Green Lantern Corps #6 – Review

By: Peter J. Tomasi (writer), Fernando Pasarin (artist), Scott Hana (inker), Gabe Eltaeb (colorist)

The Story: Admit it, Guy—you’ve always dreamed of a Rambo moment like this.

The Review: I’m no historian, so I don’t know when comic book writers started doing this kind of thing, but nowadays, it’s common practice for them to have a long-term plot in place for their series.  While each arc stands on its own to some degree, they tend to serve some other plot down the line.  You often get that feeling on Geoff Johns’ Green Lantern; no matter how major the outcome of one story, you always feel like it’s setup for the next.

Of course, that’s not really a bad thing, although it does kind of steal the savor of satisfaction you get at the end of an arc.  Not so here; while Tomasi may very well have big plans to use this issue’s aftermath for some purpose in the future, he doesn’t make it obvious.  By the time you reach the last page, you can close the book, sit back, and happily mull over the resolution.  It’s the feeling you get when you can finally close the door and shut out the draft of loose ends.

But I’m getting ahead of myself, talking about the ending when this review has only just started.  Let’s talk about John Stewart, instead.  Since his frequent companion Guy comes off so frenetic and boisterous, you sometimes get misled into thinking John’s somehow less of a warrior.  Here, John’s will proves the equal of Guy’s, only whereas Guy seems to practically leak his will all over the place, John’s feels more contained and centered—to a degree (in response to a Keeper saying he’ll break sooner or later, John screams, “I’d say later you son of a bitch!”).

Left behind as a hostage in enemy territory, John must rely on that will to make some fairly sticky decisions.  As veteran Lantern, he has a duty to look out for the greenhorns under his wing, but he also has to think of the big picture and do what’s necessary to keep that picture from spoiling.  In this case, it means John takes a leaf out of Wonder Woman’s past-universe book and chooses the lesser of two evils.  Despite Vandor’s reassurances that he did the right thing, his actions will undoubtedly haunt John very personally in the near future.

Green Lantern Corps #1 – Review

By: Peter J. Tomasi (writer), Fernando Pasarin (artist), Scott Hana (inker), Gabe Eltaeb (colorist)

The Story: Alright, who let all the water run out?

The Review: Don’t let Green Lantern’s title fool you; it may technically apply to any one of the 7,200 members of the universe’s primo space cowboys, but we all know the book’s interested in just one Lantern, Hal Jordan, and his personal dramas.  Those interested in the larger mythos lurking beyond the tunnel vision on Hal must turn to Green Lantern Corps, which has the advantage of 7,199 or so characters to choose from, and the entire universe as their playground.

But of course, even the best ensembles have their first bananas, and for GLC, those bananas are Guy Gardner and John Stewart—the “other” Lanterns of Earth.  Interestingly, in this issue both men face nearly the same question as their more famous compatriot in his solo title: how does a cosmically-empowered cop make a life for himself in civilized society, particularly if the whole world knows he’s a cosmically-empowered cop?  Guy and John’s attempts to recapture some normality offer very strong, character-defining scenes, which Tomasi clearly excels at.

Contrary to the loud, raucous antics he puts on in costume, civilian Guy comes across stable, even inclusive, answering the curiosity of multiple city folk with remarkable self-restraint (“I like that other Lantern from Coast City the best…  Didn’t he get a power ring before you?”  “That’s right, I’m number 2 on the lineup card, and maybe you should move to Coast City yourself.”).  You can tell he had high hopes for the high school coaching job he interviews for, but not too long into the chat, he quietly realizes how impossible that dream really is now.

And in brilliant contrast, the usually centered John reacts to his crushed expectations with a tightly controlled tantrum.  He has good reason to take offense to his potential employers’ tunnel vision on their bottom line, but at the same time, we all can admit their concerns aren’t entirely motivated by greed.  John has a Marine’s code of honor, and his powers allow him to follow it in situations which normal people would find highly impractical.  It may be his awareness of this gaping difference between him and his fellow humans that makes him act out so dramatically.

R.E.B.E.L.S. #27 – Review

By: Tony Bedard (writer), Claude St. Aubin (penciller), Scott Hana (inker), Rich & Tanya Horie (colorists)

The Story: Prepare to be sucker-punched—and by sucker-punch I mean getting a telepathic starfish in your face.

