Green Lantern #48 *Previews/Spoilers*

[Hypo Lil' Leaguer Find all posts View Profile Close Hypo]

Green Lantern #48 Preview
Writer: Robert Venditti
Artists: Martin Coccolo & Billy Tan

[Lundonj Sinestro's Sparring Partner Find all posts View Profile Close Lundonj]

Mild spoilers, until more folks have had a chance to read this.

Ah, we start with the classic 'slightly' misleading cover.

The Nu 52 Renegade Green Lantern versus the heavily armored Batman stand-in, but not a whole lot to get excited about there.

In all, a classic 'boxcar' issue for serial fiction fans, gently moving the plot forward without any big starts or stops. Actually, not a ton of action, but an interesting and purposeful meltdown of sorts that is leading us well beyond the pages of this issue. Not sure about that yet, or if it was just a reminder of a Hal who can display a bit a temper.

The last few panels set-up a fascinating showdown which could take us a couple issues beyond the upcoming #50.

Not great, not quite worth the anticipation, but entertaining enough to give it about 3.5/5 on the fan scale of love.

Anyone pick up the variant coloring book cover? I did, but keeping my crayons in the box on this one. Cover artist Mike Allred could be an interesting GL artist choice, on a mini-series or something...


-Don

[Hypo Lil' Leaguer Find all posts View Profile Close Hypo]

DC's legendary editors strike again.

[Space Cop The Dandy Find all posts View Profile Close Space Cop]

In all, a classic 'boxcar' issue for serial fiction fans, gently moving the plot forward without any big starts or stops. Actually, not a ton of action, but an interesting and purposeful meltdown of sorts that is leading us well beyond the pages of this issue. . .

The bit at the terrorist training camp was interesting, raising the stakes.

DC's legendary editors strike again.

Cost City. Isn't that a discount store?

[Evergreen City Corps Den Mother Find all posts View Profile Close Evergreen City]

Cost City. Isn't that a discount store?

ROFLMAO at this! Jordan's had one too many head conks! He's suffering from dain bramage!

[Lundonj Sinestro's Sparring Partner Find all posts View Profile Close Lundonj]

DC's legendary editors strike again.

I was pretty surprised to see such a bad miss on their part, sometimes something in the middle of a pile of word balloons makes sense, but the error was not on a busy page.

[buffalorock Star Sapphire's Love Slave Find all posts View Profile Close buffalorock]

Cost City. Isn't that a discount store?

Come on down to Cost City off Route 9, where Fear is Cheap!


Overall a great issue I thought. I like how Sonar actually seems pretty formidable.

I hope his nephew makes it, Hal has enough tragedy.

[Lundonj Sinestro's Sparring Partner Find all posts View Profile Close Lundonj]

Overall a great issue I thought. I like how Sonar actually seems pretty formidable.

I hope his nephew makes it, Hal has enough tragedy.

Yeah, the Sonar update is cool and really close to his first appearance in GL volume two. Making the bad guys cool for the modern era is always good.

The line of the book for me was Parallax concluding that for Coast (erm, COST) City to survive, "Hal Jordan must die!"

So, the comic booky question of the day - is the Renegade power pack mightier than all of the GLC power flowing through Parallax?


-Don

[Space Cop The Dandy Find all posts View Profile Close Space Cop]

So, the comic booky question of the day - is the Renegade power pack mightier than all of the GLC power flowing through Parallax?

That seems unlikely, but we need some of those 90s-style cards that tell us the relative power levels of various characters.

[Kane2814 Weaponer of Qward Find all posts View Profile Close Kane2814]

Random thoughts:
-- the Batman appearance seemed pointless. There are other ways to get info.
-- I like the idea of updating Sonar. I like that he's still sore about the tiny size of his "postage stamp" country. The sonic bombs that are fueled by ambient noise are a clever idea.
-- I do NOT like that they appear to have eliminated GL's past with Sonar.
-- Parallax v. Hal could be a good story, but I have little faith that this is the writer to deliver one.

[Space Cop The Dandy Find all posts View Profile Close Space Cop]

I do NOT like that they appear to have eliminated GL's past with Sonar.

I was thinking about that too. When New 52 came along I assumed they would redo most of the first encounters with villains, but they actually haven't done that very often. They've usually gone with the good guy having an unseen history with the baddie.

[Lundonj Sinestro's Sparring Partner Find all posts View Profile Close Lundonj]

Random thoughts:
-- the Batman appearance seemed pointless. There are other ways to get info.

Other than cover tease for extra sales, I agree it was a fairly pointless appearance, although I still like it whenever Hal finds a way to bug Batman or his stand in.

-- I like the idea of updating Sonar. I like that he's still sore about the tiny size of his "postage stamp" country. The sonic bombs that are fueled by ambient noise are a clever idea.

Venditti definitely went back and read Sonar's early appearances, it meshed in really well with the original appearance.

-- I do NOT like that they appear to have eliminated GL's past with Sonar.

Agreed, and it is the whole problem I have with New 52. Wildly inconsistent use of past continuity. Some writers, some books embrace some elements and ignore others. I do think this is what the focus of the potential reset in the spring - more Convergence/Multiuniversity stuff where all of the existing DC stories connect in some form or fashion. And really, Geoff Johns completely ignored the New 52 concept with this title. He simply continued the story he started in volume four without any real adjustments at all. Venditti may not have the same pull, it was very much a 'Nu' 52 cover, Renegade Hal v. Gordon Bats...

-- Parallax v. Hal could be a good story, but I have little faith that this is the writer to deliver one.

This arc certainly has the chance for Venditti to set a high mark on the series or miss altogether. I have a bit more faith. Not a lot more, but a bit. I really enjoyed how he utilized Sinestro earlier in the series to point out through dialogue how out of character Hal was. That was the spot where he seemed to start to feel slightly more comfortable with the series and Hal is acting more...like Hal.


-Don

[Big Daddy Dave Skywalker Moisture Farmer Find all posts View Profile Close Big Daddy Dave Skywalker]

I finally sat down and read annual #4 and GL #45-48 in one sitting, so I' now caught up. #48 wasn't actually bad, very passable story. I'm rolling my eyes at them bringing in a version of Parallax in time for another GL #50, but whatever. We'll see where it goes.

And thank the lord they finally got rid of that stupid long hair with the short bangs on Hal. Depending on the page, he either looked like a chick, or Bruce Dickenson.

[Trey Strain Guardian of the Universe Find all posts View Profile Close Trey Strain]

I would be fine with Parallax being retired permanently. DC's continued use of him reminds me of Vince McMahon's insistence on pushing wrestlers who nobody cares about.

[Trey Strain Guardian of the Universe Find all posts View Profile Close Trey Strain]

I remember that Bob Shreck once got the creative team wrong on the cover of Green Lantern for three issues in a row. He left soon after that. Coincidence? I don't know.