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Jessica Cruz WILL NOT be the Green Lantern of the DC Cinematic Universe

Green_Lantern_Corps_logo

 

*record scratch*

 

Alright, that’s enough. No more.

 

Jessica Cruz WILL NOT be the Green Lantern of the ‘Justice League‘ film. Nor will she be the Green Lantern of the ‘Green Lantern Corps‘ film currently slated for release in 2020.

 

In October of 2014, someone at Newsarama thought it would be fun to speculate about WHICH Green Lantern would feature in the ‘Justice League’ and ‘Green Lantern’ movies of the DC cinematic universe. Their conclusion? That Jessica Cruz is the ideal choice, going so far as to say, “if Vegas were to give us some good odds on who will be the lead movie GL, [our] money wouldn’t be on [Hal, Guy, John, Kyle, or Simon]”.

 

Speculation is all well and good. Editorial pieces, of which I am a personal fan (so long as you present them as such), are fun and thought provoking. And it’s a theory that’s catching on…

 

Latina Entertainment

 

Movie Pilot

 

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Cinema Blend

 

And now it’s resurfaced yet again with the reveal on Weds March 23rd that Jessica Cruz would be trading in her Power Ring power ring for a REAL Green Lantern power ring in the forthcoming Rebirth initiative from DC Comics.

 

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…and it’s WRONG.

 

Why? Well, since this all sprung directly from Newsarama, it’s only logical to go point for point with their point by point.

 

1.) She of course is a current Justice League member and again was created by Johns, at exactly the time DCE and Warner Bros. seemed to be assembling their master movie plan and starting production on Dawn of Justice.

 

It sounds like you’re taking the “there’s no such thing as coincidence, it’s all fate” philosophical approach to life a little TOO far. Geoff Johns IS the Chief Creative Officer at DC. Geoff created Jessica Cruz. Geoff is involved with the direction of DC characters OUTSIDE of just the comics. Geoff isn’t THE decision maker though. If he was, ‘Green Lantern‘ wouldn’t have turned out to be the steaming pile it ended up. Perhaps a DIFFERENT steaming pile, but definitely not what we ended up with. All sources put that folly squarely on the Warner Studio muckety mucks. And maybe they’ve learned to loosen their grip and hand it off to their directors vision more (aka Snyder’s more creatively controlled vision we’re currently getting). But as much power and influence as Geoff has rightfully EARNED, he’s not THAT influential.

 

2.) Did we mention Johns created her himself, again, just a short time after already creating another new young Green Lantern character that serves to add diversity to the GL Corps and the Justice Leagues – Simon Baz (he even set Baz up as her mentor just before leaving the Green Lantern comic). It would not be a stretch of the imagination to conclude Jessica was created to fill a specific role Simon does not (we’re getting there in a sec), since Johns could have easily slotted him into the comic book League if he chose.

 

See our response to point 1. Also yes, Johns DID create her and Simon, but you’re forgetting the fact that Johns ADORES the silver age incarnations of characters (IE: Barry and Hal). So he may have created Simon and Jessica, but he’s only spent so much time with them. Prior to that? He spent 5+ years DELIBERATELY building Hal (and the GLC) back into the DCU. So which trumps which?

 

Additionally, you’re assuming the current comics have the same influence on the feature films that they have on the direct to DVD animated features. The last time DC films took a page directly from the current comics, we got the 2011 ‘Green Lantern‘. Granted the material it was ROOTED in was amazing, but the interpretation was obviously off.

 

Then DC went with the “no more old story interpretations in our direct to DVD animated features, only new material”. Which was fine. But have you noticed that decision loosening its grip lately? (the forthcoming ‘Killing Joke’ anyone?) Bottom line? The big screen films draw from more time tested stories and versions of the DCU, not the recent stuff. And have you SEEN the numbers for the comics lately? Even the popular stories? Those numbers, even the best ones, aren’t big enough “proof” to convince a studio to invest their millions of dollars and man hours.

 

3.) Since we can safely assume the movie League line-up is Batman, Superman, The Flash, Aquaman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern and Cyborg, we can conclude the movies are following at least the basic roadmap of the New 52 line-up Johns created.

 

Yes. The BASIC road map. Meaning A GL. But wait. Was GL in BVSDOJ? No? When’s he showing up? Not until probably Justice League 2? (or end of JL 1?) So then what does “Unite the Seven” mean? Let’s count it out. We’ve got: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Cyborg, Aquaman….hmmm, that’s six. And no GL for awhile. Who’s left? Ah yes, the only other person getting a solo movie who HASN’T been mentioned yet… SHAZAM!

 

shazam

 

And their last two points together (since they’re essentially making the same point)…

 

4.) Cyborg basically supplanted Martian Manhunter (as well as other potential characters with rich Justice League history like Green Arrow, Hawkman, and the Atom), no doubt in part to inject some youth and technical weaponry into the line-up, but to also provide some yes … diversity.

 

5.) Finally, that seven character League … pardon us for saying so … is/was a bit of a sausage fest.

 

And here we go. The only REAL reason they’re pushing for Jessica in the first place. She’s a female of Latin origin. Gender and race.

 

I won’t lie for the sake of my own argument. It’s completely true. The big two (and others) are definitely pushing for more equal representation in their characters across all media. Equal time given regardless of gender, race, religious background, or sexual orientation. The problem with assuming this will play a large enough role to shove aside the GL boys in favor of Jessica Cruz is that there is no historical precedent for it. Heimdall was interpreted as a black character. But Heimdall isn’t a main character in Thor. Nick Fury was interpreted as a black character. Nick Fury isn’t so popular he offsets the cast of the actual heroes in Avengers. And so on and so forth.

