DCnU Special 4 - What We thought of WEEK 4

More and more opinions have come for the 4th week of books. And while there were 12 books this week . . . there are some people who were a bit . . . outraged and some pleasantly surprised.


BATMAN

Eric McLeod of FL

Wow, this was an awesome representation of Batman. Practically every major Batman character makes an appearance in this book and not a single one feels wasted, and new readers will definitely understand Batman's character even if they've never picked up a Batman story before in their life. Batman's narration works perfectly, describing everything about Gothamand its people without sounding overly preachy. The speech given by Bruce Wayne captures everything that separates him and Batman. The ending, although most likely a red
herring, leaves us with a great set-up for a mystery. Aside from some
of the character faces looking weird in a few panels and Dick looking
noticeably dwarfed by Bruce, this was a fantastic first issue and a
must for any Batman fan.

CBC's Hector Ramirez of Philadelphia, PA

Batman #1 and Nightwing#1-two awesome #1’s definitely awesome plot twists love the allusion to a crossover DC is really coming in strong and I can’t wait to see what’s in store


Randy Crawford of Cincinnati, Ohio

Batman #1 is a definitive take on the Caped Crusader. It's dark and mature, focusing on Batman's detective prowess and Bruce Wayne's role as a philanthropist. It ties in nicely with pre-relaunch continuity, but prior knowledge of the DC Universe is by no means essential to enjoy what's on offer.
Batman's new identification scanner serves as a convenient means of introducing each character, giving us a bite sized dossier on the key players. It's a feature that writer Scott Snyder has shoehorned in for the newcomers, but it's an unobtrusive way of bringing them up to speed. 


 Less than a few pages in, we're treated to an Arkham Asylum brawl. There's an escape attempt at the infamous madhouse, and the Dark Knight swings by to quell the unrest. Batman faces off against Two-Face, Scarecrow, Killer Croc and more, while waxing lyrical about how each of the rogues are perceived to embody Gotham's lesser qualities. It's a well handled action scene - enhanced by Greg Capullo's brooding artwork - and provides a depiction of these iconic villains that sits somewhere between Christopher Nolan and Frank Miller. There are some great splash pages in there too, including a memorable one showing the Batcave in all its glory. The Dark Knight's role as the DC Universe's greatest detective is embraced here. Snyder displays his skills of investigation and deduction throughout, and has his dynamic with Commissioner Gordon and Harvey Bullock down to a fine art.
Nightwing prominently featured in Batman's efforts to quell the Arkham troubles and is caught up in the comic's thrilling cliffhanger. Batman #1 is one of the best titles to emerge from the 'New 52' initiative to date. Snyder and Capullo clearly have a strong grasp of what makes the character iconic, and promise to take him down dark and intriguing avenues in the future.



BIRDS OF PREY

Gerald Williams of Hempstead, NY

Good story. Waiting for the explanation of who is Starling. I am confused about the Barbara’s cameo indicating that she worked with them as Oracle when she was in the wheelchair, something that Gail Simone did not mention in Batgirl #1.

Dante Franklin of Baltimore, MD


The book hit the ground running and follows the Birds of Prey as they do battle with the latest villains seemingly out to get them. Although it's a new team, I liked the chemistry between Canary and Starling, who I am quickly growing fond of. Duane Swierczynski, who impressed me on Black Widow, has given her some great dialogue. There's also a nice appearance by the artist formerly known as Oracle, which leaves some interesting questions about her current relationship with the Birds. It was a very good action book with an ending that surprised me. Oh, and something is definitely not right with Canary.



BLUE BEETLE

Eric McLeod, FL

First, I must confess I have not read much of the Jaime Reyes Blue
Beetle. I did like what I saw of him in Booster Gold's book, which is
why I feel guilty for not picking up his book before it got cancelled.
I don't know what will become of Jaime's relationship with Booster
because in this book Jaime doesn't seem to know him yet (I really wish
he was in the JLI, but that might just be me wanting to see Blue and
Gold together). A lot of time in this first issue is devoted to
showing off the alien scarab that gives Jaime his powers. There's a
prologue showing an alien race called the Reach attacking a distant
planet in the past. We see multiple Reach warriors using the same
abilities as Blue Beetle, though some of them seem more dedicated to
certain powers than Jaime is. I hope we do see these other Blue
Beetles again. The rest of the book is about establishing Jaime's
relationship with his friends and family while still devoting time to
building up the tension around the scarab. There's a plethora of
villains going after this thing, and some big super villain names are
mentioned as part of the power-grab as well. We get some cool action
near the end, but the heart of the book is Jaime's life. I'm a bit
disappointed that we have to wait until the next issue to see Jaime
actually fight, but we got a nice taste of the Blue Beetle powers in
the prologue which will hopefully get new readers interested in
continuing.


CBC's Frankie Rodriguez of Vineland, NJ

Okay. I was a fan of Ted Kord. I am a fan of Jamie Reyes. After Jamie won me over with his time on the Teen Titans and a bunch of other rabid fans of his that I know, I enjoy the fact that he got a solo book again.  So, when this issue came out, I knew I was gonna get it. And I have to say, I love it. Jamie's character is very much intact, along with members of his supporting cast from his last solo book (which I bought most of the issues of that.) They are setting up Jamie as a major player as there looks like mobsters and TWO evil groups want the scarab, not to mention the Green Lantern Corps don't like any of the SCARABS. And while we didn't see Jamie in the armor til the end, it was a great new origin by Tony Bedard. The extra touches of spanish made Jamie feel more authentic and Ig Guara's art was awesome, making the science fiction aspects look alien and majestic while the Earth moments are very real. I definitely  will be following Jamie's adventures.


