Future State - Green Lantern #1
John Jack
Recap
Assigned to map and contact new lifeforms past the 3,600 known sectors of space protected by the Green Lantern Corps, John Stewart and an elite team of Lanterns are trapped behind enemy lines and fighting for their lives when the Central Power Battery goes dark and leaves the entire corps defenseless. Meanwhile, across the cosmos, Green Lantern Jessica Cruz finds herself powerless and forced to battle the invading Yellow Lanterns of the Sinestro Corps, and Guy Gardner, trapped on a distant world, decides to reopen Warriors Bar.
Review
Future State Green Lantern features 3 stories, in the first John Stewart leads a band of ex GLs in protecting an alien race from the Khund, the second features a really fun Jessica Cruz story and the third a Guy Gardner story. All feature but do not explain an overarching point; the rings aren’t working anymore.
All in all as a longtime GL fan I was very satisfied with the 3 stories contained here. Especially as the last 2 years Green Lanterns have been criminally underrepresented in most DC books besides Hal Jordan in Grant Morrison’s series. I’m really interested in what happened to the rings and like seeing where some key Lanterns ended up. It’s hard to say which story I liked best but the Jessica Cruz story was pretty great.
The John Stewart story had a very space marine feel with a very by the books…
“WE’RE NOT LEAVING ANYONE BEHIND””YOU’RE SURROUNDED!”
“IF I DON’T MAKE IT OUT OF THIS, JUST KNOW-”
KSSSSSHHHHHH
“SNAAAAAAAAAAAAKE!”
…action movie dialogue and tone. The characters themselves intrigue me especially G’nort, who has gone from comic relief to some sort of murderhound. The art is solid, having a somewhat 90’s feel in a way the colors are vibrant and help the linework flow in a dynamic action style. I do hope this story goes somewhere, the Khund could be cool to explore further than they have been in recent years, seeming to be a throwaway cosmic villain species more than anything in their last few appearances.
The second story stars Jessica Cruz in a derelict GL space station as the Sinestro Corps tries to take it over. I think this story was my favorite, almost Die Hard in space. Jessica using her knowledge of the station to take down the Sinestro Corps members is fun to watch. The art is excellent, conveying almost a horror movie vibe at times but never too much so.
The third story stars Guy Gardner, stranded on an alien planet with no ring, unsurprisingly he starts a cult, makes them build him a bar, and teaches them how to build a society in his image.
As a whole the 3 stories left me fairly happy with this sharp directional change we’ve found ourselves amidst. But not without some reservations, I would like to know what happened to the Corps sooner rather than later.
Final Thoughts
As a whole, the 3 stories left me fairly happy with this sharp directional change we've found ourselves amidst. But not without some reservations, I would like to know what happened to the Corps sooner rather than later.
Future State – Green Lantern #1: I Still Have the Oath
- Writing - 8/108/10
- Storyline - 6/106/10
- Art - 8/108/10
- Color - 10/1010/10
- Cover Art - 9/109/10