Green Lantern, Vol. 2: Revenge of the Green Lanterns

Green Lantern (2005) (Collected Editions)

by Geoff Johns

Depuis son retour, Hal Jordan tente de renouer avec son entourage. Si certains héros, comme Green Arrow, apprécie de le retrouver, d'autres comme Batman, restent méfiants vis-à-vis de cette forte tête. Une mauvaise réputation qui rattrape Green Lantern quand d'anciens collègues, victimes de son coup de folie passé, font leur réapparition. (Green Lantern #7-13)

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Dc Comics, Comic Book, Superheroes, Graphic Novels Comics, Science Fiction

176 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 21, 2011

About the author

Geoff Johns originally hails from Detroit, Michigan. He attended Michigan State University, where he earned a degree in Media Arts and Film. He moved to Los Angeles in the late 1990s in search of work within the film industry. Through perseverance, Geoff ended up as the assistant to Richard Donner, working on Conspiracy Theory and Lethal Weapon 4. During that time, he also began his comics career writing Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. and JSA (co-written with David S. Goyer) for DC Comics. He worked with Richard Donner for four years, leaving the company to pursue writing full-time.

His first comics assignments led to a critically acclaimed five-year run on the The Flash. Since then, he has quickly become one of the most popular and prolific comics writers today, working on such titles including a highly successful re-imagining of Green Lantern, Action Comics (co-written with Richard Donner), Teen Titans, Justice Society of America, Infinite Crisis and the experimental breakout hit series 52 for DC with Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka and Mark Waid. Geoff received the Wizard Fan Award for Breakout Talent of 2002 and Writer of the Year for 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008 as well as the CBG Writer of the Year 2003 thru 2005, 2007 and CBG Best Comic Book Series for JSA 2001 thru 2005. Geoff also developed BLADE: THE SERIES with David S. Goyer, as well as penned the acclaimed “Legion” episode of SMALLVILLE. He also served as staff writer for the fourth season of ROBOT CHICKEN.

Geoff recently became a New York Times Bestselling author with the graphic novel Superman: Brainiac with art by Gary Frank.

Reviews

[Alejandro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cool reading!


I bought this in its single comic book issues, but I chosen this TPB edition to be able of making a better overall review.


This TPB edition collects “Green Lantern” #7-13.


Creative Team:

Writer: Geoff Johns

Illustrators: Ethan Van Sciver, Carlos Pacheco, Ivan Reis


IT’S NEVER EASY BEING GREEN

Hal Jordan is back to be fully human and on his duties as Green Lantern of Space Sector 2814, and since then, things are moving fast.

Coast City is on reconstruction and slowly, some people are deciding to return to the cursed town.
John Stewart is Hal’s backup partner in the Space Sector 2814, while Guy Gardner (believe it or not) is promoted to the GL Corps’ Honor Guard (which are GL Corps’ officers without a specified space sector and they have jurisdiction on any sector in the Guardians of the Universe’s watch), while Kyle Rayner has become “Ion” and being assigned with special mission by the Guardians.

Kilowog keeps his usual duties as GL Corps trainees instructor, and Salakk is the new GL Corps’ Senior Administrator and Keeper of the Book of Oa (the guide book for the GL Corps).

While many rookies aren’t aware of what Hal did in the past (under Parallax’s influence), many veterans have returned to active duty and they have spread the rumors and therefore, Hal isn’t quite welcome around many GL Corps officers while he’s around in Oa.

It's not easy to be a Green Lantern...

...and even less easier to be Hal Jordan.


FRIENDS & ALLIES & FOES

Hal Jordan must face the son of Mongul and a new Tattooed Man but he won’t do it alone…

…Green Arrow will support him against the son of Mongul but they aren’t prepared against Mongul’s special kind of “mercy”. The ever popular Green Lantern/Green Arrow team-up will have to resist the temptation of a perfect life.

…Batman isn’t quite confortable with Hal’s return but he calls him to Gotham City to deal with the menace of a totally new Tattooed Man. The Dark Knight and the Emerald Knight make an uneasy alliance that will be tested.


