Here
we have Peter J. Tomasi's debut issue of GLC, taking up the
reins from the very capable Dave Gibbons. I will sorely miss
Dave, and can't speak higher of what he brought to the past
issues, Recharge, and everything he's contributed to Green
Lantern all the way back to the 80s.
Still...
the king is dead, long live the king. If Dave Gibbons seemed
to excel in plot-driven storylines, what Mr. Tomasi does
right out of the gate is a straight-out character piece.
Geoff Johns indicated this issue would very much parallel
the Superman-Prime special, only for Sodam Yat --
absolutely, that is exactly what we got.
I think it was a great issue and did exactly what it needed
to (if a little late in the game, but who's keeping track?).
We got into Sodam's head, got us to understand what makes
him tick, gives him a backstory, and a good deal of his
fight with Superman Prime (and though I was satisfied here,
I have more than a sinking suspicion we haven't seen the
last of Sodam by the end of #25... though I might be dead
wrong).
The
issue's story? Again, we do get a knock-down, drag-out fight
with Sodam Yat and Superman-Prime, and get a good deal of
much deserved backstory on Sodam at last. We get into his
head, we learn a bit of what makes him tick, what's driving
him, and I will venture this issue will probably serve to
push those fans feeling a little rushed about Sodam's push
over the fence in his favor... if they don't mind seeing him
basically getting trounced (and perhaps that was necessary,
to counterbalance his rapid rise in stature in the Corps...
now we can see him pick up the pieces, and perhaps become a
better man/a better character as a result).
The bad:
not much, really. Two things stick out in my mind:
1) This
is Sodam Yat's debut as Ion... yet we don't really see him
-- at least apparently -- using any of the Ion power. If
someone asked me, based on this issue alone, to explain how
Sodam Yat, as Ion, (apart from his Kryptonian-esque Daxamite
physiology rendering his physical body impervious) is any
more powerful than your average Corps ring-wielder... I'd be
at a loss to explain, really. We desperately need some kind
of better understanding of exactly what the power of Ion
portends (to say nothing of how it came to be in Kyle
originally, but maybe Marz's tale next month will shed some
light and that's not really Tomasi's problem here).
2) Daxam.
It was destroyed in "Our Worlds at War." The backstory
doesn't necessarily negate that, but it makes us present
ourselves with two possibilities: A) He was recruited by the Corps probably
almost immediately prior to Emerald Twilight, left powerless
for a couple of years, and then re-recruited after Rebirth,
or B) Daxam wasn't destroyed, is still out there somewhere
and OWAW isn't canon anymore. Though B is probably what was
intended, I think A is possible -- and probably a story in there, too (Yat getting a ring, and just
as he's starting to use it, BLIP, Hallalax takes out the CPB
in ET and his ring winks out, having to survive in space
somewhere, later witnessing or learning of Daxam's
destruction).
All of this said, I say that this issue -- at least told in
the context of the Sinestro Corps War issues themselves --
probably should have been done as a special. This probably
would have made sense as a "Tales of the Sinestro Corps
Presents:
Ion" special as opposed to whatever Ron Marz has brewed for
next month (which could probably be titled something else,
like "Sinestro Corps War Epilogue Special" or such, but
I'm straying from the point). Geoff's earlier words from
last month's podcast interview were very much on the money and this is
almost exactly a mirror to Sodam Yat of what the Superman
Prime special was to Superman Prime... sort of a, 2 parts
backstory/origin, 1 part War continuation.
Bottom line, the "Green Lantern Corps" title by its
definition should probably be an ensemble book populated by and
focusing on many Lanterns. This issue -- though I do really
like it, and puts any worries about what Tomasi is bringing
to the table writing-wise -- literally only focused on a
single Green Lantern... and one who isn't even quite a Green
Lantern anymore.
Now on the other hand, Tomasi's willingness to devote
an entire issue to Yat does give me a bit of hope for what
his intentions may or may not be for the handling of Kyle
Rayner once he comes to the forefront in the next issue. My
biggest fear/concern for Kyle strictly being relegated to an
ensemble book like GLC where he can only receive limited
attention (which, in my opinion, strips away almost
everything that made him relatable to fans originally as
opposed to the Hal Jordan years... the attention paid to his
personal life, his jobs, his labors, his loves,
side-stories, etc.) has always been that even as much as he
could shine in it, he will still mostly get lost in the
shuffle of the many other GLs he has to share the comic with
-- with this issue, there is hope that there may indeed be
Kyle-specific issues down the road.
Welcome
to the Corps, Peter. Here's looking to the future.