 

As for our main characters? Iron Man? Tony Stark. Cap? Steve Rodgers frozen in ice. Thor? From Asgard. Black Widow? Natasha. Hulk? Bruce Banner. Superman? Clark Kent. Batman? Bruce Wayne. Wonder Woman? Diana Prince. Flash? Barry Allen. Green Arrow? Oliver Queen. Daredevil? Blind Matt Murdock. Supergirl? Kara Danvers. Want me to keep going? Because I can move on to the supporting characters like Patsy Walker, Laurel Lance, Ronnie Raymond, Carter Hall, Ray Palmer, Frank Castle, Electra, Luke Cage, Rip Hunter, and more and more.

 

Heck, even Hulk (the Ang Lee version) didn’t mean Bruce Banner got tossed out with the bathwater because of the toxic reputation of the film. Or ignored all together. They kept the classic interpretation, gave it some breathing room, and kept on.

 

Bottom line? There’s NO EVIDENCE that film makers (in TV or film) believe that equal representation trumps the classic, time tested, and mostly RECOGNIZABLE/marketable versions of main (or supporting) characters.

 

Not to mention the fact that, while studios in charge of superhero films don’t SOLELY cater their interpretations to the comic fan base, making the GL Jessica Cruz would completely and utterly alienate most every current fan of the mythos. And the ones NOT up to date on who she is but had experiences with GL in the past? Would be utterly confused. So while they may not make these films solely for us, we’re a big enough part of the audience that they at least CONSIDER our reaction. And if we’re a big enough group to consider, we’re a big enough group to impact the bottom line in some, even small, way.

 

And that’s it.

 

I’ll agree, WHERE POSSIBLE and still PROFITABLE, DC/Warner is MOST LIKELY to bring diversity in the DC cinematic universe with the Green Lantern characters (think the JL/JLU animated series). But when someone like John Stewart is available, characters like Simon Baz and Jessica Cruz don’t really stand a chance, no matter who created them.

 

I won’t deny it’s possible we might see them in a film (most likely GLC in 2020) but they won’t be the main GL’s. Period. Characters recognizable to both comic fans, and more importantly, the general movie going audience have the highest potential for profitability in both ticket sales AND merchandising. Because despite the push for diversity, studios are still profit driven entities. Jessica Cruz still doesn’t even have an action figure. Or a supporting role in the main Green Lantern title or even the ancillary titles (that could obviously change after Rebirth, though doubtful with a rumored title like ‘Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps’ in the works).

 

It’s going to be Hal Jordan or John Stewart. Or both. But it’s not going to be Jessica Cruz.

 

So thank your lucky stars Vegas doesn’t accept those types of bets.

 

(PS: The news that Jessica Cruz & Simon Baz will be featured heavily in both the Justice League title by Bryan Hitch and the Green Lantern title by Sam Humphries does NOT change these opinions.)

 

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The Darkstars: Issue #3 Review by Jim Remolde!

Darkstars Reviews

Issue three of Darkstars:  “A Little Help From My Friends” written by Michael Jan Friedman, penciled by Larry Stroman, inked by Scott Hanna, lettered by Bob Pinaha, colored by Juliana Ferriter, and edited Brian Augustine.  This issue is cover dated December 1992 and according to Mike’s Amazing world of DC Comics, this issue was released on November 3, 1992.

 

        We open in the kitchen of attorney Carla White.  She has the news on and we hear a report about the Allen Pharmaceutical drug bust of the night before.  Police say that Allen Pharmaceuticals have been the headquarters for the Loco drug ring.  Unconfirmed sources even identify the involvement of aliens.  This gets Carla’s attention.  The report includes that Frank Pappas, Carla’s client has been charged with directing and financing the operation.  This surprises Carla.  Carla leaves the room as a report that one of the aliens was on the humans side and that alien’s name was Darkstar.

 

        We now go to an interlude in space.  We catch up with the fleeing being from the previous issue.  He has come across a Darkstar cruiser.  The being reports that he is being pursued by hostile entities.  The captain of the Darkstar ship questions the assertion that the beings are hostile.  While this discussion continues the crew of the Darkstar ship discovers that the pursuers are traveling without a ship.  The pursuers fire on and destroy the Darkstar ship.  The pursued being continues his run but he remembers another hope a green warrior who comes from a green world.

 

        In orbit of earth, Colos, Flint and Mo discuss Colos’s orders.  Colos gives his backstory including the first mention of a race called the Controllers that set up the Darkstars.  Colos gives a backstory of the Controllers.  Their first theory was that they could insulate their own world from the scum of the universe.  After about a thousand years, they discovered that they could not be just reactive.  They decided that they had to meet the problems at the source and to do that, they created the Darkstars.  This way the Controllers could still keep their hands clean while they send agents to do the hard stuff.  Flint notices that this is not an endorsement of the Controllers.  Colos just says that it is not.  Colos became a Darkstar for himself and what he could accomplish.  Colos admits that he doesn’t tell this story to anybody, he has plans for Flint and Mo.  He is allowed to pick two local deputies to help him in his patrols.  He offers these positions to Flint and Mo.