ONE YEAR LATER

Due the self-imposed disappearance for a year of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman, all DC titles (including Green Lantern) moved a year in its storylines, slowly revealing what happened during that 52 weeks.

Hal Jordan prefers to fly when he’s on US Air Force duty without the ring, to be able to feel the thrill of flying an aircraft like any other military pilot. However, that decision becomes troublesome when is revealed that he and other two fellow pilots (including Capt. Jillian “Cowgirl” Pearlman) were captured by Russian army and kept as POW for a time.

Hal Jordan isn’t favorite of different people, since a bounty is offered for him and a metahuman team, the Global Guardians, with a secret agenda, are publicly accusing him for causing international disturbances.

But all that can wait since…

When Hal Jordan fell into fear and was possessed by Parallax, on his raging journey to Oa, did horrible things…

…and fellow Green Lantern Corps members died.

But when Tomar-Tu, that was supposed to be between those murdered GL Corps officers suddenly appears on Earth, Hal knows that other of those fallen comrades may survive too but the back route leads to Space Sector 3601…

…and that’s bad news for the Guardians of the Universe, since it’s a fearsome sector without stars and where the Manhunters’ adopted homeworld is.

And the Guardians of the Universe prefer not disturbing the Manhunters if possible.

The Manhunters were the first attempt of the Guardians of the Universe of making a law enforcing organization, but that went disastrously, and if they were a major menace in the past…

…now they are worst than ever since they have evolved, updated, and under an insidious and very dangerous new leader!

Oh!…

…that’s not all, since in other space sectors…

…Sinestro is recruiting!

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Satisfactory but fast-moving and action-oriented graphic novel featuring the 'Emerald Knight.' The volume is split into two parts, though, which don't exactly flow together all that well. The first half features two short stories -- Lantern teams with old friend / companion Green Arrow to take on a psychic villain who, appearance-wise, was straight out of Little Shop of Horrors; then he flies out to Gotham City to assist Justice League frenemy Batman in battling an antagonist adorned with a Ray Bradbury-esque moniker. (Admittedly, said heroes don't work up much of a sweat in either of these stories, but it was nice to see GL paired with others. A solo character can become a drag without a conversation partner.) The latter-half storyline continues the previous volume's theme, in which GL continues to try redeem himself - this time on a rescue mission - in the eyes of the Lantern Corps.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the story with Hal and Ollie, but I thought it was more of a Green Arrow story than a Green Lantern one. Also, loved the story with Batman, if only because of the interaction between Bruce and Hal. The rest of the stories were good, too. There are some set-up scenes in it for Blackest Night that I enjoyed, as well.

[Sandee is Reading · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm getting way too interested and invested with these Green Lantern stories. Look at all the questions I've written down for my friend to answer. I was writing all of these down while I was waiting for my prescription glasses and sipping my Starbucks frappe.



And mind you, this was me not even halfway through the volume.

I was a bit worried, at first. There were a lot of things mentioned that I had no clue what it was about. I was about to chuck this and not continue with it anymore. Good thing I kept reading because questions were definitely answered as you go through further into the story. Although, I would have to say I wasn't a fan of how some of the things were told. It was too... expositiony? Is that even a word? Okay. How can I explain this properly? Hal's past was told by Hal himself as stuff was going on simulataneously. There were some parts where you see what happened, but mostly, there was just Hal telling you about stuff you've missed. I would have wanted to see it, not just be told that this is what happened. Does that make sense? It should because I dunno how else to explain it.

I didn't expect the villain though because I thought it was going to be someone else. Did I like the villain here? I dunno. Maybe. I feel where his anger was coming from. He said he forgave Hal, but he was also punishing him for his crimes. They said the best type of villain is the one that thinks he's right. This guy falls under that. I'm just not particularly fond of him because despite me understanding why he did the things he did, I just felt it's a bit shallow. He ended up killing quite a number of people because he was upset? Really? Tsk tsk.

The thing about Green Lantern that I love the most is how there are a lot of stories to tell. They have an infinite number of galaxies to discover, alarmingly huge number of alien lifeforms that they have to fight to maintain peace within the galaxy. I can't wait to read the next one!

