In Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #2 from DC Comics, written by Tim Sheridan with art by Cian Tormey, Alan Scott enters conversion therapy.
We reviewed the book on the Stack podcast. But in the interest of highlighting more about the title, here’s a summary of the conversation with our thoughts. And if you prefer the longer audio version, that’s below as well!
Powered by RedCircle
Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #2 Review:
In the “present,” Alan Scott is the Green Lantern, and searching for a murderer. In the past, he’s checked himself into conversion therapy at Arkham Asylum. How do the two time periods connect?
“Throughout, we are dealing with the fact that Alan Scott is gay, he has been closeted for most of his life,” said host Alex Zalben, setting the stage. “What does that mean? What does that mean for him as a hero, as a human being? Very complicated stuff here, particularly as he goes through conversion therapy in this issue.”
Tyler thought the fact that Scott voluntarily checked in was “an interesting factor here,” and loved the “dual idea” of watching him try conversion therapy while becoming Green Lantern at the same time. “We haven’t seen a lot of comics go into this time period… What happened to people, and what people did to themselves and other people.”
He continued that this book presents, “a whole different emotional version of the way that the Green Lantern’s powers work… Really smart storytelling, combining the emotional quotient as well as superheroics, which… Is hard to do.”
Pete LePage loved the art style, and thought this book is “a smart use of an older character… Making a very interesting character we thought we knew, fresh and new.”
Zalben added, “It’s very impressive what Tim Sheridan is doing here in terms of not shying away from the realities of conversion therapy, even though it’s a superhero story, not downplaying it… DC is doing a great job of putting their money where their mouth is with their LGBTQ+ characters, which I continue to find really impressive. They’re not just paying lip service to the fact that Alan Scott came out, they’re really delving into it and what it means for the fact that he was a hero in the 1940s. So, a very laudable series, that is also, I don’t want to underplay this, fun to read. There’s good superhero stuff, [and] killer action sequences from Cian Tormey throughout.”
Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #2 Official Synopsis:
WHO FRAMED ALAN SCOTT? Alan’s search for the killer framing him continues! But why are the murder victims people from Alan’s past, and how does this connect to his brief stint in Arkham Asylum?!
