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Post by Batflunkie on Jul 20, 2021 19:02:36 GMT -5
*This is a thread for will-power fanatics*
Ever since I was a child, reading a Millennium Edition of the first appearance of the Justice League, I've been in love with Green Lantern and the very idea behind him. Much like Captain America, Abin Sur could have picked anybody, but he chose Hal because he alone had the power to overcome great fear.
I think Gerad Jones' run (regardless of how controversial he is now), what little I've read of it, is my favorite. He seemed to "get" and understand the concept better than anyone and it's sad that it had to be ruined by Emerald Twilight. But we did get Kyle out of it, so maybe that's a good thing?
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Post by Rob Allen on Jul 20, 2021 19:14:41 GMT -5
The second comic book of my life was Green Lantern #25. (This is not my copy) I had three issues of Green Lantern and several JLAs when I was a kid. Then I lost touch with GL from about 1967 to 1973 when I started buying the DC superhero universe. I probably have every GL appearance from 1973 to mid-1978. I'm not sure if I've read a GL story since 1978. Wait, does New Frontier count as a GL story? PS. I saw someone online describe GL as "a human 3D printer". Accurate, but GL is much faster than any of our 3D printers.
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Post by Batflunkie on Jul 20, 2021 19:21:01 GMT -5
I saw someone online describe GL as "a human 3D printer". Accurate, but GL is much faster than any of our 3D printers. Something that's bothered me while reading Silver Age GL is that I was under the impression that after a certain period, the power ring constructs went away. But then there are instances where Hal re-builds a destroyed dam or gives a boy a power ring modeled after his own
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Post by SJNeal on Jul 20, 2021 21:00:39 GMT -5
Huge GL fan here! I became a fan in the early 90's with Jones & Broderick's run; I missed the relaunch by a year or so and had to track down the early issues. There was a lot that didn't make sense to me, but that didn't matter. I was hooked by the concept and the characters. I followed Hal into Justice League Europe (a run that counts about 11 of us out there as fans of ), and the rest is history.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 20, 2021 22:11:36 GMT -5
Not as big of a fan, because of the miracle aspect of the ring, but it depended a lot on who was doing the story. My formative years were a low point for GL, following the O'Neil and Adams experiment, when the book was canceled. The first GL story I can recall reading was when he was reduced to being a back-up character, in The Flash, as well as his role in the JLA (my main source for a good chunk of the DC heroes, beyond the Trinity). I did pick up the odd revived GL/GA issue, as much for the Mike Grell art as the story. I always kind of enjoyed Alan Scott's appearances more; but, then again, those were rare treats, rather than a steady diet.
Hal Jordan worked exceptionally well in the Silver Age because he was a product of it, as a test pilot and an astro-cop. It fed into the drive to reach space and the test pilot heroes who became the Mercury 7 and Gemini and Apollo astronauts. Darwyn Cooke really got that part right, in New Frontier. I read some of that in reprints and enjoyed those, thought the Gil Kane art was a big selling point. I kind of felt the writers of the 70s struggled to understand the character, which is part of why he came across as a stiff, in that decade (informed by his role as punching bag in GL/GA, in O'Neil's stories).
Any time you got other Green Lanterns involved, I got excited, until that became the regular thing, removing the novelty of it.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 20, 2021 23:01:55 GMT -5
Green Lantern was one of my absolute favorite characters as a kid...that I didn't actually enjoy reading that much. How that happened? Challenge of the Super Friends, he had the cool voice, cool costume, and the concept of the power ring I loved. Plus this being one of my early purchases off the newsstand as a kid, one of those covers that has just stuck with me all my life: But I could never get into reading the series on a regular basis. Going back and reading Silver Age stories I liked those better. And apples to oranges here, but I remember getting my first Golden Age GL Archive and just devouring those stories, I really liked the Alan Scott stuff as well as how Roy Thomas would later use him like in All-Star Squadron. I thought what they did with Hal and the whole Parallax thing was terrible even though I kind of liked Kyle (particularly in JLA). While I'm more of a classic comics guy, my favorite GL run was with Geoff Johns. Not only did it bring back Hal and properly as a hero, Sinestro really had his day as well (another favorite from Super Friends).