[Donovan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't like this as much as Rebirth or the previous volume, but it's still a damn fine read. I'm learning that, because of the scale of Green Lantern stories, they can become busy and confusing very quickly, especially if you don't know everything about GL history. So here Mongul, Jr. comes to conquer Earth with life sucking plants. Little do we know that at some point, Green Arrow and Green Lantern are subdued and begin hallucinating. This could have used more clarity, because the situation at the end of the first issue suddenly changed and I was like, wasn't Mongul chained up? Then we see Hal's father, who's been dead forever, and Sinestro is still a good guy. I'm thinking, something has to be fucked up. So that first issue was mentally taxing.

It gets better though. In Gotham, Bats and Hal have some awesome banter. Bats hits him to return the favor from Rebirth, and then slams on the Batmobile brakes when Hal insists on not wearing a seat belt. I was laughing most of the time these two were together. But there's a poignant "did he really write this" moment, one of the most tender and mythical of Batman I've ever seen in a non-Batman comic. Hal lends Bats the Ring, and tells him to overcome his fear, because he knows the sort of similar demons Batman carries. But Batman is fear. I won't spoil the rest, but I wanna see a comic where he finally transcends the fear. Some may say, well that isn't Batman anymore. Hm, sounds interesting doesn't it?

Issues 10-13 follow Infinite Crisis and jump ahead one year. This is a bit odd. I'm trying to rack my brain as to what the hell even happens GL related in Infinite Crisis (and now I'm going to reread). But anyway, GL Tomar Tu shows up for revenge on Hal. I think for his reign as Parallax, I can't be sure. I feel like I'm always missing something with GL history. Anyway, Hal and Guy investigate Tomar Tu and go to Sector 3600, beyond GL jurisdiction and home of the Manhunters, when they see holy fucking shit is that who I think it is?! Haven't seen him since Dan Jurgens! Wow! That's a twist!

I must admit that while the beginning was a bit confusing, things became more clear and exciting as the book went on. I love how huge these stories are, settings that span the entire universe, allies always at odds with one another. I don't always know what's going on, but Johns generally doesn't berate his readers for their incomplete knowledge. The pacing was quick and tight, and that twist was epic, building right up to the end to continue in later volumes. Johns started a little clunky but finished strong. And the artwork by Pacheco, Sciver and Reis is drop dead gorgeous as usual. Onto the next volume!

[Cheese · Rating 3 out of 5]

ooooooh Cyborg Superman, didn't see that coming!

[Subham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reread: 31/12/2021

I loved this volume! Its the teamup of Hal and Ollie as they go after Mongul and I love the whole dream sequence and his fight with his supposed arch-nemesis who led him to emerald twilight and then the friendship between them is highlighted and Johns has this uncanny ability to give character moments which are so well done and then the team up with Bruce vs Tattoo-ed man and I liked that story too and finally one year later, Hal and Guy go to sector 3601 and fight Cyborg-Superman and his manhunters and that leads to the rescuing of dead green lanterns . This volume felt too much like it was cleaning the sins of Emerald twilight and then giving Hal some great moments of redemption and also hinting towards future storylines to come. So another awesome volume! And the pencils of Reis are <3!

_______________________________________________________________
This was a good read, first we pick up with Hal and Ollie vs Mongul and his sister and as is to be expected they are trapped within Black Mercy and have to fight their way through that dreams/nightmares and return back to reality and it was a good story and shows the bond between Hal and Ollie. Then Bats and Hal team up to fight Tatooed man and they are even after this issue, they are friends again or so it seems like. Then we pick up one year later after Infinite crisis, the rocket reds vs Hal whose after Igneous and it sets up future stuff where Hal is like not respecting boundary laws and Global Guardians are after him! Then we have the rescue of the other GL's on the planet Biot where the manhunters and their Grandmaster aka CYBORG SUPERMAN have these GLs trapped and its upto Hal and Guy to rescue them and its easily the best story out of all of them! You just see how committed Hal is to rescue them and his fight with Henshaw settles what happened when Coast city was destroyed and by the end, Hal is somewhat redeemed and its a good scene to see and like as a Hal fan rewarding. But something is going on with Superboy-Prime thats for sure! Another great volume by Geoff and co!

