Does Green Lantern NEED more FAN input

[TEN_RINGS Senior Corps Member Find all posts View Profile Close TEN_RINGS]

Does Green Lantern NEED more FAN input.........yes ive already heard how fan boys can ruin a franchise,but seriously do we need true fans to help these inept writers out. It has been pretty obvious that alot of these guys dont understand the franchise or the character personalities. Just a question I wanted our members to ponder and give their thoughts on......I am not talking about giving a fan the writing duties of GREEN LANTERN just a little input I dont think a FAN fiction should become the new GL. Thoughts?

[CeltiC5-27 Weaponer of Qward Find all posts View Profile Close CeltiC5-27]

I'm not sure if fan input is always the best idea but for Venditti's case, I think he should take some.

If Venditti would be open to fan input I would tell him to have the Green Lantern title be like Geoff's early run on the book. Let Hal go back to earth and be in the air force again. Show him actually being a "superhero" on and off Earth. Bring back Shark, Hector Hammond, Tattooed Man, the manhunters, and even come up with some new ones. And since Hal isn't with Carol anymore, go back to having him being the "womanizer" hooking up with random chicks he saves. Hal should be like Indiana Jones; going on adventures, kicking ass, and getting the girl.

[TEN_RINGS Senior Corps Member Find all posts View Profile Close TEN_RINGS]

I'm not sure if fan input is always the best idea but for Venditti's case, I think he should take some.

If Venditti would be open to fan input I would tell him to have the Green Lantern title be like Geoff's early run on the book. Let Hal go back to earth and be in the air force again. Show him actually being a "superhero" on and off Earth. Bring back Shark, Hector Hammond, Tattooed Man, the manhunters, and even come up with some new ones. And since Hal isn't with Carol anymore, go back to having him being the "womanizer" hooking up with random chicks he saves. Hal should be like Indiana Jones; going on adventures, kicking ass, and getting the girl.

If the book is for the FANS doesnt it stand to reason that within certain limits they might have some good input? There has to be character growth but the characters also have to remain true to their beginnings. if people arent buying the book something must be wrong who better to help fix the book than those who are buying it?

[Mister Ed Horse of a Different Color Find all posts View Profile Close Mister Ed]

And since Hal isn't with Carol anymore, go back to having him being the "womanizer" hooking up with random chicks he saves.

When exactly was he like this? I mean, I know Geoff showed him like this in flashbacks, but I don't recall a time when the character was actually like this in the comic, such that we could "go back" to it.

Hal has dated a number of women over the years, this is true, but it always seemed rather serious (and monogamous- I don't recall any time when he was actually involved with more than one woman at a time).

This is kind of a pet peeve of mine, this recent tendency to portray Hal as a guy who went around casually hooking up with a bunch of women. It isn't even like they are showing him DOING this now, for the most part (who would have time, between all the events?), but just taking this for granted as a part of his background, even though it never really has been.

Guess it is just another retcon, and I should be used to that, but the part that bugs me (a bit- it isn't keeping me up nights or anything ) is that people tend to act like it ISN'T one, that this is really a long-established part of his character. It isn't.

[Mister Ed Horse of a Different Color Find all posts View Profile Close Mister Ed]

If the book is for the FANS doesnt it stand to reason that within certain limits they might have some good input? There has to be character growth but the characters also have to remain true to their beginnings. if people arent buying the book something must be wrong who better to help fix the book than those who are buying it?

To play devil's advocate, let me just point out that DC doesn't actually have much incentive to cater specifically to the desires of those who are buying the book. Those people are already giving them their money. From a financial standpoint it makes more sense to worry about what the people who AREN'T buying the book would want, if doing so might get a bunch of them to START buying it.

We are chock full of ideas of how to make the book more enjoyable for US. But unless we are somehow typical of a bunch of people who AREN'T buying the book right now (and who knows? Maybe we are. I admit I've got no idea), tailoring the book to our desires won't bring in NEW readers.

[TEN_RINGS Senior Corps Member Find all posts View Profile Close TEN_RINGS]

To play devil's advocate, let me just point out that DC doesn't actually have much incentive to cater specifically to the desires of those who are buying the book. Those people are already giving them their money. From a financial standpoint it makes more sense to worry about what the people who AREN'T buying the book would want, if doing so might get a bunch of them to START buying it.

We are chock full of ideas of how to make the book more enjoyable for US. But unless we are somehow typical of a bunch of people who AREN'T buying the book right now (and who knows? Maybe we are. I admit I've got no idea), tailoring the book to our desires won't bring in NEW readers.

