The Green Lantern: Season Two, Vol. 1

The Green Lantern (Collected Editions)

by Grant Morrison, Liam Sharp (Illustrator), Xermanico (Illustrator)

Eisner-Award winning author Grant Morrison and artist Liam Sharp continue their incredible take on the Green Lantern!

After the Blackstar incursion, Hal Jordan and his fellow Green Lanterns are left to put the world back together again after the battles that weakened the Green Lantern Corps to less than a shred of what it once was.

His next mission is his most critical...he needs to find the next generation of cosmic immortals. Will Hal be able to find the new heroes the world needs? Or will new threats keep him from completing his mission?

Collects The Green Lantern: Blackstars #1-3 and The Green Lantern Season Two #1-6.

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

248 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 2020

About the author

Grant Morrison has been working with DC Comics for twenty five years, after beginning their American comics career with acclaimed runs on ANIMAL MAN and DOOM PATROL. Since then they have written such best-selling series as JLA, BATMAN and New X-Men, as well as such creator-owned works as THE INVISIBLES, SEAGUY, THE FILTH, WE3 and JOE THE BARBARIAN. In addition to expanding the DC Universe through titles ranging from the Eisner Award-winning SEVEN SOLDIERS and ALL-STAR SUPERMAN to the reality-shattering epic of FINAL CRISIS, they have also reinvented the worlds of the Dark Knight Detective in BATMAN AND ROBIN and BATMAN, INCORPORATED and the Man of Steel in The New 52 ACTION COMICS.

In their secret identity, Morrison is a "counterculture" spokesperson, a musician, an award-winning playwright and a chaos magician. They are also the author of the New York Times bestseller Supergods, a groundbreaking psycho-historic mapping of the superhero as a cultural organism. They divide their time between their homes in Los Angeles and Scotland.

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

I typically love most of Morrison's work. However, I had no idea what was going on in most of this. This is Morrison writing at his most obtuse while doing his typical revive stories of the Golden Age thing. I'm really disappointed in this series. Editorially, I don't know why the Blackstars miniseries wasn't included in the 2nd Season 1 collection as it finishes up that story. Season 2 kicks off a new series of obtuse stories set mainly on Earth. This is a fail in every way except for the art. Liam Sharp is killing it with all his alien creations.

[Malum · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm both a Green Lantern and a Grant Morrison fan, but I just can't get into this run. The first volume was good, but the next one didn't impress me and I was ready for this volume to be over by the half way mark.

[Lyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm a big Green Lantern fan and so gave this a try.

Let me say that I very much enjoyed Liam Sharp's excellent work, his art was really good, the highlight of this otherwise weird and incomprehensible series.

[Subham · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was something tbh and is quite a lengthy read!

It starts off with Hal in some ther reality ruled by the blackstars and he is a member of them and Mu and Beelzebeth want to conquer Earth and he faces off against the JL there and later on has his own plans to defeat these people and like rescue this reality and back to his own universe sorts of. That story was weird but had decent moments and meta-commentary.

Next up he finds the new Young guardians as the old ones have gone somewhere. Its a cool little collection of short stories like him rescuing his former GF Eve and rescuing her town from vulture controlling people or teaming with Barry and his old flame Olivia to fight Golden Giants and big revelations on both sides and it was cool seeing it. Plus rescuing his friend Cowgirl from Giant storm clouds and dimensional things, basically the creators got an opportunity to tell Hal as a pilot storyline and that was cool for the most part.

Finally him facing off against Hyper woman and whatever evil plans she had and it was a boring story tbh but probably setting stuff for the future there and then surviving an assault on Sector General (hospital) and facing off against the Anti-matter lantern!

Its a cool collection of stories but never quite comes together and some feel like a drag to read through but can make for decent reads along the way but the art is so good and is so worth it like everything is detailed to perfection and the women in it look so hot. I also like some new villains this team is adding to GL lore. Overall okayish one time read!