CAPTAIN ATOM

Russell Winthrope of Winnipeg, Canada

Captain Atom’s powers are nuclear-based, and enable him to absorb and manipulate almost infinite amounts of energy. This ability puts him on a par with such DC heavy-hitters as Superman and Martian Manhunter. One of the problems with the character is that he’s just *too* powerful and means that writers have to keep creating ludicrously powerful villains for him to go up against.The character’s RIDCULOUS  power level is one of the first things that's addressed in this debut issue. Writer JT Krul introduces a flaw into Captain Atom’s powers which means that using them too much could kill him. It’s an inventive and hook but sadly, it’s about the only good thing that the story has going for it. Unfortunately, the issue reads like an average superhero comic with the rest of the cast introduced taking a back seat to the action.


The saving grace of this book is the artwork. Freddie Wiliams II’s linework here is a lot more interesting than the all-ages look that he’s favored on some of his recent DC work. The art doesn’t lack detail, but in many cases instead of drawing every intricate element of an object, he instead draws only the outline and one or two details, letting the reader’s imagination fill in the blanks. Overall, Captain Atom was okay and it has spectacular art. I just hope its story picks up soon.


CATWOMAN

CBC's Frankie Rodriguez of Vineland, NJ

   People are going to hate me. I LOVED THIS FIRST ISSUE. Before you go off about how I am some pervert and over masculine meathead, allow me to break down my points as to why I loved the issue. I wasn't planning on buying the books some it called to me. Reading it, I was very impressed how Selina's character was really fleshed out into addictions. Addictions to actions and danger. Addictions to riches and thrills. Addiction to Batman. These were all laid to bare while giving us great incite into Selina, setting up the book with multiple storylines; and giving a real big budget feel to the book. Selina & Batman were VERY much vulnerable here which made for some stunning moments. Winnick gave us a great start to Selina that is fast paced and multifaceted while leaving more to build on and Guillem March gave us great visuals of Selina.

   As for the last couple of pages . . . as I stated earlier, it gave a vulnerability to both Bruce and Selina no other writer has even really touched before. Second, WHY are people surprised by Selina and Bruce having sex. Really? REALLY?! They have been alluding to it for DECADES. And you know . . you are still talking about it.

Derrick Jones of Brooklyn, NY

I have never read any of the previous Catwoman series. I only kept updated about her character from her appearances in the bat family books so I went into Catwoman #1 with no expectations. Judd Winick really put his best foot forward with this one and while I have always been a fan of his work he really went adult on this one, in a good way. Here is another NU52 first issue that manages to give us all the basic info we need about our main character, and give us a story to follow, and answer a few questions about Selina's place in the new 52. Guillem March brings some impressive artwork. His faces are so full of life and expression and his action shots are great. Of course the best part of the book is the last couple of pages (which i will not spoil for those who have not picked it up) but i will say this is where the more adult themes happen and you learn how much Selena really cares for Batman. Can't wait for next issue!!!!!

DC UNIVERSE PRESENTS

Russell Winthorpe of  Winnipeg, Canada

DC Universe Presents #1 follows Deadman's encounters with various troubled individuals, including a stuntman with a death wish and a soldier who has lost both his legs and all his comrades. Weaved among those stories is a revisiting of the circumstances of Boston Brand's death and his first meeting with Rama Kushna. A lots is packed into DC Universe Presents #1, but not in a way that feels overwhelming. Chang's pages burst with detail. He crams in panel after panel on to each page, but these add to the experience of Deadman's existence, flickering from perspective to perspective as he moves through different bodies, rather than simply feeling crowded. Jenkins's Deadman is immediately well-developed, with his wry observations tempered by moments of thoughtfulness which are interesting rather than dull or preaching. The character is likable and contemptible all at once, leaving us with a more rounded hero than the one we have grown used to. 


The issue balances an origin story with several separate strands moving towards the future, managing a look-back at Brand's life while maintaining forward momentum. Brand's voice sounds strongly throughout, with Jenkins capturing his dry humor and contempt for the man he was and the ghost he is. DC Universe Presents is a clever way of leaving a space for stories about characters that might not warrant an ongoing solo series. Jenkins and Chang are so far very much making the most of the five issues they have been given.




GREEN LANTERN CORPS

Mike Hudson of Woodland, CA

 Since the Green Lantern books didn't get restarted & previous continuity counts, the Green Lantern writers switched books which mean Peter Tomasi has returned to this title.  And with him, comes Guy Gardner whom Tomasi had been writing in Emerald Warriors. Tomasi takes his time to introduce both Guy and John Stewart to new readers.  It’s a little wordy, but Tomasi does a great job of showing the reader exactly who Guy and John are.  It’s a perfectly satisfactory reintroduction (or introduction if you’re the fabled “new reader”) to John, Guy and the concept of the Corps. Plus, I really enjoyed the art for the book.  I would have preferred a faster start.  But this was a perfectly enjoyable read.  Nothing spectacular, but it definitely please GL addicts. .