 

        Prigatz contacts Colos.  He has another assignment.  He is to hunt down an escaped prisoner only known as G-111 but he calls himself Evil Star.  Evil Star was originally apprehended by the Green Lanterns on earth.  Evil Star is returning to earth for a rematch.  Since the Green Lantern Corp is in disarray, the Darkstars need to deal with Evil Star.

 

        We learn that G-111 was denouncing his identity as Evil Star.  The problem though rests with his henchmen, the Starlings.  The Starlings were activated and they stole the Star-Brand which gives Evil Star his powers.  When the Starlings arrived at the prison, G-111 stole a cruiser and escaped during the ensuing chaos.  We see that G-111 is the being we have been visiting the previous issues.  Prigatz tells Colos about the destruction of the Darkstar ship.  Colos has two hours and forty-four minutes to outfit and train his new deputies before Evil Star arrives.

 

        Carla walks into her father’s office.  This is the law firm that Carla works for.  She questions her father on Frank Pappas.  The father heard rumors about Pappas but it is not their job to incriminate their clients.  Carla questions the decision to defend Pappas in the first place.  Carla quits her position just as Pappas calls her for legal advice.  She just tells him to drop dead and walks out of the office.

 

        Pappas is meeting with some aliens.  The aliens question Pappas about the events of the previous night including the Darkstar raid.  Pappas says that he needs a new lawyer as his old one has quit.  The aliens now decide to minimize their dealings with Pappas in the future.  They are throwing him to the dogs.

 

        The three Darkstars are in training in the skies of Dallas when they see G-111 ship and the Starlings enter the atmosphere.  The Darkstars move to intercept but are attacked by the Starlings.

 

        G-111 realizes that Green Lantern is not on earth as he would have tried to stop him by now and the Darkstars proved to be no match for the Starlings.  G-111 looks at the Star-Brand and says that he could jettison it before it takes control of him.  But that power must not be wasted, it must be exercised, he must become Evil Star and we see Evil Star in the last full page spread.

 

        Okay, I see why I should care about this blond alien running from these strange pursuers without ships.  I did not know that this guy is Evil Star.  I admit I do not know much about Evil Star but I find it interesting that the Star-Brand actually appears to be the the evil influence, however G-111 did seem to don the mantle of the Star-Brand willingly in the end.

 

        This was not a good showing for the Darkstars power.  One Green Lantern was able to defeat Evil Star and his Starlings but three Darkstars could not take the Starlings.  It was interesting to hear that a Darkstar could deputized two locals to join his patrol.  I know Mo is homeless from Issue 1 but Flint is a police lieutenant.  Does this mean that Flint is no longer a cop but has been promoted to space cop?

 

        I do like the scenes with Carla in them.  She really is naïve in her understanding of Pappas but it is good to see that when she finds the truth, she acts on it.  The only thing is that it appears her story arc is leaving the Darkstars as her only connection to the main ongoing plot was Pappas and now she has quit the firm and is not longer representing Pappas.  I hope to see more of this character in the future.

 

        Now for the Controllers.  This is the first time we hear about the Controllers in this series.  What we hear is not very positive.  They seem to be selfish really only interested in their own safety and security.  It is only after a thousand years that they decided to expand their reach but instead of going out themselves, they deputized other aliens to die for them.

 

        Colos, the main Darkstar we see does get a positive characterization.  He is altruistic and really wants to do good.  He is not a Darkstar for the Controllers but for himself.  It make me wonder about the others.  Are they as altruistic as Colos or are they Darkstars because of the Controllers.
        This was another enjoyable issue and I want to start grading these issues like other podcasts and reviews so I will use a scale of 1-5 power rings.  I give this issue a 4 out of 5 power rings.  See you next issue.

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The Darkstars: Issue #2 Review by Jim Remolde!

Darkstars Reviews

Issue 2, Darkstar Rising, written by Jan Michael Friedman, penciled by Larry Stroman, inked by Scott Hanna with lettered Bob Pinaha, colored by Julianna Ferriter, and edited by Brian Augustine had a cover date of November 1992 with a release date of 10/6/1992 (Mikes Amazing World of DC Comics).  We open where the last issue closed.  Colos has arrived on the scene as Lieutenant Flint is thrown through the window.  Colos catches him in midair and lands next to Mo.  Colors questions Flint who tells him about the Loco drug and this place was identified as the distribution point.  Flint is concerned about the other officers still in the building as they do not know what they are up against.

 

            Colos crashes through the window and attacks the creature that threw Flint out earlier.  During this fight, one of the human drug dealers tries to run away.  He is tackled and beaten by Flint until Colos stares him down.  With the arrival of Colos, Flint’s focus shifts from warning his men to mopping up the place.   During this conversation, Mo notices something in the doorway and yells look out.  Just then laser fire erupts out of the door at Colos, Flint, and Mo.  One of the other drug dealers is blasted and Flint goes for a gun.  Colos warns him off saying that his bullets will have no effect on these perpetrators.  Colos blasts them with his palm masers and as a result pushes them through a wall.

 

            Elsewhere, Carla is leaving from dinner with Paul, a pro bono lawyer who works for the homeless.  Paul says that when they were in law school, Carla had principles and morals and now she works for the likes of Frank Papas.  Carla believes that Papas is a business man who may not be entirely honest.  Paul tells her about the Loco drug and that Papas is the head of the operation.  This drug is directly affecting the homeless in Dallas.  Paul apologizes for being harsh with Carla and Carla asks if he wants a cab.  Paul says he cannot afford a cab and walks off.  We are left with Carla just watching and possibly thinking about their conversation.