[Xavier Guillaume · Rating 4 out of 5]

Green Lantern: Revenge of the Green Lanterns starts off strange, but keep reading because it gets really interesting. The story starts off with Green Lantern and Green Arrow trying to stop Mongul from taking over Earth. How Mongul exactly plans on taking over Earth, it's kind of strange. Let's just say Mongul decides to play Suddenly Seymour.

The Green Brigade wins, for now at least, and then Green Lantern decides to team up with Batman to take on the Tattooed Man. Yeah, I think they could have done a little better with that name. The Tattooed Man is kind of interesting, think of Kevin Spacey in Se7en, only with tattoos, that can kill you. Anyway, Batman and Green Lantern say "tattoodles" to the Tattooed Man, and we're left with one of the most iconic Batman scenes when Green Lantern convinces Batman to don the Power Ring.



Yes, psychic green bats! What else he conjures is kind of touching, and I admit I was close to getting a little watery eyed.

The next portion is where the book gets really good. I really want to tell you what happens, but I don't want to spoil it. Let me just say, you know how I got really excited for the Manhunters appearance in No Fear? Why don't you extend that excitement by 1000?

Overall, I really enjoyed the book, giving it a 4/5. I probably would have given it a 3 if I were to judge it by the beginning alone, but it gets really good, and I mean really good. Let me just say the last two pages of the book left me stunned, and so excited for what's coming up next. Maybe it's because I'm gay, but there's something about a hot, naked archnemesis trapped in a floating green cube surrounded by 50 Green Lantern guards that I find strangely enrapturing.

[Stephen · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.0 stars. This volume collects Green Lantern 7 through 13 and was a bit of a disappointment after I read and liked Green Lantern, Book 1: No Fear. I thought the one story with Batman was pretty good but I found the rest of the stories very forgettable.

[Arda Uğur Demir · Rating 4 out of 5]

Batman stuff was so good and when it come to other hero (no spoilers) i started to lose interest

I am curious about volume 10-11-12

[Zezee · Rating 2 out of 5]

As posted on Zezee with Books.

Though I’m not familiar with Green Lantern, I was willing to try something new. I was aware of the Green Lantern movie that was made a couple years ago staring Ryan Reynolds, but I haven’t watched it. Everyone says it sucks and I’ve never felt the need to watch it whenever it’s on TV. I was, however, curious about Green Lantern after reading Red Son and didn’t realize until I read Revenge of the Green Lanterns that there are more than one Green Lantern, that they are a group.

That surprise aside, I didn’t find the story in Revenge of the Green Lanterns appealing. Actually, I thought this volume was composed of individual stories and it wasn’t until the end that I realized they are connected by Hal Jordan’s past when he was under Parallax’s influence. I did find his attempts at atoning for his past actions interesting, but since I couldn’t detect a strong connection throughout the stories, the volume as a whole didn’t have a strong impact on me.

Also, I think this volume is more suited for someone who’s familiar with Hal Jordan’s background. Maybe if I’d known beforehand that he had deceived his fellows, I’d be more concerned about him and his problems while reading this.

However, of the issues that make up Revenge of the Green Lanterns, I found Branded the most interesting; but because of its characters, not the story. I mean, the story was okay, but the villain was very interesting because of how he’s illustrated — tattoos covering his body which he can make come to life. Batman appears in Branded too. He caught my attention there and now I’d like to read more about him. Actually, in the stories I read, I was more curious about the side characters than Hal Jordan. I guess it’s because I didn’t care much for his story.

(Btw, the little smurf dudes seem evil to me. I think they want to take over the world. But I might be wrong.)

Art style:

The art throughout is pretty good. I liked both the illustrations and colors. All the characters are fit. The men ripple with tight muscles and the women are all slender and sleek and drawn from angles that best feature their “assets” (I just think some of those angles are very suggestive). Green Arrow looked pretty good too. I liked his goatee and mustache.

