They were going to keep going and so was I. The second to last issue of Star Trek/Green Lantern: The Spectrum War manages to get by on pleasant, but short surprises and builds up to something already revealed an issue earlier. The issue beings action packed and finally pinning everyone against each other to gain power of this newfound universe, Hal and the Enterprise are fully engaged in a conflict with the Romulans, the Klingons, a Gorn, and all superpowered and aided by Larfleeze, Sinestro, and Atrocitus respectively. So while each one of the worst side of the spectrum of light have their own personal coach, Hal has to tell Uhura, and Chekov what to do with their rings, as they try to fight them, while Carol seems to be off battling on her own, Saint Walker is still out with Bones trying to keep him alive. The odds are not going well for Hal Jordan and James Kirk, but that’s never stopped them before from swinging until it’s either them or the enemy not longer able to stand. They’re attempting to get back on their feet, as they want to keep up with all the fighting around them.
This second to last issue of The Spectrum War was much better than its predecessors, it has a lot going for it as it was gearing up for a third act that could have almost turned the series around. Having the issue begin with our heros on the defense and recovering from what is a formidable and overwhelming power like the Yellow, Orange, and Red Lanterns established the characters better than any of their talks could have in their respective planets. A lot of valuable comic real estate could have been saved and a lot more story could have been told if there had been more conflict between these factions as the reader was given the exposition for them rather than isolated interactions for three and a half issues. The art, coloring, and writing are all matching well during this all-out battle of the Lanterns and Starfleet.
The problem is that this is not where the issue remains, instead, after giving us more familiar Green Lantern Universe faces and well paced action, it pumps the brakes on it all to pursue what seems to be a bigger issue, which is what was revealed last issue. They set course for Vulcan, which has been brought back by the forces of Nekron and his Black Lantern of Death. This would work as a moment of tension, except there is none, although our main characters are still figuring out why the dead planet is there and how it came back, from last issue, and the various covers of this issue it was already given to the reader. Yet Johnson still wanted to reveal it like it was a big twist, which falls completely flat in the face that everyone who’s been following this series or looked at the cover knows that it’s coming. What is worse is that as a result, it has fragmented the story once more and taken it away from where it was at its strongest, when all the characters were interacting together.
The art shines through when it came to all the action. Angel Hernandez vastly improved from what almost seemed to be a never ending smolder, although still lacking in some of the expression and I still cringe every time I see Larfleeze for the wrong reasons. I have nothing but praise for the colors and the letters. Star Trek/Green Lantern #5 is the strongest issue in the series and was building up to setting up a great third act, but instead it crumbled and went back to its old ways by the end.
Score: 3/5
Star Trek/Green Lantern: The Spectrum War #5 Written by: Mike Johnson Art by: Angel Hernandez Colors by: Alejandro Sanchez Letters by: Niel Uyetake Publisher: IDW/DC Comics Price: $3.99 Release Date: 11/18/15 Format: Mini-Series; Print/Digital