A Little Lantern Love-in
I enormously enjoyed the first episode of the new DCU show 'Lanterns'. It has a great cast, has its share of comic accurate moments but also leans into the whole gritty 'buddy cop' standard. Would I like to see more sci-fi, super-heroics? Sure. Am I just happy to see a great show, created with care about one of my favourite corners of the DC Universe? Abso-fucking-lutely.
Anyway - because absolutely nobody asked here is a little list of some of my favourite bits of GL lore.
Green Lantern Corps - Steve Englehart et al (1986 - 1988)
While I was aware of Hal Jordan/Green Lantern before this it was this series that really hooked me. It was part of that post-Crisis wave when I really started going deep with DC and introduced me to the wider Green Lantern cast for the first time. Kilowog, Katma Tui, Ch'p, Salaak, Mogo, the Guardians and much more. Loved it.
Action Comics Weekly (1988-1989)
Action Comics went weekly in a more UK format for a while - with a regular 7/8 page Green Lantern story. The legend Gil Kane did much of the art and it was my main reason for buying this book (though I did enjoy Deadman as well I remember).
Cosmic Odyssey -Starlin & Mignola (1989)
Not really a Green Lantern book but John Stewart is a major player (even if Starlin portrays him differently than most!) and Mignola's art is stunning.
Emerald Dawn (1990)
The inevitable post Crisis origin story reboot. One of the best examples of this though and probably the least messed with since (though the rest of the GL mythology has been through it!)
Green Lantern: Mosaic - Gerard Jones & Cully Hammer (1992-1993)
This was pretty darn weird even for an era where a lot of pretty darn weird comics were hitting the shelves. It also is another, different, take on John Stewart. Always interesting and never boring though with some brilliant art. Gone too soon.
Green Lantern: Emerald Twilight - Ron Marz et al (1994)
Hal goes mad from grief after the destruction of 'Coast City' (his home town) and goes on the rampage. Was a great twist for what was becoming a quite staid character and the subsequent Parallax storyline was (initially) an interesting evolution....it ended up losing me down the line though.
The New Frontier - Darwyn Cooke (2004)
Again not exactly a Green Lantern comic but Hal is front and centre and it is probably my favourite book of all time by my favourite artist (RIP). It plays into the 1960s, test pilot, Apollo mission, Kennedy era stuff beautifully and my god it looks good.
Justice League - Giffen/DeMatteis/Maguire (1987 - )
Guy Gardner was such a huge part of Justice League [International] and there is no doubt that Nathan Fillion is channelling this version in his portrayal. Consistently funny and infuriating Guy of this era was 'chef's kiss' perfect. Plus what a panel >>>
The Human Target - King & Smallwood (2022)
This is one of the most beautiful to look at books ever - Smallwood CRUSHES it on every page. Guy (and G'nort) are supporting cast but are key to the plot and both have some really nice moments (as do many of the JLI team).
Rond Vidar - not a story, just my favourite Green Lantern costume who had a small role in my favourite team (Legion of Superheroes!)