LEGION OF SUPER HEROES

Gerald Williams of Hempstead, NY

Always have been a fan of LSH and very glad that not only DC did not reboot it, but that they kept the legion that I grew up with. All the other legion reboots left the book in shambles. This is taking the legion and expanding on the great stories that Paul Levitz has been writing since he returned to the title.

Joey Lester of Memphis, TN


I’m not a dumb guy. But Legion of Super-Heroes #1 made me feel like I should be wearing a dunce cap. As a long-time fan, I have read my share of Legion reboots.  This is the SEVENTH volume of this book alone; not counting all the various other series & relaunches that have been done time and time again.  I’m used to picking up the new Legion book, deciding it’s not for me and moving on.  It’s a ritual I go through every few years. Last week, I got a headache trying to read Legion Lost #1.  I could follow the book.  But it hardly seemed worth the effort.  I figured I’d give this week’s Legion of Super-Heroes a try.  I didn’t think it could possibly be less new-reader friendly.  But boy, I was wrong . . .dead wrong.

  I can see why they wouldn’t want to restart the continuity from scratch yet again.  That’s gotten really tiresome.  But to publish a #1 book that picks up immediately after the last issue of the last series on a book as dense as Legion of Super-Heroes just boggles the mind. I read the book Wednesday night and whatever story I was able to digest leaked out my ear while I slept.  I have neither the will nor the desire to go back and try to figure it out again.  If you were a regular reader of Levitz’s Legion, I’m guessing you enjoyed this issue just as much as the previous ones.  And maybe the book was doing well enough that DC is fine with maintaining the exact same readership.  But I can’t imagine any new readers picking up this issue and deciding to stick around for more.I know I won’t be and give me a call when the next Legion reboot happens.



NIGHTWING

CBC's Hector Ramirez of Philadelphia, PA

Batman #1 and Nightwing#1-two awesome #1’s definitely awesome plot twists love the allusion to a crossover. DC is really coming in strong and I can’t wait to see what’s in store

Mike Hudson of Woodland, CA

To be honest, I’m a little torn on what to think of this.  I enjoyed how it opened and the end really reeled me in, but part of the story midway in left me a little unsure of just how I felt.  Eddy Barrows’ art in this issue is absolutely amazing accompanied by Mayer’s inks, Higgins does a pretty good job of painting Dick’s outlook on no longer being Batman but I do wish he would have made a couple points a bit more clear.  A final complaint/question I have too is just where is Nightwing keeping his gear?  We see for a moment a grappling line which I’m just assuming is built into his suit like it was with his old Nightwing outfit during his time in New York. Plus, not sure what to make of him running into Haley's Circus and wondering if they are gonna become part of his new supporting cast. Time will tell, I guess. Although, kudos to Higgins & Barrows for really locking me in at the end.

RED HOOD & THE OUTLAWS

Dante Franklin of Baltimore, MD

Sigh. As a Starfire fan, this was the book that I really really wanted to like. But I just couldn't. Despite the art and promising premise, I was immediately turned off by the portrayal of one of my favorite DC characters. Yes, Starfire, aka Princess Koriand’r of Tamaran, was always open with her sexuality and free. In fact, I wouldn't even have a problem with the sexual dalliances at all if I felt that she were being treated as anything other than an emotionally-detached, alien, with memory issues, being passed around by two men acting like overeager 17 year olds. My problem isn’t that she’s shown as a woman who enjoys sex (She-Hulk and Catwoman are also two of my favorite characters). It’s that she comes off as the exact opposite, joyless, detached, and removed. And it doesn't help that the art totally sexualizes her (skimpy bikini!), while leaving her male partners as same ol' same ol' (boring ol' trunks). I would go into my spiel on male gaze or continued heterosexism in the comic industry but then this would read like a dissertation. And nobody wants to read that. LOL Plus, that poor horse is already on its last leg. So, yeah. Despite the premise and this featuring a favorite, this will probably be my first and last issue of this title.

Gerald Williams of  Hempstead, NY

I don’t know in what universe they thought this idea would work. The artwork is great, the story sucks. This is by far the first book of the new DC that I totally hated and will not bother to pick up the next one. I will admit to being biased against the Jason Todd character. I was one of those who voted to kill him off in Death in the Family and did not like his comeback. But the change they made in Starfire goes way beyond a simple reboot. 

Derrick Jones of Brooklyn, NY

 I will admit this book has caused great debate amongst a group of friends of mine. Some love it, some hate it. I guess that is one of the signs of good writing when people can have such a strong reaction to your work. I feel into the love it camp. Kenneth Rockafort's art is real gritty but for this book,which seems to be in the buddy buddy show vein I think the art works. The panels flow nicely and there are backgrounds (yaaahhhh). Scott Lobdell takes at somewhat 'controversial" approach to the character of Starfire, but this being a new universe and all I think it works. As with most of the new 52 books this one leaves you with more questions than answers, though it is nice to get a few answers on Jason Todd's standing with the rest of the Bat Family. I think the book peaked enough of my interest to make a return trip next month. 

