By: Peter J. Tomasi (story), Fernando Pasarin (pencils), Scott Hanna (inks), Gabe Eltaeb (colors)
The Story: Mark my words, heads are going to roll from all this chaos.
The Review: By now, the Green Lanterns have become such an established and important part of the DCU that we just take it for granted they deserve to be there. Now before you get your mob on, I’m not suggesting they don’t; I’m just saying it’s been a long time since we considered for what purpose the Lanterns were originally created. To merely police the universe? To be symbols of hope? To ultimately bring peace and order to all sentient creatures?
The question seems particularly relevant for this issue, what with the Corps falling apart at the seams and veteran corpsmen questioning themselves. Granted, the Alphas were never the most popular force even from their introduction, but their total, tyrannical meltdown has to be somewhat disillusioning for the other Lanterns, not to mention the broken justice system we all had to witness with our very eyes. In these circumstances, how can anyone have confidence, then, that their goals are just?
At the end of the day, the GLC, like most institutions, remains important not so much for its execution but for the ideas it stands for. Varix, the sole voice of reason among the Alphas, says as much, subordinating his duties to “most importantly, staying loyal to the dream.” We don’t know exactly what dream he refers to, but you can get a sense of its contours: that people with courage can come together, even from the distant corners of the universe, and place their trust in each other for the right reasons to do the right thing.
The tragedy comes when Varix proves the dream still lives on, even when the dreamers die. For all of John’s martyred air and Guy’s ballsy nobility, it seems fitting that the real hero of this arc turns out to be one of the villains. His sacrifice goes to that great injustice of life, that the best people often take on the most suffering, and often by their own volition. But at this point, such extreme action is the only way the Alphas could’ve redeemed themselves enough to be mourned. When you see his blood spilt, it reminds you there are still people under all the cybernetics.
This just makes you wonder: what do the Guardians gain from all this pain and trauma? If they want to disband their corps, why not just do it, without all this Machiavellian scheming? If you think about it, they technically have every right to shut down the GLC, regardless of the protests they might receive from all corners. So why this needless drama? Sounds like a lot of political decision-making to me, and we all know how trustworthy those kinds of choices are.
As further evidence of Pasarin’s skills, you should consider his ability to make little more than slightly bigger, floating Smurfs look so menacing. That final splash page had all the potential to come across as a sample of comic book ridiculousness, of taking the silly seriously. Yet the inscrutable frowns on the Guardians’ faces do succeed in causing a pang of concern; you do wonder, even if momentarily, whether John and Guy will come to any real danger.
Conclusion: Well, you certainly didn’t quite see that ending coming, and the fact that it has some emotional resonance makes it even better. Better still, the feeling that this is only the tip of the iceberg where the current plot is concerned.
Grade: B
– Minhquan Nguyen
Some Musings: – Didn’t Ganthet shave off his ponytail? I’m pretty sure he did, and yet there he is, ponytail in all its radical glory.
– Any guesses on the mysterious voice (“Let me out!”) which had enough power to short out the GLC power for a second? My bet is that it’s Ganthet’s true psyche, trapped in the great beyond by the other Guardians.
Grade
Conclusion