[Murphy C · Rating 2 out of 5]

I agree with many of my Goodreads friends who have reviewed this one. To quote a certain 2D film critic from the 90s, "It stinks!" All of Grant Morrison's worst idiosyncrasies and sloppy narrative peccadillos are on distracting display in each of these six issues. I gave one or two 3-star ratings individually, but as a piece, this volume is almost unreadable. Thank goodness Liam Sharp's artwork is such a delight to look at. But even there, as dynamic and occasionally stunning as the individual images and panels are, a successful comic is more than just a series of standalone images. This comic is very nearly incomprehensible, the plot is impossible to follow, and the page layouts are chaotic and confusing.

[Jeremy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Grant Morrison in his “throw everything at the wall and see what sticks” mode. Not a lot sticks for me, though there are ideas here and there that would have been interesting if more fully developed and a few nice character moments, they are separated by a whole lot of characters, words and situations that are just there to be weird and (maybe) funny.

[Markus Santos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Depois de ter desejado um universo sem Lanternas Verdes, o desejo do Hal Jordan se realizou. Agora ele é um Blackstar: o Blackstar Parallax, e ele faz parte da elite do Controlador Mu. Mas algo não parece certo pra ele. Voltando a segunda temporada das histórias dos Lanternas, o Hal tem que voltar a Terra a contragosto, tem uma aventura com o Flash, enfrenta um povo-pássaro, recruta novos integrantes pra Tropa e, é claro, pilota uma aeronave protótipo sem usar o anel como rede de proteção e vai parar em outra dimensão. É mais ou menos esse o nível de loucura que o Morrison coloca na segunda parte da sua passagem pelo título do Lanterna Verde. É uma pegada completamente diferente do que o que o Johns fez no título, ou talvez o que qualquer um tenha feito. Uma pegada de ficção-científica policial, talvez. E os desenhos do Liam Sharp deixam isso ainda mais esquisito. Fora que ele muda o estilo do desenho de história pra história. Até o Kirby ele emula em uma das histórias, onde o Hal enfrenta o Hyperman. Aquela loucura que você lê do Morrison e não sabe se entendeu ou se gostou, mas acho que combina bastante com a mitologia dos Lanternas Verdes.

[Malcolm · Rating 3 out of 5]

At first I thought the issue with The Flash and the giant golden baby might be one of the most incomprehensible things I’ve ever read in my life, but after rereading it 3 more times and doing about two hours of research online, I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s definitely one of the most incomprehensible things I’ve ever read in my life.

I’ll give this whole thing 3.5 stars out of 5 mostly cause I’m a Morrison simp. The blackstars miniseries was very good and had a cool twist, but the green lantern Season 2 kinda felt like it was going nowhere. Luckily the last 2 issues here managed to hook me in again.

[Adam Fisher · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 Stars.
Nope... no more Grant Morrison for me.
I read TONS of different comic titles AND keep track of them all, in addition to multiple complicated epic fantasy novel universes...
.... and I still have no idea how to follow this.
DC, please take Morrison off Green Lantern and give the GL Universe back to someone rational.

Plot: All over the place and unnecessarily complicated. Ends with Hal dying... again.

Skip it please. So much better GL material.

[Chris Thompson · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a mess. The first volume was challenging, but it was coherent, funny, and weird enough to be enjoyable. This one makes no sense. It jumps from nonsensical plot to nonsensical plot and goes on and on, and to make matters worse this is very lengthy. I don’t think I will continue the series.

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I normally love Green Lantern but this felt campy like it was trying too hard to be a golden age book but it was just terrible.

[Justin Partridge · Rating 4 out of 5]

“I need a hand.”

[Really?]

[A Hand?]

[Lantern Zui-Zoom and I specialized in extremely elaborate constructs.]

“I do HANDS, okay?”

The Green Lantern is dead! Long live The Blackstars! For three issues, at least.

But really, another fun and consistently interesting collection of comics here! One that keeps Morrison and company firmly in the gear of Trying Some Shit and also trying to add some more layering onto the rebuilding of the Corps in the overall.

