By Cat Wyatt
In the last issue of Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps we saw Kyle safely back on Mogo, but obviously, Hal is still in quite a bit of danger. Granted, he’s probably doing better with the situation than a lot of people would be (even other Green Lanterns), but it still isn’t an ideal place to be. I’ll admit I’ve been a bit worried about our hero.
With Kyle gone to rally the troops (because this is the Green Lantern Corps we’re talking about, there’s no way they’ll abandon Hal to die), Hal is left alone to deal with Zod and his creepy family. Thankfully Zod seems more than willing to give a monologue or two, giving us a better idea of his plan.
Zod (and family) are still feeling pretty burned about the loss of their home planet. At the time of Krypton’s destruction, Zod was serving his (supposed) lifelong sentence; he naturally feels that he could have made a difference and saved it. He will likely never be able to forgive the Green Lantern that failed to protect Krypton and will take his grudge out on all lanterns (presumably, at least).
Now you’re probably wondering why Zod is more upset about the loss of his home than Kal-El is, and Zod would happily tell you why, should you feel so inclined to ask. Kal-El was just a baby when the planet was destroyed – he has no memories of it, or of the people and culture. Zod has those memories, and he feels their loss bitterly. Where Kal-El can only imagine, Zod feels it. I actually can sympathize with this point (though I obviously don’t agree with him taking out any aggression on the Green Lanterns).
Meanwhile, Kyle has been telling the story of the past few days (at Energizer Bunny speed). As predicted the first thing Guy wants to do is rush out and save Hal (which I totally respect). John, however, feels he should honor his agreement with the Guardians, and inform them first.
Too bad the Guardians don’t feel quite the same way. Sure, they don’t want to abandon Hal to die (which is exactly what they’d be doing should they refuse to act – let’s not dance around the issue here), but they don’t want to ‘rush into anything’ either. So in effect they’re claiming action through inaction. No matter how you look at it, at the end of the day Hal is still being held prisoner by one of the most dangerous people known to the Corps.
I think Guy knew that decision would happen (that or he didn’t care to wait until the meeting concluded for permission), which is why he gathered all the Green Lantern volunteers he could to bounce out of there and head off on a crazy rescue mission. Obviously the team includes Guy (he did plan it after all – wow that felt weird to say), Kyle (I’m pretty sure you couldn’t stop him from rushing back to Hal), Kiliwog (no way would he leave any of his men like that, but especially not Hal), and Man Ape. There are plenty of others as well, and hopefully their numbers will be enough to even the odds (at least they know how many enemies they’ll be facing).
I think the highlight of this issue came from John Stewart’s reaction to seeing the team leave on a rescue mission without being granted permission. Not only did he know they would do so, but he was happy they were going (though surprised it had taken them so long to leave). This makes me think that John was keeping the council busy intentionally, and that he also knew their answer would be no. That’s a depressing thought. This is their first true test since they returned, and I have to say I’m not impressed. Based on his actions I don’t believe John is either.
Meanwhile back in the Fortress of Zod (actual name, I’m not being sassy here), Eradicator is making progress in analyzing the rings (well, ring actually, since Hal’s flew the coup). Apparently the entirety of Zod’s plan hangs on their being able to crack something about the rings. This would explain why he intentionally baited a couple of lanterns to the planet (despite the potential risk). I personally don’t think it could be a very good plan, since it’s so highly dependent on one very risky operation, but I also don’t know the full plan, so I probably shouldn’t judge.
Anyway, the good thing about Zod stressing over the situation is it kept him from keeping too close of an eye on Hal. Because there are many talents a Green Lantern has, and one of them includes being able to sense when his ring is nearby. And Hal can feel his returning to him. If I were in his shoes I would have felt pretty safe assuming that the ring (and thus Kyle) was not returning alone. Here comes the cavalry!
I’m looking forward to the next issue of Hal Jordan. The fight between the Green Lanterns and Zod has only just begun, but I can tell it’s going to be a good one. I’m also hoping his full plan will be revealed in the next issue, which would be fantastic.
When they first started this plot I wasn’t really sure how I felt about it, but the farther it goes (and the more it’s explained) the more I find myself liking it. Now I understand why Zod would hold a grudge against the lanterns, why he needed to bait them here, and why he chose this planet in particular to rebuild. With that information in hand everything started making more sense, and I was able to see the plot for what it was. I’m looking forward to seeing how they conclude this one (and I’ll be curious to see if this plot runs into any of the other series).
If you’re hoping for some of those classic Green Lantern poses, you’re in luck. This issue is absolutely full of dramatic poses. I think Kyle probably got the highest number of them, but considering he’s juiced up on Hal’s ring that one sort of makes sense. John also got a few dramatic poses in, which is always appreciated. Though I’ll admit seeing a guy’s chest and butt in the same pose just makes me wince in pain (I would not be happy if my back was contorted like that), but hey, they’re superheroes, so I guess they can take it? There weren’t too many constructs in this issue, which is sad; but there was a lot of emotion being shown on our character’s faces, which I was happy about.
Score: 4/5
Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #39
DC Comics