CBC Frankie Rodriguez of Vineland, NJ

Okay. AGAIN. I am gonna be in the minority. I liked Red Hood & the Outlaws. I liked it a lot. And now, here is where I am gonna probably get death threats. Starfire's character . ..  not that far off. Why do I say that? First, Kory has been very open about her feminity and sexuality from the beginning. They obviously didn't erase her relationship with Dick; just how she perceives things. And while nearly everyone has decided that Starfire sleeping with Arsenal and possibly Jason Todd automatically makes her a slut; I disagree. And while previous continuity may or may not count, Starfire sleeping with Captain Comet during her tenture on R.E.B.E.L.S. stating that her heart belonged to someone else and that they were friends with benefits. She even says in the comic that she does what she wants, when she wants. If Starfire has been a guy . . . any guy character, NOT A SINGLE PERSON would have been up in arms. So again, is it the sex that is bothering people? Honestly, again . . . I don't find it out of character. Maybe an evolution of a character but not out of it, in my opinion.

  Arsenal is very much the same as he was before he lost his arm and daughter while Jason evolved from everything that has come before. Lobdell says this is a story about redemption and it is going that way and artist Kenneth Rocafort renders everything beautiful, women, men, action and leisure. The mysteries set up and the characters were interesting and compelling. Essence is mysterious and mystical while being vulnerable at the same time. I am looking forward to more.


SUPERGIRL

Gerald Williams of Hempstead, NY

This throws out the great story that Jeph Loeb and Michael Turner created to bring Kara Zor-El back. It was great and now it is being redone. I hope they get it right.

Dante Franklin of Baltimore, MD

Supergirl crash lands on Earth and discovers her powers while being attacked due to a big ol' misunderstanding. It's a straight forward fight issue but Michael Green and Mike Johnson use it as an opportunity to gain insight into Kara's confused thoughts as well as showcase her powers. I especially liked when she first encounters her super hearing with choice bits from other DC books. The art was great too and I am digging the new costume. This Supergirl is definitely worth giving a chance.

Derrick Jones of Brooklyn, NY

What can I say? I gave it a chance, i have never been a huge fan of Kara Zor-El. The last version of SuperGirl i enjoyed was the Earth Angel version from the early 00's. So I thought with the new 52 this would be a good place to try again. The book was one long fight sequence. I enjoyed Muhmad Asrar's pencils. His work is very kinetic and I dont mind the redesign of the characters costume. You know by now my big thing is backgrounds, well the fight was in a snowfield at dawn so there is a lot of snow and sky. This book gave no answers and I may check back later to see what has occurred but I will not be chomping at the bit to see what the last daughter of Krypton is up to.

WONDER WOMAN

Eric McLeod of FL

Based on some of the preview images, I was expecting some gore, and I got more than I was expecting, but it didn't hamper my opinion of the
book at all. There's no given backstory for Wonder Woman herself and she's dragged into the story literally, but her character is
definitely intact. We mostly see her warrior side, fighting centaurs
off with finesse and brutality equally, but when she meets up with
Hermes, we see a glimpse of the compassionate warrior that defines
Wonder Woman for me. Despite not getting much to say, her actions
speak volumes. There's a conspiracy between the gods that is being set
up well, and though we don't know much about Zola at this point, we
know she'll be important later on. and I really like the usage of
references to Greek mythology. There is a point during the book where
it's unclear who's narrating that doesn't make sense until the very
end and it could have used more clarification, but otherwise the
writing is solid. It's already an improvement over J. Michael
Straczynski's WW run (where I stopped reading WW), and there is
promise of a cool, dark take on the the Greek gods that has not been
done yet in Wonder Woman's history. Fans of action and Greek mythology
will definitely want to pick this up, and because this doesn't rely
heavily on the old DC continuity, it's new reader friendly to boot.


Dante Franklin of Baltimore, MD

Probably the book I was most looking forward to. I've been a Wonder Woman fan, since I was a kid, and have seen her through tons of remakes and re-imaginings. There was a lot of buzz around this issue and I found it to be pretty decent. Not wowed. But still pretty good. There's an interesting take on the gods here and Diana is presented as tough, strong, and fierce. There are definitely a few gory spots but Wonder Woman is a warrior. So, such moments are to be expected. Brian Azzarello has crafted an interesting set-up, based firmly in Greek mythology, and I'm curious to see what's next. 


Derrick Jones of Brooklyn, NY

It occurs to me as I write this weeks reviews that not only was this ladies week with three books coming out with female leads but that the books with the most controversy surrounding them also feature lady leads. So Wonder Woman came out this week. Now I am a Wonder Woman fan, and even in writing that statement it does not give the full weight to the scope of fandom I enjoy for this character. So when word came out about the universal reboot the one bright spot for me was that maybe someone would not be lost writing this character (I can't discuss her last storyline prior to the reboot cause it SUCKED). Well my hat goes off to Brian Azzarello for his take on the Amazon princess. Finally we get a writer who recognizes that Wonder Woman is steeped in mythology and magic and that the Gods of old really didn't care to much about us lowly humans. A very solid story for a first issue with some blood and violence, which some think is excessive, but hey she was raised in a warrior culture. They are amazons, that is kind of what they do.  Cliff Chiang brings some solid art work, his characters are not as smooth as I would like but i know that is my own personal taste. He brings life and movement to his pencil work and there are backgrounds. I am still on the fence about the new costume but that does not effect the quality of the book. At last a Wonder woman book i can get excited about again.





Those are all the opinions for this week. We've got one last week to go. Let's see what happens next.


NEXT WEEK: THE FINAL WEEK OF THE NEW 52 #1s.

PLUS: If you missed out on giving your opinion on any of the books within the last month, you get One last chance as we will be doing a final impression special as well.

Till next week, keep clashing!

