GREEN LANTERN CORPS #4

[ HALF PRICE WITH A BLADE ] 

There once was a git called ‘the Keeper’. Who was not a very deep thinker. But then came that Guy, who would not let anything die, thus making the git prey for the Grim Reaper. Now for some more stuff and nonsense, why don’t you read this tale Written by Peter Tomasi; Drawn by: Fernando Pasarin; and Published by DC Comics in January 2012.

So what’s the story morning glory?

‘Prisoners of War’ is a unified dual action storyline, with an additional question posed at the end or else I would cry.

Part One – Prisoners – John Stewart, Vandor, and the rest of their Green Lantern brethren, are up sh*t creak without a paddle. You see, they have been overpowered by ‘the Keepers’, and then taken as prisoner to walk across ‘the emerald planes’.

Worst still, one of the Green Lanterns is killed, just to prove to the rest how ‘paddle-less’ they truly are.

Par Two – Not Prisoners – Feeling despondent for leaving their Green allies in jeopardy, some of the Green Lantern Corps are really pissed off at the moment. Hanu, Sheriff, and Isamot, try to dampen their fret with physical training, whilst Guy Gardner has a more pro-active form of therapy – torture ‘the Keeper’ that he has captured, until he tells him how to save his friends.

But only so long at Saarek can keep Guy on a leash.

Question – When Martian Manhunter suddenly arrives, he probes ‘the Keepers’ mind, and tells Guy either: (1) These people want to touch your naughty parts. (2) These people used to safe guard the power batteries for the Guardians. (3) These people are good at stacking shelves at Wal-Mart.

What is the most memorable sentence spoken in this issue?

I liked it when Guy rebutted Saarek ‘intimidation remark’, by saying back to him “Its called ‘Good Cop, Bad Cop’ Saarek... or in your case simply ‘Idiot cop’!”

It’s great when you can expand upon a classic concept, right?

Was the story any good?

Yes – one hundred percent – it was a marked improvement from last issues offerings – as it told a tale, spun some character, and was enjoyable to read as well. I particularly enjoyed the way that this issue had an agenda in mind – as if it wanted to up the intensity of this situation by showing someone dieing, and reflecting the worry upon the characters faces.

For me – this I like.

Was the art any good?

Yeah – Mister Pasarin is a nice artist, and in this comic book, I feel that he really knows how to convey emotion within the characters. Moreover, I presume that Scott Hanna’s inks aided him also – both of them complementing each other with a clean yet detail feel to the compositions.

Though, if I did have a slight gripe with the art, it would have to be the overt use of ‘negative space’ – it just makes the layouts look more like ‘posing poster shots’ than ‘pieces of a story’ (if you get my meaning). 

What is the best thing about this issue?

I liked the Guy interrogation scene in this issue the best. It was funny – it had a lot of pathos to it – and on top of that, it lent itself to both humour and emotion. Plus, I have to say that I liked ‘the Keeper’ too – he did come across as someone you would not mind slapping about a bit.

What is the worst thing about this issue?

As much as I loved J’onn J’onzz in this issue – it genuinely gave me a buzz – what the f*ck is all this stuff about him and Guy never meeting before? Come on DC – you guys are having a laugh, aren’t you?

OK, I know that this is the DCnU, but please don’t ‘fudge up’ the JLI era so much, that past tales are not in continuity anymore.

If you could sum up this issue in a phrase or saying, what would that phrase or saying be?

I like to think that this book is about a dual capture, right? So in my opinion I surmise that a phrase like ‘you never take me alive suckers’ is an appropriate one.

If this issue were a movie, an object, or a piece of music, what would that be and why? 

OK, someone gets captured, someone gets interrogated, and other people get pissed off too. Therefore, this issue could be a sci-fi version of ‘Letters from Iwo Jima’, huh?

What do you think would have made this issue better than it was?

Apart from the retro-continuity – which really did annoy me – I would have liked to have seen a more personal tone to this team book. You know – a scene where the un-captured GL’s are all trying to interrogating ‘the Keeper’ or something.

Final thoughts...

OK, I know that this book is starting to become CSI: Space, but I do feel that each of the characters need to have some time to grow in this book, and be given an issue on there own so we can get to know who they are, both at work and at home.

Marks out of 10? 8