 

            Back at the distribution point, Colos is dangling an alien upside down over a roof.  Colos is after what he calls the big birds.  The alien acquiesces and tells Colos where the big honchos are located.

 

            Now we get a cosmic.  Interlude scene.  A person is flying a ship and we get an inner monologue.  This being just wanted to be left alone but he was discovered and now they are hunting him.  We see that his is being followed by what looks like beings flying through space without a ship.  We do not see these people and we do not know who is hunting this guy.

 

            Back on earth, Colos is flying with Mo and Flint presumably to the head honcho’s hideout.  From the air they see what looks like the shipping depot for the drug.  They land and Colos immediately breaks into the warehouse.  The aliens open fire on the three as the leaders including Papas run off and the alien leader pushes a button.  We see that a couple of giant robots come out and attack.  Colos counter attacks thinking he will not have too much trouble destroying them as he has dealt with this weapon before.  He is wrong as he is dealing with an improved model.  Flint pulls his gun and Mo also pulls a weapon and open fire on the robot to give Colos some breathing room.  Colos now with a second assault is able to take down the robots.

 

            After the battle the three now enter Colos’s ship and Colos opens a com with Administrator Prisatz.  Colos reports that the mission to bust up the Loku ring was accomplished with the help of the two earthers with him in the ship.  Colos however reports that the job may not be completed as there are a number of off worlders still on earth and a continued presence may be required.  Prisatz agrees with him that a Darkstar should be assigned to earth’s sector and that Darkstar should be Colos much to his chagrin while a smug Flint and Mo looks on.

 

            This is the second issue of this series.  It carries on from the first.  I liked the action in here as we see a little more of a Darkstars power and weapon set.  I do believe that so far I see this group as inferior in power set to the Green Lanterns but at this time there were not many Green Lanterns in the DC Universe.

 

            I liked the use of Flint and Mo here.  They do not cower at the power of the aliens and their machines, they legitimately help Colos in his fight against the villains in this issue.

 

            We see a glimpse of Carla in this issue with one scene but I feel it is a good character development or a lead in to a change in her story arc.

 

            My big question is the cosmic interlude.  Who is this guy we are seeing and who or what is after him and more importantly do we even care.

 

            I am still enjoying this comic and I am looking forward to the next issue.

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Initial Thoughts: Telos #5

Telos_Vol_1-5_Cover-1_TeaserThis isn’t going to be an actual issue review, since Chad and I will do that once we get to the February books, but I wanted to write a few words about my reaction to Telos #5.

 

While it is always good to see classic Parallax back and he looks really good in this issue, the way he is written continues to bother me.  Jeff King wrote Parallax this way back in the final two issues of Convergence, but since Parallax wasn’t in those issues much, it wasn’t as big of a problem for me.  But Telos #5 makes it pretty clear while King must like Parallax, he really doesn’t understand him.

 

His Parallax is pretty much a petulant child who always acts out, constantly throws the simplest of insults out towards others, often is just a minute away from killing someone and seems incapable of thinking beyond the moment.  If Zero Hour showed us anything, Parallax was certainly capable of thinking big picture.

 

Parallax, while more unstable and volatile than Hal Jordan, still possessed all the strengths that made Hal a great character.  He was able to cross the line when necessary, but was still driven by his amazing will and his desire to do the right thing,  I have yet to see much of that in Parallax since his return to the DCU (Post-Covergence).  Plus, this Parallax acts and talks like he is simply stupider than Hal Jordan.

 

Hopefully Green Lantern #50 will give us at least a version of Parallax that closer resembles the original.  I definitely don’t expect Telos #6 to deliver that based on what I just read.

 

-Mark J. Marble

 

“Rebirth” Thoughts, Part Deux!

I was originally going to write a bigger piece to go with Chad’s post, but I decided to do this smaller standalone instead, especially since we do plan on posting an episode about DC’s “Rebirth” in the next few days.

 

Relaunching the DCU without a reboot makes little sense to me.  So as soon as I heard about the rumor, I figured it was going to be a reboot, even if a soft one.  Just keeping the status quo and giving us yet another wave of number one issues would probably accomplish nothing.  Especially when one considers the luster has pretty much come of the “New 52” brand as a whole these days.

 

When DC confirmed the news and released the “Rebirth” banner, besides adding to the reboot not just relaunch speculation, it also hinted at something else.  Green Lantern fans (and Flash fans too, to a lesser extent) know the term means something special to them, since it helped turn around the struggling GL book and helped launch an entire brand or franchise of books that catapulted Green Lantern to the top of the DCU, in relevance, popularity and sales.  It also has a direct link to the creators of both previous rebirths: Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver.

 

Considering Johns’ role at DC and WB, for DC to call an event “Rebirth” and Johns not be a major force behind it, if not THE force, would be mind-boggling.   With Convergence bringing back the entire multiverse last year and with the “Rebirth” of the DCU this summer, it definitely seems that the New 52 is about either go away or be modified into some sort of amalgam with the previous DCU or maybe be combined with several others.  If Johns is the architect of this reboot, then hopefully it will also have positive ramifications for the Green Lantern books, since the franchise clearly needs something to breathe some life into it. 

 

Despite Robert Venditti and Cullen Bunn’s best efforts, the pendulum has not been swinging in the right direction for a while now.  It makes sense that, whether it is a relaunch or reboot, DC take this opportunity to shake up the direction and the creative teams across the board on all books that are doing as well as they would like or expect.

