Green Lantern, Volume 3: Brother's Keeper

Green Lantern

by Judd Winick, Dale Eaglesham (Illustrator), Rodney Ramos (Illustrator)

While battling villains and dealing with his girlfriend Jen, Kyle Rayner, a.k.a. Green Lantern, tracks down the men responsible for a vicious hate-based attack on his friend and co-worker Terry Berg.

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

124 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2003

About the author

Judd Winick is an American cartoonist, comic book writer, screenwriter, and former reality television personality known for his diverse contributions to storytelling across multiple media. He first entered the public eye in 1994 as a cast member on The Real World: San Francisco, where he formed a close friendship with AIDS educator Pedro Zamora, an experience that deeply influenced his later work. Winick memorialized their bond in Pedro and Me, a critically acclaimed autobiographical graphic novel that earned several literary awards and became a staple in school curricula.

Winick's career in comics took off with The Adventures of Barry Ween, Boy Genius and continued with major runs at DC Comics, including Green Lantern, Green Arrow, and Batman. His stories often explored socially relevant themes, such as HIV, homophobia, and identity. He was recognized for introducing gay characters and tackling difficult subjects with empathy and clarity. His work on Batman notably included resurrecting the character Jason Todd as the Red Hood, a storyline later adapted into the animated film Batman: Under the Red Hood, for which Winick wrote the screenplay.

Beyond comics, he created The Life and Times of Juniper Lee for Cartoon Network and served as head writer for Hulu's The Awesomes. In 2015, he launched the Hilo series, an all-ages sci-fi adventure inspired by his own children. The bestselling series has been widely praised and is expected to reach its eleventh volume in 2025.

Winick lives in San Francisco with his wife, Pam Ling, also a Real World alum, and their two children. He continues to create heartfelt and imaginative stories for audiences of all ages.

Reviews

[Cyna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was this "progressive" in 2002? That's pretty sad. It's a pretty textbook manpain-and-fridging combo, made most obvious by the fact that the majority of the "Hate Crime" story arc focuses on Kyle's anger and his need to avenge the brutal attack of his gay teenage assistant, rather than the actual victim of the attack, Terry.

But I guess the only way to get people to care about LGBT characters is the victimize them and then filter it through the perspective of a straight bystander, amirite?

[James DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, this took me by surprise.

So the first half is pretty fun. Have the return of a villain who just HAS to get his revenge. Turning almost everyone against Kyle. It's silly, over the top, but pretty fun and a surprise ending. Then we get into a fun story of Kyle having his girlfriend Jen and his mom meet for the first time. They also go to a school reunion. All of this was top notch and very enjoyable.

Then we get into the best story of the bunch. A two parter about a hate crime. Terry, Kyle's assistant in drawing is beaten badly by a bunch of guys simply because he kissed his boyfriend outside a club. Filled with guilt and anger, Kyle tries to find out who could beat a 17 year old kid for something so small. This sends Kyle off on a rampage and confronting multiple people.

The last story is easily the strongest one. Hitting home since a lot of hate crimes DO still happen. So it was well told and well done. I also enjoyed seeing Kyle with his mother and girlfriend, all the dialogue feels very real. So for the second half it's a easy 5 out of 5 for me. But the first half isn't great and I can't give it more than a 3 . It's pretty forgettable. So I'll settle for this collection at a 4 out of 5.

[Grant · Rating 3 out of 5]

Green Lantern tackles homophobia, and it comes across as silly and comic-booky as you'd expect, but their heart was in the right place at least.

