Written by: Sam Humphries
Art by: Robson Rocha, Jay Leisten, and Blond
Publisher: DC Comics
There was something really special about both the Rebirth and the #1 issues of Green Lanterns. The whole Red Dawn plot wasn’t super interesting, but it served as a satisfactory vehicle for Humphries to craft what was looking to be my favorite new character relationship in the DC universe. On top of being so heavily character driven, it legitimately just felt good to be enjoying a Green Lantern book again.
Based on the start Green Lanterns had, it was actually the book I was most looking forward to this week and yet, it left me entirely unimpressed. Some of the elements of what I’ve loved about the last two issues do carry over, and Green Lanterns #2 is not a bad comic by any means. When Simon and Jessica are given time to interact with one another, it’s still great. Even their monologues concerning one another remain mostly well written and entertaining.
The problem with this issue is that the two don’t actually spend all that much time together. In fact, much of this issue is focused solely on Jessica. Which, honestly, I don’t think is an inherently bad thing. She’s a character that I’ve been really impressed with, and giving characters time on their own isn’t a bad thing. The problem is that most of the time she’s alone in this issue, it means that there’s a ton of her inner monologue, and honestly, it’s just not that good. It feels over written and expository, to the point where her voice is kind of lost in it. So aside from the scene with here sister, there’s not really all the much Jessica in this issue.
On the topic of her sister, it’s a real shame that she’s only really around for a couple pages. Those pages are solid, but Sara ends up spending most of this issue under the sway of the Red Lanterns. Her red eyes and consistent yelling of the word “rage” would make Anakin Skywalker jealous. Unfortunately, it’s not particularly interesting, and the “I have to focus on my sister” bit of the issue loses impact because of how over written the monologues are.
Also, where was the rest of the supporting cast? We never saw Simon’s family, or the agent he’s been working with. It would have been nice to get at least a page of those characters, although I doubt it will be too long before we see them again. Contrary to the last few issues, Simon was the more interesting of the duo in this issue. The sheer amount of fun he seems to be having as a Green Lantern is intoxicating. Unfortunately, his monologue has some of the same issues that Jessica’s does, though not quite to the same extent.
As for the art, it’s surprisingly hit or miss here. I felt that Rocha had done a really good job with the last issue, and for the most part, the art is solid. The issue is that the faces in certain panels just look entirely off. It’s hard to describe, and the best term I can come up with is that it looks like their melting. Think of the scene at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark, when the Nazis’ skin melts. They have this elongated look to them that is super jarring to look at. I don’t think Rocha is entirely at fault here; some of this can be chalked up to the inker.
The strongest part of the art in this issue is by far the colors. In a book that has to be dominated by a specific neon green color, it can be understandably difficult to create a varied and interesting color palette, but that is achieved in this issue. But the most important part about the colors is how they’re employed to portray the powers. The way the constructs and beams of light are colored is really what animates the panels where they’re used, and the way light reflects onto characters is really great as well.
Overall, Green Lanterns #2 is a bit of an oddity. The best way to visualize it is to imagine Wario jumping into a swimming pool – stay with me here, please. You get the run up (the Rebirth issue), the leap into the air (the #1 issue), and then Wario hits the water and flounders about, realizing that he can’t support his own weight. In this case, Wario’s weight is the over-written pieces of dialogue and much of the inner monologue, in case that wasn’t clear. Even the art is uneven, but at the end of the day, there’s just enough here that I feel comfortable calling this issue a good comic.