And even cooler, I didn’t realize that Xermanico takes over the title and then inroads some continually impressive, almost elastically tonal artwork from Sharp! Like it’s really cool seeing the whole title start to dive more into classic comic book visuals, in Blackstars and the Hyper Family issues in particular, but seeing Sharp getting to do more realistic, more gritty, grounded, and then insane surrealist work amid all the crazy aliens and and expansive planetscape stuff, man, it’s just banger after banger after banger from an art team (Oliff really is showing out too, awesome that Tom O from Spawn too has come back on lettering) I already really love a lot.

And Morrison even throws out some stuff for the nerds too! We get some fun ribbing of the New 52, we get BARRY, we get Hal’s Toy Magnate Ex-GF which further keeps fueling his avoidance therapy with Earth. I’ve really been enjoying it script-wise too, it might not be some earth-shattering stuff from Morrison but it’s very neat to see them being able to deliver just some heater single issues and short 2-3 arcs that keep the title on track for what it’s trying to establish for the next creative team.

I’m almost sad to have one volume left! It would have been neat to see how this could have branched out a bit more. I wonder if any of the Jeremy Adams stuff follows up on this or just sweeps it all across the table for a reboot. Comics! Who could really say? These are good. That’s enough for now.

[Will Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another fun space-faring romp that concludes the Blackstar arc from GL Season 1 (I still don’t understand why this maxi series needs to have “seasons”, especially if there’s only two) and explores Hal Jordan’s bonkers Silver Age excursions on Earth.

I do wish the Blackstar finale had been in the previous volume, as this is the conclusion to GL Season 1, but for what it’s worth, it’s a fun conclusion with a resolution I didn’t see coming.

I rolled my eyes when this volume introduced us to yet *another* new batch of Guardians of the Universe to lead the Green Lantern Corp. For context, multiple Green Lantern stories pre-Grant Morrison have introduced new Guardians to try and shake things up in the GL mythos, but it’s happened so frequently the past few years that I rolled my eyes when I read that Morrison was making his own. That said, the idea that these have been genetically engineered to be their successors is interesting and their wispy cosmic looking designs look super cool compared to the old Smurf designs they usually have.

I didn’t enjoy Hal’s adventures on Earth as much this time around, but pairing him in each story with one of his old flames helped sell the idea that Hal doesn’t have a lot of strong relationships tying him to stay on Earth. I love Hal’s statement that Earth is his childhood backyard before he learned there was a whole world outside to explore. The story that did stand out to me though was where Hal freed a younger generation of aliens to think for themselves and not be tied down by the history of their predecessors. Given the introduction of these new Guardians, I wonder if Morrison will explore the generational gap between Hal and the new Guardians? Only one more volume before I find out.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Season 2 of The Green Lantern carries off with Hal being a Blackstar, working with Controller Mu to entice all realms into being under Mu's authority. Together with his Blackstar league, they obtain control of almost every sector that once was under Green Lantern Corps. But Hal starts to self-doubt when tensions arise within the corps, and soon, he regains his memories. Hal prepares to use the schism within the Blackstars to revert the realm back to his reality.

Surprisingly, compared to the first season of Grant Morrison's Green Lantern, this second season has a lot of improvements on its pacing & storytelling. The Blackstar arc and the actual season two arc mesh well together, and so far, appears pretty concise. There's not too much exposition and more of Hal Jordan's human persona appears more here. The only fault I had in the story was the small crossover with the Flash, as it felt like it was a small filler inserted during the major climax of the second arc, along with the ridiculousness of the plot itself. While the Blackstar arc was more enjoyable here, I felt it ended a little rushed. But the second arc makes up for that rushed ending and provides a better story. The illustrations remain the same as the first season, and I kind of got used to it at this point. But a few individual issues had different artists come in, adding a little flare of change in the visuals, which was nice. I am enticed by these improvements made to the story, and with that cliffhanger ending, I am eager to see what's in store for part two.