[Nicholas Palmieri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Judd Winick's run on Green Lantern is a strange case. He's an odd fit for the title- his writing definitely benefits from being on a more "edgy" title like Outsiders or Green Arrow. His characters all have a similar voice here (which is probably just his own), but even so, he excels at creating great dramatic situations and showing how these characters react to them. The actual words may be a bit off, but the characters' actions and intentions behind the words are spot-on. Winick is also clearly new to writing superheroes here, which is especially apparent when looking at his handling of the "superheroic" scenes. The scenes are fun and creative, but there's nothing particularly memorable about the superhero/villain plot. So, it's a good thing that the book's final three issues (the bulk of the five-issue book) are dealing with personal issues and drama. However, that positive is only truly a positive if you've read Winick's previous Lantern volumes and see the payoff to those stories. Also, the first story (the superheroic one) introduces a conflict that isn't really resolved here, but continues on in the JSA series- so this is absolutely NOT a book to jump into without reading others first.

The art is solid, not too much to comment on here. But the coloring is great, a pretty and effective mix of bright superhero colors with more modern digital effects.

This is a book for those who have kept up with Winick's Lantern books (vol 1, "New Journey, Old Path" and vol 2, "The Power of Ion"). But this volume is definitely not a good starting place for Green Lantern. If you're interested in reading this run, I also recommend reading "Circle of Fire" before vol 1 and "The Last Will and Testament of Hal Jordan" between vol 1 and 2, to get a more complete story. If you're just interested in Green Lantern and haven't read any of it before, start with the Geoff Johns stuff.

[PJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 1994 Judd Winick (the writer of this comic series as represented in this graphic novel) was one of the featured cast on MTV's "Real World". He wrote a very moving (and much awarded) book called "Pedro and Me" based on his friendship with his HIV positive roommate on the show, Pedro Zemora.
Why is this relevant to this Green Lantern comic? Because Mr. Winick has a gift for taking the complex and making it accessible. For writing a comic book that deals with issues, but stays in the genre, and more importantly - stays true to the characters already established.

The story arc in this graphic novel concerns one of gay-bashing and its handled excellently, with no easy solutions and no cliched answers. The emotions are real.

Visually, the pages pop with very well done art and ink, but it is the combination of the strong imagery with the polished and thoughtful writing that make this novel stand out.

Try this graphic series - you'll be introduced to a much overlooked and very human superhero (The Green Lantern) and still be entertained with a well written and thought provoking (but not preachy) story.

[Shaun · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting look at hate crimes against homosexuals in out society. Kyle reaction was understandable, but leaving earth was a little extreme. I am glad that DC introduced a gay character and not just for the sole purpose of killing him after this particular story arc. I really do like Kyle as a Green Lantern.

[Stacey Adams · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a "redoing" of a comic done in 2002 that got a lot of attention for it's subject matter. Kyle Rayner aka green lantern is also a freelance artist. His assistant Terry Berg helps out on his comics but also becomes a friend. Hate crimes, anti-gays, prejudice play a role in the story. His anger is so deep that Green Lantern loses faith in the people he's sworn to protect.
In comics we're used to good prevailing over evil. What happens when it's too much for the good guys to take?

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kyle's friend who is gay is nearly gay bashed to death and Kyle loses it, going for revenge. It is touching and may be the most brutal and in the news type of gay story to bring issues to the forefront. I loved this story.

[Chuck Ventura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Revolutionary for its time. Aged a bit, but still holds up well. Great LGBTQ+ representation and social issues that are still prevalent today.

Also Winnick continues to grow Kyle and Jen’s relationship and characterization.

[Jason O'Hagan · Rating 3 out of 5]

gay people existing in 2002 is cool, slightly less so when they get brutally beaten almost to death. Interesting that Lex Luthor promoted acceptance and greater legislative action in comparison to Green Lantern beating people up in the dark and then giving up on protecting Earth.

[machado · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5*

[Stacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed this arc. It's still a very important story line but was especially important at the time for a hero to show not just tolerance but true friendship with a gay character. They built Terry up over time so he wasn't the PBS special of the week and more importantly they don't fridge him. Also addressed in this book, Kyle has a great talk with his mother about what's been going on with him and finding his dad which is huge for their family.