 

-Mark Marble

DC Comics Relaunches Titles This Summer With ‘Rebirth’!

Early yesterday Bleeding Cool announced a recent rumor going around that DC was going to relaunch all of their titles this summer with new #1 issues. As reported, these titles would all be more closely tied to the versions of the characters seen in DC film and television. Obiously this would mean more titles featuring characters like Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Arrow, Harley Quinn, the Suicide Squad, and more.

 

By the time mid afternoon rolled around, Dan DiDio, Jim Lee, and other posted the below image to their various social media accounts.

 

 

So it’s now, as of this posting, all but OFFICIALLY confirmed by the powers that be at DC Comics.

 

What does this mean for Green Lantern and the related titles in their line-up? Well the short answer is, “We don’t know”.

 

With an emphasis supposedly on more widespread media incarnations of their characters, it’s hard to know where GL will fall. Warner/DC have been very tight lipped about Green Lantern. Rumor has it he’ll be appearing in the final act of the ‘Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice’ film alongside the other founders of the JLA. Rumor has it he’ll also be played by Dan Amboyer. But that’s just it, they’re all rumors. As for DCTV on the CW, GL has been the butt of many an Easter egg, but not much in the way of FULL ON character or casting reveals. 

 

Now, this ‘Rebirth’ event won’t be happening until this summer. By then, Green Lantern could, if the rumors are true, be revealed in BVSDoJ. Since he’d, hypothetically, then be revealed that means the floodgates could open concerning the rest of the plans for the Green Lantern mythos on the silver screen. MAYBE. But as things stand now, we don’t have much to go on with regards to the popular media interpretation of Green Lantern.

 

That could mean a few things.

 

It could mean that, like the New 52, Green Lantern and related titles will come out the other side of this relaunch relatively unscathed. But that’s doubtful.

 

Green Lantern sales and popularity haven’t been really high since Geoff Johns left the books. *EX: ‘Green Lantern’ #46 was ranked 62nd out of 100 for the month of November while the ‘Justice League: Darkseid War: Green Lantern’ one shot was ranked 81st. ‘Sinestro’ didn’t even break the top 100. That’s a decline from the prior month where ‘Green Lantern’ stood at 55th place for #45 and ‘Sinestro’ was ranked 98th for issue #16, just below the 97th spot held by ‘Star Trek/Green Lantern’ #4. For DC, cracking the top 100 could be considered an popular title, to be honest, we don’t know that information. Maybe they only consider the top 50 worth a shot? Maybe it’s the top 100? Maybe they don’t care about those numbers at all, maybe they just care about profit margins. Who knows but DC? The point is, regardless of quality, DC’s Lantern titles have been slowly falling.

(* – This information taken from the Dec & Jan issues of PREVIEWS magazine)

 

Would Robert Venditti stay on the title? Would Cullen Bunn stay on Sinestro? Would there even be a Sinestro title?

 

Like we said, right now, we just don’t know.

 

If this all spells goodbye for the teams behind ‘Green Lantern’ & ‘Sinestro’ (‘Green Lantern: Edge of Oblivion’ & ‘Omega Men’ not mentioned as the titles were already announced as either limited runs or being cancelled) then we wish them well. Regardless of how we PERSONALLY feel about those issues and their direction, it’s clear they were fun books for A LOT of Lantern fans. And any injection of excitement into the GL mythos is something worth thanking a creative team for. Personally, I feel bad for Cullen Bunn in all of this. After the Aquaman stuff, the sudden cancellation of ‘Lost Army’, and now this, things don’t seem to be going his way at DC lately. Particularly in regards to ‘Sinestro’. Cullen has been purposefully making sure that, while exploring “the Paling”, he establishes the Sinestro Corps as the rightful replacements for the absent Green Lantern Corps. A move that, rightfully, needs to be EARNED within the pages of the comic before we believe it. And now that he’s nearly there, the rug is (possibly) pulled out from under him before he’s got a chance to tell the stories on the other side of the new status quo he was trying to set up all this time.

 

But again, this all pre-supposes that the teams are changing or the books are being cancelled on the other side of “Rebirth”. They might not be. We REALLY don’t know a whole heckuvalot right now. Rest assured we’ll let you know when we DO know more, either here, on our Facebook page, on our twitter, or on the podcast itself.

 

-Chad Bokelman

 

UPDATE #1: Literally before I even hit post, Geoff Johns retweeted Jim Lee’s tweet to Ethan Van Sciver with a sly message…

 

 

Does this mean Geoff and Ethan are returning to either the Flash or Green Lantern? God only knows. But we hope so, if only temporarily…

The Case for Hal Jordan on the CW!

Hal Jordan Green Lantern in the CW Arrow and Flash

Ever since the CW has been airing ‘Arrow’ and ‘The Flash’ on it’s network, DC comics fans have been impressed with the number of cameos and references to existing characters and concepts. One of the repeating references is to a certain Emerald Crusader, the Green Lantern of Sector 2814, Hal Jordan. Be it Ferris Air, Coast City, or references to Hal himself (all pictured above) the CW has made it very clear, Hal Jordan exists in this universe and is (most likely) Green Lantern already.

 

Since dropping Emerald tinted hints, there’s been an uptick in fan theories and “it should happen because it’d just be COOL” articles. But the fervent desire to see Hal on the small screen has been backed up more with “cause it’s cool” and “the GL movie sucked so we’re owed a good representation” as opposed to “here’s how it would WORK and here’s WHY it’ll be cool”.