_____

**************** PLEASE READ ALL THE INFO FIRST!! *****************

J1 Studios (www.j1studios.com) invites you to our mini convention! 

AN-EX 3


Friday, October 7th, 2011


5:00pm - 8:30pm


At: Hawthorne Recreation Center


1200 Carpenter Street


Philadelphia, PA.

- Bleach Movie 4: Hell Chapter will be in the Video Room
(movie starts @ 6PM).

- Yugi-Oh and J1 Studios' VTF fighting card game testing in the Card Gaming Room.

- $5 Mortal Kombat (2011) Tournament!
(It will be Tag teams matches w/ single elimination (tournament starts @ 6PM).
0
- There will be a FEW other games will be there TOO (Don't cry).

- Cosplay contest for prizes!

- $1 Raffle for secret prize!

- Artist Tables

- Dealer Tables

If you want to order a VENDOR TABLE, email me at j.richardson@j1studios.com. There are ONLY 6 available!

ADMISSION IS $2.00

SPREAD THE WORD!!!!

#18 WAR OF THE GREEN LANTERNS

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh! Feels good to be back in the reviewer chair. It's been a while. Welcome ladies and Gents to a brand new Comic Book Clash. This week, the original Comic Book Clash reviewer and CBC head, Frankie Rodriguez here. I been waiting to review this for nearly 3 months now. Unfortnately, it was not until over 2 weeks ago that the final part of this storyline FINALLY came out. So once again, Heroes and books Clash for supremacy as we take a look at DC Comics'  War of the Green Lanterns Storyline.



War of the Green Lanterns
Issues: Green Lantern #64-67, Green Lantern Corps #58-60 & Green Lantern Emerald Warriors #8-10
Story (Arc) Name: War of the Green Lantern
Written by Geoff Johns, Tony Bedard & Peter Tomasi; Art by Doug Manke, Tyler Kirkham & Fernando Pasarin
DC Comics


TALE OF THE TAPE
   
     Wow. It really has been a while. Okay. Small amount of background. Green Lantern . . .Silver Age Green Lantern started when Hal Jordon found the crashed ship of former Green Lantern, Abin Sur and became his hand picked successor. Hal had gone from somewhat rebellious pilot to a pilot who was also now a space cop. The Green Lanterns protect their own sectors of the universe . . .ours being 2814. As such, Hal created a legend as the Green Lantern. Yet his rebellious side argued with his bosses, the smurfs .. . I mean the Guardians who . . . all but one, at least at the beginning, did not show emotion.
    Time passed, Hal quit and was then temporarily replaced by Guy Gardner, former football player.  And when that didn't work out, John Stewart, a battle hardened soldier and artitect. Eventually, Hal had returned to being Green Lantern . . . serving in other sectors till he beat Guy Gardner in a fight to become Earth's Green Lantern.
   Then During the Reign of Supermen storyline which brought back Clark Kent to life . . . Mongul wiped out Coast City, Hal's home.  Yep. Just destroyed it. Hal went nuts and killed a bunch of Green Lanterns, including Kilowog, destroying the Green Lantern Corps and suddenly  the Corps were no more.  The Guardians were no more. Except for the one Guardian with emotions . ... Ganthet, created one new Green Lantern ring and gave it to artist Kyle Rayner. Kyle became a big hit in the 90s .. . considered by many over the last 2 decades as their Green Lantern over Hal as Kyle seemed to overcome amazing odds, dealt with the deaths of both his girlfriend and mom; and even rebuilt the Corps. Hal tried to rewrite history and got an arrow for it then redeemed himself when he restarted the Sun by sacrificing himself. He had, for a short time, become the Spectre.

      Geoff Johns hops in and starts a little miniseries called Green Lantern Rebirth. In Rebirth, we find that Hal was not really in charge of himself during his time as Parallax. Parallax came out to be the living embodiment of fear . . . and the being that was a large force behind Sinestro's yellow ring. Hal's time as the Spectre ended as he was resurrected as a human and a bit younger. Parallax, through, had possessed John, Kyle, Guy and the new resurrected Kilowog .. . which lead to Hal saving them. Hal was back. The Guardians were back. And now, they assigned 2 Lanterns per Sector.
      Sinestro showed up with the Anti Monitor, Superboy Prime, Cyborg Superman and his own Corps of yellow, fear slinging ring bearers. And they had themselves a war which revealed the living embodiment of Will power, the power of the Green Lanterns, Ion. After the GLs went through that, they found that other colors with rings had appeared; each showing different emotions.
     The Red Lanterns were fulled by rage and wanted revenge on the Guardians for having the Manhunters, the robots they created before the GLs, destroy his Sector 666. Yes ..  .you read that right. The Star Sapphire was not just a villainess of the GLs but an actually Lantern Corp of their own; powered by Love. The sole Orange Lantern, Larfleeze, is powered by Avarice. Ganthet and another Guardian, who were exiled for a time, had formed their own new Blue Lantern Corps, powered by Hope. Then the GLs found an Indigo Tribe, a group of lanterns powered by compassion . ..  and who's powers can bring up powers of any of the other Lantern Corps.  The Black Lanterns were powered by Death while the White Lanterns powered by Life.
   The Blackest Night and Brightest Day had occurred recently, forcing Hal to form a brand new group called the New Guardians till the other Guardians had recovered from the events of Blackest Night. Meanwhile, the original renegade Guardian, Krona had reappeared and slowly set the stage for this storyline.