[Sonic · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Grant Morrison has strong illustrators working with him, he can do anything.

[Thaddeus Rice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Morrison's Green Lantern is a wild sci-fi comic love explosion!

[Christopher (Donut) · Rating 4 out of 5]

As KRS One said a long time ago,
This is just one style, out of many.
Like a piggy bank this is one penny.

I also recall someone's review of Final Crisis, complaining that comics didn't need to be simple, but they shouldn't be as complex as Joyce's Ulysses.

At this point, GM is in Finnegan's Wake territory, although I, for one, liked it better than the preceding volume.

[Joshua]

I would be disappointed if I fully understood what was going on in any Grant Morrison book, and I have never been disappointed after reading a Grant Morrison book.

Liam Sharp’s art continues to be a force of nature.

[Danielle · Rating 1 out of 5]

If I was just barely hanging on to what was happening in the two previous volumes, everything that came after Blackstars lost me. There's way too much going on back-to-back and there's barely any room to breathe in-between the action.

[Alex Sarll]

I think this was the first Grant Morrison comic I ever checked out of*, the end of its first 'season' making a handy jumping-off point for a book that already wasn't great and felt like it was headed in a direction I'd enjoy even less. But a couple of mentions on Morrison's spectacularly indiscreet new mailing list meant it at least sounded contextually interesting to finish, and then there this was in Walworth's fine new library branch, so how could I not? And while I don't regret coming back under those terms, nor do I think I made the wrong decision by not forking over the £30-odd quid it would have cost to slog through this month by month. The collection opens with the Blackstars miniseries, showing a universe remade by Hal Jordan's wish at the end of the previous volume, where the Green Lanterns never existed and the galaxy is being united in peace, but without freedom, under the oversight of the ruthless Controller Mu. There are a few suitably grand setpieces, rendered with appropriate dictatorial grandeur by Xermanico, but fundamentally Morrison has done the triumph of evil regimes with some superficially seductive talking points a lot of times before, and this mostly feels like a retread – not least because those would generally be occasional glimpses over the course of one or two issues, intercut with other storylines, rather than a whole three issues doggedly going through the nightmare alternate world in linear fashion. The fun can be found in the brutal piss-taking of the state of modern DC: "The Justice League? Wrapped up in interminable battles with ever more gargantuan, more primordial, and above all more reliably anthropomorphic cosmic supernonentities. Every month it seems these hyper-creatures, or their close relatives, attack from some hitherto unsuspected, barely-thought-out region of this new Depressoverse scientists have discovered..." There's even a panel smashing right through the fourth wall, but where once in a Morrison comic that would have been the hero reaching out to draw the reader into the story, here it's just sticking the knife in to how Bendis dialogue looks on the page.

Then, inevitably, the story moves back into the DCU 'proper', though by this point it's very clear that Morrison is as disillusioned with its present form as I am. Which may be why each issue seems to be attempting to revivify it by bringing in fresh inspiration from somewhere else altogether. The first issue sees Hal paired with a potential new GL, and feels like one of those European high SF books Humanoids publish in English, all the cascade of crazy new ideas you would have got in a prime Morrison comic but without the same connection. From how sceptical Hal sounds about the prospect of ever going back to Earth, you just know that's where he's headed next, and so it proves, the Guardians sending him back to "this authoritarian suicide sphere that birthed us" for an adventure whose dialogue is quite blatantly ripping off Steve Aylett: "Clowns flirt with irrelevance every day! I'll wrestle any fool to the sand who says otherwise." The problem being, Aylett does it so much better. Liam Sharp's art, and Steve Oliff's colours, are remarkably versatile – but whatever style they move into for a given issue, there's always a note of horror, a sense of being trapped in a mire. When Hal prevents the armed forces taking down an alien who meant no harm, he tells the unwitting invader to go home because "This is not a nice neighborhood", and when you compare that to the way Morrison comics used to present DC's Earth as a wonderland, a big sibling that could help our own damaged world grow up bright and strong, there's a painful sense of how badly both the real and fictional worlds have curdled over the past decade plus, such that now it's fair to describe both Earths as "some kind of tribal hellworld where crazy ape-things have nukes". By the casual slaughter of the last issue, it's clear that – in what would once have been a very Morrison plot – the misery infecting the world has overpowered even our sparky writer hero. Except here, no rescue from some crazy new direction seems to be on the way.

