John Stewart goes head to head with the Qinoori. He may be alone in the Dark Sector without his ring to aid him, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have a few tricks left up his sleeve. Back on Oa, Jo Mullein is trying to hold what’s left of the Corps together – and picks up some important clues as to what really happened when the Central Battery went boom. Green Lantern #4 is written by Geoffrey Thorne, drawn by Tom Raney and Marco Santucci, colored by Michael Atiyeh and lettered by Rob Leigh.
Armaan Babu: For a long time, Green Lantern stories were neatly split between Green Lantern, following the exploits of the “main” Earth GL of the time, and Green Lantern Corps, featuring a much larger cast more focused on the operations of the Corps as a whole, usually centered around Oa.
The current series seems to want to do just that, this issue more clearly than anything else, as it neatly splits between John Stewart’s story and the one back on Oa. It took a lot of setup to get to this point, but it feels like now that it’s here, things are going a bit smoother. What did you think of the issue, Jude?
Jude Jones: Armaan, always a pleasure, even if the read isn’t always pleasurable. If I’m honest, I feel a little…uncomfortable (?)… giving this review. I know we are here to critique and give opinions. I know our dedicated and wonderful readers want us to be honest. And I have no problems being honest. But! I’m also self-aware, or at least try to be. And I wonder sometimes if I’m being too rough on this comic. Asking too much from something that was never designed to give me what I’m asking for. Like no one goes to Wendy’s expecting top quality steak, or shops at Old Navy for couture. So on one hand, maybe I should just keep my expectations low and my brain partially turned off for this, right?
My problem is, I actually did that and I still don’t love this. Not at all. Maybe it’s still me. Maybe I need to turn off more of my brain.
Or maybe this whole concept just isn’t a good look. Speaking of which…
This Doesn’t Look Good
Jude: So let’s get into the plot. After a terror attack on Oa that blew up the Central Power Battery and (presumably but likely not permanently) killed the Guardians, the Lanterns have now all suddenly lost their powers. This apparently killed many of them (we learn about 300 of the 1000 on the mission with John are out of commission) and endangered all of them…including John.
John is now on a remote planet, being stalked by old foes who want him dead specifically. Through time dilation, he feels like he’s been on this planet for months, even though it’s only been days at most. So not only is he motivated to survive, but he’s motivated to protect a people he’s come to appreciate.
Action happens. Hilarity ensues. I’ll pause here. What did you think of everything John’s going through?
Armaan: “Action happens” is a fair summary. This is a relatively straightforward story of a superhero overcoming the odds. I definitely feel I enjoyed this issue a lot more than you did. I feel this was a good showcase of the approach John has to superheroing. He’s a hero who’s done the homework, who’s aware of the tactical advantages and disadvantages of any given situation, and who uses that knowledge like a weapon when his ring doesn’t do the trick. He’s not Batman – he’s hasn’t set traps around the town in the months he’s been here – but when the situation calls for it, he adapts quickly.
It’s a good introduction to the kind of hero John Stewart is. It’s strange to have it happen in #4 of the series.
The first two issues of this comic excited me. It felt – still feels – like this series has a lot to say, and add to the Green Lantern mythos. The trouble is is that it feels like it wants to tell all of it at once, and it’s coming out in a mess. There’s a lot going on, but none of it feels balanced. This issue, however, feels like the series is just starting to get a more stable footing. It’s shaky, but it’s there. What did you think of the first half of this story?
Jude: So I had two issues with the Trial of John Stewart. The first is, well, it just feels so blandly heroic. His master plan is basically beat up the bad guys in the dark which…ok? I guess? His dialogue is bland (and that alien culture he’s embedded in feels extra American), the action as presented feels clumsy, and the result is predictable. I get it. Lanterns are not just their rings, and John can get busy even if he’s depowered. Got it. But this just didn’t connect emotionally. There’s also the *other* problem I have with this half of the comic, which is, well…
This Doesn’t Look Good
Jude: I tend to give art in comics a wide berth. Art is subjective, and what might not connect for me may look exceptional to someone else. Fair.
But not here. Not at all here, especially and specifically for John’s segment. The art is bad. Very bad. Grotesque. Distractingly bad, even. There’s a point where John is sneaking up on his assailants and then attacks. I know this because that’s what I inferred from the text; the art made the action almost indecipherable. Facial expressions are strained. Facial features don’t stay consistent. The coloring looks crayola basic (like getting 8 crayons instead of 64…and none of them skin tone appropriate.) It is literally painful for me to sit through this segment. Aaaarrgghh lol.
The second half of the comic at least looks better. And by better I mean merely mediocre. We got a master work in art this week in X-Men #1, and perhaps it’s not a fair comparison, but still…I’m not impressed. Somethings gotta give. But maybe I’m being too hard. I know we harped on this last time, but it’s so so bad that I think it’s worth mentioning again. Thoughts?
Armaan: Grotesque is a good word for it – distracting is too. Tom Raney’s art is a hard pill to swallow. The action is crammed into some panels in ways that make me need to take a physical step back from the screen – which is why my favorite part of the first half of this comic came in the darkness.
