Earth gets new protectors as Hal Jordan heads to space!
Creative Staff:
Writer: Geoff Johns and Sam Humphries
Art: Ethan Van Sciver and Ed Benes
Colors: Jason Wright
Letterer: Travis Lanham
What They Say:
Creative powerhouse Geoff Johns puts the ring on again as he, Co-writer Sam Humphries, and artist Ethan Van Sciver debut a new era of emerald greatness! Rookie Green Lanterns Jessica Cruz and Simon Baz tackle the universe’s toughest beat, Earth.
Content: (Please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers.)
I’ve enjoyed Green Lantern for a very long time. Geoff Johns’ 9 year run was the best it could have been. Now, Geoff is back with the ring, and he takes us on a little tour of Earth’s new Lantern status quo. Simon Baz is still relstively new to the Lantern scene, and Jessica only just became a full Green Lantern recently (see the Darkseid War story for that). Green Lanterns Rebirth #1 has the two forced to become a team for the first time. Simon’s been having a rough go in his normal life, and his inner dialogue talks about how fear and judgement from other people still affect him at home. He’s trying to wash the word “terrorist” off of his sister’s garage door when some man in a suit comes up. The man tells simon he missed a check in. He appears to have made a deal that he would provide information about the Green Lantern Corps in return for his criminal record being wiped. We learn that Simon obtained his ring while in Guantanamo, and the man ofers to help Simon clean the door as the Lantern ring alerts Simon of a “Code One Zero Nine”. Meanwhile in Oregon, Jessica Cruz is still getting used to the fact that she’s a Green Lantern. She feels he ring must have been mistaken in choosing her, because she doesn’t like being around people, let alone going outside. As her friend invites Jessica to stay with her (Jess mentions she got kicked out of her apartment), her ring alerts her to the same code Simon got.
The ring takes Jessica to Arizona, where Simon lands soon after, wondering who she is, because he’s Green Lantern. Before he can take the argument further, the unknown spacecraft reveals a Manhunter, which Baz immediately attacks, telling Jessica to stand down. Baz fares less than well against the Manhunter, and Jessica doesn’t do much better. They get a warning from the ring telling them “Failure Registered”, and the Manhunter fades away, revealing a disappointed Hal Jordan. He tells them they better start acting like Green Lanterns, Simon tries to justify his failure by saying that Jessica showed up impersonating an officer, and Jess tries to remind that she’s still totally new to this, but Hal isn’t having any of it. Hal reminds Simon that he only has a few weeks more experience than Jessica as a Green Lantern, and forces both of them to summon their power batteries. He fuses the batteries into one, telling them, “You’re wondering what I did, so let me tell you. You’ve got one battery now, and you both need to be together to use it. It’s not a punishment, it’s an exercise. I need to know Earth is in good hands with you two. Yu were chosen for a reason, Jessica. You too, Simon. Maybe the rings knew about Sinestro. Or maybe it’s picking more Lanterns because something’s going to happen on Earth. Either waay, I need you both to be on the same page.” This is an amazing line because It’s Hal both resolving the immediate conflict and setting up for whatever may be coming. He knows the two can’t be at odds with each other if they’re going to protect Earth.
It would seem Hal gave his speech just in time. Just after Hal leaves, we cut to a planet farther away. Here,we are given dialogue with the same red outlines as the lines at the beginning. This reveals Atrocitus, leader of the Red Lanterns and Keeper of Rage. He warns that he has seen visions of Ba and Cruz’s future, and that the prophesies talked of Blackest Night and Brightest Day, but now comes the Red Dawn. Obviously Atrocitus is planning to use the fact that Simon and Jessica are having problems getting along as a chance to invade Earth. What I thought was cool was the reminder about two older stories that the Corps had prophesied, Blackest Night and Brightest Day. It’s really nice to see those events be acknowledged again, as they were amazing events. The chemistry between Baz and Cruz is definitely a strong point, as is their monologues about being Green Lanterns. Atrocitus’ plans seem to start the new story, an if this issue is any indication, it’s probably going to be good.
In Summary:
This #1 is a great introduction to the characters of Simon Baz and Jessica Cruz (who I really like). In fact, Jess had to be the highlight for me. Here’s a character that was chosen by a Lantern ring, but feels as if she’s the furthest thing from deserving it. In her mind, she doesn’t like being around people, she rarely leaves her house, and she’s afraid of many things. All of this makes her feel more real and only serves to strengthen her character. By contrast, Simon is untrusting, feels like he knows it all, and is quite rash. He rushed into the Manhunter fight without assessing the situation or even giving Jessica a chance to help him, figuring he could do it all on his own (spoilers: he couldn’t). Jess needs to overcome her anxiety if she’s to combat the coming Red Dawn. Her fear of being around other people and reluctance to accept being a Green Lantern holds her back a bit when it comes to how effective she could be. Baz needs to work on his rashness and his ability to trust others. Now that he and Jessica have to work together, there can be no room for doing things all himself or rushing into things. The two need to learn to work together, and time will only tell if they’ll be able to by the time the Red Lanterns arrive. The art by Sciver and Benes is great. It’s colorful and it works well. The cover art, depicting Jessica Cruz holding up the fused battery, with the reflection of Simon in the battery is beautiful and works amazingly. If you liked either of these characters before or if you’re looking to get a new experience out of an old title, I’d recommend checking Green Lanterns Rebirth, and the series in general, out. You won’t be disappointed.
Grade: A
Age Rating: Teen
Released By: DC Comics
Release Date: June 1st, 2016
MSRP: $2.99