Green Lantern: War Journal #2: We Belong in the City

Green Lantern: War Journal #2 picks up with John Stewart’s adventures on earth as he takes care of his elderly mother. Meanwhile, the Revenant Queen takes over some bully Green Lanterns and sends them in John’s direction. While most of this issue continues the very grounded story about John’s relationship with his mother, there is a fair bit of action, building this plot into something personal and cosmic for the Emerald Knight. Although the plot is headed in a great direction, Green Lantern: War Journal #2 hits a couple road bumps in the way of plot holes that need to be addressed.

The heart of this series continues to revolve around John and his mother, with Green Lantern: War Journal #2 seeing John attempt to move her to Metropolis. John constantly proclaims that he is doing everything for his mother, even when that conflicts with his own goals, something that his mother scolds him for. Phillip Kennedy Johnson truly infuses his experience in the military here, highlighting the mental battle John constantly faces as he refuses to deal with his own problems. This paints a version of John Stewart that is very out of his element, one that knows that he needs something to fight for in order to stay motivated. In this case, that fight is for the health and safety of his mother, regardless of her feelings regarding the matter. By the time the action comes around it feels earned, knowing that the plot and melodrama are compelling enough to carry the story on their own.

Montos does a great job fleshing out this grounded tale for John, although one character in particular is given an odd appearance. As John enters Metropolis he visits Steel at the Steelworks building and is introduced to Jay Nakamura. Fans of the two recent Jon Kent Superman series’ will know that Jay is Jon’s boyfriend, and that he’s recently been ingrained into the Super family of characters, leading to him work for Steel. While seeing this carry over into a non-super title, the depiction of Jay seems a bit off. He appears to be much older than he should be, and even though he’s only in a few panels, the only way you would tell that he is Jay is because of the purple colors that Alex Guimarães provides for his hair. This is just a tiny nitpick; however, fans of Tom Taylor’s ongoing saga with Jon will be quick to notice this.

Overall, Montos and Guimarães deliver some truly fantastic art. Grounded is a term that is going to surround this series, and that is also the best way to describe the art. This juxtaposes the cosmic aspects, which also look fantastic. This personal tale for John is only heightened by the art, with one panel in particular stealing the show. As John and his mother take the train into Metropolis they gaze through the window to see the city’s skyline. Montos draws this with the window in frame, showing also the reflections of John and his mother’s faces. Guimarães does an excellent job in capturing the colors to show the authenticity of this reflection and how it would look in real life. Although this is just a small panel on the bottom of a page, it definitely stands out as something truly spectacular.

Dave Sharpe does a great job with the letters, using onomatopoeia only in the sections with action, further juxtaposing John’s attempt at living a simple and safe life with his mother. When the action ramps up, Sharpe really makes it obvious in the lettering, building upon Montos’s excellent art. Overall the letters do a great job reinforcing all of the themes and elements of this great issue.