Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Green Lantern Corps #1
DC Comics
Tomasi, Pasarin & Hanna
Here is one of the few titles that DC made a new number one for that has no business being part of the relaunch. As such, this book is going to get judged as being a number one and it fails on multiple fronts to be new reader friendly. As an established fan I found there to be flaws as well as a narrow focus. The issue seems to have lost sight of what came before when it really shouldn't have. Overall, this is a tough issue to recommend but I suspect those that are picking up the entire Green Lantern line are going to buy it regardless. I can't imagine a new reader getting into this at all.
The issue opens with a couple of Green Lanterns facing an unknown threat. One of the strengths of this book over the years has been the ability to bring new lanterns in out of nowhere and this issue is no different in the beginning. Add in the mystery of the new deadly threat and we have a great opening.
After the first four pages the comic book takes a nosedive as we get to know Guy Gardner and John Stewart. Each character has some interactions on Earth that seem to point them towards the conclusion that they are better off in space. The sequence contains one major piece that annoyed me heavily.
Stewart is giving out some architecture advice to some builders and the plans call for extra security in the building's foundation for safety measures. When the builders offer resistance because of the cost and the fact that it would be well above the city's building code Stewart takes to bullying and threats. Stewart takes the three high in the air and basically drops them in an elevator construct back to the ground after berating them for, God forbid, doing what's in the best interests of their investors. This whole sequence makes Stewart into a jerk and is presented in such a heavy-handed manner I found the sequence to be ridiculous. As a side note, is this a new DC editorial move where characters hold people from heights to scare information out of them or get them to do what they want?
Stewart and Guy return to base and discover some of their comrades have been killed and they form up a team to investigate. The issue finally launches into a plot when it ends.
There a plenty of things about this issue that either make no sense or are just plain lazy on the part of Tomasi or the editor. Either way, the book is going to confuse new readers. Guy explains to a group of people how there are two Green Lanterns per sector but the book offers no explanation as to why there are four Green Lanterns for Earth's sector. Salaak (who isn't even introduced) shows a screen with four dead Green Lanterns but two of them don' look anything like the ones that die in this issue. Does that mean more than four died and we only witnessed four dying? It's confusing. Finally, are we to believe that with the power of a Green Lantern's ring that is billions of years old that the Guardians use mainframes as their storage technology? What did the Guardians do prior to the 1960s before they were invented? Speaking of Guardians where are they in this issue?
Two things worked for me in this issue. Tomasi took the time to introduce the main characters as well as most of the supporting ones and he included a wide array of them. As annoying as it is that characters appeared on the cover that don't show in the book, this book at least brought in some new and old ones to help support the fact that this is a book about the Corps and not just Guy and Stewart.
The artwork is exactly what I expect: awesome. Outstanding pencils, vibrant colors and epic page spreads. Pasarin brings some amazing creativity in the character presentation and shows an excellent knack for details when the book needs to be a little gruesome. This is an excellent visual story.
I can't imagine a new reader being impressed by this book. On the other hand, as a long time reader I thought the issue brought about an interesting new threat. It's too bad I have to judge the book off being a launch and as a launch I found it to be a mess.
2 out of 5 Geek Goggles
