Sometimes all you do need is hope.
What They Say:
Regime Change – Hal returns to Betrassus, where Queen Iolande is forced to seek help from her evil brother.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
While the series has been forward looking in its approach to storytelling, advancing things here and there as the crew go on their journey, it’s not beyond reaching to what it’s already established, something we did see in the previous episode with who became a Star Sapphire. This episode reaches back a bit as well as it takes us to Betrassus where the man who killed in order to become a Green Lantern and to Queen Iolande as well, something that I like. And it’s something that unfolds at the same time that the war is starting to take on a greater feeling as the Guardians back in central space are readying their defense plans by going on the offensive.
Betrassus has definitely undergone a change as the Red Lanterns have arrived there first and Ragnar has succumbed to the rage he has over his loss of rulership. And it’s not just Ragnar but a group of other Reds as well which makes for a lot of fun since Ragnar’s rage makes it easy for everything to just turn into a pitched battle, with Razer still staying on the side of the Green Lanterns. Ragnar’s easily fallen into the role of a Red Lantern and has good control of his abilities which makes for a tough battle to be had. Thankfully, there’s still the right amount of levity mixed into all of it with the good quips that helps to ease the tension just right.
While there’s a lot going on in the present, including a threat to Betrassus that will destroy the entire planet of two billion, we also get a really great history lesson as the Guardians explain to Hal and kilowog about the Manhunters with how they were once a fantastic force for good but ended up becoming the greatest shame of the Guardians. While Hal and Kilowog have believed that what Atrocitus was saying was all lies, there is nothing but truth about it and that just hits hard. But the Guardians, at least some of them, want to try and clean up this mess and the way the whole sector became the Forgotten Sector because of what their creations caused.
The show goes quite big on Betrassus and because we had time with these characters like Iolande and Ragnar before, it’s easier to get into things without all the background having to be brought about. There’s a lot of action here and it’s surprisingly engaging to watch Iolande take part in it all here. That part of the storyline works well, but what really intrigued is the changes made on Oa as Ganthet is exiled for what he has suggested be done to help bolster the Green and the willpower of them all. This is all leading to other things that the comics fans know about and it’s surprising and quite grin inducing to see it all unfold in this series, the kinds of stories that I really never thought the show would cover.
In Summary:
Green Lantern: The Animated Series continues to defy expectations week after week. This one builds again on what has come before and just hits the ground running from the start and doesn’t stop. With lots of action against the Red Lanterns, it’s balanced with a look at history and how it’s going to impact the present and the future. Going back to Betrassus was a smart thing to do and just drove home the way the show is working over so many different parts of itself and the material from the comics as well. While of a different nature than the recent Star Sapphire episode, this one hits similar grand moments that just makes it exhilarating to watch.
Grade: A-