Well we could just make GL into wolverine and attract the mainstream fans which from a marketing and mainstream perspective might do great things or we could have good writing of the GL character himself and perhaps having him written well would bring in the readers. I just wonder sometimes if maybe a little guidance from a long time fan,not fan boy might help the title.

[TEN_RINGS Senior Corps Member Find all posts View Profile Close TEN_RINGS]

Why is it not possible to satisfy long time readers as well as mainstream readers? If a book was well written played by its own rules and kept at least a little continuity, could it not perhaps sell well. What does DC try to do? take a long time character and make him gay....that doesnt do the trick in the long run for getting more readers.

[sundrop Fatality's Blacksmith Find all posts View Profile Close sundrop]

I'm not sure if fan input is always the best idea but for Venditti's case, I think he should take some.

If Venditti would be open to fan input I would tell him to have the Green Lantern title be like Geoff's early run on the book. Let Hal go back to earth and be in the air force again. Show him actually being a "superhero" on and off Earth. Bring back Shark, Hector Hammond, Tattooed Man, the manhunters, and even come up with some new ones. And since Hal isn't with Carol anymore, go back to having him being the "womanizer" hooking up with random chicks he saves. Hal should be like Indiana Jones; going on adventures, kicking ass, and getting the girl.

I agree with your last two lines, but not the rest - I wouldn't want a repeat of early Vol 4.

I've always thought that the whole air-force thing is far-fetched and I'm glad it's ditched. If you're a GL then flying in a plane is silly. You can make your own plane and fly it on a whim. An airplane company is small potatoes to intergalactic peacekeeping in the DC universe. I have no doubt that it will come back tho - even Venditti wrote a one-off about it in Secret Origins #3. Not trying to slag on it, if you like it you like it, but I just prefer GL to be detached from Earth, in outer space. Basically I'd rather see GL become Game-of-Thrones-in-Space.

[Star-Lantern Weaponer of Qward Find all posts View Profile Close Star-Lantern]

I think DC got someone who wasn't a fan of Green Lantern to write the title for a reason. I think that's so they and WB can more easily manage the franchise through certain mandates, which some fans may not like, which, I believe, is what we've been seeing. If that's so, it probably has something to do with whatever big status quo change we'll see after "Convergence."

Geoff Johns was/is a huge fan, and now I think we're seeing the opposite with Venditti; a guy just doing a job for the pay, the opportunities it opens up, and the notoriety, not because of a deeply rooted love for the subject. I think this was done intentionally, but that's just my hunch.

As for giving Venditti fan input, you can always try writing reviews and tweeting them to Venditti on Twitter. From my experience, the writers actually do read the reviews, and I do think they listen to the fans and generally have an ear to the ground with them. Again, I think the things some may not like about Venditti's Green Lantern have to do with mandates.

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

Geoff Johns was/is a huge fan, and now I think we're seeing the opposite with Venditti; a guy just doing a job for the pay, the opportunities it opens up, and the notoriety, not because of a deeply rooted love for the subject. I think this was done intentionally, but that's just my hunch.

As for giving Venditti fan input, you can always try writing reviews and tweeting them to Venditti on Twitter. From my experience, the writers actually do read the reviews, and I do think they listen to the fans and generally have an ear to the ground with them. Again, I think the things some may not like about Venditti's Green Lantern have to do with mandates.

This. I've been buying Green Lantern titles mainly out of loyalty for the character. Not a big fan of Venditti but I think we could do worse. I was telling a coworker about this this morning. He really strikes me as an editorial pawn. If he had grown up reading comics or had some respect/admiration, I think we would be seeing a very different Hal or Barry Allen/Wally West.

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

I don't know. I'm usually scared to death of editors and writers listening to fan input. As a rule, most comic fans are complete idiots who would ruin a book if they had the chance.

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

IMO

Hal is a tragic hero, failing as leader is actually true to his character. Geoff Johns was the fanboy here, he made Hal almost a mary sue and made unrealistic espectations.

Venditti is playing by the rules, unlike Geoff Johns who retconed practically everything.

[Mister Ed Horse of a Different Color Find all posts View Profile Close Mister Ed]

I feel like if Geoff made ANYBODY a Mary Sue, it was Sinestro.

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

I don't know. I'm usually scared to death of editors an writers listening to fan input. As a rule, most comic fans are complete idiots who would ruin a book if they had the chance.

i may not have read comics as long as many of the people here but does anyone else agree writters have officially ran out of ideas? i mean how many times can you reboot the same thing with small changes to it? and i dont mean to get off topic but i cant be the only one who thinks there isnt a person as a writter who cant come up with something new am i?

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

I personally think a comic about a guy who can fly, be protected, and make anything he wants, who patrols the galaxy has a lot of potential stories in it.