I am going to read and post about a comic every day for a year. Isn't that the current "in" thing? Doing something every day for a year? I figure reading a comic is pretty easy (easier than cooking French cuisine). Right now, I am finishing up the comics released last Wednesday, some of which Mark and I already discussed on this week's "How I Got My Wife To Read Comics." But I still have a few I can comment on here.
Today's comic is Green Lantern Corps 63. I really don't like the Green Lanterns very much. I like Hal Jordan.
I like John Stewart. I love Guy Gardner (he's my favorite Green Lantern). But I really dislike the Green Lanterns as a group, and this book really highlights why. The chapers seem disjointed, and touch on the Alpha Lanterns, Lantern/Guardian mistrust, and species tension within the Guardians. But in spite of all this, the Lanterns can pull together? I dont buy it.
I really disliked the concept of the Alpha Lanterns from the time DC introduced them. They are like Internal Affairs on any cop show that's ever been on. They made these Alpha Lanterns out of some really good characters, essentially removing all the things about them that were interesting or different. And now we have these roboticized Lanterns that are going to try to fit back in? Meh.
And I am not sure why the Guardians even have to be there for the Green Lanterns to exist. Now that the Crayola Lanterns have appeared, and they don't have short, primary color Guardians to lead them, why do the Green Lanterns need the Guardians. Throw them over, I say!
Then there is the infighting between the Green Lanterns. All of these guys are supposed to be without fear, but it seems to me that all this species/planet/racial hatred is really about fear. Fear of the other...and in this issue, fear of the human Lanterns taking over the Corps. And none of them really give us any reason to understand why they dislike/hate/fear the human Lanterns. It is a very superficial conflict, and as the reader, I don't understand why it is happening. If they want me to be interested, let me get to know why Palaqua and Turytt and why they object to Kyle. And don't always make the "haters" the huge, hulking stereotypical racists.
There are going to be four Green Lantern books once the New 52 hits, and the Green Lantern Corps is supposed to focus on Guy and John, so I will give it a try. But if it is going to continue on with these conflicts between the Green Lanterns, I'd like it to be more meaningful, and less superficial, by having it involve real characters rather than the odd alien they decide to throw in. Maybe Gail Simone should write this for a while...