Green Lantern: New Guardians #31 – Review

By: Justin Jordan (writer), Diogenes Neves (penciler), Marc Deering (inker), Wil Quintana (colors)

The Story: As Kyle confronts the distressing possibility of his increasing godhood, he discovers a somewhat familiar alien who doesn’t share his hesitance.

The Review: Green Lantern: New Guardians Annual #2 was a strange but welcome addition to the story that Justin Jordan has been telling and one that ended on a rather unsettling cliff hanger. This issue picks up pretty immediately where that one left off, taking a little time to recount what’s occurred and provide a bit of insight into Kyle’s mental state as it does.

It’s immediately clear that the series has turned a corner and that awareness does sharpen the issue’s focus, however, as was the case with the annual, Kyle’s confusion makes it hard to get settled. Without anyone to talk to, Kyle’s inner monologue loses a bit of grounding, and the book feels kind of floaty. Despite this weakness, the issues that Kyle is wrestling with are fascinating.

This is hardly the first time we’ve examined the consequences of superhuman power in a comic, but Jordan mixes uncertainty with maturity quite well. It’s no surprise that this comes from the author of The Strange Talent of Luther Strode, but oddly enough there’s almost a greater sense of horror here, as the threat is entirely internal, immediate, and unknown.