The Review: A big cast can be a handful to write, but their usefulness to fiction is invaluable.  The more well-developed characters you have, the more opportunities you have to mix and match them up to see what kind of reactions you can get out of them in various situations.  If you give them a chance, they can practically build their own stories for you.

So it’s not a shocker that when Bedard gets more of the R.E.B.E.L.S. involved in the plot, the issue instantly feels more active and invested.  The back-and-forth chatter among them has an energy and dynamic that’s largely absent when it’s just Vril Dox condescending to whoever manages to get his attention that moment.  It’s also plain refreshing to see the team acting like—well, a team.

Even so, they still get comparatively little to do, what with half of them beaming back to Rann to counter the Starro invasion, and the other half going off to find Brainiac (a mission which proves virtually worthless as the first team winds up accomplishing both).  Really, it’s Vril’s son and lady-friend who get the most page-time, with Lyrl devising a method to free the Starro-infected, and Blackfire facing off against the Conqueror himself.

Lryl’s use of Tribulus to disinfect the Rannians from the possessing starfish is quite ingenious, although the science behind it doesn’t get explained very well.  It also seems a bit too easy, as the invasion barely feels like it’s started (mostly because Bedard’s focus in past issues has been on Starro the Conqueror and his Lobo clones).  On top of that, the whole plot has been executed predictably; Starro stories rarely go any other way, after all.

Herc #1 – Review

By: Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Neil Edwards (penciller), Scott Hanna (inker), Jesus Aburtov (colorist)

The Story: Uh-oh…does the incredible Hercules have a little boo-boo?

The Review: Despite being one of the most likable and collaborative heroes around, Hercules’ godlike powers don’t really allow him to mix up with his fellow Avengers and their usual foes too often.  But with his superhuman powers diminished and the title of his newest ongoing reduced simply to his nickname, Pak and Van Lente show that Herc’s going to have to rub shoulders with the rest of us mortals for a while.  There’s of course a lot of potential for that kind of storyline, and Pak-Van Lente have already begun mining it in this first issue.

Nothing starts the blood pumping for an action series like guns and fisticuffs on a speeding train.  Herc’s takes down the gang of Warhawks in neo-classical fashion, proving his power loss hasn’t affected his battle skills any.  Pak-Van Lente also smartly use the opportunity to give brief intros to his arsenal of weapons and demonstrate their surprising effectiveness against conventional arms (his arrow piercing through one thug’s Uzi into his shoulder is especially great).

There are plenty of other myth-based superheroes that don’t really figure their mythological roots into their stories except as a theme, so it’s really impressive how present Herc’s ancient Greek origins stay throughout the issue beyond his weapons.  The prayers of his worshippers seem to be guiding him toward a more Herculean challenge than disarming the Kingpin’s street mafia.  No doubt the two tie together somehow, but this issue remains determinedly vague on that front.

And Herc wouldn’t be the hero we love without his enthusiastic embrace of modern American culture.  His delight in liquor gives us a pretty good joke (seeing a can of beer offered at his altar: “Best.  Offering.  Ever.”) and gets him a temp job, which can only mean more hilarious beats to come.  And there are few heroes in either of the Big Two who are as sexually comfortable as Hercules—the cut from meeting Rhea to him sprawled naked in bed is possibly one of the best scene-jumps you’ll have read this year.

R.E.B.E.L.S. #26 – Review

By: Tony Bedard (writer), Daniel HDR & Claude St. Aubin (pencillers), Scott Hana (inker), Rich & Tanya Horie (colorists)

The Story: Place your bets, folks—who’ll destroy the system first: a Starro invasion, or a rampage of Lobo clones?

The Review: By now, you should know the drill: with this title’s cancellation imminent, a step back to see where things went wrong can always be a valuable move.  For R.E.B.E.L.S., its biggest downfall has been it doesn’t live up to the kind of title it claims to be.  It’s a team title that spotlights only a couple characters and sidelines the rest, and it’s a cosmic title that seems less interested in traveling the stars and more interested in establishing a bureaucracy.

