GREEN LANTERN: REBIRTH by Geoff Johns

I really enjoyed Green Lantern: Secret Origin and I think it was a great place for me to start: a simple origin story for Lantern newbies but still introducing cool mysteries and high concept science fiction. But I thought the real test was going to be this book, a tricky rebooting of a high fantasy cosmic saga and the return of the greatest Lantern, years after a number of other humans have taken up the mantle. Was I going to be lost and confused jumping into the middle of years of canon? Would ithe story just seem like a cheap trick to try to bring back a beloved character?

Well I admit that it wasn't as tightly crafted and easy to understand as Secret Origin, but I'm happy to say that it was still exciting. I was a bit lost with the the backstory of what happened to Hal Jordan before this book (there's something about him going bad and then bonding with the spirit of fear and the spirit of vengeance as they war for control of his mind). But I think that Johns did a relatively good job at catching me up and I was surprised by how much I understood and appreciated it all. There are lots of Justice League and Lantern Corps cameos as Jordan's friends band together to try to free him from both spirits. I'm not a big fan of all-powerful heroes, but what I enjoy about the Green Lantern is that although a Lantern's ring is the most powerful weapon in the universe, it's potential is only as strong as the willpower and imagination of the person using it, and in one of the best scenes in this book, I love how you see the struggle that Green Arrow goes through when he tries to use the ring.

There are some really great moments and and well-drawn action, especially in the rousing finale where all the heroes have to fight Parallax, the embodiment of fear. Even Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman are out of their league and have to take a step back and let the Lanterns do the damn thing! I actually felt like cheering after the final fight and the triumphant return of Hal Jordan, which is pretty surprising given the fact that I wasn't very familiar with what happened before. There's some great world-building and a surprising amount of thoughtful character work. I especially loved the conflict between Green Lantern, a man with no fear, and Batman, a man who's biggest weapon is intimidation.

GRADE: B-