 

And thus, here I am.

 

Yeah, yeah. Boiled down to it’s bare essence, I’m just another Green Lantern fan. But, to be fair, the LanternCast has been on their air for SEVEN YEARS. Mark and I have been at it together for TWO of those seven. I’d say that earns us the right to throw our weight around from time to time when it comes to GL fan theory and speculation. So let me break it down for you.

 

1)  BARRY ALLEN AND OLIVER QUEEN ARE HAL JORDAN’S BEST FRIENDS.

 

In the comics, the three are friends. Well, more Hal is a mutual friend between the two rather than a Barry/Ollie bromance. It’s mildly upsetting as a comics/Green Lantern fan to see his two friends have shows of their own without the Hal Jordan linchpin to keep their volatile friendship intact. But outside of the sheer disappointment of just not seeing it, the friendship is a key element that could offer up fantastic character moments for EITHER Ollie or Barry.

 

GL fans have argued since the Silver/Bronze Age about who is the better “Brave and the Bold” style team. Barry and Hal? Or Hal and Ollie? While die hard ‘Green Lantern/Green Arrow’ fans (of which I am one!) will say Ollie and Hal are the better team, I actually side with the Barry/Hal faction. When it comes to action, Ollie and Hal often argue so relentlessly that it takes them too long to get anything done. Whereas Barry and Hal get into the action, then disagree after the fact. But here’s how I PERSONALLY see the three characters.

 

Barry is a forensic scientist working for the police department. Sure, he’s essentially a vigilante, but he’s on the side of LAW. Ollie is the polar opposite. In the GL/GA series, he’s the one convincing Hal that sure, there may be rules, but the CONTEXT of those rules, and when it’s better to break them rather than follow them, is just as important. Hal is often the dead center of the two ideals. He’s the cocksure and action first/thought later guy, but he’s also following a code of intergalactic rules. Now these aren’t NECESSARILY the Barry and Ollie from the CW, but they COULD be.

 

With Hal in the mix, Barry could get a dose of someone a little TOO rash and impulsive. And, through whatever mishap, we could come out the other side with a great friendship, but a Barry Allen that’s more sure of the law, his own scientific knowledge, and more methodical.

 

With Hal in the mix, Oliver could get a dose of someone whose set of rules and laws MAKE SENSE but don’t fit the situation. That won’t sit well with Oliver at HEART. And, through whatever mishap, we could come out the other side with a great friendship, but a Oliver Queen that’s more like the comics. More of a crusader for social justice, the downtrodden, and not afraid of treading the grey areas between the Law and Morality. As opposed to someone who more fights black and white crime (people who kill, rape, steal, deal drugs, etc.).

 

Barry Hal Oliver Friendship

 

2)  HAL JORDAN IS A LOVABLE WOMANIZER.

 

Yeah I know. It’s a played out trope. But hear me out. What is the CW formula? Attractive young actors and actresses and any excuse for shirtless dudes or heated, sexual exchanges between characters. Now, concession, ‘Arrow’ and ‘The Flash’ have been pretty damn good about not bowing to that sort of network model (though there have been instances one COULD point to). But Hal’s brand of womanizing would help fit the CW model, potentially bring in new attractive women (and CHARACTERS from the DCU!) to the show, and also could cause love-triangle-like drama between characters. IE: Hal hitting on Felicity, Laurel, Thea, Sara, Kendra, Patty, Iris, Caitlin…I made my point.

 

3)  HAL JORDAN IS A DAREDEVIL TEST PILOT.

 

Now if you weren’t already interested, here’s where it gets FUN. Hal Jordan is a test pilot. He’s not a tech genius, but he drives fast cars for fun and flies experimental aircraft for a living (and also fun). I’m seeing a Hal in the DCCW-verse as a man with a instinctual genius for mechanics. Yeah, I would LOVE any excuse to bring in more people from the GL universe but as bad as I’d want to see Tom Kalmaku, this is where it makes more sense to just have Hal have that mechanical inclination. BECAUSE, he can be a MUCH needed tech buddy to Cisco. Yeah, Cisco is more of an engineer with a wide berth of tech and scientific knowledge, but having Hal there could help coax out the mechanical engineer side of Cisco. Plus, as we’ll get to later, a concern with Hal/GL is the MONEY it would take to realize the effects on screen on a TV budget. Well, with the test pilot angle, you get the action without the major cost. Planes sequences may also cost money to render, but I bet they’re MUCH easier and cheaper than Green Lantern effects and development.

 

4)  CAROL FERRIS IS ALSO A TEST PILOT. (MINUS THE DAREDEVIL)

 

The great thing about ‘The Flash’ and ‘Arrow’ shows? BADASS WOMEN. Imagine Carol Ferris on one (or both) of these shows! How amazingly complete the young business woman with a heart of gold, in love with her employee, and a fondness and aptitude for flying jets…could be realized using the Arrow/Flash CW format for kick ass chicks! Plus? She runs (or will run depending on how you write it) Ferris Air. So I ALSO see her as having a mechanical expertise. Which means? FEMALE CISCO! THAT could be fun as well. And I’d say we let the two date for awhile. Let Cisco actually establish a relationship. I mean, yeah, Hal eventually is the one for her. But seeing Carol and Cisco together could be just as endearing as seeing the Patty/Barry stuff is now (which I LOVE).

 

Hal Carol Test Pilot

 

5)  THE GREEN LANTERN WORLD IS A WORLD OF ALIENS AND OF COSMIC SCOPE.

