Archive for the ‘Blogs’ Category

‘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

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?

Let some Violet Light into your life and add a little Love to your Lantern Collection with the Star Sapphire Power Battery and Ring Prop. And as an added bonus, we discuss another cool new prop, though not directly Lantern related!! Unless you want to factor in Godhead, then… maybe. LOL

A Blue Lantern movie ring gets the Batjeepster Rings treatment in our latest episode. See if “all will be well” with this latest addition to the movie-inspired ring series.

Issue 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.

What could the next Green Lantern movie ring possibly look like? Batjeepster Rings give us their take in this extremely attractive and fun-to-wear silver ring!

Today, Jim takes a look at the die cast movie style Green Lantern ring from the Noble Collection. No longer in production, so you’ll have to go to eBay to find these.

My name is Jim Remolde.  I have been an active comic book fan for about 5 years.  I will be writing reviews of the comic book series ‘The Darkstars’ from the 1990’s.  Why, you might ask?  I am so glad you asked that question.

I said I was not active in comics, what I should have said was that I was not active in superhero comics.  Growing up in the 1980’s, I read ‘Star Trek’ by DC Comics, ‘Star Wars’, and ‘G. I. Joe’; both licensed comics published by Marvel.  I also fell in love with the little cartoon from the 70’s into the early 80’s called the Super Friends.  My favorite season being the Challenge of the Superfriends which pitted eleven of DC Comics heroes including the then big four of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman along with Robin with other heroes like Flash, Hawkman, and the Green Lantern, notably Hal Jordan.  I, of course not reading comics, never heard of the characters of Guy Gardner and John Stewart, who were both Green Lanterns in the printed book, against the thirteen (that number might mean something, I’ll have to ponder that) of the most fearsome villains of the galaxy including a yellow ring slinging villain called Sinestro.

I fell in love with Green Lantern, but I thought there was only one, like Superman or Batman. I also had no concept of the Multiverse either. I had a lot to learn.

Sure I watched other shows and movies as the time moved on, I learned about Hal going mad with power and a new Green Lantern coming along, Kyle Rayner.  I watched the Superman animated series where Superman meets Kyle, not much of a memory of that show or episode and even then the Bruce Timm universe took a more expansive approach.

I found that in the 2000’s a new team up show, The Justice League was starting and I watched Batman and Superman begrudgingly teaming up.  I like a little dissension in their ranks but I still hold that, at the end of the day, they will have each others backs.  They both teamed up to free the alien J’onn J’onzz from a government installation and in the escape other heroes were called in telepathically by J’onn; Wonder Woman, Flash (Wally West), Hawkgirl and Green Lantern.  I knew of Wally and that he was not Barry Allen who I thought was the first Flash (sorry Jay) and of course I knew the two women, but the Green Lantern surprised me.  I was thinking that the Lantern would be Kyle, he was not.  I had just been introduced to John Stewart.

I wanted to do some research and through Comixology I got into the Green Lantern comics starting with ‘Rebirth’ and moving into ‘Blackest Night’ and I was hooked.  Of course I read about Hal and Kyle and Guy Gardner (who I first met on the show Batman:  The Brave and the Bold) but also John Stewart.  Green Lantern became my gateway drug to the rest of the DC Universe and I discovered the Multiverse as a result. So Alan Scott, Jay Garrick, Helena Wayne; pleased to meet you all!

By listening to podcasts and getting into the “older” (I use that term loosely as I am in my 40’s now) comics I learned more about the back stories of characters like John.  I read ‘Green Lantern:  Mosaic’ which highlighted John as the main character.  I learned about the tragedy of Xanshi and John’s own military and architectural background.  I also learned about another cosmic force which John would eventually join that also included Donna Troy from Marv Wolfman’s run of the ‘New Teen Titans’, called the Darkstars.  A group that was led by a group of aliens related to the Guardians of the Universe called the Controllers.

In my posts I will be reviewing ‘The Darkstars’ series including their crossovers with ‘Green Lantern’. I’ve found that both Hal and Kyle had dealings with them, the ‘Teen Titans’, ‘Damage’, and ‘L.E.G.I.O.N.’.  I will be examining the Controllers and hopefully get at their motivations and why they split from the Guardians.  My thanks to Chad and Mark for allowing me to document my journey on the Lanterncast.com and I hope you will enjoy this journey as I will in taking it.  Your comments and questions, as always, are more than welcome.

Now let’s get this journey started as we travel back to a time after a reality altering Crisis where Barry died and nothing else is really known and a time before a Kryptonian died and a vigilante in a gothic city was broken by a hulking drug addict…

Cover dated in July of 1940 (meaning an on sale date of May-ish) ‘All-American Comics’ #16 featured the very first appearance of Alan Scott, the Golden Age Green Lantern. That means that it’s been a full 75 years since the concept of Green Lantern was created by Martin Nodell.

So we here at the LanternCast are coordinating a massive crossover with several of the dedicated Green Lantern related blogs, websites and podcasts across the internet. 

A few of the more notable participants in this crossover are as follows:

The Brightest Day, The Blackest Night

Flodo’s Page Blog

Green Bloggers Site

Blog of Oa

As we celebrate one of the greatest characters in modern American mythology, be sure to use the hashtag #GL75th across various social media sites to celebrate with us! If you’d like to join in the fun, please email us at lanterncast@gmail.com! And while we’re at it, here are a few images you can use across the internet during the months of June and July (and the rest of the year if you feel up to it!).

And lastly, here’s the OFFICIAL image from DC comics celebrating the anniversary.

We can’t wait to show you what we’ve got in store!

When you play the “Game of New York Comic Con Tickets,” you may win and still die from the time and energy exerted. Let Mark fill you in on what you missed if you didn’t experience the madness that occurred on 5/13/15 or even if you did, re-live the adventure!