead of a real human being. It's like Johns hasn't figured out that Hal's origin doesn't take place in 1958 anymore. I think it's about time that cliche got put out to pasture.

The rest...is immemorial.