Green Lantern #20
There are some comic book runs that are truly legendary. Frank Miller’s Daredevil and Peter David’s Incredible Hulk just as a couple examples. Well you can add Geoff Johns’ run on Green Lantern to the list as issue twenty brings his tenure to a close. Since 2005, Johns has been the creative powerhouse behind the return of Hal Jordan and has defined the Lantern universe like no one before him. So much so that I can’t imagine what it is going to be like without him. In my eyes, the Geoff Johns’ vision of Hal Jordan and the universe Johns expanded on will always be how I perceive Green Lantern and the Corps. Johns took what many considered to be an irrelevant portion of the DC universe and made it into a major player just by sheer creative will. It might be hard for older fans to admit, but the last few years we have seen Green Lantern become more important than Superman or Batman. But sadly, every legendary run must come to its end.
Issue twenty is a massive oversized book that rivals a trade paperback of The Walking Dead. And while some of the issue is padded with goodbyes and an unnecessary side story, there is still a great deal to read and take in as everything wraps up. Everything concludes, as it should, with a massive battle where every Lantern corps throws everything they have at the First Lantern. The issue is also able to keep a healthy focus on Hal Jordan to remind us that this story is really all about him. There are some major happenings here and an epic change that I didn’t see coming. Personally, I was thoroughly satisfied by the ending but won’t go too much into it as not to give it away. I’ll just say that if you’ve been following Green Lantern for at least the past few years, then you’ll probably enjoy the hell out of this book.
I only have one real complainant. Most of the book feels convenient and rushed. Some of the plot points just seem to conclude on their own without any real explanation to the reader. And Johns could have easily squeezed out another five issues with what was left in this story, but instead crammed everything into one issue to have one last epic battle. But maybe I’m just not used to seeing something important happen on every single page of a comic.
Still, this is an epic conclusion to an epic run. If you’ve been asleep for the past several years, or just new to comics, you’ve missed one of the best runs of recent memory. Green Lantern has been so successful it has taken Johns to the forefront of almost everything important in DC comics. We’ll probably be enjoying his writing for years to come on his major push into Justice League. However, nothing will ever stick out in our minds as much as his work on Green Lantern. It was some of the most creative and profound work ever done with the character. Before, Hal Jordan had a reputation as being the greatest of the Green Lanterns. But now, he might as well be the only Green Lantern.
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