 

Lastly, this. ‘Arrow’ went street level at first. Then Deathsroke brought in the world of scientifically augmented power. The Barry brought in the world of super powers. Now ‘Arrow’ is tackling the mystical side of the DC universe. It’s clear Superman (and his family) is being used elsewhere for the nonce. So how else do we bring the unlimited scope that is the universal side of the DCU? Green Lantern. Establish Hal, establish his ring and the terrestrial explanation Caitlin/Felicity/Cisco come up with for his ring. Then Hal disappears for a bit for training. Then comes back and BAM. The REAL explanation. And boom, DC cosmic. Aliens. Immortal beings. Anti-Matter universes. Go a far as you want with it!

 

And there you have it.

 

Sure, Hal having his OWN show is great. But without a massive budget, it’s completely unfeasible. However…so was the Flash. The budget for that show is pressed nearly episode to episode (if the special features on the season one blu-ray can be believed). But they maintain their audience and ratings continuously, so the CW/WB justifies that budget. If the end goal is a Green Lantern SHOW? It’s possible if the showrunners show it to be a well realized fan hit. But if not? There’s STILL a nearly unlimited amount of ways you could logically use Hal/Green Lantern in these shows.

 

Yes. I’m focused on HAL specifically. John, Kyle, Guy (even Simon) all have ways they could be introduced and WORK. But Hal is the focus because that’s where the hints lie. Ferris Air? Hal’s employer. “Test pilot went missing”? Hal. Jordan name tag on a bomber jacket? Hal Jordan. He’s the clear front runner. I HOPE it happens. SO many of the things I want to see on the Flash and Arrow could become reality with one simple character introduction: Hal Jordan.

 

 

Green Lantern #47 – Initial Reaction

green lantern 47‘Green Lantern’ #47 released today written by Robert Venditti with art by Martin Coccolo.

 

So why the reaction piece on the website? Why not wait until our monthly review episode to cover this comic? Well, first of all, this is more of a mini-reaction as opposed to a full blown review. (We need to give you SOMETHING to anticipate after all) And secondly, this is something I’ve wanted in the Green Lantern comics for a LONG while. So it felt fitting to toss up a quick thought or two day of.

 

GUT REACTION: For a “Hal Jordan on Earth” story within the status quo of the current GL story-line it’s actually not half bad at all. Jordan family interactions are well placed and funny. There’s hardly any action and I’m ok with it.

 

And that’s really all I’ll say for the moment. That, on the face of it, I actually liked it.

 

So why devote a post for a three sentence reaction? Because, for YEARS, this is what I’ve wanted from the Green Lantern titles when things get stagnant or seemingly directionless. (Not that those are adjectives I’d ascribe to the current series, but you get the idea.) In the 1960’s, when things got campy and the title was failing,  Julius Schwartz brought on Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams to course correct the series. They did so by bringing Hal back down to Earth. Denny and Neal did their thing, then things went all ‘Crisis’ and we returned to space, then things got wonky again…and then the 90’s come around and it’s time for another course correction…so they bring Hal back down to Earth yet again. Well my friends, it’s been a decade since Geoff Johns brought Hal back and gave us the emotional spectrum. And we’ve spent the vast majority of that time out in space dealing with the ramifications of that decision (and it’s been a largely fun ride). But, PERSONALLY, I’ve been saying it’s time to course correct and bring Hal back down to Earth.

 

If you’ve listened to our State of the Green Lantern Union episode, you already know our feelings on things and just how many people seem to share those sentiments. And that it’s not a knock against the current creative teams. Where we are, plot wise, is likely more a product of where DC wants things to be rather than anything else. (Not to say that the teams DON’T have input. But those ideas are likely confined to the boundaries of the sandbox they’ve been asked to play in.) But given my (and SEVERAL others) long time desire to see Hal return to adventures ON EARTH, I felt it necessary to give credit where credit is due.

 

Venditti brings Hal back to Earth for a few issues and gives us what we’ve been requesting for awhile now. And, within the confines of the current status quo, it was/is FUN. And I sincerely thank Robert for it. Sure, in a few issues we’re going to be tossed back into the “Cosmic Odyssey” type stories (though, hopefully, no planets will be destroyed), but it’s nice to be acknowledged. Seeing Hal return to Earth, interact with his family and face down classic GL rouges that AREN’T emotional spectrum related? Give me more! I’m going to be buying multiple copies for as long as it happens. I suggest, if you share my desire, you do so as well. Vote with your dollars!

 

So thanks Robert. I appreciate it. I’m considering it your Christmas gift to this longtime GL fan before we return to space. So you can forget about that other thing. -Chad Bokelman

#HalOnEarth #Halin2814

DC Comics 75th Anniversary Green Lantern Video!

Today DC Comics released on their DC Entertainment Youtube page a video featuring a scroll of various Lanterns to appear in comics since 1940. The video scrolls through multiple incarnations of Green Lantern since his first appearance in ‘All-American Comics’ #16 at the hands of the amazing Martin Nodell and Bill Finger. Included in the scroll are Alan, Hal, John, Guy, Kyle and more! Notable in the scroll is Kyle as Ion in the ‘Power of Ion’ story (YESSS!!!) and Alan as Sentinel, Jade, Mosaic John Stewart, Elseworlds Lanterns and a heckuvalot more all set to an epic sounding background track.

 

Now how about that 75th Anniversary Animated Short DC? I mean, Superman and Batman got one…it’s surely OUR turn right? RIGHT?