As mentioned before, I love how the villain in Branded is illustrated because of the many tattoos across his body. The illustration of him is very detailed and he looks like a badass: shirtless wearing only cargo pants and dog tags.

I also love the illustration of Cyborg Superman (I think that’s his name) in the last issue, which is also titled Revenge of the Green Lanterns. His mechanical parts are very detailed and I love the shading and colors on him. It’s pretty impressive.

Overall: ★★☆☆☆ 1/2

The story was…meh, but I liked the art.

[Yvonne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another green lantern book that my brother decided to read. much better then the previous volume.

I knew I was going to really enjoy this the moment I got to the second page and I saw the black mercy. Just for the record my favorite superman story is the one that introduced this wonderfully horrible plant and I love any just about everything I have ever seen the plant featured in.

There's also a great story with Batman, what's not to love. I really like how John's writes Batman and green lantern. The two characters here are the same ones who John's had meet for the first time in the 2011 Justice League issue #1. It flows so well.

John's also handled the one year forward jump really well. He had some ongoing plot stuff and he managed to make it work while having the year long hiatus be believable.

This is really good.

Again though, I ask, when was the last GL' s history had a complete revision? a complete reboot? They are referencing the green lantern/green arrow road trips now. It's like green lantern has been traveling in a straight line forever and only the other earth heroes around him have changed. There are some things that couldn't have happened the same anymore. like anything to do with Hank Henshaw/the cyborg superman, who never became a cyborg in the current timeline. But Jordan still references the surrounding events in today's books. I am going to have to do some research.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Perfect Life (#7-8). Ah, it's the ole' Mongol and the dream flowers trick. Though it's cool to see Hal and Ollie team up, their "perfect life" dreams really aren't that interesting. The story ends with some interesting looks at families, but that's about it [3+/5].

Branded (#9). Hal fights a scary new Tattooed Man. There's some good world building in the new Tattooed Man, but that doesn't make the fight particularly memorable. More notable is the repairing of the relationship between Hal and Bruce (Wayne) [3+/5].

Revenge of the Green Lanterns (#10-13). And as he closes out his first year of the Green Lantern comic proper, Johns is still trying to repair the damage of Emerald Twilight. This time around, he welcomes back the many well-characterized and original Lanterns from before the Twilight by coming up with a ham-handed reason for their survival. It's nice to see Hal and Guy working together, and it's nice to get some closure on the first arc's return of the Manhunters, but this still ends up being a long fight without much depth [3+/5].

[Kaotic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Note: I own the individual comics and not the trade paperback version. But seeing how GoodReads does not have the individual volumes on here, I am using these to post my reviews.

Every review on here is posting about how they hate this series. But I really enjoy it. It is fast paced, has good artists and a good story line. I also see everyone complaining on this volume with one simple statement:

"Where's the revenge?"

What I have to say to that is - read between the lines. The Green Lanterns are not about going out and seeking legitimate painful revenge. That would defeat the purpose of their corps.

Think about the psychological and the rift. Think beyond what is in front of you.

[Joshua Adam Bain · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story is building!

So we still have the same formula of short stories that will eventually tie together further down the track. I think Johns run is something that should be read as a whole instead of parts or single volumes. If I picked this up randomly I would have thought this was rather lack lustre. But because I've read what's happened further down the track it's so fun see how everything came together like small pieces on a puzzle.

We get the one year jump here thanks to the Infinite Crisis events. So again we jump in with no knowledge of what happened in the missing year, but we get a brief idea of some of the events. I'm hoping they delve more into Hals month in the POW camp. Hopefully in the next volume.

All going well so far. Can't wait to get volume 3!

[J.M. (Joe) · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a flippin' mess. I almost didn't finish GREEN LANTERN: REVENGE OF GREEN LANTERN (where was the "revenge," by the way?). It's pretty much a one-star effort and my perception of Geoff Johns's ability to craft a semi-cohesive story has really skidded to a halt (hire me, DC!). The tale with Batman in it redeems GL:RoGL for basically a half star, bringing it up to 1.5. I think I'm done with his run. I'm not going to subject myself to it anymore. He had twelve or more issues to convince me, and didn't get it done.