The first problem has been present and obvious in every issue since day one, and this one is no different.  Things weren’t so bad when Dox was Bedard’s only pet character, but once he brought Lobo in, the rest of the cast got reduced to nearly cameo roles.  Even with Dox under Starro control and Lobo distracted with fighting Starro’s henchmen, the rest of the team still only gets a couple pages total (cumulatively!) of panel time.

Instead of letting the other R.E.B.E.L.S. take more important parts in the story, Bedard fills the issue by fleshing out Lobo’s origins—and none too well, either.  If you’re at all familiar with the baddest alien in the galaxy, you already knew he caused his own race’s genocide.  It’s not as if Bedard brought much depth to that grim event: Lobo was different; his people outcasted him; he took revenge, somehow (we don’t see how) bypassing their own regenerative resilience.

And this origin story ends up having no effect on the plot, as Starro the Conquerer backhands Smite from feeding it to the Lobo-clones (in hope they’ll avenge their ancestors’ deaths).  It’s unsurprising though that Smite would try for such a desperate choice.  Dox says it best this issue: “Only Lobo can beat Lobo.”  It effectively sums up Lobo’s limitations as a character; he’s incapable of defeat, so you never feel danger when he’s on the job.

Not that there’s much danger to begin with.  With Starro, the plot spells itself out fairly predictably: a bunch of starfish on people’s faces, mass hysteria/paranoia, the heroes find a way to break the connection, celebrations ensue.  That leaves fairly little to look forward to as this arc wraps up, unless Bedard somehow brings a totally mind-blowing new twist at the eleventh hour, and there’s little hope of that—he can hardly keep track of the details he already has.  Blackfire offers her services to Director Sardath in defeating Starro, yet several pages later Sardath has been Starro-ed (we never see how it happens) and she’s nowhere to be seen.

R.E.B.E.L.S. #25 – Review

By: Tony Bedard (writer), Claude St. Aubin (penciller), Scott Hanna (inker), Rich and Tanya Horie (colorists)

The Story: The return of Starro the Conquerer!  Or, more technically, the return of the return of Starro the Conquerer!  By the way, it’s raining Czarnians.

The Review: There are generally two kinds of villains: your garden-variety, day-to-day thugs who might end up occupying our heroes for half a day, if they’re lucky; and then you have your big-momma, criminal masterminds who will push the good guys to the brink of defeat before inevitably giving way.  No matter which you end up, they all end up like bad houseguests: no sooner gotten rid of before they’re back again.

Starro the Conquer certainly fits the bill; since his introduction, he’s served as the main baddie of now three story arcs in R.E.B.E.L.S. Considering the series is still relatively young, at twenty-five issues, this feels like one arc too many.  Although the initial concept of a humanoid Starro offered some interest at first, by now we all know that besides a giant axe and super-strength, he follows the same M.O. as all Starro plots: possessing people by throwing starfish in their faces.

It all boils down to predictability.  Bedard writes the issue competently enough, but you just can’t help having a “been there, done that” attitude about the whole thing.  After all, Starro is still after taking Brainiac 2 for his own, and he’s still all about galactic conquest.  Since his motivations aren’t any different than before, and neither are his means for carrying them out, half the premise has been recycled from previous stories—not exactly thrilling.  Still an army of Lobo clones (male and female, interestingly enough) has some potential for thrills, though it’s unclear how they’ll be used in this arc.

R.E.B.E.L.S. #24 – Review

By: Tony Bedard (writer), Claude St. Aubin (penciller), Scott Hana (inker), Rich & Tanya Horie (colorists)

The Story: With a bout of peace at last, our R.E.B.E.L.S. finally have some time to work on their romantic entanglements.  These are…the days of their lives…

The Review: With the last issue focused mainly on the Vega sector’s Green Lanterns, the R.E.B.E.L.S. haven’t had much opportunity to develop their characters and show their stakes in this whole operation.  Unfortunately, that’s been the case for most of the series’ run.  Despite a great cast of cosmic personalities, Vril Dox continues to get the lion’s share of page-time and big moments, and that’s really no way to keep up the integrity of a team comic.

