So last week I ran this review of the '90s version of Guy Gardner - a working class, "regular Joe" kind of hero. Today, we see the modern version of Guy being highlighted in this issue of Green Lantern Corps, and today's version seems like a different character.
The modern Guy comes up with a reasonable plan to fight the invading army of undead Black Lanterns - he suggests the multi-colored Lanterns team up to form a "Tholian Web." (For you whippersnappers, it's a reference to an episode of the original Star Trek TV series wherein aliens trap the starship Enterprise in an energy web.)
I can buy that Guy would base a plan on an old TV show - but I don't believe for a minute that he can cite the season and episode number, as he does here. I'm a big Star Trek fan, too, but I can't cite episode numbers, and I don't believe for a minute that Guy can - it just feels out of character.
Then he's faced with the Black Lantern version of Ice, his girlfriend / lover / whatever she is now, and they do the usual dance there. (Wasn't she alive the last time we saw her?) By this point, it has become old hat - no one seems a bit surprised when long-dead Aunt Matilda shows up as a Black Lantern.
More offensive is the encounter with Kyle Rayner and his stuffed-into-a-refrigerator girlfriend Alex, in which we see several graphic depictions of how she met her death.
That's been the hallmark of Peter Tomasi's run on this book - extreme violence, lots of screaming and yelling - it's all pretty tiresome.
The art is quite good, though you suspect penciller Patrick Gleason will need a long vacation after the Blackest Night wraps, considering how many pages he's had to fill with assorted Lanterns, villains and energy blasts galore.
This comic is basically doing the grunt work for the Blackest Night and Green Lantern comics, and battle fatigue is definitely setting in. I'm looking forward to the wrapup on this storyline.
Grade: C+
2 comments:
Guy Gardner wasn't always a macho jerk. He collected General Glory comics as a kid, and you could argue that its a nerdy hobby :) You never hear anything about Hal Jordan or John Stewart collecting comics. Liking the original Star Trek doesn't mean you're automatically a nerd though. Knowing the episode number was a bit much though I agree.
Good point, I had forgotten about the General Glory comics thing (although that was during the Justice League International days, when Guy wasn't exactly handled with much respect). I can buy Guy remembering the Star Trek episode or even being a fan of the series - but citing the episode number just felt like the writer was trying to be too cute.
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