*Well, unless you count that run as editor of Heavy Metal, which I don't really considering how little of each issue was actual Morrison content, or even necessarily commissioned by Morrison given loads of it seemed to be stories midway through when I started. Savage Sword Of Jesus Christ remains a great title, mind.

[Artur Coelho · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quando vi Grant Morrison aos comandos de um personagem de charneira da DC, perguntei-me que raio de processo decisório foi feito pelos gestores criativos da editora. Com a imagem pública abalada por um muito mau filme, talvez porque Morrison daria um abalo que restaurasse a credibilidade da personagem. Porque deste argumentista, nunca podemos esperar o expectável. Ou, colocando de outra forma, sabemos que podemos esperar abordagens surreais e psicadélicas, muito afastadas do mainstream dos comics.

Foi exatamente o que Morrison fez, libertou os seus algoritmos de psicadelismo surreal no personagem, de forma minimamente legível, e explorou algo que parece muito óbvio nas aventuras de um agente de uma força policial que patrulha o universo conhecido: o lado cósmico, de choque com o alienígena. O resultado é um constante tom de space opera surrealista, onde um Hal Jordan sempre relutante em regressar ao seu planeta natal enfrenta os mais estranhos desafios. Quão estranhos? Vão desde isolar uma força usurpadora do poder dos Lanternas Verdes num universo paralelo para manter a ordem na realidade principal, a enfrentar inesperados testes para treinar novos recrutas para a força, ou enfrentar entidades de universos paralelos desesperadas por recuperar os seus animais de estimação, afetados por experiências aeronáuticas c0m motores exóticos (pois, é Morrison, o que esperavam?). Ao longo da temporada, Morrison representa Hal Jordan como um personagem maior que si próprio, ignorando a sua humanidade para se dedicar fielmente à missão de polícia espacial.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

**I've read WAAAY more than I've been able to review, so.... time for some knee-jerk reactions!**
- I just don't care for Grant Morrison's writing style. He always feels like he's trying so hard to make a "big" story, rather than just telling a story and letting it be big. Characters tend to feel much more one-dimensional when he's at the helm, and he likes to play around way too much with the whole "comics are weird" stereotype. I'm fine with a weird comic if it has substance, but his stuff... just never hits that for me. If you're a fan of his, that's cool. He's definitely creative... but his kind of creativity (for me at least) just seems to overwhelm stories rather than enhance them.
- The alternate universe "what-if" element was kind of interesting. But I hate seeing the Superman family hurting.
- Some of the one-off adventures were kind of fun. Not the best GL stories I've ever read (for the aforementioned reasons above), but they were decent.

[Ángel Javier · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aparte de los erráticos guiones de Morrison, que, aunque claramente quieren llevarnos a alguna parte, resultan confusos en sus mejores momentos, e ilegibles en los peores, merece una mención especial el horrible «arte» de Sharp, que imita de manera igualmente torpe a Kirby y a Moebius. Pero cuando es él mismo no mejora la cosa, porque pasa de una narración confusa y espástica a un fotorrealismo realmente espantoso de número en número, por donde le da. Las tres estrellas que le doy al volumen son porque hay que valorar al menos que se trata de un tebeo lleno de ideas brillantes, que podrían haber dado mucho de sí de no ser por la absurda manía de Morrison de meter cientos de conceptos apresurados en dos o tres tebeos, para luego escoger los que más le interesan y desarrollarlos en números posteriores. Una etapa que pudo haber sido legendaria, lastrada por un guionista que, si no estaba puesto hasta las cejas, lo parecía, y un dibujante simplemente horrendo.