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Post by zaku on Jul 21, 2021 6:04:52 GMT -5
PS. I saw someone online describe GL as "a human 3D printer". Accurate, but GL is much faster than any of our 3D printers. Well, the ring gave to him a lot of powers, like phasing or similar. Silver Age Green Lantern was virtually omnipotent and a lot of stories were like "How will he be able to overcome the yellow weakness this time?"
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Post by Icctrombone on Jul 21, 2021 6:37:49 GMT -5
My first exposure to GL must have been in a JL comic. I also liked that there was a earth2 counterpart. The only time I liked Hal was in the Neal Adams run, I'm a big fan of Kyle Rayner who captured the Marvel formula and was DC's Peter Parker for a time. But hey, who wouldn't like a magical ring that does anything you want ?
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Post by Hoosier X on Jul 21, 2021 7:31:57 GMT -5
Huge GL fan here! I became a fan in the early 90's with Jones & Broderick's run; I missed the relaunch by a year or so and had to track down the early issues. There was a lot that didn't make sense to me, but that didn't matter. I was hooked by the concept and the characters. I followed Hal into Justice League Europe (a run that counts about 11 of us out there as fans of ), and the rest is history. I read GL for a while starting about issue one fifty one and sticking with it to Parallax. I read JLE for a year or so. I really liked it but I stopped when Power Girl got pregnant because I could tell it was going to be stupid.
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Post by brutalis on Jul 21, 2021 8:11:10 GMT -5
Like codystarbuck my GL reading was mostly JLA related. Never saw any Kane Silver Age and my 1st Lantern singular experience was a black/white paperback collecting some of the O'Neill/Adam's stories. Had a few Flash issues with the Grell back up's. I began to pick up the series during the Staton "era" and eventually lost interest around the time just before he went villainous. Never followed the Rayner years other than when he popped up in Flash or JLA. Picked up the Rebirth with Hal Jordan but nothing since. Once there became a cast of thousand taking away the focus from a singular hero and that dang near anybody could wield the ring I have no real caring to read.
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dave
Junior Member
Posts: 44
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Post by dave on Jul 21, 2021 8:18:41 GMT -5
Recent convert here, brought in by the Johns/Tomasi era (or maybe I should say Mahnke/Gleason/Reis/Van Sciver era... that period when the art on the Green Lantern books refused to be ignored). It's only been this year that I've finally started digging into the character's past series. Because of this, a lot of my attachment isn't to Hal at all (who I actually think is a real knob-end) or any single Lantern so much as the concept of the Corps. GL works best for me as a sort of sci-fi police procedural. I'm reading the Englehart/Staton run for the first time presently and really enjoying it (insane Star Sapphire/Predator reveal aside).
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Josh
Full Member
Posts: 111
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Post by Josh on Jul 21, 2021 8:45:17 GMT -5
Like dave the Johns run was my introduction (I still haven’t finished it, as I am terrible at finishing things), and I prefer the Corps to any one specific Lantern. I’ve also read a little bit of the early Silver Age stuff, but that’s about it for Lantern books.
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Post by adamwarlock2099 on Jul 21, 2021 8:53:42 GMT -5
I saw someone online describe GL as "a human 3D printer". Accurate, but GL is much faster than any of our 3D printers. Something that's bothered me while reading Silver Age GL is that I was under the impression that after a certain period, the power ring constructs went away. But then there are instances where Hal re-builds a destroyed dam or gives a boy a power ring modeled after his own I'll make this complaint, of what I have read of GL outside of Kyle Rayner, is that I left Hal was unimaginative with his constructs, and my criticisms of his character aside, for a visual media it made reading it boring. While making Kyle and artist, be that Ron Marz's idea, or whoever's, was really refreshing to see visually. It let Kyle's creative side show in his constructs. Which made it both fun to read and see. I also like that DC brought back John Stewart in Marz's run with Kyle, in a fairly pivotal role. It helped introduce the character to me and discover GL where he had the role.
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Post by Batflunkie on Jul 21, 2021 15:09:47 GMT -5
I agree with the other posters that mentioned Alan. I'm very glad that, like Jay in the Flash, they incorporated him into the story as a through line. Loved him even more in JSA
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Post by majestic on Jul 21, 2021 19:42:49 GMT -5
Alan is my favorite. I liked Hal and John and Kyle. The rest of the Earth based GL not so much.
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