CLASH FACTS

       War of the Green Lanterns opens with narration and art on Hal's history and how he is considered the Antithesis of the Guardians since Hal acts so much on his emotions. The Guardians have decided that they have had enough of Hal's antics; assigning  Salakk, a GL of high rank, with a team of GLs to arrest Hal. Meanwhile, the narration shifts from Salakk to Hal as he sets up what is going on with the Entities (things like Parallax & Ion) and every Lantern Corps have one. It seems that Hal and the rest of the New Guardians (which include Sinestro, Star Sapphire Carol Ferris, Red Lantern leader Atrocitus, Indigo -1, Orange Lantern Larfleeze and Blue Lantern Saint Walker) have found a giant Black book. This is not any ordinary black book but the black book forged that told the history  of the universe and the Guardians' darkest Secrets.  During the finding, they figure out that they need information as Krona had captured the Entities. Atrocitus comments on how they will find Krona and he will kill him for what he had done, revealing the Krona had been behind what happened to Sector 666.
     Hal gets angry and confronts Atrocitus when Carol points out why leave the Black Book out in the open. The Black Book opens and out comes an orange Lantern. Lafleeze goes all drug fiend with it, hugging it and saying how it is .. . only to get sucked into the book. Then comes out a chick dressed in black with blue skin . . . Lyssa Drak; a former Sinestro Corps member who defected and joined Krona. Black chains go out and slowly suck each member of the New Guardians into the book itself, trapping them. Sinestro and Hal are the last two Lanterns out and use the power of their rings to cause an explosion. After that .. . all that was left out was Hal . . . and the rings of each member of the New Guardians.

     While that was happening, a coup was happening over in OA as the Guardians, talking about putting Hal through trial are interrupted by Krona and the Entities; who seem to be under his complete control. What am I kidding ...  he has each them chained to him . . . literally. We don't know where the chains come from. Anyway, the 6 Guardians are easily taken down by the 7 entities and Krona. Krona then has the Entities inhabit one Guardian as a host and has Parallax enter the main Green Lantern Battery. And that is when the real fun begins.
    Meanwhile, Hal regains his senses enough to head for the other rings .. . only to be stopped by Salaak and his team of Lanterns. They ask Hal to put his hands up but Hal tries to talk them out of arresting him and explaining the threat. Yet, all the other GLs' eyes begin to glow yellow. Parallax has corrupted them. Hal notices this and avoids the Parallax possessed GLs. Hal quickly scoops up the rings of the lost New Guardians and heads out.
   Part 2 of the storyline opens up with Kyle narrating through his and John Stewart. We find that Kyle, John and some of the Lanterns are with Ganthet in the Antimatter Universe; which was once the base of the Sinestro Corps. They were there to track Krona then return to the regular universe to find a bunch of knocked out GLs. Suddenly, Kyle and Ganthet feel Parallax in their rings. Ganthet explains what had occurred with Parallax then watch Kyle's new girlfriend and other GLs returning to Oa; under the control of Krona. Kyle, not wanting to lose another girlfriend, goes after her to be stopped by John. Yet, Kyle does not plan on stopping and actually starts fighting with John in his usual, imaginative way. John warns Kyle that he is not gonna let him rush in and get everyone else killed. Ganthet tells them stop but he starts feeling the influence of Parallax Ganthet decides the only way to save them is to take off their rings before they are fully entralled by Parallax.  He succeeds .. . at a price. Yeah . . .We see Ganthet's ring hand go BOOM. John and Kyle come to their sense and wrap up Ganthet's hand up. Ganthet tells John and Kyle to go underground. Kyle tells Ganthet to come with them but he answers that its took risky and that the others would easily find him cause of being a Guardian. John and Kyle leave as Green Lanterns begin to amass towards Ganthet.

     Part 3 has Guy, Arisia and Kilowog flying back from the Lost Sectors towards Oa to report what they have found. Arisia states that they will be in trouble but Guy says Ganthet will being with them so that he will take the brunt of the other Guardians anger for going on a secret mission for Atrocitus.  As they fly, Parallax's impurity hits Arisia and starts to fly out. Kilowog and Guy feel it and surmise what happened. As a tidal wave of Green Lanterns pass them on their way to Oa, Guy and Kilowog figure out that they are not as susceptible to Parallax cause they, like Kyle, John, Ganthet and Hal were all infected before. The Parallax possessed GLs try to capture both Kilowog and Guy. Kilowog tells Guy to leave and he does and heads for the Green House in an unhibited world.  Guy gets some distance away and calls Kyle, John and Hal. Hal is the only one who answers and says to meet him in the Green House. The snow covered planet is where Guy and Hal meet up but Guy does not know where the Green House itself is. Hal shortly comes after him when they start butting heads. Then Guy reveals to Hal that Ganthet, Atrocitus and he made a deal to check on what is happening in the Lost Sectors and Krona. Hal is fuming that this was kept secret from him but Guy argues at how high and mighty Hal is acting. The two end up trading blows after Guy tries to force Hal's ring off and Hal punches Guy. The two fight till they realize that this is Parallax's influence on them and will their own rings off.
     Back on Oa, Kilowog is strung up in front of Krona with Arisia flanking the renegade Guardian. Kilowog does his best to resist Krona but he super charges Parallax's energy into Kilowog, forcing him into "his" Green Lantern Corps. Hal and Guy are still looking for the Green House when they fall into it. The Green House is a special secret staging ground built by Hal for the Earth GLs to go to if need be.As they walk in, they see a large ship as automated systems welcome the 2 Green lanterns. Hal has fun with Guy as Guy has never flown with Hal in a plane before as they blast off to Oa. They quickly make it to Oa where they are promptly attacked by Kilowog.  He tries rip the ship apart with is barehands . . . and pretty much succeeds; forcing Guy and Hal to take a pod to Kyle and John's location on Oa. As the four reunite, they catch up on what has occurred when Hal reveals the rings of the missing New Guardians. Hal says they have to choose in order to fight the GL Corps and Krona. Hal says they need to do it and will take the yellow ring. Guy chooses to the use the Red Ring, much to Kyle's chagrin. Kyle says he will use the Blue Ring. John is about to pick the Orange Ring when Hal tells him that that is not the ring for him. He tells John that the Indigo Ring would be more up to John's speed. Each of them take a ring, Hal becoming a member of the Sinestro Corps, Guy once again becoming a Red Lantern, Kyle in a blue Lantern version of his outfit while John is in army fatigues in indigo, signalling him as a member of the Indigo Tribe.