I think what other reviewers may be forgetting is back in 2002 being gay was still widely unacceptable. This violence was prevalent but not talked about, certainly not in a comic. This is on par with Speedy's drug use being confronted in GA- a real world issue being tackled by comics. Did people want to read it? No, they wanted their same old escapist stuff. Did they call it heavy handed? Yup. There's no subtle way to do these kind of stories, you go all in if you want it to have any impact at all. Kyle is still a young hero who's coming off his stint as Ion that still has him questioning humanity as a whole. I don't feel it's out of character or cliche that he rages out and tries to fix the problem by beating up the culprits, it's something that many heroes have done and it's understandable. When you have power of any kind and feel powerless you use what you have. I think the ending shows a healthy way of dealing with what Kyle realized was a dark path he was about to go down.

[Caroline · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of Judd Winick's early superhero comics, and the writing is basically, "Have every character state the subtext of everything they are doing, always, so the reader doesn't miss anything." It's hard to mind that much, though because Winicks hero Kyle Rayner is so -- for lack of a better word -- sweet. I mean, he makes shiny green teddy bear constructs to beat up purse snatchers. And the art by Dale Eaglesham is so pretty. I just kind of wanted to give everybody involved in the story a hug and send them home with cookies.

The reason this volume is notable (and the reason I picked it up) is that the second story involves Terry Berg, Kyle's assistant in his day job as an artist, being badly beaten because he's gay. The trade has a foreword and an afterword which discusses how this story was Winick's response to the Matthew Shepard murder a few years before. It's tough (and more than a little depressing) to believe this storyline was controversial when it came out. There's nothing particularly subtle or original in the storytelling, but it does come across as a genuine and heartfelt story, and a more-than-worthy successor to the issue stories Denny O'Neil told in the early '70s run of the GL title.

ETA: Jen, you should read this, if you haven't, if you can get your hands on it. I wouldn't run out and buy it, but it's interesting.

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

That was bad. Let me just say that I have nothing against gays. I just didn't really like this Green Lantern....which kinda stinks really bad since its the first Green Lantern comic/GN I've ever read. I hated the ending...it was terrible.

SPOILER~SPOILER~SPOILER~SPOILER~SPOILER~SPOILER~SPOILER~SPOILER~SPOILER~SPOILER~

WHAT KIND OF SUPERHERO ACTS IN THAT MANNER?!?! That isn't heroic AT ALL! Superheroes are the characters that are supposed to fight against all odds no matter what. They see the potential of humanity, even if it seems like there is none. They keep us fighting when nothing else will. They give us hope and help us to aspire to reach goals that we once thought unreachable. They keep us believing in something greater...that good exists and that things can change. Green Lantern in this issue is a disgrace. He should be revoked of his powers. I am very disappointed... =(

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Judd Winick's Green Lantern run was spotty but he does a fantastic job of showing the emotions involved in a hate crime that touches too close to home. The story is sadly based in real life and handled amazingly well. Kyle's frustrations and feelings of helplessness are palpable. The problem with the collection are the other stories are just average at best. The art is 90s good and even has Jim Lee covers. Overall, the collection should be read by everyone based on the hate crime story but overall, its just decent.

[NumberLord · Rating 3 out of 5]

This contains Green Lantern 151 - 155; but it's really only noteworthy for issues 154 - 155, which are the two parts of the story "Hate Crime." Although I've never been much of a GL fan, the story was good, improved by special appearances of the Flash, Batman, and the (Hal Jordan) Spectre.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not the most exciting comic ever, but heartbreaking and sweet. Very well done.

[James Otis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great emotional story, one of those "comic book" tales that touch your heart and make you think.

[Greg Cohoon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't enjoy the heavy-handed Terry story.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well handled social commentary.

[Tyler · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was fantastic. Emotional, huge impact, and exactly what I was looking for. Awesome Kyle Rayner stories.

[Jdetrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

More good from Winick. Some may say the moralizing is laid on thick, but it works for me and the last storyline of the collection always touches me.