For all that I dislike the art, the colors aren’t letting me down. I’m a sucker for glowy things in the dark. Green Lanterns are in space, more often than not. Give me glowy green in the dark and I’m a happy customer. I have a low bar.
Returning to Oa was a breath of fresh air. Marco Santucci’s art just charms me. Here, the classic feel of it makes the Oa-centric storyline feel…quiet. It’s the post-climactic work of repairing what’s gone wrong, of picking up the pieces and quietly trying to make sense of everything that’s happened.
This Isn’t a Good Look, Either
Jude: The second half revolves around Jo Mullein, the Green Lantern born in Far Sector, trying to pick up the pieces of a fallen Oa. She’s not assessing the dead; she’s investigating what really happened (surprise! It was a hit job); she’s babysitting a precocious, hot headed powered pre-teen. She’s doing a lot. And again, this in itself is fine. She’s doing what’s required of her; she’s doing what she’s trained for. My problem is that she’s only doing; she is not feeling. She’s not mourning. She’s not shown to be exceptionally sad or exasperated or angry or frustrated. She just kind of moves as the plot requires her to move. It’s a disappointment; in Far Sector her emotions gave a context and gravitas to her actions. And without that feeling, without that context or gravitas, I just didn’t connect well with her.
Armaan: I’m trying to think of fans who missed out on Far Sector and are meeting Jo for the first time. I’m looking at the Jo we meet, based entirely on the character moments we’ve been given for her in the past two issues, and there’s…not much to her. She’s been toned down in more ways than one to present a generically competent hero trying to make the best of a bad situation. This issue she’s mostly just…there to listen as exposition pours in from Simon Baz and Councillor Fel.
Like I said earlier, this series has a lot to say – but it doesn’t seem to know what exactly to say about Jo Mullein yet, beyond being excited that she’s here. She’s a central part of the story, but as much as I hate to say it, she’s not its most interesting one.
I feel like the characters of this series are being left behind in service of the events that are happening around them. Something very, very big is happening in the background, and it’s leaving the stories that should matter a lot duller.
Jude: I did, however, connect with Keli. While her impetuous actions kind of wear thin, at least here, towards the end, we see some emotion behind them. We see her feel sad that the Guardians died alone. We see her get angry that nothing’s getting done. We see her resolute to make a change. THIS is what I want more of. Emotions driving action.
Do I love her PTSD being used as an excuse for her actions? Not really (especially since I worked with kids her age who had PTSD – this is a real thing that manifests in a wide array of ways, and should not just be an excuse to have her fly off the handle). Do I love Jo *straightening* her hair to make her look more presentable? Nope (I get what the comic was trying to convey, but hair politics for Black women are complicated).
So yeah, I see hope for the future. I can see a path to better things. And I’m grateful to have a comic full of Black and Brown people being heroic (even if they are imperialist cops). But still, we can do a bit better, don’t you think?
Armaan: I’ll be honest – this is a comic I have a low bar for. There are moments I enjoy in this, there are sparse moments that have been popping up every issue. The glint of an intriguing plot thread in the rubble of exposition. Green Lantern light trails swooped gracefully over a broken Oa. A stressed Jo Mullien trying to figure out how to handle everything at once, and even a story that shows off John Stewart’s skills.
The series as a whole, though, is messy – but with this issue it’s starting to feel like it’s slowing down enough to wrap around a sort of form that can be followed. I hope it can find itself a steady pace at the same time it realizes what does work for it. Green Lantern has some great characters, and a larger plot I am still, somehow, intrigued by! I just wish they’d make it easier for me to enjoy it. Maybe even give me a reason to raise my expectations.
In the meantime…gimme some more glowy green on a darkened panel, I guess.
Taking a Good Look Closer
- I (Jude) really hope Sinestro isn’t behind this. That would be so basic. I’m pretty sure he’s not, but since this comic keeps finding ways to disappoint, I’m just not sure.
- I (Armaan) can’t imagine it’s Sinestro, given how much effort is going into explaining why this attack is like nothing we’ve ever seen before – but I am interested in seeing more Sinestro showing up in these pages.
- I’m (Jude again) not bilingual so I definitely had to Google what Keli was saying. And that’s fine! I actually appreciated that. But I know she’s Bolivian, and I wonder if her Spanish was accurate, given regional dialects.
- Give Jo her hips back, please. And find John a new barber.
- The sheer number of rings taken from dead Lanterns that John is forced to face is one of the issue’s more chilling moments. That’s too many rings!
Armaan is obsessed with the way stories are told. From video games to theater, TTRPGs to comics, he has written for, and about, them all. He will not stop, actually; believe us, we've tried.
A proud New Orleanian living in the District of Columbia, Jude Jones is a professional thinker, amateur photographer, burgeoning runner and lover of Black culture, love and life. Magneto and Cyclops (and Killmonger) were right.
Find more of Jude’s writing here.