 

The Darkstars: Issue #1 Review by Jim Remolde!

Darkstars ReviewsIssue One of Darkstars was released on September 1, 1992 with a cover date of October 1992 (Thanks to Mike’s Amazing World of DC Comics for this information). This issue was written by co-creator Jan Friedman with pencils by the second co-creator Larry Stroman. The inker was Scott Hanna. The Letterer was Bob Pinaha; Julianna Ferreter was the colorist with the editor being Brian Augustin. Robert Greenberger was credited as the consultant.

“Mean Streets” opens on another day and another dung heap. We meet Darkstar Colos as he is boarding a star ship. From the internal monolog we learn that this is an outlaw ship. We see that Colos has some self doubt about his effectiveness. Is he really accomplishing anything by being a Darkstar? He mentions a botched job on Jenuwyne. We do not know what happened. He even muses as he battles the ship’s crew that he might be suicidal. That is ridiculous. He has much to live for.

After the battles and he takes this ship, Colos contacts the Darkstar Regional Administrator Prigatz. This ship is carrying as Colos puts it, medicines. In reality this is a drug smuggling ship. Prigatz has a new mission for Colos. He is to report to Sector 109, planet 43. This planet is Earth. .

We cut to Earth, Dallas to be exact. We meet Sister Esperanza and Lieutenant Flint of the Dallas Police Department. Flint is looking for information and the Sister points him to Maurice (Mo) Douglas. Flint is looking for information on a new drug in town called Loco. The user starts out feeling good but after a while, the user turns very violent and as Flint puts it, the user “wants to go out and pick a fight with everyone in sight”. Mo has heard about this drug and he might know where the warehouse is that is being used to distribute the drug. It is located on Canton. Flint leaves Mo his card. Mo appears to be as depressed as Colos; he is not sure that Flint’s raiding of this warehouse will help with the situation, another distribution location will just pop up elsewhere.

Back in space, Colos is briefed about Earth. We learn that Earth was not known about until a confederacy led by the Daxamites invaded. This is chronicled in the story line “Invasion” published by DC Comics in 1988. Now three ships have vanished into Sector 109. Together these ships contain the cargo to provide the components of the Serian drug Loku. It is believed that the ships were headed for Earth. The Darkstars currently do not include Earth in its patrols even though another organization has maintained a presence. My guess is that this other organization is the Green Lantern Corp. Colos is to head to Earth and stop this drug from being distributed.

We now meet defense attorney Carla White and her client, Frank Pappas. Carla has successfully defended Pappas from charges that he is a member of organized crime. They have just left the court and are being mobbed by reporters asking for comments from both characters. Carla pushes Pappas into a limo which leaves Carla behind. Good thing. We meet an alien named Danik who is also in the limo. This alien is working with Pappas to distribute the Loco drug. Here we get the connection that the Loco and Loku drugs are the same thing. They are now ready to enter Phase two of distribution. We do not know what the purpose of this drug is at the moment but we learn that the violent side effects are unexpected but not unwelcome as violent addicts are a bigger headache for authorities than peaceful ones. Carla is picked up by her father and she leaves the scene as well.

On the streets we meet up with Mo. He is wandering and thinking about Sister Esperanza. He comes across a Loco drug deal. He knows that the fights will break out soon and tries to clear all the homeless people in the area. He finds he is too late and the fights break out as he fears but he still believes he can save one more woman. He grabs her and tries to run away with her but is soon attacked by the addicts. Just as Mo is about to get overtaken by the addicts Colos arrives and fights off the addicts. Mo wonders if this is another superhero as Colos fights the addicts. Unfortunately the woman Mo grabbed was already dead. Colos tells Mo that she died of a drug overdose but not Loku, something home grown. Colos makes Mo his guide.

We cut back to space where the Director of the Darkstars who is seen only in shadow is talking to Prigatz. He is not happy that Colos was chosen for this assignment. Unfortunately he cannot be replaced unless he is dead so it seems like it is Colos or nothing.

We close with Flint’s raid on the warehouse. Everything does not go as expected as we find Flint face to face with an alien who is ready to kill him.

There are a lot of characters to meet here. I had to write down all the characters names we meet in this issue. One interesting not is that none of these characters are familiar to me at all. It appears that everyone here is new and I like that. It gives the writer and artist a chance to create a whole new world here without being constrained to preexisting concepts or characters. The only reference to current concepts was the unnamed reference to the Green Lantern Corp.

I want to focus on Colos. This issue gives us a hero that we know nothing about. Even the references that are dropped either in monolog or conversation leaves a lot of holes that the reader is eager to fill. Colos is apparently a well decorated and at least at one time a much respected member of the Darkstars, but something happened to change that. Colos, himself was very confident in his job as a Darkstar but now he has lost his confidence. The only parallel I can think of is Abin Sur just prior to his death. I have not read too far into this run and I am experiencing this series as I read it so I do not know what Colos’s fate is. I would hope that this is not just another Abin Sur who will die and pass on his power to a human but only time will tell. I also do not know what a Darkstar’s power is. It looks like he can fire energy blasts and there is some strength enhancement but we do not know if this is natural for Colos or is some special Darkstar power. I am definitely looking forward to learn more about the Darkstars power set and how they differ from that of the Green Lanterns.

I found it refreshing that we are not dealing with a super villain just yet. What we are dealing with is an intergalactic drug ring and I am interested in seeing where this story will go.

darkstars #1

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