  After sometime learning to use their rings while tracking Ganthet, the four Lanterns meet up with the Guardian; who is being viciously attacked by Ganthet. As they rush into Ganthet's rescue, the Guardian tells John and Kyle that they should not be wearing their rings while Guy signed a death sentence. As they rush in and save Ganthet, Kyle uses the Blue Lantern Ring to push off the other Green Lanterns. It seemingly works . .. till they are blasted by Mogo.
     The blast from Mogo shakes up our heroes enough that the possessed GLs capture Ganthet. The 4 Lanterns avoid the GL Corps and Mogo the best they can, using a trick from the Flash in order to escape Mogo. Our 4 heroes escape underground where Hal states they need to get Parallax out of the battery. Yet, John disagrees with Hal stating that they need to take out Mogo first, being the most powerful lantern. Guy comments on how John knows how to take out a planet, which starts arguing between John and Guy. Frustrated, Hal tells them to stop or he will make them stop but Kyle cools everyone off; remaining perfectly calm and hopeful . . . like his ring.  Kyle states they should vote and John is outvoted, 3 to 1 to get Parallax out of the battery. So the 4 Lanterns stay under Oa, travelling the underground caverns for the Central Power Battery to find an underground labortory where the Guardians actually developed the Power Rings and Power Battery. As they examine the labs, they find weapons, including guns, a power glove (seriously) and . ..  a monster that looks like the love child of one of the Gargoyles and Chris Bale in the Machinist. While the other 3 want to blast it, Kyle figures out that the monster only reacts to fear. They show none and the monster stops. After looking at some tech, they make their way to a computer which illustrates that Krona is not only using Mogo for a weapon but for creating and sending out new rings for brand new Green Lanterns who immediately fall under the sway of Krona and Parallax as soon as the rings go on their finger. John says it is time to stop Mogo and starts to head out but Hal stops him. Kyle changes him mind saying that they should stop Mogo. Hal tells them that they are minutes away from the Power Battery when John teleports Kyle and himself away.Guy and Hal make their way to the Central battery and start blasting it. Yet, that stops quickly as they are surrounded by Krona and the Entity-possessed Guardians.
       Hal narrates how in over the head he is, admit it verbally for the first time to Guy. Guy, wearing the power glove, uses it against the Guardian yet he and Hal are getting pummeled by the possessed Guardians. Krona appears after the Guardians had knocked out Hal and Guy. Meanwhile,  Sinestro is reliving certain events in his life. He calls out for Abin Sur, who was one of his closest friends when he was first a Green Lantern. Yet, Sinestro realizes that Abin's dead and this is all a trick. Sinestro snaps out of it as the book tries to make him live different points in his past. Suddenly, he sees that his fellow New Guardians are all being subjected to the same torture. Sinestro realizes its all the books doing and Krona appears before him that he does not need him anymore when he has Hal and Guy. Krona then is floating in front of Hal and Guy with the Black Book behind him.Krona reveals that he feels that the Guardians of the Universe do not have the emotional capacity it takes to protect the universe. So he will make a new group of Guardians . . . with Hal and Guy at his side.
     Meanwhile, over with Kyle and John, the two pass swarms of GLs to get inside Mogo. Not just GLs but GL rings. Thousands of them. John uses his powers to tap into Will power enough to make a dome to stop the flow of rings. Yet the possessed GL go shooting at our heroic duo. The rings break through and John is subjected to a psychic attack from Mogo . . . in the form of his dead wife. Kyle actually does a trick with his Blue Lantern ring that makes one of the possessed GLs see her love . . . and frees her from Parallax possession. John and Kyle figured they can use that . . . and do on Mogo. Funny thing about where Mogo's ring . ..  it's in his brain. Kyle uses the same trick from earlier on Mogo and it kinda works . . . except this time, John sees the black Lantern energy overcoming Mogo's brain. Kyle does his best to heal Mogo from the Black Lantern energy before it kills Mogo but gets knocked out for his trouble. John things of using Green Lantern energy as more and more GLs approach. Krona then relays a message that Mogo is creating thousands of recruits . . . all loyal to him and a wave of murder will reach around the galaxy; showing this all psychically to John . . . or is it Mogo who is showing John all this psychically? John suddenly decides he has no choice as Kyle comes to as John summons the black energy using the power of Compassion and . . .