[Jonathan Griffin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Figuring out how to rate this book was hard. On the one hand, it's a gorgeously drawn, absolutely fascinating bit of comics. On the other it gives me a splitting headache. The first book in this series had a quote on it describing Morrison's run as "police procedural meets prog rock." That description very much applies, and if anything the prog rock has gotten amped up more and more as the series goes on, to the point that, by the end of this, there were significant portions where I was struggling to keep up. Plotlines will get wrapped up incredibly quickly or scenes will shift with very little explanation, and it all feels kind of disjointed, in the meantime the story is so intensely weird. It's not bad, quite the opposite, it's just a very specific vibe. That vibe is cosmic insanity. I like Morrison's writing, I LOVE Liam Sharp's art, and I am curious to see where things wrap up, but I also feel like I need an aspirin.

[Edmund Bloxam · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked this up in a library and I started reading and thought, 'oo, serialization, like the story matters'. Ultimately, it doesn't, cos it's cleaned up pretty quickly.

And then there's some random encounters. It's all so goofy and silly, it reminds me of Doctor Who.

And that ring can basically do anything. And also, literally, the character cannot die. I mean, it's pointless and aimless on so many levels.

Correction: I picked up Season Two, Volume 1, went back to pick up the serialization...urgh. I mean, parts of it were okay. I signed up knowing it would be goofy nonsense in space. (Not enough IN SPAACE!) I made it through all of Season 1 and Season 2, vol. 1, in about a week, and then my eyes started bleeding. I'm done being open-minded for the time being. Super heroes are still pointless. Man, that RING CAN DO LITERALLY ANYTHING! Apart from not destroying all stakes.

[Vincent · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the end of one story line and then the beginning of a new chapter of Hal Jordan's story, so it is hard to judge the comic. But as a single volume it's not a great read.

The artwork on the other hand is great. I love the homages to different styles.

I'm not especially keen on conceptions of the Green Lanterns where they are treated as fairly regimented space cops. I think with single Lantern's patrolling large sectors of space by themselves usually, they are more like old time sheriffs or the Lone Ranger than our present day boys in blue.

[Eric Burton · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I wasn't before, I'm now convinced Grant Morrison does acid for some of his stories.

This particular volume goes back and forth between some excellent one-off Green Lantern adventures and the most insane, nonsensical acid trip induced stories that I have no idea what's going on. In some of the issues, the dialogue is great and flows well, and then in others, it's just insane ramblings and poetry.

Liam Sharp's art is the best it's been in the run so far, and quite beautiful. I also loved the new crystal green lantern and the way the rings develop relationships of sorts with the ring bearers.

Overall, it was weird and confusing and fun.

[Aidan]

Blackstars was sick, and had some hilarious disses on contemporary DC writers.

First few season 2 issues were weird stand alones that were almost too silver age odd for my taste (Hal’s ring even comments that his dialogue doesn’t make sense). Once we got back to a narrative through-line I was more on board.

Liam Sharp’s art just gets better and better. He starts changing his style wildly issue to issue and it’s a delight to see. Would love to know how he does that crazy foggy/scratchy art style.

[Tony Laplume · Rating 5 out of 5]

This feels like the Green Lantern that Grant Morrison was intending to write from the start, and that the previous twelve issues (and two collections) were mere prelude. Pure madcap cosmic imagination. Hal Jordan as the ultimate rebel, and just possibly greatest superhero. This is full-on Vertigo era Morrison unleashed in the pages of a DC comic perhaps for the last time ever. One volume left to go.

[Kyle Dinges · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not sure I can put my finger on exactly what it is about this run of Green Lantern that's made it appeal to me, but I'm still enjoying it as the second season begins. The story is smaller in scope than most of the Green Lantern comics from the last decade and a half and it's more adventurous. Liam Sharp's art can sometimes feel dated on the wrong books but it's a really great fit for where Morrison takes the story. It's just a solid run of Green Lantern.