Two stars (out of five). Can't recommend this one except to the most hardcore GL fans (again, mainly for the Batman issue).

[John Yelverton · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book series just keeps getting better with each page turn, culminating in the return of Arisia.

[Marco · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm still waiting to fall in love with this series but it's not happening.

[Judah Radd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really epic. Loving this run. Not sure why it took me so long to get back to it, but now I’m committed.

[Pavel Pravda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tahle kniha trpí tím, že je vytržená z delší řady. Čtenář je tak hned vhozen do něčeho, v čem se vůbec neorientuje. Doposud jsem četl pouze knihu “Tajemství původu” a oproti té jsou zde úplně jinak rozdané karty. Vyprávění se neustále odkazuje k předchozím událostem, a ač se scénář snaží spoustu odkazů vysvětlovat, tak to pro mě byl trošku guláš. Až se nechce věřit, že kniha začíná sešitem #7, protože odkazovaných událostí je tolik, že se nemohly do šesti sešitů vejít a musely proběhout i v jiných komiksových řadách. Byl to pro mě docela šok, že oproti Halovi-nováčkovi je tady najednou Hal-veterán a přitom pořád vypadají stejně. Zkrátka z nafukovacího bazénku jsem byl vylitý rovnou do oceánu.

Kniha začíná dvěma kratšími událostmi, ve kterých si Hal Jordan dá týmovku s Green Arrowem a s Batmanem. Potom už začíná delší hlavní příběh, který dal název celé knize. Halovi svitla naděje, že by mohl alespoň částečně odčinit zločiny své minulosti a vydává se na zakázanou a téměř sebevražednou misi. Když pominu tu permanentní provázanost s minulostí, tak to bylo relativně pohodové a zábavné čtení. Kresba je pěkný mainstream a asi možná vás potěší více, než samotné příběhy.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

By this point in his run Geoff Johns seems to have settled down into a rhythm of excellent storytelling. Over the course of the stories collected here, he battles the children of Mongol, copes with a period of captivity (one told in flashback after a time jump), and discovers the secret of the new Manhunters that Johns introduced at the start of the series. Throughout them he balances nicely the battle scenes with the more introspective character moments, as Jordan works to surmount the accumulated baggage of his misdeeds and get back to serving as a Green Lantern. It's highly entertaining, and great reading for any fan of good superhero adventures.

[James De Leon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Ollie and Hal story was nice - always nice to see this pair. The story with Bruce is also pretty good - nice to see them ‘getting along’ and nice seeing the iconic panel with Bruce holding the ring.

The rest of the stories are okay. We see Hal dealing with the repercussions of his past actions - - - as much as Geoff seems to want us to forget about them, he has to address this. Geoff does engineer a fairly decent manner to bring back deceased Lanterns in his quest to absolve Hal of past sins.

The art is mostly good - if anything, it can be a bit too busy, which is a complaint I had for the “Green Lantern Corps - Recharged” book.

[Logan · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10:
This collection rocks! There are three stories here and each one builds up this repentant relationship that Hal Jordan has with those who he cares about: Green Arrow, Batman, and the Green Lantern Corps. Seeing the restoration of iconic Green Lanterns was awesome and I love the role that Cyborg Superman played alongside the Manhunters! It’s also very cool that this is the single instance (so far) that Batman has used a Green Lantern ring!

[Readingismyonlyhobbyyy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this, but I'm not sure if this run is for me. There's so much going on, every single issue was packed with different storylines, and so much text, even the art was so busy (the art was beautiful). Things I liked include, Batmans Cameo and him trying on the ring, Oliver at the start and Guy Gardener's snarky lines. It just felt like too much was going on.

[Eric Burton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another stellar volume in the Green Lantern saga. I loved the issues with Green Arrow, and there was one issue in the middle that had the best interaction I've ever read between Batman and Hal. Then you have the Revenge storyline, and it's fantastic as well. This might become my favorite comic run of all time, but there's still a ton more to read!

