Review:
Book two of the three-volume Sector 2814 set of Green Lantern trade paperbacks puts John Stewart at the center of the action. The set continues to collect some momentous and turbulent times in the life of Green Lantern, whoever bears that title.
Len Wein and Dave Gibbons establish the new Green Lantern out of the gate with battles against some classic foes, first Major Disaster, closely followed by Eclipso. Through these confrontations, the new guy is clearly learning the ropes, making mistakes, slowly getting better and more confident.
It includes one of my favourite scenes in the whole collection, the sanity-breaking "everyone is a Green Lantern" sequence. Whether or not it's an early nod to the cosplay culture, it is a fun page. I am less impressed by some of the sloppy green-power structures John Stewart creates - sure, he is still learning, but he is supposedly a highly regarded architect and the best he can imagine is an elevated platform without safety rails for his date with the reporter?
As the Wein & Gibbons run ends, Paul Kupperberg steps in for a one-parter standalone "day in the life" tale, although still contractually obligated, it appears, to move some of the secondary plots forward with a panel or page here and there. Fill-in artist Bill Willingham is already in this era showing the distinctive visual style elements that will become so strong in his Fables series in the future. Unfortunately, here in Green Lantern, those traits of posture and expression just feel awkward.
With #188, Steve Englehart takes over the writing and Joe Staton becomes the penciller. This new team immediately starts moving the characters and themes in intriguing new directions. They reveal John Stewart's secret identity in their very first issue, so he loses the mask - because what is the point, who are you hiding from now that everyone knows?
They also start a budding romance between Stewart and Katma Tui, the veteran Green Lantern assigned as his tutor by the Guardians. In their hands it feels natural and sweet, building to their first kiss and beyond.
And over several issues the creative team builds the tension brewing between Hal Jordan, Carol Ferris and the mysterious Predator. Ringless Hal is still without fear and does his best to confront the vicious Predator who, in turn, becomes increasingly romantically fixated on Carol. It all culminates (spoiler alert!) in the shocking return of Star Sapphire!
In all, it is an audacious debut for this new creative team, as they take a big swing at putting their own stamp on the Green Lantern mythology. Not everything they try is a hit - the Hal Jordan vigilante arc foremost among them. And Staton occasionally switches from rectangular panels to slashing diagonals and triangles for no apparent reason, just a page here and there of sudden visual disorientation.
I also appreciate how they are slowly setting up Guy Gardner for a future role, and the many nods to the long and rich history of Green Lantern. In particular, the retrospective of past confrontations with Star Sapphire and the extra legwork on the Editor's part to stick in references to issues past, where these events took place.
Description:
The mid-1980s run of Green Lantern tales continues with the final stories by the team of writer Len Wein (creator of Wolverine and Swamp Thing) and artist Dave Gibbons (Watchmen). Over the course of these tales, John Stewart becomes the new Green Lantern of Earth, only to face the threats of Eclipso and Star Sapphire. Plus, John Stewart battles his predecessor as Green Lantern of Earth, Hal Jordan.
Collects: Green Lantern (vol 2) #182-183, 185-193
Authors: Len Wein, Steve Englehart
Artists: Dave Gibbons, Joe Staton, Bruce Patterson
Published By: DC Comics
Published When: Aug 27, 2013
Parental Rating: PG
ISBN: 978-1401240783
Pages: 232 pages
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