JOHN KILLS MOGO.





    Yes. John, for the second time of his Lantern career, is responsible for a planet being destroyed. And this time . . . he did it willingly. And he did while also ignoring Kyle's pleas to stop. John Stewart . . . ladies and gentlemen . . . King of Planetside.  And killing Mogo seems to be the distraction they need as all the Green Lanterns and Guardians, including Krona feel pain as debris from Mogo start to fall like rain on Oa.  Kyle and John argue for a moment about how there should have been another way. Kyle even tries to collect enough of Mogo to restart his heart with his Blue Ring but to no avail. John teleports Kyle and himself back onto Oa. The pain of Mogo's death gives Hal and Guy the opening they need to free themselves. Guy and Hal are able to get away with Ganthet and the Black Book when they are joined by Kyle and John. While Guy and John are about to argue again, Hal orders John to teleport them to the Central Battery. The 4 Lanterns blast their rings to get Parallax but their 4 rings are not enough. Ganthet wakes up and says that they need all the emotions in order to defeat Krona and Parallax.  As they blast, the GL have come to and started attacking. Ganthet talks to Guy after giving him the Star Sapphire Ring to go with his Red Lantern Ring while Hal put on the Orange Ring with his Sinestro Ring. Guy reveals that while he loves Tora, he really loves the corps . . . and all the energies of the 7 rings are enough to pull out Parallax, freeing the GLs of its influence. Hal, Guy, John and Kyle took of their rings and got their Green Lantern rings back. They stood ready against Krona and the Entity-Possessed Guardians.
  The final part of our saga has our GLs leading the rest of the Corps against the Entity possessed Guardians and Krona.As it looks like the GLs can't get through to the Guardians, Hal figures the best thing to do is get through to the Entities themselves. Hal and Kyle fly over to the Black Book and has Kyle draw it, figuring the stuff in the book are things that had happened .. . OR WILL HAPPEN. Doing so frees the new Guardians. Their rings start to fly towards them. Sinestro reaches out for his ring when suddenly, all the other rings say they are overridden and end up on Krona's hand.  Ganthet goes up to face Krona but Krona blasts him for his trouble.  Krona holds Hal  back in a field of . . . multicolored snakes. Hal states that he fights for all. Sinestro takes some debris, smacking Krona's head with it. As he chokes Krona, a Green Lantern Ring goes into Sinestro's finger. Hal is free and the two fight off Krona. Krona goes on about being Immortal when suddenly . . .




HAL KILLS KRONA.



  Geez. First a planet and now a Guardian. Killing Krona ends up freeing the Entities. The New Guardians get their rings back, except Sinestro when the other Lanterns ask what is going on. The Guardians say that no lantern should have the will to kill a Guardian. Hal tells Sinestro to take off his ring when the Guardians tell him to stop. The New Guardians start to say something when the Guardians teleport them away. The Guardians start verbally bashing Hal then strip him of his ring and teleport Hal back to Earth . ..  ending both the storyline and this volume of Green Lantern.






CLASH TACTICS

       Okay. That was . . . WOW. War of the Green Lanterns was a great crossover story that not only served as a great way to advance the characters within its pages but sets up the new status quo for the DC Comics Relaunch. It culminates the majority of the plotlines of all three books in a nice, coherent story. Johns, Tomasi and Bedard did a great job tying up loose ends, really developing relationships and characters and this crazy universe in which the Green Lantern's protect. It also questioned not only the methods and ideals of the Guardians but really shined the differences of each of the Green Lanterns and even the other Lanterns.
      Particularly stands out are Hal's actions throughout the storyline;in which he seemed so adamit to save the Corps and be the savior to everyone to the point that it felt that he was going out of the way to BE Hero more than save everyone.  Another is how eerily easy it was for John to end up killing Mogo. I understand the whole soldier back ground and the characters history .. . but like Kyle, I was convinced that there was another way. Alas, Mogo . . . we knew thee well.
      The story's pacing was excellent, never really slowing down to the point that it felt like it dragged. All the characters really shined in their own ways and were wonderfully placed.
      Artistically, these was some of the best work I had seen from all three pencilers. The transition between styles felt fluid and not jarring in the least. Doug Manke and Fernando Pasarin were building beautiful pencils who were fleshed out extremely well by their respected inker. But the artist who really seemed to shine during this project was Tyler Kirkham. Him and Batt have become a dynamically rich and wonderful team. Their art is masterful, conveying emotion, movement and depth in every since stroke. Kirkham and Batt may be the Jim Lee and Scott Williams of this new decade. We will have to see. Each of the colorist really do a spectacular job of really making the art work look vibrant.
    Overall, the War of the Green Lanterns did not disappoint. And even though I have personal disagreements on whether or not killing Mogo was necessary, it plays off the writers and the emotions they want us to feel. This was truely a landmark storyline that will have LARGE implications to come . . . as we see that the final part of War of the Green Lanterns was actually the last issue of that volume of Green Lantern.  Everyone delivered and now am very excited for all the new Lantern books in the upcoming DC Relaunch.

    It is my pleasure to give War of the Green Lanterns a grade of World Heavyweight Contender (aka a 5 out of 5).  Ah . . . THAT FELT GOOOOOOD.  Till next time, Frankie Rodriguez saying that if you are on the side of evil, Say goodbye!