[Don · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll give this 3.5; 3 on the confusing (to me) storyline(s) but a 4 or more on the artwork. Good stuff.

[Ben Horner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Johns & Reid work here is just as good as their New 52 run on Aquaman. A great jumping off point for me not knowing all that much about Green Lantern and much more enjoyable than the last one I read (which is the next book after this which probably didn’t help).

[jenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

this one was okay i liked the first half more w green arrow and batman

[sude · Rating 3 out of 5]

her bölüm fincanlim fincanlim

[Allan · Rating 3.75 out of 5]

First of all, Ivan Reis.

Holy shit, this man’s artwork is incredible.

I genuinely think he might be on par with Ethan Van Sciver. His style feels like an almost perfect blend of Van Sciver and Jim Lee, combining incredibly detailed characters with dynamic action and some absolutely gorgeous compositions. The covers alone are fantastic.

And his Green Lanterns? Beautiful.

I particularly appreciate how much individuality he gives them. Different uniforms, different emblems, different body types, different ways of wearing essentially the same symbol. It makes the Corps feel like an enormous intergalactic organization rather than an army of identical people wearing green spandex.

As for the story itself, I have some mixed feelings about its structure.

We begin with Hal’s time as a prisoner of war, something that had been teased for quite a while. And honestly, I’m still not particularly convinced by his return to military aviation.

I understand why Hal wants to fly without relying on his ring, and I appreciate that he’s trying to maintain some connection to his old life. But here, that decision nearly gets his friends killed, costs another pilot his career, and puts Cowgirl in serious danger.

And for what?

The main lesson seems to be that Hal probably should have kept his damn ring on.

The mystery surrounding his captivity also feels unnecessarily prolonged. We receive brief flashbacks and hints about what happened, but so much more interesting stuff is happening elsewhere that I found it difficult to care.

The Global Guardians storyline is considerably more interesting conceptually.

I like the idea of different countries and continents having their own superhero teams. It makes the DC Universe feel larger, and it’s refreshing to see stories that don’t revolve exclusively around America.

At the same time, the international treaty and the involvement of government-controlled superheroes raise some uncomfortable questions.

Hal Jordan isn’t simply an American superhero. He’s a Green Lantern, responsible for protecting an entire sector of space. Restricting his activities according to national borders seems fundamentally at odds with that responsibility.

And turning superheroes into government agents can be a dangerous road to travel. At what point do they stop being independent protectors and become an extraordinarily powerful policing force?

It’s an interesting idea, although I don’t think the storyline explores it nearly enough.

But thankfully, we eventually return to Oa.

And that’s where things really start getting good.

The early glimpses of the Sinestro Corps, particularly Arkillo, are fantastic. Knowing what these characters eventually become makes their introductions even more exciting.

I also enjoyed seeing Soranik Natu again. Her connection to Sinestro makes her one of the more fascinating Lanterns to me, and I love the conflict that comes with her family history.

The atmosphere on Oa is another highlight.

Seeing the other Lanterns react to Hal’s presence reminds us that Parallax’s crimes haven’t simply been forgotten. These are people who lost friends and comrades because of him. Some of them have every reason to hate the sight of him.

And yet, Guy Gardner stands up for him.

I absolutely love that.

Their friendship has developed into something genuinely wonderful. They can insult each other, argue, and compete constantly, but when someone threatens one of them, the other is ready to throw hands.

Then Kilowog arrives and puts everyone in their place.

There’s something great about seeing a character who commands the respect of the entire Corps, including Hal himself, his authority comes from something equally important: the respect he’s earned from training and protecting generations of them.

And Salaak continues to be Salaak.

His dedication to duty remains absolute, yet his concern for Hal and the other Lanterns is unmistakable. I particularly enjoyed his interactions with Kilowog when Hal disobeys the Guardians. Salaak knows he has to report him, but he doesn’t seem particularly eager to do it.

It’s these little relationships that make the Corps feel alive.

The mission to Biot, beyond the Guardians’ jurisdiction, is another fascinating piece of worldbuilding.