This issue does some work to reverse that trend.  Sure, once again Dox’s burgeoning relationship with the edgy Blackfire gets the biggest showcase, but at least you also get touching scenes with Adam Strange’s wife and daughter (still one of the most well-adjusted families in the DCU), Captain Comet trying to drink away his problematic crush on Starfire, and even Lobo getting some action.  These are all good moments to give the characters some drama besides cleaning up whatever mess Dox has gotten them all into again.

On the other hand, Tony Bedard tends to be a little too talky with his writing.  He does pen some good dialogue, especially where his pet characters (Dox and now Lobo) are concerned.  But too often the characters talk about their problems or recall events instead of having those things shown, and that’s a pretty lame use of a visual medium.  For example, Strange and his wife spend two pages talking about their past and their friends’ love lives, all in panels of various close-ups, like the storyboard of a soap opera.  It doesn’t make for very lively reading.

And after all that, you still don’t really get much of a new handle on these characters than you did before.  Comet’s still a lovesick dog, Strange an adaptable family man, and Lobo—well, he’s still Lobo.  Dox still gets the most profit out of the issue as his evening with Blackfire show the semblance of his sensitive side—possibly even a genuine one.  It’s still pretty clear, however, that there may be some plotting happening from both parties.  These are probably the scenes that get the best treatment and have the largest stakes in the long-run for this series.

Nova Vol. 1 – Review

By Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning (writers), Sean Chen, Scott Hanna & Brian Denham (artists)

The Marvel universe (by which I mean that vast expanse of space in which Silver Surfer, Galactus, and Ego run around in as opposed to the Marvel Universe, the corporate umbrella that we gather all of the company’s intellectual properties under when we talk about them) has never been an especially interesting setting to tell stories in.  Weird, right?  I mean, this is space we’re talking about, the final frontier.  An endless, ethereal, expanse of limitless potential and imagination where anything can happen.  And yet, despite the wealth of stories that can be told here, Marvel writers have seemed reluctant to do anything with it.  The last time I ever got excited about a Marvel space story was when “The Infinity Gauntlet” came out, and that was eighteen years ago.

Fast forward to 2006 when I began reading  positive fan feedback and critical praise for “Annihilation” a storyline designed to revitalize Marvel’s cosmic franchise.  The story certainly sounded worthwhile, but I wasn’t quite convinced to invest the time and money to collect it.

And then I found out Dan Abnett was involved with the story.

I’d known and been a huge fan of Abnett’s work through his involvement with Black Library’s series of Warhammer 40,000 books (any Gaunt’s Ghosts fans out there?) and it was on the strength of his writing there that I was willing to take another chance on Marvel’s final frontier.  I’m glad I did, because there is new life and abundant imagination to be found here, and nowhere is that more apparent than on Marvel’s flagship space title, Nova.

This inaugral volume collects the first seven issues of the title and spins directly out of the events of Annihilation: Conquest, the sequel to the 2006 crossover.  Following the devastation of the Annihilation Wave, the galaxy has been torn asunder and left in a broken, fragile, and highly volatile state.  There was a time when the Nova Corps was around to maintain law and order, but that time has come and gone and the Nova Corps is all but dead, with only Richard Rider left standing as their sole representative, one man to protect an entire galaxy.  It’s a burden no one person should have to carry, and yet Rider does because he knows it’s the right thing to do and that he’s the only one capable of doing it.

Against this backdrop of one man pushing himself to the limit in order to do the right thing, Abnett and Lanning craft a series of explosive, entertaining stories that are deeply rooted in the continuity established by the Annihilation crossovers, and yet immediately accessible to new readers.  What I most like about this volume, and about the new landscape of Marvel’s universe, is that it is such a fully-realized continuity and fully divorced from mainstream Marvel.

For those of you who, like me, have had enough of mediocre crossovers like ‘Dark Reign’, you have here the opportunity to get your Marvel fix with an excellent comic that has absolutely nothing to do with Norman Osborn for a change.  Abnett imbues this graphic novel with a skilled blend of action, imagination, and pathos that frankly shames anything being turned in by Marvel’s ‘terrestrial’ writers, and if you’re looking for a change of pace in your comics then I wholeheartedly recommend this book to you.  This is damn good stuff to read, and I have a feeling it’ll just keep getting better.

Grade:  A

-Tony Rakittke