Interesting that Guardians don’t actually control the entire universe. There are unexplored regions, abandoned sectors, and places even the Green Lantern Corps rarely visits.

Biot itself looks cool, almost like a combination of a Transformers world and the lower levels of Coruscant.

The Manhunters make for an intimidating threat, especially with their ability to drain the Lanterns’ power. The fact that these machines can actually bleed is genuinely disturbing.

But the discovery of the missing Green Lanterns is where the story really grabbed me.

Seeing them imprisoned and connected to an artificial power source was horrifying, but their designs were absolutely incredible.

Kreon, with his golden armor and military background, immediately caught my attention. So did the other prisoners, each looking like they belonged to an entirely different corner of the DC Universe.

I particularly appreciated that Johns gave us glimpses of their histories. As someone who hasn’t read all their original appearances, it makes them feel like actual characters rather than forgotten names brought back for nostalgia.

Then there’s Cyborg Superman.

I’ve always liked Hank Henshaw, and his appearance here might be my favorite design of his. The black and red suit works considerably better for him than simply wearing Superman’s costume.

His connection to Coast City’s destruction also makes him a particularly appropriate villain for Hal to confront.

I do have to admit that the story occasionally feels overcrowded.

Between the Manhunters, the missing Lanterns, Hal’s captivity, the Global Guardians, the mysterious bounty hunters, and the buildup toward the Sinestro Corps, there are moments when Johns seems to be telling three different stories simultaneously.

And while I appreciate how beautifully some of these threads eventually connect, that doesn’t necessarily make them equally engaging while you’re reading them.

It’s something I can appreciate more in retrospect than in the moment.

But the emotional payoff makes up for a lot.

Hal destroying the nanites in his own brain through sheer willpower is a wonderful reminder of why he’s considered one of the greatest Green Lanterns to ever live.

Yet the moment that impressed me more came afterward.

When the rescued Lanterns realize who freed them, they immediately turn against Hal. And honestly, can you blame them?

To them, he’s still the man who destroyed the Corps and murdered their friends.

But Hal refuses to fight back.

I love that decision.

These aren’t stupid people. They’re Green Lanterns. They’re capable of recognizing what’s happening, even if their anger initially overwhelms their judgment.

And Hal understands that regaining their trust isn’t going to happen simply because he’s wearing a green ring again. He has to earn it.

It’s a much more satisfying approach to the Parallax aftermath than simply having everyone forgive him overnight.

And then there’s Arisia.

God, I was happy to see her again.

Her history with Hal makes their reunion particularly meaningful. She’s someone who knew him long before his fall, someone who experienced the consequences of what happened, and yet she doesn’t seem to carry the same hatred toward him as some of the others.

I love the chemistry between them.

There’s a tenderness to their interactions that feels different from Hal’s relationships with the other Lanterns. They come across like two former lovers who have genuinely remained close friends, but who still share something special that never entirely disappeared.

That little moment they share during the confrontation with the Manhunters might honestly be my favorite scene in the entire storyline.

It’s not particularly spectacular. It doesn’t involve some enormous display of power or a dramatic revelation.

It’s simply two people with a complicated history finding a moment of affection in the middle of absolute chaos.

And I absolutely love it.

I’m also intrigued by the reintroduction of Arisia alongside Cowgirl. They’re two very different women connected to different parts of Hal’s life, and while I know where his romantic history eventually goes, I can’t help wishing we got more of Hal and Arisia together.

The appearance of Superboy-Prime adds yet another reminder of how much larger the DC Universe is becoming, and how dangerous some of the threats waiting beyond the immediate storyline truly are.

Overall, Revenge of the Green Lanterns is an ambitious, occasionally uneven, but ultimately very satisfying arc.

I wasn’t always convinced by its pacing or the number of parallel storylines, but the artwork, the exploration of the Corps, the lingering consequences of Parallax, and especially Hal’s reunion with Arisia made it an excellent read.

For all the cosmic spectacle, it’s the friendships, loyalties, and complicated relationships that make the Green Lantern Corps feel like something worth fighting for.